Chapter 241

The earth was covered in white bones, white gradually overcoming black.

The elite troops of the Prince's mansion could not stop these fearless corpses; from the start the war showed a one-sided trend. They died in vain, relying on their frail flesh to buy time for Chen Yi He and the others.

The space left for everyone grew ever smaller, even white bones surpassing Shang Rong Shi Tai and others, drawing near the innermost core.

Those inside the core were precisely Chen Yi He and the others treating Shangguan Yunyi's wounds.

Fortunately the core's power was strong enough; with Chen Yi He and them as the center, a pale golden barrier formed, and any corpse touching it was instantly crushed to powder.

"Just a little more, I can feel his heartbeat." The royal old ancestor's strength was greatest, so his divine sense was keenest; from the moment Shangguan Yunyi's first heartbeat began, he had sensed it.

The number of corpses was truly too great; Shang Rong Shi Tai and the others had to guard against both the Dragon King and Xiao Xiao Yu, as well as the corpses, inevitably leaving them overwhelmed.

"How can this brat be so strong!" The Western Desert Sword Devil was slashed three times in a row by the Dragon King, yet he blocked all three! The tremendous impact numbed his hands; everything below his knees sank into the ground.

Fortunately Duan Sheng arrived in time; Duan Sheng, from a sideways stance, swung his great sword horizontally in mid‑air—seeming a sudden strike, but actually the most lethal! Just as he thought he was about to succeed, the Dragon King leaned back, his whole body bending backward, waist and sword differing by only an inch!

The Dragon King narrowly escaped, then immediately kicked back, striking Duan Sheng's lower abdomen; Duan Sheng flew backward, pain unbearable.

All of this happened in a flash!

"The Demon‑Subduing Mantra!" Monk Le Bei placed one palm upright before his chest, the other hand pinching a golden‑yellow Buddhist seal! He intended to support while the Dragon King was inattentive, using the seal to seal the heavenly Dao power within the Dragon King's body, restoring him to normal.

But the Dragon King swept Monk Le Bei away with a single palm.

Monk Le Bei's whole body sank into the ruins; although he had cultivated the "Golden Bell Shield Iron Cloth Shirt," facing an opponent of this level it was not that his cultivation lagged, but that this martial art could not withstand it.

Here it became even more fierce; Xiao Xiao Yu's temper, compared to her former self, was far more violent, as seen from her earlier battle with the young palace master.

She struck ruthlessly and mercilessly, often unleashing heavenly Dao power to blast her foes; her move "Annihilation of the Heavenly Dao" was used seven or eight times, each time blowing the three attackers surrounding her to the ground, unable to rise.

"Pfft!" Shang Rong Shi Tai spat another mouthful of fresh blood; she propped herself with her Heng Shan sword, fearing that injury would upset her balance—if she fell now, she might never rise again.

"We… we just need to… hold on a bit longer, then we'll be all right…" Hong Liang was already spent, yet he still persisted.

"Kill! Kill!" The distant earth shook and mountains trembled! Someone rushed forward, charging at the corpses.

They were the brothers of the Great Jianghu Alliance! How could they stand by and watch the Prince's mansion's elite troops be utterly overrun?

They were all martial practitioners, most from the Five Tigers Gate and the Hong Gate; overall their strength far surpassed the elite troops, enabling them to fight the corpses.

As expected, various kinds of true qi flashed dazzlingly, heading straight for the corpses.

How many corpses were directly blasted to powder!

The battlefield situation changed in an instant; just moments ago the corpses had a huge lead, but in the blink of an eye the imperial capital's defenders gained the upper hand.

Whether it was Shang Rong Shi Tai and the other leaders or the Prince's mansion's elite troops, they were all defenders of the imperial capital—guarding the capital, guarding the mortal realm, guarding the Tian'an Continent.

Hope lay right before our eyes.

And the heavenly calamity was the bane of that hope.

The heavenly calamity slowly rose to mid‑air, raised a single arm, extended its index finger, and shot a destructive force toward the inner circle, coldly saying, "Annihilation of the Heavenly Dao!"

That light, that destructive force, surpassed the corpses, the elite troops, and the Great Jianghu Alliance, heading straight for Shangguan Yunyi.

If Shangguan Yunyi died, the four people around him would have to be buried with him.

This was a gamble, a lavish wager with life and death as the stake.

"Yi He, don't open your eyes!" At the final critical moment, the royal old ancestor still reminded Chen Yi He not to lose focus, "Three…"

"Two…"

"One…"

"Boom!" A tremendous roar shook beside Chen Yi He's ear.

Chen Yi He's eardrum almost burst from the shock!

At last the great deed was accomplished.

The heavenly calamity had almost succeeded.

It was Dongfang Wuji who had come. It was Dongfang Wuji who had acted!

Dongfang Wuji clenched both fists, crossed them before his chest; because his arms were scorched, a thick mist rose before him.

Only a master of the Sevenfold Heaven could block a strike from the heavenly calamity!

The heavenly calamity was somewhat surprised, but then immediately sneered, "Dongfang Wuji, just in time."

Indeed, Dongfang Wuji arrived just in time; had he been even a finger‑snap later, Chen Yi He and the others would have been blown to fragments by the "Annihilation of the Heavenly Dao."

The heavenly calamity's "Annihilation of the Heavenly Dao" is nothing like what Xiao Xiao Yu can muster!

Shangguan Yunyi was revived.

"Retreat! We must withdraw!" The royal old ancestor hastily rose, telling everyone, "Avoid its sharp edge; we must pull back!"

"But if we withdraw now, our brothers will have died in vain!" Chen Yi He said.

"Yi He, the old ancestor is right; we aren't ready yet!" Yan Shan Hai said to Chen Yi He, "You go quickly; I and Ling Hu will clear the way for you!"

"But we can't just watch you go to your deaths!"

"Stop the nagging; the overall situation comes first!"

The heavenly calamity saw through the enemy's thoughts; it could not let them leave. Shangguan Yunyi's strength had exceeded its expectations—such a great threat must be eliminated. "Hehe, want to leave? Have you asked the gods?"

"Then have you asked me?" Dongfang Wuji roared at the heavenly calamity, his wounds now healed, his strength at its peak!

Dongfang Wuji agreed to Yan Shan Hai's request entirely for himself, so he could fight the heavenly Dao!

Now such a fine opportunity lay before him; how could he let it pass?

The recall signal of the Great Jianghu Alliance had already begun to sound.

The Prince's mansion's elite troops also began to retreat.

The corpses surged like a tide, relentless, wanting to pursue.

The royal old ancestor placed both palms on the ground, releasing a surge of the strongest true qi; the earth was instantly severed!

He literally split the earth! A huge chasm suddenly appeared, bottomless. Countless corpses fell into it! One after another they plunged in.

Yan Shan Hai had already borne Shangguan Yunyi on his back. He asked the royal old ancestor, "Where to?"

"Imperial Palace!" The royal elder ancestor pointed out the direction for everyone, "I have already set up a great formation!!!"