When Ling Lihua appeared on the battlefield, the Dynasty Barrier Formation encased her in a dress formed from Dragon Qi, making her appear like a heavenly empress from legends. Her comprehensive strength had increased by at least thirty percent thanks to the Dragon Qi Empress Robe, but that was far from enough to defeat the jiangshi. Still, with her appearance, the Fu Dynasty's army was revitalized while the Skybrush Sect forces became wary.
"All of you retreat." Ling Lihua ordered.
"Your Majesty, we can still fight!" One of the generals shouted out. In his eyes, although the empress was strong and boosted by Dragon Qi, she was still at a disadvantage against the demon jiangshi. This wasn't baseless speculation as she had already suffered from the previous battle.
Under Ling Lihua's pressure, the Fu Dynasty's war formations retreated. They didn't disperse and were ready to reinforce the Fu Empress at any moment.
"Haha, little girl, just because you are a venerable, do you think that you are the Bloodcrave Jiangshi's opponent?" The Skybrush Sect Master mocked, not giving up any chance to demoralize his enemies. "I used to have some scruples, but after seeing your power, I am very sure. You are a venerable that used a pill to break through, aren't you?"
Ling Lihua ignored the ridicule and focused all her attention on the demon Jiangshi. Raising her hands, white pear petals began to flow from her sleeves. The battlefield was dyed white from the sheer amount of petals.
"Attack, don't let her accomplish her goals," The Skybrush Sect Master coldly ordered. Although he had mocked her, Ling Lihua was still a bona fide unity venerable. As such, there was a certain amount of caution needed.
The red war formations obeyed their orders and charged at the Fu Empress. They were men destined to die, so they abandoned all defenses.
Ling Lihua weaved through several hand seals, and the Dragon Qi empress robe that was clad on her body dimmed a bit. In return, the qi petals materialized by her were enveloped with a golden glow.
Under this white and gold tsunami, the Skybrush Sect's war formations were stalled in their steps. Taking this chance, Ling Lihua turned into a streak of white light and shot towards the demon Jiangshi.
"Hurry, stop her! I don't know what she's planning, but you must not let her succeed!" The Skybrush Sect Master ordered.
Although he didn't believe that Ling Lihua would be able to harm the demon jiangshi, that was only in her current state. If a venerable were to self-detonate, the attack was capable of reaching a hundred times a venerable's most powerful strike. Not only that, but a unity venerable's kamikaze attack would only be more powerful than a world merging venerable's last strike.
The Skybrush Sect didn't believe that the demon jiangshi would be destroyed from a single explosion, but damage was all but certain. Any injuries the demon jiangshi received would have to be healed using blood. He didn't mind making the Fu Dynasty's citizens pay in blood, they were only ants after all, but the resulting karmic sin would not be worth it.
This was in taste with Ling Lihua's intention. She was still currently too close to the capital. If she used the Nuclear Detonation Sphere, it would destroy a portion of the city.
Ling Lihua began to overload her spiritual core and nascent soul to sell the act even more. Simultaneously, the white petals started to take on a crimson color as if they had been dyed in blood. It wasn't the color that changed, but their power also increased threefold.
Both spiritual and martial cultivators had forbidden techniques to dramatically increase their strength at the cost of creating sequelae and destroying their foundation, making future improvement difficult. Martial cultivators burned their blood essence since their body was the root of their power, while spiritual cultivators overloaded their nascent soul and spiritual core.
Soul cultivators could also increase their strength by burning their soul essence. Among the three, a soul cultivator's increase in strength was the largest, but it was also the most difficult to heal. This was because the soul was the root of all life, and enough damage to the soul could even cause the user to be incapable of reincarnating.
Under Ling Lihua's crazy offense, the red petals surged forward and continued to bury the demon jiangshi and even pushed further away from the Dynasty Barrier Formation.
"Has she gone crazy? If she leaves the protective formation, her strength will drop even further. She should be trying to hold the Bloodcraze Jiangshi within the formation. Just what is she planning?" This question was not only the Skybrush Sect Master's query but also the other Skybrush Sect elders.
