The Starlight Road is the passage connecting plane to plane, its speed immeasurable, taking one from a world of one plane to another. Each fixed opening lasts for precisely one minute. During this minute, no power, save for the proxy gods behind the God War, can interfere with the Starlight Road, nor can anyone harm those within it. This is absolute, invincible defense... or so it was supposed to be!

But!

"Starlight Road Interception!"

Just as Lin Luo, along with Evangeline, Sakuya, and the other two, were traveling the Starlight Road toward his own world, the Evil King's voice suddenly resonated in his ears again. Everyone's expression immediately shifted, and they instinctively looked around. A Starlight Road, like a streak of blade light, was charging directly toward them horizontally, its momentum as if intent on slicing their Starlight Road in half. The figure within that charging Starlight Road was none other than the Evil King!

"This...?!" Seeing this scene, Lin Luo was utterly shocked, barely able to speak. After hearing the Evil King's words, he had already been wary of some potential move from him. Furthermore, based on information gleaned from Arthur previously, he vaguely suspected the Evil King possessed the power to interfere with the Starlight Road, but he never imagined anything like this would actually occur.

The Evil King wasn't attacking his world; he was intercepting him midway—how could this be possible?!

Lin Luo couldn't believe it, yet the scene before him forced him to accept the reality. Even with his composure, faced with this sudden, near-impossible situation, he was momentarily paralyzed.

"How can this be?"

"Father!"

It wasn't just Lin Luo; Lily and Suigintou's eyes were wide, showing expressions of utter disbelief. Gazing at the rapidly approaching Starlight Road opposite them, they felt both shock and fear, though a sliver of hope remained... the Starlight Road's defense was invincible; no matter how strong the opponent, they shouldn't be able to break through.

No, he can break through!

Lin Luo’s thoughts diverged from theirs. While he also believed the Starlight Road to be invincible, if the Evil King specifically intercepted him here, he wouldn't act without confidence. Moreover... the Evil King wasn't using his own power; he was using the Starlight Road itself!

Slash!

Just as Lin Luo had anticipated, before they could fully recover from the bizarre scene, the Starlight Road wielded by the Evil King sliced in like a blade—the indomitable Starlight Road was forcibly cut open!

The Evil King's head breached the opening into Lin Luo's Starlight Road. He looked up, a hint of triumph and excitement flickering beneath his ferocious expression. "Surprised? This is my ability. I've been waiting for this moment for a long time!"

"Damn it!" Lin Luo cursed furiously and, without hesitation, unleashed the Destruction Black Flame. The black flames coalesced into a dragon's head, letting out a fierce roar as it slammed violently toward the Evil King's head.

Simultaneously, Evangeline and the other three unleashed their strongest attacks toward the Evil King... Absolute Zero, Sword of Royal Victory, Mercury Sword: Sky Cleave, Temporal Turbulence... Each strike carried terrifying power, blows born from condensing all their strength. But!

Facing the combined assault of the five, the Evil King remained utterly unconcerned, scoffing, "It's useless. Within the Starlight Road, any attack is ineffective. You can't touch me."

Just as he stated, though none of the five attacks missed their mark, just before striking the Evil King's head, a faint white light flickered. Energy-based attacks were completely absorbed, while physical attacks were all repelled, as if striking the Starlight Road itself. Lin Luo and the others' attacks had no effect whatsoever.

"This... how is this possible?!" The girls were deeply startled.

It was, in fact, logical. Although part of the Evil King's body had entered Lin Luo's Starlight Road, he himself was enveloped by his own Starlight Road. Two absolute defenses overlapped, rendering any attack from either side ineffective... If Lin Luo and the others hadn't been inside their own Starlight Road, granting them inherent absolute defense, the previous strike would have severely injured Lily and Suigintou, who used physical attacks!

"Hahahaha! Didn't I tell you? Here, both our attacks are nullified, so you might as well save your energy. However... once I sever your Starlight Road and drag you to the universe, you will have no way out! Hahahaha!" As he spoke, the Evil King laughed boisterously, as if victory was already his grasp. His upper body had already squeezed entirely inside.

Damn it! Lin Luo realized the immense crisis. If they managed to return to his world for a final confrontation, given his home-field advantage there, he might not necessarily lose to the Evil King. But... if he were dragged to another world by the opponent, not only would he have no advantage, he would be completely disadvantaged. At that point, even the five of them fighting together couldn't overcome the Evil King!

With the Evil King's strength at High Earth Rank, he might not be able to kill him, Lily, or Evangeline quickly, but Suigintou and Sakuya would absolutely be instantly killed, resulting in the total annihilation of their group!

No, I must do something!

Lin Luo knew he couldn't sit still and wait; otherwise, if the situation devolved as he feared, everyone would die! But what could he do?

Watching the Starlight Road about to be completely cut open, Lin Luo grew increasingly anxious. Yet, at that moment, he suddenly noticed something: the part of his Starlight Road that the Evil King had cut remained in two pieces. It wasn't entering; it was slicing!

