Defeating Armies's head was placed on the table. His face was still so familiar, but it had lost its color. His eyes were bulging, and his mouth was wide open, as if he was shouting to the sky, complaining about his unwillingness to die.
Tanlang could feel his unwillingness. He wanted to help Mu Zixuan, but he was killed before he could do so. Only his head was sent back. They had been in the same sect for many years. Tanlang could empathize with Defeating Armies's unwillingness before his death because he was also unwilling. It was as if there was a mass of blood and qi surging in his body, but he couldn't find a way out.
However, all he could do was use his trembling hands to close Defeating Armies's angry eyes. He asked the disciple beside him, "Who sent his head?"
The disciple cried, "It was the Confucian Faction's Young Master Xu Tingxian. He killed someone and even sent his head back … Star Leader Tanlang, they are provoking us. We can't let this go!"
The corner of Tanlang's eyes twitched. He gritted his teeth and said, "Yes … we can't let this go!"
The disciple wiped his tears with his sleeve and said fiercely, "Star Leader Tanlang, let's fight to the death with those fellows. As long as you give the order, everyone in the sect will immediately follow you to help Clan Leader Mu and take revenge for Star Leader Defeating Armies!"
"We can't … let this go …" Tanlang raised his head with difficulty. His eyes looked as if he wanted to devour someone. However, what he said was, "I remember that I put a bounty on Defeating Armies's head. Since Xu Tingxian brought his head back … you, go get the bounty and send it to Xu Tingxian!"
The disciple couldn't believe his ears. His eyes widened and he said, "Star Leader Tanlang, what … what are you saying?"
"Send the bounty to Xu Tingxian!" Tan Lang spoke very slowly, but he enunciated each and every word clearly, "Also, bring Po Jun's severed head out and hang it in public. Tell everyone that whoever dares to help Mu Zixuan will be regarded as his accomplice and will be killed without mercy!"
"Star Lord, this … you …" The disciple was tongue-tied and couldn't speak.
"Listen to my orders!!" Tanlang shouted with a fierce expression.
"Yes …" That disciple finally took Defeating Armies' head and left the room, leaving Tan Lang alone.
Tan Lang slumped to the ground as if he had lost all his strength. He looked at the spot where Po Jun's head had been placed and murmured, "Zi Huang, your subject is useless. Please prove to your subject that you are Prince Zi Wei. The Imperial Starry Sky can prosper because of you and not because of you …"
- =
From day to night, and from night to day, the pursuit of Mu Zixuan was coming to an end.
If one was able to look down from above, one would be able to see Mu Zixuan's fleeing figure dragging a long trail of chaos on the ground, creating a diversion, sometimes to the left and sometimes to the right, as if she was trying her best to use all kinds of strange tricks to shake off the Good Faction's pursuit.
However, the pursuers were divided into three groups, each led by the disciples of the Splendid Confucian House, the Udumbara Pure Sect, and the Buddhist Heart Meditation Monastery. The three groups surrounded Mu Zixuan, forming a triangle. They weren't in a hurry to surround Mu Zixuan, but they also didn't allow Mu Zixuan to escape. Even if one side was temporarily bewitched by Mu Zixuan, the other two could fill in the gaps in time and kill Mu Zixuan's meager chance of escape.
The entire process of pursuing Mu Zixuan was precise, tight, and closely linked to each other. It was as if there was a shapeless hand controlling everything, using the world as a chessboard and the living beings as chess pieces. Every single step was calculated, and it was a chain of chess pieces that forced Mu Zixuan into a dead end.
And that pair of hands really existed!
"Pa!"
A chess piece landed, the crisp sound startling the birds resting in the corner of the pavilion.
In a simple and crude pavilion, two young figures sat quietly. Shen Yizhi sat quietly in the pavilion, playing chess with himself. Compared to his leisure, Xu Tingxian was in full swing at the side.
