Chapter 234: He He Zhizhang Dances with the Spear, Chang

He He Zhizhang's sleeves fluttered as his long beard streamed behind him; he did not wield the long sword, but instead held aloft a bronze spearhead shaped like an ancient ge, radiating a chilling aura of slaughter.

The bronze spearhead was covered in rust, yet exuded an intensely restrained aura of killing.

An Lushan regarded the monks' and Daoists' magical artifacts as toys, but his face darkened at the sight of the bronze ge: "The relic of the Shu King—the ancient golden ge!" He flung the bronze spearhead, and it surged forward with rolling slaughter-energy, its color like iron and blood, piercing straight toward An Lushan's heart.

This ancient ge-head was forged from Shanshan bronze, a legendary weapon and a formidable magic treasure.

Yet An Lushan, though wary of the bronze ge, had a countermeasure: suddenly, his crown chakra opened, and the dark-gold skullcap split along the temples, flipping upward like an inverted golden bowl; from within the skull emerged nine skull heads, each the size of a thumb, spinning around the cranium, forming a crown of skulls.

The nine thumb-sized skulls rushed forward and locked onto the ancient weapon.

He He Zhizhang was slightly startled, but Brother Qian Chen explained: "This is Yan Shi magic—capable of refining magic treasures into one's own bodily organs, or refining one's own organs into magic treasures. This demon appears to have no treasures, yet every part of his body has been refined into one. Commander He, do not underestimate him!"

An Lushan laughed loudly: "He He Zhizhang, if you brought the ancient spiritual treasure from Yangming Cave—the Yu Tomb Stele or the Broken Water Hook sealed in the Yu Well—I might still fear you. But this ancient weapon? Merely the armament of Yu the Great's soldiers."

"You think you can kill me?"

"To deal with you, I don't need Yu the Great's spiritual treasures!"

He He Zhizhang grunted, secretly sighing—if not for the sudden, overwhelming demonic calamity that caught him off guard.

Had he first gone to Yangming Cave, the Dou Di Shi Heaven of the Daoist sect, and borrowed one of the three sacred treasures guarding the cave, then turned to face An Lushan, wouldn't it have been far easier?

Few knew that He He Zhizhang was a disciple of Yangming Cave, the Dou Di Shi Heaven of the Daoist sect.

Yangming Cave once housed the Heavenly Emperor's library; Yu the Great received the "Golden Tablets and Jade Characters" from the Heavenly Emperor here, learning the art of flood control, and Ge Hong the Celestial Master once refined elixirs here.

Within the cave lay three treasures: the Divine Stele of Yu's Tomb, the Divine Hook of Yu's Well, and the Jade Book of the Heavenly Emperor.

In the year Zhengsheng, the Empress Dowager, under the guise of constructing the Ming Hall and the Heavenly Palace, mobilized vast labor to forge dozens of immortal demonic forms, shattered the seals of the Nine Heavens' fissures, and attained Primordial Spirit. Master Ye Ye Fashan performed a ritual at Yangming Cave to summon the celestial realm, where a true dragon descended; Ye Ye Fashan rode the dragon into Luoyang and fought the Empress, eventually reaching an agreement to reseal the Nine Heavens' fissures.

The Empress resealed the Nine Heavens' fissures, and the three Daoist Celestial Masters were ordered to remain in Chang'an and Luoyang to guard them.

From then on, no one could stop the Empress, who ascended to the supreme throne as a Great Demon.

At that time, He He Zhizhang, who had been cultivating in Yangming Cave, went to take the imperial examination, entering the court as a secret agent of the Daoist sect.

Now, though An Lushan's upper body had been half-sliced apart by Brother Qian Chen, the demonic light from his skull crown dripped downward, yet somehow caused new flesh to grow over his body despite the Purple Cloud Array's confinement. An Lushan stood with a shrunken belly, barefoot, dancing; two arms burst through his back and ribs, each gripping a white bone hammer and a black iron blade—both top-tier demonic magic treasures.

Brother Qian Chen and Yan Shu joined He He Zhizhang in close combat; Ning Ning Qingchen, from afar, continuously unleashed Ice Soul Divine Light to slow An Lushan's movements, yet they could only barely hold their ground against him, relying entirely on the Purple Cloud Array.

Meanwhile, Wu Wu Daozi wielded his brush like clouds, painting a thirty-zhang divine bridge upon the white wall of the hall.

With a flick of his brush, the divine bridge detached from the wall and landed beneath the feet of hundreds of thousands of officials and commoners in the Hua'e Xianghui Pavilion.

An Lushan had only half a body, yet from his right side, beneath his ribs and back, two muscular, sinewy arms oozing slime sprouted.

Around this monstrous figure rolled thick black mist, like a tide of serpents, gnawing at the Purple Cloud Array.

Yan Shu, during a momentary breath, revealed a barely perceptible opening—immediately, An Lushan struck him with a wave of his hand, sending him flying; this time, his chest caved in, and he collapsed, coughing blood uncontrollably. Outside the Purple Cloud Array, hundreds of thousands of Chang'an officials and commoners stood frozen, staring.

