Chapter 31: The Four Deans of the Literary Dao Academy Come to Assist

"A gentleman's demeanor!"

At the critical moment, four figures stepped through the air from behind the Night Watch team.

They were the four deans of the Literary Dao Academy, led by Liu Qingxuan.

Li Chengru held a wolf-hair brush; with a single flick in midair, he wrote the character " Zhen ."

The moment the character formed, it crashed onto the attacks of the three red-robed protectors, shattering the black qi into fragments.

"The Four Deans of the Literary Dao Academy have come to assist!"

Zhao Xianhai held a bamboo scroll in his arms and unfurled it with a gesture.

"Map of Ten Thousand Methods—Heavenly Net, Earthly Web!"

The inscriptions on the scroll instantly transformed into countless golden threads, lashing toward the three red-robed figures.

"We serve under the Sacred Sage to guard humanity—this is no place for your Cult of Evil Gods to run rampant!"

Where the threads passed, space sealed shut, temporarily entangling the three protectors.

Wu Qiong gripped a white jade ruler and blurred to Lin Qing’s side.

"Ruler of Heaven’s Measure—Turn Stone to Gold!"

The jade ruler tapped lightly on the crack in the bamboo shadow; the spreading fissures healed at a visible speed.

"Steady your spirit—these petty fools cannot harm Itachi."

Seeing the four deans arrive, Lin Qing’s eyes flickered with relief; his spiritual power surged again, expanding the green bamboo phantom outward.

"Good! Today, let these scum of the Cult of Evil Gods vanish forever!"

Shen Wenru, locked in combat with Lu Wujiu, frowned darkly: "We sealed the news—how did these old bastards get here?"

Liu Qingxuan toyed with a copper coin: "Scholars aren’t skilled in combat, but we understand a bit of divination. We’ll deal with Itachi after we finish these three."

The three red-robed protectors, thrown off rhythm by the sudden assault, saw their arrogance fade.

In its place came gravity: one Lin Qing, plus four elders matching their own realms.

Together, they could crush all three of us soon!

Especially that Literary Dao aura—it naturally suppresses our Cult of Evil Gods’ power.

"Feng Xi, if Itachi don’t come help now, our plan will fail the moment we perish!" Shen Wenru shouted toward the Feng Xi Beast.

"My lord, I’ll deal with these pests—Itachi rest." Feng Xi bowed to Zhu Yan beside him.

Zhu Yan nodded, its gaze piercing through the crowd to Jiang Xia, who was fighting.

"Annoying!" Liu Qingxuan sneered, ceasing to toy with his coin and flinging it straight at Feng Xi.

The coin looked ordinary, yet carried the righteous aura of Literary Dao; Feng Xi’s advancing foot froze mid-step.

It could clearly sense the mysterious energy within—the heavenly principle of Literary Dao.

Feng Xi roared, slamming its massive palm, thick as a fan, through the air toward the coin, aiming to shatter it.

"A grain of dust dares challenge the sun and moon?"

Li Chengru had already prepared; his wolf-hair brush dashed through the air, forming the character " Zhan " in dark ink, its edge razor-sharp, striking Feng Xi’s palm alongside the coin.

"Boom!" The impact sent Feng Xi reeling backward, its feet carving deep craters into the ground.

It stared at Liu Qingxuan and Li Chengru, eyes filled with wariness.

Had its realm not far surpassed theirs, its arm would have been severed by that blow.

"Two human maggots—seeking death!" Feng Xi roared, its catastrophic power surging wildly, its body swelling several times larger.

"The Ultimate Force of the Dao—the Power of Creation!"

Feng Xi opened its mouth and unleashed a jet of black light; where it passed, the ground corroded.

"No good!" Liu Qingxuan’s face paled; his several coins instantly formed a wall of bronze and iron before him.

Li Chengru gripped his brush, weaving a blur of motion; the characters " Yu " and " Fang " formed in succession, building a defensive line.

The instant the black beam struck, the coins shattered into ash.

The two Literary Dao characters dissolved like paper, vanishing without a trace.

The remaining devastating force slammed into Liu Qingxuan and Li Chengru’s chests.

"Puh—"

Liu Qingxuan felt as if an invisible mountain had crushed his chest; he was thrown backward.

Li Chengru fared no better—he was never skilled in close combat, relying entirely on Literary Dao to fight.

Now he knelt on one knee, coughing violently, blood trickling from his lips.

"Old Liu! Old Li!" Zhao Xianhai and Wu Qiong stared, eyes blazing with fury.

They tried to rush forward to aid them, but the three red-robed protectors held them fast—no escape possible.

Feng Xi shook its palm, grinning savagely: "Just two old fools who play clever tricks—dare Itachi block me?"

It advanced step by step, eyes gleaming with bloodlust.

Liu Qingxuan wiped blood from his lips, his gaze still unwavering.

He looked at Li Chengru, who was struggling to stand, and said gravely: "Old Li, it seems today, our old bones will die for the nation."

Li Chengru smiled bitterly, picking up his fallen brush: "No regrets in death—only pity I won’t live to see the era of peace and prosperity."

"Holy Healing—Take the Blame!"

Just as Feng Xi prepared its next strike, Zhou Zheng’s voice rang out.

Instantly, the wounds on Li Chengru and Liu Qingxuan vanished; Zhou Zheng grunted, blood flowing from his mouth—but healed completely within three seconds.

Seeing their worried glances, Zhou Zheng explained: "My ability transfers your injuries to me."

"But I have self-healing—I recover from any wound in three seconds. Don’t worry!"

Li Chengru nodded; both men refocused their energy and attacked Feng Xi again.

Meanwhile, Zhu Yan’s gaze settled on Jiang Xia, a cruel glint in its eyes.

It blurred forward, appearing before Jiang Xia—so fast he had no time to react.

Zhu Yan raised its claw, tearing through the air, and slammed toward Jiang Xia.

Jiang Xia’s heart jolted; instinctively, he activated Susano’o’s skeleton to block.

"Crack!" The Susano’o shattered instantly; the force hurled Jiang Xia backward, blood seeping from his lips.

He stared at Zhu Yan, stunned—its power was far greater than in the earlier vision.

"Boy, Itachi’re the one who sealed my substitute, aren’t Itachi?"

Zhu Yan spoke, voice hoarse and disdainful.

It moved again, lunging at Jiang Xia, claw slashing down with full force.

Jiang Xia dared not underestimate it; he used Shinra Tensei to phase and dodge Zhu Yan’s strikes.

"Chaos Space—Annihilation!" He unleashed his dark aura, and Zhu Yan dragged him into another dimension.

Wang Teng and Ye Lingxi tried to rush to help but were held back by Cult of Evil Gods disciples.

【Ding～System detected: Host facing Demon Saint Zhu Yan (low HP)】

【Quest released: Defeat Zhu Yan】

【Reward: Unknown】

"In my space, your little tricks won’t work." Zhu Yan clenched its fist and stepped forward slowly.

"Demon Weapon Mirror!"

Dark aura coalesced into countless blades, closing in on Jiang Xia; in an instant, his entire body was slashed.

"Damn it—no space-time ninjutsu works. Only taijutsu remains."

"Eight Gates: Gate of Life—Open!"

Jiang Xia’s face flushed crimson; his aura surged powerfully, his scattered energy refocusing as he gripped Kusanagi and charged at Zhu Yan.