Chapter 191: The Real Mastermind Behind the Scenes?

Upon seeing the butler's head, Lin Duanyun instantly realized his plan to use explosives to collapse the Sky-Pillar and kill everyone had failed. A wave of helplessness washed over him. He sighed and remarked, "Lord Zhuo, it's no wonder you've solved so many extraordinary cases; your mind is truly agile."

Zhuo Qingfeng chuckled softly and asked, "Master Lin, will you continue to resist stubbornly?"

Lin Duanyun remained silent, then coldly commanded, "Kill!"

At that very instant,

As the word "Kill" burst from Lin Duanyun's throat, metallic clashing echoed through the air. Before his voice even faded, seven gray figures suddenly surged from the crowd outside the hall. Their bones audibly cracked, and their flesh peeled away like melting wax, revealing bronze-colored armored skin. The leading bronze-armored corpse, with fingers like hooks, crushed the heads of several nearby Golden Palm Gang disciples into pulpy messes, splattering red and white matter onto the coiled dragon pillars within the hall.

In that same instant, over ten martial artists were torn in half by the bronze-armored corpses, their severed limbs and torsos dragging bloody trails over ten feet long across the blue bricks. These reanimated corpses moved with startling speed, and swords and blades striking their bodies produced sparks, as if striking a thousand-year-old bronze bell.

Inside the main hall, Master Jingkong's prayer beads suddenly transformed into a meteor, nine beads hurtling with forceful gusts of wind directly towards Lin Duanyun's Danzhong acupoint. Zhuo Qingfeng's long sword quivered, producing seven green lotuses. Qin Tie and Yang Tingyun's palm strikes were like towering mountains. Many masters simultaneously launched a coordinated attack on Lin Duanyun.

Lin Duanyun engaged the group with his long sword for several rounds but quickly found himself at a disadvantage, so he simply discarded it.

"Roar!"

A thunderous roar erupted from Lin Duanyun's throat. The glazed tiles on the hall roof shattered, and the main beam, several yards high, snapped with a crash. Amidst the dust and smoke, Lin Duanyun's body surged with golden light—his withered skin had developed pale golden scales, and two emerald flames burned deep within his eye sockets!

The moment the golden-armored corpse appeared, all thirty-eight eternal lamps flickered out. Some young disciples, unable to withstand the overwhelming corpse aura, dropped their weapons. A master wielding a bowl-thick iron staff swept it horizontally, striking Lin Duanyun's head, only for the staff to shatter inch by inch. Zhuo Qingfeng's sword pierced his throat, yet it felt like striking profound iron, bending the three-foot Qingfeng blade into a full moon shape!

Master Jingkong, Qin Tie, Han Xiren, Yang Tingyun, and numerous other renowned martial artists from the Northern Desert all attacked simultaneously, yet none could inflict even the slightest injury on Lin Duanyun.

A bronze-armored corpse was already a formidable threat, let alone a golden-armored corpse that had surpassed the second tier to reach the third, making it akin to an Asura descended upon the world.

Lin Duanyun's ten fingers splayed open, and where his claw-wind passed, Zhuo Qingfeng's sword shattered into iron filings like a dry branch. Master Jingkong chanted "Amitābha," his kasaya billowing like clouds, but Lin Duanyun's fierce roar sent him flying back three yards, his back slamming heavily against a pillar. The thick, adult-embrace-sized pillar instantly became covered in spiderweb cracks.

Fortunately, there were dozens of renowned martial artists inside and thousands more outside the main hall, so replacements were abundant. As soon as a few attackers were repelled, others immediately moved in to replace them, completely encircling Lin Duanyun.

In a corner of the main hall,

Gu Chudong, eager to join the fray, quietly asked, "Brother, have you detected any sign of He Changqing?"

Gu Mo shook his head. "There are at least two thousand people from the Qiongshan Sect here right now. If He Changqing is hidden among them, I can't pinpoint him. Furthermore, I've never even seen He Changqing. Unless he makes a move, I won't be able to find him."

Gu Chudong replied, "Then I'll go attack Lin Duanyun. I refuse to believe he'll hold back if he's in danger. As soon as the hidden He Changqing appears, you immediately make your move and apprehend him!"

Gu Mo nodded slightly.

