Chapter 553: The Heavenly Court Trial

After returning to the Heavenly River Mansion, Cai Quan's days grew uneasy, filled with regret, remorse, and fear.

"Young brother, hasn't the Grand Marshal returned yet?"

On this day, he could no longer bear it and rushed to the Commander's Hall to find his superior, Tianpeng Yuanshuai.

"Cai Gongcao, our lord has gone to Doushuai Heaven. Today, Taishang Laojun is lecturing on the Zhuling Dan Platform; our lord expects to stay three or five days."

Laojun's lecture is merely the prelude; after that, numerous great immortals and deities will speak.

In a short while, Zhu Yan had advanced a great distance; he was now less than five kilometers from the safe zone.

Faced with this chief of the Golden Crow Guild, bearing the title of Saint Disciple, Chen Weidong's mere inquiry was nothing—had he openly declared his intent to seize it, Kou Liang would not have dared utter a single word of refusal.

Gu Yue's previously calm face now wore a cold, furious expression, his brows brimming with defiance; he raised his hand and slapped directly, a sharp crack resounded—the man, for no apparent reason, felt only numbness on his right cheek, then collapsed to the ground.

Large numbers of humanoid aliens could not withstand such force; their bodies shattered and dissolved into oblivion. The Four-Soul Cloud Beasts dared not grow careless; he knew well that destroying them was only temporary. But he believed that all things have limits—these monsters could not evolve endlessly without constraint.

She was none other than Nan Gong Xue'er's aunt, the current Sect Master of Qingxuan Sect, Nan Gong Yue.

In the past, Ma Lun would have rushed to save Zhou Zihao without hesitation, but now he hoped to use his resources to find someone who could solve his problem.

Black mist rolled and surged, instantly transforming into a fist—a massive fist, as large as a house.

Therefore, as the city's governor, his most urgent task was to preemptively relocate the majority of the populace from previous battle zones to safe areas.

Zhen Jinbao felt worry and fear; he did not recognize these people and had no idea what they intended.

His tears, like his laughter, were direct, simple, and clean—devoid of any lingering sorrow, as if unwilling to expend even a fraction of energy on grief.

Lin Yu bowed respectfully, pulled a token from his pocket, and raised it high above his head; a faint ethereal glow emanated from the token, and in an instant, a weak yet utterly dominant force spread throughout the Tiger Leaping Gorge.

"Sister, you're being unreasonable. That day, I risked my life to slay the Skull Bee King, allowing you to enter the hive and retrieve the Hunyuan Grass and other spirit herbs—surely that's enough," Cheng Tian complained.

The six men walked upon the Heavenly Steps, yet far behind the speed of the collapsing Ghost Marshal's Palace. Following ahead, Chen Xuanming's steps echoed behind them; Yu Guiyuan looked up and saw cracks forming on the ceiling of the secret passage.

At this moment, the green-skinned ones at the front had entered the minefield; instantly, explosions erupted in succession, countless green-skinned beings blown to pieces.

Before the Lin Mansion gate stood two stone lions with bared fangs and claws; above the gate hung a golden plaque inscribed with two characters: "Lin Mansion!" Such grandeur left Lin Ao utterly flustered—after all, such wealthy households were not places for humble scholars like him to enter casually.

Li Shan felt a flicker of fear under her gaze, yet his stubbornness rose; he curled his lips into a cold smile and actually reached out to unbutton Yewu's clothing.

"Get up!" Li Shan lay sprawled on the ground, his limbs and bones as if shattered, unable to move—when a thunderous shout rang in his ears, jolting his spirit.

Bai Shu bowed profusely and left Tang Wuyan's residence; outside the door, he leaned against the pillar and suddenly looked up at the sky, laughing. The bright moon hung beneath the eaves, its cool white light reflecting in Bai Shu's eyes, pure and untainted.

The troops on the march and resting were not armored, yet each held sword or spear, heads held high; they were battle-hardened soldiers, radiating a solemn, deadly aura.

Qiu Yanyan added: "That girl is decent enough, but the gap between our families is too great. Though she once saved you, we've already repaid her."

Jiang Yunsong, seeing Liu Jiaxing, knelt and clasped his hands in salute: "Thank you for still remembering my mother—I, Jiang Yunsong, will forever cherish this."

Seeing Yun Mo open his eyes and look at her, Ding Zhu froze for a moment, then rushed to the bedside and sat down, tears streaming uncontrollably from her eyes.

The new governor Jiang Shao asked why the largest bandit force in Qianwei was entrenched on the mountains within Nan'an, yet Nan'an itself suffered few raids, while neighboring Bidaoh County was constantly attacked.

For example, selling video tapes: if he partnered with someone himself to sell them versus letting 20th Century Fox sell them, the prices would be two entirely different things.

Night fell still; people had fallen asleep. The quiet before battle always created a suffocating illusion. Moonlight flowed like water; the mournful chirping of crickets continuously tore through the silence of heaven and earth.

Then the protagonist visits the Ghost Market, where he usually finds bargains, buying the most powerful items at the cheapest prices.

Inside the tent, Jiang Wei, dressed in casual robes, did not rest; he personally organized his belongings, refusing Jiang Shao's help.

Though Ling Yu spent a thousand taels of gold to redeem Ling Long, he felt the money was well spent; had it not been for Zhang Baigui, Qi Yuanjing might never have attained his current rank and wealth—and might even have lost his head.

"Hah! What kind of thing is this? A perfectly good gathering turned into this mess—these people are utterly despicable, utterly despicable!!" Peng Yu, beside him, raged at Lin Xiao.

When Zu Tian Shi arrived, the alley was empty, bloodstains and signs of struggle still fresh on the ground—clearly, the enemy had not fled long ago. But in such a place, once lost, where could one possibly search?

Though the Mu family was not as powerful as the Four Great Families, their status throughout the south, especially within the jewelry world, was among the very top.

Shen Ao drank too much; at first she walked, her drowsiness not yet obvious, but the moment she settled into Qin Ruilin's arms, sleep rushed at her from all sides, blocking every path—she gave up resisting, slowly closing her eyes.

"Tell me, who's stronger now—me or my father?" Liu Sanguan suddenly asked.

Xu Yiming needed to reassure them, otherwise how could he explain his transformation?

Simply put: if Xu Yiming's body contained 100% energy, before entering the illusion, his strongest strike could channel at most 30%; after the illusion, with his superhuman control, he could unleash 100% in a single strike—though the consequence was that he would be left utterly incapable of further combat.

"Ruilin, don't you see we have guests? Don't you think this is terribly rude?" Qin's mother spoke with clear displeasure.