The Path Cleaved by Heavenly Thunder

"Immortal Master?" Shen Fang glanced behind her; the area was empty. "Where's the food?"

"I had them take it away," Liu Shuyue replied calmly. "Everyone, please return. These people won't be a threat to Zhangwei City. By tomorrow, you won't see any disaster victims outside the city."

"What do you mean?" the Deputy Officer frowned. "Where are they going?"

"Wherever they go is fine, as long as they aren't staying here."

"What kind of joke is this?! The drought hasn't ended, won't they just become bandits wherever they go?"

"I will escort them the whole way, you don't need to worry about that."

What? Shen Fang's heart jolted. Did that mean...

"The Immortal Master is going to the Royal City, how would she have the time to watch over them!" The Deputy Officer's face also darkened. "I ask the Immortal Master to step aside. If I offend you, it will be difficult for me to report back. If these people refuse to hand over their grain, let me handle it."

Liu Shuyue didn't move an inch.

The Deputy Officer cursed under his breath and raised his whip. "Brothers, charge!"

"Kill!"

The cavalry roared in unison, lowered their bodies, and began to speed up.

Just then, Liu Shuyue unfurled a talisman before her. Thunder rumbled in the sky, and purple lightning streaked through the thin clouds, dimming the stars. Then, two bolts of lightning leaped down, striking directly onto the path of the charging horses, erupting in smoke and sparks!

The momentum the troops had built up was instantly halted. The warhorses reared and neighed, refusing to take another step forward! The men at the very front even fell from their startled mounts, nearly being trampled to death by those behind them.

She knew this technique was terrifying in appearance but lacked real power. However, the pursuing soldiers and horses didn't know that. To them, it looked like a bolt from the blue.

"Liu! Shuyue!" An enraged roar came from the rear of the formation.

The troops parted to the sides, making way for the newcomer.

"So it's General Gong... Had enough of the show?" Liu Shuyue looked expressionlessly at the young nobleman.

"What do you mean by this!? Obstructing the army, disrupting military orders! Even as an Immortal Master, you are not above punishment!" Gong Lingwu gritted his teeth. "Liu Shuyue, are you trying to rebel!?"

The words sent a chill down everyone's necks.

No matter who it was, their first instinct upon being accused of such a crime would be to defend themselves.

But to Shen Fang's disbelief, Liu Shuyue didn't even respond!

This attitude was even more terrifying than his shouting and scolding.

He glanced back at the city gate and adjusted his position slightly...

"As long as you don't cross the line I just drew, it's fine for you to report me to your superiors."

Line...

Only then did everyone notice that the lightning strike had carved a shallow trench in the ground.

"You want to protect these people by force?" Gong Lingwu glared at her with a ferocious expression for a long moment. "Fine, I'll let them go, but you have to return to the Royal City and explain today's events to His Majesty yourself."

"Didn't I tell you earlier? I am not returning to the Royal City. Until these disaster victims find a new place to settle, I'm not going anywhere." Liu Shuyue shook her head.

"You dare-- That's a royal decree!"

"I've said all I need to say. I bid you farewell." Liu Shuyue turned her horse and walked towards the group of disaster victims.

"Stop!" Just as Gong Lingwu was about to pursue, the lightning in the sky suddenly became active again, as if waiting for prey to cross the line.

"General, please be cautious..." Shen Fang quickly advised. "That's an Immortal Master who can use sorcery!"

A hundred years was too long, to the point that many had forgotten... an Immortal Master's sword could slay demons, and it could also slay men.

"She... she's seeking death!"

Watching her retreating figure, Gong Lingwu gnashed his teeth until they bled.

That dismissive glance, that indifferent attitude, just like the woman he saw in the Royal City five years ago.

He knew Liu Shuyue looked down on him.

So what?

Someone so arrogant still had to obey the royal decree and return to the Royal City with him? Her entire journey would be under his arrangement, wasn't that a kind of irony?

However, he never expected the outcome to be like this.

She seemed to have accepted her fate at first...

"Liu Shuyue, you will regret this!" Gong Lingwu didn't dare to pursue, so he could only shout hatefully. "Dare to break the agreement, the Lotus Cloud Sect won't tolerate you, and His Majesty will absolutely not let you off! Just wait—whether it's the people you want to protect or yourself, no one will escape severe punishment! It will be too late to beg for mercy then!"

Liu Shuyue didn't stop.

She didn't even turn her head.

Of course, she heard him.

But all that noise was drowned out by other words, becoming insignificant.

It was what Chen Xuan said to another guest. If he hadn't asked for a recounting afterward, she might have missed it entirely.

Now, she unexpectedly felt those words were equally applicable to herself.

Liu Shuyue looked at her outstretched right hand and whispered, "Now... destiny is in my hands."

"Camera ready, 3, 2, 1... Action!"

"Good evening, viewers, and welcome to City Channel. I'm reporter Yan Xin. As we all know, the famous attraction in our city, the Window of the World's replica of the Champs-Élysées, was recently closed for renovation. Now, the repairs are nearly complete. We can see the fences are being taken down, and this attraction will soon reopen to the public. If you want to be among the first to experience it, you can make a reservation on the app now! As for what repairs and renovations were done, we've specially found the engineer on-site for an interview. Hello, Engineer Zhang!"

"This is well arranged. There shouldn't be any problems now," a man with sharp, star-like eyes watched the interview nearby and said. "How is Honglian? I feel like she's been a bit off since yesterday."

The young man beside him shrugged. "She's fine, better than fine. Now, even if a dog went near her, she'd probably kick it away."

As he said this, he deliberately looked back to confirm that the red-haired girl standing far away with her arms crossed hadn't heard him.

Isn't it obvious at first glance?

The oppressive aura surrounding her and the foul expression on her face told him how terrible her mood was. However, seeing the bandages wrapped around her head and hands, the young man felt a little bit of satisfaction.

Serves her right for always bossing him around. She finally kicked a steel plate!

What probably frustrated her the most wasn't being beaten black and blue, but failing to defeat her opponent while her mission objective was inexplicably achieved. The deviation channel she had created had already shrunk to an unenterable state, leaving her no way to get revenge.

"You should comfort her more when you have the chance. Don't let her brood alone," the man shook his head helplessly. "You two are the strongest fighters on our team. It's not a bad thing to get closer. Did you hear me, Wang Baihu?"

"Sure~~" the young man drawled lazily. "If I get kicked to death too, then there'll only be one fighter left on the team. Speaking of which, Honglian's abilities are top-tier, aren't they? Correcting a C-Class deviation should have been more than enough, but she ended up with a bloody head. Did something go wrong somewhere? Are there any wanderers that strong in our sector?"

"I don't know. The higher-ups are still investigating, but I doubt there will be any results soon," the man said with a serious expression. "This deviation was handled very promptly, but the fluctuations generated during the intrusion will still create a new batch of abnormal individuals. It could be a few, or it could be over a dozen. Accumulated over time, these people won't be a small number. And when the base number grows, wanderers will be born from them. So, your question isn't whether there are any, but how many."

The young man scratched his head. "According to the Doctor, this situation can't get any better, can it?"

"Yes, theoretically speaking, once people open this door, they can't close it again. But slow integration and drastic change are two different things. We can accept sacrifices, but it's best not to have countless sacrifices. Annihilation is even less desirable. That's the goal we're striving for," the man said. "Let's go back. We still have work to do tomorrow."