From Cold Palace Princess to Heavenly Empress

"It's time to send you on your way."

After a period of back-and-forth, the tiger demon realized this human girl seemed to be toying with it. She wasn't using Spiritual Power to attack, but instead relied on pure evasion, parries, and thrusts, striking it with these ineffective methods. This made the demon agitated and angry, wanting to quickly devour the girl and end this meaningless fight.

Thus, the human and the tiger, without any prior agreement, both decided to unleash their final killing moves to end this rather prolonged battle.

Suddenly.

Xiao Minghuang hovered in the air, her arms hanging naturally. The hand holding the saber seemed weak, yet an invisible vortex trembled throughout her entire body, stirring the surrounding spiritual energy into unrest!

What is she doing?!

A sense of unease, unprecedented since its birth, washed over the tiger demon. A fear it had never experienced before suddenly struck.

Driven by this indescribable unease, the tiger demon exerted all its strength, leaping forward and opening its massive maw to tear at Xiao Minghuang!

It was at this very moment.

High above in the boundless firmament, starlight seemed to flash in the daytime, connecting the immortal stars to the peerless maiden on the ground.

Then, it was seen.

Feeling the immense boost from the Power of Stars, Xiao Minghuang held her breath and focused. This wasn't the first time she had unleashed this Spiritual Power; there was no hesitation. She suddenly swung the Long Saber in her hand, unleashing a golden saber light. Amidst its boundless brilliance, it carried boundless killing intent, like a harbinger of death descending from the vast starry sky, its deathly starlight scattering outwards!

In that instant, the rising blood mist, the surging spiritual energy, the roars of ferocious beasts, the shouts of warriors – nothing could compare to the dazzling, piercing, and brilliant light of this saber strike!

The golden saber light slashed horizontally, like a star that had burned for an unknown, immense age exploding, sweeping through the void and cutting the tiger demon in half mid-torso!

This sudden strike drew the attention of everyone present.

Every one of them widened their eyes, feeling the boundless glory and splendor of this saber strike, as if witnessing the creation of heaven and earth, the formation of stars, and the birth of worlds. It was as if they saw the myriad stars in the sky, eternal and solitary.

A moment of sorrow swept through everyone's hearts, but it vanished as quickly as it came, forgotten in the next instant.

They only saw.

The tiger demon, a mere Qi Refining Realm cultivator, was cut in half by the Ninth Princess's brilliant saber strike, bleeding profusely and killed on the spot!

Among the soldiers present, some had followed Xiao Minghuang to the Spirit Vein competition and personally witnessed the Ninth Princess unleash a full-power strike that annihilated a peak Spring Gushing Realm expert with a single sword. Seeing this saber strike, as brilliant as starlight, they were no less astonished than anyone else.

Because.

This saber strike was even stronger than that one!

They understood that no one present.

Or rather.

Anyone in the world.

Would dare to face this saber strike, which was like a falling star.

To be able to gaze upon the brilliance of starlight was the greatest honor of their lives!

63. Assassination, Seeking Death!

Dark clouds pressed down, the setting sun bled like blood. Amidst the bloody battlefield littered with corpses and severed limbs, that figure clad in bright yellow stood out exceptionally.

The maiden floated in the air, her skin like snow, her black hair like a waterfall. Her robes were as clean as new, starkly contrasting with the blood-soaked, muddy battlefield, like a celestial fairy who had descended to the mortal realm.

Xiao Minghuang landed back on the ground, sheathed her saber, and immediately took a pill. Feeling her spiritual energy gradually recover, she let out a long sigh of relief.

Killing the tiger demon had severely depleted her energy, leaving her spiritual power almost completely exhausted. She needed a large supply of Spirit Stones and pills to replenish it.

"With my current strength, I can even contend with a true disciple of the sect at the second level of the Spring Gushing Realm."

Xiao Minghuang mused. True disciples of the sect were entirely different from those whose realms were as unstable as the Old Man in Yellow, and their strength was worlds apart.

Although she could defeat the Old Man in Yellow at the peak of the Spring Gushing Realm, she would undoubtedly lose against a true disciple of the sect at the same level.

Xiao Minghuang took a deep breath, her gaze sweeping across the battlefield.

