Urban Immortal Cultivation Supreme

Two blood Phoenixes were vanquished by a single move from Emperor Yan, forcing Zhu Bufan to retreat abruptly. Seeing Zhu Bufan's hasty retreat ignited Emperor Yan's eagerness for combat, as he swiftly pursued Zhu Bufan.

"Breaking Flow Formation!!"

Just as Emperor Yan advanced with a step, Zhu Bufan, who was retreating, was able to forcefully stabilize his posture, and with a swing of his Blood-colored Mist Long Sword, a resplendent Sword Qi, akin to the Milky Way, cleaved directly towards Emperor Yan.

"Let's see how your clumsy Chenjiang Duanliu Break compares to mine! Chenjiang Duanliu Break? Breaking Flow Formation!!" As Zhu Bufan fiercely launched a Breaking Flow Formation towards him, Emperor Yan too swung his flame sword. A pitch-black flame, like a bolt of silk, instantly enveloped everything above, creating an overwhelming stifling atmosphere that snatched away all the surrounding air. Emperor Yan's Breaking Flow Formation collided with Zhu Bufan's.

'Boom!'

The same Martial Arts move was released, and although Zhu Bufan was the first to strike, as expected, Emperor Yan's Chenjiang Duanliu Break triumphed, shattering Zhu Bufan's Sword Qi which scattered around. Noticing that his own Breaking Flow Formation was about to hit Zhu Bufan, Emperor Yan hastily tilted his sword energy. The heavy sword energy then slammed into Zhu Bufan's raised Blood-colored Long Sword.

'Pfft'

A spray of fresh blood. The violent blow on Zhu Bufan's right hand, which was holding the sword, caused him to immediately lose grip of Emperor Yan's crushing move. Instantly, the Blood-colored Mist Long Sword, which had taken the form of Emperor Yan's weapon, was split from his grasp and flew away, lodging itself into the ground—transforming back into Emperor Yan's weapon, and at that moment, all the resentment entwining Zhu Bufan as well as the other transformations dissipated with the loss of the weapon.

"Who would have thought it would force me to reveal my 'Devouring Demon Heavenly Dragon Break'? It seems what that shaman said might hold some truth. What a joke—I must hurry to break the other seals to be able to ah…" Observing Zhu Bufan collapsing to the ground, Emperor Yan sheathed his flame sword and quickly approached Zhu Bufan. Seeing Zhu Bufan had completely returned to normal, Emperor Yan was suddenly overwhelmed with a multitude of thoughts.

"Emperor Yan… Have I failed again?"

Struggling to open his eyes, the first thing Zhu Bufan saw was the worried face of Emperor Yan. Shaking his dizzy head, Zhu Bufan spoke in a hoarse voice.

"Yes, you've failed again. This is the third time," Emperor Yan nodded in affirmation upon hearing Zhu Bufan's inquiry. It turns out, ever since Zhu Bufan first condensed the Emperor's Hatred, which seized control of his senses, a month had passed. Including this time, Zhu Bufan had attempted to tame the Emperor's Hatred thrice, but unfortunately, he had yet again been unsuccessful.

"Damn it! Again! Why is it that every time I invoke the Emperor's Hatred, my vision is engulfed in a sea of blood, and everything else that moves seems like white resentful spirits? And I faintly remember, as soon as I summon the Emperor's Hatred, a voice keeps whispering in my ear, urging me to slaughter everything under the heavens…"

Reflecting on his experience of invoking the Emperor's Hatred, Zhu Bufan pressed his forehead in frustration and muttered, "Could it be that there was a mistake during my Cultivation of the Emperor's Hatred?"

"No, you didn't make a mistake. The Cultivation Technique for Emperor's Hatred given to you by the Demon King is authentic. It's just that you, right now, do not possess the ability to wield such immense resentful power from that Soul Sword," Emperor Yan shook his head in response to Zhu Bufan's words.

"After our battle, I have come to realize that this Emperor's Hatred can erode the very depths of the user's soul, invoking boundless hatred. Anyone who is emotionally unstable or unable to control their emotions will immediately have their senses consumed by the hatred unleashed by the Emperor's Hatred, becoming a puppet engulfed by loathing and malice."

"Are you suggesting my spirit is too weak to command the Emperor's Hatred? I have always believed that after many years at the Heavenly Sword Sect, the mockery and ridicule conditioned me with an indomitable and resistant spirit," hearing Emperor Yan's words, Zhu Bufan felt a wave of discouragement. Had anyone else said this to him, Zhu Bufan might just scoff, but coming from Emperor Yan, Zhu Bufan would accept it in its entirety.

"This is it." After a sigh, Emperor Yan continued, "Fool, I know you are very sensitive to others' contemptuous glances and feelings. It is because for ten years in the Heavenly Sword Sect, you could only live by watching people's faces. The incident with Huo Ling last time was the best illustration of this: your heart is actually very fragile. You fear being despised, being laughed at. Once you see these things, you cannot help but burst out with killing intent and anger. This is one of the weak points of your heart, and it's also precisely why Emperor's Hatred can easily control you."

"Indeed, the ten years you spent in the Heavenly Sword Sect have hardened your tenacity and honed your temperament, but your heart has been injured. Underneath your fellow disciples' mockery and contempt, now whenever an enemy shows you such expressions, you can't suppress your killing intent. The fact that you killed that Thunder Clan trash during the fight in the Thunder Clan is good proof of this."

