Chapter 430: Both Sides

Chapter 430: Both Sides

“Hehehe, how could there not be one? There’s no Mahjong in Great Liang, but there is in Great Qi.”

Just as the illusionary Hongzhong had spoken these words, an old woman tumbled out from before Zhuge Yuan.

Li Huowang remembered her face—she was Bei Feng, who had been captured by Zhuge Yuan and sent to Great Qi!

She stood up with a look of profound bewilderment, yet as she gazed around at everything, her eyes quickly sharpened with cunning.

Her face twisted rapidly, wrinkles vanishing like magic. Her features first transformed into the pattern of a Bei Feng tile, then the edges of that Mahjong piece folded inward sharply.

From a rectangle it became a square, and flesh and blood coalesced swiftly on the face until it formed a six-sided die.

The die, with its crimson dot, raised its gaze toward the Great Liang Emperor perched above in the tree. Its tone carried a trace of triumph. “Did you really guess every move? Then tell me—did you also guess that I used Xin Pan to pull in the Zuo Wang Dao of Great Qi?”

“Hehe, one table of Mahjong—you handled that. What about two tables?”

At those words, Li Huowang's pupils shrank to pinpricks. So the previous Bei Feng had other Zuo Wang Dao members! Whether seeking Zhuge Yuan or deliberately losing to him, it had all been an act!

Their sole purpose had been to make Zhuge Yuan transform them into citizens of Great Qi, so they could contact the Zuo Wang Dao there!

It was clear now—Great Qi wasn’t a figment of Xin Pan’s imagination; it truly existed!

As Li Huowang thought this, the black-and-white vertical eye in the sky suddenly changed, its pupil splitting into three, and the sixty-four hexagrams swirling frantically around it.

Faced with reinforcements from the Zuo Wang Dao, the opposing side clearly refused to sit idle and immediately began acting.

The strange chanting sound in his ears suddenly swelled, and that single voice split into several terrifying roars and whispers.

Li Huowang’s head began to ache violently, veins bulging from his forehead, his facial features seeming to melt away.

This was no mere chanting—it was a sound beyond mortal comprehension. Just hearing it once would cause anyone’s ten emotions and eight sufferings to begin unraveling.

Bai Lingmiao, merely affected by aura of malice, had undergone such a drastic change in personality. It was unimaginable what would happen if someone’s ten emotions and eight sufferings truly fell into chaos.

A great battle was about to erupt. Li Huowang felt panic rising within him. He endured the pain and searched desperately for the Xin Su Bei Feng.

But even more direly, with the arrival of the Zuo Wang Dao from Great Qi, the number of Bei Feng surged to eight! Finding the Xin Su Bei Feng now became even more difficult.

With a thunderous crash, the Zuo Wang Dao members sat down in a circle around the colossal golden tree, beginning to chant.

The four dice occupied the four directions—south, east, west, north—with numbers four, two, five, and one appearing on their faces respectively.

"Zhi Ji Zuo Wang, Ultimate Dao! Those who preserve truth cultivate through Zuo Wang; those who exist follow form in cultivation. Form cultivation leads to immortality; Zuo Wang cultivation lets one abandon form and enter truth."

The strange voice of the Zuo Wang Dao instantly dispersed the odd chanting in the air. The two sounds intertwined in midair. Under their influence, everything around them began to shimmer and distort—people and gold alike twisted endlessly.

With just a thought, the golden bricks beneath him rose and condensed into a golden statue of Yang Na smiling and turning her head.

“No matter what they do next—they’ll only get more dangerous! I must find that Xin Su Bei Feng and take him away from here!”

Li Huowang’s mind raced. Quickly, he came up with a plan. He pulled out a dagger, tore open his shirt, slashed his shoulder, exposing his collarbone, and then took out yellow paper, drawing a divination talisman.

Though this divination power couldn’t help locate beings of high Dao mastery, and might even reveal his location to others, who said it couldn’t be used in reverse?

As Li Huowang thrust the yellow talisman into his bloody, torn collarbone, before the bone cracked, he saw one of the eight Bei Feng—this time a female—raise her head and look directly at him.

“I found her! That’s her!!”

Hidden, Li Huowang moved across the distorted golden bricks, gliding like walking on water toward the Xin Su Bei Feng!

His approach did not attract attention from the great figures present. He had already anticipated this—he knew neither the Celestial Observation Bureau nor the Zuo Wang Dao had time to spare!

Faced with the Zuo Wang Dao’s actions, the Celestial Observers and the Grand Master of Great Liang naturally couldn’t remain passive.

Li Huowang watched as the white-haired Grand Master of Great Liang waved his star-sword, causing his robe to flutter without wind. From the low-hanging dark clouds, stars began to shine.

Then another figure wrapped in a red robe stepped forward, accompanied by three men. If he guessed correctly, these three were the Celestial Observers’ junior officials who had entered the palace. The red-robed man was the highest authority—the Celestial Monitor of the Celestial Observation Bureau.

Six long fingernails extended from the wide sleeves of the robe, arranged in upper, middle, and lower layers. The upper layer made seals, the middle drew talismans, and the lower pressed seals.

Three different voices, each with a unique melody, emerged from the robe.

"One day, one world; open lotus where the realm lies. This flower is not Buddhist seed, nor of this mortal land. Ride the phoenix to pluck its bloom, touch it and it becomes ancient smoke. Not knowing the lightness of the body, already upon the lotus leaf’s peak."

As this voice rang out, the Zuo Wang Dao’s chanting faded, the twisting golden bricks stopped moving, and the strange chanting dominated again. The giant eye in the sky lowered slightly.

Under its gaze, some peripheral Zuo Wang Dao members began collapsing. First blooming like lotuses, then their orderly flesh returned to chaos.

Just as Li Huowang thought they would continue their martial contest, a thunderous crash echoed. The base of the great tree suddenly gave way and collapsed.

The Zuo Wang Dao members, who had been seated, laughed and stood up, rushing toward the crown of the tree.

Thunder roared, silver arcs appeared in the snow-laden clouds, followed by a sharp crackling sound as a dark lightning bolt struck down. The entire battlefield erupted into chaos.

“A perfect chance!” Without hesitation, Li Huowang quickened his pace, charging toward the Xin Su Bei Feng.

This time, both sides were clearly serious. The world shifted wildly—sometimes dusk, sometimes noon. With the chanting in the sky, Li Huowang even felt his own body no longer belonged to him.

He couldn’t determine which side held the advantage, because he simply couldn’t judge anymore.

Yet nothing could shake his resolve. His gaze never left the Xin Su Bei Feng.

The Xin Su Bei Feng gnashed her teeth, staring fiercely at the Great Liang Emperor guarded by three Celestial Observers’ juniors, as if trying to do something.

But the next moment, she clutched her face and knelt on one knee, dark golden liquid seeping from her eyes.

Just as a dark lightning bolt descended from the sky toward her, a right hand—missing two fingers—grasped her arm and yanked her back.

“What happened?! Are you okay?! You’re hurt!” Li Huowang cried, pulling Bei Feng and retreating from the battle.

(End of Chapter)