Forge a path to success

“I’ve been waiting for her to contact me, after all, she’s a very wise person…” Kloz stood up, “Unfortunately, I still couldn’t make it in time, so I can only hope that the Divine Tree will bless me.”

He mustered his courage, stepped out into the public eye, and began to recount the same old clichés about honor, responsibility, and love. Ji Huaisu felt a sudden empathy; she had just been thinking that things would be much easier if Chu Hengkong were here.

"I wonder how his training is going," Van der muttered.

"Don't worry, he'll definitely make it if anything happens."

Ji Huaisu said this, but he did not relax at all.

She couldn't explain where this illusion came from, but ever since the parade began, she could always smell a faint smell of smoke.

·

"Hey, smoking isn't allowed at headquarters," its colleague reminded it.

"Wake up, brother," it said listlessly. "I'm afraid I won't make it through the day without some, or you could give me some leaves."

His colleague glanced around quickly and shoved a roll of leaves into his hand. "That's enough," she nodded, heading towards the restroom with dark circles under her eyes. These were leaves of the mulberry tree (Zheling) containing irritants, a key ingredient in some addictive drugs, but also used medicinally. The "local tobacco" made from mulberry leaves was essentially a product skirting the edge of the law, but under pressure, there was no time to worry about that. The most important thing was to stay at their post.

He put the leaf in his mouth and chewed it; it tasted somewhat like betel nut. Chu Hengkong had never liked betel nut; he always said that chewing this stuff would make you sickly, but he was smoking a cigarette while saying this.

Its old friend always had such double standards. He set one set for himself and another for others, reveling in his self-created little world. After all, he set the standards himself, and he always had a reason when something went wrong. "I'm always right, aren't I?" she mimicked Chu Hengkong's tone, even though he would never say such a thing. The imagined reaction of the assassin made him chuckle.

It, or she, or he, passed through the restroom and arrived at the secret room at the far end of the third floor. It stopped five meters from the room; Huan Ge's array could conceal it, but one more step and the assassin would sense its arrival. There was a minuscule chance that Chu Hengkong would embrace it. More likely, however, the enraged man would shred it to pieces.

Its gaze pierced through the heavy door, looking at the man sitting cross-legged behind it. Blood-red wings were growing from his back.

"You're almost there..." it applauded sincerely. "A sense of responsibility can even help you overcome the past."

Unable to perceive any inherent weaknesses, the blood refining was nearly complete, and the man behind the door had become an unshakeable presence. Chu Hengkong still couldn't let go of the past, yet his morbid sense of responsibility forced him to take flight, like pulling himself up by his own hair to soar into the sky.

The ascending array drawn with blood is converging towards the center, forming a small circle on the wall.

A black full moon.

“Let’s go back to the labyrinth of childhood,” Wang Quan said.

The black moon rose and expanded, its hazy light engulfing the secret chamber. No one could find the killer anymore; the gravity from the Cradle of Oblivion had seized him, causing his wings, poised to take flight, to droop, trapping him in an inescapable past.

The transformation of particle 4 is crossing the first abyss, but standing in front of the door at this moment is the spokesperson of the abyss.

Wang Quan chuckled lightly, turned around, and left the secret chamber that could not be explored.

"The snake isn't coming," he said in the channel. "Let's begin."

·

"...Citizens, I am proud of our city-state, and I am proud to be a member of the Thorn Robe. This pride comes not only from our strength and prosperity, but also from the justice we uphold and the responsibilities we bear. It is through this that we have shed our beastly nature and become upright citizens!"

The floats continued forward, the crowd parting to make way, like water flowing over obstructing rocks. But this time, some supporters paused, some listened to Senator Croz's voice. He was the only hardliner among the hardliners with any real support, and he shouted to them: "Only beasts and scoundrels believe in self-preservation. If unity is lost, if covenants are broken, what will our thorny robe rely on? Do not betray our civilization!!"

Kroz finished speaking, his heart emptied before those still willing to listen. He knew these words couldn't stop the tide, but according to his boss's plan, he could at least secure a glimmer of hope for a counterattack. He stood in the car with a clear conscience, awaiting the insults and ridicule that awaited him.

"Politicians who spread fallacies!" "Have you forgotten the blood shed 20 years ago?!" "Do you feel honored to live in the space won for you by the dead?!" "We don't want to be pawns for others anymore!"

