Divine Emperor Demon Emperor

Chapter 643: Chapter 642: The Death of Lin Jianhong

Lin Yun and the others successfully escaped Divine Celestial City. Riding their Black-striped Tigers, the group sped toward Demon City.

Meanwhile, Qing Zhu had also reached the site of Lin Jianhong and Song Tianyang’s bloody battle. As she arrived and took in the sight, her expression remained unchanged, but only she knew how furious she truly was.

The Sixth Commander and the Seventh Commander were both lying in pools of blood, and so were their subordinates—over a hundred Divine Palace Warriors.

The only person still standing was Song Tianyang. As for Lin Jianhong, he had already fallen before him.

Without a word, Qing Zhu slowly descended before Song Tianyang. Looking at Lin Jianhong’s body, she knew he was dead.

Song Tianyang had emerged the victor of their bloody battle, but his condition was just as dire. Lin Jianhong’s longsword was still embedded in his abdomen.

After glancing at Lin Jianhong’s body, Qing Zhu turned her gaze to Song Tianyang. At her look, a flicker of fear crossed the severely wounded man’s eyes. Though Qing Zhu’s expression was unchanged, Song Tianyang could guess she was in a foul mood.

Wordlessly, Qing Zhu gripped the hilt of the longsword piercing Song Tianyang’s abdomen and, without the slightest hesitation, ripped it out.

As Qing Zhu violently wrenched the longsword free, Song Tianyang couldn’t suppress a pained grunt. Blood gushed from the wound in his abdomen.

”You two fools,” she snapped, her voice chilling. ”You couldn’t even see through such a simple ploy.” But before Song Tianyang could respond, he collapsed, unconscious.

Lin Jianhong was dead, and Song Tianyang was now severely wounded and unconscious. No matter how great the rage in her heart, Qing Zhu couldn’t just abandon him.

After having Wei Yunhang administer a Healing Elixir to Song Tianyang, Qing Zhu ordered the Grand Commander and his men to deal with the bodies of Lin Jianhong and the other Divine Palace Warriors. She and Wei Yunhang then took the unconscious Song Tianyang and headed back toward Divine Celestial City.

Qing Zhu was silent the entire way back to Divine Celestial City. Along with her anger, a sense of foreboding began to grow within her.

Lin Yun’s plans were a chain of interlocking schemes. His entire stratagem had dealt a huge blow to the Divine Palace. For one, Lin Jianhong was dead, meaning Qing Zhu was now short one Demon Fiend. Furthermore, the Demon Palace had seized the opportunity to capture one of the Divine Palace’s cities.

The two sides now controlled an equal number of cities. And while the Divine Palace’s overall strength was still slightly superior, she believed the Demon Palace would soon catch up.

Qing Zhu sped toward Divine Celestial City without a word. Seeing she had no intention of speaking, Wei Yunhang—carrying the unconscious Song Tianyang on his shoulder—remained silent as well. He wasn’t about to risk getting on her bad side.

The two of them raced back to Divine Celestial City. But the moment they entered its walls, Qing Zhu froze. Her eyes were locked on the city’s Main Hall, now a pile of rubble.

’So Lin Yun really did escape. And before he left, he even destroyed the Main Hall.’

”Hahaha... Excellent. Truly excellent. Lin Yun, you intrigue me more and more,” Qing Zhu suddenly sneered after a long moment of silence. ”Ever since I was a child, there’s been nothing I, Qing Zhu, have wanted that I couldn’t obtain. And that includes you, Lin Yun...”

After ordering Wei Yunhang to take Song Tianyang away to be treated, Qing Zhu flew alone to the space above the ruined Main Hall. When the Divine Palace Warriors below saw her, they all hung their heads, their morale completely shattered.

Lin Yun’s planning had been flawless. Not only had he caused the Divine Palace to suffer heavy casualties and lose a city, but he had also made it impossible for Qing Zhu to immediately launch a counter-attack against the Demon Palace.

The reason was simple: one look at the faces of the Divine Palace Warriors was enough. They looked as if their own parents had died. With morale this low, victory against the Demon Palace was impossible.

Morale, though intangible, was crucial. In a battle between two armies, the side without morale could not leverage its advantages, no matter its numbers or Combat Power.

He had not only escaped but had also utterly shattered the morale of the Divine Palace Warriors. With this single move, Lin Yun had bought the Demon Palace precious time to recuperate.

If the morale of the Divine Palace Warriors weren’t so low, Qing Zhu would have launched an immediate counter-attack. The Demon Palace would likely have been beaten back into submission, forced to once again hole up within Demon City.

But with the Divine Palace Warriors having lost all fighting spirit, a counter-attack was clearly out of the question. This gave the Demon Palace invaluable time to regroup, and also enough time to fully secure their control over the newly conquered city.

Hovering above the ruins of Divine Celestial City’s Main Hall, a seductive smile slowly bloomed on Qing Zhu’s face. She murmured to herself, ”Lin Yun... now *this* is the kind of man I, Qing Zhu, can admire. I won’t hold back anymore. Let’s see just how much you can truly stir my heart.”

Lin Yun’s chain of schemes had dealt a major blow to both the Divine Palace and Qing Zhu. At the very least, the Demon Palace now had a moment of respite. After this period of recuperation, their overall power would draw much closer to that of the Divine Palace, giving Lin Yun much greater confidence for the final, decisive battle.

Aboard their Black-striped Tigers, Lin Yun and his companions had been riding at a frantic pace. Now, far from Divine Celestial City, they were no longer fleeing for their lives, and they gradually slowed down.

Sitting on the back of his Black-striped Tiger, Lin Yun looked over at Xi Zijin. Noticing she seemed preoccupied, he asked gently, ”Zijin, is something on your mind?”

Startled by the sudden sound of his voice, Xi Zijin’s face flushed slightly as she replied, ”No...”

’She says nothing’s wrong, but I feel like she’s been different since we left Divine Celestial City. I just can’t put my finger on how.’

The Monk and the Daoist at their side, however, wore matching sly grins, as if they were thinking of something indecent.

”Young Master Lin,” the Daoist asked with a grin, ”when we finally leave this ruin, will we have gained another sister-in-law?”

Hearing this, Lin Yun retorted irritably, ”Get lost.”

’Not only did I survive, but I even helped the Demon Palace score another major victory. I wonder what happened to Lin Jianhong and Song Tianyang. Qing Zhu was just arriving when we left. With any luck, they took each other out.’

After a full day and night of travel, Lin Yun and the others finally arrived back at Demon City. The Grand Commander and Zhang Qing were waiting for them at the gates.

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