The Earth-tier Starsweep Dragon was truly a powerful martial technique. The dragon illusions that covered the skies pushed back even someone of the caliber of the Patriarch. But soon, the Patriarch’s punches infused with the power of the stars tore the martial technique to pieces.
“I’m much more familiar with the Azure Dragon Combat Technique than you! If I were to use the Azure Dragon Halberd, I could defeat you even if you were at the Second River Stage, much less now!”
The Patriarch’s hoarse laughter made everyone’s scalps numb. They knew what he meant. He was just toying with them. If he wanted to kill them, he could just take back the Azure Dragon Halberd and do so in a matter of seconds.
“Xuanxiao, do you see the difference between you and me? Haha!” The Patriarch had used only his punches to push everyone back.
“Comet Dragon Seal!”
Dongfang Xuanxiao was hit by the advanced Black-tier martial technique, causing him to vomit blood once more. Even though his face was pale, he stood defiantly and refused to fall down.
“Brother Xuanxiao …” Xuan Ming’s face was pale while she held him up. She knew his organs were injured when she saw the black blood spilling from his mouth.
“I’m fine.” Dongfang Xuanxiao took out some spiritual herbs and placed them into his mouth. He refined them immediately and then took his stance.
“Ming’er, I fear we will die today. Even so, we have to send Long Chen and Mo Xiaolang out of this place,” Dongfang Xuanxiao said as he rushed towards the Patriarch.
“I know.”
The Patriarch was currently fighting against Mo Xiaolang, but he was pulling his punches for some reason. Even so, Mo Xiaolang’s situation was bad and he could die at any time.
“The Heavenly Wolf Dagger … It seems as if it was made just for you …” the Patriarch said in a mocking tone.
“You seek death!”
At the same time, Xuan Ming arrived beside Long Chen. She was here on Xuanxiao’s order. Long Chen knew what it meant—she was here to take him away.
Xuan Ming grabbed his hand, and Long Chen did not reject it. With Dongfang Xuanxiao and Mo Xiaolang fighting to their last breath, as well as how large the chains were, Xuan Ming managed to carry Long Chen away from the fight.
“Run now!” Xuan Ming placed Long Chen a distance away and told him to run. Having said that, she ran back to help. She was worried that Dongfang Xuanxiao and Mo Xiaolang would be unable to endure the onslaught of the Patriarch without her.
At the same time, Dongfang Xuanxiao stood in front of Mo Xiaolang and took the brunt of the attack.
“Xiaolang, take Long Chen and run away. We don’t stand a chance right now. You guys are still young, so you must survive and take revenge some other day!”
Mo Xiaolang felt his heart waver. He was not an unreasonable person, and he knew that everyone would die if they dragged this on for too long. This was the best opportunity. If he could get Long Chen out of here, they would be able to get strong enough to take revenge rather than dying here pointlessly.
“I will be back.” Mo Xiaolang steeled his heart when he saw Xuan Ming return. This was his only chance to escape with Long Chen. He turned around but was shocked to see Long Chen’s blood-red eyes.
Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming had sustained heavy injuries under the Patriarch’s fierce attacks. They had also lost a lot of blood, but they remained standing through sheer force of will.
The strength of someone at the Heavenly River Realm could not be matched by several people at the Heavenly Core Realm.
“Long Chen, run!” Dongfang Xuanxiao howled.
An intense pain blossomed in Long Chen’s heart. Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming were giving up their lives to save him, but Long Chen could do nothing. He hated himself, and when the hatred appeared on his face, Ling Xi felt pain in her heart too.
She had never seen Long Chen look so defeated before.
This was a massive blow to Long Chen.
“Brother Chen … Are they really that important to you?” Ling Xi stared at Long Chen, her voice trembling weakly.
“Of course! I would rather die so they can live, but there’s nothing I could do! I’m too weak. All I can do is watch from afar! I have no choice but to let them sacrifice themselves to give me a chance to escape! I’m just a weakling that can only run!”
“No! Brother Chen, you are not a weakling!” Ling Xi was crying, but her voice suddenly grew resolute in the end.
“Brother Chen, I will do something for you, but you must promise me that you will remember me your entire life. Never forget me!”
“Ling Xi, what are you saying?” Long Chen was shocked, but he realized too late that the Ling Xi Sword had detached from his ear after she said that.
He felt his heart grow cold when he touched his ear and felt nothing there.
“Xiao Xi, come back!” Long Chen knew that she must’ve felt the pain in his heart and was about to do something stupid! He cared much more about her than his stepfather. Even though he didn’t want Dongfang Xuanxiao to die, he couldn’t bear to see anything happen to Ling Xi!
Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming were fighting a bitter battle against the Patriarch while Mo Xiaolang was about to take Long Chen out of the Star Devil Prison. Suddenly, all of them saw a rusted sword becoming larger above Long Chen’s head.
“What is that?” The Eastern Azure Dragon Patriarch was shocked to see white fog billowing out of the sword. And then an extraordinarily beautiful girl emerged from the fog. Even though the Patriarch was very old, Ling Xi’s beauty made him catch his breath. She looked too pure to partake in the matters of mortals.
But her overwhelming killing intent snapped him out of it.
The Patriarch retreated, giving Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming some breathing room. Ling Xi’s appearance was out of their expectations, and she left them stunned as well. They had heard Long Chen calling out for someone named “Xiao Xi” and assumed it was the girl that had appeared from the sword.
Dongfang Xuanxiao recalled seeing that sword before. It was the ear stud Long Chen was always wearing.
Is that girl the reason why Long Chen wanted the Sky Soul Fruit? Dongfang Xuanxiao had a daring thought.
The Sky Soul Fruit had given Ling Xi the power to fight right now. After she refined it, she had told Long Chen that she could block an attack from someone at the Heavenly River Realm.
“Brother Chen, run! I will stop him! I can stop him for fifteen minutes! Do not waste my efforts!” Ling Xi shouted, and an enormous aura gathered around her. The aura exploded from her body and transformed into Sword Qi. The Sword Qi engulfed the space around them, causing everyone’s hearts to throb from the massive amount of energy.
But to Long Chen, this was his nightmare.
“Ling Xi! What are you doing?!” Long Chen’s heart was throbbing too. He knew he couldn’t stop what was going to happen next and started crying.
“I’m very happy I was able to spend my last six months with you. I still remember all of the promises you made, but it seems you will have to fulfill them in your next life. I hope that we can meet each other again in our next lives, and maybe … Maybe I can be your wife …”
Long Chen’s heart almost shattered when he heard that.
Ling Xi’s body became the sole source of light within the void. She did not hesitate to use all of her strength, and numerous illusory swords appeared beside her.
“Such an immense Sword Qi …” Dongfang Xuanxiao and Xuan Ming looked at each other. They didn’t know what was going to happen next.
Ling Xi’s body was covered by the light. Long Chen felt intense pain coming from his gut. If he didn’t know what love was before, he knew now. It was a pain that made him want to die.
“Wife …” Ling Xi’s words were like a sword that pierced through his heart.
All of the indecision and hesitation were destroyed by that one word. Under any other circumstances, it would’ve been great to find out that Ling Xi liked him, but now he wasn’t sure if she could return to him.
A clear voice rang in the void.
“Return to dreams … Heaven Bearing Sword Prison!”
Shrieking sounds could be heard as the swords rotated wildly in the void before forming a prison that trapped the Patriarch. The prison was made entirely out of swords! Soon, only the silent prison was left in the void.
Dongfang Xuanxiao, Xuan Ming, and Mo Xiaolang stared at the miracle they had witnessed, but Long Chen was now trapped in a nightmare.
Everything had disappeared. The Patriarch was trapped for fifteen minutes. That amount of time was more than enough for them to escape the Lingwu family, but this was not what Long Chen wished for.
He looked around and finally saw a black metal sword falling off into the abyss to his left. If he did nothing, he would be separated from her forever.
Numerous scenes flashed through his mind. It was all the time he had spent with Ling Xi. There were so many memories that he felt like his brain was going to explode. When they met, when they bickered, when they laughed, cried, got angry, and flirted—he felt like things were just getting started, and now was it going to be over?
Long Chen smiled.
Without saying a word, without caring for Dongfang Xuanxiao and Mo Xiaolang, he jumped down the abyss. He only shouted one thing to them as he fell.
“Stepfather! If you waste even one minute, I will not forgive you even after I become a ghost! You only have fifteen minutes to run!” His words hammered everyone’s brains. Dongfang Xuanxiao and Mo Xiaolang did not cry easily, but they couldn’t control themselves now.
“Long Chen!”
“Brother!”
Ling Xi’s sudden appearance, the trapped Patriarch, and Long Chen suddenly jumping into the abyss. All of these developments were beyond their control. Dongfang Xuanxiao’s heart was in pain too. He could only release the pain if he jumped down with Long Chen, but Long Chen’s word and Xuan Ming at his side stopped him from doing so.
Dongfang Xuanxiao endured the immense pressure in his heart and uttered only one word. “Run.”