Chapter 339

Ning Zhuo slowly shook his head: "Why would I want to seize the Immortal Palace? For my mother, I will bear even the most monstrous sins alone!"

"You cannot bear it!" Zhu Xuanji roared in anger, being circled by the mechanical giant snake, "For your own selfish gain, to slaughter millions—what a demonic act! If you do this, I will never forgive you!!"

"Little Zhuo..." Sun Lingtong's face was full of worry.

He knew Ning Zhuo's true nature very well.

If this ultimately led to the city's residents being drowned by demonic beasts, Ning Zhuo's future would be bleak and dark. He himself would also be filled with infinite guilt.

All because Ning Zhuo had believed from beginning to end that he was a person of the righteous path!

The throne was more than half melted, and the flames were rapidly weakening.

Noticing this scene, the expressions of Zhu Xuanji and Sun Lingtong both softened.

The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit, however, laughed loudly, staring at the space above Ning Zhuo's head: "Ning Zhuo, you cannot do it, you cannot do it!"

"Although you are the City Lord, you are only one of the three powers."

"You are endangering the Magma Immortal Palace, violating the original intent of the three Sect Masters who established the Immortal Palace; the Life-Thread of the Immortal Palace is stopping you!"

"Stop now; this is the arrangement of the three Sect Masters. You and I are like grass and insects; how can we compare to the three Sect Masters?"

Blood flowed from Ning Zhuo's seven orifices, and he suddenly opened his eyes wide.

"Why not!?"

He shouted decisively, looking up at the sky.

"I refuse to be a puppet on that stage."

"Do you know how deeply I loathe this stage of the Magma Immortal Palace, and this puppet show?"

"Even if I have gained much because of it, I would rather not have it at all, if it could trade for even one day of my mother's lifespan..."

Ning Zhuo was hoarse and exhausted, his eyes splitting with rage.

He suddenly reached out, and with a *snap*, he actually grabbed the Life-Thread above his head!

He pulled with all his might, causing the thick Life-Thread to deform violently.

The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit gasped, but soon discovered that although the thread was severely deformed, it was incomparably tough.

In shock and anger, it mocked: "Ning Zhuo! You are too naive. Is the Life-Thread something you can just snap at will?"

Ning Zhuo remained stubborn, pulling with all his strength.

In his spiritual sea dantian, the white lotus root was like jade, crystal clear; the green leaves were like emeralds, dripping with green; the pink lotus was like clouds, delicate and moving.

The lotus root and leaves, transformed by the Life-Thread divine ability, trembled slightly, gushing with mysterious light.

The mysterious light rose, shooting straight into the nine heavens, piercing through his body to erode the Immortal Palace thread above Ning Zhuo's head!

In an instant, Ning Zhuo had a flash of inspiration.

With disheveled hair and a face covered in blood, he gave a ferocious laugh and chanted aloud!

"Five Qi channel the spirit to grow blood-tendons, three sects unite to build the Foundation."

"Sixteen years of bitter endurance, ten thousand hardships deepen the will."

"Reason and emotion intertwine to pull the strings, all living things bow as subjects for ten thousand generations."

"Why seek to resolve the inner demon, persist for a thousand autumns to vie for the peak!"

I will never let go.

I insist on being persistent!

Who can control me? Even the three Sect Masters cannot!!

I am the one who should manipulate emotion and reason, the one to make all living things bow in submission!!!

"Ah ah ah ah—!"

Ning Zhuo roared at the top of his lungs, looking like a madman.

He gripped the Life-Thread tightly, using every ounce of his strength, magic power, spirit, and will!

Snap.

Even Zhu Xuanji and Sun Lingtong, who could not see the thread, heard a soft sound.

And in the vision of the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit, it was two severed halves of the thread!

"!!!" The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit's mouth hung wide open, its pupils bulging as if they were about to pop out.

In extreme shock, it suddenly recalled a day several hundred years ago.

That afternoon when it encountered the three Sect Masters.

The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit was compressed to be extremely small, looking up at the three Sect Masters as if a mortal ant were looking up at a pillar of heaven and a Buddha.

The three Sect Masters spoke slowly: "Eight hundred years from now, a heavenly killing tribulation will sweep across the universe, blood will flow like a river, and corpses will litter the fields..."

"Oh, fire-deviated dragon-snake, you are born with heavy sin."

"From now on, you shall act as the Palace Spirit, control the Immortal Palace, and guard Fire Persimmon Mountain."

"As long as Fire Persimmon Mountain enjoys favorable weather and no more killing or innocent suffering from now on, in seven hundred and twenty years, you will have repaid your innate sin, shed your turtle shell, and truly possess the spirit of a dragon."

The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit trembled violently, communicating secretly with the three Sect Masters using its spirituality. It roared: "Seven hundred and twenty years?! Too long, too long! It would be better to kill me."

The three Sect Masters transmitted: "Seven hundred and twenty is not a fixed number."

"During this period, if you can meet someone who can snap their own Life-Thread, follow him."

"Because..."

"Since he can snap his own, he will certainly be able to snap yours!"

Several hundred years later.

At this very moment!

The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit looked up at Ning Zhuo, and from the latter, it actually felt a trace of the magnificent aura of the three Sect Masters!

The flames surged, the fire becoming even more ferocious than before.

Only thirty percent of the throne remained.

The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit let out a low roar and actively crashed into the flames, letting its spiritual body be burned to ashes!

"Ning Zhuo, stop!!" Zhu Xuanji could not care about anything else; he temporarily gave up suppressing the Buddha-Doctor Meng Yaoyin, turned the mirror, and aimed it at Ning Zhuo.

White light rose from Ning Zhuo's body, covering him.

It was the protective talisman previously bestowed by Ning Jiufan and the others!