The expected chorus of curses erupted, but there were also faint voices of rebuttal. "He's right!" "Where is your shame?" "Please respect those who speak out for justice." Surprisingly, there were many. Far more than he had anticipated. Kross felt a strange sense of familiarity; he seemed to have seen the burly man in the crowd who had spoken up for him before.

Where was it again? It seems to be from a program not long ago...

He held a restaurant hostage at gunpoint... for...

Croz's face turned deathly pale as his gaze met that of the man. The terrorist, Hilland, laughed maniacally as he and his accomplices approached the citizens who were about to throw rotten fruit. They drew their cold guns.

"You are not worthy to be a member of the Thorn Robe!"

As opponents of the bill, they opened fire on civilians.

Chapter 339 Blood Smoke and Blooming Thorns (4)

Time seemed to stand still at that moment; the festive atmosphere was torn apart by the cold sound of gunfire, and bullets flew toward the heads of civilians.

The bullet froze in mid-air, exploding into icy dust. All the shooters were frozen in place at the same moment, completely encased in the frigid ice. Ji Huaisu appeared like lightning, grabbing Xiland by the neck and pulling him up.

"Answer me, who's behind you!"

Flames and shadows swirled beneath their feet, forming a protective array to distinguish truth from falsehood. The Discipline Knights' interrogation techniques would burn those who spread lies in the flames. Hiland, oblivious to the firelight beneath his feet, smiled eerily.

“I came here myself, little girl,” he said. “Come on, my ride. Let’s slaughter these cowards!”

A mental signal was sent, and the prepared Boundary-Breaking Wheel flew above the crowd. It was a bronze-colored aircraft with densely packed cannons mounted beneath its propellers. Weapons meant for hunting were aimed at the crowd.

After knocking Xiland unconscious, Ji Huaisu threw him aside. She then clenched her right fist and slammed it down, sending a deep purple lightning bolt crashing down and piercing the center of the Bijie Wheel, burning it to a crisp. She unleashed a deafening clap of thunder, terrifying the panicked citizens with a fear far exceeding that of a riot.

"The Divine Guards are enforcing the law! None of you are allowed to move!" Ji Huaisu shouted. "Anyone who dares to resist the law will be treated as an accomplice of terrorists!"

The people obediently stopped; most of them had never stepped onto a battlefield and were utterly powerless against the murderous aura forged from iron and blood. Ji Huaisu cautiously observed her surroundings, not forgetting to place a layer of ice armor on each of the councilors.

The situation was clear: someone was trying to take advantage of the holiday chaos to cause trouble. Trek's absence was likely due to being held up; she needed to control the situation immediately, wait for the Divine Guards to arrive and maintain order, and then find the hidden commander…

"Ji Huaisu, be careful!" Fan De whispered.

Ji Huaisu also noticed a seemingly out-of-place, leisurely fellow in the crowd, dressed in a black casual suit, his long eyes narrowed like a venomous snake with a fake smile. He was twirling a gleaming dagger between his fingers.

“Your reaction was very good, faster than I expected,” the man in the suit said. “How many people are there in this area we are looking at? A rough estimate is probably more than 10,000… You can completely control these 10,000 people; that’s an ability that comes with experience and skill.”

"What do you want to say?" Ji Huaisu switched to steel armor.

"Do you know how many people there are in the Third Lineage?" the man in the suit said to himself. "The total number of citizens in the Poetry and Prose Umbrella exceeds 340 million, more than most countries on Earth. Its area is nearly a quarter of the American continent—an incredibly vast territory. What I'm trying to say is..."

He tossed the dagger into the air.

"How would you deal with a thousand attacks launched simultaneously among 340 million people?" Bloodsmoke said.

Gunfire rained down, smoke mingling with the clouds. A deluge of negative emotions exploded within Ji Huaisu's senses, startling her. She could control all the attack locations around her; she had taken action simultaneously. Yet, at that moment, she had only dealt with a mere 34 attacks, while the Third Pulse sequence had witnessed a thousand!

That was beyond the capacity of one person to handle, not even a point mass of 5. In this vast, ocean-like sea of ​​people, one person's power was so insignificant as to be almost hopeless. What they needed was an omnipotent god, a deity capable of saving all living beings!

She lunged at the man with lightning speed. The blood smoke dissipated, and his dagger floated in the air, expanding like a bomb.

·

"Captain, there's a disturbance around the concert venue..."

"The Third Order House of Commons is under attack!"

“There are numerous fights among residents on Aiye Street.”

