Keeping Death at Bay
"I can't kill cultivators of this level even with my spiritwood staff!"
Holding the spirit wood staff in his right hand, Zhang Xuezhou looked at the Dao Lord who was being carried away by the Nine Spirits Primal Sage, and his feelings were hard to describe.
As Zhang Xuezhou's ultimate technique in the Sole Self Realm, the Spirit Wood Staff was highly anticipated by Zhang Xuezhou.
Zhang Xuezhou initially wanted to destroy the remnant soul of the spirit wood staff so that he could take control of the staff himself. However, he eventually changed his method of nurturing it because of the effects shown by the remnant soul.
When the ancient tree showed goodwill towards the spiritwood staff, the staff was almost completely transformed, even gaining the ability to protect itself like a divine weapon.
Although the nurturing technique is still at the seventh level, the power of the spiritwood staff has already reached the best level that Zhang Xuezhou had imagined.
Defeating Zhufu Yan and Wei Shao'er was nothing; Zhang Xuezhou's real target was always Donghua.
Zhang Xuezhou only came to a conclusion after actually trying the product.
His combination with the spiritwood staff did indeed possess immense power, but this power could only threaten Daojun and the others, not kill them.
The instantaneous counterattack wasn't just Zhang Xuezhou's doing; the new emperor, who was being carried by Zhang Xuezhou and was now limp and powerless, also made a move. The opponent's flying sword transformed into a blood dragon, and this power attracted most of the Dao Lord's attention, allowing Zhang Xuezhou to successfully launch a sneak attack.
As the pilot who assisted the new emperor in killing Dao Jun Yang Po, who was transformed into the Sky Shuttle, Zhang Xuezhou was also given special attention by Dao Jun.
He touched his forehead; the icy chill of the throwing knife still lingered there.
Within his sea of consciousness, a red light flashed, almost cleaving it in two.
Tian Fen's belated screams were not feigned; the pain of having his spirit torn apart was indeed unbearable.
"Mother... Mother Empress!"
Cheng Bushi blocked Dao Jun's flying knife for Zhang Xuezhou, but the unreliable Tian Fen was clearly not capable enough to block a knife for the new emperor.
Only when the new emperor spoke in a low voice did Zhang Xuezhou realize that the Empress Dowager, who had been riding a horse, had collapsed to the ground, with a large pool of blood flowing down her back.
Behind the crown on the Empress Dowager's head, a thin incision appeared, from which fresh blood occasionally oozed.
This attack pierced through the center of the forehead, through the skull, and then through the standard Law Treasure crown, even striking Tian Fen, who was piloting the Imperial Shuttle behind him.
The throwing knife aimed at Tian Fen fell to an unknown location, but after destroying the shield, it Cheng Bushi Bushi's finger. The knife, which Cheng Bushi barely dodged, could not penetrate Zhang Xuezhou's body and finally landed on Zhang Xuezhou's clothes.
This is a very, very thin blade, as thin as a transparent cicada's wing.
However, this kind of knife is incredibly powerful, even sharper than the Fish Intestine Sword, and possesses the violence to sever one's Divine Sense.
Even if the physical body reaches sainthood and blocks the sharpness of the blade, the impact of cutting through the Divine Sense is enough to kill a cultivator.
If Daojun hadn't been aiming for a fatal blow, thus diverting their attack power, or if Zhang Xuezhou and the new emperor hadn't separated, Zhang Xuezhou felt he had a certain probability of dying.
Zhang Xuezhou speculated that this was his fate, and he was quite pessimistic about the Empress Dowager's end.
Cheng Bushi was able to block because the opponent was always holding a large shield, so he didn't need to consider where Dao Jun's flying knife would come from. He only needed to block the direction of Dao Jun to have a high probability of blocking the knife.
Although it is unclear what exactly the Empress Dowager saw through that led to her resistance, it is clear that understanding one thing is not enough; the ability to resist requires real skill.
"The Empress Dowager needs to be kept alive!"
Zhang Xuezhou's lips trembled slightly as he whispered.
He tilted his head slightly, loosened his grip on the new emperor's horse with his left hand, and then leaped onto Gongsun Hong's mount.
"I'll retrieve my Sky Shuttle, and I'll fly again... to the heavens, shoulder to shoulder with the sun... I am the sun... I am the moon..."
Tian Fen, mumbled something under his breath, Cheng Bushi tilted his head and began to ramble incoherently.
"Zhu Jiuyin is dead, Daojun is dead, Nine Spirits is fleeing in panic, army, charge!"
High in the sky, Li Shaojun rode the waves and shouted, as a flaming arrow shot into the air, exploding into sparks.
Cheng Bushi rode his magnificent steed at full speed, Cheng Bushi intention of giving chase.
This ambush has been fraught with twists and turns.
From the initial confidence when making the arrangements, to the hasty actions when the situation reversed, and then to the various shortcomings when the battle came to a head, everything was a mess.
If the new emperor hadn't rushed from Chang'an City, the outcome of this ambush would have been far worse.
There was no overwhelming force, no rain of arrows covering the powerful cultivators of the Xiong State, no true forms of the cultivators from the Yedie River Holy Land revealed, no great demons from the Nine Spirits Holy Land coveting the poisoned meat from Mayi City, no flocks of scouting demonic birds being shot dead, and no one carrying Mayi City's valuables.
All the calculations failed; only the close combat was real.
They were panting heavily from their journey, as were the Xiong State's assault troops. Neither side was in good condition, and they fought to a standstill.
The real cause of the imbalance was the appearance of the three Sacred Land Lords, whose simultaneous appearance was unexpected.
Before they had even laid off any of the opponent's subordinates, all of these key figures were present at the scene.
Even though Li Shaojun was involved with Nine Spirits Primal Sage, no one could directly confront Zhu Jiuyin, let alone restrain Daojun.
"If only His Majesty could have a few more years!"
Thinking of Daojun who was repelled by a single sword strike, Cheng Bushi felt that the ambush in Mayi was too early and that the Empress Dowager was too hasty.
If we had waited a little longer, things might have been different.
A top-tier, battle-hardened emperor has a very strong balancing effect, forcing these Sacred Land lords to back down or even lie low and not dare to show their faces, out of consideration for their own interests.
Even if Cheng Bushi lift the shield by then, he felt the outcome might still be better.
"His Majesty!"
Only when a pill radiating a divine light was handed to him did Cheng Bushi stop his resentment.
"If your body can't take it, take it yourself; if it can, give it to Dongfang Shuo Tian Fen. I have some pills here, enough for everyone, so don't worry about running out!"
The new emperor's rapid commands rang out, Cheng Bushi quickly stuffed the pill into his mouth.
He said he could hold on if he couldn't, but he lacked the strength to protect everyone if he said he could.
Although the name of the pill given by the new emperor could not be identified, a top-grade pill that could emit a divine light could not be of poor quality.
After taking a pill, Cheng Bushi felt his weakened Qi and Blood instantly revive. Even his severed finger stopped bleeding, and Cheng Bushi even felt that the blood could be drawn back onto it with just a touch.
Only after taking the pill did Cheng Bushi feel that his body had completely stabilized.
If unexpected battles occur, Cheng Bushi believes he will have no problem performing at his normal level.
He steadied himself and waited for more than ten seconds, and then another pill appeared in his hand.
Cheng Bushi stuff the medicine into Tian Fen's mouth, he suddenly remembered the new emperor's instructions regarding the order in which the medicine should be taken.
He felt a slight tremor in his heart, and quickly changed the direction of the pill he was about to hand out, stuffing it into the mouth of the scoundrel who had used him as a shield.