A Pawn's Passage

Although Madam Wu had been struck in what would traditionally be considered a vital spot, neither Madam Wu herself nor Qi Xuansu’s Corpse Liberation Incarnation truly had any vital points to speak of. With a mere Thought, Madam Wu restored the wound to perfect condition in an instant.

This method of recovery differed from a Martial Arts Practitioner’s body regeneration. There was no visible healing process whatsoever, as though reality itself had simply skipped back to a state of complete wholeness.

This was an ability unique to various incarnations, and it was even more visually striking than a Martial Arts Practitioner’s body regenerative powers.

Long Yazi had assassinated many people and was well-traveled and experienced, yet this was the first time he had truly encountered such a high-level existence. After all, anyone capable of manifesting an incarnation was at least in the Zaohua stage.

Since the Southern Continent was home to many ancient gods, and Long Yazi himself was a chosen servant of an ancient god, he mistakenly assumed this was a divine-descent incarnation.

That was not to say the attack had no effect at all. It still caused Madam Wu to expend some divine power.

However, that was the extent of it. At worst, she would simply have to cast heavenly fire fewer times.

At that moment, the Feathered Serpent God let out a long cry and prepared to charge at Madam Wu once more. The multicolored rain of fire in the sky had never ceased. Under the glow of the flames, scorch marks could be seen covering the Feathered Serpent God’s body, with black smoke rising from various places.

Yet its two vertical serpent pupils remained bright, projecting nearly tangible rays of light that locked firmly onto Madam Wu. The divine authority of fear began to spread outward. Unfortunately for it, its target was Madam Wu. Setting aside the fact that she was not even human, Madam Wu had witnessed far greater scenes than this and was in no way inferior to the Feathered Serpent God in cultivation. How could her mind possibly be shaken?

Ignoring both the divine authority of fear and the little assassin, Madam Wu continued strengthening the sea of fiery clouds.

Viewed from within the city, the entire sky had turned a dark crimson, so deep that it was nearly black. It resembled the legendary scene of the apocalypse or the sky above the netherworld itself.

Suddenly, the rain of fire ceased. All the flames converged into a single pillar of fire that descended from the heavens.

The pillar was so wide that it would take at least four people linking arms to encircle it, yet to the colossal Feathered Serpent God, this pillar was little more than a thin line. Upon contact, it burned straight through the Feathered Serpent God’s scales and pierced its massive body.

The Feathered Serpent God’s ascending motion abruptly stopped. It spewed vast quantities of burning blood from its mouth, like molten lava. Then, it plummeted from the sky. Even while falling, it beat its wings in an attempt to soften its fall, but it lacked the strength to do so. In the end, it crashed into the Temple District with an earth-shaking roar, causing the earth to tremble as its colossal body slammed into the ground.

The Feathered Serpent God landed directly upon the Sun Temple, which was now smashed into ruins by its own patron deity, sending clouds of dust billowing everywhere. Amid the wreckage, the gigantic serpent head slowly rose once more. This time, the light within its eyes had noticeably dimmed, while the serpent’s body buried beneath the ruins flickered.

The commander of the Palace Guard and the Chief Chamberlain, who had accompanied Manu Tancha, had already fled to a safe distance before the Feathered Serpent God fell. Both could see that the Feathered Serpent God was already at the end of its strength. There was no significant gap in cultivation level, but the crucial problem was its lack of reason. Like a wild beast, it fought entirely on instinct. Against the battle-hardened Madam Wu, it had spent most of the fight being beaten one-sidedly. Given that, this outcome was hardly surprising.

The two men could not help but feel alarmed. They had never imagined things would develop to this point. Standing guard outside the temple, they had no idea what exactly the Emperor and the Daoist envoy had discussed within. How had they suddenly come to blows? How had things ended up like this?

This was no peace negotiation. It was outright war!

A female official stood atop the palace walls, gazing toward the Temple District in the distance. Around her stood many Northern Palace Guards who protected her at the center.

Unulatu regarded the Empress Mingkong as her idol and had heavily promoted female officials. This particular woman was one of Unulatu’s most trusted confidants, which was why the Northern Palace Guards treated her with such respect.

When she saw the Feathered Serpent God crash to the ground, she looked concerned. “Just as Her Majesty said, the Emperor truly did summon the Feathered Serpent God.”

Unulatu should have been addressed as Her Highness, but throughout the court, she was addressed as Her Majesty, placing herself on the level of a regent. Her intentions were obvious.

The female official added, “Judging from the situation, the Emperor is likely no match for that Sage Qi. With so many Spirit Guards already inside the city, matters have become complicated. General Maranga, you must guard the palace gates strictly. There can be no negligence whatsoever. General Maranga?”

After speaking for some time without receiving a response, the female official instinctively turned toward Maranga. She found him staring ahead in shock. Following his gaze, she saw a Horned Dragon flying ship approaching.

The Horned Dragon lacked only the all-around combat capabilities of a Yinglong Warship. In terms of sheer size, it was no smaller. As it drew closer, it became a vast black mass that blotted out the sky, radiating an overwhelming sense of pressure that made it difficult to breathe.

That alone was not the most terrifying part. Mounted upon the Horned Dragon was the gigantic Starcrusher. Its muzzle was one meter in diameter, while its barrel stretched over 30 meters in length. It was capable of firing a Grade-A Series Two Dragon Eye bomb weighing 7 tonnes.

