Strongest War Emperor

Shen Lang struck with the first form of his Prison Guardian Blade Technique. The blade’s light tore through the night sky, accompanied by a deafening sound like an exploding thunderclap.

A terrifying ripple of Powerful Qi abruptly surged from the point of contact between the Celestial Water Blade and the Flame Lotus above Yuwen Huaji’s head.

Even in the dead of night, this ring of Powerful Qi was clearly visible to the naked eye, a testament to the immense force of the energy collision between them.

”Prison Guardian Blade Technique, Second Form: Demon Chaos Dance!”

”Prison Guardian Blade Technique, Third Form: Demon’s Tyranny!”

Low shouts and thunderous roars echoed continuously from the battle. Shen Lang weaved through the air, striking at Yuwen Huaji from all directions. Eventually, only a faint, blurry silhouette of him could be seen, along with the arcs of his long blade crackling with Thunder Power.

However, in the face of this frenzied assault, massive Flame Lotuses continuously bloomed from Yuwen Huaji’s body. No matter where Shen Lang attacked, a Flame Lotus would instantly blossom to intercept his ferocious strike every single time.

The Prison Guardian Blade Technique, backed by Thunder Power, was a crazed onslaught, yet every time it touched a Flame Lotus, it was brutally repelled.

The long blade slashed down again and again. Each strike, carrying a sharp gale, collided with the Flame Lotuses, erupting in the crisp sound of metal striking metal. The rapidly expanding ripples of Powerful Qi made the terrifying force of their collision clear to all.

CLANG, CLANG, CLANG, CLANG...

As Shen Lang continued his dazzling assault, the clear sound of clashing metal rang out incessantly.

Meanwhile, Yuwen Huaji’s body was swelling larger and larger, and it looked like he was about to break free from the Netherworld Wolf King’s grasp!

”I’m done! Time to clock out! Old Chu, you’re up!”

Shen Lang, who had been swinging his blade nonstop, suddenly paused. He let out a loud shout, and then his figure shot upward!

”Hahaha, alright!”

The next second, Chu Qingcheng’s figure plummeted. With a flick of her hands, three small, blood-colored flags instantly planted themselves in the ground around Yuwen Huaji.

WHOOSH!

The three small flags swelled in the wind until they were as tall as a person. The blood-red banners shot out like bolts of silk, wrapping tightly around Yuwen Huaji and the Netherworld Wolf King, binding them together!

Chu Qingcheng floated in the air, her white robes fluttering. Her hands formed a series of rapid Seal Techniques. With each seal she cast, the three flags tightened their grip on Yuwen Huaji and the Netherworld Wolf King!

”You little bastards, I won’t spare you!”

Yuwen Huaji screamed madly. Only his head was exposed, his face twisted into a terrifying, savage expression.

Then, the power in his body began to react wildly, trying to blast away the Netherworld Wolf King and the flags that bound him!

”This old ghost is too strong! Let’s go!” Chu Qingcheng shouted, rushing toward Shuangta Temple.

Shen Lang let out a strange laugh and transformed into a black shadow, also heading for Shuangta Temple.

As if by prior agreement, the two of them fled without a second thought, making a clean and decisive escape.

The Netherworld Wolf King, still binding Yuwen Huaji, was suddenly dumbfounded...

’They just left? Dammit, what happened to our deal? What happened to getting my body back... You can’t be this shameless!’

”Shen Lang, you dare to plot against me! I will not let you go!” The Netherworld Wolf King’s mournful shriek echoed over Celestial Phoenix City, filled with grievance and indignation.

Wolves are ferocious and cunning by nature. The Netherworld Wolf King had been plotting against Shen Lang, so how could someone as meticulous and calculating as Shen Lang, who could ponder even the finest details, not know?

It would have been great if he could break through Yuwen Huaji’s defenses. The plan was to kill Yuwen Huaji first, then deal with the Netherworld Wolf King.

But now, even after attacking with all his might, he still couldn’t breach his opponent’s defense.

And Chu Qingcheng’s Magical Treasure could no longer hold Yuwen Huaji. Yuwen Huaji was struggling for his life and could break free at any moment. They’d be fools not to run.

Their only other chance would be if Ling Chen hadn’t been severely injured and could rush over to execute Yuwen Huaji with the Netherworld King’s Three Extremes Sword.

Otherwise, none of the Sword and Saber Techniques Shen Lang currently had at his disposal could kill Yuwen Huaji.

...

Just as Shen Lang and Chu Qingcheng flew a few dozen meters away, a tremendous BOOM erupted. The three flags exploded into dust that scattered through the air.

The Netherworld Wolf King was torn into several pieces and thrown aside, its fate unknown.

Yuwen Huaji was free!

”I told you, you will die! You will all die!”

Yuwen Huaji’s crazed roar thundered over Celestial Phoenix City like an exploding bomb. The next moment, the ruined stone house beneath his feet suddenly burst apart, and with a flash, he shot into the sky.

Shen Lang and Chu Qingcheng, who were already dozens of meters away, looked back and were shocked by what they saw.

Just as they were about to flee with all their might, suddenly...

RATTLE!

A thick, silver locking chain shot out like an arrow from behind a low wall, instantly wrapping tightly around Yuwen Huaji’s right foot!

”Go!”

Nalan Ziyun let out a piercing shriek. Her legs sank deep into the ground as she grabbed the locking chain with both hands and yanked down with all her might, actually managing to pull Yuwen Huaji down a little!

”Nalan, let go!”

