Chapter 391

Chapter 391: Blood Stains the Imperial Hall

The Taixu Palace burned fiercely. Many saints and numerous Great Boundless beings exerted all their efforts to extinguish the fire. However, this blaze was no ordinary one, it required immense power to suppress.

Inside the Imperial Hall,

the lights shone brightly.

The firelight outside also illuminated the hall with a dazzling glow.

Taixu Emperor Jin Shengtian’s face was as dark as still water, and he resembled a raging beast on the brink of explosion.

His life could be described as one spent looking down upon all others.

He had not only been unmatched in martial arts but was also outstanding in every field, with few rivals.

After ascending to the throne three years ago, he had managed the Taixu Dynasty with great order, making it even stronger. He was seen as the Supreme Emperor incarnate, and many believed he would fulfill the centuries-old ambition of unifying the Western Desert under the Taixu banner.

He had been spirited and vigorous.

Little did he know that this year, within this very month, he would suffer a series of devastating blows.

The millennium-old palace had collapsed, and more than ten saints had fallen.

The Black Cloaked Strategist, a foundational pillar of the dynasty, had also been killed.

And tonight, the newly rebuilt palace had once again gone up in flames. Even if it hadn’t been completely destroyed, losing even a corner was intolerable to him. Nearly half of it had burned, and the situation still remained unresolved. Furthermore, a saint outside had been slain, while their pride, Jin Wudi, had not only lost the Phoenix Flame Holy Sword in front of a crowd but had also been wounded, without even catching sight of the attacker.

This sequence of blows far surpassed anything Jin Shengtian had endured in the past thirty years.

He teetered on the edge of madness.

What made it worse was that he had no outlet for his rage.

The situation of the Taixu Dynasty was exceptionally precarious; the entire structure of the Western Desert had become bizarrely strained.

For a long time, the upper echelons of the Western Desert had feared the Taixu Dynasty. The outcomes of the Battle at Heavenly Reaching Mountain, the Headless Monk incident, and the Supreme Emperor’s transformation into a calamity had painted them as a threat. No matter how powerful they were, they could not stand against the united strength of the Western Desert.

Moreover, they had lost their internal list at the Hunters’ Guild to the Cold Moon Dynasty. Jin Shengtian himself had arranged for the Black Cloaked Strategist to betray Gu Qianhan, who held a high position in the Cold Moon Dynasty. This had plunged the enemy’s intelligence network into chaos, one that could not be sorted out quickly.

At this moment, they could not afford to start a war lightly.

What frustrated Jin Shengtian the most was that, in a fit of fury, he had dispatched forces to the Vast Forest, only to be met with silence.

That place suppressed even saints to the Returning to Origin realm; retaliation was impossible. Strength alone could not allow one to act with impunity.

Jin Shengtian felt stifled, unprecedentedly so.

Just as he felt he was about to suffocate, a flash of light appeared in the Imperial Hall, and the space twisted.

Two figures emerged.

Jin Shengtian stared in astonishment at the newcomers, unsure if his eyes deceived him.

To his surprise, he saw Zhang Yang.

Zhang Yang and Bing Yuyan were equally shocked.

They had not expected, in such a moment while the palace was ablaze, that those four saints would be assembled within the Imperial Hall. Each wore a dark expression, their faces etched with fury, as if in the middle of a dire discussion.

“The culprit!”

A saint reacted swiftly, charging toward Zhang Yang without hesitation.

As always, saints moved with terrifying speed.

Zhang Yang also reacted quickly, activating the Mother-and-child Bead without delay, yet he was still a fraction of a second too slow.

In that critical moment, a sword burst forth with dazzling light.

Bing Yuyan displayed her unmatched Great Boundless elegance. She had already released Zhang Yang’s hand, gripping a crystal Beast Bone carved with an ancient teleportation array in one hand, while the other reached for her sword. Having narrowly escaped danger from a saint once before, she had grown far more cautious.

