Great Villain: Starting by Humiliating the Son of the Heavenly Fate

"Dammit! Dammit all to hell!" Mo Hao bellowed, his voice raw with frustration. He looked like a man on the verge of losing his mind.

"That was the perfect chance to show off! Completely ruined!"

His fists clenched so hard they cracked like snapping bones. "I should be basking in everyone's admiration right now! If I'd pulled that off, I'd be skyrocketing straight to the Nirvana Peering realm!"

His anger burned hot, his whole body trembling with the urge to just destroy something—anything!

Then, his divine sense suddenly flared.

A massive demon army—ten thousand strong—was closing in!

Their expressions were dark, their eyes burning with fury as they soared toward Red Maple City. Clearly, the complete wipeout of the previous demon forces had triggered immediate reinforcements.

And this wasn't all of them.

The demons that had first arrived through the Myriad Demons Sky Piercing Mirror had numbered fifty thousand. With ten thousand gone, that left forty thousand more—all heading straight for Red Maple City.

But the joke was on them.

Jiang Chen had already evacuated the entire city. By the time the demons arrived, they'd be left with nothing but empty streets and ghostly silence.

Mo Hao's frustration twisted into something else.

Excitement.

Another wave of demons… and a powerhouse at the Late-stage Transcendence realm? His heart pounded. This was it—this was another chance!

But then, hesitation crept in.

Dammit… what's the best way to show off now? Mo Hao gritted his teeth, feeling torn.

Sure, he was strong—way stronger than most Middle-stage Transcendence realm cultivators. But going up against a Late-stage Transcendence realm powerhouse? That was just asking to get smacked into the dirt.

Then, out of nowhere, every single demon in his divine sense stopped moving.

Their heads all turned at once.

Mo Hao followed their gaze—and froze.

A massive sinkhole lay in the distance, deep and ominous. But that wasn't what caught his attention.

From its depths, a pillar of blinding white light shot into the sky, its energy surging outward in waves. A protective barrier rippled around it, shimmering with power.

"What the hell?!" Mo Hao's eyes widened. There are people down there? Living underground?

The more he focused, the weirder it got. Their auras felt… strange. Different.

Inhumans. Yeah, that's what I'll call them for now.

But that light—it was insane. The sheer force rolling off it was easily at the Transcendence realm, and not at some low level either.

And yet… there wasn't a single Transcendence realm expert among the people below.

Mo Hao's mind raced. If it's not coming from a person…

His heart pounded. An immortal tool. It has to be.

The more he looked, the more it made sense. A tool with that kind of power was rare, but the fact that the Immortal Martial Continent even had one was shocking.

Mo Hao knew because he used to own several of them. Back when he was still living large as a rich young master, he had more immortal tools than he could count.

Then his family lost everything, and those treasures were ripped from his hands.

But now—one had just appeared before him.

And if he got his hands on it?

He wouldn't just have a way to kill Late-stage Transcendence realm demons.

He'd have the ultimate way to show off.

...

At the same time, Nangong Wan's voice rang in Jiang Chen's mind, carrying a note of surprise.

"It's an immortal tool! And not just any ordinary one!"

"I can sense a trace of spirituality in its power!"

Her tone sharpened with curiosity. "Normally, only Void Tribulation-level immortal tools develop spirituality like this."

Weapons were just objects—lifeless, unable to think. For one to gain spirituality was extremely rare.

For that to happen, it had to contain not just the power of various laws of the Great Dao but also the Dao of Life itself. Only then could it start evolving toward true sentience.

Shangguan Ning's voice joined in, thoughtful. "But this aura… it's not strong enough to be from a Void Tribulation-level immortal tool. That means it's something weaker, but by some lucky chance, it's absorbed the Dao of Life and developed a bit of spirituality."

Jiang Chen's eyes gleamed. "Either way, this is exactly what Mo Hao needs to turn things around."

If Mo Hao got his hands on it, he'd put on one hell of a show, and once he pulled that off, the weapon would naturally become his. With its power, his combat strength would jump to a whole new level.

