Chapter 122: The Stygian Oath

The silence of Styx served as confirmation of Qingxu's words; it was a classic case of a thief protesting his innocence too loudly. By now, everyone present clearly understood that he truly intended to refine the Nether Blood Sea into his own avatar.

Seeing Styx's expression, Di Jun’s face turned as gloomy as water. This matter had too great an impact on him; it would undoubtedly become a major obstacle to his future conquest of the Netherworld and a significant stumbling block on his path to hegemony. If he hadn't known, it would be one thing, but now that he did, he had to crush Styx's ambition at all costs.

"Fellow Daoist Styx, is what this fellow daoist said true? Do you truly intend to refine the Nether Blood Sea into an avatar?" Zhenyuanzi asked, frowning. In his heart, he knew this was merely a redundant gesture, but he wanted to see what excuse Styx might offer.

Facing Zhenyuanzi's inquiry and the piercing gazes of the crowd, Styx felt his scalp tingle. At this point, he no longer thought about the God-Slaying Spear; he only wished he could escape unscathed and successfully refine the Nether Blood Sea. But that idea was highly unrealistic. Even if he could escape back to the Blood Sea now, what then? With so many powerful experts joining forces to hunt him down, he would be unable to resist! He had no way to answer Zhenyuanzi’s question, and in truth, no answer was needed. Under the pressure of the oath Qingxu had forced him to consider, the situation was obvious.

"Sigh!" Seeing Styx standing silent with a cold face, Zhenyuanzi let out a soft sigh. His expression then shifted, becoming stern and frigid. Even a reclusive cultivator like him, who usually remained aloof from the world, could not tolerate Styx successfully refining the Nether Blood Sea into an avatar.

Once the Nether Blood Sea was refined into an avatar, Styx would possess four hundred and eighty million Blood God clones. As long as his origin remained intact, he could be reborn four hundred and eighty million times. In a sense, each Blood God clone was a life. Furthermore, if he lost some, he could restore them with enough blood. Setting that aside, just the thought of four hundred and eighty million clones, each possessing the early-stage cultivation of a Heavenly Immortal, was terrifying. Imagine the sight of four hundred and eighty million Heavenly Immortals surging forth like a tide.

In the memories of Qingxu’s past life, Styx had succeeded in refining the Blood Sea by exploiting a loophole in the Heavenly Dao’s rules and seizing a fleeting opportunity. This time, with Qingxu’s interference, it was truly hanging in the balance.

"Fellow Daoist Styx, the Nether Blood Sea was formed at the very beginning of Pangu’s creation of the world. It is a manifestation of great fortune and holds immense significance. Under the Heavenly Dao, it should not be refined. It is not too late for you to extinguish this thought, lest you ruin your own reputation," Baize said, stepping forward with a smile at Di Jun’s subtle prompting.

"Hmph! The Old Ancestor is the master of the Blood Sea. The Sea is my private property. Whether I refine it or not is my own business. It is none of your concern! Stop stirring up trouble, or else you will find that this Old Ancestor is not made of clay!" The facade could no longer be maintained, so Styx simply admitted it. However, asking him to give up on refining the Nether Blood Sea was asking too much. The idea of the Blood Sea never drying up and himself never dying—what a temptation! In Styx’s view, this was his life insurance before he could attain the Dao as a Primordial Saint. He would not give it up even if the heavens were to collapse.

"You Styx, do not be ungrateful! Today, whether you are willing or not, you have no choice in the matter. If you do not wish to perish here, take a solemn oath immediately to abandon the refining of the Nether Blood Sea. Otherwise, taste the power of my Chaos Bell!" Taiyi shouted, fierce, overbearing, and unreasonable, showing Styx no face at all.

"My younger brother’s words are sound. Fellow Daoist Styx, you had better swear to abandon the refining of the Nether Blood Sea!"

"Indeed, if you do not give up today, do not think about leaving here alive."

"Refuse to swear? Even if we have to hunt you to the ends of the Blood Sea, we will destroy you!"

...

The crowd was incensed!

Hearing the demands that he give up the Blood Sea and take an oath, Styx was far from reconciled. He immediately prepared to flee back to the Blood Sea to set up arrays for defense.

Qingxu, who had been watching Styx’s eyes, could not miss that flicker of desperation. He guessed that Styx intended to put up a final struggle. Instead of being alarmed, he felt a sense of joy, thinking to himself: "Styx, oh Styx, it is best you do not give up on refining the Nether Blood Sea. Let us see if you can survive the combined might of so many Quasi-Saints, Great Luo Golden Immortals, and Taiyi True Immortals. Hehe, who told you to provoke me? Don't blame me for being vicious. Everything has a price. Since you could not capture me, you must bear the retaliation. This is merely the first wave; I hope you don't die so easily!"

In truth, Qingxu did not fully believe Styx would fall due to his words. After all, under the grand trend of the Heavenly Dao, Styx was destined to create the Asura tribe, control the Asura Path of the Six Reincarnations, and establish the Nether Asura Religion. These were facts of fate. Since nothing had been accomplished yet, the Heavenly Dao would likely not let him die so easily. However, even if he didn't die, there was no hope left for him to refine the Nether Blood Sea. With so many powerful experts watching like tigers, even if Styx possessed boundless divine abilities, he was finished.