"Mu Zixuan escaped into the Canglan River. Tsk, he's using water escape again. Luo Xiaoyi asks if we should cross the river to chase after him." Xu Tingxian received a flying paper crane and spread it open. It was a letter, so he asked Shen Yizhi.
"The other side of the Canglan River is the Star Field Plain. It's a vast expanse of flat land with nowhere to hide. Mu Zixuan doesn't know how to cross the river. Altar Lord Luo, please follow the flow of the river and chase after him," Shen Yizhi said as his chess pieces continued to land.
Xu Tingxian felt something and wrote a reply. However, not long after he replied to the first letter, the next one came. "Udumbara Pure Sect's Xin Qinghui is asking again. Mu Zixuan was found downstream of the Canglan River, but he quickly entered the Zhong Grotto. Should we go in and chase after him?"
Shen Yizhi said, "The Zhong Grotto is tangled and complicated, but there are only two entrances. There's no need to rush in and chase after him, in case Mu Zixuan takes advantage of the terrain to defeat us one by one. Send a group of people to burn smoke at the entrance, and the rest go around the mountain to the exit."
"Going around the mountain will be slow. Aren't you afraid of being shaken off?" Xu Tingxian replied according to Shen Yizhi's instructions, but he couldn't help but ask.
"There's no harm in shaking him off. I believe that Great Master Shi Chuxuan can see through Mu Zixuan's diversion plan. When Mu Zixuan goes around, it'll be enough for the Buddhist Heart Monastery to take a shortcut and intercept him at the White Cloud Ridge." Shen Yizhi arranged everything methodically. Every time he arranged a chess piece, he would place a chess piece. Black and white intertwined on the chessboard. A black chess piece was trapped in the encirclement and wanted to escape, but it was surrounded and blocked by the white chess pieces from three sides, so it could only extend to the corner.
"Alright, you're only sitting here and you've arranged the others clearly. You're pretty good at strategizing and deciding victory from a thousand miles away." Xu Tingxian said in a bad mood.
"A strategist should know the whole picture with a single leaf," Shen Yizhi said indifferently.
"If you're pretending that you can't hear my mockery, then I'll say it more clearly. First, you ordered me to kill the army and cut off Mu Zixuan's support. Then, you ordered me to do the immoral thing of killing people and delivering my head. After that, I didn't even have time to catch my breath before I came to meet up with you. Now, you're ordering me to write a letter for you." Xu Tingxian swung his arm that was aching from writing and sighed. "Sigh, if I knew that I had to write so many words, I should've brought that junior of ours who has the potential to become the third young master of the Confucian Sect. He's the best at writing."
"Junior is young, so he's not as easy to order. But you, on the other hand, were rubbing your palms together and wanting to help, but when you really did help, you complained that you were tired. You clearly have a benevolent heart, but you always pretend to be lazy and afraid of trouble. You're still so awkward," Shen Yizhi said without mercy.
"Alright, alright, I can't beat you in an argument." Xu Tingxian raised his hands in surrender. "But what happened after that? Altar Leader Luo has already listened to your orders, and Sect Master Su has also handed over the Udumbara Pure Sect to your command. With so many people, why didn't you directly surround and kill Mu Zixuan? You just had to play a game of chasing and chasing with him. "
"There's a saying in the art of war: if you're forced, you'll counterattack. If you're running, you'll lose momentum. Follow closely but don't force, exhaust his strength, extinguish his fighting spirit, disperse then capture him, and the war won't be fought with bloodshed. " Shen Yizhi pondered and said, "Even though Mu Zixuan is heavily injured, his dying blow will definitely be earth-shattering. After the bloody battle at Mount Qingcheng, the decisive battle with the Six Dao of Evil will come soon. At this crucial moment, any casualties must be avoided. Therefore, the objective of capturing and killing Mu Zixuan must be achieved at the lowest cost."
Xu Tingxian said, "I've also read the art of war. I also know that by surrounding him in three directions and releasing him in one direction, you want to tire him out and continuously exhaust his strength. But as time drags on, there is still the possibility of variables appearing. There must be a place to close the net, right?"
