Legend of the Great Sage

urry.

Finally, only a single demon heart remained in Li Qingshan’s hand.

The Traitorous Demon sword had changed drastically.
It was only around a meter and a half now, and the long blade had become extremely wide and thick, going from a strange sword to a huge sword.
A layer of black, demonic light flowed through it with its powers hidden away, making it seem even more consolidated.

The flesh on the hilt had completely solidified too.
The demon eye in the centre swiveled around, already possessing some intelligence.
It was only a step away from becoming a true demonic treasure.

I’ve fed high quality demon hearts from several dozen Demon Commanders to it.
It already has sufficient power.
All it needs is one last battle!

Li Qingshan formed a seal with his hand and pointed at the Traitorous Demon sword.
The sword leapt up from his knees, spinning around and plunging violently into his chest.

“One with the sword!”

The blade sank into Li Qingshan’s chest until only the hilt remained, but it did not emerge from the other side. 

“My one with the sword sure is ugly!” Li Qingshan said in a self-deprecating manner.
He gripped the hilt and pushed it hard.
The hilt also vanished into his chest, leaving behind a huge wound flashing with dim light.

The wound closed up and healed very quickly, but the demonic light seeped out of Li Qingshan’s body, dyeing him a gloomy black.

Li Qingshan gathered his focus and powered the Traitorous Demon sword, taking that crucial step.

Quite a while later, the darkness receded, and his skin colour recovered.
He smiled.
“Success!”

However, before he could finish what he was saying, a sword extended out from his shoulder with a clang.
In the blink of an eye, several dozen swords erupted from his body, turning him into a hedgehog.

In the past, when Li Qingshan stole the sword from the Demon General, the Demon General had become like this in the end, drastically increasing his strength, but the price he paid was the sword devouring him, going from the master of the sword to a sacrifice of the sword.

The swords trembled, producing a strange thrum.
A series of eyes actually opened up on them, staring straight at Li Qingshan with a brutal and greedy light.

The Traitorous Demon sword that had always been as docile as a puppy in Li Qingshan’s possession had finally become a monster after devouring several dozen demon hearts and becoming a demonic treasure.
It was even trying to devour Li Qingshan’s demon heart.

“You’re just a mere demonic treasure, yet you want to devour me? You’re getting far too ahead of yourself.
Whatever, this is basically your instincts.
I’ll let you devour it then.
Withdraw!”

A demonic light flashed through Li Qingshan’s eyes, and the swords withdrew into his body.

Within the boundless darkness, the eyes stared at Li Qingshan’s demon heart.
Dark power enveloped it in an attempt to eat and devour the demon heart.

Li Qingshan did not try to stop it.
Instead, he opened himself up and allowed the Traitorous Demon sword to devour the demon heart.
The power in his demon heart obviously could not be compared to several dozen demon hearts, so it was swallowed very quickly.

“Demon suppression!”

Li Qingshan bellowed out.
The Demon Suppression Statuary kicked in at full strength, and the devoured demon heart shone brightly, dyeing the Traitorous Demon sword’s power instead.

Let alone several dozen demon hearts, even if the masters of the demon hearts had been revived, he could still suppress and kill them all, not to mention the fact that these demon hearts had merged with the Traitorous Demon sword through his hand.
They all bore his imprint.

“It’s still a sword after all.
Although it has developed some intelligence, it’s not exactly intelligent.
It only knows how to act on instinct.
In the past, I made a promise with you.
If I wasn’t strong enough, then I would have nothing to say if I was devoured by you, which was why I named you “Traitorous”.
Now that your betrayal has failed, only a single fate awaits you.”

A thrum of a sword rang out from Li Qingshan’s body, filled with fearful pleas, but it died down very quickly and finally vanished.
The intelligence it had just developed had been directly suppressed and annihilated.

It was like an army of a hundred thousand running amuck.
With a single imperial edict, the army immediately changed sides, slaying the leader of the rebels and offering up his head.

The heavy demon qi consolidated once more, turning into armour and revealing his brand-new Demon Commander form.

Li Qingshan summoned a piece of the Spirit Turtle's Profound Shell to use as a mirror.
All he saw was that black, demonic armour had completely covered his body.
The lines were sharp and clean, making him seem even more powerful than before.
His limbs were slender, and he seemed like a sword that had been drawn from its sheath, its powers on full display.

The arc-shaped mask only covered half his face, and a crystal that resembled an eye had condensed on the centre of his forehead.
It was not just his forehead, but his shoulders, chest, knees, and even his back.
All of these areas were peppered with many crystals, all with different hues.
It seemed like the several dozen demon hearts, but it was also like several dozen demonic eyes, allowing him to observe his surroundings and see through everything.

“Doesn’t seem too bad, but it doesn’t seem too different from before! Is this supposed to be a sword seed?” Li Qingshan said in thought.

Originally, he wanted to use becoming one with the sword to transform the Traitorous Demon sword into a demonic treasure, and he succeeded.
However, he never expected the Traitorous Demon sword to suddenly betray him, which he suppressed mercilessly.
After losing its intelligence, it merged with him, and a small sword now hovered in his demon heart.

He had not been expecting this, but he was extremely satisfied with the result.
The power of the Traitorous Demon sword had completely merged with his body.
Relying on an external object could never surpass personal strength after all.
If it were possible, he would like to fuse with the Demon Dragon sword too, but the Demon Dragon sword did not have the instinct to devour its master, nor could it fuse with its master, which was quite the pity.

Li Qingshan released his demonified form and touched his forehead.
There seemed to be an additional, eye-like imprint now.
He exhaled deeply.
After almost a year of bitter cultivation, he had not made any breakthroughs, but his strength had increased by a sizable amount.