1. Damn him!Copy !req
2. Where did the wretch hide?Copy !req
3. But the way he fled so desperately... it
belies his desire to protect something.Copy !req
4. Perhaps I should assume he has
stolen away with my princess.Copy !req
5. The bastard!Copy !req
6. I'll find him if I have to search
under every rock in creation!Copy !req
7. Good grief! He's finally gone.Copy !req
8. Seems like he's almostCopy !req
9. crazier than he was when he
had Seven Blasphemous Deaths.Copy !req
10. What the hell's wrong with him?Copy !req
11. Hope Cán Yún and the others are okay.
As for Lǐn Xuě Yā...Copy !req
12. That reminds me!Copy !req
13. What's this thing he gave me when he left?Copy !req
14. Is it even safe to open?Copy !req
15. What the hell is this cursed-looking thing?Copy !req
16. You finally took it out of the bag, I see.Copy !req
17. Goodness! I was beginning to worry
you had forgotten all about it.Copy !req
18. It talked?Copy !req
19. This is a little communications
device I crafted on a whim.Copy !req
20. I wasn't sure if it'd work as
I intended, but it seems to be a success.Copy !req
21. Communicate? Why?Copy !req
22. I thought if we wereCopy !req
23. going to be operating separately,
it'd be a good idea to keep in touch.Copy !req
24. All possible thanks to a hex that
plays upon entanglements of fate,Copy !req
25. so I should be able to contact
you no matter the distance.Copy !req
26. How about it? Have you ever
witnessed such convenience before?Copy !req
27. So it's literally a cursed doll?Copy !req
28. Of all the nasty crap to cook up...Copy !req
29. I thought you'd be unsettled
by the specifics of its make,Copy !req
30. so I tried to make it look
as endearing as possible.Copy !req
31. What you actually did was
make it seem even nastier.Copy !req
32. Why make it look like yourself
in the first place?Copy !req
33. Well, when I thought about
the distance between us,Copy !req
34. the idea of you forgetting my face
just seemed like such a sad prospect.Copy !req
35. If you feed me any more bull,
I'm gonna toss this thing.Copy !req
36. Settle down for a second!
Just consider things.Copy !req
37. If we aim to bring down
Xíng Hài's Void Junction,Copy !req
38. then a doll like this should
serve a valuable purpose!Copy !req
39. We'll be able to stay in contact
no matter where we are!Copy !req
40. I guess you've got a point.Copy !req
41. W-Wait just a moment! Why put it away?Copy !req
42. It's cramped in here! Say!Copy !req
43. You think I'm gonna walk around
with a shady looking doll?Copy !req
44. You don't see the value in a
bit of travel conversation?Copy !req
45. You'd endure the unparalleled
anguish of boredom?Copy !req
46. Just behave, or I'm actually gonna toss it.Copy !req
47. Ah, well... Your stubbornness knows no limit.Copy !req
48. Are you a traveler?Copy !req
49. We don't see many visitors
this deep in the mountains.Copy !req
50. I'm... uh, well...Copy !req
51. I was told there's a doctor...
well, not a doctor...Copy !req
52. But someone more amazing than a doctor.Copy !req
53. Strange. That's a secret
that nobody should know.Copy !req
54. Who might've told you about that?Copy !req
55. W-Well... er...Copy !req
56. Oh, it's all right. You seem nice enough.Copy !req
57. I assume you're wondering how
I can tell, when I can't see?Copy !req
58. No! It's just... uh...Copy !req
59. By not being deceived by
what your eyes show you,Copy !req
60. you can see certain things more clearly.Copy !req
61. Someone taught me that.Copy !req
62. What's all the fuss out here?Copy !req
63. Oh, hey, are you Tiān Gōng Guǐ Jiàng?Copy !req
64. Seems like this isn't the type
of visitor we can chase off.Copy !req
65. What brings you here?Copy !req
66. Well, uh...Copy !req
67. The thing is, someone's hurt! He needs help!Copy !req
68. I'm guessing that's what
you were told to say.Copy !req
69. Come along. Right this way.Copy !req
70. What's the injured's condition?Copy !req
71. He was stabbed with a short sword,
in the stomach.Copy !req
72. He's been treated, so the wound can close,
but he's still really weak.Copy !req
73. In that case...Copy !req