Seeing this, Shen Lang was scared out of his wits. He abruptly spun around and charged back.

”Bitch! You’re courting death!”

Enraged at being hindered again, Yuwen Huaji—who already hated Shen Lang to the bone—surged with killing intent and violently strained his right leg!

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The entire silver locking chain wrapped around Yuwen Huaji’s leg instantly shattered into pieces. The section in Nalan Ziyun’s hands snapped, bent into an S-shape, and then viciously slammed into her chest!

PTHOO!

Nalan Ziyun sprayed a mouthful of blood as her body was sent flying backward like a cannonball.

”No!”

The scene seared itself into Shen Lang’s eyes, freezing in time, becoming an image he would never forget...

Inside Shen Lang’s heart, it felt as if something had shattered like glass.

At that moment, the entire world seemed to fall silent.

He couldn’t hear Chu Qingcheng’s furious roar, nor the Ghost King’s repeated cries of ”Boss Lady.”

Shen Lang floated in midair, his eyes vacant, watching Nalan Ziyun’s figure slowly recede into the distance...

In the final moment, their eyes met. A single tear fell from Nalan Ziyun’s eye. Then, the light in her irises slowly faded, and her eyes finally closed.

’There is a kind of love that is deep and true, yet you don’t know how to express it. There is a kind of love that you know you must abandon, yet you can’t bear to leave. There is a kind of love where you know waiting is in vain, yet you foolishly endure the loneliness. There is a kind of love where you know you will die, yet you still throw yourself into the fire without a second thought...’

’The greatest distance in the world is not between life and death. It is when I stand right in front of you, yet you don’t know that I love you.’

’The most painful thing in the world is not having to choose, but having no choice at all. In truth, because you exist, I am so afraid of death... I really don’t want to die... I’m afraid that after I die, I’ll never be able to see you again...’

’The most helpless thing in the world is not that I am powerless, but that just as you finally notice me, I have to leave you... Shen Lang, in the days to come, will you ever remember that there was a woman who once loved you so deeply?’

’You don’t know, do you? Back then, when you were going through your trial of blood and fire in the Phoenix Mountain Range, I saw you. I’ve been watching you ever since. Weren’t you looking for a woman who secretly helped you? I know you never found her... It’s just that you never once looked at me properly, so I tried to get your attention by hunting you down. You’re such a fool!’

Nalan Ziyun’s final consciousness lingered, drifting through the void.

Her voice echoed in Shen Lang’s heart like words spoken in a dream.

Shen Lang reached out with his left hand as if trying to grasp something, but there was only empty air before him.

’It hurts so much... an indescribable pain, like my heart is being torn apart... Why does this feel so familiar...’

”AHHH!”

Shen Lang clutched his head with both hands, his face contorted in an expression of unbearable agony.

The image of Nalan Ziyun’s charming smile slowly surfaced in Shen Lang’s mind, and memories of the past played out as if they were yesterday.

In the Phoenix Mountain Range, she had hunted him until there was nowhere left to run, nowhere left to hide.

”Your life is mine! You have to die by my hands!”

”Dammit, you chased me for fifty miles naked, and I’m the pervert for glancing back?! If I wanted to be a pervert, wouldn’t I have done something that night I saw you bathing?”

”Go die!”

”You tell me to die, and I just die? How embarrassing would that be!”

...

Above the vast abyss, Nalan Ziyun, the bones in her right hand completely shattered, had wrapped her left arm around Shen Lang’s neck and buried her head deep in his chest, whispering, ”This... is nice too...”

On the road back from the Tala Prairie.

”Little bastard, you there?” Nalan Ziyun asked from within the Heaven-Sealing Cauldron.

Shen Lang, flying through the air, rolled his eyes. ”If you have something to say, say it. If you have to fart, let it rip. I hate it when people start a conversation by asking ’You there?’”

”Hmph... I was just saying, of all the songs you taught me, I still like that one the most...”

”’My love, you sit at the bow’?”

”Get lost! I meant ’Free-roaming Flower’! La la la la la... I am a free-roaming flower, have we ever, in a dream, met a familiar face...”

”Not bad. You’ve reached an amateur level.”

”An amateur level? How high is that?”

”It’s very high, don’t you worry.”

”Dammit!”

Scene after scene flashed before Shen Lang’s eyes, as if they had all happened just yesterday.

While Shen Lang was lost in his daze, a red shadow flashed nearby. Xue Dangdang flew over at top speed and caught Nalan Ziyun’s still-airborne body in her arms.

”Sister Ziyun!”

Xue Dangdang cried out. The bells on her body emitted rings of light that helped her disperse the remaining violent force from Nalan Ziyun’s body. Then, with a flip of her wrist, she produced a completely emerald-green Elixir Pill and stuffed it into Nalan Ziyun’s mouth.

”Sister Ziyun, you have to hold on!”

Xue Dangdang’s eyes filled with tears. She landed on the ground with Nalan Ziyun in her arms, helped her sit up straight, and pressed both palms against her back, continuously pouring her Spiritual Power into her.

On the other side, Chu Qingcheng suddenly slammed a fist into her own chest. As blood sprayed from her mouth, a dragon’s roar so powerful it made all of Celestial Phoenix City tremble on the verge of collapse!

Finally, a Five-Clawed Golden Dragon soared into the sky from behind Chu Qingcheng, its roars echoing endlessly, shaking the heavens and the earth!

The great dragon’s eyes were wide with fury. With one swipe of its claw, it seized Yuwen Huaji, who had just flown into the air to kill Shen Lang!