Yan Shu spat blood as he waved: "Run! Chang'an is nearly gone—what are you still watching?"

Among the crowd, women screamed; the palace guards of Xingqinggong and the sixteen battalions of martial cultivators finally arrived. Screams and chaos erupted from the Li Qianqiu Banquet; the crowd trampled the divine bridge, fleeing toward the outer gates of Xingqinggong.

The ministers and officials, except those with cultivation, fled in panic.

Emperor Xiao Xie Xuan's face turned ashen as he watched the brutal battle between Daoist and demonic forces upon his own birthday banquet.

Thousands of martial cultivators surrounded the Purple Cloud Array; now, officials skilled in music took up instruments and joined the "Robes of Clouds and Feathers" melody array.

An Lushan unfurled his three arms, his demonic aura overwhelming; thunderous crashes echoed—gradually, the Purple Cloud Array began to crack. The endless purple clouds showed signs of dissolving; Li Guiyear struggled to maintain the array, his magic power nearing exhaustion, his face pale, his fingers on the pipa bleeding. The Liyuan disciples were also exhausted.

Lei Lei Haiqing cried out, voice trembling: "Taibai… we can't hold on much longer!"

At that moment, a crowd of men and women, all dressed as Daoist priests, surged into the palace from outside.

They followed the divine bridge painted by Wu Wu Daozi into the Hua'e Xianghui Pavilion; the half-dead old Daoist on the floor, seeing them, weakly cursed: "You little Daoist brats—you've finally come!"

"You nearly killed your master!"

A middle-aged Daoist groaned: "Master, we couldn't enter Xingqinggong—we were trapped outside for a long time. Only when we saw this divine bridge spanning the palace gates did we manage to break in!"

"Enough talk!" the old Daoist pointed to the Purple Cloud Array: "Go help!"

Hundreds of Daoists, carrying musical instruments for Daoist rites, joined the "Robes of Clouds and Feathers" melody. Soon after, hundreds of bald monks with ordination scars, along with their celestial musicians and flying goddesses riding peacock lanterns, flew in along the divine bridge.

Master Hui Guo of Qinglong Temple cried out: "Quickly enter the array and harmonize with the Liyuan disciples!"

But Brother Qian Chen sent a flying talisman message: "Master, wait! I have a method that may destroy this demon—but I need the Buddhist sect's aid…"

Meanwhile, in the Liyuan Music Bureau, female musicians not affiliated with the Daoist sect, led by He Zhang Huai Zhi, entered Xingqinggong directly through the Furuang Garden's inner corridor. The courtesans of Hu Hu Yulou in Pingkang Fang led countless women, shouting: "Sisters, today each song earns you ten thousand coins! I, Madam Hu, am renowned in the brothels—I never default!" They carried their beloved pipas and yaoqins, rowing painted boats up the Qujiang River, flooding into the Hua'e Xianghui Pavilion.

The Daoist sect's forces in Chang'an were fully mobilized; though the Buddhist sect's hidden forces were slower to respond, they kept arriving continuously from all corners of the city.

The "Robes of Clouds and Feathers" array suddenly swelled with so many cultivators; though the melody grew slightly disordered, the purple clouds churned and golden flowers rained down, the array's power surging by thirty percent.

At that moment, even Mei Fei, beside Emperor Xiao Xie Xuan, tore her long robe's sash and flew into the dance array. Before leaving, she glanced at Emperor Xiao Xie Xuan; his eyelid twitched, but he remained silent, tacitly permitting her action.

Inspired by Mei Fei, the emperor's maids quietly vanished, changed clothes, and joined the Purple Cloud Array. Even several eunuchs secretly chanted Buddhist mantras, transmitting their magical and mental power outward.

Zhang Xu wielded his brush like a giant beam, writing in wild cursive; he flicked his brush, and ink flew through the air, a line of ink staining the purple clouds as it wrote toward An Lushan. Zhang Xu stepped upon the ink trail, using it to vanish and leap like a bird; specks of ink scattered, carrying powerful, rugged strokes, striking An Lushan's body.

Wu Wu Daozi marveled: "This is the old technique of Lady Shangguan Wan'er from the Empress's era—the Clerical Script: Horizontal Scales. Zhang Xu! Zhang Xu! When I learned calligraphy from you, you held back!"

Zhang Xu's brushstrokes continued, flowing into a myriad of forms, barely trapping An Lushan within his ink array, granting Brother Qian Chen, He He Zhizhang, and others a moment of respite. Brother Qian Chen, enduring searing pain in both arms, had bound them to his sides when he felt someone approach him.

He looked up slightly and saw Wang Wei drawing his waist sword; its glow was faint yet clear and bright.

"I can also trigger the Buddha's power within the bone to clash with the demonic body. I can give you three breaths!" Wang Wei raised his sword, flicking it to trace a swastika; within the symbol pulsed boundless light—the Vimalakirti's Pure Wisdom, Pure Mind, Pure Land: all phenomena arise from the mind; his poetic and sword realms became a pure land of perfect clarity, enveloping An Lushan's defiled demonic body.

The Great Vimalakirti Light Sword!