All of a sudden, things went silent.

The crowd of 10,000 stared at Wu Yu in shock. They did not know what he was thinking, or what his objectives were.

The Mizar Sword Immortal had gave him some face and had left him a path that would spare his life. Of course, his words also implied that Wu Yu would no longer be with Nangong Wei anymore. However, at least he would walk away alive.

Despite all this, Wu Yu still stubbornly chose the path that led to his death.

The one who was most upset by this should have been Nangong Wei, who seemed full of hope. However, she did not seem too surprised. Perhaps deep down, she actually had an inkling that this would happen.

Wu Yu exchanged glances with her.

Wu Yu noticed that her eyes had lost all signs of hope. Through her gaze, her wearisome expression of pain pierced through Wu Yu's heart. Wu Yu felt an unparalleled amount of guilt toward her, and he was willing to do almost anything in order to make up for it. However, swearing an oath to kill Jiu Ying was simply something that he could not do.

After hearing Wu Yu's words, the Mizar Sword Immortal gave an unexpected laugh instead. He did not expect Wu Yu to be so stubborn, but this made it easier for him to convince Nangong Wei to let him directly chop off this brat's head on the spot.

Even though Wu Yu had not met him before, Wu Yu had indeed been a source of bother for him since ages ago.

Before the entire crowd, the Mizar Sword Immortal announced his judgment. "Since you're unable to do this, you'll fail to make amends for your previous mistakes. The mistake you’ve made is far too great, and Shushan is a place governed by rules. Today, I bestow upon you, Wu Yu, the death sentence before all the disciples of Shushan. From today on, the Shushan Immortal Sect will no longer have someone like you!"

Bestowing upon you the death penalty!

In an instant, Wu Yu felt like he had returned to Imperial Concubine Xi's palace hall. Back then, Hao Tian the Heavenly Immortal had bestowed upon him the Spirit Severing Powder sanctimoniously from high above.

How can the word “bestow” be used to describe something as horrible as death!?

These words made Wu Yu feel that Shushan was an extremely cold place. The Mizar Sword Immortal's cold and silent gaze was like dense swords falling on Wu Yu, shaking Wu Yu's spirit itself.

That's right, even though Wu Yu respected him, he never once treated Wu Yu as part of them after all.

"Beishan Mo, you shall execute this order!" the Mizar Sword Immortal announced.

This made Wu Yu's heart feel even colder. It was obvious that he not only had to die, but he had to die in the most humiliating way as well.

He was going to be killed by Beishan Mo before this large crowd and before Nangong Wei as well. This was as though Beishan Mo's wildest dreams had come true.

"Yes! Sixth Master." Beishan Mo gave a sinister laugh. He had long prepared for this moment. As he stepped up to Wu Yu, he glared at Wu Yu with a proud and arrogant gaze. He said, "Wu Yu, I knew this day would eventually arrive. For you, I've even specially prepared a supreme immortal treasure that has yet to be stained by a single drop of blood. Your blood offering shall smelt new life into it."

Freedom! Life and death!

Wu Yu had no confidence in his ability to challenge Beishan Mo right now, but there seemed to be no other choice.

However, even at this juncture, the thing that bothered Wu Yu the most was still Nangong Wei. What were her thoughts regarding his sentence? Did this matter have to be blown out of proportion to the extent where he had to die no matter what?

Perhaps they were still connected to each other.

Before Beishan Mo could do anything, Nangong Wei had already stood before Wu Yu. The two of them stood close to each other and looked each other in the eye, and there was nobody, not even the Mizar Sword Immortal, between the two of them now. Perhaps this was the only way they could treat each other sincerely.

After this happened, Wu Yu still felt like there was hope for him to have an opportunity to talk to her one on one.

Even though this relationship was a risky one, Wu Yu still wanted to give it one last try. He did not feel satisfied with how things had ended just like that.

"I just want to verify things for the very last time." Under the watchful eyes of the crowd of thousands, Nangong Wei's words were cold yet clear. In her eyes, it seemed like two scorching black phoenixes were burning.

Wu Yu nodded his head as response.

"If either Jiu Ying or I had to die, who would you save?" Nangong Wei looked at him with blazing eyes.

