Chapter 299: Chapter 179: The Final Reveal

The battle at the outskirts lasted half a day, and eventually, An Liuli’s forces retreated to defend the estate.

Until the golden light of the estate’s protective array shone brightly, the battle temporarily came to a stalemate.

Just in the skirmish at the outskirts, An Liuli’s side suffered over half their casualties, with nine in the middle stage of Core Formation perishing.

Meanwhile, the forces from the Cangming Dynasty cooperated seamlessly, attacking and defending in order, losing only three in the middle stage of Core Formation.

It was evident that An Liuli’s side was at a disadvantage.

And at this moment, the opposing side still had over thirty combat-capable individuals, with four major cultivators in the late stage of Core Formation, and the commander at the Golden Core Peak had yet to make a move.

“An Liuli, Lord Yuan has given an order; the people of the An family do not appreciate the great gifts from the Cangming Emperor, nor do they consider the Dynasty’s nurturing grace. Repaying kindness with enmity, they intend to rebel against the Dynasty and face annihilation.

Today, I am ordered to present you with Holy Wine, granting you a final dignity, to show the vast kindness of the royal grace!” The commander approached the Array, looking down from above, gazing at An Liuli, who led in the courtyard.

Upon hearing this, An Liuli suddenly lamented mournfully, “Injustice! With Heaven above and Earth as witness, how could our An family be such ungrateful people?

The Cangming Emperor’s benevolence is as high as the sky, our An family members remember it deeply; how could there be any thought of treason?

I implore the commander to report back to Lord Yuan that there must be some misunderstanding, surely some villain is slandering us.

I am now peacefully settled in this small border city, with the sole wish to live out my days in peace, never harboring even a hint of disloyalty!”

The commander was expressionless: “If that is so, then why not open the array and kneel to receive Lord Yuan’s decree?”

An Liuli replied without hesitation: “Please forgive me, Commander. I hold Lord Yuan in the highest respect; if Lord Yuan were to come personally, I would certainly welcome him with all due ceremony. However, I am not acquainted with you, the Commander, and cannot verify the authenticity. If I fall for some scheme meant to sow discord between Lord Yuan and me, causing even the slightest displeasure to befall Lord Yuan from the Cangming Emperor, my sin would indeed be too great, and I hope for your understanding.”

“…” The commander squinted, momentarily at a loss for words.

An Liuli’s words were flawless, completely blocking any argument he wished to make, leaving him speechless.

“Hmph! Sophistry! If there is nothing to hide, why raise so many followers and retainers? If truly grateful for the grace, why hastily flee the Imperial City?” The commander pondered for a moment, not sparring with An Liuli anymore, going straight to the point.

An Liuli had already prepared her response, speaking sorrowfully: “Sir, you misunderstand me. The chaos of the swamps makes it so that, as a mere woman, I must protect myself in this way. As for leaving the Imperial City, it was simply not to wish the Cangming Emperor to be further embroiled in courtly disputes because of our An family. We have long grown weary of palace intrigues, wishing only to find seclusion, far from strife, to peacefully live out our remaining days!”

“Deceptive words!” The commander frowned deeply.

The reason he was appointed as the commander for this operation lay in his loyalty to the Yuan family.

Assisting the lord and resolving his troubles were beliefs engraved into his bones!

“Enough talk, you either open the array to welcome the Holy Wine, or when the array breaks, all shall be executed!”

An Liuli smiled faintly, abandoning her earlier humility: “Hmph, who exactly are you? Why do you intend to sow discord between Lord Yuan and our An family? What is your true intention? Perhaps you were sent by Lord Yuan’s adversary?”

“Stubborn beyond salvation!” The commander stopped speaking further, immediately ordering a fierce attack on the array.

Rumble rumble rumble~

In an instant, a violent magical power fluctuation erupted on the scene.

Within the array, An Liuli sat steadily in the outer courtyard, protected by over thirty individuals, among whom only nine remained in the middle stage of Core Formation, three in the late stage of Core Formation, and including the Earth Spirit Master Liu Hongling.

With the attacks from the cultivators of the Cangming Dynasty outside, the protective array trembled violently.

However, just as the array began to waver, a massive force of heaven and earth quickly replenished it, making the array once again as solid as rock.

Li Jizhou sat cross-legged in the side room, watching this scene indifferently.

The people outside the array he had encountered before, when returning to Guzhu City from killing Nascent Soul True Monarch Withered Disc.

At that time, those people had shown a hint of threat, but were scared off by his release of Nascent Soul aura.

Regarding these people, Li Jizhou felt almost no threat.

“At least a Third Grade Spiritual Treasure!”

At this moment, seeing the array repair so swiftly and all external attacks futile, the commander revealed a Heaven-Flipping Seal.

With the revelation of the Heaven-Flipping Seal, the hearts of those inside the array tensed.

Everyone knew that the Dynasty in Central State was affluent and resource-rich, having prepared mentally for the other side to produce a Spiritual Treasure.

It’s just that a Third Grade Spiritual Treasure of this level was somewhat beyond their expectations.

For an ordinary Core Formation cultivator, a Spiritual Artifact level is already exceptional, and a Top-Grade Spiritual Artifact is considered outstanding.

As for Spiritual Treasures, they are basically at the level of the Nascent Soul True Monarch.

With Spiritual Treasures having nine grades, once they reach Third Grade, the mere presence of the Spiritual Treasure itself possesses power surpassing Core Formation.

However, at this moment, no one noticed An Liuli’s expression.

Her always serene and elegant demeanor suddenly revealed a layer of frost.

Particularly the sharpness in her eyes erupted instantaneously.

Because the Heaven-Flipping Seal brought out by the commander was a replica of the Guanghan Seal from the Quasi-Immortal Emperor of the Moon Worship Dynasty.

Using a replication of the Guanghan Seal to attack her, how venomously calculated was that Lord Yuan?

Truly aiming to kill not just physically, but mentally!

“Boom!”

The Heaven-Flipping Seal expanded in the wind, growing to a hundred zhang in an instant, smashing straight down.

With just one strike, the light of the protective array flickered, already feeling on the brink of collapse.

Liu Hongling’s face changed instantly, hurriedly connecting to the force of heaven and earth.

“Phew~” Worthy of a Tier Three Earth Spirit Master, her speed in connecting to the force of heaven and earth was extraordinarily fast, even restoring the array to completeness once again.

“Celestial Master Liu, remarkable talent!”

“A Tier Three Earth Spirit Master, truly extraordinary!”

…

Many inside the array cheered endlessly.

Seeing this, those outside were ashen-faced.

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