"Ancestral Dragon Cauldron!"
Wu Zhaoyue, the garrison commander of Chanzhou, cried out in terror.
The treasure Yun Jinghuai had brought out was none other than Great Zhou's national treasure—the Ancestral Dragon Cauldron.
"Crown Prince, please."
Yun Jinghuai held the cauldron up with his right hand and presented it to Yang Cheng.
The Ancestral Dragon Cauldron had long been refined by the Yang clan. Only those of Yang blood could wield it.
Yang Cheng pressed his palm down on the cauldron.
Hum!
The cauldron trembled violently at once.
Yun Jinghuai smiled, then pointed toward the Sea-Suppressing Golden Bowl. "Go."
The Ancestral Dragon Cauldron shot into the air, swelling in the blink of an eye from the size of a fist to that of a small mountain, slamming into the golden bowl above.
Two supreme treasures collided.
Boom!
The heavens and earth exploded with a deafening roar.
The shockwave was like a tidal wave sweeping across all directions.
The whole Spring City shook as countless tiles fell from rooftops.
Fortunately, the clash took place high in the sky.
Had it happened below, who knew how many would have perished.
The power of this collision had already surpassed the limits of a Martial Sovereign.
In midair, the Ancestral Dragon Cauldron shone with terrifying black light. The nine carved dragons on its surface seemed to come alive, swimming and coiling in the darkness.
Meanwhile, the Sea-Suppressing Golden Bowl rippled with dazzling golden waves, its surface covered in countless ancient Buddhist runes.
Crack!
A sharp sound rang out. A hairline fracture appeared on the golden bowl's surface.
Wu Zhaoyan's eyes bulged, his face instantly pale. "Impossible… the Sea-Suppressing Golden Bowl is a Buddhist supreme treasure. How could it—"
Before he could finish, the cauldron unleashed another surge of black light.
Nine dragon phantoms burst forth from its body, baring claws and fangs as they lunged at the golden bowl.
"Roar!"
The sky-shaking dragon cries rang out as all nine smashed against the golden bowl.
The crack widened at once, spreading like a spiderweb.
"Pu!"
Wu Zhaoyan spat blood violently, staggering back.
The bowl was tied to his mind and soul. Its damage rebounded onto him.
Yang Cheng stood with his hands clasped behind his back. "Wu Zhaoyan, surrender now and submit to justice. This prince may yet leave you a whole corpse."
"Hahahaha!"
Wu Zhaoyan burst into deranged laughter. "Surrender? You brat, you're not worthy!"
His face twisted with madness. "With my soul, I awaken the remnant spirit of the Buddha!"
The golden bowl shook violently, unleashing a towering flood from within.
Amidst the crashing waves, a colossal shadow of a Buddha appeared, sitting cross-legged in the torrent.
"My Buddha is merciful…"
A solemn chant echoed across the world, carrying boundless authority. The Buddha phantom slowly opened its eyes, and two beams of golden light shot straight at the Ancestral Dragon Cauldron.
Clang!
The cauldron rang like a great bell, its glow dimming under the strike.
"Yun Jinghuai, defeating me won't be so easy…" Wu Zhaoyan snarled.
At that very moment, Yang Cheng's spirit linked fully with the cauldron.
Within it, he felt the wills of both his great-grandfather and grandfather.
Soon, all below could see two figures appear upon the Ancestral Dragon Cauldron—an elder and a middle-aged man.
"It's the Taizu!"
"And the Emperor Taizong!"
Countless people wept with emotion.
The onlookers in the crowd fell to their knees in worship.
Yun Jinghuai's soldiers roared with soaring morale, while the Southern Guardian Prince's men utterly collapsed in spirit.
Great Zhou's Taizu and Taizong held unimaginable prestige among both people and army alike.
The next instant, the phantoms of Taizu and Taizong transformed into two mighty dragons and hurled themselves against the Buddha phantom.
Crack!
A sharp shattering sound rang out. The Buddha phantom split apart inch by inch from the center of its brow.
The next moment, the Ancestral Dragon Cauldron slammed down hard onto the Sea-Suppressing Golden Bowl.
