The court lackeys of the eight-hour workday

Chapter 452 Fireworks
Before An Ziyang had even fully stood up, An Qisheng's gaze was already fixed on him; by the time the last word was uttered, An Qisheng had already rushed into the building at An Ziyang's feet.

boom!
The roof and main beams crumbled like paper in an instant. As An Qisheng broke through the roof, his protective true energy extended out along his right hand, and snowflakes fell, outlining a transparent longsword nearly ten feet long.

The Imperial Guards and An Ziyang, who were lying prone on the roof, reacted. Weapons were brandished, muskets fired, and shouts of battle arose. Dozens of elite Imperial Guards blocked An Ziyang's path and charged towards An Qisheng.

And then—wooo.

With a sound as faint and brief as the wind rustling through the leaves, the transparent longsword swept around once and returned to its original position.

Time seems to stand still.

The sonic boom exploded the next instant.

The white sonic boom ring blew everything off the roof: human bodies, armor, traps, and hidden weapons were all cut in half in mid-air and tumbled off the roof with a crash.

An Qisheng's gaze swept over them.

"substitute."

An Ziyang's body, severed in two, fell to the ground, its face twisted and deformed, transforming into another unfamiliar face.

An Qisheng raised his hand and grabbed the corpse that had been cut in two, then turned and rushed back into the crowd he was escorting, his protective aura extending into a wall to block the rain of swords.

At the same time, he threw the two pieces of the corpse to Liu Jin.

"Check if there are any Gu worms. This substitute's martial arts are too weak, and he doesn't seem to be in a high position. Yet he gave the order too decisively just now. It is very likely that he communicated with the real person through Gu worms to confirm the timing of issuing the order."

Liu Jin immediately closed his eyes to examine the area, and after a moment spoke.

"There are Gu worms, but there is more than one connection."

He pointed in three directions.

"There are connections to the left, right, and right front, each about two hundred feet away. Each one could be the main body, but the other party has concealed it, so I can't tell the difference."

An Qisheng asked without hesitation.

“How many people are there now?”

"Of the 362 people, some have died."

"I need twenty breaths."

"Then when you return, there will be no fewer than 340 people still alive."

"it is good."

Once the martial arts practitioners had regrouped, An Qisheng did not hesitate for a moment and flew off in the direction Liu Jin had indicated.

Amidst the ruins on one side, a Jinyiwei guard, who had been swept in two by An Qisheng, barely managed to prop himself up. In the last moment before losing consciousness, he crushed the Gu worm he had been clutching in his palm.

Hundreds of feet away, An Ziyang suddenly stood up, threw the struggling, dead Gu worm in his hand to the ground, and said coldly.

“An Qisheng did indeed come to kill me; he separated from those ‘supplies’.”

"let's start."

Several voices echoed in response, and several figures vanished in an instant.

Only two people remained by An Ziyang's side.

The surrounding walls and ground were shaking continuously, and the deafening roars gradually approached from hundreds of feet away. Each roar represented the loss of dozens of lives. Only ten breaths later, with a deafening crash, An Qisheng descended from the sky and crashed into a side hall.

Without the slightest hesitation after landing, An Qisheng struck down with his palm.

boom!
The ground collapsed, revealing a secret chamber beneath.

An Qisheng looked down.

Beside An Ziyang stood a monk and a Taoist priest. The Taoist priest was the old Wudang Taoist who had been beaten and knocked unconscious a few days ago. As for the monk, he was wearing a tattered robe, with white hair and beard, and his face looked sorrowful and kind. The demon-subduing pestle he held in his hand had a dark red glint in the gaps.

With just a glance, An Qisheng knew exactly what was going on.

Wudang and Shaolin.

The monk and the Taoist priest also looked up at him, their gazes meeting.

An Ziyang took off running.

Before he could run a few steps, a sudden gust of wind swept him away. He landed and tumbled several times before slamming his hand against the wall. A stone door swung open with a bang, and he slipped inside, pressing the door closer without hesitation.

