Chapter 567: Ning Zuo vs. Xiang Yue

Blood surged and burned, engulfing Lord Long in a deluge of bloody flames.His aura soared, and even within Tiechuan Du's composed eyes, traces of shock and unease appeared.Lord Long charged towards Tiechuan Du, his momentum tragic and filled with a death wish.Tiechuan Du retreated repeatedly, denying Lord Long any chance to close in.Shuang Ling made her move, nearly emptying her reserves, dispatching all her mechanical creations.Whether mechanisms, magical treasures, flying swords, weapons, or even spells, upon touching the blood flame, they were melted and reduced to naught.This technique, created by Lord Long himself, possessed immense power, incorporating both offense and defense.Tiechuan Du perceived the essence of the technique, and his heart was heavily shaken once more: "He is incinerating his fleshly body and Nascent Soul entirely, transforming all his accumulated power into the blood flame, burning fiercely, in exchange for a moment of splendor!""This fellow... is truly the very bone of Thousand Peaks Forest."Even facing an enemy, Tiechuan Du couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration for Lord Long.Lord Long sighed inwardly, then halted deliberately. His aura rapidly dissipated, his sturdy frame shriveled, returning to the appearance of a withered old man.He had unleashed the final resounding note of his life, but achieved little in terms of results.His enemy was also wise and brave, choosing not to confront him directly.From this perspective, to have forced a Void Refinement stage cultivator to retreat is a glorious achievement for Lord Long!Originally, Lord Long could have sustained the effort for a longer period, but by stopping voluntarily, he immediatelyを迎d the final moments of his life.At the cusp of death, Lord Long pointed a finger. The blood flame enveloped his shoulder armor, transforming into a blood-fire meteor, shooting towards... Xiang Yue.While wary of Lord Long, Tiechuan Du also had to guard against a possible sneak attack from the Ginseng Whisker Dragon King. Upon seeing the blood-fire meteor, he immediately moved to intercept, but missed by a hair's breadth.The blood-fire meteor struck Xiang Yue directly, rapidly dissolving the military formation mystic power that had been troubling the latter.A long, drawn-out elephant's trumpeting sound echoed. Xiang Yue, invigorating his arms, regained his freedom!The artifact spirit boy cried piteously, sitting on Xiang Yue's right shoulder, wiping away tears as he said to Xiang Yue: "Big guy, my master, before he died, told me to rely on you and assist you in fighting with all your might. You are my new master now. You must fight well, *wuwu*, and avenge my master! *Wuwuwu*..."Xiang Yue extended his broad palm and gently stroked the artifact spirit boy's small forehead.The artifact spirit boy shrank into the spiritual treasure shoulder armor. Xiang Yue's palm naturally fell onto the shoulder armor."I never expected Lord Long to entrust this heavy treasure to me," Xiang Yue sighed inwardly, his rough palm caressing the surface of the spiritual armor.The touch was hard, yet resilient, and bore countless minute cracks.Having fought fiercely until now, even this spiritual treasure-grade shoulder armor was not lightly damaged at its core and would require repair after the battle.Not just the spiritual treasure shoulder armor, but also a ball of blood flame, which permeated Xiang Yue's body, rapidly condensed, and ultimately formed large patches of blood-flame tattoos on the elephant king's physique."Martial art of the Boon-Bearing Body?" Xiang Yue was moved.Lord Long had passed this martial art on to Xiang Yue. The tattoos contained all of its essence. Inscribed within anyone's body, it would allow them to instantly grasp this martial art he had created!Xiang Yue looked up at Tiechuan Du in the sky: "Marshal Du, how much further and where do you intend to retreat?"Tiechuan Du looked down from above, gazing at Xiang Yue. His gaze fell upon the blood patterns all over the latter's body, causing him considerable headache.He could naturally discern it: this was Lord Long, decisive in his final moments, entrusting his power to Xiang Yue.Among the allied forces of Thousand Peaks Forest, only Xiang Yue's physique could bear this inheritance!With the blood patterns and spiritual treasure, Xiang Yue's combat power was equivalent to the addition of Lord Long's. His own combat strength was already formidable, residing at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage. Now, like a tiger with wings, his combat power touched upon the Void Refinement stage, posing a threat to Tiechuan Du."The key is that the Ginseng Whisker Dragon King has not