The Zhou Emperor pointed a finger.
At the tip of his thick finger, divine light flickered, and then a heart-stopping beam of light erupted, like a golden dragon forged from wind and thunder, striking the killing formation with a roar.
"Crack!"
As if a mirror shattered, the formation meticulously laid by Qi Long could not stop the divine finger beam for an instant. However, perhaps due to the rules of the Great Dao, the speed of this wind-gold-thunder dragon was significantly reduced, like a dandelion slowly drifting from the sky.
But no matter how slow it was, it would eventually land.
The wind-gold-thunder dragon had locked onto Qi Long, so no matter where he ran, he could not escape this finger.
"So what if you're the Zhou Emperor, you're just a spirit body!" A fierce look suddenly appeared on Qi Long's pale face.
No longer fearing the majesty, he held his sword with both hands, his body straight, facing the divine light.
The New Sun and Shen Hai swords, simultaneously let out earth-shattering hums, the deep sea waves reflecting the great sun, like an insurmountable chasm suspended in the void.
Could he block this finger?
Xu Mu felt he couldn't.
So he rapidly retreated to the deepest part of the cave.
...
In the cave, Zuo Mingqiu followed beside Xu Mu, looking at him with some confusion. He thought that if Qi Long really couldn't block that finger, and the energy overflowed, they would both surely die. What was the use of hiding in the cave instead of running quickly?
Zuo Mingqiu frowned and said, "Is it too late to activate the spatial formation now? Besides, you don't have a formation disk."
"Stand behind me."
Xu Mu didn't have time to explain. He looked at Zuo Mingqiu, and a hint of gray and white appeared in his pitch-black pupils.
He knew in his heart that Qi Long would definitely not be able to block the Zhou Emperor's finger. Even if he and Zuo Mingqiu combined their strength, they still wouldn't be able to block it, as they were not on the same level, and the gap in their cultivation was too vast.
The only way was to ask for help from the gray-white eyes.
"Your eyes..." Zuo Mingqiu was stunned.
In that instant, he felt that Xu Mu had become a stranger. He had never seen such eyes before.
Zuo Mingqiu tightened his grip on the sword at his waist and opened his mouth as if to speak.
"Boom!"
A loud roar came from within the cave.
"Jingle jingle jingle jingle jingle jingle!!!"
After the roar, came an overwhelming sound of bronze bells, dense like soldiers shouting in battle, shaking the heavens. The sound waves caused countless rocks and sand to fall in the cave, and also made Zuo Mingqiu momentarily forget what he was about to say.
"What's going on!"
Xu Mu's heart trembled. He covered his ears and took two steps back, seeing that outside the cave, bright and vibrant crimson light had already lit up.
The light was warm and sacred, illuminating every corner of darkness, purifying evil spirits hiding in filth, and even the darkness of the Demon God's Horn seemed to be suppressed a bit.
"Boom!"
Like a meteorite impact, another explosion sounded outside the cave. The crimson glow became brighter and brighter, the bronze bells deafening, accompanied by the roar of the wind-gold-thunder dragon, rushing towards the nine heavens.
Outside the cave entrance, the sky-piercing red light collided with the wind-gold-thunder dragon. Terrifying energy violently impacted everything around, like a world-ending meteor.
Trees were uprooted by the wind, instantly vaporized into ash. Countless swords hidden in rock crevices melted into molten iron. Dozens of sword cultivators with considerable strength were swallowed by this torrent of energy, disappearing from this world forever without even a scream.
"What in the world happened!"
In the dark cave, Zuo Mingqiu squatted on the ground, covering his ears, his body covered in dirt and rubble shaken from the cave ceiling.
Xu Mu did not squat. He looked at the cracks on the rock wall and the broken formation runes on the ground, suddenly falling silent.
They were not dead.
The Zhou Emperor's finger had been blocked.
He was very familiar with the sound of the bronze bells outside.
"The Zhou Emperor's pressure is still there, but I can't feel the oppression from that finger!" Seeing Xu Mu standing as if possessed, Zuo Mingqiu, covering his ears, shouted again against the deafening bronze bell sound, "Who made the move!"
Zuo Mingqiu was somewhat shocked. The power of the Zhou Emperor's finger was only around the peak of the fifth stage. There must be someone in the Sword Pavilion who could block it.
But the question was, who would dare to block it?
The one who made the move was the Emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, a Human King of the sixth stage. Who would dare to stop him!
The ringing of the bells gradually faded.
Xu Mu came back to his senses.
He looked towards the cave entrance, patted his head haphazardly, and managed to shake off his dazed state. He swallowed a mouthful of saliva, his expression moved as he said:
"If I'm not mistaken."
"Someone from the Demon Extermination Division must have arrived!"
...
Qi Long knelt at the cave entrance, covered in blood.
Shen Hai and Xin Ri were held in his hands, their blades dull, appearing lifeless.
Both man and sword had lost their fighting power.
But he was not dead.
The Great Zhou Emperor slowly withdrew his finger, his divine soul clone becoming increasingly faint. On his handsome, god-like features, looking at the old man blocking Qi Long, a rare hint of surprise appeared.
"Demon Extermination Division."
The old man wore a crimson official robe, stepped on a magic artifact bronze bell, and held a blazing sun soul banner, blocking Qi Long. Blood flowed from his seven orifices, but his face still held a smile.
Because neither he nor Qi Long had died.
He had blocked the Zhou Emperor's finger!
An Jin looked at the old man and shouted in shock:
"You are the innkeeper of Peach City Inn!"
The old man laughed heartily:
"It is indeed I!"
The old man turned his head and smiled at the Zhou Emperor's phantom:
"Your Highness Emperor Zhou is indeed powerful. Just a finger from a wisp of your divine soul clone almost took my life. Have you broken through again?"
The Great Zhou Emperor looked at the old man, a hint of anger in his brows: "Even if you are seeking revenge, you have broken the rules."
The old man's smile gradually faded:
"In the battle of Di Qiu that year, Mei Chuan ambushed and killed over a thousand of my soldiers. Did she ever abide by the rules?"
The Zhou Emperor frowned even more deeply and said:
"The peace treaty clearly states that past events are to be written off. This was drafted by Xia Qing himself. Do you not acknowledge it?"
The old man snorted coldly again:
"We naturally acknowledge the treaty established by Emperor Xia. Therefore, my arrival this time does not represent the Demon Extermination Division, nor does it represent the entire Great Xia."
"As a survivor of the Di Qiu battle, I now represent myself alone, coming to seek revenge on Mei Chuan!"
The Zhou Emperor heard this and glanced at Mei Chuan.
Her current state could be described as miserable. Her qipao was more than half ruined, her black hair scorched by the blazing sun, and her wounds were bleeding uncontrollably, as if she might die at any moment.
Just now, Mei Chuan had used her last bit of strength to dodge the aftermath of their battle.
So she also did not die.
The Great Zhou Emperor looked at the old man, his expression solemn, and raised a finger as if he intended to strike again.
The old man's expression was grave. He forcibly propped open his shattered domain, and the bronze bell beneath his feet rang out again.
His cultivation level was comparable to Qi Long's. Both were at the peak of the fourth stage, and Qi Long was even slightly stronger than him.
The reason he was able to block the Zhou Emperor's finger just now was because Qi Long wielded two immortal swords, and he had also used two fifth-stage magic artifacts from the Demon Extermination Division.
And now, Qi Long had no remaining strength, and his domain was shattered. If the Zhou Emperor were to strike again, they could only die.
But fortunately, the Zhou Emperor's finger ultimately did not fall, and instead turned into noble red dust, scattering in the wind!