"You!" There was nothing to hesitate about when answering this question. In Wu Yu's heart, Nangong Wei was 10 times more important than Jiu Ying.

Nangong Wei clenched her teeth as she asked, "Yet you can't kill him even though I want you do so?"

Wu Yu furrowed his brow and replied, "Wei Er, I have no objections against the matter regarding your mother. I'm willing to avenge her for you, and it's even alright if I die while attempting to do so. However, you should give it some more thought. How does this matter have anything to do with Jiu Ying? What does it have to do with other demons? They are all innocent, so do you really have to take your anger out on them?"

Nangong Wei's expression remained cold. As she gave a disappointed laugh, even her beautiful face looked dismal at the moment. She glared at Wu Yu, and emphasized her words, "Demons are the filth of this world. There's no such thing as good or bad when it comes to them. Ying Huang killed my mother, so I want to condemn his entire family line. If I do not do so, the hatred in my heart will never be quelled! Jiu Ying has to die, and there will come a day where I level the entire Endless Demon Seas! Our ancestors of Shushan prioritized slaying demons as their utmost responsibility. Throughout history, many martyrs have perished at the hands of demons. Their hatred goes deeper than the sea! Yet you're still telling me that they're innocent?"

Wu Yu clearly understood things now.

Nangong Wei did not only want to stop at killing Jiu Ying. Her entire life's purpose was to wipe out all demons. This was the Mara of her heart.[1]

Since this was her Mara, just two to three sentences would not be enough to convince her to go against it.

This was a volcano that was buried deep in her heart. It usually lay dormant and did not explode, and that was why the two of them were able to coexist so sweetly. However, today was the day that Wu Yu had come into contact with this volcano!

"My life is dedicated to carrying out the final wishes of my ancestors. I've inherited the fate of the Radiant Phoenix Sword Emperor, so I'll level the entire Endless Demon Seas and massacre as many demons as I possibly can! This is an important responsibility for all Shushan disciples! Wu Yu, if I eventually set foot in the Endless Demon Seas and slaughter hordes of demons, will you stop me?" Nangong Wei interrogated Wu Yu sharply in front of the crowd as her eyes burned with flames.

She was broken-hearted as well, but the tears that welled up in her eyes were immediately evaporated dry by the flames.

Beishan Mo yelled, "I, Beishan Mo, have also received the final wishes of the Green Depths Sword Emperor. In my lifetime, I must slay both Ying Huang and Zhu Huang! I am destined to kill all demons and let the human race flourish. Wu Yu, will you stop me as well?"

Their discussion extended beyond just Jiu Ying alone. It was now a matter of conflicting motivations, and all the cards had been laid out on the table.

As the two of them started to make their pledges, intense emotions welled up within Wu Yu. Deep down in his heart, Wu Yu now understood a phrase even more.

People of different daos go their separate ways!

People of different daos go their separate ways!

He clearly understood that as someone who was not born in Shushan, he would never be able to inherit the Shushan Immortal Sect's hatred toward all demons. Among the demons he had come across, the Ninth Spirit and Jiu Ying were two that had influenced him a great deal. This was especially true for the Ninth Spirit. Even though Wu Yu had killed her, she remained within Wu Yu's spirit.

Nangong Wei's interrogation no longer involved just Jiu Ying.

This was the most fundamental and thorough of conflicts between the two of them.

It was a conflict of one's dao.

"Wu Yu, choose wisely. A great dao knows no limits, so there's no need for you to shoulder the hatred of this sect. Once you've done so, as long as the demons are not completely wiped out, your dao will never be complete. Hatred is a rock that blocks all cultivators," Ming Long said to him in a serious tone.

"Wu Yu, answer me! If you're willing to accompany me as we sweep through all demons and make it your mission in life, I'm willing to forget all you've done and fulfill my promise. I'll go with you to the Immortal Pair Hall immediately!" Nangong Wei's words made everyone dumbstruck once again.

However, she no longer addressed him as “Big Brother.” This made Wu Yu realize that this was simply a last ditch struggle from her to save their relationship.

Back then, her expression was nervous and restrained as she had said, "When I return, let's head to the Immortal Pair Hall together."

