Chapter 1854: When Spring Freezes Blood (II)
The normally clear waters of Moongaze Lake had turned dark and murky. Shards of ice violently collided, sending brittle cracks ringing through the air. A faint red seeped across the ripples like unfurling blood-red silk, looking strangely tranquil amid the gloomy wind and rain.
Purple-gold profound pillars lay sunken in the lake, their jagged broken ends heaped with fragments of ice and gleaming with light. Above, corpses covered the mountain.
Heavenly thunder rolled over the lake beneath dense, dark clouds. Danger hung heavy in the air.
A woman in a crimson dress stood silently amid the somber colored light. Faint traces of blood marked her lovely face. Her slender, snow-white hand gripped the profound sword manifested by her art as she stood among the clouds, her gaze icy beneath the rolling thunder.
Rumble!
A shadow slipped through the heavy clouds. A middle-aged Daoist stood tall in the sky, with sword-like brows, bright eyes, a broad face, and powerful shoulders. Clad in white-and-yellow Daoist robes, he calmly examined the woman below.
"Lord Xuan'an truly possesses remarkable divine ability. Even with no strength to spare, he still held the Immortal Artifact in check and sent down a wisp of Heaven-Governing, misleading the great figures about his condition. His struggle has continued to this day, costing our north dearly…"
Li Quewan…
The Daoist's gaze was calm yet filled with murderous intent. He said with amusement, "Three divine abilities… Quite an accomplishment. Had you not been born into an imperial clan, you too might have sought the Golden Core Realm. A pity."
As he spoke, every wind between heaven and earth swept southward, sending the woman's crimson skirts fluttering. Deep hatred lay beneath her slightly pale expression.
Her red lips parted. "Those on the immortal mountain cultivate in seclusion, untouched by worldly affairs. Yet you have descended to oversee the pavilion, Lord Yao, and now invaded our Song territory. Is that not… utterly unreasonable…"
The middle-aged Daoist stepped forward and casually drew a divine spear from the clouds. One cloud fan after another began forming behind him, and metallic clanging rang out once more.
He stroked the spear, lowered his gaze, and said evenly, "This ceased to be a worldly affair ever since the King of Wei slew Xuanlou[1]. There is no longer any question of reason between me and the imperial clan."
Li Quewan still refused to retreat a single step. She silently watched the spear as the spirit treasure gradually brightened. The Daoist smiled as he continued, "As for those on the mountain, I will naturally give them an accounting. At worst… I shall offer this head of mine to the Underworld's judiciary in exchange for their granting my wish."
The radiance of Yao Guanyi's perfected divine abilities shone over the land like a full moon. A trace of amusement and surprise twinkled in his eyes as a gleaming blade withdrew into his sleeve.
The surprise faded as he said, "So it is the [Unharmed Stone]. Made whole through [Whole Pill], it has no fear of water or fire. It seems that even though Monarch Su fell to Converging Water and the treasure suffered further damage in later ages, this spirit treasure remains formidable."
Though the woman among the clouds was unhurt, her expression grew graver, even tinged with despair. The divine ability in her hands shone as colored light revolved.
Rumble!
Thunder and torrential rain roared across heaven and earth. Wave upon wave of purple lightning engulfed the land once more. The few profound pillars standing alone upon it toppled with deafening crashes.
Few figures remained on the island. After an unknown length of time, a man in bronze armor struggled to his feet amid the collapsed ruins. His shattered eyes slipped down his cheeks, leaving empty sockets that stared blankly at the sky.
Thud!
The woman had sunk to her knees upon the clouds. Her profound sword was now in the Daoist's hand.
Shhk…
With a light flick of his finger, the profound sword, covered in crimson runes and used for casting arts, shot forward and pierced her chest. It burst through the feathered robe at her back in a flare of colored light.
"Ugh…"
Blood as thick as mercury stirred along the blade, still stubbornly trying to retreat into her body. Li Quewan's pale lips trembled. Then an earth-shaking shriek rang out!
"Aaaw!"
The piercing bird cry rang out for only an instant before fading beneath the thunder. A red-and-white mystic bird soared into the sky, but the Daoist merely nodded slightly.
"[Whole Pill], after all."
He raised a hand, took a wooden urn from his sleeve, and tossed it lightly into the air. In an instant, profound energies intertwined and fierce winds rose, seizing the mystic bird as it tried to vanish and flee. However desperately it struggled, it could not escape!
At the sight of the urn, its cries grew all the more anguished and despairing.
Boom!
Waves of clear spiritual qi poured forth with silver light, surging from the ruins. A silver-robed youth broke through the great void and found his footing amid the flesh and blood strewn across the ground. Everywhere he looked, no one remained standing.
Why? Why has it happened so soon…
His worst nightmare was unfolding before his eyes, leaving him staring in terror and disbelief.
The King of Wei… has only just reached the Wei capital… Why?
Almost all the Li Family's direct descendants and cultivators had fallen in battle along the shore. Those within the island were elderly people and children. How could they withstand Profound Thunder?
How is this possible… We held on for so many years after the King of Wei fell… How is this possible?
Li Suining sank numbly to his knees. Through tear-blurred eyes, he stared at the ground and suddenly caught sight of a familiar face.
Old Du.
He seemed to have fallen from a great height, his face nothing but mangled flesh and blood. In the bitter cold, his upturned eyes had frozen halfway in their sockets, partly soft and partly hardened. Li Suining reached out, then drew his hand back. Unable to bear the sight, he raised his head helplessly.
Lightning illuminated the land amid the darkness. A man stood on the mountaintop, his armor shattered and his body covered in wounds, yet his gaze remained calm.
Ding Weizeng…
1. Referring to Wei Xuanyin. ☜