Unintended Immortality

Despite the flurry of moves exchanged in the fierce clash moments earlier, it had all happened in an instant. Dusk had just begun to settle, and now, the sky was only slightly darker.

The small hilltop temple lay in ruins.

With the swordsman at his side, the Daoist emerged unhurriedly from the rubble with a calm expression as he led Lady Calico out. He looked toward the base of the hill—

There stood an elderly Daoist with white hair and beard, an air of immortal-like grace. He was blocked by a boundary formation, and now left with no escape.

His voice rose from below as he said loudly, “Must you really pursue me to the end?”

“Your end comes by your own actions, not by mine.”

“You’re going too far!” the elder shouted, his voice seething. Reaching into his robe, he retrieved a talisman.

But this was no ordinary talisman paper. It was a thick wooden tablet, about a finger thick and nearly a cun long, inscribed with symbols on one side and an invocation on the other.

With both hands, Daoist Master Yongyang held up the tablet, blowing a breath upon it.

The talisman instantly began to glow. The light was an unusual blend of white, tinged with a bluish hue, and a hint of purplish-red.

“I, Hezhou’s Xuanlei Temple’s Yongyang Zi, humbly invite the Exalted Thunder Supreme of the Celestial Heavens to descend and rid the land of evil!” Daoist Master Yongyang intoned solemnly.

“Boom!”

A bolt of lightning slashed down from the sky, illuminating the twilight.

The swordsman looked up and saw a dark cloud gathering overhead, swirling and morphing rapidly as if summoned moments before, rolling and shifting with the wind.

“Rumble...”

One by one, flashes of lightning streaked through the cloud. In the blink of an eye, the entire sky was lit with ten thousand bolts of thunderous light.

“Duke of Thunder Fu...” Song You murmured as he glanced up, seemingly taken aback by how readily this Duke of Thunder Fu responded to the call. Of course, a prompt response was certainly better than hesitation.

Then, pausing his steps, he turned to the swordsman and Lady Calico, saying, “Duke of Thunder Fu is descending. Thunder shows no mercy; it would be best if the two of you withdrew to a safer distance.”

“Meow?”

“Sir, are you confident?”

“Don't worry. Though Duke of Thunder Fu is the Chief Officer of the Thunder Division, his incense offerings have waned over the years, and winter is when the Thunder God's power is weakest,” Song You remarked calmly. Ṝ₳Ｎó₿Ěs

“You two just find a comfortable spot to watch the show. Especially you,” he said with a nod toward the swordsman, “keep a close eye on the thunder’s force. Perhaps by observing Duke of Thunder Fu’s might, you might glean some insight into the nature of Divine Thunder.”

“Understood…”

“Meow?”

“Lady Calico, you've already been a tremendous help. With your current cultivation, it's best not to engage directly with a Thunder God. Leave the rest to me,” Song You added, looking down at her. “Besides, though Sir Shu is unmatched in swordsmanship, he’s less adept with Daoism and fighting demons. I'd ask that you stay close to him; lend him a paw if any danger arises.”

“Lady Calico, after you!”

“Meow!”

With no further words, the swordsman and the cat turned and sprinted off to the side.

As they ran, both stole glances back to see the glow of thunder intensifying. The young Daoist, Song You, had also begun his descent, striding calmly toward the heart of the lightning storm, awaiting Duke of Thunder Fu’s arrival.

Daoist Master Yongyang, seeing the Thunder God descend, seemed confident and was muttering something. But as the wind roared louder and they continued their retreat, neither the swordsman nor the cat could make out his words.

All they knew was that Song You hadn’t answered him.

The swordsman had journeyed through three seasons with Song You, witnessing countless encounters with demons, seeing Thunder Gods dispel evil in the dead of night. He’d even glimpsed far-off figures of Duke of Thunder Zhou, Duke of Thunder Chen, and Duke of Thunder Li, but never Duke of Thunder Fu.

He knew this Duke of Thunder Fu had long lost his divine status, but the notion of a mortal slaying a god was something he’d only heard in stories—vague, old tales whose truth was uncertain.

Only now did he realize: mortals truly could defeat gods.

