Are You Okay?

Anyone capable of serving as a branch master is absolutely a fanatic!

Furthermore, the evil gods and Demon Gods have been able to infiltrate the entire Xia Clan for long ages, and to this day, they have not been completely eradicated because they possess many formidable methods. Things like Demon God oaths and even space-time contracts... these various means completely control the core elites among their believers! They obey completely while alive, and even after death, their souls travel to where the Demon God resides to follow them forever!

"Not good." Dongbo Xueying's expression changed as he looked at Lu Huairu in the distance, whose face was filled with hysterical madness.

"BOOM!!!"

The massive floor of the great hall surged violently, followed by a thunderous explosion! The pillars within the hall collapsed one by one, or were shattered by the impact.

Yu Jingqiu and Si Borong, hiding in the corner of the hall, both had their expressions change drastically.

"Condense, condense, condense."

Yu Jingqiu had no time to cast any powerful spells and could only instantly cast weaker ones. The Ice Armor on her body was already the strongest defense she could manifest, capable of holding off a Silver Moon Knight's attack for a short while. As she cast her spells instantly... sheets of ice appeared before her, tilted at an angle, and Yu Jingqiu hid behind this slanted ice surface.

Clearly, she hoped to deflect as much of the terrifying impact force as possible through the slanted ice, but the destructive momentum of the entire hall exploding left her feeling terrified. Could she withstand it?

"No, I cannot die, I cannot die." Si Borong's eyes were also filled with fear. He instantly crouched down to hide behind the slanted ice, and upon seeing Yu Jingqiu completely encased in her Ice Armor, a cold glint flashed in his eyes. He grabbed one of Yu Jingqiu's arms and pulled her directly in front of him.

The defense of a Silver Moon Rank mage could deflect a great deal of force.

"Si Borong!" Yu Jingqiu's eyes were filled with shock and fury.

"Jingqiu, just sacrifice yourself for me; I will take good care of your Yu family." Si Borong hid completely behind Yu Jingqiu, using her as a shield. The Ice Armor had an automatic force-deflection effect; otherwise, a single strike from a knight transmitted through the armor would have killed a mage. It was precisely because the Ice Armor automatically deflected the impact force that Si Borong considered Yu Jingqiu the perfect shield.

With Yu Jingqiu blocking in front, his chances of survival increased greatly. As for whether Yu Jingqiu lived or died? He couldn't care less.

Although he had always pursued Yu Jingqiu, it was only because of her strength and beauty. Faced with life and death, he naturally valued his own life more; he hadn't lived enough yet.

"Damn it, damn it, Si Borong!!!" Yu Jingqiu was shocked and furious. Originally, she had been crouching at the very bottom of the slanted ice with her arms shielding her face, but now that she was being grabbed, her arms could hardly protect her, and the probability of death increased significantly.

She was enraged.

But as a mage, how could she break free? The strength of a Silver Moon Knight was simply too great.

To not have died at the hands of that terrifying Divine Envoy, only to die in the end because of Si Borong, would be too unjust.

"Not good."

Dongbo Xueying instantly sensed the ground surging and beginning to explode. He immediately moved his mind, and a black square shield appeared in his left hand—this was one of the items from the Divine Envoy's two storage rings.

Spear in his right hand, shield in his left.

Whoosh!

Dongbo Xueying moved as fast as lightning, charging toward the distance. At this moment, he had instantly fully triggered his Strength Bloodline, and a faint blood-red aura swirled around his body. His speed soared to a terrifying degree. As he darted forward, the floor of the hall exploded, and a massive amount of stone flew everywhere! The stones, large and small, were all moving at extreme speeds with astonishing impact force.

Clang, clang, clang. His left-hand shield blocked some of the stones in succession, while the Flying Snow Divine Spear lashed out, striking large boulders and the collapsing walls and massive stone pillars, allowing him to dodge as much as possible.

Amidst the explosion...

In almost an instant, Dongbo Xueying reached Yu Jingqiu and Si Borong, who were hiding behind the slanted ice over a hundred meters away. Although he had a shield in one hand and the Flying Snow Divine Spear in the other, his body was still struck by some stones. After all, the power of the explosion was omnipresent and dense; to arrive as quickly as possible, he had no choice but to use his body to withstand some of it.

However, as a peak Title-level expert with an activated Strength Bloodline and Dou Qi protecting his body, even if he took the full force of the explosion, he would at most be heavily injured. With only a few stones from the explosion hitting him, they merely shattered his protective Dou Qi and tore small holes in his rather durable clothing, but ultimately, Dongbo Xueying's greatest strength was his own physique.

His body easily withstood the impact.