After nearly a full day of fierce fighting, the sea-like Beast Tide had been largely killed or driven back. Lin Zhengquan was now leading the soldiers of Beiyang City in clearing out the remaining ferocious beasts.

From afar, she saw Lin Wanqiu moving with her sword, like a butterfly flitting through flowers, galloping among the beast horde. Sword Qi crisscrossed the air, and spiritual energy surged. Each swing of her sword could kill a Body Tempering Realm ferocious beast.

While this was partly due to the influence of the Azure Shadow Sword, a Profound-tier magical artifact, it was inseparable from Lin Wanqiu's own formidable strength.

If someone else wielded this sword, they likely couldn't unleash such power.

On the battlefield, Lin Wanqiu's expression was stern, her jade-like skin stained with blood, giving her a unique kind of beauty.

"After this battle, Wanqiu's strength should improve significantly."

Xiao Minghuang's lips curved slightly, a hint of a smile in her eyes. Relieved, she then strode towards the corpse of the Silver Light Giant Elephant.

The nearly hundred-zhang long corpse of the Silver Light Giant Elephant lay sprawled on the ground like a mountain. Its pale golden blood had almost formed a river, and vast areas of rock had shattered, crushing the earth for hundreds of zhang around.

Even Xiao Minghuang showed a flicker of astonishment at the earth-shattering scene.

"A Spring Gushing Realm ferocious beast is already this powerful. What terrifying existences would Divine Sea Realm, Spirit Seed Realm, or even Primal Embryo Realm beasts be?"

Xiao Minghuang did not know.

She collected her thoughts, focused her mind, and leaped up. She crossed the gently flowing pale golden river of blood and landed directly on the giant elephant's corpse.

"With such a massive body, I don't know how the Divine Elephant Seed will be extracted. But these tusks are quite good. I can cut them off first; perhaps they can be used in medicine or to forge magical treasures."

Xiao Minghuang pondered, then her figure flashed. Her Long Saber appeared in her hand, and she arrived before the giant elephant.

Compared to the elephant corpse, which was nearly a hundred feet tall, her figure was truly minuscule.

But size often couldn't determine victory or defeat.

Just then.

A golden light flashed in Xiao Minghuang's hand, and a sword shadow several dozen feet long condensed. It followed the base of the elephant's tusks and, as if slicing through melons and vegetables, chopped them off.

Rumble!

The tusks, dozens of feet long, slammed onto the ground. They gouged out a deep trench and nearly embedded themselves in the earth.

After chopping off the tusks, Xiao Minghuang glanced at the elephant corpse again. After a moment of thought, she muttered to herself, "Forget it. Whether it's the elephant corpse or the tusks, they're too massive. It'll be too inconvenient for me to carry them alone. I'll wait until City Lord Lin eliminates the Beast Tide and have the Guards transport them away!"

With that thought.

Xiao Minghuang no longer lingered. She put away her Long Saber and prepared to fly off the elephant corpse.

Suddenly.

She felt a surge of danger, as if she would die on the spot in the next moment.

But the surroundings were calm. The Beast Tide had been largely cleared, and Lin Zhengquan was rushing towards her with a few personal guards.

However, Xiao Minghuang had always been cautious. Without showing any reaction, she took out a protective talisman from her storage bag. It could block a full-power strike from a warrior at the peak of the Spring Gushing Realm.

It was at this moment.

An unexpected change occurred!

Just then.

A speck of bloody, cold light broke through the flesh and blood of the giant elephant corpse and shot out, carrying a powerful killing intent that seemed capable of piercing the void and reaching the deepest abyss!

"As expected!"

Xiao Minghuang held her breath and concentrated, reacting with lightning speed. She immediately crushed the talisman, and a hazy divine light emerged, forming a pale green barrier that enveloped her entire body, wrapping her tightly.

The barrier was fiercely struck by the bloody, cold light. After only a moment, countless fine cracks appeared, sputtering with colorful light and rippling with divine energy, as if it were about to shatter.

The bloody, cold light suddenly erupted with countless terrifying red beams, instantly shattering the barrier and heading straight for Xiao Minghuang's chest.

