Chapter 690: The Life-and-Death Master Appears
Eastern Xuan Region, Sunset Plains.
This was the junction between the Eastern and Southern Xuan Regions, and also the staging ground of the Four Xuan Regions Alliance's elite army.
A hundred miles across the plains, on the opposite side, the Yimo army ravaging the Four Xuan Regions had set up camp.
The Sunset Plains themselves were packed with the alliance's troops, their thunderous drill calls rolling across the land.
At the very front, atop a high platform, several figures stood. Before them all was a slender silhouette.
It was Qingtan.
She wore a black dress, and the delicate, lovely features of her face were now filled with killing intent. Her dark eyes swept calmly across the endless plain.
Behind her stood Ling Qingzhu, Zhou Tong, and the other experts of the Four Xuan Regions Alliance.
"Hm?"
Ling Qingzhu's expression suddenly flickered. She turned to look toward the distant sky.
There, a terrifying surge of spatial power had appeared out of nowhere.
A heartbeat later, countless figures swept across the horizon like a cloud of locusts.
Woo!
Alarm horns blared on the plains.
Countless experts shot into the air, torrents of Yuan Power surging skyward.
"Enough. Calm yourselves. Our allies from the Chaotic Demon Sea Alliance are here."
Ling Qingzhu's cool voice echoed out, and the tense atmosphere across the plains slowly eased.
"So it's the Chaotic Demon Sea's allied army… does that mean they've already cleared out the Yimo there? Hah, impressive!"
"With our allies here, it's time we counterattacked those Yimo and wiped them out completely!"
"Exactly!"
Cheers erupted like thunder from the gathered troops.
All along the lines, people waved excitedly at the approaching army.
"Eh, that's Brother Langtian?!"
As the army drew closer, Qingtan finally made out the leading figure. Her usually stern expression blossomed into pure joy.
Beside her, Ling Qingzhu gave a small nod, her clear eyes following that figure.
Her face remained as calm and cold as ever, yet those close to her could see the rare warmth and softness in her gaze.
Those who harbored secret feelings for either woman could only sigh inwardly.
That man's charm was simply too great.
Many of the former Heavenly Mansion experts also smiled. "The Palace Master is here. If the Chaotic Demon Sea has truly been stabilized, it must have a lot to do with him."
The Chaotic Demon Sea Alliance might be the strongest of the three, but its Yimo problem had been the most severe. The stalemate there had dragged on the longest.
For them to now send reinforcements meant Lin Langtian had clearly played a massive part.
With him here, the Four Xuan Regions' chaos would soon come to an end as well.
The distant army landed across the plains.
Lin Langtian flickered once and reappeared on the high platform.
"Brother Langtian!"
Qingtan cried out happily and flung herself at him like a swallow returning to its nest.
He caught her quickly, one arm slipping around her willow-slim waist, and patted her head fondly with a chuckle.
"Heh. You're the alliance leader of the Four Xuan Regions now, and you're still acting like a child. Aren't you afraid people will laugh?"
Qingtan stuck out her tongue, clinging to his arm as she rocked it playfully. "Aside from you and Brother Lin Dong, I'd like to see who dares laugh."
"You little girl…" Lin Langtian shook his head with a wry smile. "With that temper of yours, who will dare marry you?"
These days, she only ever dropped her cold and ruthless façade in front of him and her family, turning back into the adorable, innocent girl she once was. He could not quite decide whether that was good or bad.
After teasing Qingtan a bit more, he turned to Ling Qingzhu and greeted her with a warm smile.
She met his gaze like that of a lover long separated, her cool features flushing faintly before she turned her head away in feigned composure.
"How are things here?" Lin Langtian asked, taking her jade hand despite her small attempt to pull away.
"We've been locked against the Demonic Prison's forces," Qingtan said with a sigh. "You know better than anyone that of the three alliances, ours is the weakest.
"We've held them, but our losses haven't been light."
Lin Langtian nodded. It was no surprise.
The Four Xuan Regions had always been weaker, and the Western Xuan Region was already fully occupied by the Demonic Prison.
Without his Heavenly Mansion and Qingtan's Dark Hall propping things up, the alliance would likely have crumbled long ago.
The mere fact that they had held this long was impressive.
"Don't worry. I brought half of the Chaotic Demon Sea Alliance's strength. It should be enough to wipe this Demonic Prison army out," he said with a soft laugh.
Qingtan nodded quickly. With Lin Langtian and such a powerful reinforcement, the battle to come would be one-sided.
He glanced back at Ling Qingzhu and lifted a brow.
Something about her was… different.
He tried to sense her cultivation and came up with nothing.
"Don't bother. I've dispersed all my Yuan Power," she said with a small smile. "There's only the Taishang Power left in my body now."
He blinked, then tightened his grip and probed gently. "You're… pure Taishang Power inside?"
"Mm. I chose a different path," she said softly. "I don't cultivate Yuan Power or spiritual power anymore. I simply calm my heart, perceive the Taishang, and draw that power into my body.
"I don't quite know what level I'm at now, but I feel… stronger than before.
"And with no other powers mixed in, my sense for the Taishang is cleaner. It's not a bad way to walk."
