"What a sinister sword art… So this is something the Longevity Candidate records didn't fully capture," Fang Han thought grimly. "One strike, and my heart demons erupt in force. This is even more terrifying than the Deathless Slaughter Dao or the Formless Sword Qi. The Heaven-Piercing Sword Sect actually possesses a sword path like this?"
He felt the sword descend—and in that instant, chaos exploded across his five seas of consciousness. Heart demons surged, illusions flickering in and out of existence. Deep within the core of his Golden Core, the Wind–Fire Tribulation stirred violently, straining against the seal of the Great Wish Technique, threatening to break free.
This was unprecedented.
Heart demons were unlike celestial demons, earthly demons, or human demons. They were the most insidious adversary a cultivator could face. No matter how high one's cultivation, heart demons always existed—because the heart demon was oneself. The moment a cultivator doubted their own Dao, the heart demon was born.
The Wind–Fire Tribulation itself was a calamity formed by the fusion of heart demons and external primal energies.
Heart demons came without warning and vanished without trace. As long as there was an "I," there would be heart demons. Even experts at the tenth level of the Longevity Secret Realm were no exception.
Even someone of Immortal Venerable Linglong's stature possessed heart demons.
Legend said that only upon reaching the true Great Luo realm could one utterly annihilate heart demons—entering pure Creation, eternal freedom, unscathed by endless calamities.
And Jiao Fei's sword art… could actually draw out heart demons.
That made it Fang Han's natural nemesis.
If he weren't on the brink of the Wind–Fire Tribulation, Fang Han wouldn't fear heart demons at all. But now, though they couldn't harm him directly, they could ignite the tribulation.
"Fang Han," Jiao Fei's voice echoed from the illusions themselves, "this sword art of mine is called the Heart-Demon Grand Curse Sword. It condenses my supreme heart demon and forges it into the blade—the crystallization of my life's cultivation. I learned it during my travels from an extraordinary being. It never existed in ancient times, nor does it belong to any modern sword path."
Illusions multiplied around Fang Han. Each heart demon spoke with Jiao Fei's voice.
Yet Fang Han could no longer perceive Jiao Fei himself.
His eyes saw nothing. His ears heard nothing. His nose, tongue, body, and mind—all six senses were completely veiled by heart demons. Even if the outside world collapsed, he wouldn't feel it.
The flying sword was already above his head—and he had no way to defend.
"Om mani padme hum."
At that critical instant, Fang Han did not activate any innate divine ability. Instead, he recalled the six mystic characters inscribed on the Five Elements Earth Talisman. His mana vibrated violently, and six resonant sounds rang out from his mind.
In an instant, every heart demon was swept away.
Reality snapped back into focus.
And at that exact moment, a sword qi slashed down mercilessly onto his head.
Bang.
Sword qi exploded.
Fang Han's head remained unscathed—not even a single strand of hair was cut.
His current body could not be split even by Dao Artifacts.
When Wan Lianshan had shattered his physical form earlier, it was only because Fang Han had concentrated his Golden Core in his palm, leaving his body unprotected—and because Wan Lianshan had detonated a sudden strike using a mid-grade Dao Artifact, billions of ferocious shark souls condensed into a killing thunderbolt.
Even then, if Fang Han had prepared his Golden Core to guard his body, that strike would have at most torn some skin—never touching the foundation.
"So this is the Heart-Demon Grand Curse Sword? Strange indeed," Fang Han said coldly. "The sword qi itself isn't that sharp—far inferior to the Formless Sword or the Deathless Slaughter Dao. But the ability to provoke heart demons is truly extraordinary. Without my Buddhist techniques, I really would have been restrained—and my Wind–Fire Tribulation ignited."
Buddhist arts had a unique and profound effect in suppressing heart demons.
"Heart demons had no effect on him?" Jiao Fei was visibly startled. His sword had struck Fang Han's head directly, yet Fang Han stood unharmed, eyes clear, a feral grin spreading across his face.
The Heart-Demon Grand Curse Sword was terrifying because of the heart demons—not raw cutting power. Unless Jiao Fei reached the Longevity Secret Realm and comprehended the supreme path of condensing heart demons into sword qi, he wouldn't be able to dominate countless worlds, wandering freely and stirring the heart demons of all beings.
"Your Heart-Demon Grand Curse Sword is indeed a groundbreaking, peerless sword art," Fang Han said calmly. "But you haven't mastered it fully. You're still far from being able to trigger my Wind–Fire Tribulation. My personal calamity is not something others can manipulate."
As he spoke, Fang Han closed in soundlessly.
He moved with the Ghost Emperor's Ghost-Serpent Technique, combined with the Serpent-Sparrow Roaming Spirit Qi of Linglong Blessed Land, and the terrifying speed of the White Emperor Metal Sovereign Slash.
In an instant, he was at Jiao Fei's side.
A single palm struck toward Jiao Fei's ribs—silent, unadorned, yet capable of pulverizing a mountain if it landed.
"Fang Han, you've fallen for it," Jiao Fei's voice rang out calmly. "This isn't my real body. It's a manifestation of heart demons. My true form is hidden within the Heart-Demon Grand Curse Sword. I am everywhere—and nowhere. You cannot strike me. As long as your heart demons remain, I am truly undying."