"A talisman for the peak Spring Gushing Realm couldn't even block this cold light. This person is likely a Divine Sea Realm expert. Who wants to harm me?!"

Xiao Minghuang's expression darkened, and she reacted immediately.

She rapidly turned her body, pushing her speed to its limit. But at this moment, she suddenly sensed a faint killing intent from another direction, completely different from the assassin hidden within the elephant corpse.

"Something's wrong! There's another assassin!"

In a flash.

Her thoughts raced, and she made a decision. Instead of continuing to move, she stopped, gritted her teeth, turned her body, and faced the cold light head-on.

In an instant.

Just then.

A speck of cold light, like lightning, pierced through Xiao Minghuang's chest. Fresh blood sprayed out, dyeing her bright yellow dress crimson.

After being hit by the cold light, Xiao Minghuang's aura plummeted drastically. Like a kite with a broken string, she fell from mid-air to the ground, landing in a river of blood and splashing large waves of it.

All of this happened too quickly for anyone to react.

They only saw the Ninth Princess, who had been standing in the air, suddenly become extremely weak and fall from the sky.

Ye Ruoshui, standing on the city wall, saw this scene and her mind went blank. It felt as if her chest had been struck hard by a hammer. She mechanically ran down the city wall, her gaze fixed on the blood-stained figure in yellow. She tried to call out, but no sound came out.

As Xiao Minghuang disappeared from her sight, Ye Ruoshui staggered and knelt heavily, collapsing to the ground.

She crawled a few steps, then struggled to get up, dragging her numb body and stumbling towards where Xiao Minghuang had fallen. She didn't even hear the shouts of the people around her.

Only she knew how important Xiao Minghuang was to her.

More than heaven, more than earth, more than anything.

She couldn't think of anything now, her mind was blank, with only one thought screaming in her heart: Find her! Find her!

It was at this moment.

A furious roar suddenly erupted from the void!

"You're courting death!"

Accompanying the roar, a faint light appeared in the void, rippling outward. An ancient figure suddenly materialized.

The sudden appearance of the figure from the void startled everyone present.

The old man wore a black robe, his hair was white, and he had no beard. He was like an abyss, like the sea, exuding boundless rage that suppressed all the warriors within hundreds of feet, making them unable to lift their heads.

He gently waved his hand, and a giant black palm formed from the void, hundreds of feet tall, as if supporting the heavens and covering the earth. It fiercely slapped down onto an empty space not far from the elephant corpse.

Where the black palm landed, a figure in black robes appeared out of thin air. His face was filled with despair as he waved his arms, shooting out several bloody cold lights. They struck the giant hand but were like eggs hitting a rock, unable to make even a ripple.

The hundreds of feet tall black palm slammed down heavily. The ground caved in, rocks and vegetation turned to dust, shaking the heavens and the earth. A deafening roar echoed, shocking everything for over a hundred miles!

This palm strike was devastating, smashing a bottomless pit into the earth, from which no trace of life emanated.

The figure in the black robe turned to ash, gone forever!

Witnessing all this, the onlookers' pupils were filled with shock.

"What just happened?"

"The Ninth Princess is injured? Who did it?"

"Who is this senior? Did he kill the assassin who attacked the Ninth Princess?"

64. Who was the Assassin?

The mysterious powerhouse who suddenly appeared was Wang Jin, who had been secretly protecting Xiao Minghuang all along.

The assassin from before had been hidden within the corpse of the giant elephant, completely concealing their presence. He had been momentarily careless and made a grave mistake.

His face filled with grief and indignation, he flashed to Xiao Minghuang's side, pulling the young girl's body from the river of blood and bringing her to a clean boulder nearby.

At this moment, the Ninth Princess Xiao Minghuang was no longer the noble and ethereal figure she had been before.

The young girl was covered in blood, her skin as white as snow now seemed coated in a layer of red mud, reeking of blood, her breath exceedingly weak, hanging by a thread.

"Your Highness!"

A mournful cry suddenly came from afar. Ye Ruoshui rushed over, abruptly kneeling before Xiao Minghuang and snatching her away.

At this time, the soldiers of Beiyang City also discovered that Xiao Minghuang had been assassinated. They all sped over, forming a human wall that completely surrounded the area.