Chapter 1387: Qin Jiujie's Choice

Abyss City.

Qin Jiujie stood atop the city wall, his gaze cast far into the distance toward the direction of the Boundary River Treasure Domain. His expression was darker than ever before, and a tremor of dread churned deep within his eyes.

"Dantai Lan! She actually came back!"

Dantai Lan's earlier descent, along with her battle against the Faceless Underworld King, had naturally been detected and observed by Qin Jiujie. Such an upheaval undoubtedly stirred a stormy shock within his heart.

No matter how he schemed and calculated, he could never have foreseen that Dantai Lan would, at this critical juncture, break through the boundary from the Boundary River and reverse the entire situation.

Moreover, even if Dantai Lan had returned, she had actually forged eight Ten-Pillar Golden Platforms, achieving the rank of Grand Peerless Marquis!

A Grand Peerless Marquis — that kind of combat power stood at the very pinnacle even among Double-Crowned Kings.

If they truly faced each other one-on-one, even he would likely fall into a disadvantageous position.

"Damn it! Damn it!"

Qin Jiujie's fury reached its peak. He had exhausted every stratagem here to bring about Li Li Jingzhe's fall, yet who could have known that just as the Dragon Fang Lineage lost one Pseudo Triple-Crowned King, another Grand Peerless Marquis had arrived.

Between the two, there was hardly any meaningful difference.

Was the fortune of the Dragon Fang Lineage truly this monstrous?

Qin Jiujie's five fingers clenched tight. With Dantai Lan, this Grand Peerless Marquis, returning, this round of scheming was utterly and completely shattered.

And just as fury churned within Qin Jiujie's heart, his expression suddenly shifted. His figure moved, and he appeared in the depths of a grand estate within the city, where a massive lake lay.

At this moment, the lake water surged with violent waves, and a great white fish slowly drilled its way up from the lake bottom. The fish was bizarre to the extreme — on its fish-face, there grew a blank, featureless visage.

"Faceless one, you still dare flee to my place! Are you trying to get me killed?!" Qin Jiujie stared at this grotesque strange fish, his voice laced with an anger he could no longer suppress.

"Qin Jiujie, having received the patronage of our Reunion Society for so many years, did you think you could stand aside from this?" the strange fish let out a cold laugh.

Qin Jiujie's eyes grew dark and sullen.

"When Dantai Lan descended earlier, you should have joined hands with me to suppress her!" the strange fish transformed from the Faceless Underworld King said coldly.

"Even if the two of us joined forces, we might not have been able to suppress her. Besides, you were still carrying injuries."

Qin Jiujie frowned and explained, "Furthermore, Divine Tiger King Zhao Zong and White Elephant King Zhu Yuan were both watching. If I had dared to help you, they would surely have learned of my cooperation with you — how could they possibly stand idly by then!"

The Faceless Underworld King also knew that what Qin Jiujie said was true. The moment Dantai Lan broke through the boundary to arrive, their scheming this time could no longer achieve complete success.

They had found ways to pin down all the King-level powerhouses of the Four Heavenly Kings' lineages in Outer Shenzhou, yet had overlooked precisely this point...

But this was truly a point impossible to calculate.

Who could have known that Dantai Lan, who had left Outer Shenzhou for over twenty years, would return at this very moment — and upon her return, had even advanced to Grand Peerless Marquis.

"When you fled to my place, you won't be detected by Dantai Lan, will you?" Qin Jiujie could not help but ask.

"Qin Jiujie, don't even think of keeping yourself clean. The ultimate scheme of our Reunion Society this time must trigger the collapse of the Boundary River, bringing a strange calamity upon Outer Shenzhou. Originally, I intended to have this strange calamity erupt on the side of Li Li Tianwang's lineage, but as things stand now, the Qin Li Tianwang lineage will just have to suffer a bit."

Upon hearing this, Qin Jiujie was instantly struck with horror and asked, "What are you trying to do?!"

"I will use Abyss City as an anchor point to trigger the collapse of the Boundary River, and cause this strange calamity to erupt within the territory of the Qin Li Tianwang lineage," the Faceless Underworld King said flatly.

"What?!"

Qin Jiujie's face instantly turned ashen, and he hissed, "Faceless Underworld King, you dare!"

The strange calamity triggered by the Reunion Society this time was no trivial matter. If it erupted within the territory of their Qin Li Tianwang lineage, one could not imagine how immense the casualties would be.