Intercepting? Cutting? This realization instantly made his eyes light up. If the two ends of the Starlight Road are divided into a head (forward motion) and a tail (backward motion), and the Evil King used his interception ability to sever the road and change its forward direction, then... maybe it could work!

Although Lin Luo couldn't be certain his guess was correct, at this desperate juncture, he had no choice but to take the gamble. Unobtrusively, he pulled the four girls close to him, and just before the Starlight Road was about to be entirely sliced through, Lin Luo immediately used the power of Dimensional Teleportation to send them away... to the other half of the Starlight Road!

Though attacking was impossible within the Starlight Road, as a Walker, Lin Luo could still perform internal teleportation within the road itself.

"Ah!"

"Father!"

"Bastard, what are you doing?!"

Although the Dimensional Teleportation only lasted an instant, Evangeline and the others immediately felt it because, at that moment... the Starlight Road had split into two. One, carrying Lin Luo, flew toward an unknown world under the Evil King's control, while the other carried the four of them back toward Gensokyo, moving in opposite directions.

When they realized what was happening, they instantly understood Lin Luo's intent, but it was already too late. Between the two Starlight Roads lay a vast dimensional gap, a distance far exceeding their capabilities, making it impossible for them to return to Lin Luo's side.

Helpless, the girls could only curse loudly at Lin Luo across the dimension. Of course, their voices couldn't reach him; they could barely make out the shapes of their mouths. Moreover, the Starlight Road was moving incredibly fast; in less than a second, let alone their mouths, Lin Luo couldn't even see their figures anymore, only a single point of light remaining.

"This is for the best..." Watching the girls safely depart, Lin Luo breathed a sigh of relief. He had gambled correctly, because the Evil King's ability was interception—like damming a flowing river. If a gap is opened in the middle of a channel, the water upstream flows into that gap, but the water downstream cannot enter it and continues on its original path. The principle is the same!

The only difference was that the Evil King's ability worked in reverse: he controlled the direction of half of the Starlight Road, but the other half was outside his control. Therefore, the other half, deprived of its forward momentum, would return to Gensokyo.

In truth, Lin Luo had hoped Evangeline and the others could return to the Sky City, but that was likely impossible.

"You scum, ruining my plans again!" The moment the girls turned back toward Gensokyo, the Evil King roared in fury. He never expected Lin Luo to pull such a stunt at this critical juncture. How did he manage to grasp that fleeting moment? More importantly, how did he learn the essence of interception?!

The Evil King was furious. He had only intended to wait for the Starlight Road to land in another world; with his power, killing a weak host would have secured an easy victory. But now... although he was confident he could kill Lin Luo with ease, the four World Cores were lost for nothing.

To let the duck that was already within reach fly away—what a bitter loss!

Seeing the Evil King's exasperated expression, Lin Luo found it strangely familiar. He recalled the moment half a month ago in Eientei when he killed Kaguya; the Evil King must have looked just like this then.

"Hahahaha!" Lin Luo suddenly felt a burst of amusement and laughed loudly, rubbing his face.

"What are you laughing at? Even if you let them escape this time, you are still doomed. When I reach Heaven Rank, a mere Gensokyo won't stop me!" The Evil King felt deeply irritated and spoke coldly.

"I laugh at your arrogance and foolishness." Lin Luo stopped laughing, locking eyes with the Evil King, murderous intent blazing in his gaze. "Indeed, in terms of raw power, you surpass me, but if you think you can kill me easily, you are gravely mistaken!"

Sending Evangeline and the others away served two purposes: firstly, to facilitate his own combat, and secondly, to maximize the deployment of all his 'power.' The Seed of the Holy Stone, a devastating weapon capable of threatening experts of his rank, was still on his person. In the fight against the Evil King, even if he couldn't win, he could use this great deterrent. If truly cornered, mutual destruction was an option. Did the Evil King truly not fear death?

Perhaps it wasn't a bad thing that the Evil King didn't choose to fight him in the Sky City.

Hearing Lin Luo curse him like this, the Evil King became enraged, but in the next instant, his expression calmed, and he sneered indifferently. "Hmph, continue to delude yourself with self-importance. You'll soon realize how ridiculous your words are. You are the epitome of the frog in the well."

Huh? The Evil King's reaction startled Lin Luo. In his previous impression, while the Evil King could be cunning, he wasn't someone capable of completely hiding his inner emotions. But now, Lin Luo sensed something vastly different—perhaps describable as 'showing neither joy nor anger.'

Did the previous defeat truly allow him to grow?

Lin Luo couldn't help but feel a thread of gravity in his heart. The previous Evil King was already difficult enough to handle, but he was somewhat naive. If he had transformed into a calculating schemer, dealing with him would be far harder.

Since it would take some time before the Starlight Road landed, and combat was impossible here, Lin Luo decided to probe slightly, asking, "The Starlight Road's defense is supposed to be absolute; why could you break in?"