"Whatever the reason, I should have the Bloodcraze Jiangshi distance itself more. The drop in strength will make whatever she is planning less problematic." The Skybrush Sect Master's thoughts were good, but he forgot one crucial point.
As animated corpses, jiangshis had an inherent speed disadvantage. Even when it was upgraded to a black-haired jiangshi, the Bloodcraze Jiangshi was only faster than most grandmasters. Compared to a venerable, even one that relied on a pill like Ling Lihua, its speed was laughable.
Discovering this point, the Skybrush Sect Master ordered one of the war formations to block the Fu Empress. Unlike the other crimson war formations, this one still had its regular form and was not in any danger of spontaneously bursting. After all, the Skybrush Sect still needed members to propagate.
The ones who used forbidden techniques to boost their strength were those who were nearing the end of their lifespan, had little to no talent, or had no more hope to advance for one reason or another. Not all of them were sacrificing their lives for the greater good of the Skybrush Sect. Most were lured by benefits for their close ones or coerced.
The war formation that went out to block Ling Lihua had the appearance of an old fisherman and exuded the aura of a half-venerable.
"Scram!" Ling Lihua roared, her eyes still following the large figure of the demon jiangshi.
"You'll have to escape us first!" The leader of the fisherman-shaped war formation said.
Knowing that the war formation was no match for a true venerable, the leader of the war formation activated the war formation's special ability. The war formation's fisherman shape dispersed, but it wasn't destroyed or failed. It simply took on another form.
Ling Lihua's eyes sharpened as she saw a net formed of qi over five hundred meters wide appear. She knew that she couldn't evade it, and in the worst case, be trapped and allow the demon jiangshi to run rampant. Her eyes hardened as she directly crashed into the center of the net.
"Hmpf, foolish woman," The leader of the formation coldly laughed. The war formation was known as the Qi Subduing Net War Formation. Its offensive and defensive capabilities were average, but it could tie down a venerable for a day to a month depending on the venerable's strength.
Controlling the qi net, it began to wrap around itself into a spheroid. Suddenly the war formation's leader's facial expression changed. "Impossible."
Just as he spoke out those words, a small opening broke, and a figure shot out. The figure was Ling Lihua, who had successfully broken out in less than a few minutes, but she paid a heavy price as well. Her face was pale, and even a grandmaster could feel her fluctuating qi.
The Skybrush Sect Master had an ominous premonition. "STOP HER AT ONCE!!!"
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Ling Lihua ignored the Skybrush Sect Master's urgent shout. All she could see was the retreating demon jiangshi. She was like a mad bull, charging at her target without caring for the consequences.
Still, she was just one person, and the Skybrush Sect still had five war formations in reserve. Ling Lihua's brows furrowed as she saw the enclosing giants. Just as she was pondering whether the Nuclear Detonation Sphere's blast radius would be large enough to incinerate the demon jiangshi, aid came in the form of an unexpected source.
Red petals that were lush and appeared to have freshly fallen off a crabapple blossom surged forth. They were unlike Ling Lihua's own bloody pear petals that seemed close to wilting. They were full of vitality and reflected the user's long future.
Ling Lihua glanced behind her to look at Ling Haitang's expressionless face. When she had left, she had sensed Ling Haitang following behind her, but she didn't care. Why should she care? She was about to be a dead woman, after all. Still, she never expected aid to come from her half-sister of all people.
The new addition of flower petals formed together and surged forth like a red tsunami. Unlike Ling Lihua's attack, Ling Haitaing's wave of petals immobilized the war formations. It was a secret technique that temporarily disrupted the flow of qi within the war formations, allowing Ling Lihua an opening.
It was an opening Ling Lihua took. She didn't look back at Ling Haitang, nor did she even acknowledge her, but once she neared the demon jiangshi, she whispered, "Big Sister Haitang."
