Chapter 388: Trump card
Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations
The purple clashed with this blood red mountain range.
The Purple light was like a sword, tearing through the air as it shredded the red mountain range. It was clearly more powerful.
But just at that moment...
A ball of flame appeared in the middle of the furball.
It was as bright as the sun, the fire burning everything in its way. At that moment, the entire mountain range was ignited.
The purple light continued to suppress the fire as it shot through it.
It seemed like the purple light still had the upper hand. However, the tides began to turn slowly but surely. The purple light was being swallowed, bit by bit.
It was not fast, but as the fire continued to burn brighter, the rate at which it was swallowed became faster.
Finally, the mountain range had all but disappeared. However, the fire continued to digest the purple light.
Flute music continued to reverberate through the air.
In actual fact, the music did not stop ever since the ball of flame appeared. The music was pained and icy, almost as if it was mourning the loss of what had been burnt.
It was like the memory of the Mountain and River, Heaven and Earth Fan.
It was filled with depressing thoughts.
Then, the purple light disappeared and so did the music. All that was left was a dwindling fireball.
A light breeze blew past the battlefield...
And the fire was extinguished.
It looked as though nothing had happened. The air was still slightly chilly. However, everyone was stunned by what they saw.
Especially Wu Feng.
Even though blood was still trickling from his lips, he suppressed it, ensuring that he did not spit it out like the previous time.
Because...
He did not want it to affect his music.
Wu Feng's eyes were filled with sorrow. It was impossible to determine if this was because he had felt the Mountain and River, Heaven and Earth Fan's memories or because he was pained by what Yan Xiu looked like now.
His eyes were filled with tears as he stared at the Mountain and River, Heaven and Earth Fan in Yan Xiu's hand. Of course, the Mountain and River, Heaven and Earth Fan was no longer the Mountain and River, Heaven and Earth Fan.
There were no more pictures of mountains or rivers. The fan was white but stained with blood.
The red crystal glow had all but disappeared.
However, Yan Xiu's eyes were just as red as ever. There was a red ray of light on his chest.
It blinked rhythmically, almost as if it was beating to Yan Xiu's heartbeat.
"I never thought that the Mountain and River, Heaven and Earth Fan was this powerful? No wonder it is one of the five treasures of the Yan Family. However, why does Yan Xiu look so weird? Could it be..."
"Oh no! The Dao of Asura is controlling Yan Xiu! I read that if one's foundation is not strong enough, forcing improvements in power would backfire!"
"Backfire? Is Yan Xiu into the evil Asura state?"
"If that is the case, all hell is about to break loose. Once it turns into evil Asura, he will lose all that is good within him. He will lose all sense of reason. The only way to save him is to destroy his cultivation."
All of the other candidates were terrified when they saw the red beam of light at Yan Xiu's chest.
"Evil Asura?" The middle-aged man did not look well. He had suffered slight injuries from the hit.
However, he smirked when he saw the beam of red light blinking on Yan Xiu's chest.
He no longer attacked Yan Xiu.
Anyone who dropped into the realm of evil Asura was a dead man walking.
The humans would mourn the loss of such a talent, but anyone who is controlled by evil Asura would have to be stopped. Of course, there was a more important reason as to why the man did not attack.
It was that...
Yan Xiu was the Dao of Asura.
In simple terms, Yan Xiu was not an opponent he could deal with. Why would he go up against someone so powerful who posed little threat?
After he saw the state of Yan Xiu, he began to walk around Yan Xiu and towards Fang Zhengzhi.
He ignored the pair of red eyes that were locked onto him.
He closed in...
Just as he was about to reach Fang Zhengzhi, a ray of red light shot towards his side.
It brought with it a hellish, icy killing intent.
"Woosh!" The middle-aged man leapt into the air and landed some distance away. He looked at Yan Xiu in shock.
Evil Asura!
Once consumed by the evil Asura, Yan Xiu would lose all rationality. As such, he could possibly attack those around him for no reason.
However, Yan Xiu was not doing that.
Yan Xiu was still protecting Fang Zhengzhi.
Yan Xiu was still protecting Fang Zhengzhi. This was not something that he needed his brain to decide. This protection came from the heart, and it sent shivers down the spine of the middle-aged man.
This also meant that...
He will not get to Fang Zhengzhi easily.
"What a bother! It's a pity... you'll still be ruined!" The middle-aged man's eyes glowed purple as he slashed with his sword.
At that very moment, yet another ray of purple light rushed towards Fang Zhengzhi.
"Woosh woosh!" Two rays of red light shot out. One crashed into the sword whilst the other crashed against the purple light directed at Fang Zhengzhi.
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
Two explosions rang out.
...
On top of the cliff.
Yun Qingwu watched as the middle-aged man clashed with Yan Xiu. Her expression changed slightly.
Then, her hands moved as she waved to the dozens of demon elites behind her. Her gaze was ice cold.
All of the elites looked at each other as they saw Yun Qingwu's gesture. They could see the determination in each others' eyes.
