Qi Zhimu's gaze was cold as he severed that familiar face along with the branches in a single strike.
"What a filial son, cutting down your own father so decisively." The severed face was still lunging forward.
Before Qi Zhimu could speak, a streak of light arrived in an instant.
Violent wind blades tore through the void, severing all the branches extended by Shuhu, while curses resounded across this sector of space.
"Fuck you, Shuhu!"
"The ultimate enjoyment."
The giant monstrous tree was not angered; its different faces each spoke a single word.
"Jie jie jie, as expected of Yaoqing's General Wind of Evil, your reinforcement speed is truly fast. How much further is Teng Xiao? I miss that old friend of mine so much."
"An abomination that torments all living things."
Wind of Evil's face was grim, his tone filled with fighting spirit and fury.
"With me here, you will surely pay the price today."
"Hehe... I paid the price long ago. Now is the time to reap the harvest."
A heated battle was on the verge of breaking out, with no testing phase whatsoever.
When the highly destructive Aeon Emanators made their move, the aftershocks were simply more than ordinary people could endure.
Whether they were Cloud Knights soldiers or Vanguards, the survivors had almost no room to intervene.
Qi Zhimu's pupils trembled slightly.
During that great war at Yueque hundreds of years ago, his father and eldest sister fought to the death to protect the people, eventually dying in battle without even leaving a corpse behind.
The scenes of hatred left behind in him were deeply rooted in his heart and had never truly disappeared over the centuries.
He could have possessed the power to contend with Shuhu, but he gave it up for his mother's sake.
He understood his mother's fear.
The Qi Family, and even the entire Xianzhou Alliance, had lost too much due to the war with the Abominations of Abundance.
But—
Qi Zhimu had never regretted his decision back then.
As for the future, no one could say for sure.
"No matter how many times you can be resurrected after death, one day, I will kill you."
Hearing this emotionless sentence, Shuhu, who was in the middle of a fierce and bloody battle, instantly turned its attention over.
It seemed as if these words were just text, devoid of emotion, so it did not mock him.
"We shall see."
Shuhu only replied with those four words.
Qi Zhimu was not someone who only left harsh words without taking action; the Sword Seals in his hands changed rapidly.
Currently, besides General Wind of Evil, he was the only one who could launch an attack on Shuhu.
Over a thousand flying swords unsheathed and manifested in an instant, striking Shuhu's branches which were as flexible as whips, severing them one after another.
However, Shuhu's regenerative power was truly terrifying.
The branches severed by the flying swords were restored to their original state in an instant.
Not only the attacks launched by Qi Zhimu's controlled flying swords, but even General Wind of Evil's attacks were no exception.
Two Wind Punches capable of shattering stars blasted Shuhu's torso into several pieces, but the cross-sections of those scattered fragments possessed an attraction, reattaching themselves in an extremely short time that was hard to see with the naked eye, healing perfectly.
The Xianzhou General knew better than anyone how troublesome Shuhu was, and was not at all surprised by this.
"Exhilarating! The last time I felt this refreshed was hundreds of years ago!" Shuhu laughed loudly.
"Keep shouting. Once Teng Xiao arrives, the news of the Emanator of Abundance's fall will immediately spread throughout the galaxy," Wind of Evil said coldly.
"Only Teng Xiao?"
A hint of something inexplicable quietly entered Shuhu's tone.
"The Xianzhou Luofu doesn't seem to be that far from here. Does your Marshal not dare to come?"
"Why bother with such unoriginal and lowly provocation? Who doesn't know that you Abominations have coveted the Ambrosial Arbor for a long time?"
Wind of Evil did not fall for Shuhu's trick at all.
This fellow had painstakingly planned this layout to attract the Generals of Yaoqing and Azure City, surely having other schemes.
If the Marshal left, who knows if an allied force of Abundance hidden elsewhere would attack the Luofu?
Moreover—
Currently, only a very few people, such as the Seven Luminaries of the Imperial Bow, knew that the Luofu was in a critical period.
The Luofu's Vidyadhara High Elder was reinforcing the seal of the Ambrosial Arbor Delve.
Until the reinforcement was complete, the Marshal had to stay on the Luofu to ensure nothing went wrong.
"The Ambrosial Arbor... that is the most powerful miracle left in this world by My Lord, it is indeed tempting..."
Before it could finish, the thousands of distorted faces hanging from Shuhu's branches were all pierced through by flying swords.
"Mortal, aren't you tired?"
Shuhu looked at Qi Zhimu from a distance in confusion, almost feeling a sense of admiration for his persistent attacks.
Knowing it was impossible, yet doing it anyway.
Why bother wasting your strength?
Qi Zhimu couldn't be bothered to talk nonsense with Shuhu. Just as he was about to continue his attack, a brilliant gold tore through the starry sky, splitting Shuhu in half from head to toe in a single blow.
"Teng Xiao, I've been waiting for you for a long time, hahaha!"
Shuhu laughed loudly again, looking at the golden phantom that had appeared.
A burly man holding a giant sword stood before the phantom's chest. Ignoring Shuhu completely, he arrived at Qi Zhimu's side in a flash.
"Your cangxing battle armor is reaching its limit. Take all the surviving brothers and evacuate immediately to the Yaoqing Xianzhou in the rear. This is an order."
Once the cangxing battle armor's energy was depleted, one could not fight in space.
"I obey your command."
Qi Zhimu bowed his head slightly and withdrew all his flying swords.
"Shuhu, I won't let you escape this time!" The giant sword in Teng Xiao's hand ignited with golden flames.
"Don't be in such a hurry. There's something you might be interested in. It won't be too late to decide whether to continue fighting me after you hear it."
At this point, all the faces on Shuhu's torso showed a devious expression.
"Two Xianzhou Generals, I am honored to announce to you that the Star Skiff is about to be gone..."
As soon as it finished speaking, a certain special jade message carried by all the Xianzhou people present let out a piercing warning of the highest level.
It meant only one thing—
The Xianzhou main ship is under attack!
Everyone's faces instantly turned extremely pale.
"All Cloud Knights! Return to Azure City immediately for reinforcements!"
Without needing Teng Xiao to speak, Qi Zhimu's sharp voice rang in every Cloud Knight's ear through the frequency.
The golden branches on Shuhu's body grew violently, entangling Teng Xiao and Wind of Evil with an offensive ten times more dense than before.
Seeing this, Wind of Evil's expression became incredibly grave.
This fellow was much stronger than during the battle of Yueque back then; he hadn't been serious at all in the previous fight.
"General Wind of Evil, kill Shuhu quickly!" Teng Xiao shouted deeply.
Even more terrifying battle aftershocks erupted, nearly destroying the emergency starships that were evacuating at full speed.
Under the joint siege of two Lord of the Hunt Envoys, Shuhu had almost no ability to fight back.
But no matter the injury, it would be restored to its original state in an extremely short time.
"Luring the tiger away from the mountain... your true target is Azure City!" Wind of Evil shouted coldly.
"No." Shuhu's voice was almost joyful: "It's to have it all."
"Hmph, without you, do you think that rabble can break through the Xianzhou main ship?"
"In normal circumstances, it would indeed be quite difficult. I know there are two Cloud Knight Sword Masters in Azure City, but what if they are both dead...?"
Teng Xiao and Wind of Evil's bodies stiffened simultaneously as a terrifying suspicion surfaced in their minds.
"Could there be another Emanator of Abundance?"