The Last Sentinel

North Heavenly Gate, Commander's Tent.

Outside the tent, the north wind howled, swirling with the leaden clouds that never dissipate from the thirty-three heavens, slapping against the black iron tent with muffled thuds. Inside, three nine-turn glass lamps burned, their flickering flames casting long and short shadows of the three men.

The three heroes of the Tian family, Tian En, Tian Nu, and Tian Chou, each had a different expression.

Tian En remained impassive, calmly sipping his tea. He twirled the teacup three times between his fingers, wisps of steam rising, without even lifting his eyelids, as if what awaited him was not a life-or-death battle, but a casual family dinner.

Tian Nu huffed and puffed as he cleaned his precious sword, awaiting the upcoming battle. The blade reflected the lamplight, its cold light flickering on his face. He wiped it, then weighed the blade in his hand, as if giving his old friend a final plea.

Tian Chou frowned, clearly contemplating his fate. His fingertips tapped the table unconsciously, once, twice, faster and faster, until his knuckles turned slightly white.

Before long, a light came from the communication jade pendant in front of them. The jade pendant hummed, and a dark blue halo spread out in the tent, even brighter than a lamp.

Tian Nu hurriedly said, "It's here! A battle report has arrived!" He didn't even bother to put down the knife in his hand and jumped up.

Tian Chou, being the closest, hurriedly picked up the jade pendant and gave it a sharp shake. The contents of the battle report appeared before the three of them. The jade pendant trembled slightly in his palm, and when he looked closer, his pupils contracted sharply.

The battle report contained only one word—retreat!

Yes, there was only one word: "withdraw!" The word "withdraw" hung on the light screen, scarlet as blood, stinging the eyes.

Tian Nu stared at the word "retreat" and instantly flew into a rage: "What the hell! Retreat now? Then all our troop deployment over the past month has been for nothing!" He snatched the jade pendant, his bulging knuckles gripping the magical artifact so tightly that it cracked. If it weren't an artifact of a celestial being, it would probably have already been shattered into dust.

Seeing this, Tian Chou let out a long sigh of relief, his tense shoulders slowly slumping: "Second Brother, retreating is better than total annihilation! Now, the three great natural disasters, the forbidden zone, the Primordial Ancient Mine, and the remnants of darkness are all eyeing us covetously! As soon as we engage the Carbon-Based Universe in front, these bastards will launch a sneak attack from behind! It seems our family does have some experts who can see through this dead end at a glance. Of the thirty-six stratagems, retreat is the best!"

Tiannu waved his hand angrily: "Damn it! What brilliant move! It's a foolish move! Right now, Qi Tian is frantically building war star gates, and the army of Huaguo Mountain is leaving Huaguo Mountain and heading to the Tang Dynasty prefectures in the Guixu region of Dongsheng Shenzhou. Qi Tian's forces are scattered, and Huaguo Mountain is currently vulnerable. As long as we seize the opportunity, we can take Huaguo Mountain and kill Qi Tian! We will have accomplished a great feat!" When he said the words "accomplished a great feat", a burning light flashed in his eyes, like a starving wolf eyeing a piece of fat meat.

Tianchou said, "But, Second Brother, have you considered what if Qi Tian is deceiving us? Is Qi Tian building a large-scale war teleportation stargate to fool us? He hasn't actually transferred any troops. There are still 55 of the strongest expeditionary legions from the star cluster stationed on Huaguo Mountain. We've calculated it many times. To kill them all, we'll lose at least three-fifths of our manpower. And can the remaining two-fifths withstand the counterattack and sneak attacks from the natural disaster forces?"

"If we hand over the battlefield now, I don't believe Qi Tian can coexist peacefully with those natural disaster forces."

"Given their narrow-minded racial prejudices rooted in carbon-based civilization, they will definitely engage in a violent conflict!"

"Then we'll find the right opportunity to strike back. When the snipe and the clam fight, the fisherman benefits!"

Tianchou spoke these words very quickly, his brows furrowed, and his fingertips pressed heavily on the table, as if he wanted to force the truth into Tiannu's mind.

Unable to argue with Tian Chou, Tian Nu could only turn to his elder brother Tian En: "Brother, say something!"

