Zongwu: Aspiring to be the mastermind behind the scenes

Chapter 234 A Single Strike Breaches the City, Loulan Enters Qin
outside world.

While fighting, everyone was also keeping a close eye on the most critical area of ​​the battlefield.

Seeing Xiao Li rush into the golden light, everyone showed expressions of concern.

Hopefully she can bring news of victory.

But one minute, two minutes...

Time passed slowly, but they never saw that azure light again.

At the same time, the light gate that was constantly devouring the Demon God remained incredibly sturdy.

It was as if they were completely unaffected.

A bad feeling immediately arose in everyone's hearts.

"Xiao Li...no way! No way!"

Tears welled up in Tianming's eyes as he spoke in disbelief.

"Senior brother, it seems you've failed again," Wei Zhuang sneered.

Gai Nie remained silent, staring at the golden light gate. His fingers, gripping the Yuanhong sword, turned slightly white as he exerted force.

A calm voice came from behind the light gate.

"It seems that the mercy I showed you has become the source of your courage. Life is so precious, but since you yourselves don't even value it, then... Jian Yue, finish them off."

"Yes!"

Jian Yue stood atop the temple steps, looking down at the crowd.

Upon hearing this, he sheathed the ancestral sword in his hand, and sword energy surged around his body, condensing into a ball in his palms.

It may seem tiny, but it actually contains boundless power.

Seeing this, Mu Daoren and the others quickly withdrew from the battlefield and came to the steps to avoid being accidentally injured.

"not good!"

"Tianming, get out of here quickly!"

Wei Zhuang and Gai Nie's expressions changed drastically, and they quickly turned around and led everyone to flee.

Jian Yue paid no attention to their actions.

He blasted a ball of energy, imbued with boundless sword energy, towards the direction in which the group was fleeing.

But at that very moment, the Pixiu he had grabbed suddenly bit into Jian Yue's wrist.

With the sharp teeth of a divine beast, it can even chew steel to powder.

Although Jian Yue also cultivated his body, making his physical strength even greater than that of steel, he still felt pain when the Pixiu bit him.

The burst of sword energy in his hand caused him to veer slightly off course, grazing the goddess statue in front of him.

The final landing point was also slightly off-center.

But the power of this move exceeded everyone's imagination.

The boundless sword energy erupted the moment the energy ball landed, sweeping out in all directions.

The square's surface, paved with stone bricks, was more fragile than foam at this moment.

With just a light touch of the sword energy, everything vanished into nothingness.

The houses next to it were like tofu, easily sliced ​​into pieces with a single sweep of sword energy.

Even the towering goddess statue, having been grazed by the sword energy, broke in half and collapsed with a crash.

It doesn't stop there.

The attack range of that sword energy ball was not limited to just the square in front of the lake.

Endless sword energy erupted from it, shooting towards the distance.

In the blink of an eye, half of the entire city of Loulan had been reduced to ruins.

The other half, however, were not entirely unharmed.

The sword energy bursting from the center of the square was quite dispersed by the time it reached the other side. Even though each sword energy could easily cut through the houses, it could only sever them at most, not completely destroy them.

Even so, the entire city was almost destroyed by Jian Yue's move.

Its power is so terrifying that it is truly astounding!
The wooden Taoist's face showed an expression of utter horror.

Not to mention everyone else.

"Master..." Shi He asked in a low voice, "Can you do that too?"

Master Mu glared at him fiercely: "Shut up!"

How could he possibly do that?

The difference between Jian Yue and him is not just in their cultivation level, but also in their martial arts skills.

The wooden Taoist practiced the martial arts created by Zhang Zhenren of Wudang Mountain. Although Zhang Zhenren was a genius, his cultivation had only just reached the second level of the Grandmaster realm. How could he compare with the predecessors of the first-class sect in Zhongzhou, the Sword Sect?
Everyone naturally understood that even grandmasters had their limitations.

He couldn't help but look at Jian Yue with awe.

Jian Yue himself had a gloomy face. He reached out and grabbed the Pixiu by the neck, his sword energy surging in his hand, wishing he could kill it on the spot.

Fortunately, a voice came and made him put his mind at ease.

He turned around, took the Pixiu with him, and rushed into the golden light gate.

At the same time, more gates of light appeared in front of Mu Daoren and the others.

Master Mu took a deep breath.