In that moment, her beautiful features took on a distant, ethereal grace.
She had always been cold and pure. Now, with this otherworldly air, she truly looked like a celestial maiden fallen into the mortal world.
Lin Langtian only nodded.
Of anyone, the Taishang Power suited her best. In that regard, not even he or Lin Dong could compare.
"These troops from the Chaotic Demon Sea… let me and Senior Brother Zhou Tong and Qingtan handle them," she said, straightening his green robe. "We'll deal with this Demonic Prison army.
"You've just emerged from seclusion. You should go see the Ancient Masters."
He hesitated only a moment before nodding.
He owed his Divine Palace to Ying Huanhuan. It was only right to visit her.
…
At the border between the Eastern and Western Xuan Regions lay the furthest front line facing the west.
Atop a towering mountain near the boundary, several figures sat cross-legged, as steady and immovable as the heavens themselves.
They were the Ice Master, the Flame Master, the Thunder Master, and the other Ancient Masters.
All at once, they looked up toward a point in the sky.
Space rippled, and a green-clad figure appeared.
"Hehe, so you're all here."
Lin Langtian stepped onto the mountaintop with a smile, cupping his hands to them.
The Ancient Masters turned, surprise flickering in their eyes.
"You… have formed your Divine Palace?" the Flame Master asked, clear astonishment in his tone.
They knew better than anyone how difficult that step was.
Strictly speaking, even they had not fully completed it.
For Lin Langtian to reach it first was no small shock.
"A stroke of luck," he replied, landing lightly before them.
His gaze slid past them to Ying Huanhuan.
Her long, ice-blue hair spilled over her shoulders, and a bitter cold clung to her like a mantle. The Ice Master's power was clearly awakening quickly within her.
Lin Dong would be devastated to see this.
She felt his eyes and pressed her lips together before asking quietly, "Lin Dong hasn't come out yet?"
"No," Lin Langtian said after a brief pause. "But it shouldn't be long now. Once he does, he'll likely have his own Divine Palace as well."
The Ancient Masters traded astonished glances.
Somehow, in Lin Langtian's mouth, Divine Palaces sounded… easy.
But they said nothing. In this, he had simply moved beyond them.
Ying Huanhuan's ice-blue eyes lingered on him thoughtfully. Her brother-in-law was becoming increasingly unreadable.
Lin Langtian himself said nothing of the Symbol Ancestor's visit. That matter was too tangled and too important to lay bare.
"Your timing is good, Brother Langtian," the Flame Master said suddenly with a smile. "We're about to perform the Soul Summoning. You can act as our protector."
With his Divine Palace, Lin Langtian now stood as their equal, if not slightly above. The respectful address came naturally.
"Soul Summoning?" he repeated.
"Senior Sister has shown no signs of awakening," Ying Huanhuan said. "As the Master of Life and Death, I can feel that she has already successfully reincarnated.
"Once the three great regions are fully pacified, we'll be going to war with the Demonic Prison. We need her back."
"I see. Then leave it to me," Lin Langtian said, smiling.
The Ancient Masters exchanged a look and nodded. In a flash, they rose into the air.
Power flooded from them in a vast tide, weaving together into a glowing array.
At the array's center hovered a small sphere of light, within which lay a single black hair, pulsing with faint, mysterious ripples.
Ying Huanhuan and the others sat at the six corners of the formation.
The hair burned without flame, and a strange wave flowed outward, vanishing into the void.
The six of them went utterly still.
Lin Langtian settled in at the mountaintop's edge and kept silent watch.
Ten days passed like that.
In the meantime, the Monster Domain and the Four Xuan Regions were thrown into upheaval.
With the Chaotic Demon Sea Alliance joining the fight, both alliances were greatly strengthened and swiftly turned their blades upon the Demonic Prison's armies.
Without support from the main Demonic Prison forces, those legions crumbled under their combined assault.
In just ten days, the two invasion armies outside the Western Xuan Region were in ruins.
At last, the three regions were more or less secure.
After a short period of rest, the three allied armies began to converge on the Four Xuan Regions.
As they closed on the Western Xuan Region from all directions, Lin Langtian felt the ground itself trembling with their might.
He opened his eyes, smiling faintly as he gazed into the distance.
A heartbeat later, the array overhead shuddered.
A shaft of brilliant light speared into the heavens.
The six sitting in the air opened their eyes at once, tension flickering across their faces.
If this Soul Summoning Light failed to call the Master of Life and Death, then they had failed completely.
But as the light slowly faded, a small, childlike silhouette emerged from within.
A girl stepped out of the glow, her petite frame no larger than a child's.
Lin Langtian smiled slightly. It was exactly as he had expected.
He widened his eyes a moment later, feigning surprise. "You… you're Yinyin?"
"Hee hee, it's me, Big Brother."
Jiang Yinyin beamed at him, then shot straight into his arms under the Ancient Masters' dumbfounded stares.
Looking down into her dark eyes, he saw that their old innocence was now shadowed by a deep, subtle awareness, as though she had already seen through life and death.
This little girl, Jiang Yinyin, was clearly the Master of Life and Death they had been searching for.
(END CHAPTER)
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