Where it all began... (II)

"Umm... am I interrupting something?" Xieren asked awkwardly.

Infront of him was an old man that was half naked with his subordinates glancing at each other weirdly. There was a small girl of about eight years of age tied up on an altar, he was only revealed of the little girl's age through her bone age, rather than the appearance...

"Hmm? So you are the Duke's son... a Heaven knight, late stage huh? you don't look like much" The old man stated in a condescending tone of voice as Xieren scoffed inwardly.

"Very confident are we now?" Xieren's eyes glinted dangerously as the masked demonic cultivators surrounded him instantly.

"Speak for yourself youngling, attack him!"

"Stygian Arts: Mist of death!"

"Stygian Arts: Demonic possession!"

"Stygian Arts: Blood fumes!"

"Useless"

With several attacks coming in his way, Xieren put his palm out and gripped the air violently, creating a shield of yellow light.

"Hmph! Courting death!" Shouted the old man who grinned and hollered. His bones started wiggling around as the audience paled after seeing the skin move in such grotesque manners.

Xieren who had a shield Infront of him turned to the old man and glanced at him warily. The attacks that came in his way simply disappeared as soon as it came into contact with the shield as the demonic cultivators grit their teeth.

"AHHHHHH!!!" The old man screamed and grunted, green mist condensed on his body and evaporated into the air. His skin had turned a shade greener and his wrinkles disappeared, leaving smooth skin and a young body.

After gasping for air, the man took one final breath and stared at Xieren who looked slightly surprised.

"Perhaps I may have underestimated you, youngling. However, can you still defeat me in this form?" The man asked, the previous aging looks the man had had completely gone away, making the old man regain his youthful looks...

"So this is why I got those weird feelings..." Xieren sighed and massaged his temples.

"To think that a Devil king was in this part of the world..." He continued and turned serious. Xieren then took on a defensive stance and brought both of his hands up.

"So you know who I am? I'm impressed..." Xuan Wuhan smirked and looked around at subordinates and waved his hand. The motion of his hand suddenly made the cultivators turn purple as they held their necks while croaking for air.

With all minor distractions gone, Wuhan turned to Xieren with a murderous grin.

Xieren however took a quick peek at the little girl a bit further away from him, still tied up and sighed in relief.

"Devil king, you have a very special person with you!" Xieren commented and smiled at the shocked face of the Devil king.

"How do you-"

"Know of the Void body?" Xieren completed the sentence as Wuhan frowned in annoyance.

"Gifted bodies don't usually go unnoticed and have very distinctive features from the rest of the population. The Void body for example make's the host's appearance much older than it is supposed to be" He shrugged.

"You seem to know quite a lot, a bit too much for your own good! Too bad you will die now!" Xuan Wuhan said and propelled himself towards Xieren who dodged the incoming attack with a well timed counter.

The two men bouted against one another with their lightning fast kicks and punches for a while until they both made eye contact and activated their respective powers.

"True Stygian Arts: Devil's hand!"

Wuhan's hand was encased in a luminous green shell that extended and moved towards Xieren who jumped back to safety.

'To think that there were no Celestials... I truly was at the bottom of the well...' Xieren grunted as he felt the green hand make contact with his torso, it burned through his clothing and touched his skin forcing him to grit his teeth due to the pain.

Xieren was blown away by the power behind the shot and got up shakily.

"You bastard..." He muttered and rubbed an ointment on the charred spot in his skin and closed his eyes. The Devil king realising something was wrong quickly charged at Xieren, trying to catch him off guard.

"Divine Providence: Heavenly extinction!"

"W-What?!" Wuhan shouted in panic, just like how water beats fire, light beats darkness and it's various aspects...

Behind Xieren were twelve floating long swords that shown brightly in a golden luminescence, the swords had unrecognisable inscriptions on them and were charged with holy Qi energy.

"F@#king paedophile... die" Xieren dodged the attack coming in his way and kneed the demonic cultivator that screamed in pain.

"I should let you know that, my entire body is now one with Holy Qi... I'm invincible in this state just like how you thought you were in your demonic state..." Xieren stated and willed three swords to pierce the Devil king.

The swords punctured his hands and heart, making the Devil king scream louder in anguish.

"You have nine more swords left to strike you down..." Xieren informed while the Devil king glared hatefully at him.

•••••

"please... no more..." Xuan Wuhan croaked out a few words as his body laid twitching by the side, next to Xieren who looked unamused.

"Weren't these the same words you heard from your victims?" Xieren asked him coldly as the Devil king opened his eyes, it was that of clarity.

'so that was what you told me about... my old nemesis, "karma will hit you like a b*tch!" was it not?' Wuhan then closed his eyes.

"To think... that a youngling would help me... find my way... out of my madness..." The Devil king released a fit of laughter as Xieren shrugged and took out the last sword.

"Finish me off youngling... do not regret killing madmen... like me and those... from our sect..." Wuhan's breathing got harsh.

skweltch!

The sword went through the stomach, destroying the meridian gates with his Holy Qi that spread through the body, crippling the Devil king.

With a weakened body, the soul would be easier to destroy as cultivators in the Celestial realm cannot be killed by simple mortal wounds.

After he destroyed the soul, the body was simply just an empty shell and unmoving...

"Trying to go all mellow with me... what a weirdo" Xieren grumbled and walked over to the altar and helped untie the little girl.

"Senior, you were so cool! I might fall for you now!" The girl started talking almost immediately as she was rescued.

Xieren's face darkened.

"I'm not into loli!" He replied with a smile.

"Ehhh?! But you were glancing at me all the time when you were fighting that bad guy!" She blushed and moved around like a maiden in love as Xieren coughed blood.

'This brat! I know she's faking it!' He told himself and knocked the little girl on the head.

"Ouch! You bastar-!" She cursed as Xieren raised an eyebrow.

"I mean... good sir..." She rubbed the back of her head and looked away awkwardly.

"If you have that much energy, why don't you save your friends back in those cells? I have to go somewhere quickly... maybe I'm already too late..." Xieren mumbled the last part to himself and walked away.

His body was encased in bright light as his wounds, dirt and grime and damaged clothes vanished, leaving him in luxurious red robes embroided in gold...

"Woah..." The girl was awestruck, hearing things from people was never the same as seeing them. Being so close to a cultivator was like a dream come true for her and with that last part, she took a deep breath and walked upto Xieren.

"Wait Mister! I would like to request you of something!" She shouted in panic, as if Xieren would disappear at any moment.

"hmm? what is it, lolita?" Xieren asked her curiously.

"I... I..."

"I what?"

"PLEASE ACCEPT THIS ONE AS YOUR DISCIPLE, MASTER!" She shouted with a flushed face and kneeled Infront of him.

'...this is so awkward...' He told himself and tried to reject her, but seeing those puppy eyes...

'No!! I must not give in... must not!'

•••••

"From today onwards, I am your master" Xieren helped her up with a smile, but there was blood leaking from his lips as the little girl sweatdropped.

"umm... are you alright, master?" She asked him as Xieren waved his hand casually.

"Of course I'm alright! I'm your master! By the way, you are eight years old are you not?" He asked her cautiously, the last thing he wanted was a three hundred year old loli with the bone structure of an eight year old...

"Of course I am! unless... Master prefers older ones..." She then turned her eyes at him while blushing.

"Kueh!!"

"MASTER YOU ARE COUGHING BLOOD AGAIN!"

"WHO'S FAULT DO YOU THINK IS IT?!"