Translator: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio
Above the battles.h.i.+p, a black sword was fired into the sky.
Swoosh.
The three-foot-long divine sword turned into a three-hundred-meter long black dragon, drifting down towards the Golden Sparrow City.
There was an enormous boost in energy as the dragon appeared, resonating with the fighting spirit of the soldiers.
The divine sword was one of the deadly weapons that was on the Thousand-pattern Saint Weapon List, namely the Xuan Dragon Sword. It belonged to the ancestor of the s.h.i.+ Family, s.h.i.+ Yuncong, whose cultivation had achieved the Saint level.
Many years ago, s.h.i.+ Yuncong activated the Destruction of the Thousand-patterns spell on Xuan Dragon Sword and split a mountain in half.
The sword collided with the protective spell around the Golden Sparrow City in a deafening explosion, creating a blast wave so great that the earth was shaking.
As the s.h.i.+ Family's soldiers were attacking the city wall, Zhang Ruochen rode to a hillside near the Golden Sparrow City.
He was patrolling the surrounding areas to check on traces of an ambush. The Immortal Vampires could have been warned and traps could have been set up to hinder the s.h.i.+ Family's troops from advancing.
If they counterattacked with a force hidden behind the hill, the planned attack of the s.h.i.+ Family's forces could turn into a rout.
"Master Zhang, why did you stop all of a sudden?" asked the Elephant-swallowing Rabbit.
Zhang Ruochen stared at a hut near the hillside and murmured, "That looks suspicious."
He then scanned through the hut again with his Heavenly Eye that was on his forehead.
The hut seemed quiet, unnaturally so.
Elephant-swallowing Rabbit replied, "I don't see anything unusual? The monks who lived in the hut are dead, no one's alive."
Zhang Ruochen studied the surrounding terrain carefully, then jumped off the back of the elephant. "Let's enter and have a look," he suggested.
He thought, if I were the commander-in-chief of the Immortal Vampires who was defending the city, the moment I learned about the attack from the Ancient Race of Prison Guardians, there would only be two options:
One, to flee the city in split forces. This would prevent the s.h.i.+ Family's forces from wiping the troops out all at once.
Two, to station a strong force hidden outside the gate to sandwich the opponent by attacking both flanks simultaneously.
The large-scale siege of the Golden Sparrow City might have alerted the Immortal Vampires, despite the s.h.i.+ Family having carried out thorough preparation and careful execution of the plan.
And since the Immortal Vampires in the city had not escaped, they had most likely chosen the latter option.
After the study on the surrounding terrain, Zhang Ruochen concluded that the hillside would be the perfect hideout spot, if the Immortal Vampires did plan an ambush.
There were multiple dead bodies scattered along the stairway leading to the hut. Their blood was drained completely, leaving only the withered skin and bones behind, even the children's.
Zhang Ruochen stepped up the stairs.
His blood boiled as he glanced around. As angry as he could be, he remained cautious with each step that he took.
"Master Zhang, why are you being so cautious? This is an abandoned hut, no one's here at all. Could it be the Immortal Vampires are hiding in there?"
Without having a second thought, the Elephant-swallowing Rabbit rushed into the hut as a ball of red light.
"Be careful…"
Zhang Ruochen shook his head, then quickened his pace to keep up.
The moment he took a step forward into the hut, he sensed danger. An incoming murderous energy was thrusting towards him from the opposite direction.
Yet, Zhang Ruochen could merely feel the vibrating Holy Qi. There was no sight of the attacker.
"Hallucination spell."
Zhang Ruochen was taken aback, and rushed toward the door.
If the hut was cloaked in the Hallucination Spell, it would only mean one thing: there was an ambush. He had to escape from there and inform the s.h.i.+ Family about the ambush.
The murderous energy was ahead of him. It became a fog, enveloping Zhang Ruochen within a blood cloud, attempting to stop him from leaving the hut.
Amidst the fog, a razor-sharp claw emerged, snapping for his throat from the back.
"Nine Nine to One."
The Abyss Ancient Sword flew out from his back, leaping into the air. As it sprung out, nine rays of lightning streaked out in nine different ways.
Then, the horrific sound of someone being stabbed was heard, followed by a scene where blood flowed out from the ceiling.
Two of the Immortal Vampires fell off, lying weltering in their blood.
Zhang Ruochen drew the Abyss Ancient Sword back and plunged it into the ground. Suddenly, hundreds of Sword Qi bolts whistled out of the darkness, and coalesced into a Sword Qi territory, encircling Zhang Ruochen.
His Spiritual Power was not strong enough for him to see past the Hallucination Spell. It wouldn't be an easy task for him to escape captivity from the Sword Qi territory.
The more difficult the situation got, the more reason for him to remain calm.
Had he tried to escape blindly without any plan, he'd have been dead already.
"Such a powerful spell to have s.h.i.+elded the whole hut, and to have gone unnoticed, even by the senses of the s.h.i.+ Family's forefathers who had achieved the saint level. Seems like there are powerful Immortal Vampires not known to the others," Zhang Ruochen commented.
Someone clapped.
Thereafter, a shrill evil voice spoke. "Indeed, the one who could remain unperturbed and tranquil in the face of death is none other than the Taotian Sword Keeper. I am impressed."
A figure image flickered, and then the Second Prince of the Immortal Vampires appeared outside the entrance of the hut, standing upright. He had the cold and unapproachable temperament of a royal.
Zhang Ruochen squinted his eyes at the prince, and his eyes soon widened. "Are you Xiang Zhengfeng?"
While Xiang Zhengfeng's appearance had had a drastic change, his Sword Intent and temperament had not changed a single bit.
The Second Prince of the Immortal Vampires replied with his lips curved upward, "It's no wonder you could see through the Hallucination Spell. Your eyesight is unparalleled to the others."
w.a.n.g Jie then walked out from the other side of the hut and bowed to the Second Prince of the Immortal Vampires with his hands folded, and eyes attentively directed towards the prince. That was the look of a servant rendering absolute obedience to his master.
As he turned to Zhang Ruochen, the look changed. He snorted, "Zhang Ruochen, why didn't you bow? The Prince could have spared you if you did."
Zhang Ruochen rested his hand on the hilt of his sword, then replied without looking at w.a.n.g Jie, "Hmm, the Second Prince of the Immortal Vampires. A n.o.ble, apparently."
w.a.n.g Jie was infuriated by Zhang Ruochen for blatantly ignoring his existence. "Zhang Ruochen, did you really think you are incredibly smart for noticing the Hallucination Spell? You are in fact the dumbest. You've fallen into the trap, and it's only a matter of time before you surrender," he spoke through gritted teeth.
"Is the servant allowed to speak when the masters are talking?"
Zhang Ruochen despised w.a.n.g Jie, and he took no pains to conceal his sentiments.
After all, w.a.n.g Jie was the son of the Clan Leader, a future leader that the Ancient Race of Prison Guardians looked up to. Yet he turned against his own clan and became the servant of the Immortal Vampires' Second Prince. His betrayal was worse than the Immortal Vampires, who had always been the open enemy.
w.a.n.g Jie was infuriated by Zhang Ruochen's reply, he snapped, "Zhang Ruochen, let's settle the grudges between us once and for all, today!"
He started channeling his Holy Qi and gathered it on his palms.
The Holy Qi then shaped into two ivory swords, giving out a fiery bright light. Only the finest divine weapon could give out such blazing light.