In a sudden, almost surreal flash of insight, he thought perhaps Song You's aim in coming here had never been solely about Daoist Master Yongyang. It was Duke of Thunder Fu, the Chief Officer of the Thunder Division, whom Song You had targeted from the start. The mystical barrier laid at the mountain’s base hadn’t been set for Daoist Master Yongyang at all.

A deafening crash resounded across the heavens, as if it could shatter the sky itself. A flash of lightning tore through the twilight sky from top to bottom, seeming to bridge the earth and heavens in a single, blinding instant.

The swordsman and the cat turned sharply to look.

Under the ominous clouds, a shadowy figure emerged within the storm, barely discernible amidst the blinding bolts—it was impossible to tell if the silhouette was merely a human-shaped shadow in the lightning or a figure wholly made of light. Below, a lone figure stood on the ground, his robes billowing in the gale as he gazed up, meeting the storm’s eyes.

With a tremendous crack, multiple bolts of thunder descended.

Two struck the towering stone giants, shattering them instantly, scattering bricks and stones across the ground in their original colors and textures. Another two bolts hurtled toward the Daoist below.

The ground exploded in a blinding flash of lightning and a shower of sparks. The swordsman and the cat stared in shock, hearts pounding in the chaos of thunder and fire.

As the lightning dissipated and the sparks died down, the Daoist on the ground stood unharmed.

Above, the heavens continued to churn, gathering immense power. A figure flickered within the dark clouds, a voice booming like thunder itself. “Who dares trespass from below?”

“I’m Song You of Hidden Dragon Temple.”

“So, a disciple of Hidden Dragon Temple! Why destroy my temple, break my statues, and harm my followers?”

“You know the answer, Thunder God.”

“I demand an explanation!”

“Perfect timing. I have my own question for you, Thunder God. Chaos ravages Hezhou, and demons run wild. For three seasons, I've traveled across four commanderies of Hezhou, encountering other Thunder Gods tirelessly purging evil. Yet, I haven’t once seen a trace of you.”

“I am the Thunder Division's chief officer, overseeing matters from above!”

“A Thunder God should distinguish right from wrong, punishing evil without hesitation. So why have you tolerated followers practicing Demonic Dao, exploiting the people, creating puppets from living souls, and enhancing power with vengeful spirits?”

“That’s nothing more than your baseless accusation!”

“According to the local commandery magistrate, this Daoist Master even wielded thunder against the people. Now, is this thunder truly his own, or did he borrow it from you, Thunder God?”

“My disciples are many. Must I monitor every single one who borrows my power? Besides, thunder in the sky is hardly unusual.”

“Even in winter?”

“It’s nothing more than your one-sided claim!” The voice from above boomed, crackling with anger like thunder itself.

“Thunder God, your divine power and form derive from the people of the land. You were meant to protect them and eliminate evil spirits. Why, then, have you turned your power against the common folk?”

“Nonsense!”

“The thunder you cast upon me moments ago—was that not real, Thunder God?”

“And what makes you think you’re among the common folk?”

“What would make me otherwise?”

“Enough of your arrogance! You’re just a mere kid! With your few short years of cultivation, you dare to tear down my temple and shatter my statues? Not even your master would be so presumptuous! I’ve yet to settle this debt with you!”

The coldness in Thunder God’s voice carried the unmistakable intent to kill.

“...” Song You looked up, meeting his gaze, and simply shook his head with a faint smile. By now, he understood entirely that the demise of this Chief Officer of the Thunder Division was certain.

It was neither today nor this year—long ago, his fate had already been sealed. Though the Thunder Division gods wielded boundless might, their duty was thankless, and for a Thunder God unwilling to labor against evil, they would not last long.

Like fish and water understanding each other, the common people weren’t foolish either.

Perhaps from many years ago, the people gradually withdrew their devotion from this Thunder God. The incense dwindled year by year, until the rise of the more popular Duke of Thunder Zhou from the Thunder Division marked the slow end of his influence.

It was unclear whether aligning with demonic cultivators and using crooked, dark arts to obtain incense offerings was his desperate attempt at survival or grasping at straws. Regardless, his downfall was already inevitable.

Today, he did not descend merely out of anger, but because he had no choice.

