"Zhai Jiao."
Seeing Zhai Jiao and her group charging from the rear, Li Mi snorted coldly and immediately led his personal guards to meet them. At this point, the situation was almost beyond recovery. Li Mi had already begun considering escape, but with Tang forces blocking the front, his only option was to break through from the rear.
Initially, Li Mi had stayed to see if he could turn the tide. However, when Zhai Jiao and her forces charged from behind, he realized that if he didn't leave now, he would have no chance once the Tang army arrived.
With this in mind, Li Mi brandished his steel lance and attacked Zhai Jiao. Her appearance led Li Mi to suspect that she might have been the reason for the exposure of his plan. Even if he had to flee, he wanted to kill Zhai Jiao first. If possible, there was another person Li Mi was determined to kill—Shen Luoyan.
The more Shen Luoyan gained Daniel Davis's trust, the angrier Li Mi became. To him, this was a reflection of his own lack of discernment. Li Mi had already attributed his failure to Zhai Jiao and Shen Luoyan, absolving himself of any blame.
With such thoughts in mind, Li Mi attacked without mercy. As Tu Shufang and Xuan Yong, who were beside Zhai Jiao, moved to intercept Li Mi, several of his personal guards rushed forward to block them.
Clang!
Zhai Jiao's guandao clashed fiercely with Li Mi's steel lance in mid-air. The shockwave from the collision caused both of them to stagger backward. This outcome left Li Mi's face pale with shock. He had never imagined that Zhai Jiao, whom he had always looked down upon, possessed such formidable strength.
Underestimating Zhai Jiao's abilities left Li Mi's internal energy in turmoil. He immediately tried to stabilize his energy, but Zhai Jiao gave him no time.
Although Zhai Jiao was also affected by the clash, she ignored the discomfort and charged at Li Mi with a roar, swinging her guandao.
Under normal circumstances, Zhai Jiao's strength was far inferior to Li Mi's. Even after her father Zhai Rang's death, she had trained diligently, but the gap remained significant. However, thanks to her connection with the Twin Dragons, who treated her as their "big sister" due to their bond with Susu, she had received a True Pill and a Gathering Immortal Pill from Daniel Davis. These pills had greatly enhanced her strength, narrowing the gap between her and Li Mi.
Li Mi had once used Zhai Jiao to plot against her father, even personally capturing her (while disguised).
Facing the frenzied Zhai Jiao, Li Mi's face grew even paler, and blood began to trickle from the corner of his mouth. Although he was in better condition than Zhai Jiao, who was disheveled and covered in blood, Li Mi couldn't forget that this was a battlefield. If he continued to be entangled by Zhai Jiao, he might lose his chance to escape.
"Madwoman!"
Seeing Zhai Jiao ignore his lance thrust aimed at her chest and instead swing her guandao at him, Li Mi cursed inwardly. He had no choice but to change his stance and block her attack.
While Zhai Jiao was willing to risk her life, Li Mi valued his own. If he had continued his attack, Zhai Jiao would have died, but he would have been severely injured, which in the chaos of battle was almost equivalent to death.
"Damn it, how infuriating!"
Zhai Jiao's suicidal tactics infuriated Li Mi. What angered him even more was the heavy casualties among his personal guards and the absence of the experts who were supposed to support him.
Huang Gongcuo of the South Sea Sect and others who were supposed to help him break through had disappeared. Not only the South Sea Sect, but also his other subordinates, including Pei Renji of the Wagang Twin Tigers, were gone. It seemed they had abandoned him. After all, both the Tang forces and Zhai Jiao's group were targeting Li Mi. Staying with him would make them the primary targets, while Huang Gongcuo and the South Sea Sect had a good chance of escaping.
Realizing this, Li Mi's expression darkened, and he made a decision. Even if it meant getting injured, he had to deal with Zhai Jiao. If he didn't eliminate her now, he might not get another chance.
Li Mi was a cunning strategist, and once he made a decision, he acted without hesitation. Unfortunately, his timing was a bit late. Xuan Yong, with the help of his men, had broken free and was now attacking Li Mi.
"Damn it!"
