Chapter 447: 422 The Brilliance of Lamps

While the battle here was at a critical juncture, over there, Tang Zhao was merely watching from the sidelines.

Although there had been some danger on the clouds just moments ago, he would not intervene unless it reached the most desperate of times.

Since he had decided to conceal his presence and follow in secret, it was not to make a fuss and rush into action, nor to act like a nanny and smooth everything over for others.

Not to mention that he wouldn't have exposed himself even when Sword Guest Shangguan was in the greatest danger just now, even if Black Widow encountered a minor mishap, since she had been so impassioned and insistent on charging into the shadow with a lamp, she likely didn't intend to be a princess who could only stare wide-eyed while waiting to be rescued.

Tang Zhao greatly admired the White Fox's concealment methods; not only could Black Widow and the others not see Tang Zhao, but the shadows also turned a blind eye to them, and not a single roaring monster charged at him. It was evident that there were many ways to survive within the Wangliang.

"Ah..."

At this moment, the White Fox shook its head in pain, "The Strongmen! How did they become like this?"

Tang Zhao asked, "What Strongmen?"

The White Fox said, "The Colorful Cloud Strongmen. Did you see that face just now? The biggest one! That was our Colorful Cloud Strongman! Why would they be in the shadows?"

Tang Zhao said, "That monster that attacked Sword Guest Shangguan?"

The White Fox gritted its teeth and said, "They weren't monsters originally. They were among our Colorful Cloud Strongmen of Lingxiao City. They helped us build bridges and pave roads, accompanied us to embrace the moon and chase the clouds; they were our companions."

Upon hearing this, Tang Zhao vaguely recalled that a group of Colorful Cloud Strongmen had been mentioned in the String Song. Of course, due to space limitations, it was only a brief mention, focusing on how they lived in Lingxiao City, one of the Five Towers and Twelve Cities. The song said each of them was ten zhang tall, with broad shoulders and thick backs, moving like thunder, possessing infinite strength, and capable of splitting mountains and severing rivers with ease, just like the legendary heavenly soldiers and generals.

In the records of Xu Congsheng, although they were physically strong and powerful, they seemed not very intelligent, unable to speak complete sentences, and were simple-minded, acting only upon orders, existing somewhere between puppets and living people.

Tang Zhao asked, "Are the Colorful Cloud Strongmen living people? Were they not forged from the Sword Intent of the Ruyi Sword?"

The White Fox sighed, "No, they were giants the Highness brought back from the Qianxian. They were living, breathing people, just of a different race than us. There have always been many races in the Sword Domain. Although they weren't very smart, they were all kind, simple, and easy to get along with. They even carried me to wade in the rivers and catch falcons on the clouds. They... they were actually devoured?!"

It was clear that these big fellows had already become part of the black shadows. Although they occasionally appeared from the shadow world, revealing their faces from when they were alive, those were merely phantoms; they had long since fallen into the shadow kingdom of the Wangliang.

It was just unclear whether this fall meant they were completely corroded until only their physical shells remained, or if they retained a tiny shred of self-awareness but were helplessly manipulated by the shadows.

If they still had consciousness, then one could perhaps say they were still alive, but Tang Zhao thought it would be more fortunate if they were completely extinguished and only phantoms remained, because that would just be death—when a person dies, it is like a lamp going out, and how the remains are treated is meaningless to the dead. But if they still retained a shred of consciousness and were forever sinking in the shadows, that would be a fate worse than death.

What made the White Fox even sadder was that if the Colorful Cloud Strongmen could be devoured, what about its other companions? Those friends they spent every day with? How many had been devoured in the Shadow Kingdom?

What about the main body of the Xiancheng?

What about the brothers and sisters?

What about the eldest sister and second sister?

What about the Highness?

Under this black shadow now, how many remains were left? Or was there only a chaotic, void-like shadow left?

Had their hometown completely disappeared?

Tang Zhao guessed its thoughts and mused, "Don't think so pessimistically. I saw something suspicious about those small shadow monsters just now, so I have an idea..."

"Ah, what is that?"

From behind came Black Widow's cry of surprise and joy.

Tang Zhao turned his head to look and saw an unusual outline vaguely visible in the shadows.

Black Widow had already jumped up—at this point, she had to suppress that regret and fear, and all she had left was to pin all her hopes on the Xiancheng. She had even suspected just moments ago that everything in the Xiancheng had been destroyed by the shadows, feeling truly disheartened and dejected. Now, although she only saw a shadow, hope was rekindled, and she threw herself into it.

She removed another hand lamp and shone it in that direction. The sunlight dispersed a portion of the shadows, revealing the outline of an Xian Tower.

"Oh..."

Not only Black Widow, but Tang Zhao also couldn't help but let out a soft exclamation.

What a magnificent Xian Tower!

If the previous Hongyao Ting and walls were merely exquisite, the scale of this Xian Tower could be called spectacular. It seemed to be dozens of zhang tall, occupying a vast area, with a strong style unlike any building on the ground.

Even though the shadows were stubborn and a single hand lamp could only dispel a portion of them, with most of the tower still shrouded in light and shadow, Tang Zhao even saw several ghost-like creatures—neither beast nor monster—perched on the tower. Yet, precisely because of this, seeing it through the mist made the tower seem all the more towering and magnificent, extremely beautiful, and thought-provoking.

The shadows were like a beauty's veil, adding a hazy beauty to the Xian Tower, "half-hidden behind the pipa."

"Xian Tower, this is the true Xian Tower..."

