Chapter 24: Pay With Your Life, It Is the Moon-Heart Sword

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Within the inner sanctum of the Serpent Clan’s subterranean palace, Han Ling paced back and forth in a state of frantic agitation. "My King, you... you must not come to any harm!" he muttered, his face etched with desperation.

The Third Prince of the Dragon Clan had stormed the palace gates with a legion of warriors. They were clearly here with malicious intent, and they would not stop until their goals were achieved. The Serpent Clan had always striven to avoid enmity with any of the demon tribes, never initiating aggression or harming others. Yet, despite their innocence and lack of transgression, this was the fate that had befallen them.

Was it simply because their late King had passed away only a few years ago, and with the new King newly enthroned and his foundation still unstable, these invaders sought to subjugate the Serpent Clan to establish their own prestige? But their King was still young and no match for the Third Dragon Prince.

He could only pray that his King would successfully absorb the spiritual energy of the Blood Spirit Pearl Flower, boost his cultivation, and defeat Long Kong in one fell swoop to save their clan.

Just as he was lost in these thoughts, a blinding, dazzling white light suddenly erupted, shooting straight into the heavens with a force that shook the very foundations of the earth. In the wake of this radiance, the overcast sky was instantly transformed; the heavy clouds refracted into brilliant, extraordinary rays of light, illuminating the entire firmament and casting a stark glow upon the Serpent Clan’s palace.

"Han... Han Mo?" Outside the palace, Bai Ming witnessed the phenomenon and felt a wave of genuine joy. It was done—he had absorbed the flower's power and regained three hundred thousand years of cultivation.

"Damn it!" Long Kong, standing before him, clearly noticed the change as well. He gripped his twin blades and, seizing the moment of Bai Ming’s distraction, struck without hesitation. He had to finish this quickly; he had to secure the Longevity Pearl Flower.

"Ninth Prince! Watch out!" the members of the Serpent Clan screamed in terror.

Bai Ming snapped back to reality, but it was too late. The ice blades unleashed by the twin swords were already cutting through the air toward his chest.

"Pfft—" The force of the technique slammed into him, causing him to vomit blood as he was hurled to the ground, his internal organs trembling from the impact.

"Ninth Prince?!"
"Ninth Prince..."
The clansmen rushed to help him up. "Are you alright?"

"Don't worry about me!" Bai Ming clutched his aching chest, his eyes burning red as he roared at them, "Stop them! Do not let them enter the inner sanctum!"

"This..." They looked up, only to see that the group of Dragon Clan warriors had vanished, leaving behind only a trail of corpses. The palace was stained with blood. The sky was now drenched in a vivid, ominous red glow, no longer the auspicious, colorful light from moments before.

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Long Kong swaggered into the inner sanctum with his men. Looking at the corpses strewn across the hall, he sneered, "Overestimating your own strength—and you thought you could fight me?"

"Find the Longevity Pearl Flower."
"Understood, my Lord."

The Dragon Clan warriors dispersed to search, some even venturing into the inner bedchamber. But the moment one of the minor generals breached the threshold, an explosive surge of brilliant light erupted, obliterating his soul and leaving not a trace of his body behind.

"How dare you! Is my palace a place you can intrude upon at will?!" A cold, heavy voice infused with immense power echoed through the entire palace.

The crowd panicked, looking up in shock as a figure emerged from the inner chamber. He was dressed in ink-blue robes with a crisp, white inner tunic, his waist cinched by an ice-blue belt adorned with dragon motifs. He stepped out with an icy expression, his sharp gaze sweeping over the intruders. "You have slaughtered my subjects. You truly deserve to die."

"Han... Han Mo?" Long Kong gasped, unable to believe that he had achieved a breakthrough to two million three hundred thousand years of cultivation—thirty thousand years more than his own. He had truly absorbed the Blood Spirit Pearl Flower.

Han Mo’s face was dark. His hands, hidden beneath his wide sleeves, were already weaving complex seals. "Long Kong, you have invaded my territory and killed my people. I will have your life in payment."

"Ha! A joke. You think that because you absorbed the power of the Blood Flower, you can rival me?" Long Kong manifested his twin ice blades, channeling half his power to strike first. "Go to hell."

Han Mo’s brown eyes shifted, filled with murderous intent. He countered with a ruthless technique, meeting the charge head-on. "Then let us see who dies today."

*Boom! Crack!* Countless spells collided in mid-air, shattering every table, chair, and teacup in the vicinity.

"My King?" Han Ling watched with growing anxiety. Their King had only just absorbed the energy; he had not yet had time to properly refine it. While the Third Prince’s cultivation was lower, his two million years of mastery in spellcraft far exceeded their King’s one million five hundred thousand.

His fears were confirmed; as he looked up, he saw their King struck down from the air by the Third Prince.

"Bang!" The force of countless condensed ice blades slammed into Han Mo’s chest, forcing him to the ground.

"My King!" Han Ling rushed to his side. "Are you alright?"

"I am fine," Han Mo said, coldly brushing him aside. He wiped the blood from his lip and stood, his eyes burning with a destructive, resilient fire. "Long Kong, I will kill you."

It was a blood oath. If he could not kill him today, he would kill him another day.

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It would be either his life or his own.

Long Kong curled his lip in a cold sneer, his twin blades ready. "You mere child, you think yourself worthy of killing me?"

Han Mo’s blood-stained lips curved into a smile, a chilling, captivating beauty. Blue light coalesced in his hand, forming the Moon-Heart Sword. He laughed, a wicked, enchanting sound. "Then let us see if this sword can cut you!"

"Shing—" A massive surge of blue light, imbued with immense power, erupted from the blade. He swung with every ounce of his strength.

"This is... the Moon-Heart Sword?!" The crowd gasped in disbelief, staring at the divine weapon in his grip. Forged by the Ancient God millions of years ago, it was the only one of its kind in the Nine Heavens or the Four Seas.

Long Kong was stunned. The sword had been sealed within the Black River of the Demon Realm; how could it be in the hands of this youth? The dangers of the Black River were lethal; a mere child could never have breached them. Furthermore, divine artifacts were sentient—how could it possibly acknowledge a small Serpent King as its master?

And yet, the massive sword aura tearing through everything in its path was undeniably, terrifyingly real.

"Ahhh!" Long Kong raised his blades, gritting his teeth as he desperately tried to deflect the attack.

"My Prince!" The Dragon Clan warriors panicked, rushing to assist, but they were no match for the overwhelming power of the Moon-Heart Sword. They were all sent flying, crashing to the ground, severely injured and unable to resist.

"Ah!"
"Pfft—"
Everyone lay on the ground, vomiting blood, the floor stained crimson.

Han Mo wore a dark, sinister smile, looking like a madman as he walked toward them, the blue-glowing Moon-Heart Sword in his hand. He resembled a vengeful ghost, chilling to the core. "Go and offer your apologies to the dead!"

With those words, he raised the sword high and struck again. A gale whipped up, a storm of fury. Countless rays of blue light, like crazed blades, shattered the ice and surged toward them.

"No, no—!"
"Ahhh!"

A chorus of wails and screams erupted, echoing for miles.

"Retreat!" Long Kong, his eyes bloodshot, roared the order before vanishing from the palace, his form dissolving into nothingness.