Ling Lihua ignored the unsettled Skybrush Sect Master's shouts and brought out the Nuclear Detonation Sphere from her sleeves. She took one last look at the capital. It was too far to see her husband even with her current cultivation, but she liked to think that Fu Xiuyi was watching her last moments.
Taking one last breath, a firm will that had never appeared were reflected in her eyes. Holding the Nuclear Detonation Sphere in both hands, she began to inject qi crazily.
"Eh?" Ling Lihua uttered as a white light enveloped her. She never imagined that only the barest amount of qi was all that was needed to get a reaction.
Tianyi's Nuclear Detonation Sphere were by-products of his nuclear self-detonation technique. As such, they were highly volatile. Had it not been for the formation, a single bump could set it off, but it was not like the formation could be easily broken. It was only thanks to Ling Lihua overloading her nascent soul and spiritual core that she broke the formation so fast and allowed her qi to destabilize the bomb.
"So powerful?!" Even Ling Haitang was shocked by the enormous amount of energy from the Nuclear Detonation Sphere. Using her quickest speed, she speedily retreated to a safe distance.
The unprepared Skybrush Sect members weren't so lucky. They had received orders to stay a certain distance, around the distance of an average venerable's self-detonation, but Ling Lihua didn't self-detonate.
The Fu Dynasty's war formations weren't so lucky. Despite Ling Lihua's repeated warnings, they helped clear the way for Ling Lihua, thinking she had a plan. They just didn't think the plan would involve their deaths for being too close. Now, the Fu Dynasty's war formation was once again reduced to three.
Nearly a thousand kilometers was engulfed in a white-hot orb. Just being near it caused those too weak to be directly cooked to death. Some unlucky fellows below the Nascent Soul Realm were killed in such a way.
When the nuclear blast disappeared, all that was left was a gaping crater, where the bottom was glass due to the sheer heat of incineration. There was no one inside the blast radius. Everyone, including Ling Lihua, had been vaporized.
The survivors gulped as they bore witness to the devastation. What remained left of the Skybrush Sect fled in terror. All their commanding echelon had nearly been incinerated. The Fu Dynasty's army wasn't much better off as they retreated carefully, afraid that a second blast would occur.
Ling Haitang was clear that the damage from the nuclear blast was only seemingly over. According to Daoyi, the surrounding land and epicenter would be tainted by a dangerous substance that no longer made it suitable for people to near for at least a hundred years.
But Ling Haitang didn't care to gloat at the moment. Nor did she have the joy of finally ridding one of her enemies. "It turns out that I didn't hate you as much as I thought. All my hate was disdain, disdain to you for giving your heart to a scumbag. It's funny. Mother might do the same thing. You and her are so alike; perhaps that's why you're her favorite despite being concubine-born."
Ling Haitang sighed and looked at the sky devoid of clouds. "See? Not even the heavens think your death was worth tears. May you have a better life in your next reincarnation, Ling Lihua."
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"No, you're not Ling Lihua," Daoyi said.
Upon closer look, the figure made of petals was closer to a preprogrammed puppet than a human's soul. Daoyi could sense the faint soul fluctuations, so that's why she knew that the figure with Ling Lihua's face was only a remnant.
"Should I call you foolish or stupid?" Daoyi asked. The figure ignored her question.
"Distance yourself away from His Majesty or face retaliation." The human-shaped agglomeration of petals said.
"You can't even understand me anymore," Daoyi sighed. "You must know that since you split your three souls and seven spirits to form this spectral guardian, you won't be able to reincarnate, right?"
Ling Lihua's remnant only repeated her earlier words.
"You're remnant soul must have anchored itself to a medium in order to stay in the living world and not dissipate. I guess you must have used a pear tree as a medium. Even after death, you're so pitiful. Don't you know the word pear and departure are homophones?" Daoyi moved out of the way as a rush of petals attacked her.
At most, Ling Lihua's remnant soul only had the power of a peak grandmaster. She had faced off against the imposter Vast Heaven Young Master. Why would she be afraid of a mere remnant?