Black Widow couldn't help but reach out to grab it. Yue Lai hurriedly pulled her back from behind, only letting the hand lamp shine over it again. A small shadow monster closest to the light beam scurried away and hid in the shadows, just like a mouse stealing food in a granary fleeing when the door was opened.

"Move closer, let's move closer."

Black Widow shouted this, yet she helplessly discovered that she was moving further and further away from the Xian Tower.

It was the cloud beneath her feet moving forward.

No matter how eagerly she wanted to touch the legendary Xian Tower, the cloud clearly did not listen to her, did not follow her wishes, and seemed to have its own goal, not stopping for the scenery along the way.

She could only helplessly follow the cloud. Or, if she jumped now, she could jump onto the Xian Tower, but that would inevitably mean leaving this small island of light and throwing herself into the boundless shadows. Black Widow had seen the fate of those who had just fallen into the shadows; even though she was obsessed with the Xiancheng, she still retained some rationality and would not seek her own death. She could only helplessly follow the cloud; the Xiancheng was right before her eyes, yet as far away as the ends of the earth.

"It's the Moyun Tower." The White Fox, true to being a local, recognized it at a glance and shouted excitedly, "The Moyun Tower is still here, and it's exactly the same as it was back then! Great, they are all still here! Our Baiyujing hasn't been devoured, they are still safe and sound!"

Tang Zhao searched his memory and said, "Moyun Tower, it seems to be one of the Twelve Immortal Towers?"

The White Fox smiled, "You could say that. Calling it an Immortal Tower is a bit of an exaggeration; that was where we stored the scraps of Cloud Silk. It counts as the last of the Twelve Towers. We left in such a hurry back then; there should still be quite a bit of Cloud Silk left inside, right? To defend against the enemy, we dismantled most of the Cloud Silk to build fortifications, but there should still be a little left. Come to think of it, the Colorful Cloud Strongmen were the ones who built the fortifications back then..."

It gradually fell silent as it spoke, then suddenly said, "I want to go down and take a look."

Tang Zhao had been lamenting that it was worthy of being the legendary Five Cities and Twelve Towers; even the last Xian Tower had such a scale, and as the Sword Intent of a Sword Immortal, it truly wouldn't be so easily devoured by the Wangliang, nor even eroded by the passage of time.

But hearing the White Fox's words, he was slightly stunned, and then he saw the White Fox bite onto a hand lamp tube, leap up, and prepare to jump off the clouds. His heart stirred, and he hurriedly grabbed its tail.

The White Fox was pulled by its tail and nearly hung upside down in the air. It immediately bristled with rage and glared fiercely at Tang Zhao, but seeing Tang Zhao's calm expression, it couldn't help but sigh, spat out the lamp tube, and said, "Don't worry about me. I am a Sword Hero, I am stronger than you; how could mere black smoke be dangerous? There is something important in this tower, it might be the key to my returning home this time, I must go and see it to be at ease."

Little did it know that Tang Zhao did not try to persuade it, but instead wrapped a piece of silk thread he had dismantled to use as a fishing net around its tail and said, "Take the line down with you, it's a safety measure. If there is danger, send a signal, and I will pull you up."

The White Fox's expression cleared, and it said, "I know. I will return. My goal is not just a mere Moyun Tower; going to get the Cloud Silk is also to make things easier for us." Having said that, it bit the lamp again, and the bright light wrapped around it completely. It transformed into a brilliant golden light and jumped off the cloud tower.

Tang Zhao watched as that ball of light pierced through the shadows and landed on the roof ridge. Because of the direct and intense protection of the sunlight, the shadows entwined around the tower did not attack, but instead retreated like a tide, revealing the original appearance of this part of the Xian Tower's roof.

The White Fox quickly jumped off the roof, pushed open a window, and slipped inside. Its shadow could not be seen from the outside, but the light from the lamp in its mouth still shone through the window, adding a glimmer of hopeful lamplight to the dark Xian Tower.

It was as if someone had just awakened from a dream, relit a lamp in the Moyun Tower, and left behind traces of life. This lamp pulled it back to the Human World.

Seen under the lamplight, the Moyun Tower looked even more magnificent. After all, this was a high tower woven from Cloud Silk; even after being buried in the shadows for so many years, it was still as bright as new, as if it had been meticulously cleaned just yesterday.

Perhaps because this was a place for storing Cloud Silk, it did not emphasize individuality, but rather valued regularity and spaciousness; the tower was slightly less refined, but fully displayed its grandeur. Eight pillars on the outside supported the high roof, and each of the three levels had eaves, with exquisite lanterns hanging under them...

Lanterns?

Tang Zhao's heart stirred, and he had a bold idea.

He found a new Lamp in his pocket, though it was not a Hand Lamp, but a Sunshine Art Tool shaped like a torch, which he held horizontally in his hand as if holding a javelin.

With a sudden *whoosh*, one end of the long Art Tool ignited into flames, truly transforming into a torch, held high by Tang Zhao in the posture of throwing a javelin—

"Go!"

The torch turned into a line of fire, plunging straight into a lantern under the corridor, inserting itself through a gap in the top of the lantern shade, and the flames spread into the Inner part of the lantern.

The lantern was lit!

Moyun Tower had a second Lamp, and its outline became even more clearly visible.

Tang Zhao decided to go all the way, taking out a large handful of such torches, *swish, swish, swish*—he threw them all out!

Every time a torch flew out, a bright Lamp was relit.

In a brief moment, Moyun Tower, one of the Twelve Immortal Towers that had just awakened from a century of Shadow, was brilliantly illuminated!