Outside the cage.
Xu Guangming was frozen in midair, staring in disbelief as the black veins that had once twisted and writhed like living things—forming an absolute domain—now crumbled and withered at astonishing speed.
Like moss scorched by the blazing sun, they drooped weakly and collapsed onto the ground.
Eventually, those ominous and twisted veins, which had so recently radiated a sense of dread, disintegrated into lifeless black ash.
Seeing this, the fury and distortion on Xu Guangming’s face solidified, replaced by a deeper, almost collapsing bewilderment and terror.
“No, no… this can’t be, it can’t…” he muttered in a daze, his voice growing increasingly urgent and shrill.
“Yuanzhou! Yuanzhou hasn’t awakened yet… This can’t be! It mustn’t end like this–!”
In the instant his mind faltered—“Vmm.”
A faint yet clear hum of space echoed.
The black veins that had been tightly encircling Gu Qiancheng and relentlessly compressing inwards instantly scattered like a sandcastle blown apart by the wind, dissolving into nothing as the core power collapsed.
Red curls fluttered slightly in the aftershock of dissipating power.
Gu Qiancheng stood where he was, eyes narrowed.
The usual carefree glint in his gaze was gone, replaced only by a frigid, murderous intent.
He raised his eyes, locking them on the lost and disheveled Xu Guangming suspended in midair.
Between his palms, the ripple of that twisted space emerged again, this time trembling with unprecedented intensity, radiating an aura of extreme danger.
“You bastard,” he licked his dry lips, his voice hoarse and biting cold.
“You almost made me trip in the gutter…”
On the other side.
“Boom–!”
Countless dazzling golden script characters surged like a flood breaking free of its shackles, erupting all at once, devouring and purifying the lingering black veins that tried to entangle them.
In the blazing golden light, Lin Mo stepped forward, his golden eyes ablaze, swiftly scanning the black cage before him as it steadily crumbled and shrank.
He keenly noticed that the strange polluting power, which had previously permeated the black veins and could block and weaken his Divine Oracle, had now ebbed away without a trace.
The worry in the depths of his eyes faded a bit, replaced by a flash of understanding.
Looks like… Senior Sister succeeded.
With that, Lin Mo no longer paid the cage any mind; his gaze suddenly shifted to the deranged-looking Xu Guangming suspended in midair, his expression sharpening like a blade.
He lifted his long spear.
Countless golden talisman scripts crawled up the weapon, winding around the shaft.
In the next instant, with no words exchanged…
The golden spear in Lin Mo’s hand transformed into a blazing golden arc that tore through space.
Almost at the same time, from the other side, Gu Qiancheng’s reality-warping, all-devouring spatial ripple erupted.
Carrying the full, unrestrained might both had suppressed for so long, their attacks swept in from utterly different directions, crashing down with overwhelming destruction on the mentally shattered and crumbling Xu Guangming.
Before the attacks even landed, the interwoven killing intent and torrent of power made the twisted space issue its final, mournful wail, teetering on the brink of utter collapse.
Reflected in Xu Guangming’s eyes, the blinding golden spearpoint drew ever closer.
He frantically urged the last flickers of life in his black veins, forcing what little power remained to defend himself.
But in an instant..
Those nearly withered black veins were ripped apart by the spear.
“I still haven’t seen Yuanzhou awaken–!”
“How could this be, how is it possible… No, no! No–!”
Dazzling golden light drowned out Xu Guangming’s hoarse, despairing scream, and consumed that face—already unrecognizable, twisted and warped by hatred.
The earth shuddered in a mournful tremor.
The domain built by those black veins could no longer hold; they all drooped to the ground, disintegrating into ashes.
At the center, the prison woven from black veins lost all life, its branches falling one by one, revealing Chu You and Xia Ji within, eyes tightly closed.
Lin Mo and Gu Qiancheng exchanged a distant glance, then moved toward the center together.
Just then…
A piercing, unparalleled power of Divine Oracle tore through the clouds shrouding the skies above Bin Hai City, so sharp that its edge could be felt even from afar.
The sky, for an instant, seemed to split in two.
Lin Mo and Gu Qiancheng both froze mid-stride.
Lin Mo’s pupils shrank as he looked at Gu Qiancheng in disbelief.
“That backup you mentioned—is it him?!”
Gu Qiancheng shrugged with a broad grin, saying offhandedly, “Well, gotta have an expert to hold the fort, right?”
Though his words made sense…
But recalling the rumors about that strongest apprentice, Lin Mo couldn’t help but tense up.
As the Branch Director of the Swordbearers, protecting the safety of the city under his jurisdiction was indeed his top priority.
But the city’s infrastructure, economic development, the happiness index of the populace—all those random things also factored into the annual assessment KPIs.
Wu Yang, that guy, coming here… How could that end well?
“Achoo!”
In the Bin Hai City Government Compound, Wu Yang, sword fragment in hand, suddenly sneezed.
He turned to look at the building behind him—sliced in two by a single sword stroke—and the street beyond, scarred by a sword mark like a ravine.
He couldn’t help but frown.
The nearby residents had all been evacuated in advance.
Even if someone was cursing him behind his back, that sneeze shouldn’t have come for days yet.
So who’s grumbling about me…
Wu Yang couldn’t figure it out, but decided to vent his frustration on the two before him…
Before him, Kieran Biskar—the famed “Dusk King’s Knight” who had rampaged across Eastern Europe for years, his arrogance unchecked—now looked utterly wretched.
His jet-black liquid armor was riddled with cracks, and he knelt on one knee.
The greatsword, forged of the same liquid, was shattered far worse than the broken sword Wu Yang held.
A short distance away, Mirror Lake’s arms had been cut off, blood pouring onto the cracked earth, his breath feeble.