This difference in treatment is clearly what distinguishes him from Jian Yue.

Behind that portal that's currently devouring the Demon God should be a key location for the organization...

Unfortunately, he was clearly not qualified to enter.

Sure enough, as they stepped out of the portal in front of them, the scenery that appeared before them was the Nameless Island.

Fortunately, the Heavenly Secret Token on his body trembled.

However, the organization had already sent out awards for meritorious service in this operation.

That enormous amount instantly calmed the imbalance in Mu Daoren's heart.

"Hmph! Jian Yue is just a little higher in cultivation level and a little stronger than me. Once I do more missions, gain merits, exchange them for martial arts skills and cultivation insights, and improve my strength, I can obtain everything he has now!"

Loulan.

The golden light gate had completely devoured the Demon God.

But it did not stop at all; instead, it continued downwards, swallowing up the Xuan Nu Temple as well.

The high priest, who had long since fled far away, led a group of surviving Loulan people, watching the temple gradually disappear under the golden light, and remained silent.

The people worshipped the Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady their whole lives, and that sacred temple was the embodiment of their faith.

The statue of the Goddess of the Nine Heavens in front of the temple is the image of the Goddess of the Nine Heavens in their hearts.

At this moment, watching the statues shatter and collapse, and the temple gradually disappear, it would be impossible not to feel anger.

But they also saw the square in front of the temple, which had completely disappeared, leaving only a large crater, and the city, which had been reduced to ruins.

Even if they were far away, they could still see the houses that had been cut in half at the edge of the city.

The horrific scene completely stifled their anger, and no one dared to utter a single word.

The high priest was equally furious.

However, as a leader, she thinks more than ordinary people.

Loulan City is now in ruins, but it can be rebuilt.

Even if the temple is gone, it can be rebuilt.

However, the real problem lies in the fact that the Dragon Soul was taken away by the other party!
Loulan is located deep in the desert and is constantly threatened by desert erosion. It has always been the Dragon Soul that provides water to ensure Loulan's survival.

In the past, if the Dragon Soul was stolen, it could be retrieved.

The Dragon Soul is now in the hands of those people; trying to get it back is just wishful thinking.

Moreover, the statue has been destroyed, so even if they regain the dragon soul, they will not be able to use the methods left behind by the Nine Heavens Mystic Maiden to regenerate the water source.

Without water, the future of Loulan is predictable. Like other desert kingdoms and city-states, it will inevitably be swallowed by the desert and eventually turn into a vast expanse of yellow sand.

"What should Loulan do next...?"

The high priest frowned and began to ponder.

At this time.

The sounds of war could be heard in the distance.

However, the Qin army, which had also survived in the ruins, was gathering.

Seeing this, the high priest had a bold idea: "Perhaps..."

"You want to lead Loulan to join the Qin state?"

Gongshu Chou stroked his goatee, a mocking smile creeping onto his lips: "Are you sure? Our Qin state just invaded Loulan, didn't it?"

The high priest bowed his head and said, "This is all for... Loulan!"

Gongshu Chou's gaze was unfocused.

Strictly speaking, there wasn't much deep-seated hatred between the Qin army and Loulan.

Although the Qin army invaded Loulan and a battle broke out, it did not actually cause too many casualties.

Then, that mysterious organization made a sudden appearance, stealing all the attention and becoming a common enemy of both sides.

He was also aware of the situation in Loulan, which was now on the verge of extinction.

It's not impossible that they sought refuge with the Qin state for survival.

In addition...

This operation can be described as a complete failure. Bingmoshen was taken away by that organization, and he not only gained nothing but also lost a significant number of Qin soldiers.

If we return with such a result, His Majesty the Emperor will likely issue a decree to punish us.

However, if we can bring the Loulan people back, it can be considered a great achievement and make up for the losses this time.

Afterwards, this event could be publicized as the Qin army sending out troops, with three thousand men conquering the legendary kingdom of Loulan in the desert.

After doing all this, there might not only be no punishment, but it could even be considered a merit!
With this in mind, Gongshu Chou was already somewhat tempted.

Seeing that he remained silent, the high priest grew somewhat anxious and continued, "Although the temple of Loulan was also looted by them, many ancient texts are still sealed away elsewhere. In addition... we also have some research results on the God of War..."

Gongshu Chou's eyes lit up: "Good!"

