Chapter 137: A Sword Descends from the Heavens
That sword light was extremely faint, like the trace left by a falling leaf drawn by the wind—if you didn't stare closely, you wouldn't even notice it.
With a soft tearing sound, a very fine sword scar appeared in the night sky.
That sword scar happened to land precisely on the transparent light mirror.
When a wineskin is cut open, the wine will spill out.
Golden liquid cascaded like a waterfall toward the light mirror, and the area of the mirror in the night sky visibly shrank at a noticeable rate.
This meant that the spatial crystal wall was stabilizing again, and that passageway was disappearing.
The pillar of light still connected the two worlds.
The Archangel drifted away into the distance, his thin lips slightly parting as he silently spoke something.
With a cracking sound, the distant end of the light pillar suddenly snapped in two, like an iceberg sliding slowly down a smooth surface.
Half of the light pillar fell into the void of space, gradually dispersing until it finally annihilated.
No one knew whether that Archangel and the fastest dozens of angels could survive in the spatial turbulence.
The worst off were still the two hundred-plus angels at the rear.
The light pillar breaking and then sliding off represented a spatial dislocation.
Even though angelic bodies possessed unimaginable toughness, they still couldn't resist this kind of spatial dislocation and were sliced apart.
In the distant space, golden blood was everywhere, burning into clusters of golden flowers.
The people on the ground couldn't hear what those angels were shouting, but from their twisted faces, they could clearly feel their agony.
From somewhere unknown came a low, thunderous growl.
That growl was filled with majesty, fury, and cold indifference.
A bolt of lightning pierced the night sky, striking above the demon palace and accurately hitting that giant sword.
With a rushing sound, the giant sword shattered and scattered, transforming into three thousand swords that fell like a torrential rain.
Chen Changsheng raised his sword sheath.
The three thousand swords sped back swiftly, returning to the sheath, many of their blades still carrying remnants of white lightning.
Chen Changsheng's face grew paler and paler, until finally, he spat out a mouthful of blood.
Fortunately, there was no second lightning bolt, and that low growl did not sound again.
The spatial passageway in the night sky had already vanished, and that pillar of light was also gone.
Even gods are not omnipotent.
Everything fell into silence.
The golden light mirror had now turned into countless fragments, slowly drifting down, looking like fireworks.
Judging by the speed at which those light fragments were falling, perhaps Snow Old City would be as bright as day all night.
Aside from these, there was no longer any trace of the war that had just occurred. It even felt as if that pillar of light and those angel legions had all been illusions.
Everyone had merely shared the same dream.
"Look, there's a star burning over there."
Suddenly, a childish voice rang out.
The little Daoist, held in Ye Xiaolian's arms, pointed at a spot in the night sky and shouted.
Affected by that pillar of light, the positions of the stars had shifted slightly, but that spot was still where the Southern Cross was located, clearly visible.
No star was actually burning.
Wang Zhice exchanged a glance with Old Master Tang, both understanding what the other was thinking.
Shang Xingzhou's skill in taking on students was truly unmatched in the world.
Wang Po and Xiao Zhang also sensed it, and then Chen Changsheng sensed it too.
In an infinitely distant place, beyond the sea of stars, there was a star burning.
A faint, ethereal sword intent flickered in and out of sight among those burning stars.
Then, more and more people felt that sword intent, even though they couldn't see those burning stars.
Separated by hundreds of millions of miles, a distance even gods couldn't cross—how could that sword intent be transmitted here so clearly?
Because that sword intent originally belonged here.
It was the same principle as how the Holy Light Continent could sense the holy light within Chen Changsheng's body.
"This sword is so arrogant. No wonder they say he and I are alike."
Tang Thirty-Six said with a beaming expression, very pleased with himself.
"What's going on? How is the Heaven-Shrouding Sword over there!"
The Black Robe stared at the night sky, sensing that faint, ethereal sword intent from the distant place, and shrieked, sounding somewhat hysterical.
"You thought you had calculated all living beings and all of heaven and earth, but you didn't calculate that His Holiness the Pope could break through to the sacred realm, nor did you calculate that someone had already gone beyond the stars many years ago. He might have been living arrogantly on the Holy Light Continent, quietly observing the other side, until the most critical moment, when he delivered the most critical strike."
