Ended

"Damn it!" Mulberry King cursed. He had no time to worry about anything else. Li Xianling had personally entered the fray, and he had to be careful. One moment of carelessness, and Li Xianling might cut him down.

The other True Kings were just as frustrated. They'd had the enemy right where they wanted them, so how had things suddenly turned around? Why was their side the one collapsing first? Aside from calling their subordinates useless, they had no idea what to do.

By now, Zhang Tao and Xie Zhaoyang had returned to the Rank 7 battlefield. After setting Xu Yingcang down to one side, Xie Zhaoyang said, "Move out! Let's clear the Rank 7 battlefield first!"

Zhang Tao had no objections. Though Xu Yingcang was nothing but bones now, he'd recovered a little along the way and should be able to protect himself. Besides, all the Rank 7 fighters here were already tied up. As long as Xu Yingcang didn't do anything reckless, he'd probably be fine.

The moment the two joined the fight, the Rank 7 battlefield erupted into chaos.

When Zhang Tao reached Li Zhen, he burst out laughing. "Hahaha! Li Laoer, how'd you end up in such a state?"

Li Zhen had been hacked down to nothing but bones and was in a truly sorry state. If not for the Grandmaster guarding him, it was hard to say what would have happened.

Hearing Zhang Tao's taunt, Li Zhen didn't even want to answer. He'd let his guard down earlier and been caught in the blast when a Rank 7 fighter self-destructed. Most of his flesh had been destroyed by the explosion.

Of course, surviving the self-destruction of a late-stage Rank 7 fighter when he'd only just reached Rank 7 was an incredible feat in itself. Even the veteran Grandmaster who'd been fighting that Rank 7 fighter hadn't survived.

"How are things over there, Zhang Tao?" the Grandmaster beside Li Zhen asked at once. Zhang Tao and Xie Zhaoyang had gone to the Rank 8 battlefield, and there had been several huge explosions since. They had no idea what was happening over there.

One thing was certain: the battle must have been perilous and brutal.

"It's fine. We should win this battle. For the next decade or so, they probably won't have the strength to launch another high-ranked war!" Zhang Tao said confidently. He rushed forward and slashed the Catacombs Rank 7 fighter who was still battling the Grandmaster.

The Rank 7 fighter leaped backward. The moment he saw Zhang Tao, he decided to flee. There was no helping it: Zhang Tao had returned from the Rank 8 battlefield, so things on their side must have gone badly.

Besides, it was only a matter of time before the Rank 7 battlefield collapsed. He'd worked hard to reach Rank 7 and didn't want to die here, so he immediately turned and flew away.

Zhang Tao didn't try to finish him off or give chase. The priority was to settle the Rank 7 battlefield. Humanity couldn't afford to lose any more Grandmasters.

When Zhang Tao joined the fighting elsewhere, the Catacombs Rank 7 fighters saw that some of their own had already fled. They stopped holding out and scattered, and the Rank 7 battlefield was finally cleared.

Even so, humanity had lost more than ten Rank 7 fighters. That showed just how brutal the Catacombs wars were.

"Everyone, follow me to the Rank 8 battlefield!" Xie Zhaoyang shouted. With the Rank 7 battlefield collapsing, it was time to help the Rank 8 fighters. If one person couldn't beat an opponent, surely three or five could? And even if they couldn't win, couldn't they at least keep the enemy occupied?

With that, Xie Zhaoyang led everyone toward the Rank 8 battlefield. But before they reached it, the Rank 8 fighters had already broken ranks.

With the God-Slaying Blade in hand, Wang Zanghai was unstoppable, cutting down anyone in his path. To top it off, a True King had sent word that the Rank 7 battlefield had collapsed. Once the large force of Rank 7 fighters arrived, they would have to retreat anyway. So before Xie Zhaoyang and Zhang Tao even got there, the Rank 8 fighters had already withdrawn.

"This time, you got lucky!" Mulberry King grumbled before running off.

Chrysanthemum King sighed. Even with six cities joining forces, they hadn't destroyed the Land of Rebirth. Instead, they'd been driven into retreat. Chrysanthemum King had finally given up hope. Chrysanthemum King City had suffered heavy losses this time, and he could only return to recover.

And just like that, the war was over.

In Kyoto City, they tallied their losses. Though they had won a great victory, humanity had suffered heavy casualties too. They didn't even count the low-ranked fighters—too many had died. Among the high-ranked fighters, twelve Rank 7s had fallen, and they'd lost ten Rank 8s. Humanity's reserves had been greatly depleted by this battle.

But in return, they'd gained more than a decade of peace in the Kyoto Catacombs. It was a worthwhile trade.

After all, Li Xianling had been prepared to seal off Kyoto City this time.

Zhang Tao had been the one to turn the tide of the battle. Li Xianling called him forward and said, "Zhang Tao, you've rendered great service this time. We wouldn't have won without you, so I plan to promote you to vice head of the Culture Academy. Does anyone object?"

The other Grandmasters all shook their heads. As if anyone would object! Zhang Tao had performed brilliantly, and with his talent, it was only a matter of time before he became a leader. What's more, he'd routed the Catacombs forces despite only just reaching Rank 7, provided a Divine Artifact, and helped free up the Rank 8 battlefield. He deserved the greatest credit for this battle.

Many of the other Grandmasters owed Zhang Tao a debt of gratitude too. This battle had won him the full recognition of Kyoto's Grandmasters. Their approval meant that Zhang Tao had truly entered Kyoto's upper ranks.

Li Xianling's move also paved the way for Zhang Tao to succeed him someday, because he genuinely believed in Zhang Tao.

Zhang Tao wasn't needed for the remaining cleanup. The moment he stepped outside, Wang Zanghai grabbed him.

"Zhang Tao, what's the story with that blade of yours? Where'd you get it?" Wang Zanghai asked in a hushed, secretive manner, his eyes darting now and then toward Zhang Tao's waist. It was obvious he had his eye on the blade.

"Senior Wang, don't even think about it. There's only one of those," Zhang Tao said with a laugh. The Divine Artifact had come from Cat. It wasn't something just anyone could wield. Cat's things weren't easy to take—unless you had a tough enough life, you really couldn't handle them.

Wang Zanghai gave an awkward grin. He felt that with that blade in hand, he'd be invincible among Rank 8s. He might even be able to fight a Rank 9. Too bad he could only dream about it.

"You brat. Fine, but remember me if you come across anything good in the future. I, old Wang, am on your side." Wang Zanghai shook his head and left.

Zhang Tao wandered around Kyoto City and spotted the injured Nan Yunyue. But he didn't see Li Zhen, so he asked curiously, "Where's Li Laoer?"

After all, Li Zhen hadn't been at the meeting just now.

"They took him away. By the way, I've reached Rank 6. You said you'd help me speed up my cultivation once I did!" Nan Yunyue ignored her injuries and grabbed Zhang Tao's hand. There was no helping it. Zhang Tao was already in the mid-stage of Rank 7 after breaking through in the middle of battle, and he'd advanced far too quickly. Nan Yunyue couldn't afford to worry about appearances anymore.