Chapter 1329: Awakening

That glance nearly drained all the blood from Chu Tianqiu's body, leaving him feeling unbearably cold.

Tianlong... had awakened?

When had this happened?

Chu Tianqiu froze in shock, but then noticed an odd sensation in his fingers. Looking down, he saw his right hand turning into blood-red powder, drifting powerlessly into the air.

The chilling "Li Xi" began to take hold aggressively, blanking out Chu Tianqiu's mind entirely. His "Tian Xing Jian" couldn't keep up with the destructive speed of "Li Xi" at all.

The situation was exactly as he had anticipated—no differences whatsoever.

How could it be so simple to rely on his flesh-and-blood body to take down these two individuals... and grant freedom to all the "Can Yu Zhe"?

They had given their all and still couldn't bring Qinglong down, and now Tianlong had awakened as well.

With both of them standing in this room, how could the three "Can Yu Zhe" possibly escape alive?

Tianlong seemed unable to see clearly who was before him. He narrowed his eyes and casually waved a hand, causing Chu Tianqiu's body to dissolve into powder—first his arm, then his shoulder, followed by his legs.

"Tianlong..." Chu Tianqiu hadn't even felt the pain yet when most of his body vanished. "You..."

Tianlong said nothing from start to finish, only staring with slightly bewildered eyes as he released "Li Xi" mercilessly.

Chu Tianqiu felt that everything was wrong.

He had misplaced his trust in Qi Xia.

He shouldn't have believed that Qi Xia was more capable of leading everyone to escape than he was.

He shouldn't have put all his chips on Qi Xia.

He shouldn't have taken over the "Tang Kou."

He should have waited alone in this sorrowful city, never giving his heart to anyone.

"Chu Tianqiu..." Qiao Jiajin lay on the ground, blood dripping from his mouth, "Run... quickly..."

"Chu..." Zhang Shan gritted his teeth and charged toward where Tianlong stood.

But Tianlong merely waved his hand, and Zhang Shan disintegrated into powder in mid-air, scattering casually.

When Zhang Shan's massive body reached Tianlong, only tiny specks of blood landed on Tianlong's face, as if he had never existed in the world at all.

"Tianlong!" Qiao Jiajin shouted, "You mustn't..."

Qinglong quickly darted forward and covered Qiao Jiajin's mouth. Before he could finish, Qiao Jiajin writhed in agony, his body starting to turn to powder from the top of his head. In seconds, he fell silent.

The entire room became eerily quiet, with only Chu Tianqiu's shattered upper body remaining in the air.

"Tianlong..." Chu Tianqiu gritted his teeth, unsure of what to do now.

Should he beg for mercy or provoke him?

Whatever he chose, the outcome seemed unchangeable.

So many people had fought with their lives until the very end, only for it to be a self-deceiving waste of effort.

They had all been deceived.

"So noisy..." Tianlong said hoarsely, "Who... is making noise..."

The androgynous voice was identical to Qinglong's, sending shivers through the soul upon hearing it.

Chu Tianqiu paused, then smiled bitterly. "I... am someone with a clear conscience..."

Before he could finish, what was left of Chu Tianqiu's body dissolved into powder in the air and vanished completely, as if Tianlong had no interest in hearing his answer.

The three people in the room were utterly erased by the dominant and pure "Xian Fa," leaving only faint red dust floating everywhere.

Tianlong still seemed disoriented, his long slumber often leaving him in a state of confusion upon waking.

Especially this time, as it felt like he had been forcibly awakened... his thoughts were even more chaotic. What exactly had happened now?

Qinglong dragged his injured body forward a step, speaking carefully and softly, "Tianlong... I am Qinglong..."

Tianlong didn't look at him, only glanced around the chaotic room.

Blood was splattered everywhere, trees were toppled, the door was shattered, and even the floor was cracked.

Where was this place... anyway?

Had his usual place of slumber always been this messy?

"Tianlong... do you remember me?" Qinglong asked cautiously, "I am Qinglong..."

He kept a safe distance from Tianlong, not daring to approach, and continued to check on his condition.

Only then did Tianlong notice there was someone else in the room. He turned his gaze, and the blurry scene before him gradually sharpened.

"You are..."

"I am Qinglong. Do you remember me?"

Qinglong's figure finally came into focus for Tianlong, who now clearly saw the person before him.

"It's you, Qinglong." Tianlong pondered for a moment and said, "What happened?"

"Some people rebelled..." Qinglong said with a troubled expression, "I had no choice but to wake you a few minutes early..."

"Rebellion, huh..." Tianlong sighed, "It's nothing. We've been through this before."

As Tianlong walked forward, the cracks in the floor began to repair themselves rapidly.

His "Qiao Wu" acted like strange threads, seamlessly mending the breaks in the ground.

"Thank goodness you're awake..." Qinglong relaxed a bit, "The situation was really bizarre... I suspect we've all been manipulated..."

"Don't rush. Tell me slowly." Tianlong waved his hand, and the signs of battle in the room quickly faded away. "Now that I'm awake, everything will be fine."

Qinglong pointed to the fallen tree beside him and said, "Tianlong... you have no idea... just now..."

But Qinglong suddenly froze in place, his words cutting off abruptly.

"Just now, what?" Tianlong looked at him in confusion, only to see Qinglong staring fixedly at the tree underfoot.

It was an ordinary tree, simply cut down at the trunk.

Qinglong stared at the cross-section of the tree for a long time, unable to speak.

Tianlong walked over and looked down. The cross-section showed just a few dozen rings—nothing unusual.

"I know you cherish this tree." Tianlong said after a moment of silence, "But it's just a tree. Even if it wasn't cut down, it would fall eventually."

Qinglong seemed not to hear him, continuing to stare at the tree with an expression of utter disbelief.

After a while, Qinglong pointed at the tree with a trembling voice, "Tianlong, how many rings do you see on this tree now?"

"What do you think?" Tianlong replied gravely.

"There should be... about seventy rings... right?" Qinglong asked, his face full of uncertainty.

Tianlong stared at Qinglong in silence for a few seconds before saying, "I see. You believe this tree grew from the seed you planted back then, so it should have no more than seventy-odd rings, correct?"

"Isn't that... right?" Qinglong replied, but then felt like he might have overlooked something—though even if he had, the discrepancy couldn't be this large.

"You've been mingling with the 'Can Yu Zhe' for too long; you've even forgotten about time." Tianlong shook his head. "The seventy years is just a lie to deceive the 'Can Yu Zhe.' In total, it's about two thousand five hundred and fifty cycles. You do the math—how could it be just seventy years?"

"So you're saying it's eighty-four years..." Qinglong paused, "But... but that doesn't make sense... I clearly saw earlier that..."

He looked down at the few dozen rings, but words failed him.

Whether it was seventy or eighty rings, the patterns on this tree were within a reasonable range.

But what about the hundreds of rings he had seen just a moment ago...? What was that all about?

An ominous feeling resurfaced in his heart, and his expression grew increasingly complex.

He felt like he had been tricked again.

There were no hundreds of rings... It must have been some "Xian Fa" that affected his vision, throwing his mind into disarray.

Thankfully, Tianlong was awake now. Everything would come to an end.