Chapter 1727: I Am Not a Saint, Xinghan Chapter

"In the past, Cult Master Qin was kind to me, and his wife, Ling Yuxiu, also took good care of me at Wendao Academy. Because of this, I left a one percent flaw for Cult Master Qin, allowing him to escape from the Divine Coffin of Burying Dao. I only left one percent, but I didn't expect Taichu to turn that one percent into one hundred percent. What was he thinking?"

Xing An quietly passed through Lanfeng Valley with his box, arriving in Yankang.

The battle in Lanfeng Valley was extremely brutal.

The battle line stretched long, centered around Lanfeng Valley, almost spanning all divine cities from south to north in western Yankang. Yankang mobilized nearly all its available troops, and various heavy armaments were deployed.

Even the Heavenly Yin Empress led the few gods and demons from the Heavenly Yin Realm to participate in the Lanfeng battle.

Both sides engaged in a series of grueling battles around the divine cities. First, armies clashed outside the cities, with formations shifting, each side attacking and breaking the other's arrays, amidst flying flesh and blood.

Then, they breached the cities, and urban warfare within the divine cities became even more savage, with every alleyway piled high with corpses.

Divine cities, damaged from the fighting, plummeted from the sky, trailing plumes of thick smoke!

Armies from Yankang and Carefree Village were already deployed. Behind them, a continuous stream of newly constructed divine cities was sent to the front lines, escorted by ship-like fortresses filled with various divine weapons and artifacts.

Upon entering Yankang, Xing An observed that the interior had already entered a state of war preparedness. Manufacturing plants were running, and mines were being excavated day and night. It was no longer the peaceful scene of years past, no longer suitable for him to pursue his studies in tranquility.

Along the way, he also encountered the Solar and Lunar Guardian armies from Xuandu clashing with Yankang's Solar and Lunar Guardian armies. Both sides fought brutally on the ground and in the air.

He also saw Zhan Kong Tathagata leading Buddhist soldiers from the Buddhist Realm, defending various passes behind Lanfeng Valley. They clashed with smaller Heavenly Court units that had broken through Lanfeng Valley, and many great Buddhas from the Buddhist Realm fell under the chaotic blades.

Xing An frowned, "These monks..."

He did not stop. Yankang was a sacred place for reform, rich in knowledge, and he did not wish to participate in battles that did not concern him.

Xing An and Yankang merely had a relationship of mutual benefit. Yankang needed his knowledge and wisdom to advance its reforms, and he, in turn, shared many of his research findings with Yankang.

Moreover, he was not a native of Yankang; when he was born, Yankang did not yet exist as a nation.

Some called him a sage born once every five hundred years, but he never thought of himself that way.

He was merely a seeker of the Dao.

Along the way, he encountered many Heavenly Court gods and demons who had breached Yankang's interior, pillaging and slaughtering. However, Xing An did not intervene; these events were but fleeting clouds to him.

"When I reach Wendao Academy, if there are new discoveries, I'll stay and research. If Yankang falls, I'll leave and live freely," he mused silently.

Suddenly, a massive surge of corpse energy shot into the sky, startling Xing An. He looked ahead to see nine intensely thick columns of black smoke-like corpse energy rising from the ground, violently swirling in the sky!

Xing An had never seen such powerful corpse energy before!

"In these chaotic times, with all sorts of monsters and demons appearing, there are many good things worth collecting," he thought, feeling a thrill of excitement like a hunter spotting prey.

He walked forward and saw over a thousand gods and demons pushing nine enormous coffins on cloud chariots. The coffins, bound tightly with chains, were moving eastward.

Among these gods and demons, there were few strong individuals. Only a blind old man was an Emperor's Throne realm expert, and a woman in white robes barely caught his eye. But for Xing An, none of them were a match.

"Judging by the size of the coffins, they must be imperial coffins!"

His heart stirred. He looked back, realizing these people were likely guarding the rear of Lanfeng Valley, where several human cities lay thousands of miles away.

"It's none of my business."

Just as he was about to seize the imperial coffins, divine light and demonic energy surged ahead of them. The Heavenly Court's Divine Strategy Left Guard and vast demon armies were overwhelmingly charging toward them!

