A Demon's revenge does not wait for the morning.
The agony and torment had festered in their hearts for far too long. Zoran could not endure another moment of delay.
Two entities, one standing silent upon the moon, the other roaring across Asia. The world trembled in terror beneath their feet. Zoran and Shendu knew exactly what they were about to face.
But what of it? A Demon in his prime fears no challenge.
…
San Francisco, Uncle's Rare Finds.
Uncle's brow was furrowed into deep lines as Jackie paced the room in a frantic circle. Zoran's return had been too swift, so fast that they hadn't even reacted before Shendu was already resurrected.
Uncle let out a heavy sigh.
"Uncle, Shendu is back! We have to go stop him!" Jackie cried anxiously.
"And Tso Lan," Uncle added, rapping Jackie on the head with his knuckles. "Uncle isn't blind! The powerful Demon Chi is nearly drowning me. They've returned to their peak..."
"Then what do we do?"
The moment Jackie spoke, Uncle's tight brow suddenly relaxed. In his perception, two incredibly powerful signatures of light were manifesting. He sighed, "When the Demon Chi rages, the Noble Chi will not stand idly by."
…
On the moon, before Zoran, ripples of emerald-green water shimmered out of the void. A lotus bud, radiating divinity, blossomed before his eyes, exactly like their first encounter.
The Immortal Deity, He Xiangu, slowly unfurled her divine form from the emerald ripples.
"You actually dared to return?" He Xiangu knit her brow. She seemed to realize something, and her expression gradually softened. "Though, this is a fortunate thing."
Zoran, suspended in the vacuum, faced her again. His poise remained unshaken, his demeanor as calm and collected as ever.
"Of course I had to return." He smiled, then suddenly projected his voice with authority: "My brothers and sisters are still suffering in the Netherworld. If I don't return, who will?"
He Xiangu glanced at Zoran and shook her head slightly. Her elegant form floated above the lunar surface, her eyes flickering with uncertainty.
"Strange. Truly strange," she murmured.
Then, she extended a slender, jade-like hand and gave a light, ethereal tap. Multi-colored light gathered, condensing into a mystical lotus bud. She whispered, "Yet, also quite marvelous."
The lotus bud drifted toward Zoran, brooking no argument. She had moved straight to the attack.
Zoran gave a low chuckle, his form appearing ethereal as he stood his ground. Just as the lotus bud reached the midway point, a violent pillar of fire intercepted it from the vacuum, incinerating it to ash.
He Xiangu turned to look. A streak of light was hurtling upward from the azure planet below.
Driven by extreme speed, Shendu stepped into the lunar vacuum in the blink of an eye. His colossal fury had practically manifested into physical flames, swirling within his eyes. Two great Demons were now gathered in one place.
"Too long... it has been too long!" Shendu roared. "Today is the day of reckoning!"
Having reclaimed the powers of the Rooster and Rabbit Talismans, he was no less agile in space than Zoran. He lunged at He Xiangu instantly, like a meteor fueled by conviction. In a heartbeat, he was before her, swinging an arm imbued with infinite strength directly at her face.
Zoran smiled. "This brother of mine is not quite as gentle as I am."
Shendu's fist reached He Xiangu, only to slam into an invisible wall. His eyes widened in shock. Before him, an exquisite, wondrous sword stood upright in the vacuum, radiating boundless majesty.
A hand reached out and lightly grasped the hilt.
Zoran raised his gaze. Opposite them stood a figure in dark blue Taoist robes, with a beard like a god's, the epitome of immortal grace.
The Immortal Deity, Lü Dongbin!
He held his sword, stepping through the void. A sudden, crushing sense of pressure descended. Stroking his beard with one hand and wielding his blade with the other, he spoke with a voice of divine authority:
"The sword shall slay the demon dragon!"
The rules inscribed within the Syllables of Time were now manifesting. As two Demons returned to their peak and walked the earth, their corresponding Immortal Deities finally appeared.
Shendu let out a low hiss and retreated to Zoran's side. Flanked by stars, the Ancient Demons and the Immortal Deities stood on opposing sides.
The moment Shendu saw Lü Dongbin, the crimson glow in his eyes intensified. Revenge! Revenge! The sources of their agony had all surfaced. If they were to save their other siblings, this was a hurdle they could not bypass.
A moment of silence passed. Then, in the next instant, four silhouettes blurred into motion.
Shendu lunged at Lü Dongbin without hesitation, while He Xiangu conjured another lotus and struck at Zoran.
As the lotus bud drifted toward him, Zoran slammed his hands downward. Demon Chi poured out in a deluge, causing his wide sleeves to billow and thunder. A colossal force of repulsion, vast as the mountains and seas, blocked the lotus bud.
He Xiangu's expression shifted slightly. After his brief disappearance... Tso Lan had grown stronger.
Zoran raised one of his secondary arms, pressing down with gravity to drag He Xiangu's form directly toward the lunar surface. A crater instantly formed beneath her. Immediately, he brought his primary arms together; the ground on both sides of the lunar surface rose high, pulled together by the twin forces of attraction and repulsion.
He intended to bury and crush her within the crater.
His second auxiliary arm pressed down again. Infinite repulsive force, like a pillar crashing through a mountain, struck downward. The moon's surface cracked and shuddered like an earthquake.
Zoran's face was as calm as water, never pausing for a second. He was going to push He Xiangu deep into the moon itself. Swathes of black Demon Chi surrounded her, sealing off every possible escape. Having obtained the power of the "Second Moon," he was no longer as passive as he had been during their first meeting.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Shendu locked in a life-and-death struggle with Lü Dongbin. Shendu's body, reshaped by the magic Zoran had brought from the other world, radiated a terrifying aura. With all twelve powers back in place, every ounce of his strength exploded.
Shendu fought with a frenzied desperation—this was his nemesis!
Vast amounts of Fire Demon Chi erupted toward Lü Dongbin. Yet, Lü Dongbin simply traced a circle with his sword, blocking every offensive. Then, he pressed two fingers together and brushed them along the length of his blade.
Instantly, the sword glowed with a brilliant radiance.
As Shendu charged him with immense force, Lü Dongbin swung his sword downward. Zoran's eyes narrowed.
The sword struck Shendu, and like a pebble falling into a lake, it created only faint ripples. It caused almost no physical injury. However, the moment the blade was pulled back, a wisp of light escaped from Shendu's body.
Shendu's aura instantly diminished.
"Evil dragon, submit to the law!" Lü Dongbin's face was impassive.
What a god! With a single strike, one of the twelve powers was severed. Zoran sighed inwardly. Shendu was different from him; he had far too many exploitable weaknesses. The "Lü Dongbin" manifested specifically to counter him possessed terrifyingly effective abilities.
The lunar surface shuddered, and Zoran refocused. Emerald light tore through everything. A massive, multi-colored lotus, spanning nearly the entire lunar surface, slowly unfurled its petals.
Standing upon the lotus pedestal, He Xiangu appeared like a goddess descending to earth. One foot hovered in the air, the other slightly bent at the knee, her hands forming a sacred mudra as divine light swirled within her eyes. Emerald radiance washed over the area, repelling the pitch-black Demon Chi.
"Submit to the law!"
The two Immortal Deities spoke in unison. Instantly, two Demon Portals tore open in space. A colossal, sweeping suction suddenly erupted.
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