Chapter 838: So, You Are a Thief Too!

　　“Hao’er!” cried Pill Demon anxiously, and was just about to assist him.

　　Meng Hao looked up and took a long, deep breath. As he did, his Dharma Idol was sucked inside of him. He performed an incantation gesture and then pointed up toward the red lightning bolt.

　　Flashes of color swept across the sky and land; mountains crumbled and the land shattered. Massive rumbling filled the air as Meng Hao was shoved downward several paces. Blood oozed out of the corners of his mouth, but the red lightning bolt vanished.

　　“That was the punishment?” said Meng Hao, looking up. “Master, don’t worry about me. You keep blasting that Door of Immortality. Apprentice… will act as your Dharma Protector!”

　　Pill Demon knew that his apprentice was powerful. After all, he had completely suppressed all of the experts from the Northern Reaches, and had transformed over a hundred thousand cultivators into felon citizens. The mountain called Sin of the North still stood, within which were five peak Dao Seeking experts, whose spiritual energy was being used to replenish the Southern Domain.

　　Pill Demon took a deep breath. He saw the determination in Meng Hao’s eyes, and it filled his heart with warmth. He smiled, and then his expression turned decisive. His body flickered as he once again used the power of two lifetimes to attack the Door of Immortality.

　　Pill Demon knew Meng Hao, but when it came to the two remaining old men among the group who had attacked Pill Demon, this was their first time encountering him. Their faces fell, and their scalps went numb. The red lightning bolt that had fallen just now was clearly far more powerful than any of the other lightning bolts that had descended during the Immortal Tribulation. Had they been the subject of such an attack, they would surely have been killed.

　　And yet, the young man in front of them directly fought back against it with his own might. He didn’t even use magical items, and most importantly, the only thing that happened as a result was a bit of blood seeping out of his mouth. In their view, that made Meng Hao completely inhuman, and caused their breathing to come in ragged pants. However, they did not retreat. If one did not succeed in Immortal Tribulation, the result was death.

　　“If you don’t do anything to interfere with my master, and simply struggle normally to acquire the Immortal destiny, then I won’t do anything to you,” said Meng Hao. He hovered in midair, looking at the two men in front of him, as well as the other four who were still nearby.

　　The six men exchanged looks. Even the cultivators from the vast Eastern Lands who knew the might of Meng Hao’s status, didn’t care about that by now.

　　“Struggle normally to acquire Immortal destiny…? Killing the lucky one and taking his destiny IS the normal way. There’s no going back now!”

　　“There is no enmity between us, and you block our path to Immortality? That makes us irreconcilable foes!”

　　“There is no going back! Defeat means death! Only by killing this guy with two lifetimes can we have the chance to reach Immortal Ascension!”

　　Considering their hearts were filled with the desire to transcend the tribulation, how could they possibly fear death? Killing intent flickered within the six men’s eyes as they suppressed their dread of Meng Hao and shot toward him.

　　Meng Hao stood there silently. He wanted to block their way, and had no desire to kill any of them. However, when it came to the path to Immortality, there was no right or wrong. Blocking the path to Immortality truly did make them irreconcilable foes.

　　Meng Hao hovered by Pill Demon. Not making his stand in this way would be the wrong thing to do. However, from the perspective of the other six men, Meng Hao’s actions were an unforgivable sin!

　　“There is no enmity or hatred between us,” said Meng Hao, his voice profound. “Perhaps blocking your way to Immortal Ascension and cutting off your path to Immortality… will result in Karma. If so, I will do my best to accept it.” A cold gleam flickered in his eyes.

　　As the six men closed in, Meng Hao’s body flickered, and suddenly shone with boundless golden light. He transformed into a golden roc that shot screaming toward one of the incoming enemies.

　　From a distance, it was possible to see the golden roc swooping down, with talons sharp enough to slice metal and rock. It slammed into the old man, who was employing all of the divine abilities he could summon, as well as magical items. None of it made any difference. The gap between him and Meng Hao was too great. In a few short breaths of time, he was seriously injured and on the verge of death. At the critical moment, his eyes filled with madness and he suddenly reached out his right hand, within which appeared a jade slip.

