Tang Shedu thrust his halberd forward, a hazy golden light flashing in midair as dark clouds rolled back and forth. The halberd was reflected in Li Xuanfeng’s pupils, yet his heart instead calmed.
"So it really was you."
All doubts had been dispelled. The reason why Tang Shedu’s forces had been wiped out so quickly must be because he had revealed all their arrangements, perhaps even what dharma artifacts or Immortal Foundations they possessed. The devil cultivators only needed to follow the plan and kill them in order.
"Quick to defect, weren’t you..."
Tu Longjian broke through to Purple Mansion first, and Tang Shedu defected to the northern side right after. The man must have received a promise from some devil or buddhist cultivator. He truly was resolute and ruthless. Even now, he had a calm, composed expression, as though everything were under control.
Li Xuanfeng’s gaze was cold as a spark of golden light lit up on his chest and climbed up to his neck. It slowly transformed into a white suit of armor as it reached his jawline. Radiance burst forth as the light spread from his chest to his limbs, finally tracing a ring of gold behind him.
It was the Heavenly Gilded Helm!
Dark-golden patterns surfaced across his body. Since he had been prepared, Li Xuanfeng flipped his longbow, reached over his neck to grip the bow, and held the long golden weapon between them to block the Changtian Halberd.
Boom!
A thunderous boom echoed through the air. A few golden ripples flashed past, and Li Xuanfeng’s figure reappeared several kilometers away, golden aura surging around him. Blood glinted once more in his pupils as he coughed twice.
Tang Shedu was not weak at all, and his innate ability for cultivation was top-tier. If it hadn’t been for Yuanwu blocking his techniques and preventing him from reaching Purple Mansion Realm, he would have been far more formidable by now. Even so, his years of accumulation were by no means trivial.
Even with preparation, Li Xuanfeng suffered a light injury from that charged blow. Two mouthfuls of golden powder spilled from between his lips and teeth, drifting through the air, scattering in a hazy golden shimmer.
Tang Shedu did not pursue him immediately. He gazed at Li Xuanfeng deeply, his voice a little hoarse as he said, "Fellow Daoist, listen again."
Murong En transformed into billowing black mist that surged forward. Devilish light eagerly followed as a demonic roar echoed through the sky, "Tang Shedu! He doesn’t want to run!"
Li Xuanfeng surged upward in golden light, shooting into the sky before anything became clear. One hand held his bow while the other drew back an arrow. Mana surged as his deep voice rolled through the clouds, "Tang Shedu! You’ve joined the northern devil Dao and ambushed me! Are you not afraid that the Daoist Masters will settle accounts with you later?"
Li Xuanfeng had no interest in a war of words, he merely needed to make sure the message was heard by all the cultivators on the battlefield. Above all else, the priority was to spread word that Tang Shedu had defected to the devils.
Tang Shedu rode a stream of light as he gave chase, his cold gaze fixed forward. His halberd thrust forward, and his voice was low and indistinct, "Li Xuanfeng, I joined the Northern Dao; only Yuan Xiu bears me hatred here."
His words made Li Xuanfeng’s heart jolt, but a golden arrow had already been released. Tang Shedu’s halberd swept up to parry the arrow, causing it to explode into a shower of golden sparks in the air.
Still, he heard Li Xuanfeng murmur, "Trying to bargain with a tiger!"
Tang Shedu’s expression grew complicated. When he saw the flowing radiance of Li Xuanfeng’s Heavenly Gilded Helm, it was as if he was looking at a version of himself with a different fate.
He didn’t hesitate as his halberd thrust out, but his voice was heavy, "If I hadn't joined the North, I’d have ended up like you—like this! No more chance of reaching the Purple Mansion Realm! How is that any different from death?!
"You think I can’t see it clearly? The Chi Family did this very thing in the past!"
His halberd was flowing with white radiance, fusing with the boiling mana surging from his body. He seemed like a descended god as he roared, "Of course I know bargaining with tigers is futile! But if I’m destined to be a pawn refined by the Azure Pond Sect, why not gamble for backing and a Dao? What can Yuan Xiu do to me alone if I head north?
