Chapter 403 Please help Miss Zhongli find the World Destroyer hiding in Qingyang
In the darkness, the Blue-winged Fragrance-Seeking Hummingbird flapped its wings and flew out of the jungle, letting out a loud call, keeping a close eye on Geng Hanfu and the others. Following the signal from the Blue-winged Fragrance-Seeking Hummingbird, a large number of Imperial Guards rushed out of the forest path.
Geng Hanfu was the first to react, saying in a hoarse voice, "Cover the young lady's escape first!"
He made a hand seal and summoned in a low voice. Tang Yuan cooperated with his cover, holding the divine wooden talisman and began to cast a divination array to move them.
Wei Lingshu released countless poisonous insects to resist, attempting to buy time.
Chu Jin's gaze, hidden beneath his black robe, passed over the Imperial Guards charging at the forefront and landed on the white-clad youth on horseback behind them.
The Sixth Prince of Qingyang, Duan Fengning.
Last time, it was he who sent Gu Jun to investigate Xuan Kui's whereabouts, which led to Zhong Li Que's encounter. This time, it was him again who found Xuan Kui's trail while Gu Jun was on a mission.
The moment Tang Yuan tossed the divine wooden divination stick into the air, a barrier of light formed around them.
His hands moved swiftly, forming hand seals. Golden mountain birds and tree patterns flashed across the sacred wooden talisman, corresponding one by one to the scenery and place before him. He separated them into individual elements, materializing them into corresponding character incantations that appeared before Tang Yuan's eyes.
The Five Divisions of the Heavenly Secrets Divination Array.
Tang Yuan disassembled the Five Elements, neutralizing the incoming Nine Streams Techniques of the Imperial Guard one by one. At the same time, he altered the terrain, creating huge cracks in the ground and leading to an insurmountable abyss.
Wenren Xu observed the battle below, clasped his hands together, and a gust of wind emanated from them. He said to Gongsun Qi, "The one down there is one of your targets."
Gongsun Qi followed Wenren Xu's gaze and saw Geng Hanfu, who was controlling the spirit of the characters. He raised his eyebrows.
He does look somewhat familiar.
The wind from the Hellfire Wind Maiden ripped and shattered the characters and incantations within Tang Yuan's divination array. With the array broken, the Imperial Guards, who had been blocked outside the cliff of the earth fissure, broke through the array's barrier and rushed into Xuan Kui's team.
Chu Jin suddenly turned around and looked at the burning forest, her pupils reflecting the white figure standing on the treetop.
Wen, Ren, Xu.
She gritted her teeth, realizing that Wenren Xu had deliberately disrupted Tang Yuan's divination formation in an attempt to have her captured by Yu Lansi.
That traitor!
You think you can get me caught by Miranji? You're dreaming!
Chu Jin took a deep breath, suppressing the killing intent in his heart, but instead of staring at Wenren Xu, he turned to face the Imperial Guards who were launching a fierce attack.
Beneath the black robe, his dark eyes gleamed with a faint golden light, reflecting a spiritual essence.
Chu Jin raised his hand, drew his bow, and aimed the glowing arrow at Duan Fengning at the rear. With a cold expression, he shot out a long arrow carrying lightning.
Duan Fengning thought it was a Thunder Arrow and remained calm, but the long, flashing arrow suddenly disappeared in mid-air.
Chu Jin exhaled softly, resonating with the spirit of the word: "Overlay Feathers".
Suddenly, a golden light flashed across the dark night sky, and countless golden arrows rained down from the heavens, killing the Imperial Guards one after another. One of them pierced through several people and pointed directly at Duan Fengning.
Duan Fengning immediately drew his sword and slashed at the golden feather arrow. The two forces clashed, forcing Duan Fengning to dismount.
"Sixth Prince!"
Seeing this, those nearby quickly used their wind manipulation skills to turn around and rescue Duan Fengning.
Zhong Lishan led his men down the mountain and happened to witness the Imperial Guards arresting the leader of Xuan Kui. The Imperial Guards, initially on guard against the enemy, changed their demeanor upon seeing the attire of the Azure Dragon Army and the Golden Armor Army, and loudly announced: "The Imperial Guards are arresting Xuan Kui!"
