Chapter 245: Under the City Gate

The immortal master of Due'e Temple said, "Due'e Temple will naturally honor its promise and support the Hidden Dragon. As I said before, the rules are set and fair to everyone."

"We must clearly assess the caliber of the forces we support, what their next generation is like, whether they can bear great responsibility, and whether they possess extraordinary minds. We absolutely cannot allow another terrifying madman to emerge, like the one from Chanhaiguanwu, causing billions of lives to perish miserably."

"Very well, we'll wait and see!"

The old man in the Confucian robe looked up towards the other side of the sea of clouds, where colorful clouds stretched for thousands of miles and demonic shadows gathered. A phoenix nest, like a planet, hovered under the moon, exuding a breathtaking aura.

Below, the small, incredibly fast figure in the city, like a moth drawn to a flame, finally reached the battlefield, drawing the gazes of countless veteran powerhouses towards the south city.

Could someone truly, with minimal effort, change the course of the world?

"Thud! Thud! Thud..."

A troop of black-armored knights, all masked with white rice-ear insignia embroidered on their face coverings, burst out from the alleyways, scattering and trampling the imperial Five Seas Realm cultivators.

Jiang Ning had fought for three consecutive days and was exhausted, her spiritual energy depleted. Her provincial governor's robe was soaked in blood, and her long hair was disheveled as she leaned on her halberd to support her tottering body.

Her eyes sharp, she stared through the flames and dust at the oncoming horde of black-armored knights.

Around her, the surviving imperial cultivators converged.

"It's those cult members who lurk in the shadows... How did they get involved?" Yin Shisan's hands trembled from exhaustion; he desperately wanted to flee, but Jiang Ning wouldn't leave.

Cang Li shielded Li Ling, whose leg was broken, behind him, constantly retreating. With each exchange against the Heartless Golden Ape, blood would well up in his mouth, further exacerbating his injuries.

All around them were demon cultivators from Tianya Ridge, eyeing them greedily, waiting for them to fall so they could devour their flesh and blood.

The Zuoqiu Gate, Jiuli Tribe, Zhu Clan, and imperial cultivators, along with the scattered Snow Sword Tang Court cultivators, all slowly retreated towards Bingzuze.

They just needed to hold on until the bell rang, until the Dragon Palace appeared.

Once inside the venue for the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival, the slaughter would cease, and they could keep their invitations. Perhaps... Due'e Temple would witness their struggle and their indomitable spirit.

"Whoosh!"

Li Weiyi, with two swords on his back, arrived with lightning speed, leaping onto the top of the city wall where Zuoqiu Hongting had previously stood. He couldn't believe the horrific scene before his eyes.

Under the moonlight, corpses lay everywhere.

The smell of blood assailed him.

Countless bodies lay strewn across the streets of both the inner and outer cities, and even some Spring Realm cultivators couldn't help but join the fight.

Fighting raged everywhere, both in the sky and on the ground.

He took out his black iron seal and infused it with spiritual energy.

"Rumble!"

A thunderous roar echoed throughout the entire city, drawing the gaze of countless cultivators.

The steps of the Bright Moon Seven Stars Pavilion were already stained red with blood. Yin Shiyi and the cultivators from Zuoqiu Gate were beaten back by Luansheng Linyou, then scattered and fled.

The cultivators from Qianli Mountain stood on either side of the steps, ignoring the chaos.

Hearing the thunder, Luansheng Linyou looked up, thinking that the Thunder Cloud Sect had finally made its move. However, he never expected to see a figure on the city wall several miles away—a figure he could not have possibly anticipated.

"How could it be him?"

"Crash!"

"Boom!"

Li Weiyi abruptly landed on the ground. From the black iron seal in his hand, a dozen dazzling purple lightning bolts shot out, spreading down the street, sending the black-armored knights with rice-ear masks flying and their horses neighing in panic.

A street over a hundred meters long was almost completely cleared in a single strike.

Some of the black-armored knights were pierced through by the lightning, falling dead to the ground.

