Chapter 19: For Sera
The intense pain within Li Lin's body continued unabated. Although he didn't fight often, his willpower was relatively firm, so he clenched his fists and continued to manipulate the surrounding tree branches.
A massive azure-blue blade aura slashed toward him. Li Lin instantly judged that the tree branches in front of him couldn't withstand that blade aura.
Azure Demon slashed through, ultimately disappearing into the soil layer behind.
Li Lin lost control of his body again. He was about to use his blood to generate tree roots to entangle his severed left side when Su Xiao suddenly closed in before him.
A flurry of slashes appeared abruptly, seeming to cut through the very air in that area. With the aid of the Apostle's Eye, Su Xiao saw Li Lin's health plummet to 20%.
Bang!
Su Xiao stomped on Li Lin's already shattered body. The surrounding earthen walls trembled. It looked like if Su Xiao did that one more time, the place would cave in.
Su Xiao pressed one hand to the ground. Cyan Steel Shadow energy spread outward from his hand as the starting point, pale blue arcs surging forth.
Suddenly, Li Lin's broken body convulsed. The life force within his flesh and blood was rapidly stripped away. The battle was over.
At the root of it all, Li Lin's strength lay in the authority he wielded. Coincidentally, Su Xiao was also a duke. If the Sera Empire were still at its peak national power, even if Su Xiao were stronger than he was now, he couldn't have attained such status in a short time. But the current Sera Empire was riddled with holes.
It was hard to pick a "fruit" from a towering tree; you had to climb up bit by bit. But if that towering tree was already severely tilted and about to fall, then picking the "fruit" wasn't difficult. Besides, this "fruit" wasn't tasty, and no one would come looking for trouble.
Li Lin had lost. There was a considerable gap in strength between him and Su Xiao. Their combat experience and technique mastery were worlds apart. In fact, Li Lin had never even fought a life-or-death battle. Born a duke, he never had that opportunity. If he weren't a Saint Descendant, he would have been killed instantly by Su Xiao at the first exchange.
Li Lin's shattered body slowly gathered together. Finally, he barely managed to piece himself back into a relatively complete form and struggled to stand up from the ground.
"In the end, I'm still powerless."
As he spoke, Li Lin staggered a few steps to the side, could no longer support himself, and fell to the ground with a thud, facing death.
"Everything I did was for Sera. The one who truly understands what I wanted to do is you, Kukulin."
The light in Li Lin's eyes quickly faded. Sunlight shone on his nearly shattered face.
It had to be said, Li Lin was a respectable opponent. At least he had the courage to stand up and try to save Sera. If it weren't for their opposing stances, Su Xiao would have chosen to cooperate with Li Lin rather than the indecisive old duke.
The fate of the Sera Empire was already sealed. Li Lin was just unwilling to accept it, nothing more. In Li Lin's view, Su Xiao, who had exposed him, understood what he wanted to do better than others. Revitalize the empire? From the very beginning, Li Lin actually knew the empire was beyond saving.
[Tip: You have killed Duke Li Lin.]
[You gain 10.8% World Source.]
[You gain Epic Chest (64%).]
[Hidden Quest: Council of Gods (Completed).]
[You gain Fate Stone (Holy Spirit Gem).]
[Fate Stone]
Origin: Sixth Rank Primordial World
Quality: Holy Spirit
Type: Gem/Item (Rare)
Effect 1: When socketed into equipment, increases this equipment's Luck attribute bonus by 5 points.
Effect 2: After using this gem, permanently increases Luck by 2 points and receives the blessing of a Luck-type deity. The blessing lasts for 3 natural days, during which fortune is greatly enhanced.
Rating: 927 points (Holy Spirit items have a rating range of 700-1000 points).
Introduction: Today is bound to be a lucky day.
...
Seeing the attributes of this gem, Su Xiao fell into contemplation. The question was, could he currently defeat the Goddess of Fortune?
Although the Goddess of Fortune had always seemed somewhat timid, she was still a deity governing luck and fortune, not to be underestimated.
After a preliminary assessment, Su Xiao felt he probably couldn't win. If he could advance to Seventh Rank or even higher, then he could give it a try.
Picking up the chest from the ground, Su Xiao walked toward an underground passage. Although Li Lin was the leader of the Council of Gods, killing a duke sounded bad no matter how you put it.
