Chapter 1408: This Damn Sense of Ritual

## Chapter 1393: This Damned Sense of Ritual

Realizing he was about to be caught in a three-on-one ambush, Xue Zongwu roared in fury, tilting his shoulder. The crouching beast on it immediately lunged towards the two brothers. The Weng brothers knew its power and quickly turned to dodge. Xue Zongwu grabbed his hammer and swung it at He Lingchuan.

In this life-or-death moment, with all his magical artifacts and divine abilities exhausted, he could only rely on his combat skills, brute force, and sheer will to carve out a path and rejoin his troops!

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, the black-armored figure let out a long howl. Black flames steamed from his body, and his power suddenly surged again! Xue Zongwu parried two of his strikes. Though his Purple-Gold Gourd Hammer was clearly the heavier weapon, capable of making an enemy's hands tremble, it was now his own hand that was split at the web, sticky blood covering it. Even though the Great Emperor of Nine Hells had suddenly withdrawn his primal energy, and despite Xue Zongwu having already used his "Diligence Talisman," he still couldn't hold his ground. Only then did he realize that the person before him hadn't been fighting with his full strength earlier.

Xue Zongwu's subordinates had arrived; there was no need to delay further. He Lingchuan's eyes, hidden beneath his mask, flickered. His moves became wide and sweeping, faster and fiercer with each strike! Clang, clang, clang! Twenty-five consecutive blows in a single breath, like a blacksmith hammering iron. Xue Zongwu could only parry; he couldn't even straighten his back. He felt like a nail, about to be hammered into the ground by the Great Emperor of Nine Hells.

Bao Xin and the others, who had been rushing over, watched in speechless horror, unable to believe their eyes. The mighty and arrogant Marshal Xue was being pinned down and beaten without any ability to retaliate? After enduring those twenty-five blows, his strength, blood, and fighting spirit completely drained away. Xue Zongwu knew he was finished. His junior martial brother and subordinates were almost there, but it was too late. A fierce glint appeared in his eyes, and he roared: "He's a..."

He is He Lingchuan!

The Great Emperor of Nine Hells is He Lingchuan!

His voice and blood gushed out simultaneously. Even if he died, he would transmit this information before his death, ensuring He Lingchuan would be hunted by the entire world! But his voice was already hoarse, and amidst the sound of timber collapsing from the hall behind, it didn't travel far.

At the same time, the black-armored figure swept aside his Purple-Gold Gourd Hammer, and a streak of chilling blade light, leaving an afterimage, slashed across his neck. Smooth and light, like slicing through a leaf. Xue Zongwu's cry was cut short. This extremely valuable secret ultimately failed to be revealed to the world. His eyes were filled with unwillingness.

But before Xue Zongwu's consciousness completely dissipated, a detail suddenly surfaced from the depths of his memory: He had read the Great Emperor of Nine Hells' profile, and it contained a phrase — The Great Emperor of Nine Hells enjoys public executions. Public!

Xue Zongwu himself used to enjoy doing this, performing executions in full view to strike fear into people's hearts. But now, he reflected: the black-armored leader hadn't been fighting with full strength earlier; instead, he had been slowly and methodically weakening him, like pruning saplings. What was he waiting for? Waiting for other witnesses to arrive. Waiting for the people from Xiaotao Mountain Villa and the Xue Family Army to rush to the scene, so they could personally witness the Great Emperor of Nine Hells publicly execute and behead Xue Zongwu! Yes, that's it! The Great Emperor of Nine Hells spent so much effort to eliminate him, an "evil-doer," so of course he had to make the ritual grand, amplify the spectacle, and immerse everyone in an unspeakable terror! Without an audience to appreciate it, his efforts would be halved. How could the Great Emperor of Nine Hells allow that? He hated it so much. Why hadn't he thought of this sooner? Why couldn't he have made good use of this?

Now, it was all too late.

He Lingchuan, with a backhanded grip, seized his topknot and pulled hard— Head separated from body! The headless corpse then fell. There were many divine abilities for feigning death in this world; only beheading was the surest method.

Xue Zongwu, deceased!

This battle unfolded directly in front of the burning hall, with collapsing timber beams and rampant flames almost freezing the scene in time: The Great Emperor of Nine Hells had brutally torn off Xue Zongwu's head! Absurd, bloody, yet clear as if in slow motion. Those opposite were struck dumb with horror, instinctively halting their steps. General Xue is dead? General Xue, hailed as a national bulwark, had been confronted head-on and brutally killed in public by an unknown black-armored figure? He was publicly beheaded right in front of over a hundred of his elite subordinates and his fellow martial brother!

The Weng brothers also stood agape, unable to utter a sound. Butcher Xue is really dead! Did they just get their revenge? Weng Xing slapped himself with the back of his hand. It stung—it wasn't a dream.

Before the opposing side could react, He Lingchuan, holding the culprit's head in his left hand, threw out a Soul-Snatching Chain with his right. Under the gaze of countless onlookers, Xue Zongwu's dying soul was dragged from his body and unwillingly pulled into the Guluo Treasure Box. Both body and soul now still. From then on, there was one more evil spirit imprisoned in the box, one more nutrient to nourish the precious tree.

Just as He Lingchuan was about to move, the Soul-Snatching Mirror in his arms suddenly exclaimed, "Wait, that Xue fellow has treasure on him!"

Xue Zongwu had just fought a long and intense battle with the Great Emperor of Nine Hells, deploying an endless array of magical artifacts and divine abilities. His combat power was truly strong, and he indeed possessed many treasures. He Lingchuan immediately bent down and, guided by the Conscience-Free Mirror, quickly searched the corpse. In the span of two breaths, he tore a piece of sail-shaped brocade from Xue Zongwu's waist. The mirror exclaimed, "Yes, yes, that's it. I can feel it, this is good stuff."

