Zhanxian

005 – What Do I Gain From Beheading You?

“So it’s you?” A voice came from among the crowd of prisoners, astonishing even Yang Chen. Could someone in the immortal world still recognize him?

“Who?” Yang Chen pointed in the direction of the voice, and while he spoke, a tightly bound grey clothed old man suddenly appeared on the Immortal Executioner Stage. On reaching the stage, his body was already crouched, waiting for Yang Chen’s blade to fall. Immortals entering the Immortal Executioner Stage had long since had their cultivation crippled, and even a mortal like Yang Chen could do whatever he wished to them by relying on the Immortal Executioner Stage.

“Several months ago, you dug up a metal chest in my temple, and also paid your respects to me, remember?” The old man’s clothes were worn and torn, a bit discrepant with his status as immortal: “It’s rare that someone would go there, and even more rare to bow, that’s why I remember you clearly.”

On hearing the old man’s words, Yang Chen also understood. This old man was clearly a land god. Land gods couldn’t be called great or minor, barely passing as immortals.

“So it’s you!” Yang Chen smiled, but didn’t hurry to swing the blade. Anyway, he was the only executioner here, and the heavenly court’s Immortal Executioner Stage didn’t need to worry about time. When he cut, was entirely up to Yang Chen.

“You’re a mortal, how can you do something so disgraceful?” The old land god suddenly grew resentful, loudly censuring Yang Chen.

“You also know that I’m a mortal, how could myself have any leeway to decide things like these?” Yang Chen gently caressed the vicious blade in his hand, giving a casual answer. Able to ask such questions, he didn’t have a brain, it was no wonder he was just a land god when he was so pedantic, and still such a poor land god.

“Rebelling against the heavenly court, disgraceful!” The old land god was still talking by himself, but he kept repeating himself, and especially kept mentioning the word “disgraceful”, constantly saying it.

“The motions of heaven are always the same, the laws of heaven are never the same.” Yang Chen saw no point in arguing with the old land god, and only gave his own reasoning: “For so many years, the key positions of the heavenly court have always been held by the same people, since heavenly law is never the same, then why should the Jade Emperor always be him alone? The Queen Mother of the West is also always her alone. So many experts have ascended, but no matter the height of their cultivation, they can still only be the most menial celestial soldiers or palace maids, if it was myself, myself would still rebel even if told myself couldn’t!”

This was the justification of those people rebelling against the heavenly court, and Yang Chen naturally knew about it. Only, even as he spoke, he knew he was playing the lute for cows.

“Disgraceful! Disgraceful!” Besides this line, the old land god was no longer able to say anything else through his anger.

“Great rebellion or minor rebellion, it’s still unrelated to me, I’m just a tiny mortal, myself can’t care about so many matters.” Yang chen smiled calmly, telling the livid old land god: “Before your body ends, perhaps senior still has some unfulfilled aspirations, perhaps myself can help you accomplish one or two.”

“Aspirations?” The old land god looked distracted, then immediately cursed in agitation: “My aspiration, is to cut those rebel thieves into ten thousand pieces!”

“If those rebel thieves don’t include me, perhaps myself can help you accomplish some of it.” Yang Chen smiled calmly, not minding the old land god’s agitated display: “Of course, you also know that killing endlessly is something myself can help you with. Only, killing this or that is done on your behalf, so what do myself gain from it?”

“En?” The old land god clearly hadn’t though Yang Chen would react like that, and he struggled to turn his head from the stage to look at Yang Chen, no quite daring to believe it asking: “You, are you telling the truth?”

“With the current cultivation sects, there will inevitably be an indelible relationship between the immortal world and the mortal world, myself have a permanent grievance with the Profound Heaven Sect, killing some of their people is something myself have to do.” Yang Chen was also very earnest: “Myself swear on my heart, myself will definitely kill the people of the Profound Heaven Sect. If you have no other final wishes, please be on your way at ease!”

“Since you dare swear by your heart, I’ll believe you this once!” The old land god hadn’t thought a mortal like Yang Chen would know so much about the affairs of the heavenly court, and believed him once he heard Yang Chen’s vow: “If you ever have the chance to leave the Immortal Executioner Stage, then go to my ruined temple. Under the ground in front of the altar are a few catties of spiritual stones I hid back in the day. I’ve been destitute for half my life, and those things I left behind before ascending, I’ll give to you! Do it!”

“Every debt has a debtor, you and I have no past grudges, nor recent hatred, this is my place of duty, executing orders, please pardon me!” Yang Chen stood up and rattled of these words to the old land god. Immediately afterward, without any sloppiness, his hand rose and the blade fell, the old land god’s head fell to the ground in an instant. Blood spurted out, but none of it touched Yang Chen’s body.

