Chapter 667

A pillar of light shot up into the sky.

Outside the city, in the boundless darkness, a sound of utmost vengeful misery howled over: "I will return, I will return… you little thief, little thief, wait for me, I will personally exterminate your nine clans!"

Dao Xiaoke's divine body was collapsing; the vast divine power within him, the Great Dao patterns he had comprehended and fused over long ages, all gifts from heaven, earth, and the universe, were now nourishing heaven and earth.

He fell.

Without a doubt.

Struck by Wu Tie's god-beating whip, especially when Wu Tie had mobilized all his bodily strength, wielding that heavy god-beating whip and delivering a fierce blow from above, even if one's cultivation was several times higher than Dao Xiaoke's and they were a specialized body cultivator, they would surely perish.

Yet outside the city, Dao Xiaoke's mournful howl was indeed heard.

Wu Tie shivered with a chill, and all the Divine Realm elders within Longchi City simultaneously cursed.

Vast streaks of escape light blazed up, turning into threads of fire that raced toward the place where the mournful howl had come from.

Wu Tie turned into a long rainbow; his reaction speed was the fastest, so he led the charge, rushing out of the urban area, into the darkness beyond the city—a place only over a hundred li from the city, which, given Wu Tie's current cultivation, was a distance reachable at a thought.

Dozens of large warships of the Qingqiu Divine Realm reacted extremely swiftly; their hulls tilted slightly, and hundreds of False Suns spewed blazing light like the sun, illuminating that mountain ridge as if it were lit with lanterns.

In the strong light, a faint mass of black smoke and black flame could be seen, forming the shadow of a dark cloak that enveloped a wisp of remnant soul, vaguely resembling Dao Xiaoke's form.

Beneath Dao Xiaoke's remnant soul lay a small altar, the very one he had used before invading Longchi City to pray for aid from certain deities. At that moment, an exquisite storage ring hovered above the altar, and fist-sized soul crystals continuously spewed forth from it.

Black smoke coiled around the altar, and the soul crystals kept disappearing one after another.

Strands of mighty, pure soul power flowed back from the altar; for every nine soul crystals that vanished, one crystal would directly merge into a wisp of Dao Xiaoke's remnant soul, helping it rapidly grow.

Wu Tie gripped the Hanjiang Sword tightly in his right hand, ready to attack that small altar.

Linghu Qingqing and Linghu Buhuo lunged from left and right, grabbing Wu Tie in a bear hug. Linghu Qingqing's voice was distorted, like that of a frightened little girl; she lowered her tone, hissing and warped as she roared at Wu Tie.

"Prince An, hold back… Dao Xiaoke's true body has already fallen; he is using the power of the gods' heavenly artifact to escape with a wisp of remnant soul. The gods' power is helping him restore his divine soul, and he is performing the most sacred 'sincere offering' to the gods… Mortals are strictly forbidden to disrupt the offering."

Linghu Buhuo muttered beside him: "Otherwise, they will exterminate the nine clans; within a million-li radius of their ancestral home, not a chicken or dog will remain, not a blade of grass will grow."

Wu Tie opened his mouth.

After a while, he murmured: "We… can only watch?"

Linghu Qingqing's facial muscles twitched as he stared at the small black altar, murmuring: "That is the sincere altar of the Dark Soul Divine Clan… the Dark Soul Divine Clan ranks among the top ten of the gods… they are terrifying."

Linghu Buhuo lowered his voice: "Prince An, hear me out—better to face a hundred gods you can see and truly feel hunting you than to offend the Dark Soul Divine Clan, not offend the Dark Soul Divine Clan; they are the most terrifying…"

"Imagine, when your relatives, your women, your children, everyone around you, unknowingly have their souls drained… other spirits take over their identities, cling to you, and toy with you in the palm of their hand…"

"Be careful, keep quiet, don't startle him." Linghu Qingqing gave a bitter smile: "No wonder Dao Xiaoke invaded Longchi City as if entering an uninhabited land… he actually sought the aid of the Dark Soul Divine Clan's heavenly artifact. This must be the Shadow's Protection, right?"

Linghu Buhuo murmured: "Darkness, shadow, destruction, devouring, death, fear, plus sleep, stillness, and most importantly… soul… these are the heavenly principles we have roughly grasped over the years that the Dark Soul Divine Clan controls… perhaps there are even more, even more terrifying…"

Linghu Qingqing firmly grabbed Wu Tie's arm: "Do not offend the gods, do not provoke the gods; always hold reverence and sincerity toward the gods… especially toward the few most powerful and terrifying divine clans, no matter what they are doing, you must comply, you must cooperate, thus…"

Linghu Qingqing finally turned to glance at Wu Tie: "Thus, this is the way to survive."

Wu Tie opened his mouth: "But if we do that, Dao Xiaoke will escape… he killed the Chu clan's elder ancestor, and he also killed so many of us…"

Linghu Qingqing pressed his lips, then suddenly countered Wu Tie: "Prince An, what do you think—how could I have replaced the Sima clan? Back then, Sima Wuyou also once asked me—why not? And then, over the past six thousand years, I gradually took the Sima clan's imperial authority and ultimately supplanted them."

