Volume 1, Chapter 21: A Futile Showdown

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She was not foolish, however. She had understood the implication behind Zhang Mai’s words: he wanted the pawn she had planted in the Yan residence to finally prove useful.

“Man Ling, a Primordial Heavenly Cauldron Ox and a supreme divine beast in her true form.” Before Long Tianxiang could say anything, Qingtian spoke first. Long Tianxiang froze. How did Qingtian know her? Even more astonishing was Man Ling’s true form—it was actually a supreme divine beast, the Heavenly Cauldron Ox.

“My lord, I fear this is the greatest effort Xu Jian can make to restrain Cao Cao!” Zhuge Liang gave his feather fan a gentle wave.

“Too late.” The instant Gu Batian finished speaking, a voice rang out. Then the passage the Golden Dragon had carved open began to close, leaving everyone utterly stunned.

“Enough nonsense! Do as I say!” Xu Jian knew the guards meant well, but the matter was truly urgent, and he had no patience for their concern.

For a fleeting moment, Shangguan Zhixing wondered whether Shangguan Che had merely pretended everything in order to deceive her.

Zheng Qingying was naturally willing to accept the order, but he preferred to defend by attacking. He deliberately remained lukewarm toward the S Alliance. The more indifferent he appeared, the more the people of his country admired him; only then could it seem how capable the M Nation was.

Without sparing a thought for the dirt and stones splattered across him, Zifeng rushed to his mount. When he saw that the snow leopard’s two forelegs had been smashed, the broken bones jutting out, his expression changed instantly.

When the car stopped outside the royal palace, Ling Mei was so frightened that she did not dare go in. Her handsome face turned pale, and her lips trembled soundlessly. The resplendent palace and magnificent gardens made her realize what life was like for her wealthy elder brother.

He had never liked Lin Xue, and by extension he disliked Li Qingfeng as well. Mocking Li Qingfeng while taking a swipe at Lin Xue was one of his favorite pastimes.

“Damn! We’re almost in Inner Mongolia!” Seeing the red dot marking their location on the phone’s map, Qin Li felt his heart tighten for no apparent reason.

“You four are so weak, yet you still dare challenge me?” Li Qingfeng smiled faintly, a trace of disdain appearing in his eyes.

Lin Chen had no relatives or friends nearby, so that group of men turned their attention to Tang Wan’er.

“I was discourteous!” Nalan Xius took a step forward, thrusting his spear and clashing heavily with the Sword of Lawbane.

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By now, however, the Five Origins had been completely shackled by the dark element. They looked like a mass of vividly colored, exceptionally rich pigments pouring down from the sky, forming an even more bizarre spectacle.

With a clear chime, the payment went through. After Qin Li withdrew his card, Sakura handed him a list.

Under his watchful gaze, the moment the other man heard the name Bei Wanchang, the muscles in his face twitched slightly, and a flicker of emotion passed through his eyes.

Li Xuan’er was busy restoring the layout of the bar. Watching Sha Hu and the others rushing about to help, she felt gratified, yet every so often her eyes drifted toward the entrance to the main hall.

“Ah, thank goodness we escaped without incident!” Xiang Yu had managed to break out of the encirclement, and Pipi Shrimp had played no small part in it.

“I’m fine!” Madam Yuhua hurriedly replied, still immersed in the ambiguous atmosphere. Her voice, however, sounded somewhat unusual.

Not to mention that Jin Xiuzhu had now discovered a problem: he might truly have developed feelings for Jiang Nian, and for that reason he could not bear to treat her so harshly.

Xia Zhile could not describe what she felt upon hearing this. She had only meant to frighten Ling He a little, never expecting to learn any of these things.

Who could have known that, as she stepped backward, there would be a stone beneath her foot? She failed to notice it, stumbled, and took another step back—straight into Jin Xiuzhu’s chest.

He was only at the peak of the Astral Qi realm now, so he probably could not do much to help Wu Hu. At most, he could run errands.

Listening to her, Hu Ma felt somewhat curious as well. He knew that the two women had belonged to the same organization in the capital years ago, but that something had happened between them.

“The Hu merchant didn’t bring much this time either. I think he only came to see whether I wanted any,” the shopkeeper explained.

Hu Ma was instantly filled with questions. He first bent down and sniffed inside the manger, and only then did he understand.

People in the countryside were not accustomed to using kilograms as a unit of measurement. They still relied on the traditional method: ten liang made one jin, a calculation everyone in the village knew well.

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He knew Yu Liu looked beautiful in that dress, but he also knew how revealing it was, which was why he had paired it with a shawl.

Jiang Nao held a high position in the imperial court and was connected to the fortune of the dynasty. Naturally, his arrow was no ordinary arrow; it struck the leading ghost directly in the arm.

He did not doubt the accuracy of the evidence Lin Xiao had given her in the slightest. He knew that everything Lin Xiao gave her was utterly genuine. Lin Xiao could not possibly deceive him—or at least, that was what he believed.

Because the battle had been so fierce and the wreckage of the downed fighter aircraft had not yet been completely recovered, it was impossible to determine who had perished alongside the Japanese aircraft.

Fang Yan gripped her shoulders and gazed at her flushed, lovely face. Their eyes met. Under Fang Yan’s burning stare, Yun Chu’s lashes fluttered, and she slowly lowered her head.

Before he had finished speaking, Li Yuntian had already vanished beneath the ice. Only then did Han Lingxiao suddenly come back to her senses, her body jolting. A moment earlier, driven by the instinct to survive, she had truly become someone who cared about nothing at all—as long as she could preserve her own life.

Most of these soldiers leaned listlessly against the passage behind the city gate. They appeared lost in thought, their spirits low.

Zhuge Liang pondered for a moment, made a few adjustments, and then went into the city to requisition a thousand carpenters. He also ordered them to produce more wooden equipment, which was transported continuously each day.

Jinjiao Yan let out a startled cry. As he hurriedly retreated, a thick layer of ice crystals had already spread across his arm.

Aidi was startled. As expected of the God of War—his eyes were astonishingly keen. With a single glance, he had seen straight through Aidi’s relationship with the Sword Saint.

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