"E-elder Zhang Zhenking? Is that really you?"
"I am. Who are you?" The voice from the orb replied.
The confirmation struck Liu Xing like a bolt of lightning. His eyes widened, and his heart hammered in his chest. Even Elder Yang Zhaoyan's mouth fell open in shock. They had expected the communication orb to connect to some random person, or in a miraculous scenario, perhaps someone from the Tang Dynasty. But this... this was beyond their wildest expectations. The orb had connected them directly to Elder Zhang Zhenking of the Purple Moon Sect.
"Hurry, answer him!" Elder Yang Zhaoyan mouthed urgently.
Liu Xing nodded and gathered his wits. "My name is Liu Xing, elder. I'm an outer disciple of the Purple Moon Sect."
"How did you connect to my communication orb?" Elder Zhang Zhenking asked abruptly.
Liu Xing was about to mention that he got the orb from a man named Wang Lin, but fearing the elder might cut the connection, he decided to give the full story.
"It happened like this," he began, carefully recounting the events from Mystic Moon City to their current situation with the Yang clan. Several times, Elder Zhang Zhenking instructed him to shorten his tale, which Liu Xing did. He aimed to portray the Twelve Sun Empire as a victim in need of help, subtly reminding the elder of the empire's status as a vassal state.
"Wang Lin said he didn't know where the orb came from, but one of the children he saved mentioned it was thrown by a black tentacle," Liu Xing concluded.
"A black tentacle?" The elder mused, as if recognizing something significant. This unexpected line of communication between the Purple Moon Sect and the Wang Clan still fills Liu Xing with questions.
After a moment of contemplation, Elder Zhang Zhenking's commanding voice reverberated through the orb. "Liu Xing, I accept your report. The Twelve Sun Empire is indeed our vassal, and we have a duty to protect it. I will send four groups of inner disciples to your location. They should arrive within four days at the latest."
Hearing this, Liu Xing couldn't help but smile. While the elder hadn't sent another elder, four groups of inner disciples was a significant force. Although waiting four days seemed long, it was better than nothing. Liu Xing hoped they would all be at the Sun Refining realm.
"Thank you, elder!" Liu Xing said gratefully.
A grunt came from the orb before the connection was severed. The glow of the communication orb faded until it disappeared, leaving a normal, slightly warm orb in Liu Xing's right hand.
He looked at Elder Yang Zhaoyan, who nodded approvingly, as if Liu Xing had accomplished a great feat. And in a way, he had. He'd successfully secured reinforcements from the Purple Moon Sect!
Elder Yang Zhaoyan turned to the still-confused Wang Lin. "Wang Lin, you have provided us with great aid in our time of need. You will be rewarded handsomely later."
Wang Lin clasped his hands and smiled broadly. "Thank you, Elder Yang Zhaoyan!"
The elder nodded, then looked at Liu Xing. "Now, let's inform the prince of this good news. We also need to discuss our next steps."
Liu Xing nodded. While he felt relieved that reinforcements were coming from the Purple Moon Sect, he knew that four days was a long time in their current situation. Anything could happen in such a critical period. He decided that he wouldn't wait idly during these four days. He needed to take action.
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The elder and Liu Xing stood up and headed toward the prince's location.
***
The City of Suns sprawled across the horizon, its expanse so vast that from the eastern cliffs, one could see an endless sea of buildings crowned by a massive golden castle. Numerous towers dotted the cityscape, giving it an almost modern feel despite the traditional Chinese architecture. It was said that a mortal could run for two days and nights and still not reach the edge of the city.
On one of these eastern cliffs stood two figures. The first was Elder Yang Zhaoyan, still clad in his red robe but now adorned with three rings on his right hand—two gold and one silver. When Liu Xing had inquired about them, the elder explained that they were spatial rings filled with supplies.
The second figure was Liu Xing himself. He stood with one foot propped on a rock, surveying the City of Suns. He was wearing black pants and a sleeveless black robe, with his spatial bag hanging from his waist. This bag now contained not only his treasures and spirit stones, but also numerous pills and talismans given to him by the Yang Clan.
As the sun began to peek over the horizon behind them, Liu Xing could make out several abominations from his position.
One such creature ambled mindlessly through the streets like a zombie. It appeared almost human, with a pale, naked body, but its hands ended in long, black nails that scraped against the ground with each shuffling step. The right side of its face was human with a vacant eye and slack jaw, while the left side writhed with black worms attempting to form a dog's snout. As it moved, the worms pulsated and shifted, never quite settling into a fixed shape.
In the shadows of a nearby building, Liu Xing spotted a particularly unsettling abomination. It appeared to be a young woman at first glance, but as she stepped into the light, he saw that her torso was split open like a blooming flower, revealing a mass of writhing tentacles where her organs should have been.
Scanning the area, Liu Xing noticed the wildly different appearances of these creatures. Some with crab-like claws, some with dog claws, and some with animal heads on human bodies. They were all grotesque combinations of humans and spirit beasts.
Witnessing this, Elder Yang Zhaoyan shook his head and sighed. "They were mere mortals. I doubt they would be useful to Wei Yi, yet he still transformed them into these abominations."
Liu Xing nodded grimly, knowing they would soon end these creatures' misery.
There were several reasons why Liu Xing and the Elder had chosen this easternmost location to begin their culling. The main reason was that this area was mostly occupied by mortals, making the transformed beings easier to eliminate. Most were only at the first to third stages of the Lock Opening realm.
"Alright, Liu Xing, I'll leave this area to you," the elder said, glancing toward the golden castle.
The second part of their plan involved several secret doors connected to the Emperor's Tomb. These were close to the castle, and the elder would check whether those doors were locked before helping Liu Xing cull the stronger abominations.
The elder then transformed into a white mist carried away by the wind. "Good luck, and remember our plan."
Liu Xing nodded, then inhaled deeply and summoned his gun in his left hand.
"All right," he muttered, "let's do this."
He and the prince had devised a simple plan, and Liu Xing's role was straightforward: kill as many abominations as possible. His target for the day was to eliminate at least five hundred abominations. He would start with the weaker ones and work his way up to the stronger abominations. Then, after reaching his goal, he would bring the Yang Clan into the attack.
Liu Xing willed invisibility to spread through his body. The wind caressed his cheeks and ruffled his invisible hair as he took several steps and plunged off the cliff.
As he fell, Liu Xing adjusted his state of mind, attempting to meditate with open eyes and a body ready for action. He landed on his feet, stirring up a cloud of dust around him. Nearby, an abomination turned its head and rushed toward him.
Liu Xing activated his lightning blade and adjusted his stance, waiting for the enemy to come within reach. When it did, he slashed horizontally, separating the creature's pig-like head from its human body. Then, he sidestepped to avoid the barrelling corpse.
As he did so, Liu Xing felt a hole in his consciousness open up and then settle down. Then, a fierce smile spread across his face.
He jogged toward another shambling abomination that hadn't yet noticed its fallen comrade. He reloaded his gun with qi and shot the creature square in the forehead. A hole appeared, and it collapsed like a sack of potatoes. The gun now had six bullets again, one of them formed from the abomination's qi. Sensing this, he absorbed the bullet with potent qi and directed it toward his consciousness, where it flowed toward his nearly open seventh lock.
As the energy settled, Liu Xing couldn't help but grin. It seemed he might advance to the seventh stage today after all.