Chapter 405: Recorders of Past and Present (Sixteen)

The Demon Qilin couldn't understand.
He had treated Mu Ziqiang well, considering him a friend, so why would Mu Ziqiang betray him?
The Demon Qilin was too powerful.
Even with the dagger sealing all his spiritual meridians,
many human warriors couldn't withstand him.
Some human warriors who wanted to capture the Demon Qilin and make a great contribution were instantly killed by his overwhelming physical strength.
Mu Ziqiang sensed something was wrong and was immediately grabbed by a demonic claw, powerless to resist.
Looking into the pupils filled with black lines that coalesced into terrifying runes, Mu Ziqiang suppressed his fear and said, "You fool... I am human, I have always been human!"
The Demonic Qilin roared, "You're human? Look at your grotesque appearance now! Do you think they'd accept you?"
"I've already given you boundless glory and endless wealth within the Holy Race, things they couldn't give you within the human race, and yet you betray me!"
Mu Ziqiang struggled and gave a bitter laugh, "The blood of sinners flows in my veins... disloyal, unfilial, unkind, and unjust. All I can do is wash away the injustice done to my ancestors."
At that moment, a purple sword beam pierced through the endless void, transforming into a dragon stretching for thousands of miles, about to swallow the Demonic Qilin whole.
The Demonic Qilin flung Mu Ziqiang away, and the terrifying purple sword energy dragon engulfed it, plunging the sky into darkness, obscuring the sun and moon.
A young Taoist priest in purple robes stood within a rift in the void, wielding a divine sword whose blade gleamed with a chilling light, containing a destructive power capable of tearing through space.
“Borrowing the power of heaven and earth, the five elements revolve, the heavenly and earthly forces bind and slay evil!”
From five other directions, powerful figures emanating different auras arrived one after another, laying down a net of heaven and earth, transforming into five-element chains that bound the hands, feet, and head of a being within the mist.
“You think you can kill me? You are not enough!”
Before the crowd could even feel a surge of joy, a terrifying force caused the five figures' expressions to change abruptly.
The demonic Qilin within the mist planted its feet firmly on the ground, its hands gripping two chains behind its back, its teeth biting down on the chain binding its head.
With a sudden burst of strength,
the force was about to pull the three figures at the eye of the Five Elements Heavenly Array to its front.
The crowd was horrified; they hadn't expected the demonic Qilin, even with its spiritual veins bound, to be so powerful.
The purple-robed youth's expression remained unchanged.
"Nine Netherworld Profound Fiends, heed my command! Transform swords into prisons, annihilate all souls!"
The Heavenly Gang Five Elements Grand Formation was merely a delaying tactic.
As his voice fell,
the Demonic Qilin roared, actually shattering the Heavenly Gang Five Elements Grand Formation. Three powerful figures within it instantly turned into blood mist, while the remaining two coughed up blood, their fates unknown.
It transformed into a jet-black torrent, indistinct to anyone, but that torrent hurtled directly towards the purple-robed youth.
Mu Ziqiang steadied his mind.
He was not dead.
He didn't know why the Demonic Qilin hadn't killed him.
Looking up,
the world seemed to freeze for a moment.
The purple-robed youth's fingertips touched the Demonic Qilin's forehead.
The Demonic Qilin's claws were only millimeters away from the purple-robed youth's chest.
"I won."
The Xuan Sha Qi struck directly at his soul.
The Demonic Qilin's body remained motionless, its eyes gradually becoming empty.
His soul was instantly erased.
The strongest prodigy of the demon race had fallen.
Watching the Demon Qilin die before his eyes, Mu Ziqiang felt an emptiness, not joy, but a profound sense of desolation.
"Thank you for your help, sir."
The purple-robed youth cupped his hands in thanks to Mu Ziqiang.
He knew that without the man's forbearance, they would never have been able to kill the Demon Qilin. Once the Demon Qilin grew stronger, the entire human race would be in grave danger.
Mu Ziqiang didn't respond. He looked down at his ugly body; he was no longer human.
"Whatever your request, sir, we will do our best to fulfill it."
The purple-robed youth didn't seem to mind Mu Ziqiang's appearance.
Mu Ziqiang removed his mask.
"No need..."
He refused the purple-robed youth's offer.
He stroked the mask, murmuring, "Following someone like me is beneath you."
Disloyal, unkind, unfilial, and unjust.
Mu Ziqiang sat down cross-legged.
The purple-robed youth sighed softly... As a surge of demonic energy swept through, Mu Ziqiang actually chose to scatter his cultivation and face death.
Looking at the mask offered to him, the purple-robed youth took it casually, watching the arm hang limply.
The purple-robed youth was named Zhou Chong, a descendant of the Human Race's Holy Mountain.
He vaguely understood why his drunken senior uncle often said that humans were contradictory creatures.
"Senior Brother Zhou, this is a dead man's mask; holding it is too unlucky."
Beside him, a black-clad youth looked arrogantly at the mask in Zhou Chong's hand, his eyes filled with disdain.
Zhou Chong said calmly, "This isn't unlucky."
The black-clad youth didn't care at all.
They were all elites of the human race, the most outstanding geniuses, and from the most powerful forces. This mask was, at best, a minor royal artifact.
Zhou Chong put away the mask.
This time, they successfully besieged the Demon Qilin, averting a future crisis of human extinction and buying themselves some breathing room.
Upon learning that the Demon Qilin had been killed by the humans through a scheme, the demon race was enraged. A demon saint personally launched an unprecedented demonic tide.
The human sacred mountain responded accordingly.
This great war lasted for a century. Because neither side possessed absolute overwhelming power, they were unable to defeat the other, resulting in another stalemate.
A century later
The war between humans and demons subsided.
The demon race suffered heavy losses, as did the human sacred mountain.
Zhou Chong, having slain the Demon Qilin and subsequently killed numerous powerful demons in the century-long war, gained great fame and became the new leader of the sacred mountain, guiding the direction of humanity on this continent.
Zhou Chong touched the bronze mask in his hand, the very mask Mu Ziqiang had given him before his death.
Although it was a minor royal artifact,
Zhou Chong still wore it... The truth was, this mask was far from simple, certainly not a mere royal artifact.
He nurtured it with the power of the Holy Mountain, but the mask remained unmoved, which greatly surprised him. The power of the Holy Mountain was imbued with the fortune of humanity; even an ordinary mortal weapon, under the blessing of the Holy Mountain's power, would become a powerful quasi-sacred artifact.
This made Zhou Chong feel quite regretful.
Over the years, he has been able to surpass many of the older generation of geniuses and become the strongest person second only to the saints, and this strange mask has played an indispensable role in that.