yet made a move. What exactly is He intending?"Tiechuan Du furrowed his brow slightly, his thoughts constantly preoccupied with the Ginseng Whisker Dragon King, not daring to go all out.He looked at Xiang Yue and slowly spoke: "Lord Long is dead. The Ginseng Whisker Dragon King has not shown up for a long time. Perhaps He was severely injured in our first clash and is unable to fight.""Otherwise, how could He stand by and watch your allied forces collapse and Lord Long fall in battle?""Contemporary Elephant King, those who understand the times are heroes. If you surrender, I will grant you high office and generous emoluments.""Haven't you always been concerned about the development of your clan? Within the national treasury of our Two-Note Kingdom, there are naturally abundant treasures that can help your clan produce more descendants!"The numerous cultivators of Thousand Peaks Forest immediately looked at Xiang Yue, filled with worry.Xiang Yue shook his head, snorted coldly, and refused without hesitation: "High office and generous emoluments? Just to be your cattle and horses! Humans, hah."Xiang Yue was a demon cultivator. Lord Long's barbarian identity would have made it easier for him to integrate into the Two-Note Kingdom than Xiang Yue.In the current cultivation world, humans were the orthodoxy and overlords. Other races could only be dependents.Comparatively, Xiang Yue and his clan were more willing to live and reproduce freely in an uncivilized land.Having failed to persuade him to surrender, Tiechuan Du sighed in his heart, then took the initiative to attack, engaging Xiang Yue in a duel.Xiang Yue's strength had greatly increased, and Tiechuan Du could not afford to ignore him.The two sides exchanged blows, back and forth, causing continuous explosions and flying rocks for a time.Xiang Yue was bolstered by Lord Long's inheritance, his strength significantly surpassing his previous level. His martial arts were direct and straightforward, ancient and simple, powerful and weighty, making Tiechuan Du unwilling to meet him head-on, opting instead for evasion.Tiechuan Du's Qingfeng sword was extremely sharp. Even with the spiritual treasure-grade shoulder armor protecting his body, Xiang Yue was wounded by the sword's edge.Xiang Yue's injuries rapidly increased. At first, it was a back-and-forth exchange, but after a few rounds, he fell into a disadvantage.Zhu Xuanji, who had been watching the battle, had just learned a key piece of information."The Ginseng Whisker Dragon King appeared on Twisted Vine Peak and captured the 'Old Monster in Stone'.""It seems the high-ranking traitor in Thousand Peaks Forest is a person from the Two-Note Kingdom, who has been planted here as a spy.""Disguising oneself as the 'Old Monster in Stone,' why would this be enough to bait the Ginseng Whisker Dragon King, making Him even abandon the front line?""There must be an important reason behind this!"As Zhu Xuanji pondered, he observed the battle, his eyes reflecting the scene of Xiang Yue bleeding on the battlefield, attempting multiple times to regain the upper hand but failing.Beside him, Fairy Hong Xiu and Lin Bufan had also finished reading the key information."Lord Long had excellent methods," Lin Bufan sighed with emotion. "Even after death, he accurately anticipated Xiang Yue. One inheritance allowed the Elephant King to take his place and fight to the death with Tiechuan Du."Fairy Hong Xiu said: "Xiang Yue's combat power is considerable. In terms of pure physical cultivation, he is likely above Lord Long. However, Lord Long's strength includes the divine technique, which is why he surpassed Xiang Yue in combat power.""With Lord Long dead, Xiang Yue can be considered the foremost body cultivator in Thousand Peaks Forest.""No, looking at the entire Two-Note Kingdom, he is likely among the top body cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage."Zhu Xuanji stared at Xiang Yue, nodding slightly: "Hmm... Xiang Yue is different from Lord Long. The latter devoutly believed in the Ginseng Whisker Dragon King and had no possibility of cooperating with our Southern Bean Kingdom.""Xiang Yue needs to take care of his entire elephant herd, a significant weakness that might be exploited.""Furthermore, if he participates in this battle and can successfully retreat, his prestige and reputation in the Thousand Peaks Forest region will greatly increase, and he is likely to become a future leader of Thousand Peaks Forest.""Yes, it would be too much of a pity if Xiang Yue were to perish in this battle."The current battle situation was something Zhu Xuanji did not wish to see.The Southern Bean Kingdom needed Thousand Peaks Forest to be effectively independent and wished to