"Form ranks!"

The woman in white raised her sword and shouted, "Prepare to meet the enemy!"

The thousand-plus gods and demons nervously formed their respective arrays. Some were young, still showing traces of childishness.

Meanwhile, the blind old man unchained the nine imperial coffins, pushed open their lids, and bowed, saying, "Brother-disciples, this is our last battle."

Xing An was puzzled: "These coffins resemble the imperial specifications of the High Emperor Era. Could these nine coffins contain the corpses of Heavenly Emperors from that era? I haven't had a High Emperor Heavenly Emperor as a collection piece yet..."

Just as this thought crossed his mind, the box at his feet suddenly sprouted six legs and scampered away from him, heading straight for the woman in white.

Xing An was taken aback. The box ran faster and faster, quickly descending the hill to the woman in white's side, rubbing against her legs very intimately.

The woman in white was both surprised and delighted to see the box. She bent down, stroked it, and spoke to it. The box seemed overjoyed and highly agitated.

Xing An walked closer, observing that the woman was quiet and sweet-faced, with tiny dragon horns hidden in her hair. She must be from the Dragon Race.

"High Emperor Sword God?"

Xing An tilted his head, thought for a moment, and said, "No wonder you're so familiar with my box. I heard that Cult Master Qin awakened its sentience and rode it back forty thousand years, where he met you."

"You are Xing An?"

Bai Que'er, surprised, stroked the box and said, "Indeed, Qin Mu and I rode on the box all night long back then. I'm very grateful it carried us away from the Heavenly Court's pursuit."

Xing An nodded and approached the High Emperor coffins. He peered inside and said, puzzled, "These Heavenly Emperors have been dead for who knows how long, now turned into corpse demons purely by lingering obsession. When you face the Heavenly Court's Divine Strategy Left Guard, you won't be able to contend with them at all. The Divine Strategy Left Guard's combat power rivals that of a Celestial Venerable. The obsessions within your corpses will quickly be shattered, and you won't even be able to preserve your bodies."

He shook his head, then looked back at the thousand-plus gods and divine beings from the High Emperor Era. He shook his head again, saying, "You won't last a quarter of an hour; you'll all die here."

From a coffin, a High Emperor corpse sat up, ghostly flames flickering in its eyes, corpse energy permeating the air. It said eerily, "We are already dead. What is there to fear?"

Xing An chuckled lightly, "Your battle here will be completely useless; you won't be able to stop them!"

Bai Que'er stepped forward and said earnestly, "The reason the Divine Strategy Left Guard and the Youdu demon gods are marching so swiftly is because National Master Jiang Baigui is leading a large army in pursuit from behind. If we can hold them back for just one day, the Yankang National Master will be able to arrive with his troops..."

Xing An burst into laughter, shaking his head. "From my understanding of the Divine Strategy Left Guard's combat strength, you'll only last a quarter of an hour before you're all wiped out. You are people of the High Emperor Era, and you have the corpses of High Emperor Heavenly Emperors. Why would you fight to the death to protect Yankang?"

"It is not Yankang that we are protecting," a High Emperor corpse declared, "but this land, and the people upon it."

Xing An felt a flicker of emotion, then shook his head, smiling. "You can't do anything; you're just throwing your lives away. Box, let's go!"

He started walking forward. The box hesitated, took a step to follow him, but then stopped, standing indecisively between Bai Que'er and him.

Xing An frowned, stopping. "Box, come with me."

The box took two steps toward him, then stopped again. Suddenly, it opened, spewing out countless treasures from within, piling them up like a small mountain.

The box emptied itself, closed its lid, and then scurried back to Bai Que'er's side.

Xing An laughed in exasperation. "What are you doing? You have no combat power. Are you staying here to be split open and burned as firewood? Put your things away and come with me!"

The box remained still.

Xing An became furious. With a wave of his hand, he stored his collected treasures back into his divine treasury, then sneered, "Fine, I don't care for you. I prefer to be a lone wolf; I don't need any friends. I merely used you as a tool to relieve boredom. I've long since had no need for you! Go ahead and die with them!"

