Junior sister, keep forbear for a while, I almost become invincible as soon!

Multiple forces were making their moves. Fortunately, thus far, no Imperial Dao experts had joined the battle. Old Yellow Ox's aura could block them.

A wild wind blew, invisible dust cutting through the air like swords.

Princess Zi Ji's hair was tousled by the wind.

Guang Xiaoyu placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "Your hair can be disheveled, but your grace must not be lost."

For some reason, hearing these words, Princess Zi Ji gradually felt at ease.

BOOM!

Their attacks penetrated the area. Zhou Huaian was ready to counter, but then a mysterious barrier emerged and blocked their attacks.

Zhou Huaian paused in astonishment.

At the same time, Sword Mountain advanced, crumbling the second corner of the Sword Array. A second Divine King combatant suffered a terrible blow and was forced to retreat.

After steadying himself, he gazed intently in the direction of Sword Mountain and saw a figure enshrouded in radiance.

He was taking action.

An inscrutable person, sacred yet not sacred, was struggling forward.

He emanated an oppressive might, like a Divine King and yet also like an Imperial Dao expert.

Suddenly, the figure raised its head, revealing a pair of profound eyes. They felt like a bottomless abyss, instantly consuming his spirit, yet also resembled an endless expanse of stars.

The Divine King was alarmed, realizing they might have hit a wall.

"Did you see clearly?" his Divine King companion, the first to retreat from the Sword Array, asked weakly.

"No!" the Divine King replied. "This person is very strong. Our mission might fail."

"Chong Tower has never failed a mission," the companion said helplessly.

"But this time, we are really going to fail," the Divine King said. "Within that Sword Mountain is a sword, a Sacred Soldier. He is wielding it with all his might. Under these circumstances, we're helpless."

"Retreat?"

"I agree. We can only look for another opportunity."

"It's laughable. The Five Elements Divine Kings moved out in force, yet we're unable to kill a defenseless young girl," the companion said, shaking his head helplessly.

SPURT!

The third corner was breached. Another comrade suffered heavy damage and was forced off the battlefield.

He walked towards the two, his face pale. "We must kill that person," he said, pointing in the direction of Sword Mountain.

However, the Divine King and his companion had reached a consensus. Both shook their heads. "We're retreating. That person wields a Sacred Soldier. We cannot clash head-on and can only seek another opportunity."

Sacred Soldier! A dreadful term.

The third Divine King fell silent.

Sword Mountain continued its advance, with Chen Pingping also moving forward. It finally broke the fourth and fifth corners, completely shattering their Sword Array.

The five Divine Kings of Chong Tower withdrew from the battlefield, choosing to observe.

"There's something off about that young girl," one Divine King said. "She's not from the Central Continent."

"Why did she take action?"

"I don't know!"

"Is the person behind Princess Zi Ji the same one propelling Sword Mountain?" a Divine King in blue garb whispered gravely.

Casting the Sword Array had consumed too much of their energy.

Then, their formation was forcefully breached by Sword Mountain. All five Divine Kings suffered backlash simultaneously. Now, with their combat abilities weakened, rejoining the battle was pointless.

Yet, their hearts were stirring. Princess Zi Ji, born of a common woman, actually had a Big Shot standing behind her.

They were certain this person was not the Emperor.

And the one propelling Sword Mountain was not an Imperial Dao expert from the deep palace either.

After the Five Elements Sword Formation was shattered, Chen Pingping began assaulting the enemies who had attacked. With a slight sweep, surges of overwhelming Power Path rolled out like an eruption of volcanic magma, compressing the surrounding space.

AAAH!

Screams echoed as the attackers were swept away, without exception.

Although powerful, they were like ants before the Sacred Soldier, utterly lacking the strength to retaliate.

The situation had turned dreadful.

All those lurking in the shadows seemed to realize that the possibility of slaying Princess Zi Ji was now slim.

But no one issued the command to retreat, and the experts kept attacking frantically.

Meanwhile, Chen Pingping, who was propelling Sword Mountain, was consuming more and more energy. Only after swallowing several Spirit Pills did his strain finally ease.

