Chapter 123: If You Were Never Lost, Why Didn’t You Return
Changan stopped snowing.
The sky was covered in thick soot and flaming clouds as if there was a ma.s.sive stove burning behind it.
Everyone on the ground was looking up in utter shock.
In the sky above the palace, the Code that mysteriously vanished had appeared once again, ripping through the s.p.a.ce and shocking everyone with its presence.
The only difference was there was a figure below the Code.
The figure was dressed in a blood-red robe, his face as naive as before.
The face of the most outstanding person in the White Jade Square and the person who stepped foot onto the White Jade Court. He appeared in front of everyone in the most unexpected way!
Under the Code, the bow was still anch.o.r.ed.
The figure still drew the bow mercilessly, ready to shoot.
At that moment, Fang Lang seemed to be shining brilliantly.
Lu Taixuan, Li Puyi and the other important officials squinted their eyes and stared at him in disbelief.
How did Fang Lang… get involved with the Code?
The imperial censors and the other officials had their mouths wide open as they sucked in a cold breath.
The third prince, Li Liancheng, was crouching on the floor as he lifted his head and watched in a daze.
The second prince was giggling while the fifth princess coughed and glanced curiously at the young lad beneath the Code.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
The Tang Code’s red arrow that bore the punishment shot out from the young man’s bow.
It was as if the young man was chosen by the Code to be its representative.
The sect leaders of the ten great sects watched in horror.
The Main Path Guild, Meridian Guild, Immortal Martial a.s.sociation and All-Seeing Buddha Sect were astounded.
The Blooming Lotus circled around the young man. The Code was hovering above his head as he shot arrows on behalf of the Code.
With everyone watching, the young man shot an arrow towards the Taiji Palace and impaled Nan Yehuo on the floor.
Then, he kept shooting, all the arrows went straight into Nan Yehuo’s body and pinned his soul!
The Code’s attack would harm one’s soul.
Although Nan Yehuo’s strength was enhanced by the Great Elixir Pill so much to the point that he was on the verge of transcendence, the Tang Code’s red arrow would still be able to pierce through his soul and severely wound him!
Every cultivator in the Tang Dynasty knew that one could never escape from the Code’s judgment.
Even if that person was at the peak of the ninth-cla.s.s realm.
Therefore, when Fang Lang shot out the Code’s arrow, it was able to impale Nan Yehuo on the floor.
Of course, another important reason was that the Emperor extended his hand and crushed Nan Yehuo’s sword.
Nan Yehuo’s injured and shaken soul made him vulnerable and he was unable to react in time to avoid the Tang Code’s red arrow.
He felt that his soul was about to explode. Blood kept oozing out of his mouth as he stared at the great figure with his blood-shot eyes.
“Did I make the wrong decision?”
Nan Yehuo struggled to get back on his feet.
However, when he finally managed to stand up, another red arrow shot through his back and seeped into his soul.
Bang!
Nan Yehuo fell onto the ground from the impact of that arrow.
Both his arms were trembling, blood flowed out from his nose and mouth continuously.
Above the Taiji Palace, Fang Lang was dressed in a blood-red robe, shooting mercilessly. Nocked the arrow, fingers curled, drew the bow and fired!
He executed the series of actions seamlessly without hesitation.
It was as if he represented the unforgiving Code who was judging Nan Yehuo.
The surrounding was silent, only the sound of Nan Yehuo getting shot arrow after arrow could be heard in the Taiji Palace.
Nan Yehuo gave up all hope as he knew that he had missed the window of opportunity. He had made a wrong bet.
Nan Yehuo’s unibrow kept shaking, his hair was disheveled. He raised his head and stared at the sky. He noticed Fang Lang with the Code above his head.
He never expected that this insignificant young man that he once ignored would hold the key that changed the course of events. That arrow was the confounding factor that turned the tide around.
He gaped at Fang Lang who had transformed into the adjudicator of the Code.
“You… again…” Nan Yehuo’s voice was deep and hoa.r.s.e.
He had an ambiguous expression on his face.
Fang Lang!
Him again!
Nan Yehuo was furious.
He regretted not killing him when he had the chance. He thought he treated Fang Lang as someone he valued.
However, it was not easy to kill Fang Lang and he turned out to be the person who ruined his entire plan.
The Tang Code’s red arrow was corroding his soul.
Nan Yehuo realized that he might not get out of this alive. He had lost this battle.
Nan Yehuo stumbled his way up reluctantly.
He was not willing to go down like this. Donglu’s Sword League would certainly fall without a chance of survival.
