Wan Chao, the [Crimson Specter], clashed with Hai Long for the first time using all of his strength, making the latter slide back in the air for a few feet before resolving what had appeared as a simple and unprepared lunge of the jagged-edged spear.
And if it was something of a signal, the other three newly appeared Emperors launched against their respective targets, destroying all of the efforts of the three forces Emperors of trying to contain the clash of the already fighting Emperors.
Ren Hua, the [Obsidian Wraith], a peak level two Warrior Emperor, released his Fire-element aura as he sent punch over punch of a strange-looking dark flame, each being a martial skill-created missile against his previously selected target, Dongpo Ao. Even if he was entering a battle with someone a minor real above, and not by one level, the glow of his red, ember-like eyes grew brighter as the latter resolved the few missiles without using anything but his already released aura.
Gu Yijun, the [Shrouded Executioner], showed no emotion at all, his red eyes of the same color as the dried blood that covered his robe, as he suddenly summoned an enormous double-edged blade stained with drops over drops of blood. Fresh, dried, or aged blood covered it with a myriad of drops, and as he lowered it with a slow movement, his forceful 3rd level Warrior Emperor expanded as it was always there, with his domain, a land of blood and rivers of the same, appeared, suppressing nearly every other aura present, only his opponent, who, while not being the most rightful and respected personage of the renowned [White Grove], was still someone who had reached the peak of the 3rd level, and could, with his accumulation, advance further any day of this, only lacking that small lucky inspiration to merge his accumulation, prowess, and insights into one.
Zi Li, known as [Veiled Serpent], was not only the only woman in the group but also chose the similarly only Empress present, Gao Zhuli. Not that she planned to do so because of the sex, but that the [Gao Clan] First Lady was the only one Zi Li could fight against in a one-on-one. A follower of an antique path that mixed poisons and elements, her strength lay in assassinations, sneak attacks, or, to an extent, mass battles, where she could apply all of her abilities without being restricted by others' attacks or forced into close combat. Still, she was a developed 2nd level Warrior Emperor. And so she took the initiative to close up while releasing a dozen snake phantoms created by her [Poisonous Scale Dress] while maintaining her strange, swaying movement method, which was nothing more than a hidden martial skill called [Slithering Confusion].
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While it was a missed opportunity, there was nothing to do. And Dongpo Ao's actions were very correct as well. With their lineup, they would have no problem protecting the Warrior Lords present against a single Emperor, but now, three more had arrived, and the respective battles were to start. Thus, sending Bai Qi and the others was indeed the right choice.
The actions were appropriate, and Bai Qi understood them. The northern city wall was chosen strategically because it was in the residential area for the city's military and experts affiliated with the [Dongpo] clan. Most of the manors there were protected by formations and housed cultivators, and the entire area was reinforced by the city's formation to safeguard its strength. Despite this, Bai Qi still felt uneasy.
Seeing how everyone somewhat relaxed, Dongpo Dayang, as the only local, became the focal point as she explained the location and suggested moving towards one of the [Dongpo] army villas to have access to the information about the ongoing battle and have some protection against possible damage, after all, the Emperors of every force present were now fighting in the city, the aura flares and sounds of destruction reaching even here, nearly a mile in a straight line. The suggestion was good and was accepted immediately by the five external Warrior Kings and the young heirs. Even so, Bai Qi couldn't rid himself of his anxiety-filled thoughts.
What would be his surprise when just a few moments later, he would obtain that crucial piece of information, and it would be nothing of what he had thought or could have predicted!
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Su Bo - now a peak Warrior King and the main member under Emperors of the [Soulrend Elders] - bore an aura of malevolence that was unmistakable. Her appearance alone was enough to unsettle even the most hardened cultivators. Deep, dark circles surrounded her eyes, hinting at sleepless nights filled with torment. Her skin was unnaturally pale, almost translucent, stretched taut over her bones, showing the faint outlines of scars and wounds that crisscrossed her body. Each mark seemed to tell a story of pain and suffering, reflecting her journey from a mere mortal to a formidable warrior. Her lips, perpetually twisted into a cruel smirk, revealed teeth sharpened to points - a gruesome choice, perhaps, to remind others of the horrors she had endured and survived. Her hair, long and wild, cascaded around her face like a dark waterfall, hiding some of the more grotesque features but never fully concealing the sinister gleam in her eyes.