He turned and walked away. After a short distance, he looked back and saw the box opening and closing, as if conversing with Bai Que'er.

"I don't need friends."

Xing An scoffed, flicking his sleeve with utter nonchalance. "It's just a box, its sentience awakened by Cult Master Qin. I've never considered it a friend. I'm not lonely at all... and I certainly won't be delayed by these so-called foolish righteous causes of the High Emperor Era! Hahaha!"

He walked away, laughing.

Not long after, Xing An stopped, sitting on a rock with his chin propped on his hand. The box still hadn't followed him.

A moment later, Xing An stood beside Bai Que'er, his face dark. The box was at his feet, affectionately rubbing against his leg.

Xing An's face was gloomy. "Don't touch me! I'm not worried about you at all, so don't touch me... Fine, you can keep those collected items, but don't touch me. Who's worried about you anyway?"

Ahead, the Divine Strategy Left Guard and the demon armies drew closer. The gods and divine beings of the High Emperor Era grew incredibly tense. A young junior general beside Xing An pushed aside his face guard and gave him a shy smile. "My name is Luo Shu. My mother intended to have a girl and even picked out a name, but then I was born instead. I became a god two years ago. Senior Xing An, my name is strange, and yours is strange too; I think we're kindred spirits. Aren't you nervous?"

Xing An's facial muscles stiffened; he was unaccustomed to speaking with strangers.

"Later, I did have a younger sister, but my name wasn't changed. They all used to laugh at me for having a girl's name. But this time, on the battlefield, they won't mock me anymore."

Luo Shu smiled confidently, "I won't be afraid. In this battle, I'll show them that I am a man!"

Xing An turned his head away.

Finally, the Divine Strategy Left Guard army arrived. One after another, High Emperor corpses shot into the sky, and the blind Yi Shisheng also charged out, forming an array with the nine High Emperor corpses to meet the Heavenly Court's Divine Strategy Left Guard army!

As the two sides clashed, You Bijun, seeing the deceased High Emperor Heavenly Emperors, couldn't help but chuckle. "So, it's the dead High Emperor Heavenly Emperors! Even the Great Brahma Heavenly King Buddha was killed by me. Do you corpses truly think you can stop my Divine Strategy Army?"

The demon armies swept over the hills like a tide, surging from both sides of the Divine Strategy Left Guard. Bai Que'er activated her divine sword and shouted, "Form ranks! Stop them!"

Luo Shu's face was flushed with excitement as he loudly followed the other High Emperor soldiers, "Fight to the death—"

The two armies collided with a roar. Countless demon gods, massive and grotesque with astonishing might, caused more than half of the High Emperor's thousand-plus divine beings to fall in the first impact!

Xing An's face was indifferent. He whispered to the box, "Don't run with them. Just stay by my side."

No sooner had he spoken than a severed head rolled to his feet. Xing An stared blankly; it was the head of the young divine being named Luo Shu.

Luo Shu's eyes were wide open, staring blankly at the sky.

Xing An's heart trembled. He turned his head away. "Tsk—, why... why are my tears suddenly unstoppable..."

He clenched his fists. All around him, demons danced wildly, their faces contorted.

Xing An looked into Luo Shu's eyes; the boy's clear gaze slowly grew clouded.

"I..."

Xing An's Adam's apple bobbed with difficulty. Suddenly, the box left him and charged into the horde of demons.

"I am not a sage!" Xing An roared as the box suddenly opened.

His aura erupted, sending countless demon gods flying through the air. Xing An shot skyward, and a torrent of terrifying collected treasures surged from the box!

A terrifying surge erupted, knocking countless demon gods head over heels. Xing An, like the most terrifying demon god in the world, began to slaughter them.

One day later, Jiang Baigui arrived with his army to find the area for thousands of miles flattened, littered with corpses. The Divine Strategy Left Guard and the Youdu demon gods and monsters were almost entirely annihilated.

Xing An sat on his box. Beside him, a blood-stained young woman leaned on her sword, panting, and a blind old man stood solitarily beside the corpses of the nine emperors.

The nine High Emperor corpse demons were completely dead, their obsessions gone.