Li Zhile was still fuming as he descended from the peak of Qiantian Mountain. Before departing, Zong Shou's look of disdainful contempt remained lodged in his memory like a sharp splinter.
"I was short-sighted before, I completely misjudged this man. If he is truly this arrogant and unruly, how could he possibly take my Great Shang Dynasty seriously? Hmph! Does this Zong Shou really think the Eastern Lin Cloud Continent is his personal property? If he continues like this, the day will come when he'll be reduced to tears!"
Just observing the combined demand for the lost territories by the envoys from the Three Cities today was enough to know that the Eastern Lin Cloud Continent would know no peace in the coming months.
Thinking of this Demon King, who was clearly facing imminent collapse yet remained blissfully unaware and supremely self-assured.
What expression would that man wear when the armies of the Thousand City Alliance finally stormed Qiantian Mountain City?
The thought alone brought Li Zhile a sliver of satisfaction. He almost wished that Yang Fan would bring his troops immediately and invade sooner.
Why didn't that fellow's Puppet Spirit Summoning Art assassination succeed in blowing that arrogant man to pieces?
"Zhile! Remember, a general must never let reckless fury cloud his judgment. That Demon King is not as simple as he appears—"
Kong Yao, however, was weighed down by worry. She turned, gazing back toward the mountain peak, lost in contemplation.
The sword strike Zong Shou unleashed earlier carried an undeniable, pure Imperial Aura, exactly as described in her family's secret arts. Such a posture should have been powerful yet restrained, with an immovably solid foundation, yet he deliberately showed weakness.
What exactly was this Qiantian Demon King hiding? What trump cards did he hold?
After a moment of deep thought, a faint, ethereal blue luminescence began to glow in Kong Yao's eyes as she swept her gaze around.
She paused instantly, a flicker of slight surprise crossing her face. Then, her entire form suddenly blurred and vanished from her original spot.
"Wait for me outside the city. There is a place I need to see for myself!"
Li Zhile was stunned by her words and about to question her, but Kong Yao’s figure had already disappeared.
He let out a soft sigh and headed toward the city gates. He was accustomed to his superior's eccentricities; she always managed to do inexplicable things that later proved immensely beneficial.
Yet, he secretly puzzled over Kong Yao’s phrase, 'That Demon King is not as simple as he appears'—was there something she knew that he didn't?
Did that person truly possess some hidden advantage?
As Li Zhile departed Qiantian City, Kong Yao moved silently, infiltrating the depths of Qiantian Mountain City.
The protective array safeguarding the city was extraordinarily well-laid out. It was said that a year ago, more than a dozen master array formations experts had been invited to personally set it up.
However, to avoid consuming excessive spirit stones and beast crystals, the arrays could not be maintained at full power constantly. For an Eighth-Rank powerhouse like her, it was virtually useless.
Only when ascending above the eight hundred zhang mark of Qiantian Mountain did she begin to proceed with caution. The silver-white Refined Silver Armor she wore had already shifted to black under her control.
Coincidentally, night had fallen, allowing her to blend almost seamlessly into the darkness.
Although she hadn't specifically practiced arts of stealth and infiltration, she moved without making the slightest sound. She easily slipped past the senses of the Fifth-Rank Martial Sovereigns and the Sixth-Rank Black Tortoise Sovereigns stationed there.
The sheer number of experts at this level on Qiantian Mountain was surprisingly high, disproportionate to the number of Innate experts one would expect. As for the spirit arrays and warning talismans, her inherited secret arts allowed her to effortlessly bypass or nullify them.
Reaching the mountainside, Kong Yao did not continue upwards but instead entered a grotto.
This area had been almost entirely hollowed out, transforming into countless interconnected chambers. The tunnels crisscrossed in every direction, resembling a vast labyrinth.
Kong Yao moved with practiced ease, as if intimately familiar with the layout, weaving through the passages.
In moments, she stood before a stone door. After quickly knocking out the guards and pushing the door open casually, Kong Yao’s breath instantly hitched.
Within a radius of three hundred zhang, rows upon rows of meticulously arranged armor were stored. Both light and heavy armaments were present, all emitting a faint, pulsating spiritual energy.
A rough count revealed that this single armory held a staggering one hundred thousand sets!
"First-Tier Spirit Armor!"
Kong Yao didn't hesitate, moving swiftly to another armory door nearby. Upon opening it, she confirmed the sight: it too was filled with newly forged suits of armor.
Her expression shifted, and she moved like the wind through the corridors. There were fifty such storage chambers in total. Twenty-four were packed floor-to-ceiling with spirit artifacts and armor sets, while another six held only weaponry: two million spears, one million curved sabers, 1.4 million steel shields, and one million spirit bows.
The remaining chambers contained miscellaneous supplies. But when she systematically opened the last four, Kong Yao sucked in a sharp breath.
These rooms were stocked with elixirs. A full 1.2 million bottles, mostly healing potions, but also numerous spiritual pills for cultivation. The sheer volume was overwhelming, stacked together as if the supply were limitless and free of cost.
Kong Yao’s gaze became profoundly complex. No wonder she had sensed an abnormality in the mountain's aura when observing from below.
Qiantian Mountain possessed such a massive material reserve.
And this was only the first layer of storerooms. What secrets lay in the more heavily guarded upper levels?
No wonder Zong Shou had been so confident. With such capital, there was indeed no need for fear! The reason for the massive troop reduction must have been this!