Jiang Chen's lips curled into a smirk. Yeah, not happening.

If anyone's getting a power boost, it's gonna be me.

Without wasting another second, he shot straight toward the pillar of light.

Mo Hao wasn't even close to being in his league when it came to speed. Jiang Chen reached the massive sinkhole long before him.

...

Meanwhile, deep inside the massive sinkhole, panicked voices filled the air.

"Those have to be the legendary demons!"

"They're way too strong! Their leader is at the Late-stage Transcendence realm, and our strongest fighter isn't even fully at Transcendence realm yet! How the hell are we supposed to win?!"

"Can we count on the immortal tool to stop them?"

A heavy silence followed before someone muttered, "I wouldn't bet on it. The immortal tool's been repairing itself for who knows how long, and yeah, it's even gained a bit of spirituality… but without a true wielder, it can't unleash its full power."

"So what do we do? Just sit here and wait to die?!"

A group of figures, dressed in strange, distinctive clothing, stood staring at the glowing barrier around them. Their faces were tight with fear, their eyes filled with growing despair.

Then—it happened.

The immortal tool at the heart of the barrier let out a deep hum, sending out powerful waves of energy that rippled through the air.

A moment later, those waves condensed, forming into a half-transparent longsword.

It floated in midair, its blade shifting slightly, like it was breathing. It wasn't just a weapon—it had a will of its own. A spirit that refused to break, no matter the odds.

For the people living in the sinkhole, this weapon wasn't just some tool—it was a sacred symbol, something they had worshipped for countless years in their isolated world.

And now, at the most critical moment, it wasn't backing down.

The sight of it, standing defiant against the oncoming demons, lit a fire in their hearts.

One by one, they stepped forward, channeling their own Origin Power into the immortal tool.

The moment their power flowed into it, the weapon responded.

The energy it radiated exploded, growing stronger by the second!

...

"Since this immortal tool has a bit of spirituality, it can control some of its own power," Nangong Wan's calm voice echoed in Jiang Chen's mind.

"Plus, some of those beings inside the sinkhole are at the Half-step Transcendence realm and Dao Palace realm. Their energy should help strengthen it."

"If I had to guess, I'd say the immortal tool alone could probably hold off that Transcendence realm demon for a while."

"And that window of time… would be Mo Hao's golden opportunity," she finished, her tone certain.

Shangguan Ning spoke up next, her voice thoughtful. "A spiritual immortal tool isn't something just anyone can use. To wield it properly, you have to earn its recognition."

"If I had to bet, Mo Hao probably got to it first, used it to kill some demons, and in doing so, won its approval."

Jiang Chen's eyes flashed with understanding. A slow, knowing smile crept onto his face.

"Well, I'm not about to give him that chance."

"If anyone's going to fight alongside this immortal tool… it's me."

With that, he positioned himself right above the massive sinkhole, ready to act.

...

At that same moment, the demon army reached the edge of the sinkhole.

Their leader, a towering, Late-stage Transcendence realm demon named Ben Man, stood at the front. He was from the Vajra Demon Clan, and his body was massive, packed with so much raw power that he looked like a walking mountain. His qi and blood energy surged like a raging storm.

Then his eyes locked onto the glowing energy barrier—and the shadowy longsword floating above it.

"An immortal tool!" Ben Man's voice rumbled with amazement.

To think there was still something this powerful hidden in the Immortal Martial Continent!

His expression shifted, greed burning in his gaze.

And it even has a touch of spirituality… Hah! Even His Excellency, the Demon Lord, would love to get his hands on this!

Then he threw his head back and let out a booming laugh.

This is perfect! The heavens themselves must be on my side! If I present this immortal tool to His Excellency, the Demon Lord, he will never forget my name!

His eyes gleamed with overwhelming excitement as he stared at the barrier below, the longsword's shadow flickering in its glow.

This power…

It would be the key to earning the Demon Lord's favor.