Volume 2 - Chapter 62: He Is Worthy of Your Pride – Part 1
“You’re not even worthy to be called clay chickens or pottery dogs. How dare you stand in my way?”
“Die!”
The Vine Demon Elder led the charge, determined to make up for his earlier oversight. With a sudden sweep of his palm, shriveled vines emanated from his hand, forming a dark purple imprint imbued with the essence of his Grandmaster-level martial techniques. It came crashing down with an oppressive force.
The imprint tore through the void, aiming directly at the approaching formation of soldiers. These warriors had assembled the Tiger-Drake Formation, their battle cries merging into the ferocity of tiger roars and dragon howls. A radiant golden beam erupted from the formation, colliding fiercely with the incoming palm imprint!
With a thunderous bang, the dark imprint, carrying a storm of blade-like winds, shredded the golden light into fragments and pressed downward.
A formation formed by only a few thousand soldiers was no match for a Demon King. In mere moments, the soldiers were obliterated into a bloody pulp, their remains reduced to nothing more than a pool of blood!
The might of a Demon King was terrifying and unstoppable!
Li Tiangang trembled uncontrollably, his eyes bloodshot, his breathing labored.
On the battlefield, he had always been as steady as iron, commanding the entire army with composure. But now, even he couldn’t suppress his emotions.
A raging intent to kill surged like a tidal wave in his mind. Yet, gripping his Xingtian Blade, he restrained himself with the discipline honed from years of war. Another part of his battle-hardened rationality reminded him that the Eastern Frontier could no longer be defended!
If it couldn’t be held, the only option was to retreat, contracting their defensive lines.
The plan was to fall back and join forces with his fifth brother, Li Xuanli, in the Western Frontier, regrouping at the second line of defense they had previously established.
This retreat would also buy time for reinforcements from allied clans and the assembly of the Liang Province aristocratic families.
Do not underestimate the strength of these families. While a single family was nothing before the might of the Li Family Iron Cavalry, the combined power of hundreds of cities across Liang Province formed an immense and fearsome force.
It wasn’t that this collective strength was inherently awe-inspiring, but rather that the scattered factions would finally be united. Together, they could shake armies.
Thinking of the countless people of Liang Province behind him, Li Tiangang clenched his teeth and glared resentfully at the ten Demon Kings advancing toward him. Without another word, he turned and ran!
Military law was absolute, and Li Tiangang adhered to it himself. Though his emotions urged him to unleash his fury, his reason kept him restrained, forcing him to retreat for the sake of the greater good.
Otherwise, without someone to lead, Liang Province would fall even faster.
“Tiangang, farewell…”
Watching Li Tiangang’s retreating figure, Li Fu let out a sigh of relief, a smile of comfort appearing on his face.
In this moment, he addressed Li Tiangang not as the Marshal of the army, but by the childhood nickname they shared when they played together as boys.
Li Tiangang’s body stiffened. Turning back to look at Li Fu, his eyes reddened, tears streaming hotly down his face.
He had attended the funerals of many brothers and comrades, witnessed their broken corpses in the Northern Yan battles, and now, this orphan whom the Li Family had taken in and who had grown up playing alongside him, Li Fu, was also about to leave him.
“Tiangang, reconcile with your son. Young Master… he is worthy of your pride…”
Li Fu’s voice was soft as he spoke.
“Silence!”
Before Li Fu could finish, the Vine Demon Elder strode forward and struck with his palm.
Li Fu’s soul burst forth from his body, burning with an intense divine light as he roared and charged at the descending demonic palm.
However, the overwhelming force of the palm, as unyielding and emotionless as a mountain, crushed him entirely without resistance.
With a loud bang, Li Fu’s body was pulverized into a smear of flesh, his soul extinguished.
From afar, Li Tiangang’s bloodshot eyes filled with crimson threads. His teeth gnashed so hard they nearly broke.
He cast one last glance back, then turned and sprinted away, shouting orders in a thunderous voice:
“The Law Battalion, hear my command! Hold back the demon tide with everything you’ve got!”
“The Yuan Battalion, follow me in retreat!”
Li Tiangang chose to take the ancestral banner and his personally trained soldiers of the Yuan Battalion, leaving the Law Battalion behind to cover the rear.
To stay behind meant death. It meant total annihilation.
Against the demon tide led by Demon Kings, there was no escape.
Hearing Li Tiangang’s command, the battlefield erupted with thunderous cries of affirmation.
The soldiers of the Law Battalion, their eyes sharp as blades, charged at the demon tide with an even fiercer killing intent, fearless in the face of death.
Knowing they were left behind to delay the demon tide, these soldiers felt no despair or grief. Only the ironclad discipline of the military guided their actions.
One after another, they threw themselves into the fray, burning their souls and severing their life veins, determined to slay as many demons as possible before their inevitable deaths.
Smoke rose, and the entire defensive line was trampled underfoot as countless demons surged like a flood.
“You think you can escape?”
Yin Lady had been watching Li Tiangang closely. She would not allow him to flee. Her figure flickered, moving as though by teleportation, traversing hundreds of li in an instant. In mere moments, she was upon Li Tiangang.
Li Tiangang roared, spinning around to swing his Xingtian Blade with blazing fury, aiming directly at Yin Lady’s hand.
On her cheek, the green jewel embedded in her face suddenly flashed, releasing a strange demonic power. Li Tiangang’s body trembled momentarily, his strike slowing just enough for her to slap him aside with a resounding blow.
The slap struck his armor, extinguishing the divine light that shielded him.
Li Tiangang was sent hurtling through the air, tumbling and coughing up large mouthfuls of blood. Although his Unbreakable Body, dominant in the Three Immortals Realm, barely prevented his immediate death, it was no match for the crushing power of someone at the Absolute Technique Stage.