Gu Chudong, who had been eager to join the fight, immediately leaped into the battle like a fleeting shadow. The moment her demonic blade left its sheath, its crimson glow extended over three inches, causing the surrounding air to shimmer and distort from the heat.

Meanwhile, inside the main hall,

Lin Duanyun was repelling the martial artists who surrounded him when he suddenly became enraged and lunged at Qin Tie, one of his father's murderers.

Qin Tie, already reeling from a heavy punch and stumbling, found himself unable to dodge Lin Duanyun's oncoming claw. Just as the claw was about to strike his neck, a blood-red horizontal blade suddenly appeared.

"Clang!"

Lin Duanyun's golden-armored claw scraped against the Gouchen Demonic Blade, producing a sharp, metallic ring.

Qin Tie breathed a sigh of relief and quickly said, "Thank you, Lady Gu..."

Before he could finish, Gu Chudong grabbed his shoulder and tossed him aside.

Simultaneously, Lin Duanyun's right claw, carrying a foul wind, struck directly at Gu Chudong's head. However, Gu Chudong spun, her demonic blade creating seven or eight crimson cross-shaped marks. The blade energy striking Lin Duanyun's body produced a series of metallic clangs.

Lin Duanyun roared in fury, sending debris flying. Golden light surged from his ten fingers, attempting to seize the blade. Gu Chudong lightly flicked her delicate wrist, and the Gouchen Blade suddenly scattered into a shower of sparks—one hundred and twenty-eight crimson blades attacked like a swarm of bone-eating bees. Half of them embedded into the golden armor's joint crevices, while the other half aimed directly for his emerald, glowing eyes. When the blade reassembled, the golden-armored corpse's arms bore seven molten-iron cracks!

"Lady Gu is mighty!"

Zhuo Qingfeng gasped in astonishment. Simultaneously, the other martial arts masters were overjoyed; they had battled Lin Duanyun for a long time without managing to breach his defenses, yet Gu Chudong had inflicted multiple wounds on his golden armor in their very first exchange.

Lin Duanyun's eyes were wide with fury, and corpse aura surged around him. He suddenly unleashed a thunderous roar that made everyone's eardrums ache. In an instant, foot-long, blood-red scales, crimson as fresh blood and emanating an icy chill, burst from his fingers. He lunged fiercely at Gu Chudong, the bloodied claws whistling sharply through the air.

Gu Chudong's delicate brows furrowed. She lightly touched the ground with her feet, then gracefully leaped backward, retreating through the air like a swallow skimming water.

Simultaneously, over a dozen Six-Fan Gate constables rapidly shifted positions, forming the Fish Dragon Battle Array. Their iron chains intertwined, gleaming with cold light like an impenetrable net, tightly binding Lin Duanyun. Zhuo Qingfeng, Master Jingkong, and other masters also attacked in unison, pressing their palms against the chains and continuously channeling their profound inner energy into them. For a moment, the chains pulsed with light, emanating an extraordinary aura.

However, Lin Duanyun, in his golden-armored zombie form, possessed unimaginable, colossal strength. He roared repeatedly, gripping the chains tightly with both hands, his body radiating golden light. With a series of teeth-gritting "creaking" sounds, the iron chains of the Fish Dragon Battle Array, forged by the combined efforts of numerous masters, were forcibly snapped one by one.

As the chains snapped, raw energy surged outwards. Several constables, unable to dodge in time, were struck by the residual force, coughing up blood and collapsing to the ground. Witnessing this, everyone was utterly aghast, their faces etched with shock and horror.

Yet, in this critical moment, Gu Chudong, having just landed, firmly gripped her blade hilt. With a clear shout, the one hundred and twenty-eight scattered fragments transformed into streaks of crimson light, instantly flying back, intertwining and colliding in mid-air. In the blink of an eye, they coalesced once more, reforming the Gouchen Demonic Blade. With her cherry lips tightly pressed and fierce resolve in her beautiful eyes, she tapped her toes and leaped up again, the Gouchen Demonic Blade in her hand infused with an unstoppable momentum as she cleaved fiercely towards Lin Duanyun.

In that instant, the Gouchen Demonic Blade's body instantly turned fiery red, as if freshly pulled from a blazing forging furnace, emanating waves of intense heat. The blade also emitted a high-pitched hum, and flames instantly enveloped it.