"And more than that... more than that... this is a supreme buddhist fate!"
Thunderous words burst from Tang Shedu’s mouth. He swept his halberd before him, shattering the golden light flying at him. His face was blasted full of holes by shards of Astral Qi, but they rapidly closed again as he raged, "I know you’re calling out! Good! Let the world know! Let them all aid me! If they speak my name once, grant me one strand of destiny!"
His voice was stifled and full of fury, as if venting the frustration of being denied the Purple Mansion Realm for decades. Golden light swirled in his pupils as he sneered coldly, "Li Xuanfeng, you consumed a Human Pill. Do you even know that? You and I both committed blood-debts for the demonic sect. Don’t talk to me about falling into devilry. The North sucks marrow, while the South carves flesh—how are they different?!"
While they argued, Li Xuanfeng had already fired dozens of arrows that turned into countless golden-white streaks. His two Immortal Foundations surged to the limit, as he relied on his own strength to suppress both Tang Shedu and Murong En, painting a vast stretch of sky gold in the process.
Murong En remained unhurried, silently activating the spirit artifact within his body to influence Li Xuanfeng before him. His voice echoed in Tang Shedu’s ears, "Tang Shedu! Qi Wang's Profound Heaven Hearing has rung thrice. The killing karma is dense and the demonic seed revealed; the chance to transform karma and rise is right before you! For just a dozen of the Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators deaths, Lord Jinlian’s promised seat of The Merciful One is near!"
But he did not expect Tang Shedu to cast a resentful and vicious glance at him as he snapped coldly, "Shut up."
"You—!"
Murong En froze for a moment, only to see Tang Shedu glaring at him like a venomous snake, "You think I don’t understand? This kind of turn is a great karmic opportunity for the buddhist Dao. What Maha wouldn’t want me? Hmm?"
Layers of golden light exploded from his body as all kinds of emotions flashed through his pupils. His halberd could now intercept arrows at a greater distance, even though the shock left cracks across both hands.
Still, he extended his arms and slowly walked forward. A dark-golden hue appeared in Tang Shedu’s eyes, streams of radiance flowing across his body. Murong En’s expression grew grim as he let his hands fall to his sides, watching coldly as Tang Shedu climbed step by step.
Tang Shedu rasped, "Tu Longjian... Tu Longjian was born with destiny. Fine then. Thirty years of cultivation, and he drives me to desperation. Fifty years of struggle, and he becomes a Daoist Master. His fate is good...
"I began cultivating at six years old. I schemed tirelessly to please Tang Yuanwu for mere scraps of secret techniques. I’ve carved flesh from my own body for the sake of cultivation, endured sword and blade piercing my meridians every day under Yu Muxian... Still, I never once thought of becoming your enemy."
His halberd shone with dazzling white light. Li Xuanfeng calmly broke Tang Shedu’s halberd arts with two arrows. Unfazed, Tang Shedu pushed through the golden Astral Qi, and asked softly, "But why? Li Xuanfeng."
As those words left his lips, golden light burst from him like flames, burning away the devil mist. Tang Shedu swept his halberd forward, knocking aside the golden bow, while his other hand suddenly reached out to grab Li Xuanfeng’s throat.
Boom!
The platinum glow of the Heavenly Gilded Helm on Li Xuanfeng’s arm burst forth. Li Xuanfeng caught Tang Shedu’s wrist. His piercing gray-black eyes met Tang Shedu’s gaze, and he said nothing. He simply held his breath and locked his hand in an icy grip.
Tang Shedu slammed into a hardness as cold as iron. His breath wouldn’t settle as it swelled chaotically in his chest. Li Xuanfeng felt no fear, but Tang Shedu, on the verge of ascending to The Merciful One, grew increasingly frantic.
In Li Xuanfeng’s eyes, the Tang Shedu now turning to Buddhism began to resemble someone else entirely. Much like his time at Zhenhui Temple, those same questions echoed across time and slithered into his ears once again.