Chapter 644: The Cage

Deep within Yinglang, a large coffin sat abruptly.

The coffin was silver-white, about a zhang long and over a person's height; in terms of form, it was between a "coffin" and a "casket."

The coffin was covered in flowers and plants, as if decorated meticulously for a funeral. On the coffin lid were large, blooming fresh flowers. At a glance, they were all golden sunflowers.

Perhaps because the surrounding silver light was too bright, the color of the sunflowers leaned toward a pale, plain hue, yet the golden base color could still be discerned.

Compared to the pitch-black, gloomy colors of ordinary coffins, gold and silver gave a slightly more vivid and bright impression. But a coffin is a coffin, especially when discovered in a nearly endless labyrinth, a place where countless silver threads and darkness intersected; no matter what, one would feel a jolt in their heart. Especially since one would grow weary of the silver after looking at it for too long, feeling it turn into a lonely, cold pallor.

Wangliang saw the coffin at a glance, but its attention remained on the surroundings.

It knew that coffin; it was the Dharma Artifact Hua Yaozhi brought to seal herself. Before, when that woman was being dragged along the way, she had laid obediently inside it, only rising from the coffin upon reaching Wangliang Mountain, fleeing into Yinglang with the remnant souls of her subordinates.

At that time, it was just a simple silver coffin, without these flowers and plants on it. One wondered where this woman had scavenged them in such a deathly still place, to be half-dead yet still have the leisure to think of such things.

But Wangliang did not care about these; what it cared about was...

Where exactly was Ruyi Sword?

Just then, it heard a low sigh.

This was completely beyond Wangliang's expectations; it saw the Dazai shake his cloak, and suddenly the space was filled with people.

Those were the "living people" who had crawled out from under his cloak, men and women, old and young, their faces surprisingly vivid. Setting aside the fact that their sudden appearance was truly too "underworld-like," it actually made the space lively all at once, and the Dazai now had the grand entourage he used to have in the past.

"After we join forces, we shall take the power of both Sword Gods. Your Highness has a grudge against Wangliang, so its power naturally belongs to you. As for Destruction, I shall take it away. If Your Highness feels the cooperation is pleasant, you may come to my Great Wei court to serve as a Grand State Preceptor, and my Great Wei will surely serve you with the resources of the world. If Your Highness has no such intention, we shall naturally part on good terms and never meet again. I have additional gifts to present, all treasures accumulated by Great Wei over the years, which I believe may barely catch Your Highness's eye."

The reason it was almost so was that a portion of it was not; that was the framework Wangliang had laid down initially. The silver threads of Ruyi Sword had merely completely invaded the framework, allowing it to be controlled by itself.

"Is it because your subordinates came to find you that you have to puff yourself up to look bigger? Or do you see that I, Wangliang, also have external enemies arriving, and you want to fish in troubled waters? Are you certain I dare not enter and cannot see this frail appearance of yours? Didn't expect it, did you? I, Wangliang, have entered! I am right before you; why don't you learn from your previous fierce demeanor and point fingers at me? Is it because you dare not?"

"Hahaha..."

It really was... the voice of an old acquaintance.

But after it probed carefully, it discovered there was none.

The silk vines were already very lush, but the tall trees inside were not completely dead.

The power it could mobilize had already gathered around, stuck full of silver threads. Although these silver threads could not break through the defense of the Shadow layer, they seemed like anchors, pinning it firmly and completely solidifying it there.

"Hahaha!!"

If that Shadow layer were considered a protective shell, it could be said to be too thin, too fragile. It seemed it could be pierced through with ease, yet it was not a protective cover, not "armor."

Was she using the coffin as a smokescreen, actually lurking in a corner, waiting for an opportunity to act?

The coffin lid was not opened; no one could be certain if she was inside.

At this moment, Wangliang immediately drew out the Shadow power it could control, including its own power, forming a thin layer of Shadow at its side.

Wangliang suddenly burst into loud laughter: "Haha, good, Hua Yaozhi, oh Hua Yaozhi, I knew you were putting on a show and bluffing!"

Now, destroying Ruyi Sword here, taking back Yinglang, and then conveniently killing the Dazai who had left the Mountain and River Stele, torturing out the method to unbind from Destruction, and going out to wipe out that pestering "old flame"—all hidden dangers would be eliminated. With just a little recuperation, it could quickly return to its peak, and Wangliang would descend upon the Human World with a power greater than ever before!

At this time, the Dazai suddenly spoke: "Your Highness Ruyi Sword, I have come to help you!"

Although the tactic was old, it was very useful; before the people outside were finished being skewered, it was impossible to harm him.

It was a woman's voice, as if coming from a distant place, sounding full of emotion and regret.

Yinglang had fallen from the sky!

Wangliang was furious and shouted: "You are mad! You would actually resort to such a desperate measure, having Yinglang be buried with you?"

This Yinglang could already be considered the Sword Law of Ruyi Sword.

But how could Wangliang fear such things from them? It was the greatest anomaly in the world.

Yinglang?

"Acting outside as if you have already recovered and are the Ruyi Sword of yesteryear, calling friends and companions to help you, but in reality, aren't you still lying in the coffin? You don't even have the strength to crawl out!"

Wangliang listened and sneered inwardly. He had already learned of this person's ability to "speak human words to humans and ghost words to ghosts." Before, he wanted to join forces with him to capture Destruction, but now he said he had new and old grudges with him. Had he turned against him and was now turning around to win over Ruyi Sword?

