The God-Slayer's Trash Manual

Chapter 6

The glass-like path Renvar left behind cracked under the weight of his fury. He didn't run; he marched. Every step was a silent promise of violence, the silver-grey embers in his eyes swirling like a gathering storm. He reached the massive, ornate gates of the Sky-Cloud Hall—the heart of the Azure Cloud Sect—where the air usually hummed with the serene chants of disciples. Today, it only hummed with the sound of Renvar’s boiling blood.

“System, tell me you’ve got a lock on her,” Renvar muttered, his voice a low, dangerous vibration.

[System: The female lead’s signature is fading fast, moving toward the northern quadrant. Also, your blood pressure is high enough to cook an egg. Maybe take a deep breath?]

“I’ll breathe when I’m holding the Sect Leader’s head,” Renvar snapped. He didn't knock. He kicked the double doors so hard the reinforced sandalwood splintered inward, the bang echoing through the vaulted ceiling like a cannon blast.

Inside, the hall was filled with the sect’s elite. At the far end, seated on a throne of white jade, was Han Yutian. Beside him stood the mountain of a man known as Luo Zhenhai, the sect’s primary enforcer.

“Renvar Xuandian,” Han Yutian said, his voice calm, almost bored. “You’re late for the morning assembly. And you’ve made quite a mess of the doors.”

“Where is she, Han?” Renvar’s voice cut through the air. “Where the hell is Yuexia?”

“Watch your tongue, boy,” Luo Zhenhai growled, stepping forward. His aura flared, a suffocating pressure that forced several nearby disciples to their knees. “You’re speaking to the Sect Leader. Show some respect before I break your legs.”

“Respect is for people who don't kidnap their own disciples,” Renvar spat, walking toward the center of the hall. He ignored the pressure of Zhenhai’s aura as if it were a light breeze. “I saw the note. I saw the blood. She didn't leave because she wanted to. She left because you let those ‘clan members’ in. Or maybe you invited them?”

Han Yutian leaned back, a thin, serpentine smile touching his lips. “You’ve grown quite bold since you started playing with that trash manual, Renvar. Is that the Heaven-Burning Ash talking, or just your own stupidity?”

“Answer the question, you snake,” Renvar snarled.

“Fine,” Han Yutian said, waving a hand dismissively. “The Yuexia clan demanded their daughter back. They offered a very generous tribute to the sect in exchange for our… cooperation. Why would we stand in the way of a family reunion? Especially when she’s served her purpose.”

“Her purpose?” Renvar’s eyes narrowed.

“You,” Han Yutian chuckled. “The Heaven-Burning Ash isn't a cultivation technique, Renvar. It’s a beacon. A tracking flare for the Unspoken. We needed someone desperate enough to practice it, and someone close enough to stabilize it. Yuexia’s Frost-Moon physique was the perfect coolant. Without her, you would have burned out months ago. But now? Now the signal is strong. The Great Incinerator has its eyes on you, and we have a front-row seat to the harvest.”

“You used me as bait?” Renvar whispered, a cold, hollow feeling opening in his chest. “And you used her as a battery?”

“Business is business, kid,” Luo Zhenhai grunted. “Don't take it personally. Now, be a good little candle and sit still. The Yuexia clan is already miles away, and you’ve got an appointment with a cosmic horror.”

“System,” Renvar said, his voice terrifyingly quiet. “I’m done being the bait.”

[System: Error. Host’s emotional volatility is redlining. Safety limiters... ignored. Detecting massive internal soul-fracture. You’re trying to kill yourself, aren’t you?]

“If I’m going down, I’m taking the whole building with me. Give me everything. I don't care about the three-year limit anymore. Burn it all.”

[Ding! Connection compromised. Logic loops failing. Activating Forbidden Protocol: ‘The Suicide King.’]

[Warning: This buff multiplies your output by 10x. Side effect: Your soul will literally start peeling off your bones. You want to proceed?]

“Do it,” Renvar roared.

A pillar of grey-black fire erupted from Renvar’s body, shattering the floor tiles and sending a shockwave that blew the windows out of the hall. The silver-grey in his eyes vanished, replaced by an absolute, terrifying void.

“What in the name of the heavens—!” Luo Zhenhai gasped, drawing a massive broadsword from his back. “He’s losing it! Sect Leader, he’s detonating his core!”

“Then put him down!” Han Yutian shouted, his calm demeanor finally cracking. “Don't let him ruin the ritual!”

Luo Zhenhai lunged, his sword glowing with a dull golden light. “Die, you little brat! Heaven-Shattering Strike!”