The incident at Leiqing Temple was discovered by Song You during his travels, which already spelled a catastrophic disaster for the Thunder God. If he could eliminate Song You here, perhaps he could survive a while longer. If not, his fall was inevitable.

As previously mentioned, he had not received ample incense offerings for many years and was only at the level of an ordinary Thunder Division deity. Moreover, it was currently winter, a season naturally unfavorable for the Thunder Division deities to exert their powers.

Additionally, such deities, formed purely from the willpower of human incense offerings, would find their power weakened by a third when confronting mortals. Although Song You had only recently descended the mountain, he was no mere heir of a lineage like that of Grandmaster Tiansuan, who was not adept at combat. Given these factors, what was there to fear?

At this moment, neither side had any more words to exchange.

“Rumble...”

The sky blanketed in clouds, the thunder descended, casting the hilltop in stark white light, a beacon visible for li. On the ground, a fire dragon coiled upward with the wind, rushing toward the heavens.

In this moment, it seemed as if the clouds had been painted in the hues of sunset. Yet the sun had long since fallen.

The swordsman couldn’t help but stop in his tracks, gazing up in a daze at that spectacle of thunderous destruction, watching the thunder and fire dance together. In his heart, it conjured up memories from half a year ago—

It was early summer then, and they had trekked into the wild mountains in search of a band of man-eating demons. As they climbed to a mountain summit, they looked out and saw a dense black cloud brewing in the distance, though the world beyond it was bathed in clear daylight. The setting sun had dyed the edges of the cloud a deep red, making it look as though flames flickered within.

It was a typical summer scene, yet they both stood in silent observation for a long time. Song You sighed and remarked, “How beautiful.”

That night, a torrential rain had poured down. Walking through it, they became soaked to the skin. Suddenly, a vast expanse of thunder and lightning appeared tens of thousands of zhang ahead, connecting the heavens and the earth, its overwhelming presence making it difficult for anyone to breathe.

Back then, in the clouds, faint shadows flickered.

Song You explained, “That’s Duke of Thunder Zhou, striking down demons by night.”

Though they had arrived too late to encounter the creatures, they felt no regret. Instead, they took shelter under a banana tree, marveling at the heart-stirring beauty of the thunderstorm.

Song You sighed again, “How beautiful.”

That thunderstorm annihilated the demons and quenched a drought that had plagued the region for months. In the aftermath, the locals’ lives surely became easier.

Today, as he watched this storm of lightning and flame, the swordsman found himself flooded with a familiar feeling, one akin to the awe on that mountain top or under that rain-drenched sky. And he understood his master’s sentiment completely.

This scene was not only spectacular but grandiosely beautiful. And somehow, something beyond mere grandeur lingered within it.

The swordsman was too far away to make out the details of the battle, but he could see flashes of lightning tearing through the night sky with apocalyptic force, while on the ground, fierce winds and flames surged upward, shredding the clouds above.

Such unimaginable power, yet it seemed the clash was contained solely mid-air between those two forces. The Daoists and young Daoist attendants trapped on the hill at Xuanlei Temple remained unharmed.

Gradually, the outcome of the duel grew clearer.

It wasn’t until much later that the swordsman snapped back to reality, calling out to Lady Calico and sprinting toward the city.

Despite the short distance, he reached the city gates quickly, arriving before the evening watch drums sounded. Yet, due to Hezhou’s current turmoil, the soldiers had already closed the gates, meticulously inspecting anyone entering to prevent spirits or demons from slipping in under cover of night.

Outside the gate, a modest shrine with lit incense honored none other than Duke of Thunder Fu.

A touch ironic, really.

After exchanging a few words with the guards, the swordsman cast a cold glance at the shrine by the entrance before heading straight for the magistrate’s manor. Not long after, he emerged once more, now accompanied by the magistrate, his advisors, a county magistrate, and several city constables.

They paused at the city gate and looked out. The tempest on the hillside had subsided, though the guards were visibly unsettled.

A few questions revealed that the small shrine still stood, freshly tended with newly replaced incense, but the Thunder God statue inside had shattered into pieces. Coupled with the mountain's earlier commotion, the guards and constables were visibly shaken, barely able to stand as they assumed Thunder God had fallen in battle against a night-wandering demon.

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