Old Master Tang looked at the Black Robe and said, "And that person was raised with my money."
People had already guessed whose handiwork that sword intent was, but it was only after hearing the Black Robe's shouts and Old Master Tang's words that they were more certain.
Of course, it was Su Li.
Wang Po smiled faintly but said nothing.
According to Old Master Tang, Su Li was raised by the Tang family's money, and he had worked as an accountant in Wenshui City for many years, so he should count even more.
This wasn't the whole truth, at least not all of it. One only had to think of the long-dead Second Master Tang to know.
Old Master Tang knew that, given Wang Po's temperament, he wouldn't deny it.
Su Li would definitely deny it, and might even curse a lot—too bad he wasn't here right now.
Tang Thirty-Six felt a bit embarrassed, thinking maybe there was too much padding in the wheelchair cushion.
Even he felt embarrassed, which showed just how shameless Old Master Tang's attempt to ride on Su Li's coattails and claim credit was.
But at such an important historical moment, having such words spread would ensure that the Tang family wouldn't fall for the next thousand years.
For Old Master Tang, such an opportunity couldn't be missed, because at his core, he was a merchant.
Besides not calculating that Chen Changsheng would break through to the sacred realm, Su Li's sword strike, and Old Master Tang's shamelessness, there was one more thing the Black Robe hadn't calculated.
The spatial passageway tonight was exceptionally unstable.
The Holy Light Continent's angel legion suffered a near-annihilating blow, not because of Su Li's sword.
No matter how strong Su Li's sword was, it couldn't be that strong, but his sword successfully severed the light pillar, causing a spatial dislocation.
The power of space, like time, was difficult to resist, which was why those angels died so miserably.
According to her calculations, the spatial passageway should have been very sturdy. Even if Chen Changsheng broke through to the sacred realm and Su Li's sword descended from the heavens, there was no way it could be cut through.
The reason it happened was because the amount of holy light in Chen Changsheng's body had greatly decreased.
For ten years, Chen Changsheng had continuously used his own blood to refine cinnabar pills, even though it caused him to consume himself severely and his cultivation level never progressed.
Who could have imagined that this would ultimately lead to such an outcome?
It seemed that good people really did get good rewards.
Many gazes fell on Chen Changsheng, filled with respect.
Chen Changsheng's gaze fell on the small cart outside the crowd.
"Master, did you already calculate all these things long ago?"
"Then, did you already prepare that kind of medicine, yet still make me keep making cinnabar pills?"
"And also, the reason you always wanted to kill me—was it related to tonight's events?"
Chen Changsheng knew he might be overthinking things, and this kind of reasoning was more likely just an attempt to beautify the dead, but he couldn't help thinking this way.
This way, it was easier for him to convince himself that his master didn't dislike him; it was just that some more important matters required him to act that way.
These questions had no answers now. No one knew what Shang Xingzhou had been thinking.
Just like at this moment, no one knew what was going through the Black Robe's mind.
All her schemes had failed, and her lifelong pursuit had been destroyed in one night. Anyone would be unable to bear it.
She stood there, despair long since turned into numbness, to the point where she could no longer feel any vitality.
Wang Zhice walked up to her, took her hand, and said, "Don't do this anymore."
After saying this, he nodded to Old Master Tang and Chen Changsheng, then led the Black Robe toward the outside of the hall.
The Black Robe kept her head down, looking unusually docile, like a mischievous child being taken home by a parent.
The demon hall was exceptionally quiet.
Linghai Zhiwang and the others looked at Chen Changsheng.
Chen Changsheng looked at the stone steps, lost in thought.
The white paper on Xiao Zhang's face rustled loudly, whether from heavy breathing or something else.
Wang Po stared at the ground beneath his feet, lost in thought.
Old Master Tang closed his eyes, as if he had fallen asleep.
Finally, a voice broke the silence.
"Hold on."
Tang Thirty-Six looked at Wang Zhice and said calmly, "Lord Wang, what do you mean by this?"
Chen Changsheng withdrew his gaze.
Xiao Zhang let out a strange cry.
