One could see that the moment the Golden Dragon Spear severed Xu Tianran's right arm, a golden dragon shadow flashed past. It was as if a dragon's mouth had opened and bitten down on Xu Tianran's right arm, causing the smooth, mirror-like cut at the root of his right arm to be covered in a layer of golden light.
Starting from the cut on his right arm, Xu Tianran's body visibly shriveled at a speed noticeable to the naked eye. This was precisely the special effect of the Golden Dragon Spear devouring life force.
The reason Xu Zihuang was able to sever Xu Tianran's right arm with the Golden Dragon Spear was that, as a divine artifact, the Golden Dragon Spear suppressed in rank the several ninth-grade defensive soul tools Xu Tianran wore on his body.
Soul tools of seventh grade and above all possess their own spirituality. If Xu Tianran had remained fully conscious and actively poured soul power into those ninth-grade defensive soul tools to activate them, perhaps the outcome would not have been so miserable. But unfortunately, those defensive soul tools had been suppressed by the aura of the divine artifact Golden Dragon Spear and had already lost their ability to activate autonomously.
It could be said that Xu Zihuang's ability to sever Xu Tianran's right arm right in front of Kong Deming contained a great deal of coincidence.
First, Kong Deming had a brief moment of distraction upon seeing Zhang Lexuan's martial soul. Second, the weakened version of the Light of Space-Time that Xu Zihuang unleashed had, to a certain extent, countered the ability of Kong Deming's Silver Moon Divine Light Shield. Third was the Golden Dragon Spear's suppressive effect on soul tools.
All these conditions were indispensable.
However, Xu Zihuang was not carried away by this success. A massive golden pupil phantom appeared behind him, and amid the distortion of space, his figure instantly reappeared in the center of the assault team's members below.
After all, the Golden Dragon Spear had not pierced through Xu Tianran's body. Though Xu Tianran had suffered grave injuries, with his Title Douluo-level cultivation, he would not perish from this alone.
Xu Zihuang knew very well that he could not continue pursuing the attack. Compared to a peak powerhouse like Kong Deming, he was still far too lacking.
From the moment Kong Deming appeared, he had already understood that he would not be able to kill Xu Tianran this time. Managing to severely wound Xu Tianran was already an unexpected joy.
Xu Zihuang raised his head and looked far toward the direction of the imperial study. Over there, the guards had already been mostly killed off by the assault team. The few remaining people were now protecting the unconscious Juzi.
In order not to involve Juzi, he had used his sixth soul skill, Mental Force Field, earlier to render her unconscious. Afterward, he had also deliberately shifted the battlefield away from the imperial study.
At that very moment, strange sounds suddenly rang out from within the Sun Moon Empire's imperial palace.
"Creak creak, creak creak, clack clack, clack clack, squeak squeak, squeak squeak squeak squeak…"
These sounds resembling metal clashing and twisting did not come from a single direction but echoed from all sides.
The surrounding buildings, each protected by soul guide barriers, cracked open, and enormous cannon barrels began to emerge from within. Cold metallic luster flowed across them, filled with an aura of destruction.
Having already anticipated this, Xu Zihuang shouted:
"Withdraw!"
His voice echoed throughout the entire Sun Moon Empire imperial palace and even carried terrifying spiritual pressure.
Ye Guyi, who had just retracted her holy light after powerfully slaying a group of evil soul masters, immediately returned to Xu Zihuang's side. In tonight's operation, the most astonishing combat performance did not come from the three Soul Douluo-level powerhouses, Zhang Lexuan, Nan Shui Shui, and Xing Heng, but from Ye Guyi, whose martial soul had evolved into the Six-Winged Angel.
Due to attribute suppression, those eighth-ring Soul Douluo evil soul masters could only be firmly suppressed when facing Ye Guyi. The seventh-ring evil soul masters were not even her match in a single exchange.
In such a short time, more than ten evil soul masters of seventh-ring cultivation and above had already fallen at Ye Guyi's hands.
Ye Guyi met Xu Zihuang's gaze, and she instantly understood his intention. Their goal this time was not necessarily to ensure Xu Tianran's death on the spot. Success in the assassination would, of course, be ideal, but there was no need to be overly obsessive.
Looking at the giant cannons slowly rising from the ground and sensing the terrifying soul power beginning to surge within them, the assault team's members all paled. Hearing Yu Tianhuang's warning, they did not hesitate for a moment, turned around, and rapidly withdrew.
However, at this moment, those on the ground were actually the safest. Because these terrifying soul guide cannons were all aimed at the sky.
If the soul guide cannons of this level attacked the ground, they would directly damage the imperial palace. But when directed at the sky, there would be no such problem.
