Chapter 239: Ghostly Barrier (2)

Wu Yi, a senior elder, stretched out his palm, as if seeing the fate of the Qianlong Pavilion resting right in his grasp, ready to crush them at any moment.

“Reporting to the Master,” a young man from a noble family rushed in.

“Hmm?” Wu Yi frowned, turned his head, and noticed the urgent red telegram in the messenger’s hand.

With a wave of his hand, the telegram flew to him. As soon as he read it, his expression drastically changed. A surge of rage erupted from his dantian, so intense that he couldn’t suppress it, igniting the telegram in his hand.

“Useless!!” Wu Yi roared furiously. “All of the Ten Sword Streams are useless!!”

“What happened?” several council elders urgently asked.

Wu Yi steadied himself before bitterly replying, “The ambush set by the Ten Sword Streams on the Dan Ding Sect has been broken. Hake of the Divine Pardon Sword Group was nailed to death in the street, most of Flame Clan’s main forces were killed, and the Ten Sword Streams have lost their dominant position.”

“What!” Elder Heifeng was visibly shaken—he had been the one most deeply involved with the Ten Sword Streams. “Who did this? Even Flame Clan was wiped out?”

“Yang Hao has returned to the capital,” Wu Yi said, his anger barely contained as he gritted his teeth. “He actually made it back alive. Effortlessly rescuing the Dan Ding Sword Sect, then casually wiping out two sword sects. This demon star, truly a demon star.”

“Yang Hao… returned to the capital?” Elder Heifeng couldn’t help but tremble. As a council elder, his power ranked among the strongest in the universe, yet now he was shaking over a mere child barely in his twenties.

But was he really just a child? So young yet possessing extraordinary martial might, so young yet capable of assembling a group of experts, so young yet repeatedly defeating the Ten Sword Streams. He had even dared to assassinate an Emperor.

Thinking of Yang Hao’s appearance, Elder Heifeng couldn’t help but shudder involuntarily.

Elder Wu Yi clenched his fist, finally making a decision, “It’s our turn to act. We must end this quickly—capture the Qianlong Pavilion within fifteen days. We must return to defend the capital immediately, to prevent further trouble.”

In the eyes of these eight elders, the Qianlong Pavilion star system, currently embroiled in fierce battle, seemed like a barrel of explosives ready to detonate at their command.

At the heart of the Qianlong Pavilion star system lay its most closely guarded secret—its exact coordinates were perhaps the greatest secret in the universe. Even many within the Pavilion were unaware of its location.

Even more unimaginable to others was that the newly appointed Sword Saint, Situ Hai, was also present here.

As a special envoy appointed by the Imperial Emperor, Situ Hai had practically become the temporary leader of the Qianlong Pavilion. Yet he remained as he always had—unkempt, holding a bottle of wine in one hand, and a rusty sword stuck at his waist.

The Earth Dragon Vanguard, one of the Pavilion’s Eight Sword Groups, was specifically tasked with protecting the core members. Its leader, Qing Li, was constantly analyzing battle reports.

“Master Situ,” Qing Li said, shaking his head with a mass of gray hair, “the seven Sword Groups have now gathered at the Third Defensive Arm, but the enemy’s assault is growing fiercer. If our core members don’t intervene soon, the Sword Groups will struggle to hold their ground any longer.”

“The core group cannot move yet,” Situ Hai took a sip of wine. “This is the Emperor’s final card. They must not act until the last moment.”

“Even if all Eight Sword Groups are wiped out?” Qing Li pressed insistently. After all, the strength of the Pavilion’s Eight Sword Groups was no less than the Imperial Guards. Any one of them could rival the Ten Sword Streams in a decisive battle. To waste such strength here was a shame.

“Exactly,” Situ Hai nodded. “Even if the supporting Sword Groups perish, the core group must still remain hidden.”

“Aren’t you afraid we’ll be surrounded and overwhelmed here?” Qing Li, frustrated, let out a little of his dissatisfaction. “You know, this time the Elder Council is launching a full-scale attack. They won’t stop until the entire Qianlong Pavilion is destroyed. If you cooperate with us now, we still have a chance. Otherwise, we’ll be picked off one by one.”

“If the Eight Sword Groups are indeed as strong as the Imperial Guards, then their defeat shouldn’t come so quickly,” Situ Hai actually chuckled lightly.

Qing Li was left speechless, finally sighing in frustration as he slammed the table. “Fine, do as you please. At any rate, we’re still here. Even if the Elder Council tries to break in, it will take them at least a month.”

Situ Hai’s smile deepened. His purpose here was to conceal the secret of the Pavilion’s core group. Nothing else mattered more than that.

Just then, the monitor screen displaying the Third Defensive Arm suddenly flickered violently before losing signal. Qing Li quickly jumped up, rushing to the command console and switching on nearly all surveillance satellites.