　　The jade slip pulsed with Immortal qi, and emanated a feeling of nameless danger that caused Meng Hao’s eyes to widen.

　　“DIE!” cried the old man, crushing the jade slip. This was an object he had prepared for use in a critical moment when transcending tribulation. However, considering he had been pushed into a corner, he didn’t hesitate to use it now. Rumbling spread out as something like a sun materialized in front of the old man. Boundless rays of blinding light shot out from the sun as it hurtled toward Meng Hao.

　　Meng Hao remained silently in place. He could have used the Lightning Cauldron and Form Displacement Transposition. However, out of respect toward these people and their struggle for Immortality, he did not wish to use tricks to kill them.

　　The jade slip unleashed incredible power, such that even a false Immortal would be shocked by it. Back when Meng Hao only had fifty percent of the power of a true Immortal, he would have had no choice other than to dodge. Now, though, he had eighty percent of that power. As soon as the sun began to explode, he lifted up his right hand, causing magical light to surge up around him. He shot forward, stabbing directly into the sun. As it exploded, Meng Hao pointed his finger toward the old man’s forehead.

　　The old man’s eyes went wide with disbelief at what he was seeing. The item he had specially prepared to assist him in transcending this tribulation unexpectedly… was incapable of doing anything against this terrifying figure in front of him.

　　Smiling bitterly, the old man’s eyes began to grow dim. Suddenly, however, a gleam could be seen in them once more, as if in looking at Meng Hao, he had suddenly realized something. His eyes went wide, and he laughed loudly.

　　“So, it turns out you are a thief too.”

　　A boom could be heard as the sun exploded. Before the ripples could even begin to spread out, Meng Hao was back in his original position. As for the old man, none of his aura could be sensed anymore.

　　Meng Hao waved his hand, and the old man’s corpse began to peacefully float back down to the ground.

　　The Immortal mist up above began to rumble loudly, and a red bolt of lightning even bigger than the previous one suddenly began to fall. It moved with incredible speed, giving Meng Hao almost no time to react.

　　A rumble could be heard as Meng Hao’s golden roc collapsed into pieces. Meng Hao himself reappeared, coughing up a mouthful of blood. Then he took a deep breath and shifted his gaze toward another of the incoming old men.

　　The old man’s face was pale white, and filled with the utmost astonishment.

　　“After all my years in secluded meditation, how could someone so inhuman have appeared in the lands of South Heaven!” he exclaimed bitterly. “Just who is this man!? Tribulation Lightning can’t kill him, and he’s already killed two of us! Don’t tell me this how our Tribulation will end!?!?” The old man wasn’t willing to give in. His eyes gleamed with venomous madness, and, knowing that he couldn’t hide or flee, he slapped his bag of holding to produce a bottle of blood. He placed it against his lips and consumed the entire bottle, and his energy suddenly began to flow in reverse. At the same time, a bloody mist began to emerge from the top of his head.

　　His face distorted, and veins bulged out on his face as he let out a vicious roar like that of a wild animal.

　　“Blocking my path to Immortality is the same as cutting off my chance at life! If I can’t achieve Immortal Ascension, then I am certain to die. Therefore… it doesn’t matter whether I die by the Immortal Tribulation or by your hand. There’s no difference!” Face filled with bitterness, the old man charged Meng Hao.

　　Simultaneously, lightning crashed, as Immortal Tribulation Lightning bolts descended one after another. They grew stronger and stronger, causing everything to shake. Pill Demon once again neared the Door of Immortality. Surrounded by rumbling sounds, he focused the power of two lifetimes, braced himself against the Immortal Tribulation, and attacked the Door of Immortality again.

　　Blood sprayed from Pill Demon’s mouth, and the Door of Immortality trembled as it opened slightly further. However, it was in that instant the the remaining four old men unleashed divine abilities and magical techniques in a direct attack against Pill Demon.

　　It was a moment of grave crisis. Pill Demon was already seriously injured, and was fighting back with everything he had. Not only was he forced to fight these four people, but lightning continued to fall on all of them. Everything was shaking as Meng Hao battled against the beast-like old man.

