Seeking Truth with a Sword-Chapter 577: I love you
The majority of those who landed on the hillside were visitors from Taihao Mountain, with a small portion being Turkic practitioners—Turkic martial arts were flourishing, so there were far fewer practitioners of other Dao Paths.
Galuo fell silent for a moment, then said softly, "Do I need to reveal my identity?"
As an important member of the Ashina Clan, her status in the Turkic region was high. She recognized many of the Turkic practitioners on the hillside.
"Not for now."
Li Ang didn’t speak himself but conveyed the message through the voice transmitter in his Wolf Head Helmet. "Those from Taihao Mountain should have guessed our intentions by now based on the commotion in Tongluo City. They’ll try to capture me alive and brand me as an assassin who attempted to kill the Khan. They’ll use this to quell any dissent within the Turkic ranks. Then they will use me to negotiate with Yu Country to gain an advantage in the war. If you reveal yourself now and are found to be with me, you will also be labeled as a Turkic traitor. Others might not dare to speak up for you."
Whether to protect a personal friend or an ally of Yu Country, Li Ang couldn’t let anything happen to Galuo.
He said calmly, "In no more than 15 minutes, my trump card will arrive here, and then we’ll be able to escape this place."
No more than 15 minutes?
Galuo was stunned for a moment. Such precise timing—could it be Li Ang had called for backup from Candle Cloud Realm cultivators? But she didn’t see any Nearby Worm on him.
"Eleven, twenty-four, thirty-seven, fifty..."
Ghost Shovel, as if he hadn’t heard Shangguan Yangyao at all, glanced around, self-absorbedly calling out numbers.
"What is he counting?"
Bian Chenpei raised an eyebrow, unsure whether Ghost Shovel was going mad or reciting some information unknown to them.
"He’s counting..."
Yu Feiyu paused. Recalling everyone’s files and connecting them to a certain rumor, he exclaimed in shock, "The number of Spirit Veins each of us possesses!"
Ghost Shovel, born in the Yu Country Anxi Capital Protectorate, was a notorious cannibal. Besides indiscriminately slaughtering ordinary people, he also had a penchant for killing cultivators, eating their corpses, and "consuming" their Spirit Veins.
Spirit Veins were intangible, not physical organs. However, after Ghost Shovel ate the cultivators’ bodies, his cultivation genuinely grew day by day. Despite lacking systematic inheritance, being constantly hunted, and unable to cultivate in peace, he still reached the Martial Arts Grandmaster Realm.
"At a time like this," one of the Taihao Mountain cultivators said in astonishment, "he’s still thinking about eating?"
With a dozen Cloud Patrol Monks and Innate Martial Artists, equipment issued by Taihao Mountain, and the continuous arrival of reinforcements, escape was impossible even if Ghost Shovel was a genuine Martial Arts Grandmaster—this was the Turkic heartland, and the nearest Jing Country border was seven or eight hundred miles away.
"He’s just deceiving himself."
Bian Chenpei scoffed, "Everyone, attack together! Prioritize killing, and if there’s a possibility for a complete victory, then consider capturing..."
Before he could finish saying "captive," Ghost Shovel stomped on the ground and shot into the air, swinging his chopper at Bian Chenpei’s neck. His speed was even a fraction faster than when he’d fought Li Ang.
The unstoppable chopper, just about three inches away from Bian Chenpei’s neck, encountered layers of resistance. Barriers formed by numerous Protective Talismans stacked up like transparent glass, hindering the blade’s trajectory.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK—
The blade ground through the semi-transparent barriers. Bian Chenpei’s expression changed drastically. He hastily retreated, firing Starfall electrical shots at Ghost Shovel from his hovering fingertips.
The piercing sound of Starfall, like a battle horn, signaled ten Cloud Patrol Monks to fly towards Ghost Shovel. Magic, Flying Swords, and Talismans instantly engulfed the hillside.
