Chapter 449: Disciple Loyalty

Chapter 449 Fellowship Sentiment

No wonder the Winter Child of the Desolate World dared to expose his whereabouts so ostentatiously, and kept egging Zhang Qinglu on to strike at me.

Li Jun sized up the female monk Pema and smiled, Are you doing this to clear the path for the Bright King Gang, or to avenge Peacock?

I have only come to execute the will of the Buddha.

Pema's expression remained serene, The Martial Sequence should never have existed in this world, and it certainly should not plague humanity again in the form of new genetic codes.

Finishing her words, Pema turned with elegant poise, her pressed palms turning toward Zhang Qinglu.

Kill this rogue Martial Sequence, and I shall allow you, Daoist, to leave unscathed.

Perhaps fearing that Zhang Qinglu still did not believe her, Pema immediately added emphasis to her tone, Once the Buddha Land unfolds, your fellow disciples will undoubtedly sense it. Unless absolutely forced by circumstances, the Sangyan Temple does not wish to form a vendetta with Mount Longhu.

What constituted being forced by circumstances? It meant Zhang Qinglu failing to cooperate with her.

Without overthinking, a flurry of block-printed talismans rose around Zhang Qinglu, the Daoist patterns upon the scripts gradually brightening as they entered an activated state.

If you break your word, the Zhang family of Mount Longhu will never let you off!

That is only natural.

The Buddha Sequence of Sangyan Temple, Pema, beamed with smiles, her hands shaping the demon-subduing mudra. The facial features of the guardian deities split open to the left and right along the center of their brows, revealing the fierce, glaring eyes of the Vajra hidden within, unleashing a deafening roar at Li Jun.

Roar!

A massive wave of sound swept across the entirety of Weiyang Grand Street, the torrential rain in the sky exploding as the glass windows and doors of the shops surrounding Li Jun shattered completely.

A tremendous, crushing pressure enveloped Li Jun's entire body, while a disconcerting, unsettling Buddhist chant relentlessly assaulted his will.

The Buddha Land on Earth... this is indeed a fine place for killing!

Li Jun kicked up the hem of his martial robes, tucked them into his waist, bowed his posture slightly, and raised his single blade to start!

Devouring the Dragon and Tiger!

The Dormant Officer Method!

Piercing Sight of the Five Gods, the Kidney Deity Xuanming!

Bang!

The ground where Li Jun's feet landed blasted open into a two-foot-deep crater, the flying debris whistling through the air with piercing cracks.

With but a single flash of motion, Li Jun's silhouette appeared before Zhang Qinglu like a phantom, slashing downward with his blade.

Trapped within the Buddha Land, he had to first kill this Daoist Sequence who had nowhere left to run!

On the exact same Weiyang Grand Street, this side was a clamor of voices, filled with cries of alarm.

Who deployed the Buddha Land mainframe? Who unfolded the Buddha Land on Earth?

A Daoist Sequence of Mount Longhu recognized the signs and shouted in shock, Senior Brother Zhang has been caught!

Quick, pull him out!

Anxious and burning with rage, Yang Ji bellowed, flicking a backhanded spiritual talisman toward Zhang Qinglu's face, which had already fallen into a chaotic blur of static snow.

Clang!

A gunshot drowned out the roaring downpour.

The talisman that had just flown from Yang Ji's fingertips was blasted apart in midair, the churning shockwave forcing Yang Ji to stumble backward.

Don't any of you fucking move!

Lord Ma held his long rifle, Zhaodan, reaching out to rack the bolt as a cartridge casing wrapped in gunsmoke clattered to the ground.

Buzz...

Shields of golden script expanded one after another, firmly guarding the people of Mount Longhu, including Zhang Qinglu, within their perimeter.

What is the meaning of this?

Yang Ji looked at his indifferent fellow disciples before him and snarled, What, you want to defect at a time like this?

Yang Ji, don't go around snapping at everyone like a mad dog!

Someone frowned and said, This Buddha Sequence managed to draw the Eldest Senior Brother and that Jinyiwei centurion into the Buddha Land so silently; she has achieved at least the Fourth Mahakala Fruit of the Buddha Sequence. Do you really think you can pull him out with your spiritual talisman? Acting rashly will only get Eldest Senior Brother killed!

Then we just stand by and do absolutely nothing?

Yang Ji sneered, his contemptuous attitude provoking a wave of dissatisfaction among his surrounding peers, who glared back at him in resentment.

Every word and action of yours right now has been transmitted by me in real-time to the grotto-heaven of the Ministry of War. If anything happens to me and Eldest Senior Brother today, someone will immediately report it to the Celestial Master's Mansion, and none of you will escape the blame!

Completely undaunted, Yang Ji jabbed a finger at his own brow, I know what you all are thinking, but I advise you to see the situation clearly. Right now, we face the enemy together, not fighting among ourselves. Whoever wants to stab their own people in the back at this moment had better consider the consequences!

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone held their breath, their expressions turning ashen.