Suddenly, the direction of his attack changed.

Sword Mountain rumbled loudly as it headed straight for the five Divine Kings of Chong Tower.

"Damn it!"

"What does he want to do?"

"Run..."

It was too late.

The force of the Sword Dao, as heavy as Mount Tai, compressed the air around them. The elder who practiced fire-attribute swordsmanship couldn't evade in time and was directly annihilated, leaving only a mangled mass of flesh and blood falling from the sky.

Everyone was left breathless.

At that moment, the command to retreat was finally issued. It was clear the five Divine Kings of Chong Tower were no longer capable of battle, and the hope of killing Princess Zi Ji had instantly shattered.

The remaining four Divine Kings fled the area quickly, their appearances utterly disheveled.

The formidable enemies who had made their moves also retreated from the battlefield, lurking once more in the shadows.

The battle was over.

Chen Pingping recalled Sword Mountain and collapsed to the ground. He swallowed a few Spirit Pills to recover from his injuries. He didn't enter the town but sent a telepathic message to Guang Xiaoyu: "No one else should make a move now. You take care of her. I'll wait for you in Luo City."

「Meanwhile...」

Upon receiving the telepathic message, Guang Xiaoyu shouted towards the direction where Sword Mountain had disappeared, "Thank you for your help, Senior!"

WHEW! WHEW!

Zhou Huaian completely relaxed, exhaling sharply several times. "It's over! Damn, that was terrifying."

"Let's go!" Guang Xiaoyu said.

"Go where?" he asked, baffled.

"To Luo City, of course!" Guang Xiaoyu replied. "Isn't Princess Zi Ji going to Luo City?"

"How do you know?" Zhou Huaian asked, his mouth agape.

HEH HEH!

Guang Xiaoyu blinked, leaned in, and whispered, "Not only do I know her identity, but I also know who that senior who just intervened is. And even... I know the identity that you too will soon discover."

Zhou Huaian: ...

...

This horrifying slaughter made everyone realize that a Big Shot stood behind Princess Zi Ji.

Killing her would not be so easy.

「Luo City!」

Dressed in white, the Tianxuan Saintess watched the situation in the town for a long time before finally retracting her gaze. That person! she thought.

Chen Pingping's true appearance was veiled by brilliance, so she couldn't see it clearly. However, she was certain he was merely an expert in the Divine King Realm.

What surprised her was that someone in the Divine King Realm could actually wield a Sacred Soldier to attack. Ordinary Divine Kings definitely couldn't do that.

Beside her, a young maid couldn't help but ask, "Miss, could that person be from the deep palace?"

The Saintess shook her head. "No."

The Emperor's inaction has given the five Princes their opportunity. If he wished to protect Princess Zi Ji on her trip to Luo City, no one in the Great Zhou Dynasty would dare to make a move.

Therefore, that person is definitely not an expert from the deep palace.

Elsewhere, a young man was also observing the battle in the town, surrounded by many young cultivators.

They were all prodigies from the Martial God Academy.

However, before this young man, they all showed great respect, as if facing a revered senior.

"She's here," the young man murmured. "Hah, I knew I should have intervened earlier!"

This was Liu Changqing, the foremost prodigy of the Martial God Academy.

He had traveled far to be here for the same reason as the Tianxuan Saintess: to see why Princess Zi Ji had come, and, if possible, to recruit her.

When the deadly trap was sprung in the town, Liu Changqing had wanted to intervene. But then a young girl rushed out, followed by the emergence of Sword Mountain.

He felt quite helpless.

The deadly trap was broken just like that, and he hadn't even had a chance to act.

"Senior Brother, is Princess Zi Ji truly as talented as the rumors say?" a puzzled young man beside him asked.

Every major power in the Central Continent wanted to recruit Princess Zi Ji.

Yet, she had rejected all of them.

In the eyes of the Martial God Academy contingent, Princess Zi Ji lacked discernment, unable to recognize what a Great Opportunity truly was.