Smoke and dust shrouded the hilltop, obscuring visibility. Meanwhile, on the slope, other cultivators flew towards Li Ang.
"Mr. Li, please surrender. On behalf of the Torch Language Institute, I assure you that your life will not be harmed."
Yu Feiyu declared loudly. A screen of light spread from his hands, collaborating with his Taihao Mountain companions to form solid Light Sabers. These pierced the ground, encircling Li Ang and Galuo and creating a barrier.
Haotian Divine Technique then...
Li Ang surveyed his surroundings. Trapped within the barrier, the efficiency of his Qi Sea in drawing Spiritual Energy from the world plummeted dramatically. It was like struggling to breathe in a thin oxygen environment.
Not enough Spiritual Energy to use the Radiant Crossbow. The Arbitrary Gate is still cooling down. Spirit Summoning Paper is useless in the current situation.
His mind raced, his Spiritual Sense sweeping over the Bitter Realm Lotus concealed in his sleeve. This lotus, capable of predicting fortune and misfortune, still indicated his life was not in danger.
In a certain sense, being pierced through the scapula, having all cultivation sealed, and being imprisoned in the Taihao Mountain jail could also count as not being life-threatening...
Li Ang gave a faint, wry smile. Watching the Taihao Mountain people closing in, he said to Galuo (via Mo Si) within the Wolf Head Armor, "Don’t be scared in a moment."
"What..."
Before Galuo could react, Li Ang wrapped his arm around her waist, then drew the dagger from his side, grasping it in one hand, and fiercely stabbed it toward his own forehead.
"Stop!"
Yu Feiyu’s heart skipped a beat. He instinctively employed Divine Arts, trying to wrest the dagger from Li Ang’s hand and prevent him from committing suicide. His mind belatedly processed the situation, pondering the reason for Li Ang’s suicide.
Could it be that Li Ang knew if he were captured, Yu Country would be in an extremely disadvantageous position at the negotiation table, and for that reason, he didn’t hesitate to commit suicide? That was too... extreme, right?
Everything happened in the blink of an eye. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞
Li Ang watched as the dagger pierced the skin of his forehead, embedding into the bone. Finally,
BOOM!!!
An intense light radiated from him, sweeping out in all directions.
Yu Feiyu and the others were hit by the shockwave. They flew out like fallen leaves, crashed into the mountain, and dislodged boulders.
Dust filled the air. The crowd coughed as they struggled to rise from the ground.
A cultivator in Judgement Court robes, eyes wide and voice hoarse, cried out in terror, "A Divine Talisman! It’s a Divine Talisman! Lian Xuanyao is here!"
As the explosion echoed through the valley, the smoke and dust on the hillside began to disperse.
Li Ang and Galuo still stood in place. They were surrounded by patterns resembling water ripples, which vaguely seemed to form images of mountains and rivers.
Yu Feiyu silently stood up, picked up a Longsword belonging to a companion that had fallen nearby, enveloped it with Telekinesis, and shot it toward Li Ang.
The Longsword flew through the air, but when it came within twenty steps of Li Ang, its speed abruptly slowed, then lost its inertia and fell to the ground.
"Mountain and Sea Longevity."
Yu Feiyu gritted his teeth. "The talisman the Academic Palace Master gave you."
All the anomalies stemmed from the Jade Pendant that Li Ang wore at his side. That Jade Pendant contained a talisman he had received long ago from the Mountain Master for his anti-malaria strategy. It could withstand a full-force strike from a Candle Cloud Realm cultivator. And if faced with a Cloud Patrol Realm cultivator, it could last for 15 minutes.
During those 15 minutes, nothing external could harm Li Ang, who was at the center of the talisman’s protection.
Once the Mountain and Sea Longevity Talisman was activated, the surrounding Light Saber barriers shattered.
Li Ang, drawing nature’s spiritual energy, used his Telekinesis to pull himself and Galuo into the air, flying away into the distance.