Tian En, who was sitting at the head of the table, stood up and said slowly, "Obey orders." He put down his teacup so lightly that there was not a sound, not even the sound of the bottom of the cup hitting the table was suppressed. Just like this light and airy sentence, it was the final word, sealing off all the arguments.

Obeying orders means retreating!

Tian Nu slammed his fist on the command desk, making the entire table jump. Teacups clattered and shattered, spilling scalding tea all over the floor, steaming. "If you want to retreat, then retreat! I'm not retreating! I'll take a gamble. I'll bet that Qi Tian Flower Fruit Mountain only has one guard legion. As long as I can kill Qi Tian, ​​everything will be over!"

Tian Nu slammed the door shut and left! The black iron curtains were torn open by him, making a loud rustling sound, and the north wind blew in from outside, causing the lamplight to flicker.

Behind them, Tianchou looked at Tiannu's retreating figure and said, "Brother, this..."

Tian En's eyes were icy: "Your troops prepare to retreat to the Thirty-Third Heaven! As for Tian Nu, I'll wait here for him and see what Flower Fruit Mountain is really like." He looked in the direction where the curtain had fallen, and beneath the icy look in his eyes, there seemed to be something else hidden.

Tianchou nodded: "Okay, big brother, just let me know if you need support, and I'll come to your aid immediately!" He bowed and turned to leave in a hurry.

Tian En watched Tian Chou's figure disappear, then his gaze fell on the three-dimensional projection map of the heavens in front of him.

The entire map appears as a black, flowing ripple, the ever-surging Sea of ​​Ruins. Within this sea, islands are clearly visible. These are not the usual primitive islands, but rather the remnants of human cities on the sea surface, including various ancient Xia and Tang dynasty-style restaurants, city walls, and palaces...

Now, above the human settlements on those islands, pale blue ripples of starlight swirled. The vortexes rotated silently, spreading out in concentric circles, like giant, open eyes coldly gazing down at the sea.

War Gate!

Hua Xiaobai directly opened the War Gate in front of the three major celestial camps of the Heavenly Court, and began war teleportation!

From the perspective of a professional general like Tian En, this operation can be described as extremely foolish.

Once the war star gate is opened, it will completely deplete the already limited original power of Huaguo Mountain!

If an enemy were to launch a surprise attack on Flower Fruit Mountain at this time, then Qi Tian would not have enough source power to deal with the invading enemy!

Moreover, such a careless opening of the stargate for teleportation will allow the enemy to know your coordinates in advance and set up ambushes to ambush you at the landing point!

Whether viewed from the enemy's perspective or from one's own, opening a stargate like this is a very amateurish operation!

So here's the question: Is Qi Tian an idiot?

Obviously not.

If Qi Tian were an idiot, he should have died long ago!

Not to mention that Qi Tian's intelligence and brain development are second only to Sentinel Ye Feng!

Qi Tian is incapable of making mistakes, so the fact that he did this shows that he is absolutely certain of victory!

He probably already calculated that the Heavenly Court would retreat and cede the battlefield!

But where did he get such confidence? Could it be that there's a traitor within the Heavenly Court?

Thinking of this, Tian En shook his head violently. It was an open secret that there were spies in the Heavenly Court. He raised his hand to rub his temples, his fingertips gently stroking his temples.

But spies can't reach the higher levels!

At the very least, we cannot give them the order to retreat!

Tian En was very clear about the family rules and loyalty of the Tian family, and the orders given to him by the Tian family would not contain any element of treachery!

So here's the question: if we don't take action ourselves, but only Heavenly Wrath intervenes, can we test how deep the waters of Flower Fruit Mountain are?

Tianen's eyes gleamed. If Huaguo Mountain was a sham, he would disobey orders, withdraw his third brother Tianchou's troops, and launch a full-scale attack on Huaguo Mountain.

If Huaguo Mountain is said to be very dangerous, with more than twenty legions, then I will obey orders and retreat immediately!

No matter what, I am invincible!

As for Tiannu, his life or death is up to him. I didn't ask him to go first; it was his own choice!

Thinking of this, Tian En's lips even curled into an almost imperceptible smile. He gently pressed his fingertip on the location of Huaguo Mountain on the projected map, and the light and shadow there slightly dented under his fingertip.