Back then, the Daoist Order had used a Starcrusher to blast open the Tenshu Tower of Xiujing City, forcing the Regent to sign a treaty beneath the city walls.

Today, the Starcrusher had once again arrived. This time, above the skies of New Paititi.

At this moment, Hun Ahau was stationed on the bridge of the Horned Dragon, commanding the vessel in Qi Xuansu’s stead. After all, Hun Ahau was a second-rank Daoist Priest Kindred. It was entirely reasonable for him to command the Spirit Guards.

All that remained was a single order, and the royal palace would be subjected to bombardment.

Looking down upon the entire palace from above, Hun Ahau sneered. “Unulatu, so the day has finally come for you as well!”

A Spirit Guard requested instructions from Hun Ahau, asking whether they should open fire.

Hun Ahau replied, “Make preparations.”

At his command, the Horned Dragon’s main cannon, the Starcrusher, began adjusting its angle. The Spirit Guards started loading a Grade-A Series Three Dragon Eye Bomb. After all, the Grade-A Series Two Dragon Eye Bomb was unnecessary for the moment.

The various formations integrated into the Horned Dragon began to activate. Centered on the vessel, a massive vortex formed, greedily drawing in the surrounding elemental energy and channeling it toward the cannon.

A fiery crimson glow began to gather deep within the cannon’s barrel.

“Preparations complete.” The reports of the Spirit Guards sounded one after another before finally reaching the bridge.

Hun Ahau did not hesitate in the slightest. “Fire.”

The Starcrusher roared.

The entire Horned Dragon trembled as a ring of shockwave burst outward from the vessel, spreading in all directions like a violent gale, scattering the clouds.

A fiery meteor streaked through the sky, dragging a long, blazing tail behind it. Tracing a beautiful arc through the heavens, it struck the palace gate dead center.

No matter what formations or restrictions had been erected, they were torn apart by this bomb. Not only was the entire gate obliterated, but even the gate tower was nearly overturned.

At the critical moment, Maranga grabbed the female official by the shoulder and pulled her away from the gate tower.

The others were not so fortunate. They were annihilated instantly.

Immediately afterward, countless tiny black dots appeared in the sky. They were high-ranking Spirit Guards leaping from the deck of the Horned Dragon, descending directly toward the palace in an airborne assault.

As the palace gate was blasted open by a single shot from the Horned Dragon, the Spirit Guard forces on the ground and the Southern Palace Guards launched their assault as well under the command of Tantai Ying and Huangfu Zhu.

“Th-This... This...” Seeing the scene before her, the female official was utterly horrified and could no longer form coherent sentences.

Maranga remained relatively composed. “The tide has already turned. Who could have imagined that they would actually dare to make their move?”

This was precisely Qi Xuansu’s order. The moment there was any disturbance within the city, necessary measures were to be employed immediately.

At this point, the city was experiencing far more than a minor disturbance. It was in the midst of a major upheaval. Naturally, Hun Ahau and the others were acting in accordance with their orders.

As for Qi Xuansu, he had already gained complete control of the battle.

After all, the Shebishi Venom was renowned as a deadly toxin designed specifically to deal with Immortals, so a mere Pseudo-Immortal stood little chance against it.

The Shebishi Venom that Madam Qi had given him was stored within a jade vial made from a special material. The poison itself had gradually transcended ordinary matter. It was neither liquid nor powder but more akin to drifting fragments of divine power, possessing form yet lacking substance, mysterious beyond measure.

Qi Xuansu had used only about a third of it, and the assassin was already suffering to the point of being better off dead.

This was entirely in keeping with Qi Xuansu’s usual style. If victory could be achieved through external means, he would never insist on fighting honorably.

Taking advantage of the situation, Qi Xuansu followed up with another punch, shattering the divine domain.

From that point onward, the fight became completely one-sided. Qi Xuansu seized the assassin by the throat and lifted him into the air. Then he grabbed the still-intact hood and tore it away.

Without the hood, the shadows dispersed, finally revealing the assassin’s true appearance.

The person’s face had also undergone considerable decay. The left half of the face had rotted away enough to expose bone, and the eyeball looked as though it might tumble out of its socket at any moment.

This was clearly the result of divine power. The powers possessed by the chosen servant differed from those of orthodox Shamans. Their abilities were gifts bestowed directly by gods and were not necessarily fully compatible with their recipients, inevitably causing various abnormalities. Such effects could not be healed through methods like body regeneration. The only way to avoid them was to abandon the divine power entirely. Once one accepted divine power, one had to bear its consequences.

However, the right half of the face remained relatively intact, enough to reveal that the assassin was actually a woman with fairly attractive features.

As for why Qi Xuansu had not realized this earlier, it was because the assassin’s body had already decayed extensively. The remaining skin was covered in scales, lesions, and tumors, making any feminine characteristics impossible to discern.

Everyone knew that Utu was a man. Even if Utu could deceive ordinary people, could he deceive the Sages of the Western Daoist Order? That fact was beyond dispute. Moreover, Utu never deliberately concealed his appearance.

Qi Xuansu tossed the hood aside. “As expected, you’re not Utu.”

With that, Qi Xuansu slammed the assassin violently into the ground and followed up with another punch, driving the assassin’s head completely into the earth.