Just before the stone gate closed, he saw the old Shaolin monk have half his arm torn off by An Qisheng.

Mei Qinghe drew her sword and scaled the palace wall, her gaze sweeping over the crowd before finally settling on the two clones of Liu Jin.

"Sword Twenty-Three!"
Without the slightest hesitation, the tip of the sword pointed out from afar, its killing intent spanning several meters, passing through the crowd, and firmly nailing itself to Liu Jin.

While Mei Qinghe was still in the air, her skin cracked inch by inch, and blood left a tragic yet beautiful trail in the air.

"Sword Twenty-Three" is a killing sword technique created by Li Miao after the Battle of the Imperial Mausoleum, which combines Li Miao's exploration of Ji Zhao and all his understanding of swordsmanship. It is one of the most ferocious and powerful sword moves in the world, which even Mei Qinghe, at the peak of her skill, can only withstand one strike from.

Once Liu Jin is killed, An Qisheng will have no more companions.

It's not just Mei Qinghe.

Ruan Mei, Hong Chou, and the three retainers leaped out together, unleashing deadly attacks at Liu Jin.

Duizi!

Bang!
Liu Jin's clone was just an ordinary martial arts practitioner, only of second-rate skill, and was immediately reduced to a cloud of blood mist.

Another clone took the opportunity to slip into the crowd.

Mei Qinghe staggered, slashing off the head of the martial artist charging at her with her sword, panting heavily. The others leaped into the air, chasing after the direction in which Liu Jin's remaining clone had fled.

As the group charged into the crowd, Liu Jin's carefully constructed formation crumbled instantly, and more arrows and hidden weapons rained down, felling more than a dozen men in an instant.

It seems the scales of victory are tipping in Li Miao's favor.

Just as Mei Qinghe was about to breathe a sigh of relief, a cry of pain suddenly rang out. The next moment, Hong Chou was sent flying backward, tumbling several times upon landing before losing consciousness.

The tattered clothes on his chest and the jet-black handprint etched into his flesh said it all—a celestial being was hidden among the crowd.

A single blow could cripple Hong Chou; his cultivation level is no lower than that of a retainer—a Celestial Being from the Eastern Depot!

Yes, Liu Jin has staked everything, including all of the Eastern Depot's personnel. Today is a life-or-death battle; there's no room for hiding anything!
Mei Qinghe quickly scanned the area.

Hidden among the crowd, the Eastern Depot's celestial being had already engaged in combat with Ruan Mei and the other two retainers, and for the time being, it was difficult to determine a winner.

But then Mei Qinghe suddenly shouted.

"go!"

"An Qisheng is about to return, let's go!"

Without the slightest hesitation, the guards immediately created an opening, risking injury, and quickly left with Mei Qinghe and Hong Chou.

Shortly after the group left, An Qisheng landed with a thud, still clutching the unconscious, broken-limbed Wudang Taoist priest in his hand. Exactly twenty breaths had passed since he left, not a second more.

He tossed the old Taoist aside, then approached the surviving clone of Liu Jin and said...

"How much is left?"

"Three hundred and forty-three."

An Qisheng frowned.

"So many people died, exposing the number of hidden Celestials, and yet only three more survived?"

Liu Jin did not answer him. After a long while, he suddenly said in a cold voice.

"wrong."

"Now that they've tested our number of Celestials, they can deduce what kind of attacks we can withstand... As long as An Ziyang isn't dead, this is nothing short of a test!"

"Without you to test them, what kind of offensive can these people withstand!"

An Ziyang, who was some distance away, put down his binoculars, stopped observing, and let out a cold laugh.

"Indeed clever, but a bit slow."

He then waved his hand.

"Next step!"

Karaara—

As the wheels turned, several heavy metal objects, along with their bases, were slowly pushed to the side of the main hall.

The Hongyi cannon, the most advanced firearm of its time, had already had its fuse cut off and was lit. By the time An Ziyang finished speaking, the fuse had burned out.

The next instant—Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

(End of this chapter)