Few know of the calamity brought by the weapons.
Even among the royal families of the Thirty-Six Nations in the Central Plains, there are few who are aware.
The Great Flame Dynasty certainly doesn’t have any records of it.
Lin Yuan learned of this exceedingly dark history from the ancient tomes of the Godslayer Society.
When the Thirty-Six Divine Weapons awakened, they began wantonly harvesting the lives of all beings, turning that dark era into a veritable apocalypse.
"I’m not sure myself," Sikong Lun said, equally perplexed.
Though not as insightful as Lin Yuan, he also understood that the current strength of the Godslayer Society and the Cursed Weapon Masters was far from challenging the Thirty-Six Nations.
Despite the Society’s rise in power over the past fifty years with Lin Yuan’s secret support, troubling the royal families of the Thirty-Six Nations, the gap in top-level strength remained.
The Godslayer Society had nothing that could contend with the fully awakened Thirty-Six Divine Weapons, making it likely that another calamity like that three to four thousand years ago would occur.
"Unless..."
Lin Yuan furrowed his brows.
Even Sikong Lun realized something was amiss, so there was no way the Cursed Weapon Masters couldn’t see it.
Although the Cursed Weapon Masters followed the orders of their respective cursed weapons, those weapons were no fools; they too would weigh the pros and cons.
Once a calamity happened, it would spell massive losses for the cursed weapons, possibly even erasing their own consciousness.
Unless there was an unavoidable reason to start a decisive battle.
Two possibilities came to Lin Yuan’s mind.
One, the cursed weapons had acquired a means to bolster their confidence, like restoring other fragments, giving them the courage to face the true divine weapons.
Alternatively, they may have realized that if they didn’t initiate the decisive battle now, they would lose the opportunity forever.
The latter implies that the Thirty-Six Divine Weapons might undergo some transformation soon.
Once they complete their metamorphosis, there will be no chance left for the cursed weapons to survive.
"Transformation?" Lin Yuan pondered deeply.
Eight thousand years ago, the Thirty-Six Divine Weapons were already at the quasi-fourth tier.
After eight millennia of slumber, continuously harvesting the blood, qi, and souls of living beings, these divine weapons might finally cross that threshold to the fourth tier.
Only this reason could drive the cursed weapons to initiate an all-out battle because they understood that once the Thirty-Six Divine Weapons advanced to the fourth tier, they would be left with no chance.
Hence, they had to pour all they had into the battle, not to conquer, but to impede the transformation.
"Very well," Lin Yuan gently said.
"Let’s go meet with those Cursed Weapon Masters."
Whether driven by personal need for more divine weapon fragments or due to his earlier speculation, Lin Yuan found it necessary to meet with the Cursed Weapon Masters.
A month later, in the extreme south, a miasma-filled dense forest, devoid of human presence, was avoided even by local hunters who dared not approach after a single glance.
For hundreds, maybe thousands of years, an untold number have perished in this forest, where inhaling the poisonous gas was tantamount to death.
This area had become a forbidden zone.
Yet beneath this forest stood a grand blue stone hall.
At its center were eighteen stone seats, each occupied.
These individuals wore indifferent expressions, their auras linking to some great entity, their every gesture exceeding that of a Blood Refining Martial Saint.
These eighteen were Cursed Weapon Masters, each backed by a cursed weapon, even if only a fragment of a divine weapon, its power was beyond human imagination.
"Just who is this master of the Godslayer Society that they obey him so?" inquired a Cursed Weapon Master in green robes.
Prior to the appearance of this new master, the Godslayer Society showed utmost respect to the Cursed Weapon Masters and their respective cursed weapons.
But now things had changed.
The Society dared to negotiate with them.
"It’s said that this master can suppress weapon fragments, wielding power rivaling that of divine weapons," remarked another.
"Nonsense," scoffed several Cursed Weapon Masters at once.
Divine weapon power has always been above life itself; even fragments are no exception.
None understood this better than they did.
"Perhaps this master too is backed by a cursed weapon and is himself a Cursed Weapon Master?" another guessed, earning nods from the majority.
"In any case," the figure seated at the main throne spoke, "when we meet this new master of the Godslayer Society, if he is indeed one of us, a Cursed Weapon Master, we will discuss the decisive battle slowly. The weapon backing him would likely not refuse. If he isn’t..."
The lead figure’s voice grew cold, his cruel intent palpable.
While Cursed Weapon Masters are human, they had begun seeing others as mere ants under the influence of their cursed weapons.
"No problem."
"Brother Qing Wu makes a good point."
"We shall do as Brother Qing Wu suggests."
None dared defy Qing Wu, the leading figure.
Even among Cursed Weapon Masters, there are varying levels of power.
The essence of a cursed weapon is a divine weapon fragment, and its size - how much of the original divine weapon it comprises - determines its power.
Thus, Cursed Weapon Masters are divided into five levels.
Three-tenths completeness.
Four-tenths completeness.
Five-tenths completeness.
Six-tenths completeness.
Eight-tenths completeness.
The higher the completeness, the closer the cursed weapon's power is to a true divine weapon.
The cursed weapon behind Qing Wu was astonishingly nine-tenths complete.
Its true strength was extremely close to that of a real divine weapon, granting Qing Wu a unique status among the Cursed Weapon Masters.
This time, the masters decided to launch a decisive battle mainly because of this rare completeness.
Thus, even if they couldn’t defeat the Thirty-Six Divine Weapons, Qing Wu’s cursed weapon could at least provide some protection.
Their real aim wasn’t to defeat, but to hinder the transformation of the Thirty-Six Divine Weapons.
Suddenly, the eighteen Cursed Weapon Masters, seated on their respective stone thrones, sensed a new presence walking into the blue stone hall.
"Is that the master of the Godslayer Society?" "How bold, to come alone?" The eighteen exchanged amused glances.
Moments later, at the hall’s entrance, a young man appeared.
"Are you the master of the Godslayer Society?" None of the Cursed Weapon Masters rose from their thrones.
Buzz!!! The power of the earth gathered.
A massive black iron hammer materialized out of thin air, descending upon Lin Yuan.
One of the Cursed Weapon Masters couldn’t help but test Lin Yuan.
"Utterly disappointing," Lin Yuan sighed gently.
To the astonishment of the Cursed Weapon Masters, he swatted away the phantom hammer with a mere wave of his hand.
Before they could react, Lin Yuan stepped forward, appearing next to the eighteen stone thrones.
With a second step, Qing Wu, seated at the head, with a dignified expression, was yanked out by an invisible force, thrown aside like discarded rubbish, crashing into the distant blue stone.
"Still sitting?" Lin Yuan cast a glance at the remaining seventeen.
In an instant, all seventeen were ‘forced’ to stand.
Some Cursed Weapon Masters resisted desperately, even unleashing their cursed weapons’ power, but their overwhelming aura was confined to a mere inch around them.
The power that once shook the heavens was now like a tame kitten.
Seeing this, Lin Yuan seated himself leisurely on the main throne.
Thank you all for your monthly tickets.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
If you spot a typo, please comment on this chapter to let me know.
Sometimes they slip by.
Thank you.
(This chapter ends.)