Gu Jun was supported by a golden-armored soldier. Upon hearing this, he looked up and, through the blood, saw the figure being protected by Tang Yuan and the others. Although the figure was covered by a black robe and nothing could be seen, he knew that it was Qing Kui.
What is she doing here at this time? And why is she being chased by Yu Lan Si?
Before Gu Jun could figure it out, in that brief moment, Zhong Lishan, whose sword-wielding hand was covered in blood and gore, had already gathered his energy again, his target fixed on the figure protecting the rear of Xuan Kui's team.
He could never forget how his younger sister got injured.
Zhongli Shan held his breath, focused all his attention, and unleashed a divine sword intent towards the location of the figure in the black robe. The imposing golden sword shadow almost overlapped with another crimson sword shadow that emerged from the mountain.
No one expected that Gongsun Qi and Zhongli Shan would draw their swords at the same time. Their divine sword intent and heavenly fire flames descended upon Chu Jin and the others without warning, igniting the surrounding five elements and sending everyone on the ground flying.
The Divine Sword Intent had a clear target, attacking only Chu Jin, while the Heavenly Fire Flowing Flame targeted Geng Hanfu, simultaneously injuring ninety percent of the Imperial Guards who rushed up.
Zhongli Shan looked into the mountains in surprise, somewhat puzzled by the intention of the person who had unleashed the Heavenly Flame.
Gongsun Qi gazed at Geng Hanfu, who was severely injured and engulfed in flames, and waited for Yu Lan Si's men to capture him before leaving.
...
Inside the General's Mansion. Under the moonlight, the fence...
Zhong Lique's eyes felt as if they were being roasted by fire and then dripped with wax. The pain prevented her from thinking about the meaning of the scene she glimpsed in the fire. Lines of bloody tears overflowed from her eyes and streamed down her pale cheeks.
She held back her cries and waited until she calmed down before calling out to Afu, wanting a maid to come in and help her.
The lamplight flickered outside, but the maid Afu was nowhere to be seen.
The door opened silently from the outside, and a tall figure entered. His greyish-purple robe gave him an understated elegance. The man looked relatively young, but his hair was already silver, tied back with a jade crown, giving him a clean and neat appearance. His light grey eyes were calm and unwavering as he looked at the girl squatting on the ground.
"A-Fu?" Zhong Lique sensed someone approaching, but couldn't hear A-Fu's voice, so she was a little uncertain.
Her heart skipped a beat for no reason as the man approached.
Qin Shan looked at the girl's outstretched hand, handed her the black sacred wood talisman, and asked gently, "Are you hurt?"
Zhong Lique froze upon hearing the voice. When her fingertips touched the cold sacred wood talisman, her vision, which had been shrouded in darkness, cleared. Even with her eyes closed, she could gradually make out the scenery around her.
She unconsciously grabbed the sacred wooden talisman and stood up, until she saw the person in front of her clearly, her voice filled with shock: "Holy One...you, how could you..."
The master of magic, who should have been in the palace, quietly broke into the boudoir of the general's daughter.
But Qin Shan seemed to have no ill intentions or remorse. Instead, he looked at the girl's eyes, which were streaming with bloody tears, and sighed softly, "Can you see now?"
Zhong Lique nodded subconsciously, but when she saw Qin Shan's slightly smiling face, she was startled by the chilling feeling and sense of danger that seemed to see a venomous snake crawling down her spine.
This master of esoteric arts has only arrived at this moment... Could it be...?
Qin Shan helped the girl up from the ground and asked gently, "What did you see in the firelight?"
The divine wooden divination sticks in their hands shimmered with a faint light, enveloping Zhongli Que within Qin Shan's divination array.
Zhong Lique stared blankly at Qin Shan, sweat beading on her forehead, unsure whether it was from pain or panic.
What did you see?
What am I supposed to say?
Qin Shan smiled and said, "Don't worry, I won't tell His Majesty what happened tonight."
His words carried the meaning of an elder comforting a younger person, making people feel relaxed while also unconsciously relying on him.
Zhongli Que felt thirsty and answered in a low voice, "...fire."