74. Have him drink half of this concoction,Copy !req
75. and then use the other half in small portions
to make poultices for the next three days.Copy !req
76. Got that? He's only to drink half!Copy !req
77. Any more will be toxic.Copy !req
78. Does this stuff really work that well?Copy !req
79. It takes six months to manufacture
that amount of that spirit medicine.Copy !req
80. Not the kind of thing I'd part
with under ordinary circumstances.Copy !req
81. But... I'm assuming it's
Làng Wū Yáo who's injured, right?Copy !req
82. How'd you know?Copy !req
83. That pipa wouldn't be willingly
carried by anyone else, otherwise.Copy !req
84. He's onto us.Copy !req
85. Those boys are as much of a pain as ever.Copy !req
86. I could've provided better care if
you had actually dragged him here.Copy !req
87. Is the situation around
here kinda... complicated?Copy !req
88. If the chatterbox you're
carrying hasn't told you,Copy !req
89. then it's not my place to discuss it.Copy !req
90. Now get a move on.Copy !req
91. Remember, only have him drink half of it.Copy !req
92. Got it! Thanks!Copy !req
93. That man... is he a friend of Bú Huàn's?Copy !req
94. What makes you think that?Copy !req
95. Something about the way he talked.Copy !req
96. There's a unique air around the
people who Bú Huàn has inspired.Copy !req
97. There's also the fact he
had Líng Yá with him.Copy !req
98. How'd you know?Copy !req
99. He felt like he had questions,
but didn't ask anything,Copy !req
100. like someone was stopping him.Copy !req
101. And I could only sense
a single human presence.Copy !req
102. And I started wondering if he
had a talking pipa with him.Copy !req
103. There are days when I have a hard
time believing you're blind.Copy !req
104. Wū Yáo was a good teacher.Copy !req
105. But... if he entrusted Líng Yá to
someone else, things must be serious.Copy !req
106. Do you think Wū Yáo is the
one who's actually injured?Copy !req
107. Doesn't seem to be anything life-threatening.Copy !req
108. And I gave him some of my most potent
spirit medicine. He'll be fine.Copy !req
109. Those two... do they think I'm not going
to worry if I don't know the details?Copy !req
110. It's their idea of being considerate.Copy !req
111. What is it about men that makes
them try to deceive womenCopy !req
112. when they do something dangerous?Copy !req
113. They must think it's an act of kindness.Copy !req
114. But it's more like children trying
to hide the trouble they causeCopy !req
115. from their parents.Copy !req
116. Maybe we should've asked
the boy more questions.Copy !req
117. No... it'd be one thing if I
could go and help right away.Copy !req
118. But right now, all I can really do is wait.Copy !req
119. I was just hoping to hear the
good news from them in person.Copy !req
120. After all... if one of Bú Huàn's
friends had Líng Yá with him,Copy !req
121. that means Wū Yáo managed to find
him safely in Dōng Li, right?Copy !req
122. Where am I?Copy !req
123. Have you finally awakened?Copy !req
124. I remember that voice.Copy !req
125. But could it be... Xíng Hài?Copy !req
126. Then it truly is you, Elder Sister.Copy !req
127. It pains me so to see you in this state!Copy !req
128. Oh, of course.Copy !req
129. I haven't seen you since
the War of Fading Dusk.Copy !req
130. To think that you remained in this world.Copy !req
131. Unable to aid the cause of demonkind,
I've been stagnating in Dōng Li all this time...Copy !req
132. Ashamed though I am to admit it.Copy !req
133. I was in Xī Yōu...Copy !req
134. Where I continued to torment the humans.Copy !req
135. Granted, this miserable state of
affairs is the result of that.Copy !req
136. How could you, one of the demon realm's
greatest sorcerers, end up like this?Copy !req
137. It is a long story.Copy !req
138. But since we've been reunited
after all this time...Copy !req
139. Would you indulge me?Copy !req
140. By all means.Copy !req
141. Very good.Copy !req
142. Take me in your hands.
As my kin, you needn't worry.Copy !req
143. I'll allow you to peer into my memories.Copy !req
144. Is this...Copy !req
145. As you've guessed... 200 years ago.Copy !req
