"Sister...! Sister...!"
The younger sister's voice suddenly echoed in the elder sister's mind.
When she looked up, she found herself standing on scorched earth, amidst fire and blood.
Beneath her feet were thousands of familiar faces, long devoid of life.
Her sister's face was among them.
"I can save her. I can save all of you. With but a wave of my branches, I can make flesh regrow upon bones, make petals return from dust to bloom. You know this well."
Beneath her, a monstrous tree with a thousand faces spoke to her—and to everyone.
It waved its branches, its roots digging deep into the earth.
"I am Shuhu. I am eternity. From me, you shall attain true immortality."
The elder sister struggled to resist, but it was as futile as a mayfly trying to shake a tree.
Weeping, she closed her eyes, no longer having the strength to fight. Now, she was but an insignificant fruit upon this colossal tree, powerless to defy its mighty roots.
Clutching the last embers of vengeance in her heart, she swore, "Even if I must descend into hell, I will claw my way back to the living! You abominations of immortality shall be purged!!!"
...
Meanwhile,
In the Luofu Cloud Knights' encampment.
"Reporting to General Teng Xiao, multiple allied forces of the Abundance's followers have been sighted across the Luofu!"
Teng Xiao, clad in heavy armor, wore a grim expression. Beside him stood Jing Yuan.
"By the order of the Cloud Knights, the entire army advances! Have Jingliu lead the troops to the dens of the abominations, and inform the Dragon Lord, Dan Feng, to remain vigilant at the Scalegorge Waterscape.
Since the Luofu inherited the Ambrosial Arbor, our military might has never waned. Why would they dare attack now?"
"Could it be that Shuhu, the Emanator of the Abundance, is leading the charge himself?" Jing Yuan immediately grasped the implication behind Teng Xiao's words.
Now he understood why General Teng Xiao had not taken command immediately this time—
Instead, he had called upon Jing Yuan's master, Jingliu, to lead the troops.
As the armed forces tasked with defending the Xianzhou and purging abominations, the general's duty was not only to strategize and deploy but also to charge into battle at the forefront.
Amidst countless brutal and brief records of service, few Cloud Knight generals survived past a century in office.
Before long,
Another Cloud Knight appeared in the camp, too breathless to steady himself. "General! Shuhu's location has been confirmed!"
"Boom!"
Before the words even faded, Teng Xiao summoned his greatsword and slammed it into the ground.
He looked at Jing Yuan, enunciating each word, "Listen well. I will engage Shuhu. From this moment onward, all Cloud Knights are under the command of Jing Yuan, the Valiant Guardian..."
"General, I—"
"Enough. Henceforth, you are the Luofu's general. This has already been approved by the Marshal."
With that, Teng Xiao was enveloped in a golden light and vanished on the spot.
Jing Yuan patted his own head heavily.
"All Cloud Knights, heed my orders! Report the latest battlefield intelligence immediately!"
——
The elder sister watched helplessly as the fruits on the tree's branches multiplied. She could only tear at them in desperation.
She had no idea how long this had gone on.
Her strength was fading, and her sister's voice no longer reached her ears.
Just then, a blazing greatsword descended from the heavens, incinerating the sickly sweet stench of corpses lingering in the air.
Teng Xiao crashed into the battlefield like a meteor, a god descending to earth, roaring as he charged toward the monstrous tree.
The tree bloomed anew like a flower, its golden branches rapidly growing, entangling its nemesis.
Teng Xiao swung his greatsword, drawing ever closer to the trunk.
Around him, eerie sounds arose—led by the voice of a middle-aged man, echoed by countless others, young and old.
Yet, upon closer listening, one could discern wails of agony.
"Every triumph over death is supreme joy. Like them, your flesh is insignificant, but your suffering may yet amuse me!"
The tree made the fruits upon its branches grow human faces, each head speaking a single word in turn:
"Teng Xiao, how do you plan to kill me this time? I. Am. Very. Curious."
As the voices spoke, Teng Xiao hacked through the branches until he stood at the foot of the tree. Calmly, he replied,
"With myself."
Behind Teng Xiao, a golden phantom drove the greatsword down from the heavens, piercing straight through.
The elder sister, still clinging to the branches, witnessed this scene.
Even with the unnatural regenerative speed of an Emanator of the Abundance, the damage could not be fully undone.
The battle had become a tug-of-war between destruction and healing.
...
At last, the golden light dissipated.
Teng Xiao leaned on his greatsword, barely keeping his faltering body upright. Before him, the monstrous tree stood battered yet still alive.
Then, the voice of the middle-aged man rang in his ears once more:
"I. Have. Returned. My goal has always been the Luofu's Dragon Lord—to break the seal and claim the Ambrosial Arbor.
You were always an obstacle. I never imagined you would stake your very life on this.
Now, you are but a candle on the verge of burning out, extinguished by the slightest breath!
Yet I will endure. If you wish, I can even bestow my blessing upon you.
Hahaha... I look forward to seeing how you plan to kill me next time."
When Teng Xiao remained silent, Shuhu dissolved into a pool of flesh and seeped into the earth.
Summoning his last ounce of strength, Teng Xiao activated the communication device in his ear.
"Order Jingliu to reinforce immediately... The Luofu... The Dragon Lord..."
——
The scene shifted to a new battlefield.
At its center, a shroud of crimson loomed ominously.
Outside, the Cloud Knights and the Vidyadhara clashed with the Abominations of Abundance while desperately seeking a way to breach the barrier.
"It's no use! This is Shuhu's 'Hell of Blood and Slaughter.' Last time, only General Teng Xiao managed to tear an opening!"
"We must break through! The Dragon Lord Dan Feng is inside. If anything happens to him, the Ambrosial Arbor's seal will weaken, and the Xianzhou is doomed!"
"The Luofu's Sword Champion is also in there. With her—"
"They're facing an Emanator! A monstrosity that even General Teng Xiao could not permanently slay! We must carve a path, even if it costs us our lives! This is the honor of the Cloud Knights!"
"..."
——
Within the barrier, Jingliu gripped her shattered sword, barely holding on.
Dan Feng stared at the monstrous tree before him, then at the corpses strewn across the battlefield—followers of the Abundance, Cloud Knights, Vidyadhara.
And finally, at the grievously wounded Jingliu.
In this moment, time itself seemed to slow. The voice of the Dragon Heart echoed in his mind once more:
"Their deaths are meaningless. Only you cannot perish.
The Ambrosial Arbor's seal still requires your reinforcement. The Vidyadhara still need your leadership.
But if you wish for their sacrifices to not be in vain...
I can show you how to defeat Shuhu."
"What must I do?" For the first time, Dan Feng chose to engage with the Dragon Heart within him.
"It is simple. Assume the dragon's form. Feel the heartbeat of the Dragon Heart."
Dan Feng fell silent, his face clouded with uncertainty.
"Look among the dead. There is a Cloud Knight who, just yesterday, was so overjoyed to receive your autograph that he stayed awake all night.
Now, he lies cold in death!
Look at Jingliu before you. If you do not act, she will become 'nourishment' for Shuhu.
If one of those four were to die, could you bear it?
Do not forget—the Dragon Heart you resist has always been part of the Dragon Lord."
...
Jingliu watched as the regenerated branches advanced once more. She prepared to strike again—
When a draconic roar erupted behind her.
She turned slowly.
Dan Feng was gone.
In his place, an azure dragon soared through the skies.