Skyfire Avenue - Chapter 864

Chapter 864

Chapter 864: The Four Banishing Blades

Jun’er left with the Wine Master . Li Ke’s eyes never left her small frame as she disappeared .

Lan Jue wanted to ask him why he didn’t want to meet his daughter, but a look from the Pharmacist kept him quiet . He wouldn’t press the issue – this was, after all, a matter between a husband and wife .

“Before we begin, I will explain the principle behind the Banishing Strategy . These years I’ve been locked within Ultus I was able to learn its secrets . ”

“The Banishing Stance is known as the single greatest destructive power in the universe . Back in the ancient days the Grand Master of Heaven battled against the four great sages . They were as strong as he, and you can imagine the power at their fingertips . Even so the Banishing Blades were called the most lethal of the Grand Master’s weapons . Because of how powerful and dangerous it is, the Strategy has been hidden within Ultus ever since . ”

“Not copper, nor iron, nor steel, the sword was hidden beneath the crushing weight of Mount Meru .  What flame or fluid could quench its keen edge? Ultus – sharp, Occisus – death, Captus – universal red light, Demortus – the ever changing . The blood of the immortals stained their robes . ” Li Ke’s eyes burned as he recounted the old tale of the Banishing Blades .

Turquoise light sprang up from Li Ke’s ghostly body and painted the room in its colors . A sharp and oppressive aura filled every corner of the room . Suddenly ‘the most lethal of the Grand Master’s weapons’ seemed more than apt to describe the power of these blades .

Suddenly the Pharmacist’s body reacted, releasing an aura of white light . A thirst of slaughter swelled and joined with Ultus’ cutting eminence . The two together were murder given form .

Next to react was Lan Jue and Captus . Its red light reached out and where it touched reality was rife with tears . Reality collapsed where the sword’s power prevailed .

Last was Demortus, a blue light which radiated around Zhou Qianlin as a tapestry of ever-changing power .

As the light of the four Banishing Blades intermingled they all rang with an ethereal hum . The resonance of it spread far and wide . More than just the residents of Middle Heaven, the whole fleet could hear the near-deafening ring .

Lan Qing was not protected by the power of a sword . He felt the tides of power most acutely . As the sonorous ring of the swords crashed around him he felt his spirit leave his body . It was like his body would break apart at any moment, caught in the joyous reunion of the godblades . He was not the target of their song, but he felt it may destroy him anyway .

What incredible power!

Lan Qing pressed his palms together before his chest, and a radiant golden Buddha appeared seated in the center of his heart . It quietly meditated, humming the Diamond Sutra, encased in the light of Variochana . A golden light, starting from the crown of his head, quickly spread down his entire body fusing body and soul . Blessings of the Buddhas of past, present and future filled him, protecting him from the deadly aura of the Banishing Blades .

As the song of the blades rang out Li Ke’s eyes were wide and fervent . This was the day he had hoped so desperately to see! As a bearer of Ultus – the unparalleled weapon of the Grand Master of Heaven – even universal protogenia couldn’t stand against him once the Banishing Strategy was enacted .

Now the swords were reunited, but he was no longer Ultus’ master . He had become a guide, despite the pain of regret that filled him . He steeled himself against the sadness, for now was the time for strength .

The turquoise light faded . As the deadly power of Ultus was restrained the other swords followed its lead .

The Pharmacist, Lan Jue, and Zhou Qianlin could faintly sense the stirring power within . The gathered swords supplemented one another and awakened something inside them .

Lan Jue’s understanding of his weapon ran deep, but in that moment he sensed something change completely . Its surge of power was so quick and intense it frightened him .

ξ

BANG! A bone-jarring shock shuddered through the realm of violet light . The Violet Prince, Princess, and the twelve remaining avatars knelt in this hollow place . In addition were two more Infinite-level figures, the remaining doppelgangers of the home worlds .

All of them had been deep in meditation, but the sudden impact forced them all to awaken . One of Monarch’s avatars, seated beside the Prince, shot to his feet . A surge of purple light gushed from it .

“I have felt something, a terrible danger that can impact our future . A rapid, destructive force . ”

This wasn’t the avatar itself, but rather Monarch speaking through this echo of its power .

