Chapter 689: Yunze

Chapter 689: Cloud Marsh

"Sixteen hours? In this world, did a day originally have thirty-two hours?"

Li Huowang felt his mind spinning as he heard this. How could something so basic be wrong here?

"That's correct. Dragon veins come in large and small sizes, but according to historical records, there were indeed sixteen hours in a day."

"Then why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"What? You haven't seen those almanacs sold for a silver coin on the street? Aren't you a Taoist priest? Have you never read the Four Books and Five Classics?"

Li Huowang was momentarily at a loss for words. But upon reflection, it seemed rather reasonable. If the entire world was mad, then having a few extra hours in a day hardly mattered.

At that moment, a thought suddenly popped into Li Huowang's mind.

"If all the remaining dragon veins were gone, what consequences would that bring about? A world with no single hour? What kind of world would that be?"

Li Huowang shook his head vigorously, trying to shake off these thoughts. "Forget about how many hours are left in a day for now. Where are those three dragon veins? That's what matters most right now!"

"Cloud Marsh." Upon hearing this, Li Huowang quickly pulled out a map of Later Shu and studied it carefully.

Later Shu's landscape was barren, but not entirely devoid of water. Within its borders lay a marsh shrouded in miasma, a place filled with various legends—this was Cloud Marsh.

Looking at the map, Li Huowang clenched his teeth. "It's come to this point. There's no use lingering any longer. Let's go! We'll retrieve the dragon veins! Having only eleven hours in a day is already too little."

The situation was critical. Li Huowang and his companions set off. It wasn't just them—it was all the military forces within Later Shu, along with reinforcements from Qingqiu, who joined together in a counterattack against the areas occupied by the Sect of Law.

Regardless of their own motives, they remained allies in fighting the Sect of Law.

With such a major move from Li Huowang's side, the Sect of Law naturally wouldn't sit idle. Chaos erupted throughout Later Shu instantly.

On the barren wasteland, everyone rode horses, galloping rapidly toward Cloud Marsh.

Just as they charged into a low-lying area, the ground suddenly cracked open, revealing a bottomless black hole.

Before anything from beneath could act, an eerie scene unfolded. The riders, completely lacking any foothold, continued riding mid-air.

A pale hand, adorned with a jade ring on its thumb, plunged into Li Huowang's head. As Li Huowang moved, it withdrew from the back of his skull. "Shen, the technique of Xuan Pin. They're not here."

Meanwhile, the real Li Huowang and his companions had already arrived at the outskirts of Cloud Marsh.

Clearly, the Sect of Law wouldn't let them approach so easily. The area around Cloud Marsh had become a battlefield—Sect of Law defenders versus Later Shu and Qingqiu attackers.

It was like a giant stone mill, grinding living people into death and limbs. Even Heaven seemed unable to bear witnessing such a sight, showering light rain.

As the rain grew heavier, more and more fell victims to the battle. Raindrops hammered heavily into pools of blood, enveloping the entire Cloud Marsh in a layer of crimson mist.

"Die!!" The Li Huowang covered in tentacles roared as he slashed through the crowd, leaving corpses scattered everywhere.

Yet no matter how many he killed, the followers of the Sect of Law never seemed to end, charging forward recklessly like insects, endless and unceasing.

After enduring this assault, Li Huowang and his group finally reached the edge of Cloud Marsh.

Seeing that the other Astronomical Officials had entered Cloud Marsh, Li Huowang didn't linger at the periphery. He led the others into the marsh.

"This way! Come this way!" Shangguan Yuting, the subordinate of Xuan Pin, kept pointing the way through the muddy marsh.

Away from the battlefield, the surroundings of Cloud Marsh quieted down—but this did not mean safety. On the contrary, it became even more perilous.

"Plip," two sounds echoed. Two invisible arrows shot out from a nearby pond, piercing Li Huowang's back and emerging from his chest.

Li Huowang, holding his purple-sheathed sword, turned around and glared coldly at the pond. Peng Longteng's towering figure crashed into it with tremendous force, sending splashes of water flying. Soon, the pond's water turned a deep red.

To avoid another ambush, a small bump soon rose on Li Huowang's scalp. Then it split open, revealing the eyes of Li Sui, who emerged from it to watch his blind spots behind.

Li Huowang gripped the unseen arrow in his chest with one hand and pulled it out. He walked to the pond's edge, gazing at his reflection in the water, his expression showing slight hesitation.

"Ji Zai, what exactly are you doing? With all three dragon veins gone, you really intend to just stand by? What about your preparations you spoke of before?"

Yet Ji Zai gave no response. A trace of disappointment appeared on Li Huowang's face. He truly wanted to know what Ji Zai was doing now. Was there anything more important than fighting the Sect of Law?

"Watch out. Zheng Boqiao has encountered strong opponents over there." Xuan Pin's figure appeared beside Li Huowang.

After observing the others' reactions, Li Huowang realized this was merely Xuan Pin's illusion—the real person was elsewhere.

"Even if the military forces held back some of the Sect of Law's foot soldiers, there are still many skilled warriors within the Sect."

"You're saying this too late. Gather up, or else the Sect of Law will overwhelm you with numbers and defeat you one by one."

"You're underestimating the Astronomical Officials too much. They're fine. If there's a full-scale encirclement, I'll send others to support them. I'm telling you this to warn you. Here." Xuan Pin extended his hand, presenting a weathered wooden box to Li Huowang.

"What is this?" Li Huowang took it, amazed that although Xuan Pin's body was illusory, the box in his hands was solid.

"Some primordial Qi collected from Later Shu. Save it for when we meet the dragon veins. This batch isn't much—Heart Essence is simply too scarce, and many have wasted it."

Li Huowang's expression was complex as he glanced at the red box, then placed it in his chest.

Suddenly, Li Huowang's mind swayed, dodging stones hurled from behind. When he turned around, he saw a stone statue standing motionless nearby.

Li Huowang frowned, drew his copper coin sword, and slashed forcefully at it. The statue cracked instantly, dark green worms flying out in all directions.

What looked like stone wasn't actually stone—it resembled a human-shaped insect cocoon.

"Senior Brother Li," Bai Lingmiao beside him suddenly spoke. "There are many of these things far away."

Hearing this, Li Huowang looked at Xuan Pin beside him. "Tell them to be careful. It seems the Sect of Law has prepared a feast for our arrival."

(End of Chapter)