Following the tunnels dug by the miners, Su Xiao returned to the surface. Roars still came from a kilometer away; the battle there wasn't over yet, but that was no longer Su Xiao's concern.
Duke Li Lin had been assassinated by the Council of Gods—that was the news about to spread.
Su Xiao recalled Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha. After wandering around the streets a few times, he arrived at a wooden house on the edge of the city.
Pushing open the door, Iron Feather King was sitting on a small wooden bed, legs crossed, holding a very ancient book in his hands.
"Li Lin is dead?"
"Not sure."
"Come here to kill me?"
"No."
"Then to send this old man off?"
"No."
"Hahaha."
Iron Feather King's hearty laughter rang out. After a moment, he put down the ancient book.
"Then stay here for now. What use is an old man like me?"
Iron Feather King closed his eyes, sensing nature. Knowing he was about to die, he still didn't want to give up his pursuit of technique.
Before long, the sound of chopping wood came. It was Amu preparing to start a fire and cook. He was hungry.
Su Xiao certainly wouldn't kill Iron Feather King. He had no interest in being hunted by a behemoth like the Sera Empire. Even if it was on the verge of collapse, the Sera Empire was not to be trifled with.
Killing Li Lin was one thing. Killing Iron Feather King would be like poking an ultra-massive hornet's nest. Over 90% of the soldiers and powerhouses in Arancis City would be enraged, to the point of no return.
As for why Su Xiao came here, it wasn't to lie low, but to wait for something to happen.
Iron Feather King wasn't talkative. As for Su Xiao, aside from eating and sleeping, he could meditate all day.
About two hours later, hurried footsteps came. Lady Moon Wolf pushed open the wooden door. She stood outside for a few minutes, then left without saying anything.
Time passed imperceptibly. Four days quickly went by. Su Xiao showed no signs of impatience. The time limit for the fourth ring of the main quest was a full 20 days; only a few days had passed.
During these four days, Iron Feather King occasionally chatted with Su Xiao, mostly about interesting things he had seen and heard in his youth. A few times, he subtly expressed that only the gun blade was the strongest, with the sword technique taking second place. Su Xiao held the opposite opinion.
On the morning of the fifth day, Iron Feather King sat up from the wooden bed, coughing dryly for at least a few minutes. Without saying anything, he went to the back of the wooden house and started digging a pit.
Before long, a shallow pit was dug. Iron Feather King took a straw mat a few centimeters thick from a shed beside the wooden house, returned to the house, spread the mat on the wooden bed, and lay down.
"There's a pit in the backyard. When you leave later, bury me along with this."
Iron Feather King patted the straw mat beneath him, lying there as if asleep. He died of old age.
A wisp of cold air suddenly appeared, quickly condensing into an eyeball. Just as it formed the shape of an eyeball, it shattered the next moment.
Five hours later, at the empire's border.
Black smoke from the battlefield rose straight into the sky. A war hammer smashed through a shield, half-buried in the soil. On the west side of this battlefield, large animal hide tents were set up.
Thump, thump, thump...
A huge hollow ice drum was beaten. The sound was muffled but could travel far. Sturdy soldiers emerged from the tents, all wearing armor. The craftsmanship of this armor wasn't refined—it was thick and sturdy, but without sufficient strength, one couldn't even wear it.
Among the many soldiers stood a man of exceptionally large and strong build. An ordinary knight's sword in his hands looked like a toy model.
Over a hundred thousand soldiers from the extreme cold lands completed their assembly. They all rode fanged polar boars. These polar boars were clad in iron armor, clearly possessing great endurance. Their sharp tusks bore bloodstains that couldn't be washed off.
"The Empire's Guardian is dead! The Empire's Guardian is dead!"
Roars spread one after another. Moments later, the soldiers of the Northern Alliance all placed one hand on their chests, bowing their heads slightly. They hated Iron Feather King, feared Iron Feather King, but also genuinely admired him from the bottom of their hearts.
"Straight attack on Arancis City! Kill all the Saint Descendants! Revenge for our ancestors!!"
The ice drum was beaten again. Hearing the drum, the polar boars' eyes began to redden. Roars were endless. Over a hundred thousand polar cavalry began their charge, shaking the mountains and earth.
The Empire's Guardian, Iron Feather King, was dead. The Northern Alliance had come.