Redemption of a Born Demon

Chapter 145 - 144: An Epiphany: Controlling the Celestial Fiend with the Demon-Subduing 7 Stars

Videos and pictures of the street fight between Saint-level experts in Modu spread rapidly across social media.

Unlike the Dragon Tiger Town incident, which took place in a remote town, this battle happened in the bustling metropolis of Modu, with countless eyewitnesses. Plus, the government didn’t completely block the information, so many local Modu residents even came forward online to testify.

The authenticity of the videos was now beyond question.

The internet was instantly thrown into an uproar.

Discussions about "Supermen," "Superpower Users," and "Cultivators" grew more and more frequent—and increasingly outlandish.

"I told you the Spiritual Energy Awakening was starting! Cultivators are appearing out in the open now. By the way, I had surgery to remove a kidney stone a while back... did I miss my chance? I heard those things are Golden Cores!"

"Why do all the opponents look like foreigners? Central Asia, North America, South America, Western Europe... what are these people doing in Modu? Seems like they’re up to no good, doesn’t it?"

"Where’s the government? With something this big, where are they? Why aren’t they saying anything? What the hell is going on? At least issue a statement! They’re never around when you need them!"

"..."

Within half a day, the online buzz skyrocketed, even surpassing the furor over Martial Hero Conference contestants being defeated by foreign Martial Artists.

The government remained silent in the face of the online news, but that didn’t mean they weren’t doing anything.

A few discussion threads quietly appeared on websites, then quietly shot to the top of the trending lists.

Among them, a post by an individual user sat at the top of the social media site.

"A Personal Breakdown of the Current Martial Arts Dao Cultivation System and Realms."

The post, written in the tone of an insider leaking information, described the characteristics of the different Martial Arts Dao cultivation realms and their general power levels. It was quite long and incredibly detailed, using certain contestants and videos from the Martial Hero Conference as reference material, making it very easy to understand.

Among these realms, Ming Jin, Expert, and even Tonghui Internalization were still somewhat comprehensible to ordinary people. But when it came to the Realm of Mighty Spirit, the descriptions started to seem incredible and difficult to grasp.

Fist Intent Soul Capturing—where a person’s immense presence could startle an opponent into a daze when they attacked—was still relatively easy to understand. It hadn’t completely detached from reality.

But the Soul-Seizing Realm, where one could mentally affect an opponent’s body, causing obstructions in their qi and blood flow or even physical injury, seemed utterly fantastical.

’Is this really something a human can do?’

And that was to say nothing of the realms above Soul-Seizing.

They could only be described as unimaginable.

"Body Ascension is a legendary realm of the Martial Arts Dao, almost equivalent to Myth. A Martial Artist who reaches this stage, driven by their powerful True Intent, undergoes a complete transformation. Their very genes experience a qualitative change, making them fundamentally different from ordinary people."

"Figures like this possess transcendent abilities. Their physical constitution is comparable to a Superman’s, and they can almost be considered invulnerable to blades and bullets."

"However, their most terrifying aspect isn’t their bodies, but their minds. Saint Experts have all sorts of special traits incomprehensible to ordinary people, and many of their abilities can even be called ’Divine Powers.’ Their power is nearly akin to Mana. To put it in more fantastical terms, it might not be wrong to call them the Immortals of legend. For example, in the videos circulating widely right now, the footage is all quite blurry. This is actually caused by the Heart Intent magnetic fields of these experts affecting the surrounding environment."

"In the past, due to poorer material conditions, someone like this might only appear once every hundred or even several hundred years. They were extremely rare and usually hid themselves among the mortal world. But now, with the world’s population growth and rapid improvement in material conditions, such individuals have become more numerous. It’s likely they will influence the future international landscape, and all nations are secretly making preparations."

"But there’s no need for everyone to panic. Although Saint Experts who have achieved Body Ascension represent the pinnacle of human Physical Ability, they aren’t invincible. In the face of a large-scale army and heavy weaponry, they too will be turned to ash. The civilization we have built, through the successive efforts of generations of Pioneers, is already more glorious than the Immortal Palace Celestial Court of ancient myths and legends."

"The appearance of these figures is likely a message being released by the higher-ups. The secrets about them will gradually be made public, and there’s a chance it could benefit every single one of us."

"In fact, I speculate that the Martial Hero Conference we’re holding is intended to cultivate Saint Experts who have achieved Body Ascension. However, foreign powers won’t just sit back and watch us grow stronger. That’s why foreign Martial Artists have entered our country to fight our experts. This is a battle for the world’s destiny!"

"But I believe that our Donghua experts can defeat any and all invaders!"

The comment section under the post exploded.

"For real? Mutants? Is the new human race really here?"

"And you’re telling me this isn’t the Spiritual Energy Awakening? Forget the Martial Arts Dao, this is just straight-up Cultivation!"

"I get the logic, but telling me those glowing people are the same species as us is hard to accept."

"..."

The comments were filled with shock and doubt, but gradually, more and more people came to accept this explanation.

This was also thanks to the effect of the Martial Hero Conference.

More and more of the public had learned about the world of Cultivation and had personally witnessed contestants who were inhumanly strong. The existence of people in the world even stronger than them no longer seemed so strange.

The people of this era were generally very adaptable.