The next moment, the My Buddha Heart-Demon Seal suddenly flew out, descended beside Ning Zhuo, paused for a moment, and then drilled directly into his spiritual sea.

In the next instant, a layer of Buddha light emerged, blocking the mirror light for Ning Zhuo.

This time it was Zhu Xuanji's turn to bulge his eyes in extreme shock.

"The My Buddha Heart-Demon Seal?!"

He had never forgotten the last words of the Retired Emperor of Nandou he had received in the capital.

"The My Buddha Heart-Demon Seal is no small matter; its karma is immense!"

"The Magma Immortal Palace is by no means a casual move by the three Sect Masters..."

He always kept in mind the instructions of the current Nandou monarch.

"In his later years, the three Sect Masters placed the Magma Immortal Palace in Fire Persimmon Mountain with deep intentions that cannot be fathomed. On this trip, do not be reckless or forceful; let things take their course, and do not disrupt the painstaking efforts of the three Sect Masters."

Zhu Xuanji was deeply shocked: "The My Buddha Heart-Demon Seal actively recognized its master? Could it be that Ning Zhuo is the successor the three Sect Masters were planning and waiting for?!"

He was able to use the Golden Phoenix Mirror because the mirror originated from the Nandou Retired Emperor. Although he had offered it up, the precious mirror had not been re-refined and could still be used by him.

But what about the My Buddha Heart-Demon Seal?!

In Zhu Xuanji's view, this was the first time Ning Zhuo had come into contact with it.

Even if, even if Ning Zhuo's situation were the same as Zhu Xuanji's, the fact that he could obtain the My Buddha Heart-Demon Seal was of immense significance!

At the top of Fire Persimmon Mountain, deep in the clouds and smoke.

Meng Kui's face was livid, his tone grim: "Finally, the moment has arrived."

He had painstakingly planned, controlled the situation, and borrowed the power of the three Nascent Soul-level demonic beasts to continuously weaken the Magma Immortal Palace; finally, he could strike with all his might!

Ever since the Immortal Palace was blasted into the world, Meng Kui had been sitting at the peak of the clouds.

He sat there for several months.

He had waited too long for this moment!

He stood up and drifted down.

He took out his seal and smashed it directly onto the head of the Flame-Treading Lizard.

Boom!

With a loud bang, the Flame-Treading Lizard's head was smashed through, brain matter splattered, but it still did not die and retreated in a panic.

Universe in the Sleeve.

His sleeve erupted with terrifying suction, sucking in the Nascent Soul-level Fire-Deviated Snake and temporarily suppressing it.

Mystery in the Palm!

Meng Kui struck with full force, his magic-powered hand slapping the Nascent Soul Demon Ape, sending it crashing to the ground.

Just as he was about to deliver the finishing blow, Ning Jiufan took a great risk and snatched the Demon Ape away first.

Meng Kui had already learned that the position of Palace Master had fallen into the hands of someone with entry-level standards; time was tight, so he decided not to argue with Ning Jiufan for now.

He used his magic-powered hand to rip off the roof of the main hall.

"This farce should end now!" Meng Kui's face was livid as he drifted down.

The throne was completely burned away, and the gained spirituality was all replenished into the Buddha-Doctor.

Meng Kui snorted coldly, his spiritual sense directing his magic-powered hand to grab Ning Zhuo.

The next moment, Zhu Xuanji, as if possessed, turned the mirror and locked it onto the magic-powered hand.

"Hmm?!" Meng Kui stared at Zhu Xuanji with a cold expression.

Sun Lingtong grabbed Ning Zhuo's hand, intending to use the Void-Piercing Art to take him and escape. Although he knew very well that using such a minor technique in front of a Nascent Soul cultivator meant the chances of survival were almost zero.

Ning Zhuo patted Sun Lingtong's hand, smiling: "Boss, don't be anxious."

"Don't forget, I am of the righteous path."

Having said this, he shook his sleeves, bowed to Meng Kui, and performed a solemn salute: "City Lord, I, Ning Zhuo, am willing to hand over the position of Palace Master!"

Zhu Xuanji turned his head abruptly to look at Ning Zhuo.

Sun Lingtong widened his eyes and also turned to look at Ning Zhuo.

Meng Kui stopped in his tracks, staring fixedly at Ning Zhuo.

The whole scene was dead silent.

Ning Zhuo took the initiative to break the silence: "My cultivation is weak, my ability is low; in this current crisis, only you, City Lord, can turn the tide and support the collapsing building!"

"This position of Palace Master of the Magma Immortal Palace is most suitable for you, City Lord."

Sun Lingtong looked at the calm Ning Zhuo, then at the throne—where there was no longer a throne, only a pit. Finally, he looked at Meng Kui.

Meng Kui looked at Ning Zhuo, then at the physical body of Meng Chong in Ning Zhuo's hand, and then at the Nether Envoy Qi Bai, who held the sealed soul of Meng Chong in his hand. Finally, he looked at Zhu Xuanji.

Zhu Xuanji woke up as if from a dream, his face solemn: "Ning Zhuo responded to the call for talent and voluntarily abdicated to yield the position; he is a hero of the Nandou Kingdom."

"In the current situation, I cannot do it either. Only you, Lord Meng Kui, noble as a Nascent Soul, can suppress the beast tide and protect the city residents."

"In fact, this is the duty of you, the City Lord of Fire Persimmon Immortal City!"

The corner of Meng Kui's eye finally twitched.

At this moment, he thought of the prophecy poem he had calculated—Right and wrong are gained and lost in a single thought, a new master settles the people and fills the old pit.

It turned out to be this kind of "right and wrong are gained and lost in a single thought"!

It was this kind of "new master settles the people and fills the old pit"!!

Damn it!!!

(End of Volume One)