"Die!" All of the elites bellowed in unison. Then, they jumped off the cliff and into the battlefield.
Almost like comets, they all shot towards Nangong Hao and the other candidates.
Before long, only three people were left on top of the cliff. Yun Qingwu and her two bodyguards. One was a Rebirth State demon, the other a pinnacle Supernatural State Demon.
Wehn Nangong Hao saw the demon elites rocketing towards him, his grip on his sword tightened.
Cracking sounds could be heard from his hand.
He looked like he was making a decision. However, even someone like Nangong Hao hesitated.
The demon elites rushed into the crowd.
They were not just demon elites, they were wolves amongst sheep. After they rushed into the crowd, they began to kill the candidates indiscriminately.
"Archers, ready!"
"Fire!"
"Spearmen and shieldbearers to me!"
"Fend them off and protect the candidates!"
Orders reverberated throughout the battlefield as the arrows blocked out the sun. Shields and spears immediately fell into place, guarding the candidates.
However, they could not stop the attacks of the demons.
After all...
These were Supernatural State Demons.
It was much too easy for a Supernatural State demon to massacre the pinnacle Heavenly Reflection State candidates and ordinary soldiers.
"Zoom!"
Just at that moment, a ray of golden light shot towards the heavens. That light came from a crystal clear sword.
Its name was Standstill, and its owner was Nangong Hao.
Angong Hao looked at the demon elites rushing towards the candidates. He steeled himself, his choice made.
He knew what he had to do.
Xing Qingsui's expression changed instantly when he saw the golden light shooting into the sky.
However...
He recovered quickly. He bit his lip as he looked at Nangong Hao, almost as though he had something to say.
At that very moment, cracks began to appear below the walls of the Icy Monkey Settlement. The cracks became bigger and bigger as they revealed themselves as doors.
All of the Southern Region soldiers charging out of the Icy Monkey Settlement were stunned by this sight. Even the demon elites were shocked by what they saw.
After the gates opened, many figures began rushing to the surface like ants out of a nest.
"Woosh woosh woosh..."
They exited quickly but in an orderly manner.
They were extremely quick. After they emerged on the surface, they rushed towards Nangong Hao and the demon elites like a ray of light.
"Another ambush?"
"No, this is the Great Xia Dynasty..."
"Oh my god, it really is them!"
All of the candidates were stunned to see who the reinforcements were. They never expected to see these men here.
"Oh I see... they never entered the Icy Monkey Settlement, Nangong Hao... it's no wonder you are a talent!" Yun Qingwu looked on in admiration.
She was not too shocked to see the figures rushing onto the battlefield. However, she did admire Nangong Hao's talent.
The figures formed up in front of Nangong Hao.
All of them wore glistening, tailor-made armor. Their armor was made up of a special material and adorned with golden lines, almost like intertwining dragons.
"Young Master Nangong!" They replied in unison. They sounded much more confident than the average soldier.
They were the elites, and they were proud of it.
They had good reason to be proud. After all, they were the Dragon Protection Squad, the army of elites that belonged to the Emperor.
There was a golden dragon imprinted on their chest plate. It was a status symbol. It meant that they did not have to bow to the princes and did not have to dismount upon entering the palace. This was the privilege of being a part of the Dragon Protection Squad.
Yet today, they had made an appearance here, in the Southern Region's Icy Monkey Settlement. Furthermore, they accorded Nangong Hao every respect.
Four middle-aged men walked out from the ranks of the Dragon Protection Squad and stood by Nangong Hao's side.
"Young Master Nangong, this order is a deviation from our plan." The middle-aged man commented. However, he did not question or berate Nangong Hao for this deviation.
"I know." Nangong Hao nodded but did not explain.
"Okay, I understand." The middle-aged man nodded. He did not need an explanation, he already knew what Nangong Hao was thinking.
"Leave Bai Xing to me. Take care of the others. As for Fang Zhengzhi... leave him to Yan Xiu!" Nangong Hao decided quickly.
However, he hesitated slightly when he looked at Yan Xiu.
However, he had made up his mind.
This was not a decision he wanted to make, but he had no other choice.
Because...
Right now, Yan Xiu would not listen to orders or advice.
In other words, the demon may not be able to get close to Fang Zhengzhi, but neither could the Dragon Protection Squad. The best option was to leave him alone.
"Evil Asura... Yan Xiu, you cannot be consumed by the Evil Asura..." Nangong Hao glanced at Yan Xiu as he sighed to himself. Then, he pointed Standstill towards Bai Xing.
Bai Xing was still smirking.
It looked like he was not surprised by the appearance of the Dragon Protection Squad. In fact, he looked extremely excited, almost as if victory was almost in his reach.
"What do you have left after you've played your trump card?" Bai Xing's fingers danced as he looked at the Dragon Protection Squad.
"You can take a guess." Nangong Hao did not answer Bai Xing immediately. He looked up into the blue sky, almost as if he was talking to himself.