Just two years ago, she had been a mortal prisoner of the [Sensations Ambience House], a demonic sect notorious for its cultivation method based on siphoning life force via pain or other intercourses from partners during cultivation sessions; a practice that often involved the easily procured mortals due to their sect's insatiable need for fresh victims.
Su Bo's escape had been nothing short of miraculous. Her captors hadn't anticipated her to flee, let alone survive. Being so close to the [Hundred Souls Mountain], and given her mortal status, they had only sent low-level pursuers. This lack of vigilance allowed her to reach the infamous 'Despair-to-Hope Land,' the lethal [Mountain] filled with death and to a smaller degree - opportunities. By some twist of fate, she managed not only to survive there for over a year but also to catch the eye of the Lord of the [Hundred Souls Mountain].
The Lord, impressed by her will to survive and her potential granted her advanced cultivation methods and forcibly enhanced her body's natural aptitude. Through brutal training and unorthodox methods, she quickly surpassed her previous captors' strength, now becoming incomparable in power and ability to them, and even earning a previously unseen [Badge of Freedom] from the [Sensations Ambience House], after she had killed over a dozen of their disciples under the conditions set by the Lord.
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Unlike the more experienced members like Wan Chao, Su Bo's trust in the Lord was unwavering. She viewed him as her savior and creator. If he commanded her to bark, she would do so without hesitation. And now, if he wanted this mission completed, she was determined to see it through.
For her ruthlessness and the visible signs of her past torment, she took the title [Agony's Embrace]. After all, her newly obtained cultivation path could be said to be deeply entwined with the essence of pain itself - each injury, each scar, a stepping stone towards greater power.
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Having arrived in the city several days before the operation started, even if initially it had been for a different one, Su Bo and her five subordinates had investigated and prepared everything thoroughly. With deception, lies, bribes, or disguises, they had gotten hold of all required information, locations, and resources. Even if the mission changed just a day ago, from a crippling attack on the city to capturing a target, the preparations didn't even require much changes, and now, that it had commenced, her perpetual smirk grew even crueler, her sharpened teeth glistening in the light of a prepared signal flare.
*Swoosh* *BOOM*
A blood-colored signal flare blossomed just above the northern military district, just a few hundred feet from Bai Qi and everyone else location.
*Swoosh* *Swoosh* *Swoosh* *Swoosh* *Swoosh*
Immediately after that, five figures appeared from different directions, surrounding the group.
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Moments before.
Bai Qi and the others had just reached a small plaza surrounded by a few manors, only the one on the south side attracting attention, surrounded by a tall wall of some spirit-tier stone and bigger than the others by at least three times. The green-colored banners with the characters [Dongpo] flying on every guard tower and the deliberately placed platform before the gates, on which, while unoccupied, stood several racks meant for criminals, made it clear that it was no normal mansion but a garrison of the [Dongpo Clan] [Eastern Inscription City].
While the threat of several Emperors battling in the city was far above anything the manuals and rules prepared for, the [Northern Inscription Manor] wasn't only one of the four principal garrisons and housed one of the secondary cores of the City's protective formation, but it was also one occupied by the [Flying Banner Troops], the external soldiers that served directly under commander Zhu Yun. And no matter what situation was going on, someone who redacted the latest rulebooks like the young promise of the [Zhu Clan] would never ignore the rules she helped form!
"Be on al..." Dongpo Dayang's thoughts ran as lightning and after understanding that something was wrong, she shouted out, but as she did, the loud boom of a somewhat strange, red-colored signal flare resounded, interrupting her.
*BOOM*
And immediately, five figures appeared in the plaza, jumping and flying from villas or roofs around it.
"Ambush!" Du Ten shouted out, as the four Warrior Kings assumed positions around the group of Warrior Lords they were meant to protect. While it took Dongpo Dayang some time to understand that something was going wrong, for them, it had been clear since their first steps in the northern area. After all, how come that four Warrior Kings and several Warrior Lords, neither hiding their aura, cruised an area that was considered protected and should be swarming with cultivators, especially with Warrior Emperor auras clashing in the city, was devoid of any life at all? And even if everyone was a coward, how come there was not a single active formation except for the starting to operate general protection of the city?