Boom!
The golden bowl finally couldn't withstand the pressure and crashed straight into the Southern Guardian Prince's manor.
Even now, Wu Zhaoyan still hadn't given up hope.
His body shot straight toward Yang Cheng.
[Warning! Over 400 years ago, Southern Guardian Prince Wu Zhaoyan's rebellion failed.]
[But Wu Zhaoyan was cunning. While the rest of the Southern Guardian Prince's household perished, he escaped with help from the Tang clan and later clung to a Heaven's Chosen.]
[Now, Wu Zhaoyan has become a Yang God powerhouse. For some unknown reason, he has returned to Chanzhou and launched an assassination attempt on the host.]
[Host must withstand Wu Zhaoyan's attack and survive this crisis.]
[Mission Reward: 10 Marrow-Washing Divine Jades.]
Yun Jinghuai's eyes turned cold. He hurled his spear from afar.
Puchi!
The spear pierced straight through Wu Zhaoyan's body.
But Wu Zhaoyan didn't stop.
He clearly knew his only chance at survival lay with Yang Cheng.
Only by capturing Yang Cheng could he gain leverage to bargain with Yun Jinghuai.
Like a tiger, Yun Jinghuai charged forward to block him.
At that moment, Wu Zhaoyue lunged from the side, intercepting Yun Jinghuai.
With his strength, he was no match at all.
Yun Jinghuai's single punch blew apart half his body.
But Wu Zhaoyue had bought Wu Zhaoyan a brief instant.
By now, Wu Zhaoyan's severely wounded body had reached Yang Cheng.
Hu Po rushed to block.
Wu Zhaoyan had anticipated this. One punch sent Hu Po flying dozens of zhang away.
"Crown Prince!"
Many cried out in alarm.
Though gravely injured, Wu Zhaoyan was still a Martial Sovereign. At minimum, he retained Martial Saint-level strength.
Who could save Yang Cheng now?
At that split second—
Zheng!
A sharp sword cry echoed across the heavens.
Somehow, a simple ancient longsword appeared in Yang Cheng's hand.
"Sacred Dao Sword?"
Wu Zhaoyan's eyes flickered, but he soon sneered. "Even with the Sacred Dao Sword, you won't stop me today."
He wasted not a breath and reached out to grab Yang Cheng.
Yang Cheng stayed silent and simply drew the sword.
Three months ago, Yang Cheng had obtained the Tian Shu Sword Sheath.
The Human Emperor Sword had been nurtured within it, gathering sword qi for three full months.
With his own strength, Yang Cheng might block Wu Zhaoyan but would surely be gravely wounded.
But what of three months of accumulated sword qi?
Hum!
As the blade left its sheath, the world fell silent.
The longsword in Yang Cheng's hand gleamed like autumn water.
Its edge was wrapped in sword qi refined to the utmost limit.
This was three months' worth of sword qi, unleashed all at once.
Wu Zhaoyan's eyes contracted, cold sweat rising all over his body.
It was unthinkable to him.
How could a ten-year-old child make him feel such mortal danger?
"Cut!"
Yang Cheng spoke a single word. Sword light poured forth like the Milky Way, ripping through the void.
This sword surpassed limits. Even Martial Saints would feel fear from it.
Wu Zhaoyan roared, unleashing all his terrifying power to meet the strike head-on.
Boom!
Both Yang Cheng and Wu Zhaoyan were blasted back.
Everyone around stared, stunned and disbelieving.
What just happened?
Yang Cheng had blocked Wu Zhaoyan!
It was beyond imagination.
Yang Cheng, however, felt some regret.
A Martial Sovereign was still a Martial Sovereign. Even wounded, he was formidable.
Three months of sword qi had only managed to repel him.
But that single retreat meant Wu Zhaoyan had lost his chance to seize Yang Cheng.
Yun Jinghuai closed in from behind.
Clang!
His spear pierced Wu Zhaoyan again, nailing him to the ground.
"Hahahaha… cough, cough…"
Wu Zhaoyan coughed blood even as he laughed wildly.