“Ugh…”
Kieran Biskar twisted his neck with effort, blood-red pupils fixed on the equally miserable Mirror Lake, his voice rasping.
“You… call this… apprentice?”
“Cough, cough, pff—!”
Mirror Lake spat up blood, his chest heaving.
“…I told you, the strongest! The strongest, damn it!”
When Mirror Lake had been a Swordbearer, he’d teamed up with Wu Yang for an external mission.
Wu Yang had beaten him so badly that his Divine Oracle stagnated, and he couldn’t even activate his inner demon core.
Then, Wu Yang had personally thrown him into the mission area—to use him as live bait in a sting operation.
And so he’d watched as over a dozen high-tier Variants were chopped to bits by Wu Yang in a single stroke.
After the mission, Wu Yang had slung his arm around Mirror Lake’s shoulder with a smile and said—the mission report, you don’t need me to teach you how to write it, right?
Junior, you wouldn’t do anything to upset your senior, would you?
Mirror Lake had caved instantly.
He’d nodded as hard as he could.
All the resolve he’d ever had in his life didn’t compare to the clarity of that day, facing Wu Yang.
Later, after finally advancing to Golden Crow-class Swordbearer, Mirror Lake gained access to classified and even top-secret files.
The first thing he did was look up Wu Yang’s records in the internal database..
[Swordbearer Top Secret File] [ID S1001·A028]
[Year 1001 of the New Calendar: Variant outbreak on the southeastern border of the Huafu; three quasi-king-class Variants leading an eighty-thousand-strong Variant horde attacked the defensive line.]
[That autumn, Apprentice Swordbearer Wu Mei went south with sword in hand.]
[On the day Wu Yang reached the defensive line, he and his sword counterattacked. The three quasi-king-class Variants died, and the horde suffered devastating losses and retreated. The above records are sealed top secret.]
[Year 1001.10.27.]
That was all Mirror Lake could find.
A trace of darkness and resolve flickered in Kieran Biskar’s crimson eyes.
He looked back at Wu Yang, who was approaching leisurely with the signature broken sword in hand, then quickly glanced again at Mirror Lake, forcing out through clenched teeth, “It’s too late for words now… You and I must join forces, drive him back, and escape!”
Mirror Lake’s eyes narrowed, a glimmer of something subtle flickering deep within, before he nodded slightly, Putting on a show of shared resolve.
“Fine!”
The two struggled to their feet, unleashing their power regardless of the cost.
Kieran Biskar’s black liquid armor churned wildly, its surface cracks visibly repairing at speed.
The battered greatsword in his grip was wrapped and extended by more black fluid, restoring itself in an instant—now exuding an even more solid, ominous aura.
A little further away, Mirror Lake growled inhumanly from his throat.
His skin turned a dull, lizard-like gray, smooth but dotted with tiny bumps.
Muscles writhed madly at his shoulders.
His severed arms regrew with terrifying speed, skin showing the same eerie gecko texture.
“Together!”
Kieran Biskar gripped the restored greatsword, point leveled at Wu Yang, bellowing to rally himself.
Dark energy surged about him, ready to pounce.
Mirror Lake’s body was tensed like a drawn bow, legs bent, poised to spring, gaze locked onto Wu Yang as if ready to unleash a world-shaking combo at any second.
Yet…
The very next instant, as if prearranged by a glance, both spun abruptly and bolted without warning, transforming into two streaks of light, one black, one gray, fleeing into the distance.
Their speed was so great that the air shrieked around them.
As he fled, Mirror Lake desperately pumped Divine Oracle to accelerate, glancing back to see Kieran Biskar, likewise a stream of black light, fleeing headlong.
The corners of Mirror Lake’s mouth curled in undisguised mockery.
“Heh, so much for the Dusk King’s Knight—he sure runs decisively.”
At this, the black light surged even faster, nearly pulling even with Mirror Lake, while Kieran Biskar’s angry voice trailed on the wind, mortified: “You’re not any better, you gecko freak!”
In the ruined courtyard of the Bin Hai City Government Compound.
Wu Yang looked up, eyes narrowed, watching as the two distant streaks shrank and finally became mere dots—until they vanished from sight.
The easygoing, everything-under-control smile vanished from his face without a trace.
In its place was a profound weariness, and a touch of lingering fear.
“Thud.”
Wu Yang flopped onto the ground without a shred of dignity, raising a small cloud of dust.
He tossed the broken sword beside him with a clang.
He raised his slightly trembling hand, wiped the nonexistent sweat from his brow, and let out a long sigh, muttering under his breath, “That was close, that was close… Damn, I almost got exposed.”
His legend had long spread through Swordbearer HQ—everyone knew he’d never lost a duel.
But very few knew that his “bug-level” terrifying Divine Oracle came with a ridiculous restriction: He could only use it once per month.
After one sword, his Divine Oracle would enter a lengthy cooldown.
During this time, he could still channel some Divine Oracle power, but his combat strength would drop off a cliff—even defeating an ordinary high-level Variant would be wishful thinking.
That whole “sword in hand, casual stroll, full of gravitas” act just now?
All a bluff.
He’d gambled that the near-felled Kieran Biskar and Mirror Lake would chicken out rather than risk a final showdown.
If those two really had the guts to fight to the death and came back for him, he’d probably have died here today.
Slumped amidst the cold ruins, Wu Yang looked up in faint melancholy—the sky, thanks to the sword stroke that had parted the clouds, revealed a rare streak of blue.
He sighed inwardly: Heavens, you’re so unfair to me!
You gave me this absurd Divine Oracle, but I have to watch 29 days’ worth of ads to use it once—how is that reasonable?!
How does that make any sense?!
If nothing else, couldn’t you at least let me pay for a membership and skip the ads?!