Chapter 109.1: The Plan To Annihilate Bright Palace

Dong Long stood atop the city walls, sweeping his gaze across the boundless desert. He was contemplating how Jialan City could possibly stand against Wu Tong's assault.

Wu Tong commanded nearly a hundred Nation Subjugators. With such terrifying force, Jialan City would struggle to hold.

I can only hope the City of No Return’s guardian killed a few of them before he fell,

Dong Long thought wistfully.

After several breaths, he sensed that the scout from the City of No Return had arrived. However, it only stirred the faintest ripple in his heart.

The cultivator came running up the wall, face flushed with excitement. "Guardian! Guardian!”

"Did the City of No Return’s guardian defeat any Nation Subjugators?" Dong Long slowly asked.

The scout, who had prepared a long, detailed report, had to swallow it all down. He replied quickly, brimming with excitement, "He did, sir!"

Dong Long merely nodded, unsurprised. With the guardian's strength, it wasn't unexpected.

"How many did he—" Dong Long stopped himself midway to avoid sounding transactional and narrow-minded. He reprashed the question, "Did the City of No Return guardian manage to escape?"

The scout blinked, a little exasperated.

Why does he keep asking these strange questions?! Can't he just let me finish?

But rank was rank and he dared not offend.

"No, sir. He didn't flee!" the scout said honestly.

In fact, the guardian of the City of No Return hadn't just stayed, he was still sitting calmly atop the city wall.

"What...?" Dong Long's composure cracked. His aged voice trembled, tears welling in his eyes. "The guardian... fought to the death, without fleeing?"

The surrounding guards were shaken to the core. Some threw their heads back and howled to the sky, others clenched their fists till their knuckles turned white.

"The City of No Return may have fallen, but the guardian lives on in our hearts!"

"No matter how strong Wu Tong is, he'll have to step over my corpse first!"

The poor scout wanted to slap himself—or rather, slap them. Again, he didn't dare.

Inhaling deeply, the scout shouted, "Everyone, please! Listen! The City of No Return guardian isn't dead!"

Everyone froze. A dozen Nation Subjugators turned to him at once, their collective gaze pressing down like a mountain.

"What? The guardian isn't dead? Did he surrender?"

"Impossible! How could he?"

The scout nearly exploded. "Could you all stop talking and let me finish?!”

There was another silence.

Dong Long raised his hand. "Let him speak."

The scout exhaled in relief. Then, he blurted it all out in one breath, "The guardian didn't just survive, he fought alone against Wu Tong's massive army! With a single sword, he annihilated the entire army! Wu Tong, no, all of them are dead!"

When he finally stopped, panting, a strange quiet fell. No one spoke. No one even breathed. None of them could believe what they were hearing.

Dong Long's eyes gleamed like torches. "Is everything you said true?"

"By your command, sir, every word is true! If I'm lying, then I'm your father!" the scout declared, a bit too loudly.

𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Yet no one even noticed his slip. Every face was etched with disbelief.

One man destroyed Wu Tong's army? Wu Tong is dead? That was no battle, that was a myth come to life! Even a Mythwalker would perish when besieged by such an army. Yet not only did he survive, the guardian of the City of No Return wiped them out. Unbelievable. Unimaginable. It’s like something out of a dream!

"

Hahaha

! Wu Tong is dead!" Dong Long roared with laughter. Tears overflowed from His eyes as he screamed, "That guardian is such a terrifying man!"

He laughed so hard he lost his balance, and slammed his hand against the wall. Half the wall crumbled, sending him tumbling down. A Nation Subjugator had laughed the wall apart. The other Nation Subjugators followed suit, laughing till they couldn't breathe.

Only the poor scout seemed slightly nervous. Then, seeing everyone else laugh, he joined in awkwardly.

***

In the City of No Return, Qi Yuan sat quietly atop the wall.

"The Origin strike of a Supreme" he murmured, his eyes thoughtful. "So... a Supreme has set their sights on me. Or is it someone else?"

He gazed down at the empty city. Only Yuan Qi remained, sweeping aside fallen leaves. The streets were silent as death.

"I'm still too weak to face a true Supreme," Qi Yuan sighed.

From Earth's End’s battles, he'd learned how to evade a Supreme's Origin strike. Nevertheless, those were fallen Supremes. He was powerless against a true Supreme.

"Unless... I gain an Origin Divine Technique of my own."

That meant reaching level 120, when he was only level 94. A long road still lay ahead.

"Now that Wu Tong is dead, Yuzhou will have no leader for a time. I'll use this chance to sweep the demon spawns clean."

The decision settled quietly in his heart. Now, not even a large-scale demon army frightened him. It was time to clear the region, grow stronger, and reach level 120. He would then attempt his third chance of comprehending Origin.

He had no idea how many years that step had taken for the canary. Nor did he know whether he'd ever see her or Nine Plate Mountain again.

"If she's still out there, where could she be?" he whispered, eyes lifting to the endless desert.

***

Seven years passed in the blink of an eye. Yuzhou had changed beyond recognition.

The City of No Return guardian had become a phantom god, striking without warning into the demon armies. Every few days, tens of thousands fell by his hand.

Across the neighboring cities, cultivators whispered of a colossal, blood-red shadow stalking the sands and wiping out the demon spawns. The vision was so dreadful, it inspired awe and fear alike.

He seemed immortal, tireless, invincible. The demon spawns of Yuzhou were eventually wiped out.

Jialan City had not seen a demon army in over a year. The last time demon spawns approached, the generals had barely raised their swords before a streak of light appeared from the heavens, cleaving through the enemy ranks.

***

Outside the City of No Return, a twelve-feet tall crimson figure stood amid the dunes.

Qi Yuan, wreathed in killing intent, radiated demonic energy so thick that the cultivators of the Bright Palace would've struck him down on sight.

He drew his broken sword and thrust it into the sand.

"Yuan Qi," he said calmly, "I'll be leaving the City of No Return. It could be for a few months or a hundred years."

Yuan Qi trembled. He gritted his teeth, voice shaking. "I'll watch over the city for you, my lord!"

The closer he stood to Qi Yuan, the more terrified he felt. Over the years, Qi Yuan became less and less human. He appeared more like the demon spawns he hunted, especially after he'd massacred them. Yuan Qi suspected that Qi Yuan had a secret technique to raise his strength by killing demon spawns.

Regardless, Qi Yuan had given too much for the City of No Return. Others probably feared him, but how could Yuan Qi afford to feel fear? All these years, he had remained within the City of No Return, witnessing firsthand what Qi Yuan had faced. Guarding a city alone would look dashing from afar, but in truth, it was a burden that weighed endlessly on the soul.

"This sword can slay demon spawns," Qi Yuan said. "If there are too many attacks, I'll sense it. Keep outsiders away if they come. I'd rather not hurt them by mistake."

Now that the surrounding demon spawns had been wiped out, there would be no dangers near the city for a while. It was about time for him to log off. After all, even in a game, the mental exhaustion was still very real.

Yuan Qi bowed deeply. "As you command."

The once fiery young general was now middle-aged, weathered by time and duty. Qi Yuan's figure shimmered and vanished.

Carrying Little Bride, he found a remote patch of desert and dug a hole. Then, he buried himself with her just as before.

"

Ugh

, bad luck," he muttered. "Bones again, it must be Wu Tong's men. I'll make sure to burn them to ash next time. Digging into corpses is disgusting."