Chapter 37: Your Karmic Debt Is Mine! (4k, asking for monthly votes and continued reading)

The fly child pinned to the ground heard Jiang Yan's words, tilted its head at a grotesque angle, revealed a face covered in blood, and said with venom:

"You are too arrogant, relying only on a surprise attack..."

"Only the weak make excuses; the strong do not speak..."

Jiang Yan cut him off, looking down at the fly child, and said calmly:

"Because the strong me is dominating you!"

"Sss—"

As the words fell, the scarlet glow in the eyes of the two-headed Shadow-Eating Great Serpent intensified, shadows flowed, and spread like a tide.

Hiss! Hiss!

Another tail hook began to coil around the fly child's neck; the sharp scythe-blade touched its neck, revealing a line of blood from which countless blood beads seeped out.

The latter instantly understood Jiang Yan's intent, his expression filled with terror, and roared:

"You dare!?"

Crack!

The fly child's head rolled onto the ground, its gaze filled with disbelief, and then...

It was swallowed whole by the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent.

Hiss! Hiss!

Accompanied by the sound of chewing, from the wound on its other broken head, shadow-like flesh and blood sprouted numerous flesh buds that intertwined, beginning to gradually repair the injury.

"Sss! Sss!"

The two-headed Shadow-Eating Great Serpent's scarlet eyes grew greedier, surging with the desire to devour everything.

The strong are its nourishment.

And the fly child is one of the delicious foods!

Thus, the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent retracted the hooked tail pinning the fly child, brought it to its mouth, and just as it prepared to swallow it...

Boom!

The fly child's broken body suddenly tore apart, but instead of flesh and blood splashing everywhere, tattered leather flew everywhere.

A black shadow leaped out from within, appearing above the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent's head.

It was the fly child!

"Damn it!!!"

At this moment, it was no longer in the form of a child, but had transformed into a giant fly with red compound eyes and a brown body, its eyes filled with thick hatred.

This was a precious human-skin garment it had bought from the leatherworker; after putting it on, it could conceal its true form and demonic qi, easily blending into human society to escape the pursuit of powerful History Walkers.

But in reality, the fly child actually did not like turning into human form, just as humans would not like turning into food.

It was only because Gaoshan, the Lord of Shaolao Mountain, often liked to maintain a human form.

Every time the fly child paid homage to him, it prostrated itself on the ground, looking up at Gaoshan sitting indifferently and majestically on his throne, looking down upon the demons below, high and mighty.

After donning the human skin, the fly child often fantasized about becoming a powerful demon like Gaoshan.

All demons submit, ruling a region.

Therefore, it cherished it immensely in its daily life, applying oil refined from living humans for maintenance every day; any damage or scratch would cause it great pain.

But now...

The human skin was destroyed...

Its dream was also dismembered by Jiang Yan!

The fly child burned with rage, but it did not act impulsively.

Because during the fluctuations when Shaolao Mountain broke into the present world, it was caught in the crossfire and suffered significant injuries; even after eating a large number of History Walkers in succession, it had only recovered half its strength.

It was equivalent only to the Foundation Establishment Initial Stage.

So this time, it deliberately faked death to lower the opponent's guard, solely to get close to the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent before striking.

'This fellow relies only on this external manifestation; once I crush the remaining head of this great serpent, I will make you feel the pain of hell!'

The fly child thought venomously in its heart, opened its ferocious mouthparts, and emitted a sharp, explosive sound:

'Killing Move — Spirit Fly Stinger!'

Sss! Sss!

The insect wings on its back vibrated at high speed, its figure suddenly turning into afterimages; several sharp insect limbs, like iron spears, aimed at the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent's head. Because they were too sharp, they directly sliced through the air, raising an almost solidified airflow.

A full-power strike was enough to instantly kill a Foundation Establishment Initial Stage cultivator!

Let alone a mere serpent condensed from shadows!

"You destroyed my human skin; die!"

The fly child growled low, its killing intent boiling.

Ding!

However, the expected cutting sensation did not come; instead, a crisp sound rang out, numbing its limbs.

The fly child's expression froze, and it roared:

"How is this possible?!"

Its insect limbs hit the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent, but that was all they achieved.

They were blocked by a faint golden light protecting the serpent's body surface and could not penetrate even a fraction further.

"Vajra Vajrayogini Mother Dull Fire Seal!"

The fly child said word by word, but could not understand.

Why...

Would a Shadow-Eating Great Serpent also cultivate the signature ability of the Corpse-Release Wang Ting?

Without any mutation in the Vajra Vajrayogini, how could it possess such high proficiency?

Is the Vajra Vajrayogini mad?

"Hiss—"

The Shadow-Eating Great Serpent would not grant it time to think; it opened its abyssal maw and bit down fiercely. Even though the Fly Child quickly fluttered its wings to dodge, several insect legs were still bitten off.