Wang Po raised his head.
Old Master Tang opened his eyes.
They all turned to look at Wang Zhice.
That was their stance.
"She is, after all, my wife, and... the human race truly owed her and her brother too much."
Wang Zhice said to everyone, "I have already crippled her cultivation. In the future, I will take her to the Garuda Temple to cultivate and atone for her sins. I will never let her harm the world again."
People like Old Master Tang and Wang Po could naturally tell that the moment Wang Zhice took the Black Robe's hand earlier, her cultivation had been crippled.
No one knew what to do. Wang Zhice's attitude was very clear and sincere, and his reasoning seemed quite sufficient.
More importantly, he was Wang Zhice.
Military generals like He Ming, and even Si Yuan Daoist and Archbishop An Lin, all felt that this approach seemed feasible.
"No."
Xu Yourong's voice was very calm, but also very firm.
Tang Thirty-Six said, "The ones who owed their brother and sister were you, Emperor Taizong, and those people in the Lingyan Pavilion—not us. We are still young; we haven't done as many disgusting things as you have. Why should we bear the responsibility for your mistakes?"
Zhi Zhi, hiding behind Chen Changsheng, looked at Wang Zhice and said, "This liar who's full of lies can't be trusted at all. Who knows if he'll just let his wife go as soon as he leaves the city?"
Wang Zhice ignored them, only looking at Chen Changsheng and saying, "If you were in my position, what could you do?"
Chen Changsheng finally spoke.
"In White Emperor City, Senior Bie Yanghong once asked me a question. We mentioned it just now. Thinking about it now, this question is also very suitable for you."
He said, "We have already given our answer, but you pretended not to see it."
Just now, Xu Yourong had been ready to kill him and then herself.
His answer was: if you truly feel you owe Zhou Dufu and his sister, then do it.
The demon hall grew even quieter, with an awkward silence.
"The person I want to take away—who can stop me?"
Wang Zhice's voice was still so calm, his tone still gentle, but everyone felt that pressure.
After centuries of storms, aside from Old Master Tang, no one present had witnessed Wang Zhice's glory days, but who dared to underestimate him?
No reason was needed—just his name was enough.
He was Wang Zhice.
Back then, at Cold Mountain, he appeared, and the Demon Lord retreated. Later, on the Snow Plain, he appeared, and the Demon General fell silent.
Not to mention the scene that had just occurred.
Even if the Black Robe had been severely wounded by the Frost Remnant Divine Spear, even if her mind was shattered, to cripple her cultivation with just a touch of the hand—who in the world could do that?
No one present was his match.
Xu Yourong knew even more that Wang Zhice had held back tonight, which was why he hadn't struck.
She even believed that even if Chen Changsheng and Su Li hadn't managed to sever that spatial passageway, Wang Zhice might have had another method.
Wang Zhice's strength was truly unfathomable.
Just as he himself had said.
The person he wanted to take away—who could stop him?
"I want to give it a try."
Wang Po stepped into the arena and said to Wang Zhice.
More than a decade ago, during a storm in Xunyang City, Wang Po was already a world-famous expert, but far from as powerful as he was now.
Back then, for Su Li, whom he didn't even like, he dared to draw his blade against Zhu Luo.
Let alone now?
In that storm in Xunyang City, there was another person present today.
Chen Changsheng said, "I also want to give it a try."
As his words fell, a clear, bright light illuminated the night hall. Several heavy treasures rose into the night sky, emitting a sacred and powerful aura.
The Star Core, the Dark Willow, the Mountains and Rivers Map, the Heaven-Outside Seal, the Falling Star Stone, the Light Staff.
The Li Palace Grand Formation was complete.
The National Religion Divine Staff appeared once again in Tang Thirty-Six's hand.
"This world is made up of countless living beings. They are not cold stones, made into chess pieces, becoming part of the game you play."
He said to Wang Zhice, "You should show more respect to the lives that died because of your wife."
Crippling her cultivation and imprisoning her in a mountain temple was not enough.
Showing more respect meant: a life for a life.
Xiao Zhang walked out, holding the Frost Remnant Divine Spear.
Old Master Tang's face was expressionless.