Xuan Yong's involvement increased the pressure on Li Mi. His initial plan to kill Zhai Jiao before escaping had to be abandoned. Using Zhai Jiao's attack to his advantage, Li Mi blocked her guandao with his lance, suffering a minor injury to his left shoulder. He then used the force of her strike to propel himself backward toward the dense forest. If he could reach the forest, his chances of escape would be high.
As Li Mi was about to enter the forest, Zhai Jiao desperately tried to chase after him, but it was too late. Li Mi, mid-air, smirked triumphantly at Zhai Jiao. As long as he survived, he could always make a comeback.
Just as Li Mi was about to land in the forest and prepare to flee, he suddenly felt a whirlwind around him. A figure appeared before him, legs transforming into countless afterimages as they kicked toward him—the Wind God's Leg technique.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Unable to change direction mid-air, Li Mi desperately swung his lance to block the attacks. Despite his efforts, several kicks broke through his defense and struck his chest.
The powerful force sent Li Mi flying backward, blood spraying from his mouth.
"Well done, Ziling!"
Seeing Li Mi kicked back, Zhai Jiao shouted in triumph. The attacker was Xu Ziling. Since the Tang forces held the advantage in this battle, Xu Ziling had not brought a weapon. He disliked unnecessary killing.
However, when he noticed unusual movements around Li Mi's command flag, he discussed it with Kou Zhong and guessed that Zhai Jiao might be in action. He then used the Wind God's Leg technique to rush over.
Zhai Jiao was Susu's "big sister," and the Twin Dragons didn't want her to come to harm. In the original story, when Zhai Jiao's goods were stolen, the Twin Dragons immediately went to help, with Kou Zhong even abandoning his own plans to travel to the frontier to recover the goods. This showed how much they cared for Zhai Jiao.
Most people wouldn't have made such a choice, especially someone like Kou Zhong, who was a leader with ambitions to conquer the world. Running off to recover goods was seen as neglecting his duties.
This was why the Twin Dragons had asked Daniel Davis for pills to enhance Zhai Jiao's strength—a privilege even Bafenghan didn't receive.
Few people could provoke the Twin Dragons' killing intent. Yuwen Huaji was undoubtedly at the top of the list, followed by Wang Bodang. With Wang Bodang already dead, Li Mi was now the target.
"Killing me won't be so easy."
Seeing Zhai Jiao and Xuan Yong closing in, Li Mi knew he was unlikely to survive. He gripped his lance tightly and attacked Zhai Jiao.
If possible, Li Mi didn't want to die. However, since those surrounding him were Zhai Jiao's people, even if he surrendered, he wouldn't survive.
If Shen Luoyan had been present, despite his hatred for her, Li Mi would have surrendered immediately. Unfortunately, there was no "if." In this situation, Li Mi only wanted to take as many enemies with him as possible.
"Storm and Gale, Thunder and Wind."
As Li Mi attacked Zhai Jiao, Xu Ziling struck again. Using two moves from the Wind God's Leg technique, he disarmed Li Mi and delivered another heavy blow. If not for wanting to leave Li Mi to Zhai Jiao, Xu Ziling could have killed him with the Wind God's Leg technique.
By now, Xu Ziling's martial arts had surpassed Li Mi's. Combined with the Wind God's Leg technique and Li Mi's injuries, Li Mi stood no chance.
"Li Mi!"
Seeing Li Mi, covered in blood with a broken right arm, Zhai Jiao roared and swung her guandao, nearly cleaving him in two. With a reverse swing, she severed Li Mi's head.
As Li Mi's head flew through the air, Zhai Jiao burst into laughter before collapsing. Xu Ziling appeared beside her, catching her and using the Longevity Scripture's energy to heal her injuries.
Even with the True Pill and Gathering Immortal Pill, Zhai Jiao was no match for Li Mi. Her earlier performance had been fueled by a desperate, suicidal determination that made Li Mi hesitate. Now that Li Mi was dead, Zhai Jiao felt the full extent of her injuries.
Fortunately, the Longevity Scripture was a powerful healing technique, and with the special golden wound medicine from Daniel Davis, Zhai Jiao's injuries were soon mostly healed.
"Li Mi is dead! Surrender and you will be spared!"
As Li Mi's head was raised high, most of the Wagang soldiers, after a moment of shock, immediately laid down their weapons and surrendered. Only a few loyalists continued to resist, but they were quickly eliminated.