"I favor you; you are my most capable minister now… so, heed my words… Dao Xiaoke, I wish to hack him to pieces; when I was young, several of my close cousins were killed by his descendants… but now, he cannot be moved!"

Linghu Qingqing looked at Wu Tie very seriously.

He truly regarded Wu Tie as a reliable, heavyweight minister; knowing that Prince An Huoxiong came from a humble military household and was unaware of the world's true secrets, he therefore set aside imperial dignity and personally explained to Wu Tie many of the world's taboos.

Wu Tie fell silent, staring fixedly at Dao Xiaoke, who was enveloped by the projection clone of the Shadow's Protection.

"You, from the Great Jin to Qingqiu, how many times have you set up ambushes trying to kill me?" Dao Xiaoke's divine soul grew ever clearer, the fluctuations it emitted reaching about one-tenth the strength of his true divine soul.

He chuckled, looking at Wu Tie and the others, and said leisurely: "Several times I have narrowly escaped death, yet I now live especially well-nourished… why? Because I fear death, so I am exceptionally cautious."

"Look, look, you have expended such great effort—especially you, little thief, giving me such a great surprise, even a shock… but so what? You still haven't managed to kill me!"

"Ah, the treasures I have accumulated over the years are enough to restore my divine soul to its peak state. I have also stored a nearly perfect body; after taking possession, in three to five years I can return to the Divine Realm."

His divine soul made a clapping gesture, and Dao Xiaoke gazed smilingly at Linghu Qingqing: "Qingqiu Divine Emperor, Linghu Qingqing? Ah, tonight I have suffered such great loss, such heavy damage; when I return, I will start from your… do you have a crown prince? I will kill your crown prince one by one, exterminating your direct line of descendants."

Linghu Qingqing's mouth corner twitched violently: "Dao Xiaoke, are you not afraid of my retribution?"

Dao Xiaoke spread his arms and burst into hysterical laughter: "Most of the Dao clan's descendants are underground hunting demons; you Linghu clan's good-for-nothings, dare to go underground and fight them to the death? Retribution? Hahaha, am I supposed to be scared?"

Cocking his head, Dao Xiaoke gave a grim smile: "Compared to killing, who have I ever feared? Compared to killing, who have my descendants ever feared?"

Divine light blazed the sky; over a thousand Qingqiu Divine Realm elders hovered in the air, each staring fixedly at the recovering Dao Xiaoke.

Countless people wanted to kill Dao Xiaoke.

Yet no one dared to step beyond the Thunder Pond.

The greater the clan, the more they know this world's secrets, the existence of the gods, and how terrifying the gods are.

Dao Xiaoke actually prepared this here, leaving Wu Tie with no recourse.

In the distance, divine light illuminated the heavens as the great dragon barge of the Wei Divine Realm came sailing over.

On the barge, the Divine Realm elders of the various great clans of the Wei Divine Realm stared in astonishment at the small altar hovering above, where Dao Xiaoke continuously offered soul crystals and slowly recovered from a wisp of remnant soul.

After a long stunned silence, someone from the Wei Divine Realm's elders let out a hoarse cry: "This guy, what a wealthy background!"

Perhaps it was an illusion, but at that moment Wu Tie caught a flash of green light in the eyes of many Wei Divine Realm elders—vivid green, like a starving wolf, fierce indeed.

Wu Tie raised his brow, his gaze toward Dao Xiaoke growing ever more fierce.

Over countless years, during the chaotic wars of the Great Jin, Great Wei, and Great Wu, the souls and blood essence of fallen soldiers were directly harvested by the gods.

The high officials of the three states, unless they wantonly slaughter their own populace, where could they gather so many soul crystals?

Dao Xiaoke's soul crystals were offered one after another, seemingly endlessly pouring from his storage ring; these soul crystals were obviously not something he could have gathered on the surface battlefield.

The only source is the underground world.

Those rumored indigenous tribes of the underground world that Dao Xiaoke slaughtered.

Only there can the gods' power not penetrate the thick rock layers to wreak havoc; they cannot collect the souls of the dead, nor refine soul crystals.

That is why, back when Wu Tie fought and charged onto the surface, he saw the high official Xiqí of the Fuxi Divine Realm secretly trading soul crystals with the gods…

Dao Xiaoke undoubtedly gathered those soul crystals in the underground world.

Such block after block of soul crystals, how many people must be killed? Wu Tie clenched his fists, staring fixedly at the soul crystals constantly disappearing on the altar.

It is said that Dao Xiaoke killed tens of millions of living beings underground……judging from the intelligence, not only that, it is absolutely more than that.

How many years has Dao Xiaoke lived? At least tens of thousands of years.