Equipping the soldiers entirely with spirit weapons and armor—even the Great Shang Dynasty did not possess such resources.
An army of three million equipped this way, provided the sects of the Eastern Lin did not interfere, would be enough to sweep across the entire continent!
This small Eastern Lin Cloud Continent had quietly fostered the rise of a powerful nation.
A fierce impulse rose within her—the desire to destroy every single item stored here. With just a small risk today, she could crush this burgeoning nation that threatened to unify the Eastern Lin in its infancy!
As her eyes flickered with internal conflict, a cold, clear voice sounded from behind her.
"Entering without invitation is hardly the conduct of a guest!"
Startled, Kong Yao slowly turned back. Subtly, she retrieved the soft silver chain from her waist, gave it a light shake, and it transformed into a supple long spear, pointing directly at the figure opposite her.
Standing in the doorway was a young man with a stern, resolute face. He held a purple long spear loosely in his hand—also a Ninth-Rank spirit artifact. Electric arcs flashed around him, and something serpentine seemed to writhe within the dazzling glare, circling the youth.
In that instant, Kong Yao’s pupils contracted to needle points.
—A Dragon! It was an Eighth-Rank Thunder Giant Dragon that had lost its physical body! And it seemed faintly to be a naturally born Guardian Spirit!
A vast dragon might surged toward her, imposing and overwhelming. The young man's gaze held an icy chill.
"I am Zong Yuan, awaiting orders from His Highness. I request Commander Kong remain on my Qiantian Mountain for a few more months!"
As the words fell, the spear in Zong Yuan's hand thrust out violently, tearing through the air and summoning countless bolts of lightning.
It was a relentless, forward drive, striking with near-manic speed. The spear shadow was singular but seemed capable of shattering the void, with the Giant Dragon coiling above it, producing a terrifying momentum.
This spear strike was the 'Mad Thunder Flash! Shattering the Void in One Blow!'
The spear shadow disregarded everything, propelled by myriad bolts of lightning, accelerating further and further over the hundred zhang distance! It aimed to pierce through everything and annihilate space itself!
Kong Yao’s expression shifted again. Without losing a moment, she also thrust out her spear. When the tips of the two weapons collided, even with her Eighth-Rank strength, she could barely resist the impact. The overwhelming, piercing force slammed her backward in a rapid retreat. The soft silver spear in her hand was bent nearly to the point of breaking.
She was finally driven into the stone wall, but the purple spear shadow relentlessly continued its assault, striking again and again, as if a blacksmith were hammering metal, tearing stone and dust loose. Finally, it punched straight through the stone wall and out into the mountainside beyond.
But at that very instant, the soft silver spear in Kong Yao’s hand vibrated suddenly. It sprang back like a striking snake, aiming directly for the cold young man’s throat.
Zong Yuan, however, remained unconcerned. In a flash, the entire body of Qiantian Mountain began to flicker with spiritual light as torrents of dense thunder-elemental spiritual energy converged upon him. This caused the Eighth-Rank Thunder Giant Dragon beside Zong Yuan to rapidly inflate its form, growing to a hundred zhang in size.
Then came another spear thrust, shattering Kong Yao’s returning weapon, followed by a storm of a thousand spear shadows, enveloping Kong Yao completely.
'Mad Thunder Thousand Edges!'
In these few seconds, who knew how many strikes he had delivered? They continuously clashed with Kong Yao’s soft silver spear.
Spiritual energy collided violently. Though the surrounding mountainside was protected by the array, rock formations fractured, and debris rained down.
Kong Yao grew increasingly desperate. Zong Yuan's Martial Dao Intent was no less than hers, and aided by his innate Guardian Spirit—the Eighth-Rank Thunder Giant Dragon—he could match her strength in a deadlock.
Now, combined with the power of the city's protective array, his imposing presence was even fiercer. With every spear strike she parried, Kong Yao felt an increased pressure in her chest, almost forcing blood to rush to her throat.
Several other powerful auras could be felt lurking nearby. For a moment, she could not devise any suitable plan for escape.
This Qiantian Mountain City harbored such a terrifying powerhouse!
The thunderous spear strikes were terrifyingly fast. She was forced into a purely reactive defense; sometimes, her soft shadow spear couldn't even keep up, leaving her with no choice but to constantly dodge with her body.
If not for the Ninth-Rank Refined Silver Snow-Patterned Armor she wore, even the residual force of his spear strikes would have left her heavily wounded.
She tumbled from the air, falling toward the ground, yet still could not shake him.
Finally, with a loud 'Boom!' Kong Yao’s body was driven deep into the earth, kicking up a mushroom cloud of smoke and dust.
At this moment, the seemingly endless purple spear shadows abruptly retracted.
Kong Yao let out a relieved breath, quickly adjusting her inner breath, preparing to seize the opportunity to flee.
But a moment later, she heard a low dragon roar. A fierce gale instantly swept away all the lingering dust clouds.
Above her, Zong Yuan appeared as if he had merged completely with the Thunder Giant Dragon. He looked down from on high with a cold, indifferent expression.
His dragon might radiated outward, exerting pressure over a hundred li radius, and his aura soared wildly.
As his power accumulated to its absolute peak, Zong Yuan’s figure, man and spear combined, plummeted downward once more.
This strike was the 'Thunder Dragon Spear!'
Viewed from a distance, the spear shadow had actually transformed into the shape of a Dragon!