Drip! Drip!

Dark green insect blood dripped from the wounds onto the ground. The Fly Child quickly stopped the bleeding, but its appearance, missing limbs and all, looked extremely miserable.

Even if it did not wish to admit it, everything before its eyes had already escaped its control.

Jiang Yan's calm voice came through:

"Your fear is far more interesting than your current wretched appearance."

One sentence made the Fly Child's gaze extremely dark.

It had always been the one to toy with others; who would have thought that today it would become the toy instead.

Seated, Jiang Yan sensed the other's anger, feeling neither joy nor sorrow. His gaze was indifferent like a calm sea, hiding surging undercurrents within. He whispered in his heart:

"So, why... did you have to force me?"

He only wanted to get home safely, sleep well, wake up to eat the meal Yin Yin Yiyi made, receive his Practice Method, and pass through the new Disease Domain.

After sensing danger, he had fled at the first opportunity, unwilling to cause trouble.

He only wanted to live a peaceful and simple daily life.

But this fool, the Fly Child, chased him relentlessly.

Since there was no way to avoid it, he would go all out.

He directly sacrificed a head and his entire body's vital energy, using the 【Great Assistance】 skill to exchange for combat power at the Foundation Realm.

The surging battle intent should have sent him into a berserker state, but it was precisely suppressed by the dual calming effects of the Sanskrit Sword and Buddha Armor and the Lamp of Ashes, forcing him to calm down.

Two completely opposite extreme effects intertwined; especially after the Lamp of Ashes was born, the godly soul power far exceeding his own rank forced him into a special state.

Wisdom increased dramatically, emotions were absent, allowing him to maintain absolute rationality at all times, and he possessed terrifying computational power.

In his eyes, all matter and life in this world became chess pieces and chips on a chessboard, available for sacrifice.

It was as if he were viewing the world from the perspective of high-dimensional immortals and gods, watching the operation of all things indifferently.

It was also in this extreme rationality that Jiang Yan understood...

how shallow his understanding of the Demon God Embryo was.

It nurtures all things, and can also merge all things into one.

All offspring are chess pieces in its hand, extensions of its will.

They can merge with each other, and naturally, they can also stack upon each other.

Theoretically, with enough offspring and countless attribute stackings, one could create a mythical life and swallow the entire world.

Even immortals and gods could become prey.

However, to reach this step, one needs enough nourishment.

"For now, let's call it... 【Transcendent State】 or 【Lord of War Mode】!"

A thought flashed through Jiang Yan's mind. Looking at the scarred Fly Child, he said calmly:

"It's time to end this."

"Arrogant!"

The Fly Child roared: "So what if the Vajra Vajrayogini lends its power? I will still crush you!"

Just as it prepared to rely on its high-speed movement ability to continuously attack the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent and break the whole with a point, its body suddenly shuddered violently.

The Fly Child lowered its head. The many wounds pierced by the tail hook began to rot rapidly; dense shadow flowed within them, starting to erode the flesh and blood.

"Not good, the hook is poisoned!"

Even for the Fly Child, a naturally filthy fly demon, and even with immediate suppression, facing such intense poison, the flesh and blood within its body still dissolved rapidly, spreading to the entire body in the blink of an eye.

At this moment,

its already injured body was made worse.

"Despicable human! If you have the guts, fight me in a fair and square duel!" The Fly Child's face showed a human-like hatred.

But the only response to its accusation was the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent's frenzied tearing and pursuit, with the tail hook constantly piercing through.

The Fly Child felt extremely aggrieved and could only dodge passively.

It clearly had the strength, yet could not unleash even thirty percent of it.

"Losers just love to find all kinds of excuses for themselves."

Jiang Yan's heart was undisturbed. Facing a stronger opponent of higher rank, one must not only improve oneself but also think of every possible way to weaken the opponent.

One must crush the opponent with absolute advantage, leaving not the slightest chance.

Snap!

Jiang Yan snapped his fingers.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Shadows on the ground surged, transforming into arms that whistled away. The Fly Child dodged them one by one and was just about to mock, but in its compound-eye perspective, it saw them weaving into a net, blocking the path.

"Damn it!"

The Shadow-Eating Great Serpent pressed forward step by step, its abyssal maw already right before its face.

Boom!

Facing a desperate situation, the Fly Child snorted coldly. Dozens of palm-sized white flies emitting white light flew out from its body, blocking in front of it, and then...

They instantly self-destructed!

Boom-boom-boom!

Spiritual energy exploded, instantly engulfing the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent; the ground within dozens of meters cracked and sank.

Dust and smoke rose, shrouding the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent.

"Hateful brat, you forced me to detonate most of my spiritual flies! These are treasures that take hundreds of generations of the fly swarm to produce even one."

"However, even with the Vajra Hayagriva Seal supporting this great serpent, it will be injured. Wait until I devour some humans to restore my Dao foundation and regain high-level strength, then I will return to take my revenge!"