see both sides suffer heavy losses, with the Two-Note Kingdom expending national power in a failed conquest.The Southern Bean Kingdom had long secretly intervened in Thousand Peaks Forest, and Fairy Hong Xiu, who had been placed there, was one such agent."But how can we save Xiang Yue?" Zhu Xuanji frowned slightly, asking the two beside him.Fairy Hong Xiu rolled up her sleeves: "That's easy. The Dragon King Great Wood Mountain lies there. I will secretly go and move the mountain, pressing it towards the Two-Note Kingdom's main camp. This will surely make Tiechuan Du take action to defend, and we can then seize the opportunity to let Xiang Yue escape."Lin Bufan shook his head: "Xiang Yue's fighting spirit has not diminished. Instead, it continues to rise due to the unfavorable situation. It is impossible for him to obey our orders and turn to flee.""And it's even more impossible for Divine Investigator to personally participate in the battle..."This action would be too unconventional and would inevitably trigger disputes between the two countries, and possibly border instability.Lin Bufan's brows were tightly furrowed, finding it difficult to come up with a solution in a short time.Zhu Xuanji suddenly said: "However, I have a way.""We can ask Ning Zhe to fight the Elephant King. Among his group are Liu Guan Zhang and also the female general Mu Lan."Lin Bufan was taken aback: "Divine Investigator, Xiang Yue is by no means comparable to the Demon Heart Cave Master. Even against the Demon Heart Cave Master, Ning Zhe was only the one to land the final blow. The one who truly heavily wounded the Demon Heart Cave Master was Mu Lan with her Red Heart Goose Feather Arrow divine ability!""Now, Mu Lan has already used it once. To use the divine ability a second time, I fear it will be quite difficult."Zhu Xuanji shook his head, confidently stating: "I have my own method."He immediately took out a token, infusing it with magic power and divine sense.Ning Zhe immediately felt a tremor. His divine sense entered his storage belt, receiving information from Zhu Xuanji: "What? You want me to deal with Xiang Yue?!"Ning Zhe immediately shook his head, about to refuse, but upon seeing the subsequent information, his expression couldn't help but change slightly.Soon, he changed his mind: "Generals Liu and Mu Lan, do you want to take on another big one!"Liu Guan Zhang and Mu Lan were commanding their respective armies, slaughtering heads and constantly achieving military merits, truly a exhilarating experience.Upon hearing Ning Zhe's suggestion, they were all very curious and immediately inquired."What, we're going to fight Xiang Yue together?" Everyone was astonished.Ning Zhe almost slapped his chest, immediately guaranteeing: "Don't worry, I have a brilliant plan!"Having gone through so many events, the generals' trust in Ning Zhe was already at a very high level. Even if Ning Zhe didn't elaborate, and even if fighting Xiang Yue was a life-threatening matter, the generals readily agreed.Ning Zhe then led the two armies and four generals, traversing the battlefield, entering the core battle zone for the first time."Marshal Du, please leave. We will stop the Elephant King!" Ning Zhe shouted.Nearby allies and enemies alike were astonished to hear Ning Zhe's call.Tiechuan Du cast a look of appraisal at Ning Zhe.Although he was in secluded cultivation to heal, he was aware of Ning Zhe's achievement in repelling the Heaven and Earth Twin Devils.In this grand battle, he had also observed Ning Zhe's various impressive performances through spell casting."Good, you take over." Tiechuan Du's hidden concern about the Ginseng Whisker Dragon King had always been present. Moreover, Ning Zhe was a person from another country, Liu Guan Zhang were merely new troops, and even better, if Mu Lan's Red Flower Battalion suffered heavy losses, many people in the capital would be pleased.Tiechuan Du decisively relinquished control.Ning Zhe and the others took over Xiang Yue's attack.Xiang Yue snorted coldly, feeling humiliated: "You dare to underestimate me so! Then you shall pay with your lives."But the next moment, Ning Zhe transmitted a message through divine sense: "Elephant King, do you still remember Qiu Hongfeng by the Glazed Pool?"Xiang Yue's heart was severely shaken, and his steps faltered: "What?! You know Red Maple's whereabouts?"Ning Zhe continued to transmit through divine sense: "Not only do I know her whereabouts, I also know that after she parted ways with you, Elephant King, she was pregnant with your child.""Ah?!" Xiang Yue's face turned pale.Ning Zhe seized the opportunity to attack, forcing Xiang Yue to retreat a large step. He continued to transmit through divine sense: "Elephant