A breathtaking scene unfolded before their eyes.

In the dark blue void of space, several tiny human figures stood. With just a slight raise of their hands, immense beams of energy converged.

A relatively large planet disintegrated and vaporized under their combined assault, leaving behind an empty orbit, as if it had never existed.

Qing Li was so stunned he nearly swallowed his tongue.

“What happened?” Situ Hai’s expression turned grim. He even grabbed the hilt of his sword, the heroic aura from days past flashing in his eyes.

“The Third Defensive Arm has been breached,” Qing Li sat there dazed, his mind blank. “A few people waved their hands and vaporized an entire planet. Just like that, the ten-year defense we built?”

Situ Hai’s eyes changed. The drunken haze vanished, replaced by piercing brilliance. After staring at the screen for a moment, he immediately turned and strode out of the command center.

Qing Li did not follow. The commander of the Sword Group had completely lost his fighting spirit.

A warrior’s confidence always stemmed from his strength. But when he realized that the power he relied upon was nothing more than a joke in the face of the enemy, Qing Li’s spirit had shattered.

Situ Hai moved at a speed beyond ordinary comprehension, passing through a dense jungle, then activating at least six protective barriers of various attributes, finally entering a hidden, cloaked, and sealed space.

Inside, a group of people sat cross-legged in darkness.

This was the Qianlong Pavilion’s core group—the true strength of the Pavilion, and the secret weapon prepared over twenty years by the Imperial Emperor, the Merchant Guild, and the Intelligent Brain King, meant to strike only when launching a counterattack.

Each of them had already reached the Saint Realm. If they were to reveal themselves, the Empire would be thrown into chaos. Since the founding of the Galactic Empire, there had never been so many Sword Saints appearing at once, nor so many Saint Realm experts outside the Elder Council.

But for the Emperor’s plan, for the overthrow of the Elder Council, these true experts—each capable of becoming a legend if revealed—had quietly secluded themselves here, not allowing even the slightest trace of their presence to escape into the universe.

Now, however, that silence had been broken. Though isolated from the outside world, these Saint Realm experts could feel the intensity of the battle raging outside. They naturally knew the Elder Council had come with full force—specifically for them.

Yet not a trace of fear showed on the faces of these Saint Realm warriors. To them, dying in battle was always their ultimate fate. The only difference was where that battlefield would be.

When Situ Hai entered, his first words were shocking: “The council elders have joined the fight. The Eight Supporting Sword Groups are finished.”

Only half of them opened their eyes to look at him; the rest continued meditating.

“With the strength of the council elders, even if we all fight together, victory will be difficult,” Situ Hai said. “Our only option now is to call for help.”

“We can’t get out,” a seemingly ageless old man said calmly.

“Even if we did escape, we’d be hunted down,” sighed a Sword Saint clad in silver dragon armor. “None of us can escape a council elder’s pursuit.”

“We can’t die here!” Situ Hai sat cross-legged. “I have an idea. If fifty Saint Realm experts can gather their strength into one, I can be launched toward Earth at speeds faster than warp. At such speed, even if the council elders detect me, they won’t be able to catch up.”

Situ Hai’s words caused every core member to open their eyes, their gazes piercingly focused on him.

“But you’ll die!” The old man’s expression was already filled with sorrow. “Even if you reach Earth, you probably won’t survive. At such speed, even armor won’t protect you, let alone your bare body.”

“I’m not afraid of death,” Situ Hai said, taking another swig of wine. He drew his rusty sword and gripped it tightly. “Come on, let’s hurry.”

“No,” the silver-armored Sword Saint grabbed Situ Hai. “I’ll go.”

“Huh?”

The Sword Saint in silver dragon armor looked surprisingly young, even younger than Situ Hai. His features bore a striking resemblance to the late Emperor. “I’ll deliver the message. Only I am of royal blood here. I know how to send the signal.”

“But—” Situ Hai frowned, wanting to argue further.

But the Sword Saint had already slammed his sword into the ground. “It’s decided. Staying here isn’t necessarily safe for you either. Once I’m launched, our coordinates will be exposed. You’ll have to face a bloody battle. I’m just dying a little earlier.”

“Let’s do it,” several Saint Realm experts silently stepped forward. Soon, fifty of them gathered in a circle, surrounding the silver-armored Sword Saint.

As they began channeling their power, the glow of the Saint Realm illuminated the long-sealed barriers.

Suddenly, the atmosphere of the planet began to violently fluctuate.

The council elders, already breaking through to the Fourth Defensive Arm, were stunned when a silver dragon suddenly erupted from deep within the layers of defense, shooting toward Earth at speeds beyond light, even beyond warp.

“Damn it!” Tian Ce was the first to react.

“I’m going!” Elder Heifeng, unable to contain himself, rushed ahead. His entire body transformed into a black streak, astonishingly breaking the speed of light without assistance, chasing after the silver dragon.