At the same time, it would be a devastating blow to the prestige of the Qin Li Tianwang lineage.

After all, Qin Jiujie was currently the *** of the Qin Li Tianwang lineage. If such a thing occurred during his tenure, then this *** of his would likely be untenable as well.

The other Palace Masters would surely use this to force him to abdicate.

Therefore, upon hearing the Faceless Underworld King's plan, a killing intent even arose within Qin Jiujie's heart.

"Qin Jiujie, this scheme has been laid by our Reunion Society over many years, guided and watched over by a Sovereign Lord. If in the end the strange calamity fails to appear and the Sovereign Lord calls us to account, who will bear the responsibility?"

"Moreover, do you truly take our Reunion Society for a charitable organization? All these years, we have given you countless forms of support, even helping you reach the Double-Crowned King realm. Did you think all of that came without a price?"

"If today's matter fails, all the investment our Reunion Society has made in you over the years will be reclaimed — principal and interest alike!" As if sensing the killing intent within Qin Jiujie, the Faceless Underworld King's voice also abruptly turned chillingly cold.

Qin Jiujie's hand clenched tight, and even space itself trembled faintly.

His emotions at this moment could be described as fury pushed to the absolute extreme. He could hear the deep threat woven through the Faceless Underworld King's words — it had been countless years since anyone had dared speak to him in such a manner.

Yet, after this surging fury churned for a moment, it gradually subsided once more.

Qin Jiujie's eyes were filled with struggle. Right now, although the Faceless Underworld King had been gravely wounded by Dantai Lan, even if he seized the chance to slay him, what then? He knew all too well just how terrifying the Reunion Society's strength was.

Kill one Faceless Underworld King, and there are still twelve other Underworld Kings!

And above these Underworld Kings, there existed an even more fearsome Sovereign Lord Court.

Every single being within that place was an existence at the Heavenly King level.

Moreover, over the years he had become entangled far too deeply with the Reunion Society. Once the other party exposed this information, the very first to refuse him shelter would likely be the Qin Li Tianwang lineage itself.

Thereafter, every faction across all of Outer Shenzhou would regard him as an enemy.

If, under such circumstances, he were to fall out with the Reunion Society, then even as a Double-Crowned King, there would likely be no place under heaven for him to stand.

The Reunion Society could elevate him, and naturally it could also destroy him.

Therefore, after calming down, a thick sense of dejection and helplessness welled up within Qin Jiujie. He realized he had sunk far too deep into the great net woven by the Reunion Society, and escape was no longer possible.

"Qin Jiujie, since you've already stepped into the mire, don't naively believe you can stay clean forever. Besides, the Qin Li Tianwang lineage is not worth your staying. Your old Heavenly King can hardly protect himself — who knows when you might receive news of his fall..."

"Without the Qin Heavenly King, can your Qin Li Tianwang lineage still even be considered a Heavenly King-level power?"

"The Qin Li Tianwang lineage can no longer offer you anything. Yet within the Reunion Society, you can still advance further — and in the future, the chance to glimpse the Heavenly King realm is not necessarily beyond reach."

"One is a setting sun on the decline, the other boundless in potential. Is such a choice truly difficult?" The Faceless Underworld King's eerie, cold voice drifted over slowly, like a demon's temptation.

Qin Jiujie was silent for a long moment. The struggle in his eyes finally gradually faded. His gaze swept over this mighty city, and he let out a soft sigh.

"I never imagined that I, Qin Jiujie, as the *** of the Qin Li Tianwang lineage, would be the very first to betray it."

"In the past, you didn't even have the qualifications to betray it. It was the Reunion Society that gave you those qualifications," the Faceless Underworld King said with cutting words.

Qin Jiujie's expression gradually grew indifferent. He did not refute it, but instead raised his head, gazing at the void beyond Abyss City, and said, "You've truly been thorough, deliberately leaving traces to lead people here."

The Faceless Underworld King had calculated every step, leaving him with no possibility of turning back at all.

And at this moment, under Qin Jiujie's gaze, on the horizon outside Abyss City, brilliant silver light bloomed out of the void, and as a tall figure stepped out into the air, behind her, a vast host of forces from all sides followed her out.

The one leading them—who could it be but Dantai Lan.

Meanwhile, the forces from the other factions stared at Abyss City before them with bewildered, uncertain eyes.

Dantai Lan looked down from above, surveying the city. Her gaze locked directly onto the mansion and lake within the city, then shifted to the figure by the lakeside.

