Chaotic World Book

If Xia Longyuan were suffering from Mountain and River Qi rebound, then at this moment the various Family Heads were likewise suffering from their own Sword Spirits' rebound, and the intensity of such rebound was not lesser than Xia Longyuan's.

Previously, because their intents clashed and could not synchronize, the Sword Spirits ignored them, which was fine. After all, they hadn't gone too far, and the Sword Spirits themselves were weakened and, apart from being uncooperative, did not do much else.

But once supplanted with the Soul Power of the Sea Race, the Sword Spirits regained awareness. As it was not their own Soul Power, their strength was barely restored, and their consciousness remained muddled. It was like when Cui Yuanyang communicated with the Lianshan Sword; the sword's responses were barely distinguishable from an idiot, as its spiritual intelligence was not complete. Since they had to deal with a dazed ruler, the muddled Sword Spirits were easily controlled by hatred. After all, it was this dazed ruler who had seized half of their Soul Power; if not him, who else deserved their wrath?

Once their own Soul Power returned, the Sword Spirits expelled the Sea Race element and fully became complete with spiritual intelligence.

Not only did personal grudges lighten immediately, but the Sword Spirits with intelligence also clearly understood the situation they were in.

The ruler is dazed, the subjects are traitorous, in such a land, what's there to preserve!

In the hands of these "masters", especially those reckless ones, the Sword Spirits felt extreme humiliation. Their dissatisfaction with the dazed ruler was secondary to the rage and shame they felt towards their own masters.

We are Sword Spirits meant to protect the land, when did we become tools for your personal whims!

"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!" The sword Qi rampaged through the space, encompassing Xia Longyuan and several Family Heads within the Sword Array's offensive reach.

Everyone thought Xia Longyuan had stolen the Sword Spirits' Soul Power for use, such as fitting it to construct the Secret Realm Sky; most likely, it had already been used... No one considered that he had never used it and had been saving it...

He never intended to use it, only to sever the roots of the family lineage, an act from his early years as an Emperor concerned with managing the land, weakening the families' foundations...

"In my earlier years, my cultivation was mediocre, and I did not trigger a severe rebound by being cautious, only gradually seizing half to let the Sword Spirits sleep. Perhaps that was the most cautious thing I did," Xia Longyuan, oblivious to the sword Qi assaulting him, sighed, "Later on, as my cultivation grew and my enemies multiplied, I did not proceed further and just left it there. And then you all made the first move... Well, it serves you right."

The Family Heads, also facing the omnipresent sword Qi, looked particularly uneasy, "It treats us all the same, turning on us and you alike; it's not siding with you, what's there for you to be smug about?"

"The Sword Spirits might still be bound by me, but isn't the difference in strength and weakness much clearer now?" Xia Longyuan laughed heartily, and suddenly launched a punch.

"Bam!" Wang Daoning threw a palm strike with a head-on collision.

Both figures flickered; Xia Longyuan quickly reached back and deflected the sword Qi that swirled around him, while Wang Daoning did the same, though he seemed a bit more frantic.

In terms of sheer strength, Xia Longyuan, despite being weakened countless times, was still slightly stronger than Wang Daoning.

But only slightly... As he had admitted, this was truly his weakest moment, with his cultivation foundation nearly shattered, relying solely on his substantial fundamental strength to retain his fighting power.

If someone else had joined in the attack, he would have been in trouble.

But at that moment, Ying Wu Vermilion Bird frowned and stood to one side, her expression uncertain. And Li Shentong, watching Li Gongsi dodging the sword formations, clenched his fist tightly as if considering defection.

—According to Tang Wanju's intelligence, Li Shentong was initially advancing on Hanzhong but then retreated. The detail-lacking Tang Wanju racked her brains for reasons. The real reason was simple: knowing that the barbarians were plundering Chang'an, he thought it improper to attack and appear in coordination with them, so he decisively pulled back.

Then it turned out that the barbarians were invited by you!

Partnering with someone like this meant that, even if the dragon was slaughtered, there'd be no martial honor to speak of. It might even become a joke in the Worldly Society once the word spread!

But his real target, Xia Longyuan, was right before him. To defect amidst the battle and strike at his ally? That punch would be hard to throw.

The heart of the man accustomed to hard labor was numb, filled with nothing but infuriated thoughts of condemning this damned world to extinction.

Ying Wu didn't harbor such strained sentiments, but likewise felt this situation to be... quite tasteless, quite meaningless.

His vision of dragon slaying was one where heroes rose together, fighting with their lives on the line. Even snatching a piece of flesh from the beast would be a feat. Not to mention he had reasons, he could even do without any excuse; he simply disliked him and wanted to join the killing, he just longed to challenge the top, win or lose, life or death, it all held meaning in the Worldly Society.

Ying Wu even knew of someone who had been lurking, waiting to steal an item from Xia Longyuan—knowing that they might be crushed to death the next moment after the theft... But that would not be in vain for a lifetime's creed, enough to die happy in the netherworld. Such is the life of a man or woman in the Worldly Society, with no need for protracted excuses; after all, you are the top of the world!