The ordinary people of Loulan were naturally unwilling to leave their ancestral homeland.

However, seeing the vanished temple, the shattered statues, and the ruins of the city, coupled with the high priest's declaration that the dragon soul could never be reclaimed, everyone fell silent...

The importance of the Dragon Soul to Loulan is something that almost every Loulan person knows.

The disappearance of the Dragon Soul means that Loulan will follow the same fate as other desert kingdoms.

That is why, after the dragon soul was retrieved, the high priest summoned all the people of Loulan atop the statue to announce the return of the dragon soul.

The goal was to reassure the people of Loulan.

But now, it can be said that there is absolutely no possibility of taking back the dragon soul.

The hearts of the Loulan people were thus scattered.

After understanding this harsh reality, most of the younger generation decided to leave Loulan with the high priest and go to the Qin Kingdom.

However, many elderly people, unable to bear leaving their homeland, insisted on staying in Loulan.

Even the high priest couldn't persuade them.

Fortunately, while the high priest could not persuade him, Gongshu Chou could.

As the saying goes, "Having an elder in the family is like having a treasure."

Being old means having a rich life experience.

Especially after the Temple disappeared, along with all the countless books stored within it, many elderly people had read the books in the Temple and still remembered some of them.

These people are, in fact, living scriptures.

They want to stay here, but Gongshu Chou isn't happy about it!

Build mechanical sandships directly on the spot and take them all away!

The high priest did not deceive Gongshu Chou. Even though the God of War was completely taboo in Loulan, there are always heretics in any place.

Even stealing the dragon soul is something some people do, let alone researching the Demon God.
In some periods, if a particularly warlike high priest appeared, the research on the War God could even be considered official.

Therefore, Loulan does indeed still possess some books obtained from the study of the military demon god.

These books naturally all fell into the hands of Gongshu Chou.

He was so engrossed in it that he never put the book down and left all his other tasks to the Grand Master of Fate.

Therefore, he was completely unaware that several people who shouldn't have been there had appeared on the mechanical sandships he had built.

"Why...did you save us?"

Wei Zhuang lay on the bed, his body wrapped in bandages, looking like a mummy.

Even the slightest movement causes my whole body to ache.

But he still asked this crucial question.

The Grand Master of Fate wore fiery red robes, her waist swaying gently.

"There's no reason, it's just that you can't die yet... You still have your mission to complete..."

Wei Zhuang stared at the ceiling, his expression uncertain.

The Yin-Yang School's greatest strength lies not in its bizarre martial arts, but in its astrological laws.

This allowed them to predict the ultimate victory of this land of seven states many years ago, and thus they joined the Qin state.

In fact, many years later, the Qin state did indeed complete the great task of unifying the seven states, forming the largest and most powerful empire in the world today!

The Grand Master of Fate found them in those ruins and went to great lengths to rescue them. Could it be that the Yin-Yang School had divined something about them?
And... a mission?
Upon hearing those two words, Wei Zhuang couldn't help but think of that mysterious girl.

In words, Wei Zhuang might call the girl stupid.

But in his heart, he couldn't help but feel a pang of envy.

Embarking on the path to fulfilling our mission, we will have no regrets even if it means death!

He envied that view from behind.

mission……

For a long time after the fall of the State of Han, Wei Zhuang seemed to lack this quality.

But now, he wants to find this kind of thing.

In that instant, the first thought that came to his mind was...

"As expected, I still want to defeat you, senior brother!"

Wei Zhuang thought to himself, "I will still draw my sword when we meet next time. I hope you won't be too surprised then!"

In the other rooms next door, Chi Lian was completely wrapped in bandages, even her face.

Gai Nie is similar to Wei Zhuang, but his left arm is empty.

Tianming and Shaoyu were also seriously injured.

Only Bai Feng, whose injuries were the least severe, had already recovered most of her health and was lying in bed, looking at the blazing sun outside the window.

Under the sunlight, a sword scar at the corner of his eye was clearly visible.

Loulan.

It has become a completely deserted city; not a single ghost can be seen in the entire city.

A golden light flashed atop the collapsed goddess statue.

"Does anyone want this? If no one wants it... I'll take it!"

Zhou Ming laughed and said, "We're in luck today, family members. We've found a ruined city. Since nobody wants it, this will be the organization's second base from now on!"

(End of this chapter)