A Pawn's Passage

Not many people noticed the strange phenomenon occurring at the Princess Residence. First, the divine domain centered on death and fear was relatively concealed. Second, most people’s attention had been drawn to the great battle taking place above the Temple District.

At this moment, the sky above the Temple District seemed as though it had been set ablaze. The Feathered Serpent God was no longer coiled around the pyramid but had risen into the heavens. Its enormous body glided slowly through the air, casting a shadow that covered nearly half of the Temple District.

This was certainly not Kukulkan’s true body descending into the world, but even as a divine-descent incarnation, its divine might could not be underestimated.

Madam Wu was no easy opponent either. The fiery clouds in the sky gathered once more, but this time, what descended was not a rain of flames but massive clusters of heavenly fire. Although the Feathered Serpent God’s body was generally long and slender, its wings were broad and much easier targets. Madam Wu focused her attacks specifically on the wings.

The Feathered Serpent God did not simply wait to be destroyed. Its wings beat violently, unleashing countless raging winds that surged toward Madam Wu in a deadly assault.

Before seizing the divine authority of the Sun God, Kukulkan’s primary divine authority had been over wind. Even now, the power he wielded through the raging winds remained astonishingly formidable.

Qi Xuansu allowed Madam Wu to take full control of the body while he merely observed coldly. After all, his true body was still locked in fierce combat elsewhere. It was impossible for him to divide his attention and fight on two fronts simultaneously.

That did not mean Qi Xuansu was completely ignoring this side of the battle. He was actually quite curious why the Feathered Serpent God incarnation sent down by Kukulkan was not using the authority of the Sun God and had instead reverted to the authority of the Wind God. Fierce as the winds were, they could not compare to the power of the sun. After all, this was the Sun Temple. The symbols painted on the floor and hanging upon the walls were all suns, not feathered serpents.

In addition, Qi Xuansu noticed another issue. This Feathered Serpent God incarnation possessed very little intelligence.

All living gods faced the same problem. There were simply too many people praying to them, so merely listening to those countless voices all day was already unbearable, let alone responding to them. As a result, most gods created an avatar or duplicate. Such entities possessed neither emotions nor reason and merely responded to worshippers according to predetermined patterns, handling these matters automatically.

For example, True Lord Ziguang received requests for guidance from far more people than just Qi Xuansu. Unwilling to deal with them one by one, she established avatars within her divine kingdom. She personally received only important clients such as Qi Xuansu, while ordinary supplicants were handled by those avatars.

This was also why certain gods, despite having entered the slumber of the First Death, could still respond to their followers. Their divine kingdoms remained intact, and so did the avatars they had established.

The Feathered Serpent God currently gave Qi Xuansu exactly that impression. It possessed little intelligence or emotion and merely followed predetermined behavioral patterns, responding to various situations in a highly mechanical manner.

It was as if, after making his oath, Kukulkan had specifically created an avatar to protect the Tawantin royal family and then stopped caring about the matter himself. Whenever trouble arose, the avatar would immediately descend into the world, unconcerned with who the enemy was, whether they belonged to the Western Daoist Order or the Daoist Order itself. Its sole concern was fulfilling its assigned duty. Whatever the final outcome, the important thing was that the oath had been honored.

At that very moment, the Feathered Serpent God opened its mouth and unleashed a massive vortex of wind. It stretched across the heavens and spun directly toward Madam Wu.

Madam Wu transformed into human form, grasped the Seven Feather Five Fires Fan in her hand, and swung it with all her might.

Drawing upon the power of her immortal object body, Madam Wu forcibly deflected the wind pillar from its original course. It ultimately crashed into Ixchel’s temple, blasting away nearly half of the pyramid.

With Madam Wu controlling her own true body, she could naturally unleash its full power. The limitation that prevented Pseudo-Immortals from fully utilizing immortal objects simply did not apply to her.

With her temple destroyed, Ixchel showed no reaction whatsoever. She did not manifest in the mortal world to intervene in the battle, clearly indicating that she wished to stay out of it.

Madam Wu’s figure grew taller, while the Seven Feather Five Fires Fan, which was originally no larger than an ordinary feather fan, rapidly expanded. In the blink of an eye, it was taller than a person, like a war banner that required both hands to wield.

She then gripped the fan with both hands and swung it frantically.

The entire sky seemed to ignite. Heavenly fire rained down endlessly, while the flames themselves displayed myriad colors, each possessing its own mysterious properties and proving exceedingly difficult to defend against.

The Feathered Serpent God gradually contracted its body, coiling itself into a serpentine formation in midair. However, its wings remained fully spread. Amid the raging heavenly fire, it continuously generated powerful winds that merged with the fire, forming countless fiery tornadoes.

Fortunately, the battle was taking place within the Temple District, where there were virtually no civilians, only numerous temples. Otherwise, the casualties would have been catastrophic.

Like a true serpent, the Feathered Serpent God shot upward, charging directly toward Madam Wu, who was stirring up the heavenly fire. Its jaws opened wide as though it intended to swallow her whole.

In an instant, the Feathered Serpent God’s enormous body plunged into the vast sea of fiery clouds. Wherever it passed, the fire clouds parted before it.

Madam Wu was hardly one to sit and await death. Rather than allowing the Feathered Serpent God to devour her, she transformed into seven different divine birds that scattered in all directions, making it impossible to tell which one was her true form.

Meanwhile, at the exact moment, Qi Xuansu’s Daozi Sword pierced the assassin. The assassin had conjured his Spiritual Statue, which was colossal in size, yet still retained the appearance of a rotting corpse, so much so that Qi Xuansu almost thought he was looking at Master Wan.

The sword thrust that should have pierced the heart suddenly seemed insignificant.

The assassin reached out with one hand.