"Miss Zhai, your revenge is complete. Please hand over Li Mi's head. I wish to bury him."
As the battle ended, Shen Luoyan and Zhai Jiao found themselves at odds, leaving the Twin Dragons unsure of how to proceed.
The reason for their confrontation was simple: Zhai Jiao wanted to take Li Mi's head to offer at her father's grave, while Shen Luoyan wanted to give Li Mi a proper burial. This led to an argument.
"Back then, Li Mi did not desecrate your father's body."
At first, Zhai Jiao refused, but after Shen Luoyan's words, she reconsidered and agreed.
"I never expected Brother Qin to... sigh." In the meeting room at Hulao Pass, Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling sighed as they read the documents in their hands.
"If they want to leave, let them. I hope they won't regret it in the future." Shen Luoyan, however, remained calm.
With Li Mi's main force of 40,000 either dead or surrendered, and Li Mi himself killed, the remaining 60,000 troops quickly surrendered as well.
Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling had approached Qin Shubao to persuade him to surrender, but he refused. Since Qin Shubao had been recruited by Shen Luoyan, Li Mi had distrusted him after Shen Luoyan left the Wagang Army and had placed him among the 60,000 troops.
Besides Qin Shubao, Cheng Yaojin and Wei Zheng also refused to join the Tang forces. Surprisingly, Shan Xiongxin surrendered.
Although the Twin Dragons were disappointed, Shen Luoyan was not. The mass surrender of the Wagang Army was an opportunity for her.
It was also an opportunity for Xuan Yong. The two of them tacitly divided the surrendered Wagang troops, even though Daniel Davis trusted Shen Luoyan completely. Shen Luoyan always acted with discretion.
Of course, not all the surrendered Wagang soldiers would remain in the army. They would be screened, with those deemed unfit being discharged and becoming civilians, logistics personnel, or Six Doors constables.
"Let's go to Chang'an."
Huang Gongcuo, who had fled with his South Sea Sect disciples, decided to head to Chang'an after some consideration. Huang Gongcuo had considered joining Daniel Davis but feared that the Song Clan would target him. He decided to join the Li Clan instead.
In reality, Huang Gongcuo was overthinking. If the South Sea Sect had joined Daniel Davis, the Song Clan wouldn't have targeted them. To be blunt, the Song Clan had never considered the South Sea Sect a threat.
Huang Gongcuo likely believed that his hundred-exchange duel with Ning Daoqi proved his strength, not realizing that Ning Daoqi had deliberately held back to avoid embarrassing him.
To the outside world, Huang Gongcuo was seen as being on par with You Chuhong, Zhu Yuyan, and Shi Zhixuan. In reality, he was the most overrated. Even Qu Ao might have been stronger than him.
In the original story, Xu Ziling had beaten Huang Gongcuo shortly after arriving in Chang'an, before even absorbing the Evil Emperor's relic. This showed how overrated Huang Gongcuo was.
Another overrated figure was Ouyang Xiyi, but he had the self-awareness to never boast about his abilities.
This was similar to the story of how Ning Daoqi reportedly vomited blood after reading the Ci Hang Sword Canon. If this wasn't a tale spread by Ci Hang Jing Zhai to elevate their status, it was hard to believe. In a way, Ning Daoqi was a sycophant, using his reputation to boost Ci Hang Jing Zhai's prestige.
Now, not only had the reputation of the Ci Hang Sword Canon plummeted, but Ning Daoqi's prestige had also suffered.
After Daniel Davis revealed that the Ci Hang Sword Canon had flaws and couldn't lead to the Grandmaster level, this so-called "one of the four great legendary texts" was met with disdain.
Even though most people would never reach the Grandmaster or even the Master level, they still held onto the hope, no matter how slim. The Ci Hang Sword Canon, however, offered no hope—it was zero.
This also led to disdain for Ning Daoqi. How could a Grandmaster vomit blood after reading a manual that couldn't even lead to the Grandmaster level? Was his Grandmaster status fake?
"Li Mi is dead. What a pity. I was hoping he would join the Li Clan and cause some trouble for them."
Given Li Mi's ambitious nature, he would never have submitted quietly to the Li Clan.
(End of Chapter)
[Get +20 Extra Chapters On — P@tr3on "Mutter"]
[Every 50 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter Drop]
[Thanks for Reading!]