"There is." Shen Yizhi curled his lips into a cold smile and pressed the chess piece in his hand onto the chessboard. "The Decaying Swamp is the place where I, Mu Zixuan, will die!"
As soon as the chess piece was placed, the black piece that was originally running towards the corner suddenly saw the white piece blocking the way. The original three-way encirclement instantly turned into a four-way encirclement.
The big dragon has been caught!
- = -
"Sinner Mu Zixuan, accept your death!"
Udumbara Pure Sect's Xin Qinghui once again faced Mu Zixuan. She immediately waved the flower branch in her hand and a fierce force struck out.
It was already night time. Mu Zixuan had been chased for two days. During these two days, she had been caught up by Xin Qinghui more than once. She had already figured out her cultivation, so she immediately retreated and escaped far away.
The other disciples of the Udumbara Pure Sect were not as fast as Xin Qinghui, so they only managed to catch up. However, they saw that Mu Zixuan had already staggered backwards and flew into a swamp in front of her.
Retreating as soon as they came into contact, the fleeing party did not continue to fight, and the chasing party did not force her to stay. This kind of scene had happened many times, so it was no longer strange.
Just as the disciples were about to chase after her like before, they saw Eldest Senior Sister Xin Qinghui wave her hand and say, "There's no need to chase after her! There's miasma! "
Under the night sky, a miasma visible to the naked eye filled the air, causing the muddy and dirty swamp to appear even more distorted.
"Eh? Eldest Senior Sister, are we going to let that scoundrel go? "a disciple asked, puzzled.
Xin Qinghui laughed coldly, "Let go? Look carefully, what is this swamp? Think carefully, what did the Sect Master teach you? What is on the other side of the swamp? "
As soon as Xin Qinghui said this, some disciples who did not understand showed a look of sudden realization. When they looked at Mu Zixuan in the distance again, their eyes were like looking at a bird in a cage.
Xin Qinghui remembered Shen Yizhi's order. Although she was dissatisfied that Su Miaoyin did not appoint her, the Eldest Senior Sister of the Udumbara Pure Sect, and instead asked her to temporarily listen to Shen Yizhi, an outsider, because of Shen Yizhi's interlocking arrangements, not a single person from the Udumbara Pure Sect was killed or injured, and he forced Mu Zixuan into a dead end. She temporarily suppressed her dissatisfaction in her heart and sent an order according to the plan, "The other two sides should also arrive. Disciples of the Udumbara Pure Sect, listen to the order. Form a formation and disperse. Together with the other two sides, surround the Rotten Swamp from three sides. Don't let a single living thing go. At sunrise tomorrow, when the miasma disperses, we will enter the swamp together to search for Mu Zixuan's whereabouts!"
Three sides besieged and one side released. It was more like chasing prey than chasing prey. They drove Mu Zixuan into the Rotten Swamp.
The Rotten Swamp was damp, smelly, and full of poisonous insects. Every night, the miasma would fill the entire swamp, and it would not disperse until the sun rose. It could be said to be a dead place. Mu Zixuan was forced into the swamp. She could not get a rest, but her injuries would be aggravated.
More importantly, the other end of the swamp was not a safe way for Mu Zixuan, but the place where all the Buddhas in the world paid homage to the Buddha Heart Monastery, the head of the Zen Sect in the world, which was guarded by the Holy Buddha!
Driving from three sides, it became a four-way encirclement. If Mu Zixuan wanted to cross the swamp, the Buddha Heart Monastery stood in front of her, which was undoubtedly throwing herself into a trap. If she wanted to turn back or break out of the encirclement from other directions, the people chasing after her were already waiting for her to be exhausted.
Mu Zixuan had no way to escape. Even if he did not do anything, he would have to endure the double devastation of the miasma and poisonous insects in the Rotten Swamp. When the sun rose tomorrow, the disciples of the Buddha Heart Monastery who were familiar with the terrain of the Rotten Swamp would slowly shrink the encirclement. The exhausted Mu Zixuan would no longer have the strength to fight back, and they could even take him down without any bloodshed!