146. Before Dōng Li and Xī Yōu were
split apart... the land of Wàn Yú.Copy !req
147. Sadly, the War of Fading Dusk concluded
when the Demon Lord gave into cowardice.Copy !req
148. If we had only stood our ground,Copy !req
149. the Wasteland of Spirits would
have spread across the land...Copy !req
150. Scouring the humans away
like the grime they are.Copy !req
151. After they were separated from the east,Copy !req
152. the people of the west were ecstatic,
convinced they'd driven demonkind to ground.Copy !req
153. One of the crown princes was
chosen to be the new emperor,Copy !req
154. and the country of Xī Yōu was established,
in an effort to rebuild.Copy !req
155. The demons who ignored the order to
retreat and still sought to wage warCopy !req
156. were hunted down and exterminated,
one by one, by the Hù Yìn Shī.Copy !req
157. But I was wiser than that.Copy !req
158. I knew that humans were never more vulnerableCopy !req
159. than in a moment of heightened
spirits and inflated confidence.Copy !req
160. Thus, I took the form of a human,Copy !req
161. and inserted myself among those
who sung of mankind's victory.Copy !req
162. At first I was a servant, who earned her
reputation through the performing arts.Copy !req
163. After a noble plucked me from that
station and gave their family to me,Copy !req
164. I made my way into the imperial
court as an attendant.Copy !req
165. Even the most shrewd man seems toCopy !req
166. reveal his idiocy in the
presence of a beautiful woman.Copy !req
167. They all accepted the false history
I presented to them without question,Copy !req
168. and it took less than a year before
I was the Emperor's favored mistress.Copy !req
169. Thinking back on it now
makes my heart dance.Copy !req
170. All it took was my sweet whispers in his ear,Copy !req
171. and the Emperor would commit
all manner of foolishness.Copy !req
172. I convinced him that virgin livers were an
ingredient in the elixir for immortality,Copy !req
173. and had his people singing demonic curses
to their children, as lullabies...Copy !req
174. Any servants who displeased me were
fed to wild animals during banquets.Copy !req
175. I can hardly express to you how
sweet wine is when accompaniedCopy !req
176. by the screams of those being devoured.Copy !req
177. Congratulations are in order for
that kind of accomplishment.Copy !req
178. It seems as if the blood and
resentment my whims resulted inCopy !req
179. seeped into the Phoenix Light Palace
and became a curse.Copy !req
180. It seems that, even now, the Emperor's lineCopy !req
181. produces tyrants who grow
intoxicated from spilled blood.Copy !req
182. That said, ultimately, it was my own
overconfidence that led to my downfall.Copy !req
183. I was entrapped, stepping into a purifying
field that revealed my true nature.Copy !req
184. There was nowhere I could hide once
the entire nation knew my face.Copy !req
185. And in the end, I was run through
with a Hù Yìn Shī blade,Copy !req
186. my body falling into the sea.Copy !req
187. And yet... I did not spend my
time in the imperial palaceCopy !req
188. simply frolicking among showers of gore.Copy !req
189. I made sure to prepare heretical
sorcery for just such an occasion.Copy !req
190. Should I be deprived of my body,Copy !req
191. the spell I preparedCopy !req
192. would transfer my soul into
an object bathed in my blood.Copy !req
193. Then... this form you have now...Copy !req
194. Oh, yes. A holy sword, once wielded
by a Hù Yìn Shī guardian,Copy !req
195. so that I might be subjugated.Copy !req
196. But after tasting my blood,
it was instead bewitched,Copy !req
197. and transformed into my new incarnation.Copy !req
198. One hundred and fifty years
after the transfer...Copy !req
199. I laid in wait, in a Hù Yìn Shī storehouse,Copy !req
200. waiting for my atrocities as
Zhào Jūn Lín to fade from memory.Copy !req
201. And my first taste of bliss after my long
dormancy was the descendant of theCopy !req
202. Hù Yìn Shī who stabbed me.Copy !req
203. His wife, parents, siblings, children...
after I had him butcher them all,Copy !req
