Battle Through the Heavens: Starting with Cao Ying as an apprentice

Faced with immense temptation and the torment of family ties, the son made a more composed and cruel choice than his father.

After a long silence, Luo Chang let out a long sigh, as if he had used up all his strength. His shoulders slumped, and he looked as if he had aged ten years in an instant: "Alas... perhaps I really am getting old. Indecisive, hesitant... never mind, never mind, you're right."

"The Luo family... will ultimately be handed over to you. You... do as you see fit."

His voice was tired, but it carried a sense of relief, as well as a complex sense of satisfaction for his son's growth.

Luo Tian took a deep breath, nodded heavily, and his eyes became firm again: "Alright, then I will go to the guest courtyard to see Mr. Su and confess everything to him, and let him decide what to do with me."

Just as Luo Tian turned around, preparing to open the ancestral hall door—

A calm voice, yet as familiar as a thunderclap to the father and son, rang out without warning in the incense-filled ancestral hall, echoing clearly in every corner:

"keep the change."

"I'm here."

Chapter 249 Su Baichen and his two companions VS the Soul Palace (1)

The following morning, Luo Cheng respectfully led Su Baichen and the others to the spatial wormhole.

Arriving at the wormhole, Luo Cheng stood a few steps away from its edge, his figure somewhat blurred by the distorted light. He remained silent, his hands hanging limply at his sides.

"I'll leave it here." Su Baichen turned around, his voice calm and emotionless.

He glanced at Luo Cheng, his gaze not sharp, yet it made Luo Cheng instinctively avert his eyes.

Luo Cheng remained motionless, his lips pressed into a stiff line.

"What's wrong?" Su Baichen raised an eyebrow slightly, a faint hint of doubt appearing in his eyes.

Just then—

"Hey!"

As if a complete brocade had been torn apart by the most brutal hand, a hideous wound suddenly appeared in the once calm sky above them!

A deep, dark rift appeared out of nowhere, with ominous purple lightning flowing along its edges. A violent spatial turbulence poured out from it, causing the grass and trees below to bend low and the sand and stones to scatter.

"What's wrong? Nothing!" A sharp, ecstatic voice came from the depths of the rift, drowning out the roar of space tearing apart.

"Hahaha, Su Baichen, I've finally been waiting for you!"

Before the words were finished, dozens of dark figures, like night owls leaving their nests, emerged one after another from the crack, carrying an intensely cold and sinister aura!

The shadowy figures quickly solidified, transforming into figures clad in black robes with blurred faces. The moment they appeared, an overwhelming pressure descended without reservation, instantly making the air thick and heavy, and even the light seemed to dim.

Dou Zun! A whole bunch of Dou Zun!

Cai Die's pupils suddenly contracted, and she abruptly turned her head, her gaze like a poisoned ice spike, piercing fiercely at Luo Cheng, who stood frozen in place.

Her chest heaved violently, her teeth clenched so tightly they seemed about to break, and each word burst from between them: "Luo Cheng! You dare betray us?!"

Zi Yan was taken aback at first, then suddenly realized.

Their journey was so secretive, lasting only a day, and their whereabouts were so elusive. If someone hadn't leaked the information beforehand, the Soul Palace would never have been able to set up an ambush here so precisely. Judging from this setup, they had clearly been lying in wait for a long time, just waiting for them to walk right into their trap!

Su Baichen's gaze also fell back on Luo Cheng. There was no astonishment, no questioning, and even anger seemed thin in his eyes. There was only a kind of all-knowing and almost indifferent understanding.

"You dare to betray me."

He didn't say another word, but simply raised his right hand casually and gently pressed it down in Luo Cheng's direction.

"puff!"

There was no earth-shattering roar, no dazzling collision.

Luo Cheng's body flew backward and crashed to the ground, completely lifeless!

"Su Baichen! I've been looking for you for a long time!"

Among the men in black, one figure stepped forward, his voice hoarse and filled with deep-seated resentment.