The Fly Child took the opportunity to shrink to the size of an ordinary housefly, mingling with the remaining swarm to escape in the chaos.

Before leaving, its red compound eyes swiveled, looking at Jiang Yan to ensure he had no further tricks.

It was also to remember this enemy.

"Forced out my last trump card, did you?"

Jiang Yan narrowed his eyes; the moment he had been waiting for had finally arrived.

He had been sitting not to look cool, but because sacrificing the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent's head and all its blood and qi to exchange for Dao foundation combat power had left him too weak to stand.

Fortunately, the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent had just swallowed the fly swarm and the Fly Child's limbs, feeding back a significant amount of vitality that restored some of his strength.

Though not enough for fierce combat, it was sufficient for...

Swinging the sword!

"A true swordsman never clings to the sword itself, and does not even need to hold it personally."

Jiang Yan slowly extended his hand and grasped at the void.

"Fool!"

This sudden movement made the distant Fly Child sneer inwardly.

Did this fellow think he was a great lord of the Old Talisman level, capable of crushing him to death from the void through a Dharma Domain?

Wait!

The Fly Child reacted, suddenly realizing...

The headless serpent body that had been guarding Jiang Yan was gone.

"Where exactly is it?"

A bad omen arose in its heart; it suddenly swiveled its compound eyes and saw the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent transform from a phantom shadow into a solid form amidst the dissipating dust.

Shadow transformation to evade physical damage!

Brilliant golden light appeared around the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent as it roared forward.

Through the perspective provided by the Lamp of Ashes, it easily locked onto the Fly Child's life lamp among the many flies.

Then,

it opened its abyssal maw and bit down fiercely!

"How did this fellow discover me?!"

The Fly Child was terrified and could only revert to its true form, waving several insect legs to try and repel it; however, upon collision, it was not blocked but instead sank deeper inside.

It was like hitting scalding mud.

The Fly Child focused its gaze and discovered that the golden light on the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent's body was melting, sticking to its form like burning plastic.

This is...

Tummo!

The Vajra Hayagriva is both the utmost rigidity and the utmost softness!

Inner Tummo fire coils around all things.

"Get away!!!"

The Fly Child panicked; unable to break free despite its utmost efforts, it simply severed its own limbs and released its last spiritual flies to charge at the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent, detonating them to blow it apart.

It flapped its wings and turned to flee, but...

it was too late.

Sizzle! Sizzle!

Another headless serpent body emerged from the Fly Child's shadow, with countless shadow threads spreading from its broken wounds.

They continuously wove together at the broken wounds, forming dozens of black arms, just like the spirits of those killed by the Fly Child returning to the mortal world.

Manifesting karmic retribution.

They gathered together, arms layered upon arms, like flowers of hell,

slowly blooming.

The scene was eerie yet carried a strange beauty.

Sizzle! Sizzle! Sizzle!

At the end of the broken serpent body, a three-meter-long Sanskrit sword appeared, held by the many arms gripping the hilt.

At the same time, Jiang Yan's void fingers tightened, his movements synchronized.

He lowered his gaze and spoke softly:

"Even if a hundred thousand kalpas pass, the karma created will not perish; when causes and conditions meet, the retribution will be received by oneself."

Hum!

The blade trembled, humming incessantly; the Sanskrit characters upon it lit up one after another, gathering together to form a dim Buddha light that dispelled the darkness in the forest.

But the one holding the sword was an even deeper darkness.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Airflow accelerated; in an instant, a gale swept through the forest.

At this moment,

the leaves rustled,

the tree trunks swayed and moaned,

Corpses piled atop the mountain of bodies shifted and tumbled; a cacophony of sounds merged into a peculiar symphony.

It played beside the Fly Child's ear. In that instant, it knew the name of the mysterious melody: Death!

Death!

"Great Vajra Slash!"

Jiang Yan's arm swept down, like a Buddha passing judgment upon the mortal realm.

Hiss! Hiss!

The headless serpent body writhed as numerous arms wielding swords slashed downward.

Wild winds roared; Buddha light spread everywhere.

It transformed into a brilliant "Swastika" sword qi that swept across.

"No! Spare me! I am willing to hand over my Foundation Establishment..."

The Fly Child begged for mercy until his voice gave out, but even with all his strength he could not block the strike for a single instant; he could only watch helplessly as his body was pierced and torn into multiple segments.

The shattered body fell, and the Shadow-Eating Great Serpent swallowed it in one gulp.

The Fly Child, dead!

Jiang Yan slowly withdrew his hand. The flame on the Lamp of Ashes flickered, having absorbed the Fly Child's soul. He spoke softly:

"Your karmic debt is mine now."

Requesting monthly tickets, requesting continued reading, requesting recommendation votes.

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(End of this chapter)