204. I saw him imprisoned as a crazed murderer.Copy !req
205. No one suspected that it was the
sword which was bewitched at first.Copy !req
206. And so I passed from swordsman to swordsman,Copy !req
207. and every time, the blood would rain.Copy !req
208. They would call me the
Seven Blasphemous Deaths,Copy !req
209. who would enslave all who grasped her hilt.Copy !req
210. Turning them into little more than puppets,Copy !req
211. whose purpose is to make
blood sacrifices to me.Copy !req
212. And so, I was granted a second opportunity
to become a scourge on man's world.Copy !req
213. It was a special pleasure to see swordsmenCopy !req
214. of renowned skill be
reduced to lustful slaves.Copy !req
215. They caused so much harm to each
other in pursuit of my favor.Copy !req
216. And each time, I would pass into
the hands of the stronger wielder,Copy !req
217. causing even greater carnage.Copy !req
218. I was easily able to
rival the amount of deathCopy !req
219. I caused from within the imperial palace.Copy !req
220. With enough time, I could have
passed into privileged handsCopy !req
221. that would've allowed me to turn all
of Xī Yōu into an ocean of blood...Copy !req
222. But I caught the attention of
the Sword-Plundering Nemesis.Copy !req
223. The Sword-Plundering Nemesis? Who is that?Copy !req
224. Some imbecile out to gather all of the
mystic swords throughout the land.Copy !req
225. He seems to have been better known
in Dōng Li as Shāng Bú Huàn.Copy !req
226. Shāng Bú Huàn! That swindler!Copy !req
227. Well, this is surprising.Copy !req
228. You have some sort of
vendetta against him as well?Copy !req
229. I mistook him for some
insignificant vagabond.Copy !req
230. And as a result, after finally
endeavoring to create the revival ritual,Copy !req
231. Yāo Tú Lí was cast into
another dimension!Copy !req
232. I could curse him and his entourage for
eternity, and it still wouldn't be long enough!Copy !req
233. He was able to banish a demon god?Copy !req
234. The Sorcerous Sword Index
is truly a dreadful tool.Copy !req
235. There's no telling what kind
of power it may contain.Copy !req
236. This has only served to solidify my beliefCopy !req
237. that Shāng Bú Huàn is the
sworn enemy of all demonkind!Copy !req
238. I ask for your assistance to see him
finally dealt with, Elder Sister!Copy !req
239. He is a fearsome foe.Copy !req
240. Even if faced with the strongest
swordsman imaginable,Copy !req
241. he will concoct a scheme for victory.Copy !req
242. Do you have a plan to deal with him?Copy !req
243. Leave it to me. With your presence
here in the Void Junction,Copy !req
244. I believe a new option has opened to us.Copy !req
245. Sorry about the holdup!Copy !req
246. Hey! You guys made it, huh?Copy !req
247. Barely. That was rough.Copy !req
248. Gramps was looking plucky, as usual.
He gave us some kind of badass medicine!Copy !req
249. Here... He's only supposed to drink half.Copy !req
250. What a relief. I knew we could
count on Tiān Gōng Guǐ Jiàng.Copy !req
251. Damn, that's some strong stuff!Copy !req
252. What did you just make me drink?Copy !req
253. Relax. It's spirit medicine
from Tiān Gōng Guǐ Jiàng.Copy !req
254. It probably tastes terrible,
but it's bound to work.Copy !req
255. I ran all the way to the Odd Shop to
grab it! You're welcome, by the way.Copy !req
256. Why didn't you go, Shāng?Copy !req
257. Why are you avoiding Tiān Mìng like this?Copy !req
258. How the hell am I supposed to
face her after what's happened?Copy !req
259. But she's waiting for you!Copy !req
260. Until I've dealt with the
Sorcerous Sword Index... I can't see her.Copy !req
261. I'm not putting her through
anything like what happened before again.Copy !req
262. You're making excuses!Copy !req
263. Huò Shì Míng Huáng!Copy !req
264. Surely you can do better than this,Copy !req
265. Sword-Plundering Nemesis...Copy !req
266. What of your precious Sorcerous Sword Index?Copy !req
267. A blue eye set on conquest.
A golden eye inviting death.Copy !req
268. A locust symbol shining in the dark
announces the presence of Huò Shì Míng Huáng.Copy !req