Around the spot where Qi Xuansu stood, five pillars of varying lengths erupted from the ground. These were five fingers.

A gigantic rotting hand rose from the earth, lifting Qi Xuansu onto its palm. Then the five fingers closed inward, seeking to crush him tightly within its grasp.

Qi Xuansu naturally had no intention of letting him succeed. He employed the Diviner’s Golden Light Leap, transforming into a streak of golden light and slipping through the gaps between the fingers, narrowly evading the grasp.

The assassin smoothly clenched his hand into a fist. Like a small mountain, it descended upon Qi Xuansu with a shrieking sound that tore through the air. Before the fist had even reached him, the corpse qi alone exerted considerable pressure on Qi Xuansu, no less oppressive than one of Master Wan’s punches.

This punch possessed enough force to shatter mountains and uproot peaks.

Qi Xuansu still refused to meet it head-on. Using the Golden Light Leap once more, he flashed away. The punch struck the ground, splitting the earth into countless ravines.

The assassin’s second punch arrived in the next instant. This time, Qi Xuansu did not evade. Instead, he once again condensed the Daozi Sword.

When the invisible sword met the giant fist, the Spiritual Statue staggered backward violently. Not only was its fist pierced through, but countless cracks spread across it. The entire arm even showed signs of collapsing.

The assassin spared no divine power. He immediately reformed the arm and launched another punch.

Halfway through its trajectory, the divine domain’s spatial advantage came into play. Ripples spread through the air, and a portal materialized out of nowhere. The fist plunged directly into it.

At the same time, an identical portal appeared above Qi Xuansu’s head. The assassin’s fist emerged from it and descended from the sky.

Qi Xuansu employed the Shadowless Spell. His body became insubstantial, as though he were merely an illusion. Thus, the fist passed through without affecting him in the slightest.

The giant fist slammed into the ground, creating a tremendous shockwave.

Green Cloud appeared in Qi Xuansu’s hand. Seizing the opportunity, Qi Xuansu shot toward the assassin like a horizontal bolt of lightning.

Green Cloud struck the assassin’s Spiritual Statue squarely before immediately retreating after a single hit.

The gigantic Spiritual Statue immediately extended a finger toward Qi Xuansu. However, halfway through the motion, it suddenly froze. Strange five-colored vapors appeared within the Spiritual Statue and spread rapidly, preventing the finger from completing its strike.

Then the Spiritual Statue began to crumble, revealing the assassin’s true body. Yet those same five-colored vapors still lingered upon him, coursing throughout his body. The Pseudo-Immortal assassin trembled uncontrollably and staggered backward. His divine domain became unstable.

Qi Xuansu’s cultivation was inferior to his opponent’s. At this time, he also did not have his immortal object and Corpse Liberation Incarnation. Defeating his adversary through conventional means was exceedingly difficult, leaving him no choice but to rely on certain external methods.

Back in the Lingshan Paradise, Madam Qi had taken away the Bone-Illuminating Mirror and given Qi Xuansu two items in exchange: a Buddha’s sarira and the Shebishi Venom.

Whether it was the Daozi Sword or any of his other techniques, they were merely distractions. The true killing move was the final strike of Green Cloud.

Without the Twin Sword Union, Qi Xuansu’s swordsmanship alone would not have been enough to injure his opponent. However, he had coated Green Cloud with Shebishi Venom. After all, Green Cloud was an immortal object that could not be corroded by the poison. But he certainly could not apply poison to Madam Wu or the Guizang Lantern because he simply could not think of a way for either of them to come into close contact with the enemy. Moreover, Madam Wu herself was unwilling.

In truth, Qi Xuansu had prepared this long ago. It was not specifically for dealing with this assassin, but rather as a precaution against unforeseen circumstances. That was why he had not used Green Cloud for a very long time.

Unlike the shadowy appearance of the Imitation Shebishi Venom, the genuine one displayed brilliant five-colored hues. Even immortals would find it extremely dangerous if afflicted by it.

Back when the Six Enlightened Witches turned against one another, the other five Great Witches poisoned Wu Yang with the Shebishi Venom, severely damaging the First-Tribulation Immortal’s cultivation and nearly costing her life. If even a Great Witch had suffered so greatly, a Pseudo-Immortal stood even less chance.

Although the assassin would not die immediately, his remaining days were limited, and throughout that time, his cultivation would be severely restricted.

Seizing the opportunity to strike while his enemy was weakened, Qi Xuansu immediately threw another punch that shook the void.

Meanwhile, above the Temple District, the Feathered Serpent God’s bite missed its target. The seven flaming divine birds merged once more into a single form, transforming into Madam Wu bearing Qi Xuansu’s appearance.

Just as Madam Wu was about to summon fire again, a sharp pain suddenly pierced her back. The tip of a sword emerged through her chest, scattering flames in every direction.

This sword strike truly arrived without a trace and departed without a trace. It had been launched at the precise moment Madam Wu revealed herself again. Even she had been unable to evade it.

Both Madam Wu and the observing Qi Xuansu lowered their heads to look at the section of blade protruding from her chest.

The person who had successfully ambushed Madam Wu did not hesitate in the slightest, withdrawing the sword and retreating immediately.

Sharing Madam Wu’s senses, Qi Xuansu immediately recognized the attacker.

It was none other than Long Yazi.

After creating some distance, Long Yazi frowned as he stared at the wound on Madam Wu’s body, clearly perplexed.

No blood flowed from the wound. Instead, what leaked out was flame so dense it was nearly solid. Within the wound, there were no internal organs, only five differently colored flames circulating endlessly.

Long Yazi had believed he had learned from the failure of his previous assassination attempt. But he had never anticipated such a situation. “This is a divine-descent incarnation?!”