The blade came down with the force of a falling mountain. Renvar didn't move. He didn't even raise his hand. He just looked at the sword.

Clang.

The broadsword stopped three inches from Renvar’s head, caught in a swirling vortex of black ash. The metal began to glow red, then white, then—with a horrific screech—it melted into a puddle of slag.

“My sword!” Zhenhai screamed, jumping back. “That’s a Spirit-Grade weapon! How is he—?”

“My turn,” Renvar said. His voice sounded like two tectonic plates grinding together.

He moved. It wasn't a run; it was a teleportation of pure soot. He appeared in front of Zhenhai and shoved a palm into the big man’s chest.

“Ash to ash,” Renvar whispered.

“Wait—no!”

A blast of concentrated heat erupted. Luo Zhenhai, the sect’s strongest martial powerhouse, was sent flying across the hall like a ragdoll. He crashed through three support pillars before slamming into the back wall, his chest plate glowing cherry-red and his skin smoking.

“Who’s next?” Renvar asked, turning his gaze toward the jade throne.

Han Yutian was on his feet now, his face pale. “You’re insane! You’re burning your entire lifespan for a single fight! You’ll be dead in minutes!”

“Then I’ll be the most productive corpse you’ve ever seen,” Renvar said, coughing up a mouthful of black, oily blood. “Where did they take her, Han? Tell me, or I’ll turn this mountain into a volcano.”

“The Frozen Wastes!” Han Yutian shrieked, reaching for a jade pendant at his belt. “They’re heading for the Northern Gate! But you’ll never reach them! I’ll seal you here myself!”

Han Yutian smashed the pendant, and the hall’s defensive arrays flared to life. Massive chains of blue energy erupted from the ground, wrapping around Renvar’s arms and legs, pinning him to the spot.

“The Sky-Cloud Seal!” Han Yutian laughed hysterically. “Not even a Core Formation expert can break—what are you doing?”

Renvar wasn't struggling. He was laughing. A wet, hacking sound.

“System,” Renvar wheezed. “Break the limit. One hundred percent synchronization. If I’m a candle, let’s see how much light I can make.”

[System: Host... if we do this, the ‘Three Year Warranty’ becomes a ‘Three Minute Warranty.’ Are you absolutely sure?]

“She saved me,” Renvar said, his eyes glowing with a dark, suicidal fire. “My turn.”

[Understood. Overloading Ash Core. Goodbye, sanity. Hello, oblivion.]

The heat in the hall became unbearable. The wooden beams caught fire. The tapestries turned to dust. Renvar’s skin began to crack, showing glimpses of the roaring black furnace beneath.

“Renvar, stop!” a disciple cried from the sidelines. “You’re going to kill us all!”

“Get out of here!” Renvar roared, his voice shaking the foundations of the mountain. “Run!”

With a primal scream, Renvar pulled. The blue energy chains didn't just break; they caught fire. The 'Ash' energy traveled up the chains and into the sect’s formation itself. The ceiling of the Sky-Cloud Hall groaned, then literally disintegrated as Renvar’s power surged upward.

“The barrier!” Han Yutian wailed, looking up. “He’s breaking the Great Sect Barrier!”

A massive beam of black fire shot from Renvar’s chest, piercing through the roof and slamming into the shimmering dome of light that protected the entire mountain. The dome flickered once, twice, and then shattered with a sound like a million windows breaking at once.

The shockwave knocked everyone in the hall flat. Renvar stood alone in the center of the ruins, his robes gone, his body covered in glowing black veins.

[System: Barrier destroyed. Path to the North is open. Also, I should mention... you’ve got company.]

Renvar looked up through the ruined ceiling. The sky wasn't blue anymore. It was a bruised purple, and the clouds were swirling into a familiar, terrifying shape.

High above the mountain, a rift tore open. It was miles wide, a jagged wound in reality. And through that wound, a massive, skeletal eye slowly blinked. Its gaze fell directly on Renvar, and the weight of its attention was like being crushed by a planet.

“You want me?” Renvar shouted at the sky, his voice echoing across the entire province. “Come and get me! But I’m coming for her first!”

He turned and leaped. He didn't use a technique; he just exploded forward, his body a streak of black soot. He cleared the sect walls in a single bound, heading toward the frozen horizon of the North.

Behind him, the Sky-Cloud Hall collapsed into a pile of grey ash, leaving a terrified Sect Leader staring up at the eye that had finally found its mark.

“Three minutes,” Renvar whispered as he blurred through the forest at speeds that tore the trees from the ground. “I just need three minutes.”