He had to find a way to save Donglu’s Sword League!
If only he could catch a glimpse of the great figure and reveal the truth to the world!
Someone would definitely lend a hand to protect Donglu’s Sword League from annihilation.
Somehow, Nan Yehuo managed to gather the strength and charged towards the Emperor. He moved so quickly that his reflection turned into a ball of flames in the golden armor guards’ eyes.
Swoosh!
Above the Taiji Palace, Fang Lang’s consciousness was still under the Code’s control. He continued to shoot the Tang Code’s red arrows at Nan Yehuo’s soul.
However, Nan Yehuo went berserk and ignored the immense pain in his soul. He channeled the monstrous power that he temporarily gained from the Grand Elixir Pill and reached the front of the throne.
He extended his palm towards the figure behind the mist. He felt the layers of transcendence and was on the brink of removing the mysterious veil that covered the Emperor.
Nonetheless, the figure on the throne reached out his hand once more and aimed at Nan Yehuo. With a hitting motion mid-air, it seemed as if a palm attack landed on Nan Yehuo’s skull in a flash.
This was from someone who had attained transcendence. It was unstoppable.
Nan Yehuo’s hand froze in mid-air.
His knees. .h.i.t the floor with a thump.
His powerful energy started to dissipate and his soul slowly withered.
Nan Yehuo stared blankly at the mist covering the Emperor. The moment when the Emperor raised his hand, Nan Yehuo saw that the cloud of fuzzy mist wavered and suddenly…
His pupils narrowed in disbelief!
“You… You…”
It was as if he discovered a huge secret!
Unfortunately, he discovered it at the last moment of his life.
Above the Taiji Palace, Fang Lang shot another arrow between Nan Yehuo’s brows and ripped his soul.
Thud.
Nan Yehuo’s body slumped to the ground.
His soul and divine sense were completely broken.
There were no signs of life.
Nan Yehuo from Donglu’s Sword League was dead!
Fang Lang impaled him in the Taiji Palace!
Shortly after, the golden armor guards, head of the palace guards and the others swarmed into the palace and removed his body.
The commotion finally ended.
The leaders of the great sects were all standing on the White Jade Square, staring speechlessly at the great figure inside Taiji Palace. They were all deep in their thoughts.
The emperor’s palm had easily destroyed all of Nan Yehuo’s soul energy and his cultivation that was at the brink of transcendence. This had shocked everyone present.
Maybe…
The Emperor was still the untouchable, almighty ruler.
He still holds the power of transcendence!
A sense of fear washed over the cultivators. No one paid much attention to what Nan Yehuo had discovered at his very last moments. Only Nan Yehuo himself knew about it.
A dead man tells no tales.
The flaming clouds in the sky began to recede and it started to snow again.
The Code was exuding immense energy as if it were the sounds that came from an ancient bell which echoed in every corner of the palace. It felt as though there were a pair of invisible eyes in the Code overlooking everybody.
The Code released Fang Lang and he finally regained consciousness. A wave of weakness erupted in his body.
However, Fang Lang’s eyes still sparkled with excitement.
At the moment when he shot the Tang Code’s red arrow under the influence of the Code to put an end to Nan Yehuo’s life, he felt a unique strength and enlightenment.
This was what his master was referring to—the difference between shooting and being shot!
Fang Lang learned so much that he felt his cultivation significantly improved!
The slightest revelation from the Code made him realize so much!
The Code was no longer hovering above Fang Lang’s head. It reverted back to its usual icy demeanor and floated above the Taiji Palace, exuding a suffocating pressure.
On the White Jade Square, all the sect leaders were kneeling on the floor and bowed silently as they faced the Taiji Palace.
They were waiting for the Emperor’s judgment.
Of course, there was an exception.
Chao Xiaojian flew down from the sky as he carried Fang Lang in his arms. He stared at the Blooming Lotus Sword in Fang Lang’s hand that had a shattered tip. Suddenly, his breath quickened.
“Sect Leader… She appeared?” Chao Xiaojian’s voice was low and hoa.r.s.e.
Fang Lang who was still in the blood-red robe nodded.
Then, Chao Xiaojian spewed a breath of blade energy and flew towards the Youzhou Demon Portal with Fang Lang before he could pay his respects to the Emperor.
Fang Lang was stunned. He had just returned to Changan but Chao Xiaojian was flying him right back to YouZhou Demon Portal.
Snow started falling from the sky above Changan City.
Nan Yehuo’s body was removed from the Taiji Palace. It was as if the earth was mourning him with a sad melody.