Why would a saint appear here? Did he know something that led him to come?
Qin Shan reached out, his warm fingertips wiping away the traces of blood and tears on the girl's cheek. His movements were focused and gentle. He said, "Tonight, while observing the view from the starry sea, I discovered your connection with the sacred tree. It seems you have quite a high talent in the art of magic."
“In previous years, I could occasionally sense that someone in the capital was resonating with the sacred tree. It wasn’t until tonight that I realized that person was you.”
How did he know what was on my mind...?
Before Zhongli Que could finish speaking out of her shock, Qin Shan smiled and said, "Within this Mind-Observing Array, I can roughly know what you are thinking."
Upon hearing this, the girl quickly calmed herself down and focused, trying to stop her mind from wandering.
She quickly fell silent, and Qin Shan's gaze towards Zhong Lique couldn't help but carry a hint of admiration.
"Is it a different kind of fire?" Qin Shan asked.
Zhong Lique shook her head.
She herself didn't know what was going on.
Qin Shan then asked, "Did you see anyone?"
Zhong Lique remained silent, not wanting to reveal what he had planned to do.
Qin Shan, however, understood the girl's thoughts from her silence. He turned around and looked around the room. With a wave of his hand, the sacred wooden talisman that Zhong Lique had hidden under the bedside flew out and landed in the man's hand.
Qin Shan opened his palm and held it out to Zhong Lique, seeing a look of astonishment on the girl's face.
"This is already a death warrant. Without it, you might have been even more seriously injured tonight due to the backlash." Qin Shan lowered his eyes to look at the cracked sacred wood talisman and said softly, "Can this be considered evidence that you secretly learned the Nine Schools of Magic?"
Upon hearing this, Zhong Lique felt a chill run through her body and was about to kneel down, but Qin Shan stopped her with the divine wooden talisman.
A cold, deep voice came from outside: "Venerable One, please come out of the young lady's room."
Hearing her father's voice, Zhong Lique trembled even more violently. Qin Shan had discovered that she had secretly learned the Nine Schools of Divination and that she had made a divination. If he told His Majesty... the consequences would be unimaginable.
Seeing the girl's trembling shoulders, Qin Shan withdrew the divine wooden talisman. Zhong Lique's vision suddenly went black, but she heard the man whisper in her ear: "Don't be afraid, I promised not to tell His Majesty."
Zhongli Que was led by Qin Shan to the door. As soon as the door opened, Zhongli Ci, who was standing outside, saw the blood and tears streaming down his daughter's pale face. He frowned and gripped the hilt of his sword.
"General, I just made an agreement with Miss Zhongli that what happened tonight will never be mentioned to anyone, not even His Majesty."
Qin Shan seemed unaware of Zhong Li Ci's intentions. His light gray eyes were bright and gentle. He said, "Tonight, Miss Zhong Li noticed traces of the World Destroyer, and the World Destroyer seems to be active near the capital."
Zhongli Ci paused in his grip on the sword; this was not good news.
Qin Shan handed the cracked wooden divination stick to Zhongli Ci: "This is Miss Zhongli's wooden divination stick. Thanks to its protection tonight, Miss Zhongli did not suffer a more severe backlash in the divination."
Zhongli Ci looked at Zhongli Que. Zhongli Que couldn't see anything, but she could feel her father's gaze. So she said in a trembling voice, "I'm sorry..."
"Since it is related to the Destroyer of Worlds, does Your Excellency not intend to tell His Majesty?" Zhongli Ci reached out and took the divine wooden divination stick, his cold and calm expression remaining unchanged.
Qin Shan looked at Zhong Li Ci. Even within the Mind-Observation Formation, he found it difficult to discern the man's thoughts.
"The general probably wouldn't want me to do this either," Qin Shan said with a slight smile. "I also don't want to hurt Miss Zhongli."
Zhongli Ci looked at Zhongli Que, and Qin Shan understood what he meant, explaining, "Miss Zhongli's eyes will probably need about half a month to recover."
"What do you want?" Zhongli Ci turned to look back at Qin Shan.
Qin Shan said, "I would like to ask Miss Zhongli for help in finding the World Destroyer hiding in Qingyang."
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