The court lackeys of the eight-hour workday

Chapter 572 Opening

The laughter gradually faded away.

Jianzhen's left eye slowly closed.

Li Miao's expression turned cold.

The revival of Jianzhen was a coincidence, and coincidences are often hard to replicate.

From the moment he regained consciousness, Jianzhen's consciousness was subtly eroded by the right side of his body, and this erosion worsened over time, as evidenced by his sudden all-out attack on Li Miao. Now that he has willingly relinquished control of his body, the only chance he can regain it is in the final moments before his death, and even then, the hope is slim.

Both of them knew very well that even if Li Miao defeated this body, Jianzhen might not be able to wake up again. The words "see you before you die" just now were very likely a farewell.

But Jianzhen was still willing to keep his appointment with Li Miao!

This was not the choice of Bodhidharma's successor, nor the choice of a Shaolin monk, but a martial monk's tacit response to his friend!
A warrior's pact should be fought with fists and blood!

The battle begins!
Li Miao suddenly raised his hand and swung his arms down!
"Black Pagoda!"

boom!
A shockwave exploded, and countless sword energies burst forth, piercing through the dust and smoke! In an instant, the ultimate technique that had killed Emperor Jianwen and Zheng Anqi was unleashed!

Li Miao's use of the five-way unification technique was even stronger than his use in the Battle of Nanjing!

Boom boom boom boom——

The sword energy was no longer just sharp, but more like countless cannonballs that exploded the moment they touched an object, scattering countless even finer pieces of sword energy!

In an instant, the main hall of Enryaku-ji Temple, which had stood for a thousand years, collapsed with a deafening roar.

The rubble crashed down, obscuring the view.

Suddenly, a loud bang!
A giant bluish-purple hand smashed through the collapsed roof beams and stabbed straight at Li Miao's face!
"The moves are too crude!"

Li Miao grinned menacingly, raised his fingers, and a sharp cone of condensed true energy rose up, piercing through the opponent's radius bone. Then, he thrust forward with a sudden burst of strength!
scoff!

The radius bone was forcibly pushed off the arm, and without skeletal support, the hand lost its strength and drooped down.

The next instant, another fist emerged from the dust and smoke, using the severed arm as cover, and slammed into Li Miao's face!
clang!
A buzzing sound that could almost tear eardrums rang out.

Li Miao was actually forced back half a step by the blast.

The sonic boom dispersed the dust and revealed the enormous figure hidden within—a fierce-looking man with spiky hair, a wavy beard, dark skin, and bulging muscles. All the features of Jianzhen had vanished; his left eye was tightly closed, and his wide-open right eye was filled with rage.

Jianzhen has fallen into a deep sleep.

This body is now called Susanoo-no-Mikoto, Susanoo!
Li Miao coughed lightly a few times.

"That's impressive, he's even stronger than me."

"Under any other time, I would definitely want to have a good fight with you. But right now I have an appointment with a friend, so I won't play with you any longer."

"Here, try this!"

He raised his fingers together.

The world is changing.

The illusion belonging to Li Miao's true nature unfolded instantly.

The sea breeze was salty and briny, and the dark sand stretched from the horizon to the bottom of the inky sea. A storm raged on the surface, with flashes of lightning bursting in the eye of the storm, casting light onto the ground beneath our feet.

It was still that same dark sandy beach.

But this time, it wasn't a passive entry.

This place has finally become Li Miao's home turf!

"Roar!--"

Susanoo's gaze swept rapidly around and found Li Miao's figure. The muscles in his calves, which were as thick as an ordinary person's waist, suddenly bulged, and with a bang, he propelled his body out like a cannonball, approaching Li Miao.

Li Miao remained completely still.

Although he was in the illusion of his own mind, he did not want to conceal his identity and launch a sneak attack like the emperor did with An Qisheng; that was not in his style. Moreover, he was still seriously injured and it was not convenient for him to move around.

But since he's taken on this fight, he must have his own methods!

Li Miao raised one hand. "Come on!"

Susanoo had already rushed close to Li Miao, about to unleash a punch, when suddenly his legs gave way. With his speed, he had no time to react and was abruptly thrown forward.

Before he could get up, a pitch-black human figure appeared in front of him and thrust a spear formed from his protective true energy into his body!

"Roar!"

With a roar, Susanoo used his brute strength, surpassing Li Miao's, to forcefully prop himself up. He twisted the spear with his own muscles, punched it down, and used the recoil to suddenly stand up. He opened his arms and pulled the dark figure into his embrace, attempting to strangle it with brute force!

But the dark figure he had pulled into his arms suddenly tilted its head back, revealing a wide grin on its smooth face, showing its snow-white teeth.

"Want to engage me in close combat?"

"You've never died, huh!"

Bang bang bang bang bang! ——

Instantly, a series of deafening explosions erupted in front of Susanoo's chest! The pitch-black humanoid launched an endless offensive in his arms with unparalleled ferocity, punches, shoulders, knees, elbows—dozens of sonic booms overlapped, and blood and flesh flew everywhere!
Susanoo's arms were smashed open, and large chunks of flesh were torn from his chest, revealing his stark white sternum. His massive body was sent flying backward by the force of the impact.

"Roar!"

Flying backwards for several meters, Susanoo plummeted to the ground. Upon landing, he let out a roar, his gaze sweeping ahead with confusion.

Although he was delirious, as one of the Shinto sect's trump cards, he could instinctively analyze the situation and advantages and disadvantages in the battle, and he also knew information about the Celestial Realm.

Li Miao is still recovering from serious injuries and should not be able to make any moves at will. However, the pitch-black humanoid that blasted him away earlier is no different from Li Miao himself in terms of threat, strength, and moves.

Even Ji Zhao shouldn't be able to create an illusion stronger than Li Miao's current one!

Several feet away, the pitch-black human figure slowly rose to his feet.

Behind him, Li Miao kept his eyes closed.

Seeing Susanoo hesitate, the mouth of the pitch-black humanoid face opened, and at the same time, Li Miao, whose eyes were tightly closed, also opened his mouth, and the same voice came from both directions.

Are you confused?

“That’s right, I can’t make any moves at will right now, and Jizhao can’t create an illusion stronger than me. But don’t you know what my Xuanlan is?”

"【All Things】".

"Based on the illusion of silence, and with the added protective true energy of Xuanlan, this illusory body is taken over by my entire consciousness. Although it lacks the support of [Underlying Strength], making it slightly weaker, and it cannot stay within a ten-zhang radius of the original body, it is still usable."

"Don't say I'm bullying you."

The pitch-black figure pointed backward.

"My true form is right there, and my protective energy is all here. I'm heavily injured and can't withstand a single punch from you. If you just charge through, you win."

He waved.

"Come!"

Susanoo roared.

He immediately turned and ran away!

The dark-skinned figure frowned.

"Scared? Surely not."

Susanoo certainly didn't run away.

Based on his impressions before Li Miao pulled him into the illusion, he ran backwards for several feet, then suddenly reached out and grabbed in front of him.

Beyond the illusion, amidst the ruins.

Susanoo's arm pierced into the corpse lotus.

Blood was pumped out.

The cold light appears!

(End of this chapter)