"Headquarters has been attacked by a powerful figure! The manager is fighting him!!"

Bad news came like snowflakes, throwing the team's communications into chaos. The sheer volume of alerts made it impossible for the team members to distinguish between genuine and false messages; they were even momentarily at a loss for what to do. They had conducted countless simulations before the holiday, but this scenario had never occurred during the actual drills.

All key locations within the jurisdiction have been attacked. What can this small force possibly do?!

Trek grabbed the bomb and teleported to the airspace above the coast. After disarming another bomb, he brandished his trident-like wooden gun.

“Those who commit crimes will surely be punished,” he said. “The extraordinary troops are mobilized, and the sacred wood is used as a weapon of punishment.”

The wooden spear trembled violently, a massive amount of spiritual energy flowing into its shaft, instantly transforming it into a dense forest of spears. In that instant, Trek created 1067 extraordinary blades, and thousands of wooden spears rained down on various parts of the Third Meridian, isolating and binding those engaged in combat!

He hadn't used the Shifting Blade alone in a long time; the outdated design consumed too much energy, and the Holy Grail could achieve a complete superior replacement with far less energy. But now, the compass's computational power was entirely focused on locking onto the bombs, so the Shifting Blade, while not the best, was the fastest method. He returned to the city center; the next bomb was the megaphone crystal in the singer's hand. In full view of the crowd, he snatched the crystal, teleporting it high into the air and detonating it. The shockwave caused the crowd to sway like reeds.

There was no time to worry about getting injured. He lowered his standards even further, and as he did so, Trek was surprisingly calm. Perhaps, as the accusations made in court had suggested, he was essentially a cold-blooded and ruthless person. He bought himself about half a second, which he could use to create a commotion and call for help from other pulsars, but there would be no time to land the next bomb.

Next plan. The communication mentioned that the shopkeeper helped defend headquarters. It seems the enemy intended to launch a surprise attack on the temple's core, but the shopkeeper held it off. In that case, his personal privileges are temporarily intact... The channel for communication using divine power is cut off, but he can still do some things on his own.

"Requesting support in the name of Third Captain Jas Trek. Expand the area of ​​effect of the Holy Grail and conduct a collective, precise teleportation."

【license】

The divine power flowing into his body created the illusion of healing his withered spirit. Trek's compass stopped, and he constructed a three-dimensional map of the third meridian sequence in his mind, with the 1067 strange blades serving as the glowing coordinates on that map.

He used his divine power to initiate 1067 teleportations simultaneously, and the entire third team was reorganized according to their structure, appearing at the center of the riot!

At the same time, he personally disposed of the next bomb; blood and smoke billowed high into the sky, and rumors began to spread among the crowd. There was no time to deal with it; the next application was due.

"Request to enhance the overall quality of the third team, granting them... cough!"

Trek vomited green blood. He was wounded. Why? He appeared in the crowd, his trembling hand gripping the next bomb. Get treatment as soon as possible. The nearest temple is—

He saw the temple collapse into ruins, and blood-red figures flashed through the thick smoke.

It's the one who attacked headquarters. Because they couldn't take down the core of headquarters quickly, they shifted their focus to destroying the temple. And to protect the citizens, they currently lack the manpower for further defenses… There's also a point 5. At least four points 5…

The compass pointed to the parade of senator Croz.

At the same time he got the bomb, another bomb was already exploding.

But he had no energy left to deal with it. He had already lost his sight, his eyes obscured by blood. Excruciating pain surged from deep within his brain, like countless tiny blades slicing through his nerves. His internal organs were displaced, his nerves twisted, and a destructive force roared within him.

It was at the moment the request for support was made that the deadly poison surged in along with the divine power; this was...

The power of the Chaos Demon!

·

In conclusion, killing the captain of the Divine Guard within the city-state of Thornsa is an impossible task.

The management of Jing Sha is lax, and the local people of Jing Sha are completely unprepared. It is easy to cause trouble in Jing Sha—and countless fools who act with this idea have turned into the soil beneath the tree roots.

The city-state of Jingsha is one of the most difficult forces to conquer in the turbulent world.

All non-civilian Divine Guard members possess combat strength of at least 3 points, while civilian members can also fight against Ascended Beings with divine power. Divine Guard captains are all top-tier combatants within the 5-point range and receive direct support from the Thorn Tree. Even Trek, who is not skilled in direct combat, can handle large-scale battles with divine power support.