King, I am a person from the Southern Bean Kingdom, not from the Two-Note Kingdom's side. On the surface, I am your enemy, but in reality, I am your friend."Xiang Yue's expression was uncertain: "A person from the Southern Bean Kingdom..."As the contemporary Elephant King, he was naturally aware of the greater situation.Thousand Peaks Forest remaining independent was a very favorable situation for the Southern Bean Kingdom.An enemy's enemy is a friend.Furthermore..."Red Maple, and my child..." Xiang Yue's weakness was firmly grasped by Ning Zhe.Ning Zhe quickly continued his attack, while also secretly transmitting through divine sense: "Elephant King, do not reveal any flaws, continue to fight fiercely with me!""After a few rounds, I will actively flee, and you will pursue relentlessly. I will lead you away from the battlefield."Xiang Yue: "How can I believe you are not deceiving me? You might be a person from the Two-Note Kingdom."Ning Zhe: "Regarding Qiu Hongfeng, Elephant King, will you gamble?"Xiang Yue, with all his heroic spirit, at this moment, felt a lack of confidence, and replied in a muffled voice: "This King, this King will gamble! If anyone deceives this King, I will not spare them."Thus, everyone saw Ning Zhe's group fighting with Xiang Yue, creating astonishing momentum.Ning Zhe's group quickly fell into a disadvantage, but Ning Zhe seized a flaw, "mistakenly" striking Xiang Yue in the face.Xiang Yue was humiliated and fell into a rage, solely pursuing Ning Zhe relentlessly.Ning Zhe fled frantically, leading Xiang Yue, who was chasing him from behind, through a large part of the battlefield, nearing the edge.Tiechuan Du rested while observing through spells.The Ginseng Whisker Dragon King had not appeared yet.The general situation was settled!As Lord Long fell in battle and Lu Hongtu and others fought while retreating, the morale of the Thousand Peaks Forest allied forces plummeted again, being chased and slaughtered in disarray, losing countless lives.Only Xiang Yue was the greatest variable."Hmm?" Tiechuan Du saw Ning Zhe and Xiang Yue approaching the edge of the battlefield and immediately transmitted a message to Ning Zhe, his tone stern: "Ning Zhe, I order you to flee towards me! Otherwise, I will treat you as a deserter.""Marshal, eating this pot of boiled meat slices can quickly restore magic power." The boy Jia Wan, who was standing beside a large pot, presented spiritual food to Tiechuan Du.After Tiechuan Du appeared, he had undergone two intense battles and consumed considerable energy.Upon landing in the government office, he immediately summoned several Nascent Soul stage cultivators to guard him. Even if these few Nascent Soul stage cultivators were no match for the Ginseng Whisker Dragon King, it would be beneficial to stall for some time if He made a move.Among them were the master and disciple pair Ding Pi and Jia Wan.Tiechuan Du nodded slightly, while keeping a close eye on Ning Zhe's movements, he used his divine sense to grab the meat slices and put them in his mouth.Just as he chewed a few times, a cultivator suddenly flew over, shouting loudly: "Marshal, be careful!!!"Everyone looked over and saw Lei Qingyang.Ding Pi and Jia Wan's expressions changed drastically. The former suddenly turned and drew his knife, while the latter lifted the pot upwards, covering Tiechuan Du.Tiechuan Du truly did not expect this master-disciple pair to be traitors!He circulated his magic power, but his body suddenly became chaotic, causing him to spit out a mouthful of fresh blood.A large pot covered Tiechuan Du's head, and Ding Pi's kitchen knife also pierced the latter's lower abdomen.This scene stunned everyone present!The next moment, Tiechuan Du let out a light whistle, using all his strength, erupting in violent air currents, pushing away all surrounding people and objects.Space rippled, and a cultivator as pale as paper appeared out of thin air, slowly extending the thin sword in his hand.The sword tip was aimed at the back of Tiechuan Du's heart, piercing directly through to his chest.Young Master Sheng Xu!Having successfully struck, Young Master Sheng Xu's figure was like lightning, directly escaping into the void.Too fast.This sudden upheaval happened too quickly. Within a few breaths, the dust had settled.Tiechuan Du clutched his chest, but was unable to suppress the injuries. In his haste, he used several techniques, but none had any effect."This injury is too severe! If I don't quickly return to the capital and use the national power and dragon veins for treatment, both my physical body and Nascent Soul will be in danger!"With this thought, Tiechuan Du decisively ordered: "Sound the retreat, withdraw and return to the city!"