Therefore, under Xin Qinghui's instructions, the disciples of the Euthanasia Pure Sect waited in formation and did not relax for a moment.
As time passed, the moon set and the sun rose. When the sky brightened, there was another phoenix cry. Xin Qinghui smiled softly, knowing that the situation was more stable.
The fire phoenix flew down, and two figures descended. They were Ji Fengming and Ying Feiyang.
Ji Fengming and Ying Feiyang were not surprised to know that Mu Zixuan had escaped the bamboo forest alive. This was because they had a feeling that no matter how serious his injuries were, as long as they did not see Mu Zixuan die on the spot, there was a possibility that the resilient fellow would still be alive.
However, that was the end. They believed that Mu Zixuan might still be alive, but they never doubted Mu Zixuan's final outcome. They had come to witness Mu Zixuan's outcome with their own eyes.
Ji Fengming had suffered some external injuries, while Ying Feiyang had only expended his mental energy. He was fine. After recuperating and bandaging his wounds, he rushed over energetically. However, Mu Zixuan did not have any chance to catch his breath. He only had accumulated injuries and fatigue.
If they were to fight again, it would be impossible for Mu Zixuan to escape.
The arrival of the two of them had undoubtedly announced Mu Zixuan's death.
"Junior Sister Xin, where's Mu Zixuan?" Ji Fengming asked as soon as she landed.
Xin Qinghui smiled and pointed at the swamp. "According to the plan, she was forced into the swamp. Now that Senior Brother Ji is here, it's even more foolproof."
Ying Feiyang sized up Xin Qinghui and thought to himself, 'Heh, this Grand Senior Sister of the Udumbara Pure Sect usually looks serious. I heard that she was defeated by Big Brother in the previous Buddhist Daoist Conference, but she doesn't have any ill feelings towards Big Brother. Instead, she smiles. Tsk … It seems that Zuo Feiying usually protects Big Brother like a hen protecting her food. It's not without reason …'
As a bystander, Ying Feiyang could see through other people's matters. Just as he was thinking, Ji Fengming patted his shoulder. "Little Brother, what are you thinking about?"
"Nothing …" Ying Feiyang hurriedly retracted his thoughts and went back to business. "I'm thinking that even such a thick miasma can't hide the fox's stench. I guess they're nearby and have to guard against that stinky fox …"
- =
The fox's stench was naturally fake, but Hu Li and the rest of the demons were really on a nearby mountain peak, overlooking the situation at the foot of the mountain.
Hu Li's white eyebrows were tightly knitted. "The sky is about to brighten. Seventh Sister, according to the plan, you'll transform into Mu Zixuan to distract the defending righteous path. You must create an opening for Mu Zixuan to escape and let me take him away."
Hu Mei 'er, who was beside him, moved her limbs unwillingly. She pouted her red lips and said, "Second Brother, if I die, what will happen? Will I die to save the enemy who killed Second Uncle and Third Brother? "
"I will die for the great cause of the demon race!" Hu Li answered. His white eyebrows were pressed even lower. His eyes couldn't be seen clearly. It was extremely difficult to break out of the righteous path's sure-kill situation. To save a person who was bound to die, they might really have to exchange other lives.
Hu Mei 'er kicked a stone beside her feet in dissatisfaction. "Stinky Second Brother, you're not even willing to coax me anymore. Is it that hard to say' I won't let you die '?"
"En, I won't let you die." Hu Li was silent for a moment. He then corrected her. But then he covered his mouth and let out a violent cough.
Hu Mei 'er wrinkled her nose and said, "You can't trust a single word you say. Take care of yourself first. Stinky Second Brother, don't force yourself!"