Right now, however, what did the Immortal Pair Hall even mean? Wu Yu could no longer see its purpose. There was now a wall between the core of his heart and Nangong Wei. Even if they went to the Immortal Pair Hall, how would it be possible…

He took a few steps back without answering, and just sorrowfully looked at her. In fact, these words from Nangong Wei not only compelled herself, but was an ultimatum for Wu Yu as well.

Under the nervous gazes of the countless people around him, he took a deep breath. Despite the fact that his heart was in turmoil and he was in a perilous situation, there were still things that he had to say. With a loud voice, he answered, "Wei Er, my motivations lie not in wiping out all demons, but in the attainment of an enlightened dao and becoming immortal instead! As such, even if I'm able to lie to you today and claim that I can do as you wish, when the time comes, it'll be impossible for me to change myself. I'm sorry, I've let you down."

"Keh..." Nangong Wei had taken a few steps back as well. As Wu Yu looked at her stunned expression, he saw that the within her eyes, the two phoenixes seemed to be lamenting as well.

On the other hand, both the Mizar Sword Immortal and Beishan Mo were laughing. They both knew that these words would cause Nangong Wei to completely give up all hope. Even though the Mizar Sword Immortal was rather cruel to Nangong Wei, as a father, he naturally knew the difference between long-term and short-term suffering. If such a conversation between Nangong Wei and Wu Yu did not happen today and he had directly killed Wu Yu instead, there was the dreadful possibility that the later half of Nangong Wei's life would have been negatively affected to a great extent. It was even possible that she would have grown distant from him as well.

Very sorry.

Wu Yu looked at her as he clenched his teeth. "Everyone has their own motivations. I have my dao, and you have yours. I'm afraid we're not fated to be together in this lifetime. We'll be husband and wife in a future life instead."

His eyes were red with tears.

"You won't change this dao of yours even if you have to pay with your life?" Nangong asked him sadly.

"I can't."

These two simple words demonstrated his unyielding resolve.

Perhaps he was selfish, or perhaps he had not done enough. Maybe he had not loved her at all, and was merely conveniently loving her due to her initiative in making the first move. Despite all this, Wu Yu was unable to imagine himself becoming like Beishan Mo and trying to satisfy her every wish. Would he even still recognize himself at that point?

Would the Ruyi Jingu Bang forgive him?

As a matter of fact, when he uttered those two words, the relationship between the two of them had come to a complete and utter end.

Previously, she had stood in the middle of the freezing sky and snowy ground and coyly handed over the Sumeru Pouch containing the Nine-Directional Demon Imprisonment Column to Wu Yu's hands. This was the most perfect scene of her in Wu Yu's heart.

However, they were not the same…

Since they were not the same, how could they become immortal companions…

"Big Sister Nangong, please step out of the way for now. Let me rend the corpse of this rapacious brute into a thousand pieces!" Beishan Mo saw an opportunity for him to come forward. He knew that this was an opportune moment to slay Wu Yu.

Nangong Wei suddenly glared at him and howled, "Scram!"

"Big Sister..." Beishan Mo was so angry that he started to tremble as he said, "He doesn't love you at all. He can't even do such a small favor for you, so what else are you still going to do on behalf of this heartless person? The ones who truly love you are your father and all of us in Shushan. It's definitely not someone like Wu Yu, who's not even willing to help you with such a simple thing!"

"Wei Er, it's time to end all of this." The Mizar Sword Immortal chimed in as well. In fact, Wu Yu would not have been allowed to live for so long before the Mizar Sword Immortal if not for the Mizar Sword Immortal's worry over Nangong Wei's emotions.

Nangong Wei was trembling as well. She found it difficult to adjust to the numerous gazes on herl.

Now everyone was waiting for her to speak. Would Wu Yu be killed or spared?

Nangong Wei finally glared at him. Her expression was full of grief as they locked eyes. It was indeed rather cruel to have her decide Wu Yu's fate at this very moment.

Would she kill him on the spot?

Wu Yu did not dare to consider things much further. If she decided to do it on her own, he would not resist. If Beishan Mo made a move instead, he would go all out in a battle to defy death.

1. TL Note: Mara here refers to a term from Buddhism. It is the personification of one's heart devil.