Chapter 408: The Recorder of Past and Present (19)

In the blink of an eye,
four hundred years had passed since Si Zhaonan obtained the mask.
In those four hundred years, Si Zhaonan had grown into one of the top powerhouses, second only to the few remaining experts of the Holy Mountain.
He had thus come to know many secrets.
For example, the significance of the Holy Mountain's existence.
Or perhaps, more than four hundred years ago, a terrifying race existed in this world, known as demons.
The five-hundred-year period was approaching, and they would return with a vengeance.
Si Zhaonan considered himself merely a small figure.
Even if the sky were to fall, there were tall people to hold it up.
And indeed... although he was already tall, there was still the Holy Mountain above him; even if the sky were to fall, there would be the Holy Mountain to hold it up.
"Is this the legendary demon?"
One day, a mysterious creature appeared in Si Zhaonan's Tianyuan Dynasty, slaughtering an entire city. Hearing the description, Si Zhaonan thought of the legendary demons.
Si Zhaonan sent men to capture the demons and escort them back to the capital.
The demon before him had a pointed snout and a ferocious, menacing appearance.
"Humans and demons can never coexist peacefully,"
Si Zhaonan realized.
He slew the demon.
If demons invaded and humanity was wiped out, he wouldn't be able to remain uninvolved.
More and more demons entered human territory.
Si Zhaonan realized that another war between humans and demons would soon erupt.
He went to seek an alliance with the Holy Mountain.
The Holy Mountain agreed to his alliance.
However, on his way back to the Tianyuan Dynasty, Si Zhaonan was ambushed by a mysterious figure.
Before him stood a mysterious figure in black robes, whose face was obscured, which puzzled Si Zhaonan.
"The Holy Mountain is no longer the Holy Mountain it once was,"
The mysterious figure blocked Si Zhaonan's path home.
Si Zhaonan was puzzled: "What do you mean by this?"
The mysterious man continued, "The demon race has true saints. The saint of the Holy Mountain sacrificed himself in the battle over four hundred years ago."
"The Holy Mountain knows it cannot contend with the demons, and has long since given up resistance, advocating surrender to the demons and completely abandoning human blood."
Si Zhaonan gasped at the mysterious man's words. The Holy Mountain had always been the protector of humanity.
Now, it wanted to abandon humanity?
If anyone else had said this, Si Zhaonan would have slapped them to death.
But this man was too mysterious, and Si Zhaonan wasn't entirely confident of victory.
Si Zhaonan didn't easily choose to believe this mysterious man. He wasn't sure if the mysterious man before him was sent by the demons to sow discord.
After all... he simply couldn't reconcile the many powerful figures of the Holy Mountain who cared for the common people with a traitor colluding with the demons.
Si Zhaonan returned to the Tianyuan Dynasty.
He took out a bronze mask.
This was the mask he had obtained long ago... and it was because of this mask that he was able to become one of the giants of the human race in such a short time; otherwise, he would still be a penniless vagrant.
Five hundred years had almost passed in the blink of an eye.
Si Zhaonan put on the mask again, intending to cultivate.
However, this time, when he put on the mask, a middle-aged man in purple robes, also wearing a mask, appeared before him.
Si Zhaonan: "?"
The middle-aged man in purple robes said, "Young brother, don't be afraid. Since you can see me, you must also be a martial artist who cares about the human race."
"I am already dead... I am now merely a wisp of divine will left within the mask at the moment of my death."
Si Zhaonan remained wary.
"Who are you?"
"My name is Zhou Chong."
Upon hearing this name, Si Zhaonan's eyes widened.
Zhou Chong...isn't this the previous Lord of the Holy Mountain?
In the past, during the great war between demons and humans, humanity was on the verge of collapse. It was because of the previous Lord of the Holy Mountain, Zhou Chong, that the demons' efforts were thwarted.
He never expected that he was the previous Lord of the Mask!
"My appearance now signifies that the seal I set up in the past is about to disappear."
"Young brother, has our human race produced a new saint?"
Si Zhaonan shook his head: "The martial arts world is currently withered, and no new saint has appeared. The demons have returned with renewed force, and humanity is already on the verge of collapse."
A trace of sadness appeared on Zhou Chong's face.
Si Zhaonan looked at the middle-aged man in purple robes before him: "Senior, you were able to turn the tide in the past, you must have a way now!"
"A way...of course I have. When I learned that the Demon Clan's Saint had been severely injured, I sealed half of my power within the Demon Clan for five hundred years, and the remaining power within this mask, leaving a sliver of hope. After all, if the Demon Clan's Saint recovers, even if I used all my power to seal the Demon, it would be futile."
"You are the current owner of this mask, so naturally you can inherit this power and attempt to break through to the Saint Realm."
This sliver of hope was the last thing Zhou Chong could do for the humanity of this world.
Si Zhaonan nodded, his expression filled with joy.
Indeed, experience counts.
He decisively began his attempt to break through to the Saint Realm, even though this final step seemed like an insurmountable chasm.
The five hundred years had passed.
Everything unfolded almost exactly as Zhou Chong had predicted. The Demon Clan's Saint easily tore open the veil, and the Demon Clan, which had disappeared for five hundred years, finally reappeared in this world.
The terrifying disparity in strength plunged all beings into despair.
Human powerhouses suffered a crushing defeat.
But what instilled even greater despair in humanity was the defection of the high command of the Human Sacred Mountain.
The Sacred Mountain, the guardian of humanity since ancient times, had now chosen to succumb to the demons?
This news brought despair, and after despair came sorrow.
Within the demon realm, flames soared from the Demon Transformation Pool, unleashing a terrifying power seemingly capable of destroying the world.
The demon race's saints were severely wounded, and countless powerful warriors perished.
"Humans are utterly despicable!"
The Sacred Mountain's ancestor, through some unknown means, concealed his actions and self-destructed within the demon's core territory, carrying a sacred artifact.
Knowing that without saints, there was no hope of defeating the demons, the Sacred Mountain's ancestor had been gaining their trust, ultimately sacrificing his own life and the Sacred Mountain's resources to secure a glimmer of hope for humanity.
Si Zhaonan, currently in seclusion breaking through to the Saint Realm, understood that he had to focus all his efforts on achieving this breakthrough. The Holy Mountain, the barrier of the human race, was gone. The good news was... the Holy Mountain had never betrayed humanity. The bad news was that he had recounted the mysterious man's speculation to Zhou Chong, infuriating Zhou Chong who specifically instructed him to teach those disciples a lesson after his breakthrough to the Saint Realm.
Now, there was no need for him to personally discipline them.
Just as Si Zhaonan's consciousness was fading, a cool sensation pulled him back. When he opened his eyes again, he had actually broken through to the Saint Realm.
"This Saint Realm doesn't seem so difficult to break through."
How come he felt like he'd broken through to the Saint Realm in the blink of an eye?
Never mind... now's not the time to think about that.
If he remembered correctly, the Demon Clan's Saint was severely injured by the Holy Mountain Ancestor's self-destruction with a sacred artifact.
Strike while the iron is hot.
Si Zhaonan directly stormed into the Demon Ancestral Land, forcing the Demon Saint Ancestor to reveal himself.
"This isn't right... why are there two Saints?"
Si Zhaonan discovered a very serious problem.
"This is... Zhou Chong's aura! The human race is truly shameless!"
One of the Demon Saints, whose aura was weaker, was furious.
He was the Demon Lord who had fought Zhou Chong in the past, breaking through to Sainthood in five hundred years.
Bad news, he'd been set up.
Good news, both Demon Saints were severely injured.