Su Baichen looked up, a hint of realization curving his lips. His tone was light and almost teasing: "Oh, who do we have here? It's that elder who used to follow me around, getting blown up by those tattered puppets and crying for his mother! How was that big gift? Was it good enough? You'll remember it fondly, won't you?"

"You...!" The elder's exposed half of his face turned a deep liver color, then a terrifying iron-blue.

He was trembling all over, his fists were clenched so tightly that his nails dug deep into his palms, and blood seeped out from between his fingers and dripped to the ground.

That look in his eyes was as if he wanted to devour Su Baichen alive and chew every bone to pieces!

"Enough with the nonsense! Just take him!" The Soul Palace Venerable, clearly unwilling to listen to any more arguments, shouted sharply and his figure transformed into a blurry black lightning bolt, rushing straight towards Su Baichen!

Its aura had clearly reached the level of a high-level Dou Zun, and with a single movement, the surrounding space emitted a hum that could not bear the weight.

"Let's do it!"

At his command, the other black-robed Venerables moved in response, their chilling battle auras soaring into the sky like a pack of wolves pouncing on their prey, splitting into three torrents that attacked Su Baichen, Cai Die, and Zi Yan respectively!

In an instant, the battle was divided into three parts.

In the first place, Zi Yan's petite figure was surrounded by two low-level Dou Zun, one on the left and one on the right, their auras locked on her.

At the second location, the colorful butterfly, surrounded by a shimmering rainbow of light, met three mid-level Dou Zun with a significantly more composed aura, her beautiful eyes filled with murderous intent.

In the third location, Su Baichen stood alone, facing all the remaining Dou Zun powerhouses, including the high-level Venerable and the Vengeful Elder! The dark figures surrounded him in the center, like the only island in a storm.

The first battlefield.

"Heh heh, little girl, you're quite pretty. Surrender obediently and play with me for a few days. Maybe if I'm in a good mood, I can let you die a quick death and spare you the torment of having your soul extracted and refined!"

A low-level Dou Zun let out a lewd laugh. As he spoke, he flicked his arm, and a strange chain wrapped in thick black mist shot out like a venomous snake, whistling through the air, and lashed out at Zi Yan's face!

A burst of purple-gold light flashed in Zi Yan's eyes. Instead of retreating, she took a step forward.

She shouted, "The first move of the Dragon Emperor's Three Forms—Dragon Emperor's Claw!"

His right sleeve ripped apart with a "rip," and his lower arm instantly expanded, covered with layers of fine and noble purple-gold dragon scales. His five fingers transformed into sharp claws that gleamed with a cold light, and he grabbed at the black chain that had been pulled out without any fancy moves!

"clang--!!!"

It wasn't the clang of metal against metal, but a more muffled, explosive sound that seemed to tear space itself apart!

The moment the dragon claw collided with the chain, the space at the point of contact twisted and rippled violently like the surface of water, and then with a "crack", several fine black cracks appeared!

A tremendous force struck, and both Zi Yan and the Soul Palace Battle Venerable groaned simultaneously, each sliding back several steps, their feet leaving deep furrows in the ground beneath their feet.

"What?!" The Soul Palace Dou Zun who had made the move steadied himself, his eyes wide with disbelief beneath his mask.

He is a Dou Zun! Even if he is only at the low level, he is still a Dou Zun who has transcended the mortal realm and further mastered the power of space!

The gap between a Dou Zong and a Dou Zun is an insurmountable chasm; how could they possibly confront each other head-on?

But this seemingly underage girl not only took the hit head-on, but even held her own!

Was his own Dou Zun cultivation level diluted, or was the opponent's Dou Zong realm fake?

Before he could think it through, Zi Yan had already attacked again, her fists, claws, elbows, and knees all unleashing fierce and deadly moves. Her body was enveloped in a surge of purple-gold light, accompanied by the faint roar of a dragon.