"As long as you cannot calmly face these glances and mockery, without your heart and mind being moved, you are unable to control Emperor's Hatred. Using the Soul Sword is entirely different from the normal practice of Martial Arts. Especially this type of Soul Sword that can bring out the dark side in others' hearts is not something that can be controlled simply by having high cultivation. Even if you reached the Heaven Rank, if there are such gaps in your heart, you will still be controlled by Emperor's Hatred. The only one who can subdue Emperor's Hatred is yourself, by filling in the gaps of your own heart."

"Moreover, this emotional vulnerability of yours must be overcome as soon as possible, because if you do not overcome it quickly, the stronger your cultivation becomes in the future, the larger this emotional vulnerability will become, the broader the dark side will spread, and it will inevitably transform into an uncontrollable Heart Demon. Once a Heart Demon takes form, eliminating or suppressing it will not be that simple anymore."

Emperor Yan's words, like the evening drum and the morning bell, echoed in Zhu Bufan's mind, recalling his consistent behavior. Indeed, when encountering those contemptuous and mocking moments, the killing intent hidden deep inside could not help but surge forth violently, and the desire to kill his opponents on the spot only grew stronger as his cultivation increased.

"Is it really my emotional vulnerability that caused this... Emperor Yan, sorry, I need some quiet. I want to think it over carefully." Staring blankly at the red crystal column in the center of the cave, Zhu Bufan uttered a sentence, then went to the edge of the column and sat down cross-legged, ignoring the high temperature of the Fire Element Spiritual Energy radiating from it, and directly closed his eyes in meditation, even forgetting to pick up the Emperor Yan Broken Army that had been neglected.

"Really, he just goes into meditation as he pleases. Does he take me for a laborer?" Emperor Yan, with a pouting little mouth, moved the Emperor Yan Broken Army close to Zhu Bufan and placed it properly, before seriously watching Zhu Bufan and thoughtfully pondered: "But this Emperor's Hatred is truly troublesome. To master it is to undergo a 'Heart Training.' Once the Heart Training fails, there is no longer a chance to control it, right?"

"This Emperor's Hatred is truly powerful. That Sword Demon seems to be even more formidable. Although at that time I had only heard rumors and never really saw the guy, but from this Emperor's Hatred's perspective, that guy must really be someone not to be trifled with. Oh well... it's useless to think about it now, might as well get a good sleep..." Finishing her thoughts, Emperor Yan, heartlessly, yawned daintily and laid down to sleep on the ground.

With eyes closed, Zhu Bufan's mind began to sweep through his childhood memories. In the little village, the caring of his family and neighbors, although he had to help with chores, he lived very happy days. These images kept passing through Zhu Bufan's mind like a flickering lantern show.

But these happy memories were quickly shrouded by blood. A man in a black robe stood atop a pile of corpses, laughing maniacally. Blood of relatives, friends, and neighbors slowly trickled into a small stream beneath his feet. The pleas from the villagers only made his killing spree more joyful, and the powerless Zhu Bufan could only watch helplessly as the atrocities unfolded before him. From that moment, a huge scar formed in Zhu Bufan's heart.

The scene shifted again, to Zhu Bufan within the Heavenly Sword Sect. His aptitude was mediocre, making a year's worth of cultivation progress only equivalent to a couple of months for others. Gradually, Zhu Bufan became the laughingstock of his fellow disciples; even the senior brother who transmitted cultivation techniques to him stopped paying attention to him because he felt Zhu Bufan had embarrassed him.

Determined to become stronger for revenge, he endured all kinds of mockery and derision, desperately wielding his long sword. He did not need others' recognition or pity; all he wanted was to become stronger. Not to show off in front of anyone, but to seek justice for his family and friends.

"Get out of the way!" A voice echoed in Zhu Bufan's ears. Zhu Bufan looked back and saw a boy of about thirteen or fourteen years old, walking towards him surrounded by a group of disciples from the Heavenly Sword Sect. Zhu Bufan suddenly realized that his body had returned to that of a child and even his cultivation had reverted to what it was then. It turned out that, in the wandering of his consciousness, Zhu Bufan's consciousness had merged with the memories of his childhood self, bringing him 'back to the past.'

"What did you say?" Involuntarily, Zhu Bufan asked the boy, who looked at him with extreme contempt and mockery. Although they were about the same age, Zhu Bufan could not compare with this boy in demeanor or aura.

'Slap'

A crisp sound rang out. Just as Zhu Bufan finished asking, he got slapped hard and knocked to the ground, and the boy stepped on Zhu Bufan's head and kept grinding it. He spoke in a tone cold and mocking beyond his years, "What did I say? I told you to get out of the way. So it's true, a mangy dog only understands when beaten. I didn't want to hit you, this waste, but who allowed you to come here?"

"This is a place all disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect can come... why can't I?" With his head pinned underfoot, Zhu Bufan struggled endlessly, but due to the difference in cultivation, he could not dislodge the boy's foot. Meanwhile, the disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect around his age only kept laughing at him. The laughing faces in Zhu Bufan's eyes turned into twisted ghostly faces.

"Ha? Everyone can come? Do you really think too highly of yourself?" As if hearing the biggest joke in the world, the boy released his foot from Zhu Bufan's head and grabbed Zhu Bufan's hair, lifting the young Zhu Bufan up.