Chapter 781 Rhazorn’s Reckoning
“Rhazorn, you could have remained safely out of reach, yet you walked straight into your own grave. Tell me—what should I do with you?”
Kael finally spoke.
“Lord Lin, I spent many years at Sunlance Academy. Whenever humanity was abused, Rhazorn was always at the forefront. Sometimes, the Vice Dean and Grand Elders had already decided to give us a little room to breathe, only for Rhazorn to step forward and demand harsher treatment. He was the one who forced humanity back into the ranks of bloodstock and cast us out from among the myriad races.”
Lucian descended the steps and stared directly at Rhazorn.
“Of every ten atrocities committed against humanity, Rhazorn had a hand in nine,” Tessa said coldly. “I witnessed it myself during my years at Sunlance Academy. No matter what excuses he offers today, Kael, you cannot let him leave alive.”
“You tormented humanity at every opportunity,” Malcolm said, his gaze carrying a clear promise of death. “Now that you’ve fallen into our hands, you won’t be granted an easy end.”
“Killing him outright would be too merciful.” Adrian turned toward Kael. “Can you seal his Origin Power and immobilize him?”
All color had drained from Rhazorn’s face.
“Kael, think carefully. If I fail to return, you know what will happen to the humans still trapped inside Sunlance Academy.”
Of everyone present, only Kael posed a threat to him.
The Blackheart Matriarch was also at the Stellar Realm, but Rhazorn didn’t consider her worthy of his attention.
“I would have preferred to put you inside my Inner Cosmos and work you like a beast of burden,” Kael said. “Unfortunately, my fellow humans aren’t willing to settle for that. They insist that you die.”
“If I die, the Vice Dean will immediately come to Skyfire Planet. Then we’ll see how you protect so many humans.
“And humanity won’t be the only race to die. Every race represented here will be exterminated. The entire planet will be buried with me.”
Rhazorn was trying to drag everyone else into his predicament.
Sure enough, unease spread among the assembled patriarchs, and they all looked toward Kael.
“If Valerius comes here, I’ll deal with him. But as far as I know, Eternal Realm cultivators cannot remain away from the center of their galaxy for long. Only the concentration of spiritual energy there is sufficient to keep their bodies from rapidly petrifying.”
Kael raised an eyebrow, entirely unconcerned by Rhazorn’s threat.
“So you’re determined to kill me?”
Rhazorn drew a deep breath. Veins throbbed at his temples.
“Your death is inevitable. But before you die, the humans you tormented deserve the chance to settle their grievances.”
A faint smile tugged at Kael’s lips.
“Settle their grievances?”
Rhazorn had barely finished speaking when his vision blurred.
Kael appeared directly in front of him.
“Die!”
As an elder of the External Affairs Hall, Rhazorn had no intention of waiting helplessly for death. He drove his fist toward Kael’s face with all his strength.
Kael caught him by the wrist.
Before Rhazorn could react, a barrage of palm strikes hammered into his body.
Each blow forced another mouthful of blood from his lips. After coughing up blood more than thirty times, Rhazorn crashed to the ground.
Kael dusted off his hands and looked down at him with contempt.
It took Rhazorn a long time to struggle back to his feet.
He examined the damage within his body, and despair filled his eyes.
His dantian had been destroyed, along with the Inner Cosmos housed within it.
His soul had suffered such severe damage that it could no longer leave his body.
Worst of all was his physical condition. Every bone in his body was riddled with hairline fractures. He could manage only tiny, shuffling steps. Any larger movement sent unbearable pain tearing through him.
“You’re ruthless, Kael.”
Rhazorn wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and glared at him with naked hatred.
Kael gave him a cold look before returning to his seat.
“Malcolm, Adrian—his body, Origin Power, and soul have all been crippled. At this point, he’s little more than an ordinary man with extraordinary vitality. Settle whatever debts you have with him, but don’t kill him. I suspect there are many others waiting for their turn.”
“Oh?”
Lucian was the first to rush toward Rhazorn.
“Wait!”
Adrian immediately intercepted him.
“What?” Lucian demanded. “You want to go first?”
“You’re too hotheaded, Lucian. If you kill him immediately, what is everyone behind you supposed to do?”
“That’s right,” Malcolm said. “You should go last.”
Malcolm was humanity’s strongest cultivator after Kael, and Lucian was still wary of him.
“I’ll begin.”
Tessa approached and took out a golden needle.
Origin Power flowed through her hand, heating the needle until it glowed red.
“You...”
Rhazorn retreated a step, but Lucian and Adrian seized him from either side and held him in place.
Tessa drove the red-hot needle into his arm.
Rhazorn’s soul was so weakened that he couldn’t endure even that much pain.
“Aaargh!”
His prolonged scream carried far beyond the sacred grounds.
“Move aside. It’s my turn.”
Mira stepped forward.
Her older brother, Miles, had already died. Only five members of their group remained, with no one else to rely on. Ultimately, Sunlance Academy was responsible for everything they had suffered.
Mira took out a worm, seized Rhazorn by the hair, and forced the creature into his ear.
“Ah... Aaaaaagh!”
Rhazorn screamed without pause. Wherever the worm passed, his flesh rapidly corroded.
Kael had crippled Rhazorn’s body, sealed his soul, and shattered his dantian, but Rhazorn had once been a Stellar Realm cultivator. His vitality remained extraordinarily powerful.
Under these circumstances, however, that vitality only prolonged his suffering.
A long line had already formed behind Mira, stretching all the way beyond the sacred grounds.
Even humans who had no personal grudge against Rhazorn wanted a chance to participate. They still had to wait behind those he had personally wronged.
For seven straight days, Rhazorn’s screams never stopped.
...
The gathering of the myriad races had ended long before then.
Kael returned to the tower and began sorting through the resources stored within his spatial artifacts and Inner Cosmos.
At that moment, his Astral Compass began to glow.
The signal came from the Machine Race.
Kael immediately sent a thread of Origin Power into the compass.
“Arno, is it really that urgent?”
“Of course it is. I believe the Broodmother has already turned her attention toward you. One month ago, the Mistress of Celestial Maiden Palace—an Eternal Realm cultivator—died after her entire body became petrified.
“According to the Machine Race’s intelligence, she should have lived for at least another three hundred thousand years. There is only one possible explanation: the Broodmother consumed her soul and every trace of energy within her body.”
“It’s already that serious?”
Kael’s attention sharpened.
“That is only what I know. I have no idea what may be happening in the regions beyond the reach of our intelligence. Kael, when can you visit the Machine Race?”
“Very well. I’ll come, but it may take me a while.”
“All right. I’ll wait for you.”
Arno ended the connection.