What alarmed him even more was that the spatial fluctuations caused by the opponent's every move were exquisite and powerful, completely comparable to the spatial manipulation of a low-level Dou Zun!

"This little girl is strange! Attack her together!" Another low-level Dou Zun, who was flanking nearby, saw that his companion was losing ground after a long attack. He shouted, his black robe billowing, and two pitch-black palm prints appeared on the left and right, blocking Zi Yan's retreat.

Zi Yan's eyes burned with fighting spirit, showing no fear. With a flick of her wrist, a long spear, entirely dark gold, with dragon patterns coiled around its shaft and a point of cold light as red as weeping blood, appeared in her hand—the Dragon Emperor's Blood-Weeping Spear!

Although Father Zhukun sealed most of its power, a divine artifact is still a divine artifact!

"Om-!"

With the spear in hand, Zi Yan's momentum surged again. She let out a delicate shout and advanced instead of retreating, her spear flashing like a dragon!

There are no complicated moves; it's just the simplest and most direct straight thrust!

Wherever the spear tip passed, the air was completely torn apart and annihilated, leaving behind a straight, black trail that could not be healed for a long time!

That was the sight of space being pierced through by the spear's edge!

"Holy crap! What the hell is this?!" The two Soul Palace Venerables were terrified. The chilling aura of death emanating from the spear tip made their scalps tingle. They no longer cared about surrounding and capturing the enemy. With a strange cry, they desperately activated their battle qi and retreated to the sides, looking utterly disheveled.

They couldn't understand how a mere Dou Zong girl could produce such a terrifying weapon whose mere aura could make one's soul tremble.

Chapter 250 Su Baichen and his two companions VS the Soul Palace (2)

The second battlefield.

Sword energy surged and roared like a dragon.

Cai Die held a long sword that was entirely dark blue-black, as if it were formed from autumn water. The sword light wove a dense, impenetrable curtain of light around her.

Her opponents were two mid-level Dou Zun, with profound cultivation and shrewd attacks. Cold black chains and highly corrosive dark attribute Dou Qi constantly attacked from tricky angles.

However, Cai Die's figure was like a butterfly flitting among flowers, dodging and weaving amidst the dense attacks. Not only did she dodge deadly moves at the last second, but her longsword also transformed into a streak of blue lightning. Sometimes, several sharp sword energies would pierce through the air with a "whoosh whoosh whoosh," counterattacking from unbelievable angles and forcing her two opponents to retreat and defend. At other times, her sword momentum would shift, transforming into a continuous defensive stance, protecting herself completely.

Even when facing an opponent whose cultivation level was clearly higher than hers, Cai Die showed no fear in her eyes, and even a hint of... disdain?

[A bunch of little karaomi!]

She scoffed inwardly: [Does he really think that being one level higher in cultivation can crush someone?]

Her confidence was not unfounded.

During those "unbearable" days, she was almost daily dragged off for "special training" by Su Baichen. It was ostensibly guidance, but in reality, it was inhumane practical training.

That brother-in-law never holds back. His exquisite use of spatial power, his precise grasp of timing in combat, and his extreme reactions to all kinds of emergencies... were all honed through repeated beatings that left him dizzy and covered in dust.

Sometimes, even her older sister, Cai Lin, would join in the "supervision." With the couple working together, Cai Die's combat abilities improved by leaps and bounds, far exceeding the scope of ordinary mid-level Dou Zun.

The thought of those dark and dreary days of special training inexplicably ignited a surge of anger within Cai Die.

The dark blue longsword in his hand seemed to sense its master's anger; its buzzing suddenly became sharp, and its sword light intensified!

"Shh! Shh! Shh!"

The sword's shadow is even faster!

More accurate!

The angle is even more tricky!

Each sword strike aimed directly at the weak points in the opponent's battle qi flow and the flaws in their movement techniques, forcing the two Soul Hall elders to scramble and frantically complain.

[Damn! What kind of monsters have I encountered today?!]

They roared in their hearts almost simultaneously.