Clang!

Her sword clashed with the saint’s punch, and she was blown backward.

But in that instant, the Mother-and-child Bead finally unleashed its power.

Buzz!

In a flash, all restrictions on power were lifted. Not only was the saint’s realm forcibly lowered, but Bing Yuyan was also affected.

Boom!

Zhang Yang swiftly grabbed Bing Yuyan’s wrist.

This time, understanding the terrifying nature of the Mother-and-child Bead, it directly suppressed the saint’s cultivation to the Opening the Sky realm, Level Four. Though still stronger than Zhang Yang, he was no longer an insurmountable threat.

The other three saints, though a step behind, were only three to five meters away from Zhang Yang. They too were enveloped by the same energy, which slowed and weakened them as well.

“Die!”

With a fierce roar, Zhang Yang plunged the Phoenix Flame Holy Sword into the attacking saint’s chest.

The blade pierced all the way through.

At that moment, the Slaughter Sacred Thunder exploded around him.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The other three saints were even more unfortunate. Suppressed to the Opening the Sky realm, Level Three, they now stood on equal footing with Zhang Yang.

Could opponents within the same realm still fight?

How terrifying was the Slaughter Sacred Thunder? The moment it radiated outward, it exploded all three saints instantly, not even giving Bing Yuyan a chance to act.

However, the power of the Mother-and-child Bead also began to fade.

Because Jin Shengtian had gone mad.

This unmatched Battle God-level genius, who had never known defeat throughout his life, had suffered relentless humiliation, each blow delivered by Zhang Yang. How could he not go insane?

He was absolutely furious. He struck the table with all his might.

Within the Imperial Hall, countless forbidden laws of holy power erupted, tearing apart the wondrous light emitted by the Mother-and-child Bead. Naturally, those forbidden laws were also neutralized in the process, losing their effectiveness.

“I will kill you!”

Zhang Yang drew the Phoenix Flame Holy Sword and charged straight at Jin Shengtian.

“You’re seeking death!” Jin Shengtian roared, lunging forward to meet him.

The fiercest Battle God-level geniuses from the Southern Region and the Western Desert finally clashed head-on.

At the moment of collision, Jin Shengtian’s bloodline surged and roared. The power within intertwined to form the illusion of the Supreme Emperor, merging with his being. He wasn’t merely aiming to kill Zhang Yang, he intended to slaughter Bing Yuyan as well. Unleashing his power recklessly, he caused his combat strength to skyrocket in an instant.

Unlike the last time he fought more than ten saints, this time he didn’t have the support of the entire palace’s ultimate forbidden holy laws. He only had the ones within the Imperial Hall, making his strength less overwhelming.

Even so, he surged to the Great Boundless level in the blink of an eye.

Whoosh!

Bing Yuyan’s Ice Spirit Holy Sword thrust forward once more.

Buzz!

Golden light radiated from Jin Shengtian as a divine protective aura formed, blocking her sword strike.

Clang!

Though the Ice Spirit Holy Sword couldn’t pierce through the protective holy light, it left numerous cracks. The illusion of the Supreme Emperor, formed by the truth of the ancestral bloodline—suddenly shattered.

Jin Shengtian was astonished.

Bing Yuyan’s strength far exceeded his expectations.

In the next moment, Zhang Yang’s Phoenix Flame Holy Sword—now crackling with lightning and fire, slashed down.

The already-cracked protective holy light shattered completely.

This was a formidable alliance, Zhang Yang and Bing Yuyan, fighting in perfect sync.

Brilliant sword light swept across the hall.

Blood splattered in vivid arcs.

Cries of pain echoed within the chamber.

An arm flew through the air.

Jin Shengtian lost his left arm and was sent tumbling away.

“What a pity,” Zhang Yang muttered. He knew this had been his one real chance.

Boom!

The doors and windows of the Imperial Hall burst open, and more saints rushed in.