Hiss, drawing a long breath, old devil Yi’s method circulated once again, swiftly absorbing and dissolving the old land god’s life essence. The warm flow within his body immediately surged to the top of his head, afterwards swiftly circulating several turns along the conception and governing vessel meridians, then disappeared without a trace. This alone was something Yang Chen couldn’t have accomplished even by killing hundreds of mortals.

Yang Chen closed his eyes until the heat had disappeared, then opened them again. He immediately sensed that something had changed with the ring on his hand, with a thought, he discovered that the achievement value on the ring had changed, already turning from zero to several hundred thousands.

Yang Chen’s heart twitched. This ring was the token of a heavenly court position, but at the same time it also recorded achievement value. That beheading the land god raised the value showed that those rebels already had a firm grasp on the heavenly court, and had altered the rules for achievements. Killing justly would naturally raise achievements. The achievement this immortal once had in the heavenly court now raised Yang Chen’s.

Only, a few hundred thousand couldn’t be called much, or little, it didn’t enter Yang Chen’s sight. This Immortal Executioner Stage was densely packed with convicted prisoners, wouldn’t that be an achievement?

The second prisoner to be transported up was a minor celestial soldier. Yang Chen didn’t pay any attention to his history, only asking him just like he did the old land god before: “Before your body ends, if senior has any unfinished aspirations, perhaps myself can help you accomplish one or two. Of course, the rules are as ever, what do myself gain from helping you?”

“What do you want?” While he was just a minor soldier in the heavenly court, he was probably a famous character in the mortal world, and had the bearing to match. He was exceptionally calm before his death.

“Whatever you wish, cultivation arts, or perhaps some treasures you left behind in the mundane world, spiritual world, or immortal world, it’s all fine.” Yang Chen smiled faintly: “To your benefit, I might complete a cherished desire on your behalf, exceptionally fair, cheating neither young nor old.”

“And if you take the payment but can’t complete my desire?” The soldier snorted coldly, questioning Yang Chen.

“Everyone are great lords, myself am a tiny mortal, myself don’t dare boast of the sea.” Yang Chen still spoke indifferently: “What myself can do, myself will try to do. For what myself can’t do, my capability is limited, and myself don’t dare make guarantees. Only, everyone have entered the roll of immortals, all problems are solved after death, there is no need to hope for re-entering reincarnation. There is no need for the things you leave behind. If they are set aside for the younger generation, myself won’t insist either, it’s all up to you!”

His voice wasn’t loud, but within the Immortal Executioner Stage he was audible to everyone, and he was also extremely relaxed. What he said here was naturally heard by everyone.

“Since it’s like that, I don’t have any aspirations, do it!” The heavenly court soldier didn’t have any lingering desires. Closing his eyes, he waited for Yang Chen to move.

“Every debt has a debtor, you and I have no past grudges, nor recent hatred, this is my place of duty, executing orders, please pardon me!” Yang chen didn’t insist either, he had already said that he might not be able to succeed, and didn’t force anyone to accept it. If they didn’t want to, Yang Chen naturally wouldn’t be angry, anyway, after they died, their life essence would nourish him.

Snap, the vicious blade flashed, and the heavenly court soldier fell to the stage. The achievement points in the ring was only a few tens of thousands, it seemed this soldier really was at the bottom.

But the soldier’s life essence was several times more robust than the land god’s, and breathing in, circulating, and absorbing, took several times longer. With just two people, Yang Chen sensed enormous changes within his body. It really was like he expected, beheading immortals was several tens of thousand times more effective than beheading mortals.

“I’ve moved unhindered for a lifetime, without cares or concerns, I have no desires I need a mortal like you to settle. Saying more is useless, do it!” The third was extremely straightforward, and took the initiative to speak up before Yang Chen could ask.

“Every debt has a debtor, you and I have no past grudges, nor recent hatred, this is my place of duty, executing orders, please pardon me!” The counterpart was straightforward, so Yang Chen would be even more straightforward, speaking his phrase, hand rising and blade falling, neatly ending it. Besides giving Yang Chen a few dozen achievement points, as well as altering Yang Chen’s spiritual roots and energy channels, he left nothing else behind.

“I have nothing to say either, as long as you have the chance to kill a few rebels in the future.” The next immortal was also unreconciled, and after speaking, he didn’t wait for Yang Cheng to urge him, saying by himself: “Before I ascended, I once left behind a medicine garden for my descendants. Unfortunately, I left in a hurry and didn’t have time to notify them. I’ll give it to you, it’s at the Sun Painting Mountain, I once arranged a prohibition, if you want to enter, you can’t avoid a bit of trouble.”

