CHAPTER 114: STARTING A CATFIGHT

The Dual-Soul Wraith’s sword swung down, tracking Xu Tao’s head with pinpoint precision. Its speed was formidable—fast enough to make it nearly impossible to block in time. But...

"You really thought of using a sword against me?" Xu Tao grinned.

The Wraith had chosen the wrong weapon. Xu Tao, a master of swords—and practically every weapon in the cultivation world—would be a laughingstock if he fell to something like that. He read the trajectory and tilted his body out of the way, dodging with the bare minimum of movements.

As if slipping through water, the pitch-black sword dealt no damage, instead crashing against the Leviathan’s back.

"Tsk!"

The Wraith clicked her tongue and tried to pull the sword up for a follow-up strike—only for Xu Tao to stomp hard on the pommel, driving it deeper into the Leviathan’s back!

"Better luck next time!" Xu Tao teased, using Ground Shrink to move toward the monster’s head.

"Bastard...!"

Though the Wraith was frustrated and insulted, she was technically more powerful than the current Xu Tao. If they fought head-on, she should be able to win!

"Another insect hovering around my emperor..."

But whether a next time existed for her was up for debate.

"...!"

A forcefield enveloped her body, making breathing so difficult it felt like drowning. And that wasn’t all. The space around her was saturated with a special curse—one capable of disintegrating matter into base particles and erasing them from existence.

"Another slut trying to play guard dog for him...? And you’re using Demonic Arts?!" the Dual-Soul Wraith growled, glaring at Wu Zetian with a mix of hatred and excitement. "Too bad, but curses don’t work on us Evil Spirits!"

"Evil Spirits?" Zetian tilted her head upward, somehow managing to look down on her enemy. "So my emperor’s charm has reached even the Demonic Realm? I suppose that’s a given. I’ll have to reduce that place into ashes, a thorough cleanup, one of these days..."

Her eyes dimmed as she whispered with an intoxicated smile.

"I wouldn’t want pests ruining our time together, after all."

"...!"

A chill crawled down the Wraith’s spine. "W-What is this feeling...?" she muttered, shaken. "F-Fear...? This Great Wraith Pharsa... scared of a human bitch?!"

She yanked her sword out and slashed it toward Zetian. But she was too late.

"ACK!" she cried out.

"Pipe down. The bitch here is you."

Wu Zetian scoffed, palm planted firmly on the Wraith’s face.

"You crawled all the way out of the Demonic Realm just to flirt with my Emperor? You think you can flirt your way into his favor? I don’t tolerate pests."

"Get your filthy hands off my face, bitch!"

She swung her sword—but it clashed against a folding fan, lazily raised mid-yawn. Sparks flew from the impact.

GROOOOOH!

As the Leviathan roared in pain beneath them, the two women broke into an intense catfight.

🔷🔷🔷

"This far should be safe enough," Xu Tao said, sighing as he finally let Jehanne down.

Behind them, Zetian and the Wraith, Pharsa, had begun fighting. To his surprise, the two were practically on par. Neither was gaining the upper hand!

Not only was their fight intense, it was also dragging nearby monsters into the chaos. And with the Leviathan as their "stage," it suffered the most. The disintegration zone still active, its wounds grew worse with every clash.

Xu Tao nodded to himself. Leaving them alone for now was definitely the wisest choice.

"For now, let’s focus on the immediate threat."

The other Celestial Beasts Zetian had released were still out there, catching monsters trying to flee. As for the unmarked ones, they had already reached the walls and begun attacking the defense troops.

Fortunately, the civilians had mostly been evacuated by then... But even for trained troops, fighting multiple level 400 monsters at once was incredibly dangerous.

"Jehanne, I’ll be sending you to the ground. Protect everyone and stand by at the castle."

To Xu Tao, it was the most obvious—and optimal—choice.

"No way, I’ll fight with you too!" Jehanne protested immediately. "That woman’s still fighting—there’s no way I’d retreat alone!"

Seeing her resolute expression, Xu Tao wavered for a moment. But the safety of the people came first. He needed the right person for the right task.

’Leaving her here... just feels wrong...’ he thought.

If he left her near Zetian, he feared something irreversible might happen. Something nobody wished for.

"You’re not retreating," Xu Tao clarified. "You’re protecting our people. Your task is the most important of all—so I’m counting on you."

"Sir Tao..."

Jehanne looked conflicted. If she insisted on staying, it would mean being willing to "sacrifice" the people below. Her lips curled into a reluctant frown as her thoughts whirled.

’Just one more push...’ Xu Tao thought.

"After the battle is over... Let’s celebrate together (with everyone), shall we?"

"...!"

Jehanne’s ears definitely heard something else: that they’d celebrate the victory together—just the two of them! From the village women’s stories... and the "teachings" she’d picked up from the dark elves... her cheeks flushed red like a boiled octopus.

"I-I understand!" she nodded firmly. "I’ll protect everyone below for now. But in return, you must never forget your promise!"

"Of course. Then I’ll send you off."

Xu Tao sighed in relief, glad his words had worked.

But just before she was sent off, Jehanne fidgeted... then suddenly pulled Xu Tao’s head close. She planted a kiss on his cheek before stepping away.

"...Be careful out there."

Xu Tao smiled and nodded. "Of course."

In the next instant, he sent her down using Thousand Li Steps. With that, one problem was solved... but several more remained. Specifically: how to defeat the Leviathan.

Its damaged parts were regenerating rapidly—fast enough to keep it from dying even within Zetian’s erosive field.

’Damaging it that much still isn’t enough...’ Xu Tao thought. ’To kill it properly, we need to hit its vital spot. Its core!’

With sharp eyes, he scanned the Leviathan’s body, searching for any sign of weakness—anything that could be its Achilles’ heel.

And then he saw something he shouldn’t have missed.

"That big red crystal... was this always on its forehead?"