CHAPTER 539: CHAPTER 537 LATE

"Heh."

Miss Chai shook her head and bellowed, "At Demon Peak, I reign supreme; with my witchcraft, I am the heavens! Do you really think you can cut me down? Then try to take one more step forward!"

She raised the Paper Frost Sorrow in her hand, and behind her, inexplicably, a magnificent seven-colored radiance lit up.

"This sword embodies the noble yet sorrowful dreams held in the final moments by all soldiers who perished on battlefields of past, present, and future. Such will is worthy of pride; such faith must be upheld! The King of Constant Victory loudly proclaimed the true name of the miracle in his hands: ’This is—The Sword of Oath Victory!’"

The colorful radiance behind her reached its apex as the longsword extended a pure white beam of light that spanned the entire Underground Palace, slashing towards Li Ang.

BOOM!

The already broken palace floor split instantaneously in two, and the whole palace shook violently. Stones and ice shot high into the air as the massive rocks supporting the dome came crashing down.

Those still alive, like Li Yushan and Yu Qingqiu, witnessed this apocalyptic scene with utter terror. They tried to flee, but the tunnels leading out were completely buried by rolling sand and debris, leaving no way to retreat.

After a long while, the sword light crossing the palace finally weakened and faded.

Against all expectations, Li Ang still stood unflinchingly in his original spot. Beneath his feet, a lone stone pillar, no thicker than a palm, stood out starkly within the deep chasm. It was as if, even amidst that decisive sword light which destroyed everything, he could still protect himself and the very ground beneath his feet.

"Huff..."

Li Ang slowly exhaled a stream of turbid air, hands clasped behind his back, eyes closed, his expression serene. Not even a speck of dust adorned his black overcoat.

He lifted his arm, his hand transforming into a blade, and spoke languidly, "The highest realm of swordsmanship is to have no sword in hand and no sword in heart; it is to embrace all with a broad spirit. That is the epitome of non-killing. That is peace..."

Upon finishing the last word, Li Ang opened his eyes and leisurely swung his hand-blade.

There was no thunderous noise, nor dazzling special effects. Onlookers like Yu Qingqiu could only watch as the central parts of the remaining palace columns suddenly disintegrated, collapsing one after another towards the pyramid, like a row of dominoes.

CRACK!

The Steel Armor at the top of the pyramid, as if drained of all strength, collapsed to its knees, uttering amidst the falling rocks, "Such an impressive... sword technique... My school... has a successor..."

Li Ang stepped on the edge of the falling stones and landed lightly atop the pyramid. His face showed a hint of sorrow as he brushed closed the steel-blue eyes of the armor. He then stood up and glanced at the cornered Xichang Wude Guards. With one palm, he struck the stone door beside them, shattering it and revealing the still-intact dark tunnel behind.

"You may all escape for your lives. As for myself, I still have matters to attend to," Li Ang said indifferently. "And this Auspicious Beast, I shall take it with me. If the Xichang Wude Guards wish to reclaim the Auspicious Beast, feel free to seek me out. I am more than willing to oblige."

As the entire Underground Palace neared total collapse, the eccentrics and marvels who had witnessed a battle between God Immortals dared not object. They gave Li Ang a distant bow of thanks before scrambling through the doorway, fleeing the palace. The remaining Wude Army Guard followed Li Yushan’s lead into the tunnel.

Yu Qingqiu glanced up at the Auspicious Beast hanging high above and then at the calm Xi Menzi Daoist, a multitude of reluctance welling in his heart. Yet, with no other choice, he clenched his teeth, bowed his head, and followed the team into the tunnel.

Li Ang stood calmly at the center of the crumbling Underground Palace, relying on the biological weapons hidden in every corner of the Tunnel System, ensuring that all outsiders were fleeing upwards through the continuously collapsing tunnels.

Only then did he snap his fingers, commanding the Special Effect Worms in the stone walls to stop shaking the Underground Palace. He then leisurely stretched as if nothing was amiss.

Having put so much effort into this grand theatrical performance, he had finally achieved the desired effect. It wouldn’t be long before Xi Menzi Daoist, the one who had killed the White Lotus Young Master and snatched away the Auspicious Beast, would become famous far and wide.

"Everyone left?"

Miss Chai’s head poked out from the Steel Armor. She looked around for a bit, and after confirming no one else was present, she hopped out of the armor with a HEAVE-HO!, hands on hips and chest puffed out in pride, asking, "How was my acting just now? Would it earn me an Oscar?"

"I don’t think it’s quite there yet."

Li Ang shook his head and said, "Although the lines were delivered with full emotion, the acting seemed a bit overdone. You still need more practice."

PFFT!

Miss Chai stuck out her tongue in protest.

"Alright, let’s get down to business."

Li Ang patted Miss Chai’s hair, took her back into his body, then took out the [Automated Pet Box] and activated the Divine Mark on the back of his hand. He commanded all the worms in the Tunnel System to return to the Underground Palace and climb back into the box.

After collecting the worms, Li Ang easily picked up the unconscious ape, walked towards a certain stone door, pushed it open, and followed the secret passage back to the surface.

The Underground Palace and all the tunnels collapsed as planned, burying all secrets beneath Lvzhou.

「————」

In a room at the post station outside Lvzhou City, Xing Hechou leaned by the window, squinting his eyes at the distant Lvzhou City, which was engulfed in a blazing inferno.

Liu Wu Dai sat in a corner silently maintaining his bow and arrows, while Wanli Fengdao, seated on the table, fidgeted restlessly with the comic book in his hands, his feet tapping anxiously.

"Why hasn’t he come back yet?" Wanli Fengdao put the comic book down, unable to hold back any longer. "Should we go check?"

Xing Hechou ran a finger across the dusty windowsill, hesitated for a moment, then said without turning his head, "Let’s wait a little longer."

Li Ang had only said he had a complete plan and asked them to be ready at the post station outside the city for support, but he did not specify an exact time to meet.

Actually, he sort of did. Li Ang had previously given Xing Hechou a silk pouch, instructing him to open it at the dead of night. Upon opening it, he found a note inside which read: I’ll arrive in five minutes. If I haven’t arrived, read this sentence again.

BUZZ! BUZZ!

The Scout Soldier Bee perched on the room’s ceiling slowly descended onto the table. It dipped its antennae into the tea in a teacup and wrote a few words on the tabletop: "Look outside."

The moment the last stroke was finished, Li Ang’s head appeared outside the window. He propped his hand on the windowsill, nimbly hopped in, showed his companions the Auspicious Beast he was holding, and said with a smile, "It’s taken care of."

"About time you showed up." Wanli Fengdao breathed a sigh of relief, eyeing the animal in Li Ang’s hand with curiosity. "Is this the Auspicious Beast? Kinda looks like an ape..."

"This is no ordinary ape," Li Ang said earnestly, "but the second-ranked among the legendary four spirit monkeys, the Second Elder Brother Spiky Gibbon. When it opens its mouth, it’s all, ’Ummm... like, *whyyy*? Hey, hey, is there a problem with talking like this? Oh, I get it! So you guys don’t like it when I talk this way anymore, huh? My bad, soooooorry for showing you something unpleasant! I’ll just, like, poof! Vanish on my own now. Mina’s Mulberry, you all have to stay super happy, ’kay!’"