Sand and stones flew on the street, and a strong wind raged. Worm-like currents of electricity spread towards the feet of Jiang Ning, Yin Shisan, Yang Qingxi, and other imperial cultivators before finally dissipating.

It was overwhelmingly powerful, the dominance of one person sweeping aside a thousand troops.

"It's the God..."

After seeing who it was, Yin Shisan was so excited that he forgot his identity, almost shouting out the rest of his title.

"He truly has appeared!" Yang Qingxi, sword in hand, looked at the black-clad knights groaning on the ground, her gaze finally settling on the figure beneath the city gate. Her heart swelled with emotion, and her beautiful eyes shone brightly.

Li Weiyi gave Jiang Ning a deep look, confirming it was her gaze.

Taking two steps back, he turned and rushed towards the outer city, leaving behind a resolute figure.

A single strike had consumed a tremendous amount of energy.

He put away the black iron seal, breathing deeply to restore the spiritual energy in his Qi Sea.

He exited the city gate and quickly headed to the place where he had previously observed Cang Li and Li Ling being besieged. Catching sight of the ten-foot-tall massive bronze cauldron in the plaza, his gaze darkened.

Spiritual energy surged through his meridians, flowing into his arms.

"Thud!"

He struck out with a palm, the sound like a god striking a bell.

The bronze cauldron, weighing untold tons and filled with boiling water, flew towards the group of demon cultivators from Tianya Ridge.

Screams erupted one after another; several demon cultivators were immediately crushed to death or sent flying.

The Heartless Golden Ape, with its tall and sturdy, golden-cast body, sensed the danger. It abandoned its attack on Cang Li, charging towards Li Weiyi with ten-foot strides, its golden radiance intensifying.

It clenched its fist, and the golden rings on its wrists released hundreds of scriptures.

"Boom!"

Li Weiyi stood firm, striking out with a palm.

The difference in their body sizes was more than tenfold.

The Heartless Golden Ape's physical strength was formidable, almost like a forged Dao body. Yet, in a head-on clash, after Li Weiyi stood his ground and received its strike, he actually pushed it back.

"Thud! Thud..."

With each step the Heartless Golden Ape took back, a large section of the ground shattered. Finally, its back crashed violently against the city wall.

That small human body possessed extremely formidable power.

The next moment, the Heartless Golden Ape's wrist was seized, and Li Weiyi swung the entire ape into the air.

He kicked it in the chest, the phantom image of a jade cauldron flashing under his foot.

"Thud!"

The Heartless Golden Ape's body, like a small golden mountain, was sent flying a hundred meters, overturning many cultivators on the street.

It wore armor and was not too severely injured. It immediately stood up, waving its four arms, and let out a long,嘶声 howl at Li Weiyi, its cry transforming into a hurricane.

Cang Li stared at Li Weiyi in the center of the plaza, seeing in him an aura found only in powerhouses like Luansheng Linyou. He immediately burst into laughter... which aggravated his injuries, causing him to groan softly and sink to the ground, his body trembling.

"Clang!"

"Clang!"

Li Weiyi stood beneath the city gate, drawing his two swords—Yellow Dragon in one hand, Jingyu in the other. His eyes met those of the distant Heartless Golden Ape, his heroic bearing as proud and unyielding as a divine peak.

"Whoosh!"

Jingyu struck out with a sword.

The sword qi transformed into thousands of feathers, sweeping down a multitude of demon cultivators from Tianya Ridge, blood blooming like a waterfall.

"Roar!"

Watching the enraged Heartless Golden Ape charging at him, Li Weiyi used the Yellow Dragon Ascending Heaven steps, leaving the street and rushing towards Long Dian and Zuoqiu Hongting, who were clashing above a complex of palatial buildings.

Behind him, the Heartless Golden Ape pursued relentlessly.

Zuoqiu Hongting had glimpsed him from afar, and an unusual glint appeared in her eyes beneath her carved wooden mask, clearly indicating disbelief.

He drew closer and closer to Long Dian.

At twenty zhang, the first divine shadow of a combat technique materialized behind Li Weiyi, followed swiftly by the second, and then the third…

By the time he was only ten zhang from Long Dian, all six divine shadows of his combat techniques had appeared.