The Title Douluo-level powerhouses engaged in battle several thousand meters in the air felt it even more intensely. At the Title Douluo level, one would have an instinctive sense of danger. And now, a fatal sense of crisis had suddenly risen in their hearts without warning.
Even powerhouses like Xuan Zi and Du Busi could not help but suck in a breath of cold air.
The Sun Moon Empire imperial palace below had completely transformed into a metal forest. One after another, thick cannon barrels had begun to flash with intense light.
"Withdraw!" Xuan Zi and Du Busi made the decision instantly and shouted in unison. At the same time, all the Title Douluo from the original Douluo Continent erupted with powerful soul skills of considerable might, briefly suppressing the Sun Moon Empire's ninth-grade soul mentors and the Holy Spirit Cult's Title Douluo. Then they all disengaged from combat and rapidly retreated.
The group of Title Douluo powerhouses streaked across the sky like meteors, vanishing into the distant horizon.
During the flight, Du Busi's expression kept shifting, his heart filled with both joy and worry.
The joy came from the fact that this little fellow, Yu Tianhuang, had actually succeeded. He could clearly sense that after Xu Tianran's right arm was severed, his life force was draining away at an alarming speed. Even if he did not die this time, he probably would not live much longer. This was undoubtedly good news for the three great empires of the original Douluo Continent.
What worried him was that the Sun Moon Empire's foundation was even deeper than he had imagined. That old man who had intervened to save Xu Tianran was unfathomably powerful; even if he faced him head-on, Du Busi had no confidence of victory.
"When did the Sun Moon Empire produce such a figure?" Xuan Zi was equally surprised and uncertain.
"No matter what, as long as the result is good, that's enough."
Du Busi let out a hearty, strange laugh, then seemed to think of something and said with clear dissatisfaction:
"Xuanzi, don't act all smug just because you got lucky. With Yu Tianhuang's talent, in less than ten years, he will surely reach our level. He even condensed a soul core before rank 70. Once he grows up, will he have any reason to fear the Sun Moon Empire?! Damn it, I really regret it. Back then, if it weren't for the Dragon God Douluo, I would've fought your Shrek Academy no matter what!"
Seeing Du Busi looking so pained and frustrated, Xuan Zi immediately burst into hearty laughter, feeling greatly satisfied.
Though Du Busi had an arrogant and untamed personality, his ability to judge people was still sharp. His evaluation of Yu Tianhuang had struck right at Xuan Zi's heart.
Indeed, once Yu Tianhuang broke through to the Title Douluo realm, he would practically be invincible in the world. At that point, one person alone would be enough to suppress the entire Sun Moon Empire. If the Sun Moon Empire wanted to wage war, they would have to consider whether they could withstand the pressure brought by Yu Tianhuang.
"You old poison, stop bragging here. Even without Mu Lao back then, you wouldn't have been able to snatch anyone from our Shrek Academy."
"Nonsense! If I really wanted to take this little fellow Yu Tianhuang away right now, do you think you could stop me?" Du Busi angrily retorted.
Xuan Zi refused to back down: "Feel free to try."
The surrounding Title Douluo all felt speechless. Two people of Xuan Zi and Du Busi's cultivation and status were actually bickering like children. Yet among them, few truly had the qualifications to interrupt.
But in the very next instant, both Xuan Zi and Du Busi halted at the same time.
Du Busi raised an eyebrow and let out a cold snort.
"You've been watching for so long, it's about time you showed yourselves."
"Du Busi, I never expected that with your personality, you would actually go this far for the Heavenly Soul Empire." An aged voice rang out. Two figures successively emerged from the void. The one who spoke was the old man standing on the left. He had white hair and was definitely over two meters tall, not the bulging muscular kind of burly build, but rather an extremely large skeletal frame. His eye sockets were sunken, yet his black eyes shone with sharp light.
It was precisely Ning Tian's great-grandfather, Gu Lao.
To the right of Gu Lao stood another old man who appeared much younger. His black hair was combed meticulously without a single strand out of place, his eyes deep, his spirit vigorous, showing hardly any signs of old age.
It was none other than the former sect master of the Heavenly Dragon Sect, Yu Yangyan, also Xu Zihuang's maternal grandfather.
Upon seeing Xuan Zi, the cold sternness on his face instantly softened, and he gave a slight bow.
"Xuan Zi."
"Yangyan?! It really is you." Xuan Zi could not help showing surprise.
"Good kid, your cultivation is almost catching up to mine."
Yu Yangyan and Yan Shaozhe belonged to the same generation and had once studied at Shrek Academy. In terms of age, Yan Shaozhe was a few years older than Yu Yangyan. However, Yu Yangyan had better talent. It was only limited by age that his cultivation had not matched Yan Shaozhe's back then.