Although Mount Longhu did not forbid its Daoist Sequences from fighting one another for opportunities, deliberate persecution was a different matter entirely.

Yang Ji's actions now were equivalent to tearing away all pretense, using the rules of the sect to crush them. If Zhang Qinglu truly died in the Buddha Land today and they made no attempt to rescue him, they would inevitably face a brutal investigation from the Celestial Master's Mansion afterward.

Although Mount Longhu possessed nine ministries, the surname Zhang remained the most noble and elite existence among them.

Yang Ji, who had staked everything he owned on Zhang Qinglu, now cast aside all hesitation, his fierce gaze sweeping across every single face.

Wherever his eyes passed, people turned their heads to avoid contact, save for Yang Long, who met his gaze squarely.

Of course we must save him, but the key right now is to find where that Buddha Sequence's physical body is hidden, or destroy the mainframe hosting his Buddha Land!

Yang Ji said anxiously, Then how long will that take to find?

Then let's kill that Jinyiwei centurion first and eliminate an enemy for Senior Brother Zhang!

That is an option.

Yang Ji shifted the conversation, narrowing his eyes at Yang Long, Then who will do the killing? Yang Long, you don't expect me to go alone, do you?

I will strike alongside you, while the other fellow disciples cover our flanks, how about that?

Among the Daoist Sequences who had entered Mount Longhu this time, Yang Long was the most unyielding and recalcitrant, second only to Chen Qisheng.

Yang Ji was well aware of this fact.

Seeing the other party act so proactively now, Yang Ji could not help but show a hint of hesitation.

If you don't make a move, then everyone will just watch. If Senior Brother Zhang doesn't die, consider it our immense fortune.

Yang Long sneered, If he dies, then it depends on whether your background is deep enough to preserve your life from the hands of the Celestial Master's Mansion! But Yang Ji, think carefully; you are the one who pushed everyone to this point. If the Celestial Master's Mansion wants someone to vent their anger on, I will be the first to drag you down with me!

The words, laced with resentment, rang out with absolute clarity, successfully dispelling the doubts in Yang Ji's mind.

There is no time to lose, let us move.

Yang Ji gave the other a deep look and was the first to charge forward.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The moment Yang Ji rushed out of the shield formation, his ears were filled with deafening gunshots.

A torrent of explosive rounds was entirely blocked by a massive block-printed talisman as thick as a door plank.

Longhu Daoist Apparatus: Heaven-Flipping Seal!

I cannot hold out for too long either, hurry!

Yang Long’s figure swept past his side, casting various Dao implements forward as if they cost nothing, heading straight for Li Jun who was surrounded and protected by a horde of Brocade Guards.

At the same time, golden-talisman shields flew in from behind, slamming heavily into the ground to block the hail of bullets raining down from Yang Ji's left, right, and rear.

Seeing this, Yang Ji, who had intentionally lagged a step behind, hesitated no longer; assorted talismans swirled around his body, the vermilion Dao lines on their faces lighting up one by one before surging out in a swarm.

Ahead, Yang Long had already tangled in a fierce fight with Lord Ma, both striking with such savagery that armor shattered and blood splattered in an instant.

Buzz.

A flying sword with a bright yellow trail, shielded by layers of talismans, forcibly tore a rift through the impenetrable storm of bullets, aiming straight between Li Jun’s eyebrows!

Clang!

A streak of dark sword-light darted out from beside Li Jun’s ear, parrying away Yang Ji's seemingly infallible flying sword.

"Abyss-Striker, Chen Qisheng?!"

Yang Ji's heart suddenly sank, an ominous premonition surging almost uncontrollably within his mind.

Just then, Yang Long, who had been locked in combat with that Mohist armor, suddenly let out a shrill scream; his Dao implement, the Heaven-Flipping Seal, exploded into a sky full of fragments as his figure went flying backward.

This sudden turn of events left Yang Ji momentarily dazed.

The red light in that Mohist armor's single eye was similarly vacant, like a human caught in stunned hesitation.

Yang Long is an 'Umbra Self'?!

Almost at the exact same instant, realization dawned upon Yang Ji's heart; amidst his horror, just as he was about to retreat, a pair of eyes full of seductive charm suddenly slammed into his vision.

"Buddha-Land."

"Dream-Stealing."

Two voices, one female and one male, echoed simultaneously in Yang Ji's mind, dragging him down into layers of illusion.

Pfft!

The tip of a blade plunged from the side into Yang Ji's already half-turned torso.

The blade cut all the way down, irreversibly severing every mechanical bone inside Yang Ji's body.

Fan Wujiu, his face twisted in fierce ferocity, grabbed Yang Ji's twitching body with one hand, while the Xiuchun blade in his right hand buried itself entirely into the Dao-foundation within the abdomen, ruthlessly grinding it into a mess of mud.

And Yang Ji's consciousness perished simultaneously within the illusion, leaving him without even the chance for celestial dissolution, utterly dead.

"Yang Ji!"

From where he had crashed in the distance, Yang Long let out a piercing, furious roar, the lifelike veins on his temples throbbing violently.

.