The jade pendant suddenly shone brightly once more. The dim light returned, and the tent fell silent instantly, even the crackling of the lamplight sounding exceptionally clear.

Tianen hurriedly and respectfully said, "Tianen greets the Immortal." He instantly abandoned his previous scheming, slightly hunched his back, and lowered his posture to an extremely humble level, like a docile house cat.

A fairy-like figure in peach-pink appeared, exuding charm and unparalleled beauty. She gently stroked Tian En's cheek with her jade-like hand, saying with pity, "Oh! Young Master Tian En, it's only been a few days since we last met, and you've already become so distant with me! Last time at Zui Xian Lou, you and I had quite a bit of fun!" Her fingertips brushed through the air, carrying a faint scent of peach blossoms, and her eyes crinkled with laughter.

Tian En's face was burning hot, and he kept saying, "Immortal, please spare me! Last time, I didn't know that you were the Lustful Immortal of the Seven Deadly Sins. I thought you were just an ordinary courtesan, which led to this one-night stand. Please forgive me, Immortal." Fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, and his Adam's apple bobbed up and down, but he dared not raise his hand to wipe them away.

"Look how nervous you are!" The lustful immortal paced around and said, "You've got a pretty good plan! Sending your own brother as a pawn to pave the way for you. Tian Nu has really been stuck with a heartless older brother. What a tragedy!" She slowly circled around him, her gaze falling on the outside of the tent curtain, her expression meaningful.

Tian En said, "Immortal, aren't you in the dimensional battlefield? Now that you've descended, aren't you afraid Ye Feng will track you down using the communication signal?"

"Don't worry!" The Lustful Immortal laughed, "I've investigated this Ye Feng. He's never killed a woman since he debuted. He's a very traditional gentleman and wouldn't lay a hand on me!" She waved her hand gently, looking quite confident.

Tian En said, "Is that so?"

The lustful immortal bowed. "What? Are you jealous?" She leaned closer, her peach-blossom eyes brimming with laughter.

Tian En said, "How could I dare to compete with a prodigy like Ye Feng? You are joking, Immortal." He lowered his eyes, his voice was calm, but his fingertips curled slightly.

"I have some breaking news for you," said the Lustful Immortal. "The Seven Deadly Sins, Gluttony, is about to die."

Tian En was stunned: "What? Ye Feng acted so quickly?" His pupils shrank slightly, and the fist clenched at his side tightened involuntarily.

"It wasn't Ye Feng," said the Lustful Immortal, her jade hand shimmering with spiritual light. "It was Pride! The Sin of Pride targeted Gluttony, that glutton. In fact, Pride invited me to join him in killing Gluttony, but I refused. It's not that I sympathize with that glutton; it's just that I didn't want to kill such a disgusting creature!" She wrinkled her nose as if she had smelled something filthy.

Tian En said, "Why are you telling me about such things as the Seven Deadly Sins Immortals, sir?"

The lustful immortal leaned down and asked, "Do you want to become one of the Seven Deadly Sins?"

At this point, Tian En's heart suddenly raced, and the crimson light deep within his eyes was stirred forth. His throat tightened, and he felt that crimson light burning intensely in his eyes, as if something long dormant had been awakened in an instant.

Becoming one of the seven deadly sins means complete liberation!

They can make their own decisions without having to obey their family's orders!

Tian En asked, "How do we do it?" His voice was low and hoarse, with a slight, almost imperceptible tremor.

The Immortal of Lust laughed, "The Seven Deadly Sins have a self-inheritance mechanism. If a sin is about to end, it will choose its own successor. Right now, Envy has been eaten by Greed, Greed has been killed by Ye Feng, Pride is going to kill Gluttony, and Wrath, Sloth, and Lust are the three survivors. Wrath has chosen your second brother, Heavenly Wrath, as its successor, while Sloth has chosen you!"

Tian En was taken aback: "Me? My second brother, Tian Nu, is backed by the Original Sin of Wrath?" He suddenly looked up, a flash of crimson light in his eyes.

The Lustful Immortal laughed, "Otherwise what? You don't actually think Heavenly Wrath is brainless, do you? Without the support of the Original Sin Immortal Official, would he dare to defy the Heavenly Family?"