Now, nearly a hundred years later, Yan Shaozhe was still lingering at rank 95, while Yu Yangyan had continuously broken through bottlenecks to reach rank 97.
"Xuanzi, save the pleasantries for later. We need to break out first. Right now, the east, north, and south sides of Mingdu have been sealed off by the Sun Moon Empire with dense soul guide arrays; there may even be ninth-grade fixed soul cannons. With our strength, breaking out alone is no issue, but protecting our subordinates will be much harder. Since you and Du Busi dared to raid the Sun Moon Empire imperial palace, you should have some preparations, right?" Gu Lao said seriously.
Xuan Zi nodded gravely and looked toward Du Busi beside him.
Du Busi said proudly: "Since this sect master dared to do this, naturally, I have the means to leave safely."
Though he did not say it aloud, with the addition of two powerhouses, Gu Lao and Yu Yangyan, the breakout would be even safer. Still, during the process of breaking out of Mingdu, what he relied on most was still Xuan Zi's ability.
"First, head to the agreed meeting point."
On the other side, the black dragon that Long Xiaoyao had transformed into reverted to human form, but behind him appeared a gigantic black dragon phantom over a thousand meters long, coiling in midair and blocking the attacks directed at Du Busi, Xuan Zi, and their group.
"Uncle Long." Zhong Liwu respectfully addressed Long Xiaoyao, who had returned to his human form.
Long Xiaoyao shook his head expressionlessly and said calmly:
"Let them go. We can't stop them."
Then the two of them tacitly looked toward the dense forest of cannon barrels in the imperial palace below, and even they could not help feeling their scalps tingle. In the end, the foundation of an entire nation like the Sun Moon Empire was not something a single evil soul master sect could compare to.
By now, Xu Tianran had already been sent down for treatment by the imperial physicians. Kong Deming did not pursue Xu Zihuang and the others either. As a Title Douluo, he had already broken convention by intervening against a seventh-ring Soul Saint like Yu Tianhuang; he would not go so far as to further lower his status.
Thus, from beginning to end, he had never taken the initiative to attack Yu Tianhuang. This was also part of the reason Xu Zihuang had been able to severely wound Xu Tianran.
Of course, what Kong Deming feared most was that if he attacked Yu Tianhuang, Xuan Zi, Du Busi, and the others might disregard everything and wreak havoc in Mingdu. Some things were unspoken rules, even though he could not completely ignore them.
Kong Deming scanned the surroundings, his brows slightly furrowed.
He did not care whether Xu Tianran would perish from this, nor was he concerned about who would control the Sun Moon Empire in the future. But he did not wish to see the Sun Moon Empire fall into turmoil. Especially with the Holy Spirit Cult's evil soul masters watching like tigers.
For him, at the present stage, he still hoped Xu Tianran could survive to stabilize the situation.
At the same time, he was pondering another matter that greatly concerned him.
This raid on the Sun Moon Empire imperial palace had been planned with extreme meticulousness. Shrek Academy, the Body Sect, the Star Luo Empire, and the newly joined Gu Lao and Yu Yangyan, along with a group of Title Douluo-level powerhouses, quickly rushed into the streets of Mingdu, following the predetermined route to rendezvous with Princesses Weina and Xu Jiujiu.
Xian Lin'er and the Shrek Academy team members were also among them. Ning Tian's pretty face was filled with worry, and she had not even had time to greet Gu Lao. As for the Tang Sect team, they had already brought the injured and mobility-impaired Jiang Nannan to a hidden stronghold of the Body Sect in Mingdu.
Weina anxiously asked Du Busi: "Grandpa Du, did it succeed?"
Xu Jiujiu also narrowed her eyes slightly, nervously clenching her fists. It was no exaggeration to say that the success or failure of this operation would closely affect the future situation on the continent.
Du Busi said in a deep voice, "That old shameless Long Xiaoyao really did join forces with the Sun Moon Empire. But that little fellow Yu Tianhuang still seized the opportunity to severely wound Xu Tianran. Whether Xu Tianran will perish from this is still uncertain, but for the foreseeable future, the Sun Moon Empire should remain in turmoil. Our goal has been preliminarily achieved."
"Tianhuang?" Weina and Xu Jiujiu immediately widened their eyes. Facts proved that inviting the people from Shrek Academy to participate in this assassination plan had been the right choice.
While they were speaking, more than a dozen figures instantly converged on their location. It was the assault team returning safely. A total of seventeen people, not a single one injured.
But at this moment, everyone's gazes unconsciously converged on Xu Zihuang.
And Xu Zihuang, however, only looked toward one person's gaze among them.
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