Chapter 1552: Black Rain Capital Mound

When Li Li Zhiqiu heard Li Luo's words, his heart seemed to clench violently, and especially Jiang Qing'e's eyes, like molten gold of the setting sun, suddenly grew thick with killing intent.

Damn, these two really still remember this grudge.

Li Li Zhiqiu's back was drenched in cold sweat. Under the gazes of Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e, he felt as if he were being stared down by two peerless fierce beasts, and a thick sense of fear welled up in his heart.

"Wh-what do you want?" Li Li Zhiqiu's whole body went rigid, and a hoarse, grating voice came from his throat.

"Naturally..."

Li Luo seemed to smile, but the smile carried a chill.

Back then, when Jiang Qing'e ignited her Bright Heart, it was Li Luo's most desperate moment. Yet that bastard Li Li Zhiqiu had rushed over and not only offered no help, he had even used the might of a Marquis Realm powerhouse to try to seize his Li Tianwang Token, and at the same time, with a threatening look in his eyes, forced Jiang Qing'e—who was trying to protect him—to accelerate the ignition of her Bright Heart. If Li Luo had had any means of resistance back then, he really would have leapt up to fight him to the death.

Although Jiang Qing'e ultimately resolved the issue of the Bright Heart's ignition without mishap, this grudge and fury were not so easily resolved.

"An eye for an eye!"

When Li Luo's cold voice rang out, Jiang Qing'e had already stepped forward. The next instant, six resplendent, dazzling Bright Ten-Pillar Golden Platforms soared into the sky, and vast, majestic holy light poured forth, directly purifying all the evil aura in this stretch of mountain forest. At the same time, a terrifying energy pressure surged forward with the force of an avalanche, shrouding Li Li Zhiqiu.

Moreover, between Jiang Qing'e's smooth brow, the faintly glowing holy mark split open at this moment, and an ancient, sacred "Holy Phase Crystal Core" emerged, like the vertical eye of a god, indifferently gazing down upon the ants of the mortal world.

At this moment, Li Foluo, Li Zhihuo, and the others present all had thick horror rise in their eyes.

"Holy Phase Crystal Core?! An Upper Nine-Rank Bright Phase?!"

Although Jiang Qing'e's terrifying pressure was not directed at them, everyone still felt fear rising from within their hearts—it was an instinctive awe and wariness toward a powerhouse far beyond themselves.

If the onlookers were already so uncomfortable, then Li Li Zhiqiu, who was being stared down by Jiang Qing'e, was even more miserable. He felt the surrounding space seem to congeal, while the crushing pressure of a heavy mountain seeped in from every direction.

Li Li Zhiqiu tried to erupt his own seven Marquis Platforms, but the seven beams of spiritual light had just risen from the crown of his head when they were forcibly pressed back in an instant by that terrifying pressure.

Boom!

Li Li Zhiqiu was directly pressed down onto one knee, and the bones and flesh all over his body let out creaking sounds, with bloody foam seeping out from every pore.

His eyes were full of shock and terror, because the energy pressure from Jiang Qing'e was far too terrifying. Even in his perception, it surpassed even the two Grand Courtyard Masters, Li Li Qingpeng and Li Li Jiluo, who had now stepped into the Upper Nine-Rank realm.

Li Li Zhiqiu frantically spurred all the phase force within his body, struggling desperately to hold on.

But the next instant, something that drove him to despair happened—because Li Luo stepped forward, and likewise six towering Ten-Pillar Golden Platforms erupted from the crown of his head.

Those six Ten-Pillar Golden Platforms were not as pure as Jiang Qing'e's Bright Marquis Platforms, but countless different phase force energies flowed across them. These phase forces flowed in clearly distinct channels, sometimes merging, sometimes dispersing, appearing extremely mysterious.

Li Luo's pupils turned a purple-gold color, and the terrifying might of the Heavenly Dragon descended from the sky, causing the entire void to tremble violently.

Boom!

With the descent of the Heavenly Dragon's might, everyone present felt a tremor from the deepest depths of their bloodline. The Heavenly Dragon was the sovereign of the Dragon race, and in a sense held absolute suppression over them.

Rumble!

Li Li Zhiqiu's body nearly collapsed in an instant, the man himself pressed flat against the ground, his flesh and blood becoming somewhat mangled.

The mere pressure of Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e's gaze nearly crushed him into a puddle of bloody mud.

Fortunately, the mangled Li Li Zhiqiu still had one breath left. His blood-smeared face was full of intense fear—for in that moment just now, he had tasted the breath of death.

This made him understand that the current Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e could kill him, a Seven-Rank Marquis, as easily as turning over their hands.

"Big Brother!"

Li Zhihuo's face went deathly pale. He wanted to step in to save him, but he didn't dare move under Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e's cold, piercing gazes.

And Li Hongque, Li Li Hongli, and the others were also silent as cicadas in winter.

Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e gradually retracted their phase force pressure, each withdrawing their Marquis Platforms.