The Violet Prince looked upon the avatar in shock . “From those humans?”

Monarch’s deep voice answered . “No . The sword they stole . So thi is why they were so willing to put themselves in danger, so determined to abscond with that weapon . My first impression was incorrect, there is something more contained within it . The human who brought it to me was not dead, his spirit remained inside – otherwise we would not have suffered at the hands of the interlopers . All of you must recover that sword, no matter the cost . ”

The Violet Princess answered, unconvinced . “The humans have proven strong, but your merger with Queen and Consort is nearly complete . Soon you will create what the humans call an immortal realm and a Domain for us to survive in . Then we will be able to travel through the universe at a whim, destroying any vestige of humanity without effort . Even if that weapon is dangerous, would it mean anything in the face of your future supremacy?”

Monarch’s avatar sniffed derisively . “You understand nothing . The mysteries of their species are revealed to me the more of their essence I consume . Many years ago humans had an immortal realm, stronger and more prosperous than what we will achieve . I suspect that sword is a relic of those times, conveyed to the humans from the gods they once served . The ones who came and took it from me also bore swords of similar caliber . I heard their song, and in the depths of my mind I sensed the danger they present . This danger is such that our power would mean nothing . Your task is to interrupt this power before it can be brought to bear against us . It must be thoroughly destroyed . ”

The Violet Prince nodded . “As you wish!”

A cold light passed over the avatar’s face . “Remember – at any cost!”

“Of course,” the Prince replied .

Suddenly, the Princess felt a strange sensation trill through her . Such feelings had plagued her since they consumed human genetics for their own benefit . Monarch was unaffected by the Prince and Princess were more human-like as time went on . They even preferred to converse in human language .

She did not find these human weapons as dangerous as Monarch claimed . More dangerous was the assimilatory power of human genetics . They may have taken this genetic material from the humans, but it was changing them as much as they were using it to empower their abilities .

Once this immortal realm was established they would become more and more like the creatures they consumed . Maybe the human essence would completely replace what they used to be . What would happen then, she wondered?

The Violet Princess knew that much of this evolutionary process was derived from the latent memories of the humans, locked within their DNA . Monarch was trying to mimic what the humans had achieved thousands of years before .

ξ

“In ancient times but one bearer established the Banishing Stance, the Grand Master of Heaven Ling Bao . Beore his overwhelming power even the likes of Heavenly Sovereign Taishang and Celestial Master Yuanshi, along with two others, were at a loss as to what to do .   But as the four clashed against the Grand Master they managed to defeat him . Thus the swords earned their titles as the most lethal under heaven . The Strategy, with the four swords as its pivotal center, directed this unfathomable power . From what we can understanding the Strategy focuses and guides a portion of universal protogenia . ”

Li Ke shared all he knew of the Banishing Strategy with the four new bearers . As they listened intently it was as though gates hiding these secrets from them were opened before their eyes – especially for the three who were already familiar with their swords . Suddenly their knowledge and connection with these godblades was deeper than ever .

“Now we cannot rely on a single person’s power to establish the Strategy, of course . Nor can any of you fully command the power it contains . What you must do is approach the home worlds, establish the Strategy, then entice them forward . The enemy will react to you once the trap is in place . ”

The sword contained profound knowledge, and even though Li Ke had been trapped within it for years he had only scratched the surface of its mysteries . Without the other three weapons parts of those mysteries had been locked away .

Knowledge of the Strategy had always been kept in Ultus, but many specifics of it were contained in the other swords . Only once all four of them were together was the entirety of the Strategy laid bare .

Lan Qing, Lan Jue, Zhou Qianlin, and the Pharmacist were all brilliant people . They could follow Li Ke’s information to its logical conclusion, comprehending the substance of his point and asking poignant questions .

Because they lacked the strength to control the swords’ power, they had only one chance to lay out the Strategy . Whether or not they could eliminate the enemy was a question too difficult to answer now .

After all, the full strength of these swords – the most lethal weapons under heaven – was unknown . No one knew what would happen once the Strategy was enacted . All they knew came from old legends and whispered tales . They had to rely on faith that these stories were true .