Nan Yehuo had died, after the first prince, Li Tianlin’s death. What was coming next would be the Emperor’s judgment.
No one was bothered about Chao Xiaojian and Fang Lang, no one dared to.
Fang Lang’s appearance with the Code was a symbol of his status as the embodiment of the Code.
It was as if the Code was trying to send a message to everybody. Even the imperial censors would not dare to target Fang Lang anymore.
In fact, even the third prince, Li Liancheng, understood that he had to think twice before laying hands on Fang Lang in the future.
The Code above his head, shooting arrows on behalf of the Code.
These events had elevated Fang Lang’s status. He was no longer an ordinary person that would easily be overlooked by others.
…
Snow was falling heavily In the Martial Arts King Manor.
Princess Pei Shi finally finished reading the collection of poems. She walked out of her room contentedly to savor the scenic winter view of Changan. Youzhou Demon Portal was much more terrifying than a restless Changan City.
Princess Pei Shi walked to the front of the Martial King Jiang’s courtyard naively. She frowned slightly when she saw the sealed doors.
“He started cultivating in seclusion again.” Princess Pei Shi sighed and rubbed her hands together while she breathed out warm air. She then proceeded to take her leave.
The Martial Art King’s courtyard was sealed off by an invisible energy.
Even the falling snow would be obliterated before it could reach the courtyard.
…
In the Youzhou Demon Portal, it was still raining heavily.
Everyone was staring at the crack between the barriers of the two worlds.
The female blade lord was still standing upright in the barrier.
They noticed that the crack was gradually healing by itself.
Wen Ting, Jiang Linglong and the others were watching with a complicated look on their faces. The events that happened in the demon portal today were totally unexpected and was even beyond their imagination. They were still shaken about it.
The death of the first prince, Li Tianlin; the appearance of Xuanyuan Taihua after disappearing for over a decade, the emergence of the Code!
It all ended when the Code swept Fang Lang away.
They had no idea what happened in Changan since they did not have the Thousand-Mile Mirror. The only thing they knew was that Fang Lang was abducted by the Code.
“Are you leaving?” Jiang Linglong raised her veiled head and asked the receding figure between the barriers of the two worlds.
Xuanyuan Taihua’s body was encased in a mysterious glow of blade energy.
She looked down at Jiang Linglong and laughed, “Send my regards to your father, I’m thankful for him.”
Jiang Linglong shuddered as she heard the female blade lord’s words.
“If you were never lost, why didn’t you return?” Jiang Linglong yelled out loud.
However, she did not answer this time. Her gaze seemed to have penetrated the barrier and she looked over thousands of miles of rivers and mountains of the Tang Dynasty.
The crack kept narrowing, until…
A blade of light flew from the outside of the Youzhou Demon Portal at an incredible speed.
Zhao Xiaojian and Fang Lang charged into the Youzhou Demon Portal and flew in the rainstorm.
Zhao Xiaojian was flying at maximum speed without reservations about the consumption of his cultivation.
In the sky above the fourth Resource Station, Chao Xiaojian and Fang Lang appeared. However, the crack between the barriers of the two worlds had sealed off completely.
The figure of the gorgeous female blade lord vanished mysteriously, just like the way she emerged.
Chao Xiaojian hovered in the air without any form of shelter. His body was hampered by the heavy downpour where the rain droplets gathered and dripped from his chin.
He was in a daze as he took in the remnants of Xuanyuan Taihua’s blade energy on earth.
After a long while, he released a murky breath.
“She’s gone again before I could meet her, what a waste. What made her abandon the Sword Guild and stay in the demon world alone?”
Seeing how lost Chao Xiaojian was, Fang Lang told him some of the things that happened to him.
For instance, Xuanyuan Taihua agreed to take him as her disciple and ordered him to search for the three other swords, Withering Lotus, Circling Lotus and Reincarnating Lotus.
Chao Xiaojian’s face lit up after hearing that the sect leader was still alive. This was good news for him.
She must have her reasons to leave the sect and wander in the demon realm.
Otherwise, who would want to leave their home and wander for a decade?
Chao Xiaojian did not know why she did it, but he believed that she must be bearing a great weight on her shoulders.
He could only help her by protecting the Sword Guild and maintaining its rank within the top ten great sects.
Chao Xiaojian swiped away the rain on his body and laughed.
Then, he took Fang Lang and bowed towards the healed crack between the barriers of the two worlds, towards the female blade lord that was overlooking the entire Tang Dynasty.