Ling Lihua's remnant flashed next to the controlled Fu Xiuyi and stood protectively in front of him. Daoyi saw a flash of tenderness in the remnant's eyes. Her lips curled in disdain. 'Why do you feel like you have to dedicate your whole life to a man? Is it the society or your own problems?'
Daoyi only got a partial clue to her mother's enemies, so her mood wasn't good at all. "Don't you want to know who Fu Xiuyi truly loves?"
The remnant soul did not move, but Daoyi felt fluctuations from it. Her lips curled even further. "You might not know, but Fu Xiuyi is under my control, so I can help you learn the truth. Is it your sister, Ling Haitang, or someone else that exists in his heart? Or maybe it's no one, and he's just a selfish man."
Without waiting for the remnant soul to reply, Daoyi ordered Fu Xiuyi to answer.
"...Ling Kang."
The answer caused Ling Lihua's remnant to shudder, and faint cracks even started to form.
"Is the answer so shocking? You were far more powerful for him and could have lived a better life. Now, look at yourself. You've fallen to the point of not being able to reincarnate. And for what? Ling Kang, another sister of yours?" Daoyi mocked.
Daoyi paused in her speech and looked outside. She could sense that Ling Haitang was returning. "Sorry, looks like I'll have to wrap this up as soon as possible."
Using her will, Daoyi directly extinguished Fu Xiuyi's soul in such a way that it seemed like he had committed suicide. Fu Xiuyi was a lackluster soul nourishing grandmaster. How powerful could his soul be in the face of Daoyi?
When she turned to deal with Ling Lihua's remnant soul, she paused in shock. Without her taking any action, as soon as Fu Xiuyi died, Ling Lihua's remnant soul also shattered and disappeared.
"Worthless," Daoyi muttered, a vexing heat burning her heart.
When Ling Haitang returned to the throne room, she saw Daoyi's gloomy face. When she turned towards Fu Xiuyi, she discovered he had lost all signs of life. Only after double-checking was Ling Haitang sure that Fu Xiuyi wasn't pretending.
"Forget it, perhaps Lihua will be happy to know that Fu Xiuyi followed after in the cycle of reincarnation." Ling Haitang said, feeling slightly lost. This had been her obsession for a hundred years. Now that the object of her hatred had died, she didn't know what to do.
"Sister Jiang, don't worry about it. Since he's dead, he's dead. I guess making him feel despair to the point of committing suicide is also good. It's only a pity that I couldn't personally witness it?" Ling Haitang said, comforting Daoyi.
Daoyi only sighed and said, "Pitiful and hateful."
Ling Haitang blinked and looked at Fu Xiuyi. She nodded in agreement. "Pitiful and hateful."
Daoyi didn't bother to correct Ling Haitang's mistake on the subject of her words. It was better this way.
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Outside, undetected by anyone, a figure wearing a red robe with white hair and a horn growing out of his head appeared. He raised the crystal sphere in his hand, and silver streaks from across the battlefield began to gather inside the orb.
When he was done, there was a deeper tinge of silver inside the orb. 'There's a lot more than I thought. Luckily, that suicide attack couldn't directly damage the soul. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to gather so much soul essence.'
Emperor Soulfish turned towards the Fu Dynasty capital, straight at Daoyi. 'Should I take this chance to harvest her soul essence? As a soul cultivator, her soul essence will be extremely beneficial.'
After weighing the pros and cons, Emperor Soulfish decided not to take action. The reason why he had arrived was that he detected a familiar fluctuation, one that originated from the Sword Empress. 'It's not worth clashing with Sword Empress Xi for that little soul essence. I run the risk of exposing my actions.'
With that thought, Emperor Soulfish disappeared, unknown to anyone. There were still many more wars that he could harvest soul essence from. In a way, he had to thank the Shadow Alliance for giving him such a huge opportunity. Still, he had to wonder who the Great Detacher of Emotions behind the Shadow Alliance truly was.
Such a powerful soul cultivator couldn't have popped out of nowhere.