He Lingchuan, holding the magical artifact, could immediately feel its properties. It turned out this item was called "Smooth Sailing." At critical moments, it could protect its owner and convert external attacks into a repelling force, making it both a defensive weapon and an escape tool. When Xue Zongwu was ambushed by the Weng brothers, he used it to evade Weng Su's first full-powered strike. Just now, he also used it to block He Lingchuan's waist-level slash. It truly was a life-saving treasure. The mirror actually had pretty good taste, even if the divine bone necklace didn't fancy it.

He Lingchuan unceremoniously tucked the artifact into his pocket, and also casually picked up Xue Zongwu's weapon. If you're going to take one, you might as well take two.

Having finished what the Great Emperor of Nine Hells had to do, He Lingchuan turned to the Weng brothers and said: "Let's go, into the hall."

Into the hall? The Weng brothers instinctively followed him, running towards the main hall while looking up. The hall was engulfed in roaring flames; fortunately, Qi Yunsheng had used ample materials and labor when constructing it, so even with the intense white flames, it wouldn't burn down completely in a short time. "But just walk in like that?" Weng Xing couldn't help but exclaim, "With that fire monster inside, we can't get in!" They had been forced out by the white flames earlier; whatever this stuff touched was doomed to bad luck, burning relentlessly until nothing but ash remained. With Xue Zongwu dead, the crouching beast, having lost its master, didn't return to the armor. Instead, it plunged into the main hall, as if celebrating its newfound freedom. Inside the hall, the flames raged even fiercer. Now, to enter the hall, while the Great Emperor of Nine Hells seemed unconcerned, the Weng brothers feared it would be a dead end for them.

The black-armored figure continued to stride forward, his steady voice reaching their ears: "It's fine, just follow me." The Weng brothers exchanged glances. Follow? Or not follow? Although the hall was ablaze with terrifying flames, after the fierce battle that night, their trust in the black-armored figure had soared. He probably wouldn't trick them.

Running to the front of the hall, where the frantic tongues of fire were almost licking their eyebrows, the black-armored figure ahead suddenly stopped and took a deep breath— It was like a great whale drawing water, but what was drawn in wasn't seawater, but flames! White flames. The small fire beast on Xue Zongwu's shoulder earlier, after devouring half of the hall, had grown a hundredfold in size. The flames covering the hall subtly took shape, revealing the outline of a monster. By chance, it seemed to have found a way to grow. But with that single intake, the black-armored figure sucked all the white flames into his mouth. To everyone watching from behind, the white flames not only dared not approach him but were desperately trying to escape back into the hall. But unfortunately, it was a losing battle. Even though it was unwilling, roaring and fleeing, it was still sucked into the black-armored figure's mouth.

After just two or three breaths, only ordinary flames remained devouring the entire hall. The white flames had been taken away by the black-armored figure. Now, this was just an ordinary fire scene, albeit with a rather large blaze. Although the Weng brothers found it incredible, this was a time for escape. Setting all emotions aside, they meticulously followed behind the black-armored figure. If this truly were a human, their divine abilities would be far too immense! They didn't know that it was the divine bone necklace that had absorbed the white flames. To outsiders, however, it appeared as though He Lingchuan had personally subdued the monster, just as he had absorbed the malevolent aura from Yangshan Archipelago back then. He Lingchuan was merely putting on a show. The White Fire Spirit was swallowed whole by the Great Emperor of Nine Hells! This sight was truly intimidating.

Stepping back into the fire, heat waves and thick smoke assailed them again. But with the white flames completely absorbed by He Lingchuan, leaving no residue, the Weng brothers felt relieved. As habitual arsonists, they skillfully pulled out two masks to cover their mouths and noses, then asked He Lingchuan, "Benefactor, do you need one?" He Lingchuan waved his hand and strode forward, "Don't stray too far from me." His Qianglong Battle Armor and the mask on his face could both block toxic smoke. The Weng brothers walked about four feet behind him, yet felt no heat from the fire. Otherwise, an ordinary person walking in would be covered in blisters in no time. The Great Emperor of Nine Hells' ability to control fire was truly miraculous.

Burning timber beams and pillars continued to collapse. Though the black-armored figure walked leisurely, the falling debris simply didn't hit them. On two occasions, just after the Weng brothers had passed a spot, they heard a crash behind them as a burnt pillar fell exactly where they had been three breaths earlier. It seemed dangerous, but nothing ever hit them. They didn't know that in this chaotic and complex environment, the Soul-Snatching Mirror in He Lingchuan's arms was constantly giving him voice guidance: "Five steps to the right, yes, that's right, a rafter is about to fall from above! Oh wait, three steps is enough..." This was truly a bizarre scene. Even the Weng brothers, who had experienced many trials, found tonight's adventure incredibly unbelievable.

Weng Xing looked back and said, "The pursuers have also entered the hall!" Bao Xin, leading over thirty people, rushed into the fire. Their eagerness to capture them was palpable. Weng Xing noticed a faint blue light emanating from Bao Xin's side, enveloping everyone behind him, as if protecting them from the flames. Those who dared to enter would need to show off their unique skills. Weng Su immediately said, "The remaining hundred-plus people didn't come in. Perhaps the range of their magical artifact's protection is limited?" This complex of buildings covered a large area and was built against the mountain. The rock walls on both sides were sheer, with a drop of over ten zhang, so there was no other path to the North Cliff.