With his exceptional eyesight, Long Dian naturally knew that the newcomer was extraordinary. He channeled his energy, unleashing a palm print that warped space. Simultaneously, a five-zhang-long Azure Dragon combat technique manifestation, accompanied by the palm print, coiled and flew towards Li Weiyi.

"Roar!"

From the blade Li Weiyi wielded, a deafening dragon's roar also erupted. A Yellow Dragon materialized and, with an unstoppable momentum, directly pierced through the Azure Dragon.

After the Yellow Dragon's phantom image repelled Long Dian,

The next instant, Jingyu Sword and Li Weiyi's true form were already above Long Dian's head.

Long Dian took a deep breath, his tiger-like eyes blazing. He swung his bronze battle spear, and dense scriptures erupted along its shaft, colliding with Jingyu Sword.

"Boom!"

The scriptures burst outwards in ripples of spiritual energy.

Zuoqiu Hongting darted forward, her finger piercing through Long Dian's protective spiritual energy, causing his golden armor to dent slightly. The force of her strike penetrated the armor, hitting his true body and sending him flying backward.

"How should we fight?" she asked.

"Fight together, fight to kill."

Li Weiyi, Zuoqiu Hongting, and Long Dian engaged in a chaotic melee, their spiritual energies and scriptures forming a dense, swirling cloud of chaos.

The two of them occasionally swung a sword or struck a palm at the Heartless Golden Ape.

Ordinary Legacy-level cultivators found it difficult to even enter the trio's combat zone.

Although it was their first time working together, their coordination was seamless, as if they shared a telepathic connection.

After a dozen or so moves,

Long Dian, with nowhere left to escape, was hit by Li Weiyi's sword and then Zuoqiu Hongting's palm. His hair ornament fell off, and he vomited blood, his disheveled form heavily tumbling onto the street.

His golden armor was shattered, and blood flowed from his chest and abdomen.

Just then,

The severely wounded Yin Shiyi was pursued to this location by Luansheng Linyou.

Zuoqiu Hongting's daoist robe turned blood-red as she stood on the eaves of a tower on the left side of Qiankun Avenue, holding a Daoist ruler. Her second combat technique manifestation, the "Life and Death Bagua Seal," hovered above her head. Her gaze shifted from Long Dian to Luansheng Linyou.

Li Weiyi flickered to appear on the market wall on the right side of Qiankun Avenue. He took a cloth bag from his waist and threw it onto the street.

"Thud!"

The bag hit the ground, and a Jinyang spirit's head rolled out.

"Luansheng Linyou, you're next!" Li Weiyi naturally had the confidence to say this, as he had already seen the shadows of seven swarms of insect tides on the city wall.

The cultivators near this street had all stopped fighting, looking towards the few individuals with the strongest aura in the central area.

Yin Shiyi was both excited and fearful. As an ordinary Legacy-level cultivator, being caught in the combat technique aura fields of four grand masters naturally made him extremely nervous.

"You've risen surprisingly fast, somewhat beyond my estimations!"

Luansheng Linyou stood with his hands behind his back, glancing at Qi Jin's head on the ground. A chill spread through his usually calm eyes, and spiritual energy billowed out from beneath his feet like a thick mist.

"Whoosh!"

The two combat technique manifestations, Azure Luan and Qilin, appeared behind him. The former spread its wings and cried out, while the latter raised its hoof and let out a long howl.

"Brother Weiyi, we're here!"

Shi Shishi roared, leading Bai Shu and seven Phoenix-Wing Moth Emperors, along with seven torrents of fierce insects, to fly over the heads of cultivators like Cang Li, Li Ling, Jiang Ning, Yang Qingxi, Yin Shisan, and Zhuang Yue, sweeping towards the straight Qiankun Avenue.

Qi Xiao lifted his saber, rose from a pile of corpses, and looked up, dumbfounded. He couldn't help but curse something under his breath, but the buzzing of the insects drowned it out, making it inaudible.