“The Sun Painting Mountain medicine garden?” Yang Chen’s mind turned, blurting out: “Seven Steps Certain Death Formation, three steps forward, two back, one left, one up, make seven half turns, repeat seven times, requires water type spiritual force to enter, seven by seven, forty nine steps, one mistake means certain death, senior has left behind a lot of good things. Many thanks!”

“How did you know?” Hearing Yang Chen speak it without a word out of place, the mountain god simply didn’t dare believe his ears. Things he originally thought only he knew seemed to be defenseless in front of Yang Chen, how couldn’t he be shocked?

“Myself just know!” Yang Chen knew it because this medicine garden would be discovered two thousand years later, when some medium sized sect sacrificed the lives of several dozen yuanying experts to brute force their way inside. Yang Chen naturally wouldn’t explain himself to the mountain god, only adding: “After ascending, unless one agrees to cripple one’s cultivation and lower ones realm, there is no way to transmit such information to the lower worlds. Senior, myself guarantees that this medicine garden won’t gather dust again, senior depart at ease!”

“The art to control it is……” The stunned mountain god looked at Yang Chen, the explained the method to control it.

“Many thanks, senior!” Yang Chen saluted him once again.

“Can’t be seen through!” The mountain god only said this. At this juncture, nobody thought there was any way to survive, anyone could see it clearly, but they still had the qualities of immortals, each and everyone’s display drawing Yang Chen’s admiration.

“Every debt has a debtor, you and I have no past grudges, nor recent hatred, this is my place of duty, executing orders, please pardon me!” With each immortal Yang Chen executed, he would patiently speak these words. After speaking, Yang Chen would cut.

“Why do you say that before each time you chop? The fifth seemed like a scholar, with no way to tell his position. When he came up he asked Yang Chen this, and even mocked: “Could you be afraid that you’ll come to a bad end after beheading immortals, and have a guilty conscience?”

“Myself just don’t want to affect karma!” Yang Chen didn’t pay attention to the mocking tone, giving him a calm reply: “Even though everyone dies at my hand, myself am not the origin of your death. If you want to settle karma, place it on the people who gave the sentence, if senior still has any lust for revenge, put it directly where it belongs! I’m just an executioner, not subject to karma!”

“You’re not affected because you say you’re not?” Even though the scholar was tied up, his eyes rolled quickly: “Perhaps it’s beyond your control?”

“Affected or not, it all depends on my heart.” Yang Chen didn’t get angry, only replying with his opinion: “Executing everyone is my duty, myself find no shame in my heart. If myself say myself is not affected, myself is not affected.” The scholar couldn’t help be discouraged by the strong confidence in his words.

Since entering the Immortal Executioner Stage, Yang Chan had practically always referred to himself as “myself”. Any one of these immortals he executed could be senior to him, and therefore Yang Chen only addressed them as senior, and himself as myself, with no other appellations.

“Fine, I too have unfinished desires, you kill a few people, and I’ll set aside some things for you.” The scholar chuckled gently, then told Yang Chen: “In Luqing Mountain’s Elm Pill Valley, I left behind some magic treasures and pills. After you leave, you can go there to look for them. Whether you can find them is up to your luck!”

“What do I need to watch out for when entering Elm Pill Valley?” Yang Chen asked, his voice as ever.

“Entering is simple, just go inside, leaving requires using the Eight Treasures Wind Copper Mirror to subdue the eye of the formation and leave the valley.” The scholar’s reply was also extremely fast, without the slightest hesitation.

“Good plot!” Yang Chen suddenly sneered: “Elm Pill Vanishing Valley can be entered but not left. The Eight Treasure Wind Copper Mirror, can leave but not enter! Myself am not in the mood to fool senior, so senior intending to harm my life cannot be allowed, myself am offended!”

“Hahahaha! You’re actually a clever junior, you know there’s a trick.” The scholar laughed out loud: “By chance you know about Elm Pill Vanishing Valley, it seems your life shouldn’t end. However, I’m already like this, my death is near at hand, I wonder what you can do apart from killing me when you say you’re offended?”

“Myself am untalented, but as it turns out myself knows a type of Destroying Immortal Absolute Devil Hand.” A cold smile floated onto Yang Chen’s face, speaking with a flat voice: “Even though myself am a mortal, lacking magical power, with the Immortal Executioner Stage myself can still use one or two. Senior, before your end, you will properly endure life!”

When Yang Chen’s words fell, the scholar’s face had already changed completely. Not just him, the entire crowed below the stage also had different expressions.