Although they would usually concentrate more on the heirs of their powers, the [Dongpo Clan] was not only the host but now had mobilized their cultivators to activate formations, move mortals, or protect the city in some other way, so Dongpo Dayang was left in their care. As for Bai Qi, he had been the main target of their powers since the beginning, so how could they ignore him now?
Protector Boling, Zhu Chen, Lei Su, and Du Ten were experienced combatants in their own right. Even if the former was more of a counter-assassin reared by the [Pan Trade Company], the other three had prevailed in dozens and hundreds of fights, especially the latter two, who while younger than Zhu Chen, had a far bloodier path of cultivation, fighting to death as to obtain their current prowess and titles. And with the unexpected alliance of the three powers during the meeting with Dongpo Ao, the [Jade Rune Dragon], the four of them had no other choice but to defend all of the Warrior Lords in the group, no death allowed.
Thus, in place of acting as they would usually do, launching against the enemies, hiding in the dark to ambush, or trying to negotiate as they would do usually, depending on their character and methods, the four guarded Bai Qi and the others, as their aura expanded and intermixed, creating a bastion of soul power to break if someone wanted to harm their wards.
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While the fact that the [Soulrend Elders] had only 10 members, announced by themselves, was true, it was also a lie, to an extent. After all, the true members were just five, Su Bo being the only real member along the four Warrior Emperors.
As for the other five, they were nothing more than a batch of Su Bo's subordinates, handpicked and prepared for her by the Lord of the [Hundred Souls Mountain]. It would be impossible to have no losses during their missions, but, with a clever arrangement of the five main actors and the other five declaring the same title and name, even if they were just sent to accompany Su Bo, the image of the indestructible force that the Lord desired was created.
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The newly arrived five people in ominous attire radiated a menacing presence. Each wore a dark hooded cloak that seemed to swallow the light around them, shrouding their figures in shadow, the lower half of their faces obscured by engraved metallic masks, twisted into sinister expressions that hinted at their ruthless natures. Beneath their cloaks, golden-colored lightweight armor made from [Saint Alloy] vests glinted, and their [Void Stone] spiked gauntlets gleamed with the threat of violence. Tattoos depicting dark, painful imagery marked their arms, visible through slits in their cloaks as they raised their already summoned weapons, auras expanding.
Showing no reaction to Protector Boling, Zhu Chen, Lei Su, and Du Ten's arrangement, the five released their aura to the full, revealing a mix of different stages of the 8th Warrior King levels as the weapons in their hands glowed with qi, as if about to attack.
"[Shadow of Torment], [Bloodreaper], [Wraith's Grasp], [Harbinger of Pain], and [Voidblade], hold!" Suddenly, a woman's voice resounded over the battlefield-to-be, as an extremely skinny, dark-haired woman dressed in nothing else but some ragged clothes that barely covered her intensely scarred body, stepped out of the [Northern Inscription Manor], her mouth forming an unnatural smirk as it revealed a row of pointy teeth.
"Why would we need to fight, if our newly arrived guests could actually simply comply with a small demand of ours." As she turned towards Bai Qi's group, her fang-like sharp teeth and nearly translucid skin reflected the red of the still-burning signal flare, making her appear as a blood demon more than a person.
While not a few of the present people would show some bravado, especially as the situation wasn't so bad as to consider it lost, the woman's aura made even the usually outspoken and, at some moments, offensive Lei Su keep silent. After all, this woman who looked no better than a defiled corpse revealed the aura of a peak Warrior King, one so forceful that even an initial stage Warrior Emperor would feel shame. And that with the barrier of an entire Minor Realm!
Not to mention that her aura reeked of blood, blood not only from cultivation but fresh one, making everyone reach the same conclusion,
"And what would be the demand of the [Soulrend Elder] senior?" As if spurred by the silence of the Warrior Kings, Pan Tong took the lead just a couple of breaths later, stepping forward and asking with a customary greeting bow.