Having disrupted Styx’s "Immortal Body" plan, the pent-up anger in Qingxu’s heart dissipated significantly. He felt a sense of schadenfreude, his eyes filled with an unconcealed triumph. He looked like a petty man who took revenge for the slightest grievance, and this scene was not lost on those present, who looked down on him even more. This was exactly what Qingxu wanted. Playing the pig to eat the tiger was his preferred style; hidden enemies were always more threatening than those in the open. Moreover, his current cultivation was still insufficient and needed improvement. If he attracted the attention of too many powerful experts, his future actions would be hindered. That was not what he wanted.

"Do you all truly intend to be this overbearing?" Styx’s face was as black as ink. Blood energy surged around his body, and his laws rippled for dozens of feet, his overwhelming power shaking the universe.

The law Styx cultivated was the Law of Water, but it was scarlet, blood-tainted water with extreme corrosive and defiling effects. In some respects, it was similar to blood-dissolving power, but at least ten times more vicious. Especially given the Nether power contained within, if not for the Six Reincarnations, the power of his laws alone would be enough to forcibly drag anyone below the level of a Quasi-Saint into the cycle of reincarnation, forcing them to be reborn into the Asura Path to be toyed with at his whim. It was truly terrifying.

Seeing Styx unleash his laws, the other Quasi-Saints simultaneously manifested their own. The display of over twenty different laws was an eye-opener for Qingxu.

Quasi-Saints cultivated laws, while Primordial Saints fused with the rules of the Heavenly Dao. The rules of the Heavenly Dao were like the trunk of a towering tree, while laws were like the branches and leaves. The distinction between primary and secondary, and the disparity in strength, were so vast that they could not be mentioned in the same breath.

Any rule of the Heavenly Dao could manifest thousands of laws at will, even those that were contradictory. For example, the Fire Rule of the Heavenly Dao could derive the Law of Water or the Law of Frost. The wonders of this could not be described in mere words; in many cases, it was something that could only be understood intuitively. For Qingxu, laws were still a mysterious existence that he had rarely encountered. This was truly a feast for his eyes.

Faced with twenty-plus laws, Styx’s burning rage was like fire doused by cold water; he calmed down instantly, realizing his predicament. The situation was stronger than the man!

As the saying goes, two fists cannot fight four hands, let alone one against twenty. With such a vast disparity, Styx had no chance of resistance. If he did not submit to the will of the crowd, he would be slaughtered. After all, he was not a Primordial Saint; he had not reached the state of being immortal and indestructible. Two Quasi-Saints could suppress him, and with twenty-plus joining forces, he stood no chance even if he were twice as strong.

At this moment, Qingxu suddenly thought of Daoist Duobao—or rather, Duobao Tathagata, Shakyamuni. According to the records of his past life, when Duobao attained the Bodhi fruit, he was once carelessly swallowed by the Peacock Great Wheel King (Kong Xuan). Upon breaking out of the stomach, he felt humiliated and wanted to use his great divine power to kill the Peacock, but the gathered immortals intervened, saying the Peacock was like his mother, and killing her was akin to matricide. Forced by the pressure, even Duobao Tathagata had to begrudgingly acknowledge her as his mother. A dignified Buddha acknowledging a beast as his mother—what a concept! What a humiliation! But as the saying goes, the situation is stronger than the man.

Today, the situation of Ancestor Styx was even worse than that of Duobao Tathagata.

Taking a few deep breaths to calm himself, Styx seemed to age significantly, his former spirit and vigor vanishing entirely.

"Fellow Daoist Styx, have you considered it?" Di Jun asked with a smile, though in his heart he hoped Styx would refuse, allowing him to use the collective anger to put him to death. Eliminating a Quasi-Saint, especially the master of the Nether Blood Sea, would greatly aid his path to hegemony.

Styx was no fool; he understood Di Jun’s calculations. He smiled bitterly and nodded, agreeing to take the oath. However, he had one condition: he wanted Qingxu handed over to him for punishment. The whole incident was caused by Qingxu, and he hated him to the core.

Regarding Styx’s request, the others were non-committal, saying only that they would not interfere. Kunpeng, Zhenyuanzi, Daoist Hongyun, and Daoist Fuxi had hearts to intervene, but they were isolated and felt it was not worth offending all these powerful experts for the sake of a stranger like Qingxu. They could only turn a blind eye.

Qingxu, who had been watching the show, was shocked to see the fire turn on him. He knew his own worth; he likely wouldn't survive a single exchange under an enraged Styx. Without the help of the Quasi-Saints, he was like a lamb awaiting slaughter. His life and death were now held in the palm of Styx’s hand.

Having revealed such a deep secret of Styx, Qingxu could foresee the tragic outcome if he fell into his hands. He looked around for help, but those he met either ignored him or looked away. His heart sank. At this point, he was sobered; "small wisdom" was still just "small wisdom." The Primordial World was realistic; everything depended on strength. Without the corresponding power, one could not survive. If it were anyone else trying to refine the Blood Sea, these people wouldn't have wasted words—they would have directly obliterated them. That was the influence of power.

With his condition met, Styx had no choice but to point to the heavens and swear the oath to abandon the refining of the Nether Blood Sea.