Pop.
Fang Han's palm passed through Jiao Fei's body.
The figure twisted into a blur, dispersing like mist—it was nothing more than a phantom.
Jiao Fei had used Fang Han's own heart demons to conjure an illusion, subtly skewing his perception and judgment. The Heart-Demon Grand Curse Sword truly deserved its reputation as a pioneering sword path. Its creator must have been a genius among ancient giants—someone who wielded supreme heart demons as effortlessly as breathing.
All cultivators feared their heart demons, treading carefully at every step. None had ever dared to use heart demons as a weapon.
"You think the Heart-Demon Grand Curse Sword can truly confuse me?" Fang Han sneered. "Naive."
He lowered his stance and spun rapidly. In an instant, the entire three-thousand-zhang arena was filled with Fang Han's afterimages, each one locking onto Jiao Fei in relentless pursuit.
At the same time, surging Five Elements primal energy erupted above Fang Han's head. Geng-Metal Divine Thunder, Gui-Water Divine Thunder… Five Elements Divine Thunder cascaded down like a heavenly purge.
Every inch of space was saturated with violent thunder. There was nowhere Jiao Fei could hide.
Fang Han intended to crush him with absolute force—making all heart-demon tricks meaningless.
Sure enough, when the thunder struck, Jiao Fei's body shuddered, forced to reveal itself in a corner of the arena.
Fang Han didn't hesitate.
He exhaled sharply, and a spinning black hole shot forth, its terrifying devouring force locking onto Jiao Fei, dragging his entire body toward annihilation.
"Fang Han, do you think I rely only on heart demons?" Jiao Fei roared. "Don't forget—my sword power alone dominates the Divine Ability Realm!"
His entire body erupted with crystalline light—then transformed into a sword.
Man and sword became one.
"Heaven-Piercing Profound Gate Dao Sword Qi!"
As the human-sword descended, its edge condensed to the extreme. With a ripping sound, it cleaved straight through the Great Devouring Technique and bore down on Fang Han.
Within the flying sword, a sword spirit formed—a Daoist figure in tall crown and flowing robes, eyes sharp and merciless.
"Receive this—Heaven and Earth Slaughter Tribulation!"
This sword was itself a mid-grade Dao Artifact.
Its name was Slaughtered Tribulation.
And its spirit was known as the Slaughtered Tribulation Daoist.
The sword qi was so densely compressed that even if devoured, it would be nearly impossible to digest.
This sword embodied pure slaughter—distinct from Meng Shaobai's Deathless Slaughter Dao. Within its killing intent lurked the aura of calamity itself.
Calamity—an omnipresent sense of impending doom, like a blade suspended above one's head, ready to fall at any moment.
"Excellent," Fang Han said, eyes blazing. "You wield heart demons and overwhelming force. Heaven and Earth Slaughter Tribulation—truly extraordinary. This sword could split my skull. If I could use the Yellow Springs Diagram, I could block it. But taking it head-on with my flesh? Impossible."
Every hair on Fang Han's head stood on end as countless five-colored lights erupted—but they did nothing. They couldn't stop that strike.
The Slaughtered Tribulation Sword carried a world-cleaving momentum, annihilating everything in its path and dragging it into calamity.
Fang Han didn't dare test even his half-immortal body.
He immediately expelled his Golden Core, smashing it violently into the Slaughtered Tribulation Sword.
Jiao Fei's full-power strike collided with Fang Han's Golden Core—condensed from ninety divine abilities. Sparks flew as the sword struck the core and spun wildly in place.
Two terrifying existences clashed head-on.
"Kill!" Jiao Fei roared again, his voice echoing like a beast's. Sword light warped violently as space itself fractured. As a mid-grade Dao Artifact, the Slaughtered Tribulation Sword could cleave the void like the Great Severing Technique, drawing forth raging spatial storms.
Woooo—!
One spatial tempest after another was ripped from the void and hurled onto the Golden Core, threatening to grind it to pieces.
"Jiao Fei," Fang Han said coldly, utterly fearless, "your Slaughtered Tribulation Sword is powerful—but compared to the Great Chaos Thunder Sword, it's far inferior. And without reaching the Longevity Secret Realm, you can't unleash a Dao Artifact's full might. These spatial storms won't destroy my Golden Core!"
The Golden Core shrank instantly to sesame-seed size—then expanded violently, blasting the Slaughtered Tribulation Sword away and annihilating the spatial storms in a single surge.
Protected by his Golden Core, Fang Han charged like a ravenous beast.
His hands transformed into countless overlapping palm shadows, completely enveloping Jiao Fei. Within those shadows, the divine abilities engraved upon the Golden Core condensed into a colossal demonic hand—five-colored radiance flashing, conches and drums resounding as it reached for Jiao Fei's crown.
Before that hand, Jiao Fei was like a chick facing an eagle—trembling, unable to escape.
This was Fang Han's full power.
He intended to suppress the first True Disciple of the Heaven-Piercing Sword Sect in a single decisive blow.
He had calculated everything.
Jiao Fei had nowhere to run.
But at the very instant the demonic hand descended—
Jiao Fei suddenly smiled.
His face twisted and shifted, transforming—until it became identical to Fang Han's own.