Chapter 2476: All Are Battles with Their Backs to the Wall

The stone apes were no exception—two of them couldn't withstand the first round and were smashed to pieces, but several others were unusually agile, even inflicting considerable casualties on the True Person of Sihai's team before finally collapsing under the siege and crumbling into dust.

"What's wrong?" Mingke heard Zhu Xiuer's attempt to stop them.

"The attacks directed at Shangguan Biao are all transferred to Shixin." Zhu Xiuer said quickly, "He has most likely refined Shixin into his own natal magic artifact, allowing it to absorb all damage for him! And this damage is then passed on to the Earth Mother!"

In just a few words, it clearly summarized the crux of the matter.

Over these years, the laws of heaven and earth have changed—individual harm cannot be transferred to others. But a natal magic artifact bearing harm for its master is simply natural and just.

Shangguan Biao refining Shixin into a natal magic artifact was him exploiting a loophole in the rules—

As long as the rules are clear, there will always be loopholes to exploit.

The most pitiful is the Earth Mother—she not only has to take the blame for Shangguan Biao, but also bear the damage from his attacks.

A nearby building also transformed into a giant, which backhandedly punched toward the crowd, while Shangguan Biao's loud laughter echoed in the air:

"You're absolutely right! The harder you attack, the more the Earth Mother suffers. Come on, don't hold back."

Everyone dodged, finding the situation troublesome. The True Person of Sihai surged with anger and casually unleashed a blast of true fire, reducing the house to ashes.

The group wasn't reluctant to attack the Earth Mother out of pity—it's just that this behemoth has high defense and thick health, so they wanted to completely drain its power, unsure how much effort it would take. Shangguan Biao holding onto this big health pack truly made him carefree.

"We have no choice but to fight—our team has already suffered three deaths and fourteen injuries; there's no reason we should endure blows without fighting back!" The True Person of Sihai declared sternly, "Unless—"

He glanced toward the sky.

"Unless we retreat right now and ignore this mess."

But once we withdraw, Lingshan's operation this time will be declared a failure. To gain prestige and establish reputation, one must either do nothing or achieve tangible results—otherwise, it will surely backfire.

Moreover, our side and Cangyan have a prior agreement—the "Tiger Wing General" is still in the Void Realm, and if I, the True Person of Sihai, lead the retreat, it would violate the spirit of the contract and certainly affect future relations between Lingshan and Cangyan.

The threat of the demons to the human realm is growing ever greater—now is precisely when both sides should cooperate fully.

Mingke the Immortal then glanced at Zhu Xiuer and asked: "Even if the Great Emperor of the Nine Abodes is in the Void Realm, you can still communicate with him, right?"

After being kicked out of the Duzhi Mountain Secret Realm, the Spider Queen's performance exceeded ordinary expectations in wisdom, and Mingke the Immortal had long suspected this.

"Hmm—" Zhu Xiuer chuckled, "Yes!"

In fact, when it saw the Yin Gu ancient relics and felt anxious, He Lingchuan also sent it a piece of good news: the connection between the Panlong New Secret Realm and the Great Great Great Fanghu had been completed ahead of schedule!

As a buffer zone between the real and the illusory, the Panlong Secret Realm must connect to Panlong Ancient City on one end and the Great Great Great Fanghu on the other—this is a massive undertaking with high uncertainty. During the construction of the new secret realm, He Lingchuan and Zhu Xiuer had also entered to tour, but standing on the city gate tower, they could only see the Misty Valley far off in the clouds and mist, vague and elusive, like a mirage. Yet no matter how far they ran in that direction, they could not close the distance at all.

This is the state of the two sides before a connection is established.

Now that the new secret realm itself is still under construction, the Great Great Great Fanghu has already connected to it first—this is like sending a pillow just as someone dozes off, extremely timely, and also indicates from the side that the Great Great Great Fanghu highly approves of the new secret realm.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Xiuer also silently breathed a sigh of relief.

In the realm unseen by everyone, the Panlong New Secret Realm is simultaneously building itself, entangled in combat with several of Shangguan Biao's powerful secret realms, and devouring other relics—it can be described as a surging undercurrent, extremely perilous. The abrupt appearance of the Xie Zong in Panlong Ancient City is itself a very bad omen.

Under these circumstances, the connection between the Panlong Secret Realm and the Great Great Great Fanghu can effectively relieve its own pressure.

Of course, the people of Lingshan are unaware of these intricacies, so Mingke the Immortal asked it:

"Is the Great Emperor of the Nine Abodes currently with the Earth Mother?"

"Correct, they are currently battling Shangguan Biao."

"Let's first resolve the immediate problem." The True Person of Sihai returned to the main topic, "One more question—if Shangguan Biao is defeated, will he just abandon Jingdu City and flee like that?"

When he asked this, he was looking at the Mingke Immortal who had just arrived.

The crowd's understanding of secret realms and guardian spirits pales in comparison to that of Mingke the Immortal.

Yet the one answering was Zhu Xiuer: "Even if he wanted to, he is willing but unable."

"How so?"

The Spider Queen paused for a few breaths, clearly communicating with someone in the Void Realm.

"Shangguan Biao placed his most important 'Liuguang' Secret Realm in Jingdu City. He died long ago, but used the Soul-Sealing Technique to seal himself within the Liuguang Secret Realm, becoming its guardian spirit." It answered in detail, "This has both advantages and disadvantages. The benefit is that he doesn't need a physical body to continue existing and can still control Jingdu City; but the drawback is equally clear—once bound as a guardian spirit to the secret realm, unless he perishes, he can never free himself from this bond!"

He Lingchuan is currently overseeing the construction of a new secret realm, so he naturally understands this inside out.

"In other words, he is eternally bound to Jingdu City?" Mingyao Zunzun said solemnly, "If true, he has nowhere to go and can only fight us to the death!"

The True Person of Sihai nodded, then asked: "Can Shangguan Biao's control over the Earth Mother's power match that of the Earth Mother's true self, allowing them to oppose each other equally?"

"Exactly! He has Shixin in hand and has studied it thoroughly. The Earth Mother truly cannot reclaim all of her power!"

The deed is done—the Earth Mother can only sigh in helplessness.

Zhu Xiuer continued: "Over the past several thousand years, Shangguan Biao has been deeply researching the source and composition of the Earth Mother's power. It can be said that he and the Earth Mother have formed a stable parasitic relationship—he is like a blood-sucking vine clinging to her body."

Liu Yisheng also said that Shangguan Biao possesses extraordinary talent in both secret realms and soul-sealing techniques. This is the result of diligent, hardworking study—his attainments surpass even those of the Earth Mother, who innately and vaguely grasps things naturally, and it's no surprise.

"However, their mutual restraint is balanced. The so-called 'equal opposition' means their strength is roughly equal—not only does he check the Earth Mother, but the Earth Mother can equally drag him down, preventing him from fully exerting himself."

"In other words, Jingdu City is no longer entirely under Shangguan Biao's command—for him and the demon army, their advantage has been reduced by more than half." Originally, Lingshan's operations in Jingdu City were arduous and fraught with danger, but the Earth Mother's awakening has made their combat environment visibly easier.

By this point, the ground trembled violently again, and Mingke the Immortal suddenly pointed forward:

"A new relic has arrived!"

He pointed toward Panlong Ancient City, where only rolling dust and smoke could be seen outside the city walls.