With his Divine Sovereign Realm cultivation, he slaughtered those underground natives……Wu Tie recalled his youth, when the Wu family's Shibao was such a tiny settlement, such a feeble, insignificant existence; Dao Xiaoke likely, with just a thought, the mere soul shock emanating from his divine soul would be enough to wipe out thousands of living beings throughout the Wu family's Shibao.

With the might of a Divine Realm expert, if he truly let loose and slaughtered, in a day and night, within a million-li radius, countless living beings would be utterly slaughtered by him.

So many soul crystals!

Bright and sparkling, heavy as if countless wronged souls' mournful howls had gathered upon the soul crystals.

Wu Tie clenched his teeth tightly.

His gums split open, blood flowing.

His mouth filled with the bloody stench, making Wu Tie strongly desire the bloody stench of killing.

But Linghu Qingqing and Linghu Buhuo gripped Wu Tie's hand tightly; Linghu Qingqing's hold was nothing, yet Linghu Buhuo was a seasoned Divine Realm expert—having him seize Wu Tie's hand made it hard for Wu Tie to break free.

The pious offering, the pious offering to the gods, must not be destroyed.

If Wu Tie were to act against the present Dao Xiaoke, then the Dark Soul Divine Clan's revenge would not only target Wu Tie, but would directly strike the populace in his fief; even in the neighboring prefectures of his fief, completely innocent civilians would be frenziedly retaliated against by the Dark Soul Divine Clan.

Therefore Linghu Qingqing and Linghu Buhuo kept a tight watch on Wu Tie, fearing that this ruthless, clueless brat would offend the gods.

Wu Tie, helpless, gave Dao Xiaoke a fierce glance, then furtively narrowed his eyes toward the huge dragon boat a hundred li away across the way.

This dragon boat, as Linghu Buhuo had previously told Wu Tie, is not only slow due to its enormous weight, but also has a fatal flaw: the defensive formations and restrictions inside the hull are excessively numerous, overly complex, and overly crowded.

The dragon boat's yuan-energy furnace struggles to provide enough forward propulsion, let alone supply sufficient power to those defensive formations.

Therefore, unless a Divine Realm elder oversees it, this dragon boat is essentially defenseless.

It appears to be protected by a layer of grand defensive formation… but in truth that thin curtain of light shatters at a single blow—this is no secret among the high-ranking officials of the three kingdoms.

Wu Tie muttered softly: "Your Majesty, Dao Xiaoke assassinated Elder Chujiang—does this mean we are locked in a death feud?"

Linghu Qingqing's face remained unmoving, her lips not twitching at all; a clear sentence entered Wu Tie's ear: 'What do you think, beloved? The situation now is certainly a death feud—they killed my closest kin, this is the death feud situation… but you must not act against Dao Xiaoke… otherwise it would be a calamity that topples heaven.'

Wu Tie smiled and nodded, then suddenly clenched his teeth and sneered at Dao Xiaoke: 'Dao Xiaoke, to live on in old age is to be a thief; you dare to assassinate this king with reckless audacity… this king will surely have a death feud with you…'

Wu Tie glared ferociously at Dao Xiaoke, but a flash of spiritual light passed behind him, and an arm sprouted violently from his neck, whooshing to a length of about a hundred li in an instant—unexpectedly, it seized the Xiahou Lumeng seated on the throne at the center of the dragon boat.

When Wu Tie's arm first sprouted from behind his neck, it was the size of an ordinary person's arm; but after extending a hundred li, his palm had grown to several zhang across. He clutched Xiahou Lumeng in his palm, then clenched his fist hard.

At this moment, Wu Tie's condensed Dao Dharma Form could be called terrifying.

With a single grasp came a series of crack-crack-crack sounds; the dozens of layers of secret treasure spiritual light that had suddenly erupted on Xiahou Lumeng's body were crushed by Wu Tie's grip. Then Xiahou Lumeng let out a roar—though he was the exalted Divine Emperor of Wei, he stood before countless Wei Divine Realm elders and the soldiers of both states, and Wu Tie crushed him to pulp in his grasp.

Everyone was stunned.

No one could utter a word.

Especially on the Wei side, they watched helplessly as Wu Tie slowly retracted that spirit-transformed arm.

Moreover, Wu Tie seized the Wei state's Heirloom Jade Seal that had been placed beside Xiahou Lumeng's hand.

Grabbing the God-Smiting Whip, Wu Tie lashed it once and shattered the Wei Heirloom Jade Seal to pieces.

What if this is another supreme treasure like the Mountains and Rivers Seal in Sima Wuyou's hand? Or is it safer to have smashed it and let the God-Smiting Whip swallow it?

The scene fell silent for about half a cup of tea's time, when suddenly a hysterical scream echoed from within the dragon boat; several dozen members of the Xiahou imperial clan, their bodies radiating terrifying divine power fluctuations, transformed into a massive cluster of divine light and frenziedly charged toward Wu Tie.

Thereafter, about half of the Wei Divine Realm elders on that side moved simultaneously.