Seeing this, Lin Duanyun's face contorted into a snarl, and he crossed his claws to block.

A deafening "clang" echoed like the tolling of a massive bell, shaking bricks and stones loose from the hall. Those incredibly hard, blood-red claws, capable of effortlessly snapping weapons, were severed as easily as tofu beneath the Gouchen Demonic Blade.

The blade's momentum remained undiminished as it continued its descent, striking Lin Duanyun's chest with crushing force.

Lin Duanyun grunted, sent flying backward like a kite with a broken string, and slammed heavily into the wall. With a thunderous crash, the wall instantly collapsed, scattering bricks and stones and transforming into a pile of rubble.

"He's trying to escape! Quick, stop him!"

At that moment, someone cried out in panicked alarm. Everyone hurriedly looked up to see Lin Duanyun, who should have been buried in the rubble, streaking like a golden light towards the summit of Qiongshan Mountain. His speed was lightning-fast; he flashed past, covering several yards in the blink of an eye, leaving only an afterimage.

Immediately, everyone employed their light footwork techniques and gave chase.

Their pursuit led them to a hundred-yard cliff behind the Qiongshan Sect's back mountain, where they watched Lin Duanyun leap directly off the precipice without hesitation.

As everyone looked on in bewildered suspicion,

Gu Mo, standing among the crowd, suddenly spoke, "Twelve yards."

Zhuo Qingfeng quickly asked, "Brother Gu, what do you mean?"

Gu Mo explained, "I can hear him. Lin Duanyun didn't jump off the cliff; he landed twelve yards down and is moving inward. There's a cave!"

"Chase him!"

Zhuo Qingfeng, being Gu Mo's foremost admirer, held not the slightest doubt about Gu Mo's abilities and always trusted his judgment unconditionally. Immediately, he took a rope from a Six-Fan Gate constable and cast it down the cliff. Grabbing hold of the rope, he leaped down, and Yu Shijiu followed suit without hesitation.

"There really is a cave!"

Soon, Zhuo Qingfeng's shout echoed from below, followed by the clanging sounds of weapons.

Immediately, Master Jingkong, Yang Tingyun, and the other masters no longer hesitated, grabbing ropes and descending.

Gu Mo did not use a rope; he leaped directly down. During his descent, he heard the sounds of fighting emanating from the cave on the cliff. He precisely located the entrance and flew in steadily. Close behind him followed Yang Tingyun and Master Jingkong, and then Gu Chudong, along with a few brave martial arts masters and Six-Fan Gate constables—only about ten people in total.

After all, it was a cliff over a hundred yards high, and very few dared to risk the descent.

Inside the cave,

Deep within the cave, Zhuo Qingfeng and Yu Shijiu were engaged in an evenly matched battle with Lin Duanyun. The wound on Lin Duanyun's chest had torn open his entire torso, exposing his heart. Though not a single drop of blood flowed, his heart was clearly visible.

Thus, Zhuo Qingfeng and Yu Shijiu relentlessly focused their attacks on his heart, which was the only way they could manage to hold their own against Lin Duanyun.

However, just as Lin Duanyun was on the verge of collapsing,

Gu Mo arrived. With a single "Dragon Fights in the Wild" move, he sent Lin Duanyun flying into the wall, collapsing a large section of it. Immediately after, Master Jingkong, Gu Chudong, and others rushed in.

The Gouchen Demonic Blade in Gu Chudong's hand pulsed with flames, illuminating the dark cave. Everyone then saw a disheveled figure, bound by over a dozen iron chains piercing his body. Master Jingkong and Yang Tingyun instantly recognized him as Bai Qiliao, the former sect leader of the Qiongshan Sect.

"Bai Qiliao!" "Brother Bai!"

Bai Qiliao was in a terrible state. His cracked lips parted, and he spoke in a barely audible whisper, "Master... Brother Yang... you've finally arrived!"

Gu Chudong swiftly swung her blade, severing the iron chains.

Master Jingkong quickly administered a medicinal pill to Bai Qiliao.

"Hah... hah..."

At that moment, Lin Duanyun crawled out of the rubble, his voice hoarse. "This... this is truly unwilling!"