“How you killed my child, I will make you pay a hundred—no, a thousandfold!”
Yin Lady’s voice was venomous, and she struck again, sending streaks of dark light slicing through the air. These beams, carrying immense demonic energy, tore through the sky like blades and descended upon Li Tiangang.
Li Tiangang roared defiantly and swung his Xingtian Blade with all his strength. Though he managed to dissipate two beams, another struck him squarely in the chest, shattering ribs and splitting the flesh of his hands as the recoil ripped through him.
He felt as if his body had been trampled by ten thousand colossal beasts, his bones on the verge of collapsing entirely.
Yin Lady sneered. She had yet to reveal her true power or even resort to her ultimate techniques. For now, she relied solely on the overwhelming suppression of her higher cultivation realm.
“This so-called Li Family True Dragon…” Her laughter was cold and cruel. “After I kill you, I’ll refine your soul into one of my minions, binding you to my will. You’ll watch as I annihilate your precious Li Family!”
Her hand twisted, and a vortex of sinister wind formed around her palm, creating a gravitational pull aimed at Li Tiangang. The force was enough to drag him closer, intending to destroy his body completely.
Li Tiangang’s bloodshot eyes flared with determination. Ignoring the pain in his chest, he mustered his strength and stepped forward, executing the Nine Steps Against Heaven.
Each step surged his aura to greater heights, resisting the pull of Yin Lady’s attack.
He moved forward, each step carrying the weight of heaven and earth, like an unstoppable ox cart dragging him toward safety.
By the ninth step, his divine energy had reached its peak, his entire body shining with a radiant light like a celestial being.
Yin Lady’s expression darkened slightly. With a flick of her wrist, the overwhelming demonic energy in her hand coalesced into the phantom of a massive beast. It roared as it surged toward Li Tiangang, its form indistinct yet possessing traits of a serpent, tiger, and dragon, with bristling fur and scales.
Li Tiangang roared again, brandishing his Xingtian Blade with an unrelenting slash. The blade’s energy surged toward the phantom.
The phantom, glowing with the light of Yin Lady’s Lunar Illumination, unleashed beams of divine lunar energy that shattered the blade’s energy. It pressed down with a giant claw, ready to crush Li Tiangang entirely.
Just as destruction seemed imminent, a searing gust of sword energy tore through the battlefield. The phantom’s claw dissipated instantly as if severed by an invisible force.
Before Yin Lady could react, Li Tiangang’s figure vanished, reappearing dozens of li away.
Her eyes narrowed, turning toward a figure that had suddenly appeared near Li Tiangang. A man dressed in a tattered gray robe and wearing a straw hat stood calmly, seemingly an ordinary wanderer.
Yet, the sword in his hand shone with such brilliance that it was impossible to look away. The sword and the hand holding it radiated a brightness akin to the moon, piercing and captivating. Anyone who dared shift their gaze would feel as if the sword would stab straight through their soul.
“Desert Sword Saint?!” Yin Lady’s voice was filled with shock and fury as she recognized the figure.
Of the three great Sword Saints of the realm, one resided at the Southern Sword Manor, another roamed the Northern Desert, and the last was an enigmatic figure whose whereabouts were entirely unknown.
The brilliance of the sword aura before her could belong only to the legendary Desert Sword Saint.
The figure under the straw hat lifted his head slightly, revealing a weathered face marked by age, with a scruffy beard that reflected his indifference to vanity. His gaze, however, was sharp and serene.
“Why would someone from the Void Realm, after centuries of seclusion, involve themselves in this chaos?” he asked calmly.
Yin Lady’s expression turned cold. “When the winds of turmoil sweep across the land, even those who wish to remain still are dragged into the storm. The Great Yu Divine Dynasty’s expansionist greed, annexing every sacred mountain and treasure land, is to blame for all of this!”
The Desert Sword Saint responded with a faint smile. “You’re asking for far more than ‘some’ land.”
Then, his expression grew solemn. “What puzzles me is why you’ve chosen Liang Province.”
“Do you not know that Liang Province is my homeland?”
Yin Lady’s expression flickered. Though the Desert Sword Saint was over 400 years old, his origins had long since faded from memory. His legend began when he swept through the provinces as a youth, earning the title of Sword Saint at the age of 60. Following his triumphs, he disappeared into the Northern Desert, where he earned his current moniker.
The vast distances between the Northern Desert and Liang Province had made it inconceivable for anyone to anticipate his return.
“With your power, why concern yourself with the land of your birth? Do you truly wish to meddle in this chaos?” Yin Lady asked coldly.
The Desert Sword Saint smirked faintly. “No matter how great my achievements, this land nurtured me. My homeland is my responsibility to protect. I suggest you retreat now. I’ve killed far too many; I’m weary of killing.”
“Then let’s see if you can protect that man named Li today!”
Yin Lady’s gaze turned icy as she lunged forward, her attacks swift and deadly.
The Desert Sword Saint turned to Li Tiangang and spoke evenly, “General Li, you should leave. I will hold them off. Liang Province still needs you.”
Li Tiangang steadied himself, taking a deep breath. “Thank you!”
Without wasting words, he turned and ran, moving swiftly without hesitation.
“Stop him!” Yin Lady bellowed in rage.
The Demon Kings behind her surged forward. Two leaders from the Dragon Gate forces dove into the Li Family’s military formation, leaving the pursuit of Li Tiangang to those of the Void Realm.
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Within the Yuan Battalion, the soldiers fought while retreating, shielded by the other camps, gradually forming a concentrated force and heading toward the location marked by Li Tiangang’s signal.