Soon, the public’s focus shifted to the matter of foreign powers entering the country in an attempt to sabotage the Martial Hero Conference.

No wonder so many foreign Martial Artists had been trending recently. No wonder some of the top 100 contestants in the Martial Hero Conference had been so easily defeated.

The others had come prepared.

Instantly, everyone’s patriotic feelings were ignited.

The battle in Modu garnered even more attention.

「Wencheng, Dechang University.」

Jiang Yiyang was excitedly scrolling through websites and watching videos, completely engrossed in the growing stream of detailed information.

Even though none of this had anything to do with him, he felt a sense of participation, as if he were witnessing history.

BEEP! BEEP!

Just then, he received a call from Shen Jiayue.

"We’re getting ready to head to Modu right now. Do you want to go with us?"

Shen Jiayue said, getting straight to the point.

She had become a "Yi Fan," and when she saw while scrolling through videos that the long-absent Mr. Yi had actually appeared in Modu, she was determined to make the trip no matter what.

And there were many other enthusiastic citizens just like the members of the Dechang University Martial Arts Club.

They wanted to see the so-called "Immortals" of the mortal world with their own eyes and witness this change in the era and in history.

Many people set off immediately, embarking on a spontaneous trip to the eventful city of Modu.

「Nightfall.」

As the series of battles ended, Modu gradually returned to a state of calm. The clamor now existed only online.

「In a certain hotel room.」

Yi Beidou sat cross-legged in the room. A box of Peacock Pills was placed before him, and Demon Flame burned around his body, searing his flesh and refining away all detrimental effects.

BUZZ!

At the same time, a Demon Sound vibrated from his chest and abdomen, echoing through the room. It stimulated his body, causing his organs to hum and activating his body’s restorative abilities to their fullest extent.

Wisps of smoke seeped from his pores, expelling the impurities from his body.

Gradually, the Demon Flame receded, and the Demon Sound ceased. Yi Beidou opened his eyes once more.

He had fought four Saints in a row today, but his most severe injuries actually came from the physical damage caused by the Seven Stars Appearing Together. With his physique and abilities, as long as he had enough nourishment, half a day was enough to readjust and return to his peak state.

After healing his injuries, he didn’t get up right away. He remained seated, replaying the scenes from today’s duels in his mind.

Among them, the Prayer Witchcraft used by Elena and Moncalis had given him a great deal of inspiration.

This was especially true of his battle with Moncalis.

The principle behind his Celestial Slaughter Seven Stars was actually similar to that of Prayer Witchcraft; both involved connecting to a certain magnetic field between heaven and earth, borrowing the Power of Nature to enhance oneself.

Previously, he could only reach six stars without injury and had long been unable to break through the limit of the seventh star.

This undoubtedly limited his power.

Moncalis’s feeling had been correct. The final move Yi Beidou used to defeat him was not his limit.

The Celestial Slaughter Seven Stars was capable of more.

However, it wasn’t that Yi Beidou didn’t want to unleash greater power, but that doing so would come at the cost of even more terrifying physical damage.

If he could find a way to perfectly control all seven stars, then everything would be different.

At that point, he would be able to unleash his strongest power at will, raising his own limits once again.

And now, he had found some direction from Moncalis.

The Holy Flame that Moncalis commanded was an extremely tyrannical Magnetic Field Power. It was even more dangerous than the Beidou Seven Stars; a single misstep could lead to self-immolation.

At first, a slight attempt at using it would cause injury.

But Moncalis was able to master this power exceptionally well, integrating it into his body, which spoke volumes.

Yi Beidou recalled the "Sacred Mark" that had appeared on his opponent’s body, which had evolved from blood-red to gold.

This so-called Sacred Mark was a physical change produced by the deep resonance between the Holy Flame’s magnetic field and Moncalis’s own Life Magnetic Field.

Only by truly achieving this deep integration could one perfectly command that power.

This was precisely what Yi Beidou lacked. He was merely using the Evil Qi of the Beidou Seven Stars to stimulate himself and had not yet achieved a deep resonance. That was why he had been unable to perfectly master the mysteries of the Seventh Step.

’But how can I achieve a deep resonance with the Beidou Seven Stars?’

’After all, both Elena and Moncalis had cultivated their Prayer Secret Techniques for many years. During their Ascension, they had even transformed their physical shells in a corresponding direction to forge a Dharma Body.’

’A Dharma Body... this involves one’s fundamental True Intent and even genes. It’s not something that can be easily changed.’

’If I can’t achieve resonance through my body, then I’ll use some other medium to bring about the effect...’

Yi Beidou thought of the Demon-Suppressing Seven-Star Needle that had accompanied him for twenty years.

His understanding of this Dharma Gate had grown deeper and deeper, and its Divine Power was no longer limited to just sealing demons.

Now, he could even use the Demon-Suppressing Seven-Star Needle to heal others.

’The Beidou Seven Stars, the Demon-Suppressing Seven Stars... I’ll try to merge the two Dharma Gates. I’ll use the Demon-Suppressing Seven-Star Needle as the key node to regulate the Seven-Star Celestial Fiend and force it into deep resonance with my body.’

Yi Beidou stood up and took off his shirt, revealing his strong, perfectly sculpted muscles.

THUD!

He took the first step.