"Qin Jiujie, hand over the Faceless King of the Guiyi Hui!"

Dantai Lan's cold, piercing voice rang out across the heavens and earth at that very moment.

Boom!

The entire Abyss City erupted in a tremendous uproar at that instant, countless people within the city wearing looks of horror.

What had they just heard?!

The Faceless King of the Guiyi Hui was actually hiding within Abyss City?! And was even colluding with Qin Jiujie, the Double-Crowned King of the Qin Li Tianwang lineage?!

How could that be possible?!

Gaze after gaze filled with doubt turned toward the sky outside the city. If the resonance force fluctuations emanating from that female figure hadn't been so pure and vast, they would have suspected she was some other being in disguise.

And before there was any reaction from within the city, the members of the Qin Li Tianwang lineage who had followed back, led by Qin Baiyan, could not help but say: "Lord Lan, could this be the Faceless King deliberately leading us astray, his aim being to sow discord among our four great Li Tianwang lineages so he can seize the chance to escape?"

"Lord Qin is the helmsman of our Qin Li Tianwang lineage—how could someone of his status possibly collude with the Faceless King!"

Dantai Lan said calmly: "In this upheaval of the Boundary River Treasure Domain, weren't all those people deeply corrupted by the venomous curse the ones who came out of this Abyss City?"

Qin Baiyan faltered. He had found it strange before—Shen Yunge and Qin Qin Lian, those two crucial chess pieces controlling the situation, had both come out of Abyss City. There were indeed some suspicious points here.

But to say that Qin Jiujie would collude with the Faceless King was rather far-fetched.

Li Luo stood beside Dantai Lan, a chill surging in his eyes. That damned Guiyi Hui, that damned Qin Jiujie—they had nearly caused Li Li Jingzhe to perish completely. This blood feud could never be let go!

And while they were speaking, the void not far away trembled as well, and immediately after, two towering figures tore through the sky, standing tall on the horizon outside Abyss City.

A kingly might swept forth, shaking heaven and earth.

One of them rode a peerless fierce tiger, the other a glazed white elephant.

They were none other than the Divine Tiger King Zhao Zong of the Zhao Li Tianwang lineage and the White Elephant King Zhu Yuan of the Zhu Li Tianwang lineage.

The moment these two king-level experts appeared, their gazes turned toward Dantai Lan, their eyes swirling with deep shock. Only after quite a few breaths did they raise a single hand before their chests and offer a slight salute.

"Greetings, Lord Lan. Congratulations to Lord Lan on achieving Peerless."

Their expressions were extremely complicated, especially that of the Divine Tiger King Zhao Zong. More than twenty years ago, Dantai Lan had been nothing but a junior in his eyes. Yet who could have known that when they met again, Dantai Lan had already surpassed him.

Zhao Zong and Zhu Yuan were both only at the level of Single-Crowned Kings; in terms of strength, they were far inferior to Dantai Lan, who had achieved the rank of Grand Peerless Marquis.

On the path of cultivation, the accomplished come first.

Even if their seniority far exceeded Dantai Lan's, her strength was now greater than theirs, so they could only address her respectfully as Lord Lan.

In this world, the only marquis-rank experts whom king-level experts could treat as equals were these so-called... Peerless Marquises!

And the attitude of Zhao Zong and Zhu Yuan, falling into the eyes of the countless people within Abyss City, immediately stirred wave after wave of uproar.

Many people here no longer remembered Dantai Lan's appearance, so they had no idea why this woman could draw such courtesy from two king-level experts.

"Does Lord Lan have evidence for what was just said?" the Divine Tiger King Zhao Zong asked, his expression turning solemn.

Zhu Yuan nodded as well. They had naturally heard Dantai Lan's earlier words—Qin Jiujie was actually colluding with the Faceless King of the Guiyi Hui?

This was absolutely an event capable of shaking the entire Outer Shenzhou.

Even the structure of the four great Li Tianwang lineages would change because of it.

Their two great Li Tianwang lineages had also suffered heavy losses in the Boundary River Treasure Domain this time. If Qin Jiujie truly was the mastermind, they would absolutely not let it rest.

Facing the inquiries of the two kings, Dantai Lan merely gazed calmly at Abyss City lying ahead like a giant beast. Her faint voice spread out, causing the hearts of countless people within the city to sink abruptly.

"Until now, Qin Jiujie still doesn't dare to step out of Abyss City—isn't that evidence enough?" "PS: This chapter is around 3,600 characters."