　　The old man roared as he fought. He wasn’t a match for Meng Hao, but in his heart, he was prepared to die, and didn’t care about defending himself. He attacked with full power, causing Meng Hao to sigh as he lifted his right hand and utilized the Star Plucking Magic. A gigantic hand appeared out of thin air, and crushed down on the old man, whose body was smashed into pieces as he screamed.

　　Meng Hao did his best to keep the body intact as it floated back down toward the ground, then he shot toward the remaining four old men who were attacking Pill Demon. Up above, a third red lightning bolt formed within the roiling clouds. This time, the lightning also contained blackness, which made the entire lightning bolt appear violet. As it slammed into Meng Hao, his body trembled, and he coughed up two mouthfuls of blood before he managed to continue onward.

　　He transformed into a golden roc that shot toward the remaining cultivators who were fighting Pill Demon. At the same time, lightning descended onto Pill Demon. Blood sprayed from his mouth, and the mountain beneath his feet seemed on the verge of collapsing.

　　Magical light swirled around Meng Hao as he closed in, transforming into a cyclone. Rumbling filled the air as he attacked the four old men, forcing them into retreat, blood spurting from their mouths. They smiled bitterly, and at the same time, their desire to kill grew even stronger.

　　“All of you, stop forcing my hand!” said Meng Hao, standing firm in front of Pill Demon. Pill Demon’s face was pale and he appeared to be on the verge of collapse. He consumed some medicinal pills and then attacked the Door of Immortality once again with all the strength he could muster.

　　The door trembled, and the crack opened wider. More Immortal Tribulation descended.

　　The glittering glow of lightning covered the land, and Meng Hao stood between Pill Demon and the four other cultivators, almost like a massive, uncrossable ravine!

　　“There is nowhere to turn back to! Unless we kill this cultivator with two lives and steal his destiny, there is no way we can break open the door!”

　　“Death lies on the left and the right. Life only exists straight ahead! If we die, we’ll die fighting!”

　　“We have waited for this day for too long. Now that it is here… it seems it truly is a tribulation….” The four men began to laugh loudly. Their hearts were focused on striving for the Dao, a desire that had not lessened even now.

　　Laughing, they transformed into beams of colorful light, burning their cultivation bases to achieve the absolute pinnacle of power as they shot toward Meng Hao.

　　Meng Hao’s expression was complex. Silently, he took a deep breath as the four cultivators bore down on him. His Dharma Idol suddenly began to expand, transforming into a giant that stepped toward the four incoming old men. It became something like a wall that the four of them then slammed into.

　　A huge boom rattled out, and everything shook as an astonishing shockwave spread out. However, because of the Dharma Idol, none of the ripples interfered with Pill Demon.

　　Pill Demon looked over at Meng Hao silently. Although he said nothing, it was clear that everything that was happening was being etched deeply onto his soul.

　　“If this sows Karma,” he murmured, “then I refuse to allow my apprentice to bear it! Let their souls be entangled with mine for all generations to come!” With that, his body flashed as he attacked the Door of Immortality yet again. The statue beneath his feet seemed to be on the verge of collapse, and his own body appeared to be at its limit. However, the attack shook the door, which was now opening even wider than before. At the same time, however, the Tribulation Lightning was getting even stronger!

　　Meanwhile, the four old men on the other side of the Dharma Idol were like lamps with little oil left in them. Laughing bitterly, they all suddenly flew straight up into the air. They did not wish to die by Meng Hao’s hands, but rather, chose to die by Immortal Tribulation!

　　They flew up, and the Immortal Tribulation descended. Booming sounds rang out as all of them were destroyed in body and soul.

　　Although Meng Hao didn’t kill them himself, they had died because of him. In the same moment that they died, the mist in the sky above seethed, and something like a roar of rage echoed out. Massive quantities of red lightning bolts began to form together, transforming into a sea of lightning than then shot down toward Meng Hao.

　　From a distance, the massive quantity of lightning looked almost like a huge hand that wished to crush Meng Hao to death.