She knew that Hu Li cultivated the Boundless Chapter of the 《Heavenly Fox's Ruyi Technique》. Although he could temporarily borrow the demonic aura of other demons for his own use, it was only a temporary borrowing. Many types of true qi were in his body. After a long time, they would clash with each other. He needed to rely on Hu Li's heaven-deficient physique to disperse the demonic aura in time. Otherwise, every moment he stayed would cause more harm to his body. And this time, for the sake of Mu Zixuan's Heavenly Book, Hu Li had forcefully kept the demonic aura he borrowed from the Hungry Ghost Realm in his body for too long. As Hu Mei 'er said this, she took out a piece of silk and stuffed it into Hu Li's hand. The silk was immediately stained with Hu Li's blood.
Hu Li panted. Looking at the blood staining the white silk, he became absent-minded. He seemed to realize that his hands would be stained with so much blood that it would be impossible to wipe them clean. Because not only would it be the blood of his enemies, it would also be the blood of his kin …
"I won't let you die." Hu Li held the silk in his hand tightly and repeated himself.
"Alright, then I'm going." Hu Mei 'er pretended to be relaxed. She smiled and retreated to the edge of the cliff with her hands behind her back. Just as she was about to jump down …
Suddenly!
"Dong — — Dong — — Dong — —"
A simple and heavy bell rang out. It sounded like the chanting of Buddha and the singing of thousands of monks. The source of the sound was the Buddhist Heart Monastery on the other side of the swamp!
"Wait!" Hu Li heard this and suddenly stopped Hu Mei 'er. He then shook his head. It was hard to tell whether he was happy or sad. He said, "You don't have to go."
"Huh? Where's the Heavenly Book? I don't have to care about it anymore? "Hu Mei 'er's eyes widened. She didn't know why her second brother suddenly changed his mind.
Hu Li didn't answer. He only looked towards the direction of the Buddhist Heart Monastery. He cupped his hands and said, "You're really going all out. I'm impressed!"
- =
At the same time, the same bell rang in the ears of Ying Feiyang and the others.
Everyone immediately stopped talking and listened attentively to the bell.
"This bell … It's coming from the Buddhist Heart Monastery. Is he breaking out of the encirclement in that direction?" Ying Feiyang asked doubtfully. In his opinion, this should be the most impossible option. The Buddhist Heart Monastery had a deep foundation. It was faintly the number one sect in the world. They also had the Holy Buddha. Even if Mu Zixuan wanted to break out of the encirclement, he wouldn't choose that direction.
Xin Qinghui, who was also a Buddhist, heard the bell clearly. She shook her head and said, "No, this isn't the bell to deal with the enemy. The bell is long, implying that it's summoning us. The Holy Buddha is summoning us!"
Ji Fengming frowned. "Summoning? At this time? Could it be that Mu Zixuan has been captured? No! "
Then, as if she had thought of something, she looked towards Ying Feiyang.
Ying Feiyang also looked over. As their eyes met, they confirmed each other's guess. Ying Feiyang smiled bitterly and said, "Seeking life in death. I don't know what he's relying on … Let's stop guessing. Since he's summoning us, let's go and take a look."
- =
At the same time.
The mountain gate of the Buddhist Heart Monastery had stood for a thousand years, unchanging and sacred.
But today, because of the arrival of one person, the tranquility and solemnity of the mountain gate was disturbed.
A group of monks held their staffs like ants, as if they were facing a great enemy. They formed a circle with three layers inside and three layers outside, forming a Dharma Protector Formation.
Countless staffs moved forward in unison, pointing at only one person in the center of the formation.
The rising sun shone on that person, making him look even more battered and bloodied. It was the target that everyone wanted to beat up — the former leader of the Righteous Sky Alliance, Mu Zixuan!
And he actually dared to openly appear at the mountain gate of the Buddhist Heart Monastery.
Moreover, he was already kneeling on the ground, bowing and prostrating.
"Dong — Dong — Dong —" The powerful bell reverberated endlessly, shaking the Three Thousand Empty Realms and waking up the dreams of hundreds of thousands of emperors.
Along with the bell reverberated, Mu Zixuan's words were also heard.
"Before the Holy Buddha, junior Mu Zixuan has come to repent for my sins!"
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