This person only wanted a Sword Immortal as an ally; it didn't matter which Sword Immortal it was.

This is...

While it roared, it used its power to stop it, yet only then did it discover that it could not move!

Even one of Wangliang's level immediately fell into a weak position. No matter who it was, once caught in the Sword Law of a Sword Immortal, they were already beyond their own control.

Wangliang frowned; regardless of whether Ruyi Sword heard the benefits, it certainly heard the threat.

In a sense, Wangliang's assessment was not wrong. The relationship between Ruyi Sword and Yinglang was indeed that of silk vines and tall trees.

Having found the defenseless, fragile true body of Ruyi Sword, Wangliang's concerns vanished; it knew it had already won.

"Moreover, I know your vitality has not yet recovered. I also have a method to help you restore your vitality. Your Highness need not do anything; just a promise to join forces with me, and I will immediately help Your Highness recover as before as a greeting gift. Your Highness only needs to feel the power to know my ability and sincerity."

His terms were generous, and his tone was sincere. It was as if he had not come to negotiate, but to offer warmth.

And also...

And over there, the Dazai was still using his old tactic; his defense relied on people, people, and more people...

The semi-anthropomorphic expression on that flower disk was extremely eerie.

Suddenly, as if a silver vase had shattered, countless silver threads gushed out like a bursting flood. Each silver thread was as flexible as tangled hair, as pervasive as mercury, as bright as autumn water, and as sharp as a sword blade!

Part of the silver threads gushed out from the coffin, and part shot toward the center from the four walls; the inner and outer forces converged, almost forming a single sheet. There was nowhere to hide and no way to avoid it.

However, Wangliang and Destruction both looked down on him; could the more noble-minded Ruyi Sword possibly think highly of him?

"Is this your true purpose?"

A heart-palpitating silence.

But Wangliang knew that this move was for defense, to guard against Wangliang suddenly launching an attack before he had finished speaking.

The Dazai said: "Now the situation outside has changed greatly. Wangliang and Destruction have already joined forces. Their alliance is Destruction's voluntary fall into depravity, colluding with Wangliang Mountain, and they naturally treat Your Highness as a trophy. Naturally, they will not let me go either. They have no qualms about two-on-one; Your Highness is isolated and helpless. If we are to resist, we should also form an alliance. I have a precious treasure to occupy the strategic location, as stable as Mount Tai, and Your Highness's Sword Law is pervasive, advancing like the wind. With one attacking and one defending, who in the world can stop us?"

There were no traces of concealment in Yinglang.

It wanted to see if Ruyi Sword would be tempted by the easily attainable, superior conditions.

The silver threads completely blocked the exit of the labyrinth; the way it had come was no longer passable. A labyrinth with no path—what kind of labyrinth was that?

It's a cage!

And now, the ones trapped by the cage are Dazai and the two foolish birds of Wangliang Mountain!

The silver threads, which seemed indestructible at first, did not manage to harm either of them.

One really cannot let them join forces.

Amidst its laughter, the sunflowers on the coffin suddenly turned their heads in unison, staring at it.

It seems that woman did not crawl out and is still lying silently inside the coffin.

Although these silhouettes look as fragile as paper, and it seems ten thousand of them wouldn't be enough for Wangliang to sweep away, how could one know if they aren't hiding some vicious methods?

"Your Highness, I am the Dazai of Great Wei; it is a great honor to meet you for the first time. My Great Wei has both new and old grudges with Wangliang, and we are not of the same path as that Destruction. We are truly of one mind with Your Highness against a common enemy."

It is actually a deformed "Shadow space"!

The endless silver threads pierced into the Shadow space, just like plunging into an unfathomable ocean trench. They were completely submerged, bottomless. Wangliang was behind the space; though it appeared to be mere inches away, it was actually worlds apart, suffering not a bit of harm.

This promise to help restore vitality first was very friendly to Ruyi Sword, but it truly did not put Wangliang in its eyes. How could Wangliang allow such a thing to happen?

The reason he remained calm was not out of concern for Dazai's human-wave tactics, but because he had not yet confirmed where the true body of Ruyi Sword was.

Wangliang let the silver threads invade into the Shadow, its voice becoming increasingly loud and full of confidence: "Is this all the power you have, Hua Yaozhi? It seems you are indeed strong on the outside but weak on the inside! If you have exhausted your skills, should it be my turn now?"

"Ha..."

Although he detested Dazai, Wangliang's most important enemy was Ruyi Sword. If he were to attack Dazai now, and if he were blocked for even a move or half, it might give Ruyi Sword an opportunity.

That was not a personal fall, but a sense of collapse where the ground itself was dropping, falling along with the people and their carrier. Because the ground's descent was particularly heavy, the fall was particularly fierce.

Wangliang suddenly understood; Hua Yaozhi had intended for Yinglang to fall from the very beginning. Those silver threads were less of an attack and more like ropes, binding and trapping them.

Just as Wangliang was about to probe where she was, suddenly, he felt his body plummeting—

Of course, with Wangliang's means, if given some time, it could escape.

But there was no time left!

Yinglang was descending faster and faster; in only a fleeting moment, it would crash down there...

The final destination of Yinglang, the very bottom of Wangliang Mountain—

Yingyuan!