"Surprised?" Upon hearing Lin Luo’s question, the Evil King couldn't help but scoff, seemingly having no intention of hiding anything. He crossed his arms and said calmly, "Hmph, telling you won't change anything. After all, the Starlight Road Interception can only be done once. Consider it mercy bestowed upon a man about to die."

What was going on? The Evil King intended to reveal the secret of his ability to him. This felt profoundly incongruous to Lin Luo. Did the opponent truly believe victory was already assured? Lin Luo sensed something amiss but couldn't pinpoint what was wrong. Still, he was intensely curious about the Evil King's ability, so he decided to listen.

"My Starlight Road is also the source of my special ability. I can infiltrate and control the Starlight Road of any Walker I have made contact with, and then bring them back to their original world or any other world. It's a pity I can't bring them to my own world, but even so, no one can escape my pursuit." Although the Evil King spoke calmly, a trace of arrogance and confidence seeped into his tone.

"This..." Hearing this, even Lin Luo's expression changed drastically. He finally understood why, during the Second God War, the Evil King managed to annihilate all Walkers except the Dark King. He possessed such a terrifying ability—one that lay outside the realm of rules. While it only worked against Walkers, any Walker weaker than him, once caught individually, was surely doomed.

At this point, he also understood the meaning behind the Dark King's words: facing the Evil King, one must never try to escape using the Starlight Road, or they would die even faster!

Since the Dark King knew about this ability of the Evil King, it meant he must have suffered from this move before. However... for him to have survived when he was so weak back then was quite incredible.

"It is precisely because of this ability that you specifically waited for the moment I used the Starlight Road to intercept me. The verbal intimidation was also to prevent me from entering the Starlight Road if I knew you possessed this ability, thereby avoiding my lingering in Gensokyo. Am I correct?" Lin Luo said solemnly. As for how the Evil King managed to communicate within the Starlight Road, that was irrelevant; if he could achieve interception and control, mere communication was nothing!

"Hmph!" The Evil King gave no further reply, merely giving a cold laugh, a hint of mockery flashing in his eyes.

"..." Lin Luo frowned. He vaguely felt that the way the Evil King looked at him just now was like watching a monkey being played with, filled with disdain and mockery. Had he guessed something wrong?

Though puzzled, Lin Luo didn't have time to dwell on it before a loud boom suddenly echoed in his ears—the Starlight Road landed. They had arrived on an unfamiliar planet. There were no buildings, no vegetation, no blue sky or white clouds; it was desolate and lifeless. No signs of life were detected, only yellow wasteland and a gray, dead sea. Clearly, this was a silent planet, yet to be developed.

"Excellent. There is no better place to be your burial ground, hahahaha!" Although their conversation within the Starlight Road had been quite 'amicable,' the moment the Starlight Road vanished, the Evil King held the Demon Slaying Spear and charged toward Lin Luo with a laugh, the spatial storm he kicked up sounding like the lament of the wind.

"Try me if you think you can!" At the same moment, Lin Luo let out a cold laugh. He had long been prepared for battle. As he charged forward, he reached into the void with his right hand. Spatial ripples shimmered, and a white Tachi, about eighty centimeters long, with a blade shaped like an iris leaf and a guard resembling a fishbone, materialized from his storage space.

Activating the Destruction Black Flame, the blade instantly ignited with raging black fire.

Although this blade slightly resembled a Tachi, its true identity was... the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi!

Yes, it was the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi held by Marisa.

As a magician, Marisa didn't use swords. Although she knew the value of the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, to her, it remained merely a collector's item. After the full-scale war in Gensokyo, upon learning Lin Luo lacked a suitable weapon and knowing he had good swordsmanship, she took the sword from Rinnosuke's shop and gave it to Lin Luo to use, achieving two goals at once as a parting gift.

As one of the Three Sacred Treasures, Lin Luo had always had designs on the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi. Since Magic Logic offered it to him, he certainly wouldn't refuse hypocritically. Having a suitable weapon could enhance his combat strength.

In fact, the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi was not only suitable but also incredibly practical... While it didn't possess the growth capability of the Emerald Blade, nor the destructive power of the Sword of Pledges or the Sword in the Stone, when it came to encompassing all things, nothing surpassed the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi!

At the very least, this Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi was the only physical weapon he had encountered so far that could contain the Destruction Black Flame!

Of course, after being renamed by Marisa, the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi's current name was... the Kirisame Blade!

"Ha!" Lin Luo roared, swinging the Kirisame Blade. Brilliant white light intertwined with black flames shot forth. The white light was the 'Second Tachi: Destruction,' the most powerful attack, which, clashing with the Destruction Black Flame, instantly obliterated the spatial storm approaching from the Evil King.

"Fifteen days can change a lot, and this isn't Gensokyo. Don't assume you've already won, or you will regret it!"

Lin Luo held the sword in one hand, facing the Evil King with calm composure.

: An exciting and magnificent battle is about to unfold. Please look forward to... The Battle of the Three Kings! Please!! RO

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