"Li Li Zhiqiu, you should be grateful that Sister Qing'e ultimately didn't perish because of the Bright Heart's ignition, otherwise I would have made you beg for death and fail to find it." Li Luo's cold voice rang out at this moment.

However, hearing these words, Li Zhihuo and the others secretly breathed a sigh of relief—at the very least, Li Li Zhiqiu's life was saved.

Li Li Zhiqiu's raised heart also quietly settled. He knew that in the end, it was his identity as a member of Li Li Tianwang's lineage that had saved him; otherwise, today's Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e would not have minded casually erasing him.

And Li Luo saying this also meant that the past grudge was considered settled.

At this thought, Li Li Zhiqiu's extremely taut spirit finally relaxed, and then his vision went black, and he directly fainted.

However, his fainting actually eased the atmosphere in the field somewhat. Li Zhihuo silently summoned people from the Dragon Blood Guard to help the mangled Li Li Zhiqiu up.

"Commander Li Foluo, what is the current situation here?" Having resolved this past grudge, Li Luo turned the topic back to business, asking Li Foluo.

"Reporting to the Grand Commander, this eruption of the Evil Tide is fiercer than any before. We have been fighting in this region for half a month already, but the Evil Tide still shows no signs of weakening."

"To resolve the eruption of the Evil Tide, we must destroy the 'Black Rain Capital Mound.'" Li Foluo said with cupped hands.

"Black Rain Capital Mound?" Li Luo looked over in confusion.

Li Foluo nodded and explained: "Through our clashes with this strange calamity over the past two years, this so-called 'Black Rain Capital Mound' is actually a kind of rain-summoning ritual from the Other side. If it is not destroyed, the black rain will pour endlessly, and the Evil Tide will not cease. The longer the Evil Tide persists, the greater our casualties will be, and we will find it hard to recover."

As Li Foluo spoke, he looked up at the horizon, where cold, dark clouds hung. At this moment, the dark clouds were brewing, and another stretch of strange black rain descended. This black rain would not only spawn countless Others, but also cause unbearable agony to any living beings within it, stirring up the negative emotions deep within their hearts. Therefore, fighting within the black rain was an enormous burden, both in terms of phase force consumption and inner torment.

Over these two years, far too many who lacked firm hearts of mind had lost their reason within the black rain, becoming frenzied, chaotic Evil Thought Infected on the spot.

"In the past, we always went all out to destroy the 'Black Rain Capital Mound', and the Evil Tide would then subside along with it."

"However, the 'Black Rain Capital Mound' is surrounded by countless Others guarding it, and the most troublesome part is that among them exist Nine-Rank True Demons."

The most special aspect of this strange calamity erupting from the Boundary River Domain was that it contained a 'Li Tianwang Pardon Decree' from a Great Demon King. That decree, which forbade Kings from entering, meant that the King-realm powerhouses of both Li Li Tianwang's lineage and Qin Li Tianwang's lineage were unable to enter the black rain's range. With Kings absent, naturally Nine-Ranks reigned supreme, running rampant in the black rain.

"Half a year after you left Zhao Shenjiang City, Grand Commander, the Evil Tide erupted. That time, due to lack of experience, our losses were quite heavy, and most of those casualties were due to the appearance of those Nine-Rank True Demons."

"Qin Li Tianwang's side was even worse. Caught off guard, the Evil Tide destroyed thirty-eight cities. The black rain stretched for tens of thousands of miles, with countless dead and wounded, and over a hundred of the surrounding mid- and small-sized forces were wiped out."

"At that time, we had very few Nine-Rank Marquis Realm powerhouses on our side, and several troops nearly got slaughtered. Fortunately, at the critical moment, Grand Courtyard Masters Li Li Jiluo and Li Li Qingpeng successively broke through to Nine-Rank. They joined forces to slay the Nine-Rank True Demon and destroy the 'Black Rain Capital Mound', which resolved that Evil Tide."

"After that, the higher-ups also realized the importance of Nine-Rank Marquis Realm powerhouses in this strange calamity, so the clan invited out three Nine-Rank Marquis Realm powerhouses from the older generation who had been in closed-door cultivation for many years, and at the same time spent a great deal of money to invite four long-renowned Nine-Rank Marquis Realm powerhouses from Tianyuan Shenzhou. Only with this were the subsequent Evil Tides resolved."

"......"

Listening to the information Li Foluo provided, Li Luo was slightly surprised. That Li Li Jiluo of the Dragon Blood Lineage had been groomed by Li Li Tianji as the next lineage head, so his breakthrough to Nine-Rank Marquis Realm was not strange. But what was unexpected was that his uncle Li Li Qingpeng, who had always been unconcerned with the world and mild-mannered, had actually also reached Nine-Rank.

This made Li Luo unable to stop himself from complaining internally.

The moment Li Li Jiluo advanced, Uncle, you advanced right away too.

Are you playing score control here?