Even if they target captains who are not skilled in direct combat, the exclusive communication network constructed by divine power will ensure they receive the information immediately. With the support of Thornsha, Trek can deploy combat power across lineages. If he cannot kill the captain instantly, he will face an attack from multiple captains.

Ultimately, even if they unleashed combat power far exceeding the captains' level, the entire territory of Jingsha was still the domain of the Divine Tree. The captains, playing on their home turf, had countless ways to stall for time until reinforcements arrived.

Even though the city-state of Jingsha is weakened by internal strife, it is a thousand times more difficult to instigate a riot in Jingsha than to start a war on Shura Island.

Therefore, we must attack from all angles.

Leveraging the unparalleled ability of royal power to conceal their presence, they made crucial arrangements.

By using bombs filled with blood and smoke to restrain Jas Trek, the core figure, they used the lives of 340 million people to lock down "justice" from action.

The Black Death Army used its technology to paralyze Divine Power Communications, blocking support for a short period of time.

Once the above prerequisites are met, have the Double Butterfly destroy important facilities such as the temple in turn, eliminating the eyes and ears of the Thorn Robe.

The final, and most important, blow—

"I need you to stop the true form of the Thorn Tree and prevent it from providing support," Blood Smoke said. "Thank you so much, Lord Furuidan. I never expected to actually be able to persuade your true form."

A purple wolf's head emerged from the smoke, and Furudan's fragmented spirit chuckled softly: "For a stranger, your tone is quite humble."

"After all, I am different from some self-righteous assassins. I am very aware of my own limits. It took such a huge amount of power to achieve the condition of killing a single particle 5. The structure of the Divine Tree City-State is too strong."

"That's why it's fun to fight against them, isn't it?"

"Indeed, it's been a pleasure talking to you. So—"

Blood-red smoke rose above the crowded throng, looking down at the man who was coughing up blood.

"Now it's hard difficulty, Captain Trek."

·

The intense light, strong wind, and matter seemed to vanish as if annihilated, and a huge void was formed for a moment. The airflow rolled back towards the center, then blew back and expanded, triggering an even more violent secondary explosion.

The overwhelming impact temporarily robbed her of her five senses, and Ji Huaisu felt as if she had returned to a land of endless despair. The deep-seated pain in her memory brought her back to her senses. Ignoring the world she could no longer perceive, she poured power into the self she could control. A bone-chilling coldness came from her palms, and she gripped the center of the coldness tightly, forcing herself to open her eyes.

What lay before them was a perfectly circular void, the roots of the divine tree even visible beneath the pit. Yet, the smoke contained no blood, only dust-like ash. The magnificent and sacred Ice Temple stood bathed in sunlight, protecting all life within its reach.

The instant the dagger flew, Ji Huaisu abandoned her attack and chose to defend. That unwavering will even allowed her to block a blow from point 5. She stood up, supporting herself against the solid ice; the temple crumbled at her movement, turning into shimmering dust. Her brain was reeling from the shockwave, the world before her trembled, and she forced herself to breathe.

Another deafening explosion came from afar, followed by the detonation of other bombs. She couldn't find the man; she didn't even know where her enemies were. Akong was out of contact, and Trek was nowhere to be found. The commotion continued, and the Guardians stepped forward, but they couldn't truly stop the root of the problem.

The enemy leader is nowhere to be found. Their methods are unknown. It's like falling into a black quagmire; even with the will to fight, there's no direction to move forward.

"Vande, think of something." She clenched her fist tightly.

"I don't know!" the Eye Demon said helplessly. "I don't even know what happened, what can I do? There are 3 million people here!"

Yes, isn't this a desolate nightmare? In the wilderness, they only needed to defeat the Demon King; within Dragon City, they only needed to eliminate the threats one by one. But the Third Lineage has a staggering 340 million people. Even if Ah Kong were here, he couldn't find a single drop of water in this sea of ​​people, let alone face enemies far stronger than himself. Ji Huaisu was momentarily bewildered; she was at the center of the chaos and didn't know what to do.

The person behind it all calculated everything; there were no variables in the chaotic situation known as the Thorn Robe.

At this moment, Chu Hengkong was still trapped in his dream.

At this time, Banningtik encountered the royal power.

At this moment, the Thorn Tree is battling chaos.

However, at this moment, a man whom no one had ever paid attention to crawled with difficulty and reached out to Ji Huaisu.

Representative Klose clutched a gleaming badge in his hand.