"This Si Borong!" As Dongbo Xueying rushed over and saw that Si Borong was actually using Yu Jingqiu as a shield, a cold glint flashed in his eyes. "How shameless!"

"Get lost!"

Dongbo Xueying grabbed Yu Jingqiu with one hand while simultaneously kicking Si Borong's body. Si Borong's eyes were still filled with astonishment.

Bang!

How fierce was the power of Dongbo Xueying's kick? Si Borong was instantly sent flying backward, his body curled up, and a mouthful of blood sprayed from his mouth! Although he had been holding Yu Jingqiu's arm, the Ice Armor automatically deflected the pulling force, causing Yu Jingqiu no harm at all.

Yu Jingqiu stared wide-eyed at Dongbo Xueying.

Dongbo Xueying, however, did not hesitate for a second; he instantly put away the Flying Snow Divine Spear, hugged Yu Jingqiu to his chest with one arm, and used the large square shield he had chosen to block the rear, resisting the shock of the explosion.

Yu Jingqiu had originally been grabbed by Si Borong to serve as a shield, and as the explosion struck, she had already fallen into despair.

Suddenly, the figure of a black-clad youth in the distance traversed the explosion zone at a terrifying speed. His speed created a trail of afterimages; in Yu Jingqiu's eyes, a multitude of Dongbo Xueying's shadows appeared. Dongbo Xueying held a shield in one hand and the Flying Snow Divine Spear in the other, his gaze remaining calm and sharp, without a hint of panic.

The exploding boulders, stone pillars, and countless flying stones could not stop him.

At this moment—

Yu Jingqiu felt as if there was light radiating from Dongbo Xueying! He was like a magnificent hero.

At this moment, her heart was stirred beyond measure.

Bang.

He kicked Si Borong away, instantly grabbed her with one hand, pressed her close, and used his entire chest to protect her. Pressed against Dongbo Xueying's chest—even with a layer of Ice Armor in between—Yu Jingqiu suddenly felt very safe, as if she were in her father's arms when she was a child.

Dongbo Xueying, meanwhile, could not spare a thought for anything else, keeping the shield held firmly to the rear!

"Rumble~~~"

Countless surging stones crashed in all directions. Because the great hall was completely enclosed, the impact force of the explosion continued to reverberate within. The mountain rock above collapsed, the surrounding walls of the hall crumbled, and countless stones, large and small, crushed and impacted everything crazily. "No!" With a shrill scream, Si Borong, who had been desperately trying to defend himself with a shield, was instantly sent tumbling by the impact. He was then struck by a massive amount of stone; his protective Dou Qi shattered, and his body, being even more fragile, instantly suffered numerous wounds. His head was struck more than a dozen times in rapid succession, and his vision went black as he perished instantly.

In such a confined explosion, it was too difficult to survive; only a Title-level expert would likely have the confidence to do so.

"Hmph." Dongbo Xueying crouched halfway, his body pressing over Yu Jingqiu to shield her completely beneath him. His left hand was driven deep into the ground, while his shield was angled to deflect the force.

"Rumble—"

Countless impacts crushed down upon them. The icy slope collapsed in an instant, and a deluge of stones slammed into the shield, with some even striking Dongbo Xueying's feet.

"Hmph!" With his left hand clawing deep into the earth to anchor himself and his right hand straining to hold the shield, he unleashed his strength, successfully weathering the onslaught.

Safe beneath his protection, Yu Jingqiu remained unaffected. She kept her head lowered, seeing only Dongbo Xueying's powerful hand gripped tightly into the ground beside her.

Looking at that strong hand, Yu Jingqiu felt a sense of profound peace.

"Watch out!" Suddenly, an urgent voice rang out.

Rumble—

The entire great hall collapsed, and the massive stones from above came crashing down.

Dongbo Xueying immediately curled his body to fully shroud and protect Yu Jingqiu, while simultaneously positioning the shield directly overhead. Rumble—countless stones rained down as the hall disintegrated completely. In an instant, Dongbo Xueying and Yu Jingqiu were buried beneath several meters of rubble.

Gradually, the outside fell silent.

The shield remained overhead.

Dongbo Xueying and Yu Jingqiu were both trapped beneath, the sounds of the collapse fading away into the surrounding pitch-black darkness.

"Hmph." Dongbo Xueying's brow furrowed slightly. His right leg was pinned, but given his formidable physique, it was nothing more than a superficial wound.

"Are you... are you alright?" Yu Jingqiu asked, her voice laced with concern upon hearing him.

"I'm fine." Dongbo Xueying's voice remained calm. His right arm held the shield, bracing against the weight of the stones above—a load likely totaling thirty or forty thousand jin. "Wait a moment, I will break through this rubble and we can get out."