No matter who the teammates were, it originally didn't matter. Our positions differed, but we could still cooperate on this matter, and after the fact, we'd still fight if we needed to, with no impact whatsoever.

But this scene made things… what the hell is this? Doesn't it mean getting involved in the political stand-off between the Emperor and the Aristocratic Families? Isn't this sick?

Vermilion Bird's chest heaved as she glared at Xia Longyuan. Unlike the plain-thinking martial artists like Ying Wu, she despised Xia Longyuan for both her Sect sisters' bonds and her family's feelings. Moreover, her doctrine couldn't tolerate an Emperor who was not from the Sect. She had been the most eager about the battle situation. Now, theoretically it was the same, what did she care about the Emperor and the noble families, as long as Xia Longyuan could be killed…

Yet the words "colluding with barbarians" still stopped her from acting.

Besides being the Vermilion Bird of the Four Symbols Sect, she was also Huangfu Qing, a daughter of the Huangfu Family, and a sister to her brothers. Her foolish father had fought against the barbarians all his life, her four brothers had died on the battlefield, and now she was to help those who colluded with the barbarians?

How could she possibly act!

Wang Daoning almost wanted to strangle Li Gongsi to death. He could guess many attitudes, and if it weren't for the ironclad proof of colluding with barbarians being thrown in their faces, the atmosphere wouldn't have become so weird. The fights were supposed to be internal matters, but once an external wolf was drawn in, the situation was entirely different! He didn't even dare to lead on!

The feelings of the people were momentary, but in reality, several clashes had already taken place on the field. In the end, with an Imperial Realm at the forefront, Li Gongsi and Yang Jingxiu were managing both the rampage of their Divine Sword's Sword Array and trying to find any means to strike and help Wang Daoning. Since the Sword Array was indiscriminately attacking Xia Longyuan as well, they somehow held on for a short time.

But it was clear they couldn't hold on much longer… The Sword Array's indiscriminate attacks made everyone's response more difficult, with Xia Longyuan needing to divide his attention by a third and Li Gongsi and Yang Jingxiu needing to exert eighty percent of their efforts. Could it even be considered the same thing?

"Swish swish swish!" After several exchanges, Yang Jingxiu blocked a strike from Xia Longyuan, his blood and Qi swirling in chaos, almost vomiting a mouthful of blood, unable to withstand the onslaught of his own Sword Array. In an instant, he was slashed several times, blood drenching his body.

Just when it seemed the three of them would be defeated on the spot, Wang Daoning actually sighed with relief, "It seems you truly have no other forces hidden, otherwise with such a good opportunity, you wouldn't possibly hold back…"

Xia Longyuan furrowed his brows.

He indeed had no other forces left. The Mountain and River Rebound had indeed shaken his foundation in ways he hadn't anticipated; there was no denying it.

"Bang!" Wang Daoning made a forceful palm strike against Xia Longyuan, a faint sword light subtly appearing amidst the countless Sword Qi of the Sword Array, aiming straight for Xia Longyuan's back!

The Heavenly List number six, Snow Eagle!

This was the backup Wang Daoning had prepared, though it wasn't entirely accurate to say so, because Snow Eagle would not listen to any of his commands and would only strike to kill when certain that Xia Longyuan had no cards left up his sleeve!

The result caught Xia Longyuan by surprise. He had been wary of Snow Eagle earlier, but after so much time had passed without a move, to strike at such a moment showed that old number six really could endure!

Xia Longyuan had to abandon delivering a final blow to Yang Jingxiu, twisting his body and slapping towards the Sword Spirit at Snow Eagle's side.

Wang Daoning's punches and palm strikes followed like a shadow, bombarding Xia Longyuan's flanks, truly caught between two fires!

However, at that moment, a sense of alarm surged in his heart. He had already tasted the flavor of those faint golden arrows once before, and now they were aiming straight for his temple yet again!

Zhao Changhe!

He had been in hiding for a while, and seeing that Xia Longyuan seemed not to need direct saving, he wasn't in a hurry. He was also waiting to see if Wang Daoning had any backup plans. At this moment, he struck decisively!

At the same time, he shouted loudly, "Vermilion Bird Venerable! Wang Daoning is assassinating Wan Tianxiong, life hanging by a thread. Will you still cooperate with your enemy?"

Her husband's words provided just the impetus the wavering Huangfu Qing needed. The Flame Magic Claw flashed by, reaching directly for Wang Daoning's neck: "How dare a lowlife like me!"

Wang Daoning almost spat blood.

While people wondered about Vermilion Bird's earlier incident, who would have thought that just the arrival of Zhao Changhe in a key battle would not just be about Zhao Changhe, but could also gift the effect of a Vermilion Bird defection!

It was complete chaos!

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PS: Is it that everyone's psychological explanations are a bit too much? Unfortunately, without a more detailed explanation, many people really can't distinguish the characters' mindsets. Please forgive us.