GA: Chapter 152: From Beginning to End, I, Master Nine, Am a Daoist — A Plain and Ordinary Daoist!
Moonlight poured across the earth like water.
A shaft of it fell upon the figure moving through the dark — an enormous, powerfully built existence standing close to three meters tall. Though shaped like a human, a pair of black horns curved from its head like an ox's, and its body was wrapped in a layer of deep black scales.
Its eyes were clear and pure as rubies — but chillingly cold, as though no feeling whatsoever existed behind them.
It was of the demon race. Demons did not carry the complex emotions of humans.
The only things capable of stirring them were powerhouses of outstanding strength, and prey worthy of their attention.
Like now — those ruby-clear eyes fixed on the direction where Master Nine stood, and in the depths of those cold pupils, a faint trace of excitement surfaced.
"Such tremendous fortune — not at all what you'd expect from a protagonist in an age this depleted of spiritual energy."
"Excellent. Truly excellent."
"A protagonist like this has the right to become my prey."
"I'll savor you thoroughly..."
Something strange flickered in those eyes.
"But first — let me send you a few gifts."
"I hope you can withstand them."
"Otherwise this won't be any fun."
As it spoke, a mysterious, profound blood-colored formation array rose from beneath its feet.
"Roar! Roar! Roar—"
With a chorus of terrifying howls, creatures emerged from the array one after another — their bodies black, their forms grotesque and alien. From them radiated an aura as savage as wild beasts, as though everything before them existed only to be torn apart.
Without question, these were the "gifts" it had spoken of.
If this world's Child of Fortune couldn't handle even this much — then there was no reason for it to act personally.
A powerhouse feels no desire to battle against the weak.
The sensation of crushing an ant underfoot was simply too dull.
Even if the other party was a Child of Fortune, that held equally true.
"Go. Hunt them."
"Bring death to this world."
At those words, the grotesque creatures split their mouths open, swayed their heads, and began ambling at an unhurried pace toward the direction of the nearest village.
In that village, Master Nine's expression was growing increasingly grim.
The sense of danger that had been haunting him from somewhere beyond perception kept deepening — an unrelenting warning.
The chat group had already issued the mission, and he trusted deeply in Bai Xuan's, the Holy Lord's, and Daigo's strength — but he had no idea how long it would be before the three of them arrived. In the meantime, he had to protect this world.
And the premonition seemed to be telling him the enemy was already moving in his direction.
He had to act quickly.
Gritting his teeth, Master Nine retrieved everything he had accumulated over the years, along with the items he had exchanged and crafted since joining the chat group.
Talismans. Magical instruments. Medicinal pills. He took everything with him.
His body moved with practiced speed. He pulled out various magical instruments covered in dense inscription patterns from his pack and placed them at key positions throughout the village.
"Even if this old Daoist dies here today — I will keep you from leaving."
"Slaughtering a world — I will not allow such a thing to exist in this world!"
The conviction settled firmly in Master Nine's heart.
He wasn't a true powerhouse. He had never thought about establishing his own order.
He sought strength to protect more people, to eliminate more demons and monsters.
Ascending to immortality and attaining the Dao was his ambition — but that aspiration had never stood above his duty to protect the common people. At any moment, he could and would sacrifice himself for their lives — even if it meant giving up the possibility of immortality.
That was why he had chosen to leave his mountain.
To use his own strength to carve a sliver of peace into a world overrun by demons and monsters.
He was a Daoist. A Maoshan Daoist.
From beginning to end, that conviction had never wavered.
Calling on the group members for help wasn't out of fear of death. He was simply worried that his strength alone might not be enough to hold the enemy here — that he might fail to stop it, leaving it free to slaughter the people of this world.
He opened his spirit sight. Ahead, not far off, a mass of grotesque creatures thick with blood-colored aura were advancing toward him. Their eyes burned with ferocity — bloodlust and killing intent radiating from every one of them. As if sensing his gaze, they quickened their approach.
BOOM.
Master Nine didn't hesitate. He formed a hand seal, and the mirror-shaped magical instrument in his palm blazed with brilliant light.
In an instant, beams of light erupted from every corner of the village, connecting to the single brightest point high in the sky above, weaving together into a transparent, invisible formation array that enveloped the entire village.
When it was done, Master Nine tossed the mirror instrument skyward. A sound like two things merging rang out, and the array solidified into its true form.
Only then did the faintest smile cross his face — though it was gone just as quickly. He drew his peach-wood sword and walked out through the edge of the formation without looking back.
He knew the formation's limits. It wouldn't hold for long.
Rather than sitting inside it and relying on luck that the group members would arrive before the demons broke through — only to watch the villagers be slaughtered when they didn't — it was better to go out and draw the demons' attention himself. Buy some time for the three incoming members and the villagers.
He was beyond the array now. His spirit sight locked onto the advancing horde.
As a cultivator, his flesh and blood were naturally attractive to the demons. They stared at him with hungry eyes, eager to devour him whole.
"ROARRR!!!"
Without warning, a black form burst up from underground, its massive maw gaping wide, lunging to swallow Master Nine whole.
Crack!
Spiritual energy surged through Master Nine's body. Arc after arc of electricity crackled along the peach-wood sword — and a single casual swing unleashed a storm of lightning that struck the creature the instant it made contact, obliterating it completely.
"You thought you could eat this old Daoist with just that?"
"You've badly underestimated me."
Master Nine let out a cold snort, talismans in his left hand, peach-wood sword in his right, and charged directly into the mass of demons.
BOOM. BOOM. BOOM—
Thunder roared and crackled in every direction. Countless creatures were destroyed in cascading bursts of lightning.
Master Nine's power at this point was far from weak — and on top of that, he had a substantial supply of medicinal pills, and no small collection of talismans built up over time.
Whenever his spiritual energy neared depletion, he would unleash a Five Thunder Talisman to clear the demons closest to him, then swallow a pill to replenish his strength, and press on.
Gradually, the count of demons fallen beneath his peach-wood sword kept rising.
A hundred. Two hundred. Three hundred.
Eventually, even Master Nine himself lost track of how many he'd killed. His hands simply kept moving — slashing, deploying talismans, swallowing pills — repeating the cycle without end.
Then, the moment he reached for another talisman, his expression shifted.
The talismans he'd accumulated were gone. Every last one.
Without hesitation, he let spiritual energy surge, channeling lightning through the peach-wood sword to blast the nearest demons as they pressed in.
The talismans were spent.
When the pills ran out, and the spiritual energy in his body finally emptied — that would be the end of him.