"You bastard, you sure are ruthless."
High in the sky above Perennis Immortal City, Li Wei's figure arrived alongside Li Changsheng.
Looking at the destroyed Perennis Immortal City, he let out a loud curse.
He had already sent a message to his clansmen and had received a reply.
[Your descendant, Li Yaowen, reports to you that in all her years walking the world, she has never seen anyone so stupid.
She has an avatar reincarnated within the Immortal Zhao Clan and is witnessing the Zhao clansmen frantically packing their belongings, seemingly attempting to flee.]
[Your descendant, Li Xinnian, reports to you that he has ordered all cultivators above the Golden Core stage in Azure Cloud Prefecture to mobilize and head for the Zhao Clan.]
[Li Chang'an reports to the Old Ancestor that Mosquito Daoist of the Ethereal Immortal Grove, Heavenly Master Jinshou, Nangong Xianliu, and other Divinity Transformation cultivators are lying in ambush in the central part of the Duravia Trade Prefecture, ready to intercept the experts rushing back to the Zhao Clan at any moment.]
With the events of Perennis Immortal City revealed, the Zhao Clan had effectively become the common enemy of the cultivators of Azure Cloud Prefecture.
Even some of the Zhao Clan's vassals had lowered their banners and silenced their drums, joining the Li family's forces to charge toward the Immortal Domain.
The various warring powers of the Duravia Trade Prefecture had formed a torrent, all surging toward the Immortal Domain.
Nearly everyone had a murderous glint in their eyes, shouting for the Zhao Clan to hand over Zhao Qingxia.
It was just that Zhao Qingxia would not be making it back to the Zhao Clan.
Li Wei gazed at the ruins of Perennis Immortal City, a flash of surprise in his eyes; the words [Your Family Divine Tree is asking for help] on the panel were still lingering before him.
It was only to be expected that the Azure Cloud cultivators could enter the Duravia Trade Prefecture silently was all thanks to the Old Tree.
[Primal Origin Red Leaf]
[Red leaves from the body of the Primal Origin Blood Tree. The Blood Tree can shield heavenly secrets, and its leaves possess the effect of isolating auras. Consuming them raw can restore Worldly Essence Qi and clear the mind.]
The Old Tree wasn't weak; it was just that his leaves were gone, leaving him with fewer means at his disposal.
But presumably, even the Old Tree never expected that the lazybones who had slept on his branches for over two hundred years could also kill people.
...
"Boom!"
Like a meteor plummeting onto the snowy ground, a massive, deep crater was smashed open.
As the dust and smoke dissipated, two figures were revealed within.
Li Changsheng gripped the back of Zhao Qingxia's neck, his right knee kneeling on Zhao Qingxia's back.
The shockwave generated by the impact caused his long hair to fly upward, revealing his calm face.
Zhao Qingxia lay prone on the ground, feeling the heavy weight on his back.
His face was embedded in the dirt, and the one bloodshot eye open on the side of his face was filled with bewilderment.
Only at the moment of impact did he feel his spiritual power return to his body, but in just that split second, he became like a mortal once more.
"Impossible. How could such a thing exist... How could it be?"
Zhao Qingxia murmured in terror.
The disappearance of his Divinity Transformation realm power made him no different from a terminally ill person on their deathbed.
This feeling of powerlessness filled him with despair!
Finally, that "ordinary person" he had never taken seriously flipped him over.
"You... What are you doing?!!"
Li Changsheng, straddling Zhao Qingxia's back, silently pulled a set of iron brass knuckles from his robes and slipped them onto his fingers.
Under Zhao Qingxia's terrified gaze, he smashed a fist directly onto the crown of Zhao Qingxia's head.
Zhao Qingxia was stunned. In all his years of cultivation, this was the first time he had felt such... mortal pain.
Li Changsheng pummeled him without a word, beating him until he was drenched in blood and hanging by a thread.
Only then did Li Changsheng stand up.
He frowned as he glanced at Perennis Immortal City, then removed the brass knuckles, revealing red marks on his hand from the exertion.
The Old Tree had already emerged from Perennis Immortal City, transforming back into his human form.
Zhao Qingxia's flying daggers must have caused him quite a bit of trouble; his bright red robe was torn in multiple places, and there were numerous bloodstains.
At this moment, the Old Tree stared in astonishment at the scene before him.
Only he knew just how powerful Zhao Qingxia was, yet now, that same Zhao Qingxia—who could have taken his life—lay there like a cripple, his head covered in blood, barely breathing.
And this... was entirely the handiwork of that little bastard who had slept on his branches for over two hundred years!
"Changsheng... you..."
The wind of Perennis Immortal City blew past.
The Old Tree pointed at Zhao Qingxia on the ground, then looked at the expressionless Li Changsheng.
Li Changsheng let out a long breath and shook his head. "Grandpa Old Tree, don't tell anyone about my abilities. If anyone asks, just say you killed him."
Immediately after, he silently grabbed Zhao Qingxia by the hair.
The Old Tree asked no further questions.
Now that Li Changsheng was walking on the ground, the old man and the young man continued toward the Immortal Domain, gradually fading into the distance amidst the wind and snow.
Only the ruins of Perennis Immortal City remained, with blood still flowing from within, gradually gathering into a river.
The long trail left in the snow where Zhao Qingxia was dragged by his long hair would be covered by the wind and snow, but these ruins... would not.
The Old Ancestor's spirit tablet floated up amidst the snowy mist, and Li Changsheng's voice was carried into the ruins by the wind and snow.
"Old Ancestor, please convey this child's plea to the clansmen: there must be more than one such fool in the Zhao Clan who holds human life in no regard."
"The Zhao Clan... must absolutely not be allowed to escape the Duravia Trade Prefecture."
In the ruins of Perennis Immortal City, the wind echoed through the broken walls and rubble; one could not tell if it was the wind, or the wailing of those wrath-filled revenants.
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