"Tianyue, I'm taking you away."
On the battlefield, Li Tianyue, mounted on the Nine-Headed Ghost Lion, stared fixedly at the chaotic scene.
Li Wei stood beside her, his back turned to her as he locked his gaze on the three Wu Race Elders and the halted ancient tree.
He was clad in the Bright Moon Divine Armor, yet his entire form appeared pitch-black, with dark chains coiled around the armor.
For this journey, he had even brought the Low-Grade Spirit Treasure, the Heaven-Imprisoning Lock, which he had obtained from Li Dalong.
Yet, Li Tianyue, who had always been obedient, gave no response for a long time.
At this moment, the Blood-Robed Army had instead fallen into the Wu Race's encirclement.
The army halted its advance.
On the battlefield, the wind, mixed with the scent of blood, blew through Li Tianyue's short hair.
Li Tianyue, who had been obedient her entire life, for the first time did not agree to the Old Ancestor's request.
She didn't even look back, simply staring fixedly at the Wu tribesmen closing in from all directions outside the Blood-Robed Army's formation.
Li Tianyue remained expressionless. Behind her, not a single Soldier retreated.
They maintained the Spiritual formation, gripped their weapons tight, and roared at the charging Wu tribesmen!
Above the formation, the Four Divine Beasts roared proudly at these reckless enemies, ready to devour them whole.
Li Wei gripped the dual spears with a deathlike intensity.
Although he remained motionless, the Heaven-Imprisoning Lock coiled around his body was trembling, emitting a low, crisp rattle.
Outside the great formation, the giant tree from Shadowfell City turned back around.
Li Wei's eyes were bloodshot; he could even clearly distinguish the powerhouses standing on the tender leaves of the giant tree.
Including the three in the cloud-filled sky, there were twenty-three of them in total.
Sage Elder Nirvana, holding a white burning branch in his hand, gazed at him with keen interest.
They were getting closer and closer.
The gathered auras of those experts felt like an unstoppable behemoth approaching; before such a massive entity, anyone would appear insignificant and pathetic.
"Tianyue, you are being disobedient."
Li Wei finally shifted his stance.
He offered a gentle rebuke, his body moving heavily as if weighed down by a massive burden.
He dared not look back; instead, he hurled his dual spears straight at Sage Elder Nirvana atop the giant tree!
His eyes were blood-red, yet icy cold.
The giant tree was colossal, and the power of the experts upon it was terrifying. Yet today, like a mayfly trying to shake a tree, he would challenge the impossible!
"Tianyue, don't be afraid. With the Old Ancestor here, they won't advance a single step."
Li Wei murmured these words, yet he could not stop the trembling in his voice.
The nine heads of the Nine-Headed Ghost Lion roared at the Wu Race tribesmen outside the formation.
On its back, Li Tianyue gripped her dual swords. Her short hair had grown out, now reaching her cheeks; the strands were blown by the wind of the battlefield, brushing against her eyes and causing them to turn red.
Li Tianyue could not stop herself; raising the hand that held her sword, she rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand, turning her face away as she did so.
The terrifying giant tree was drawing closer and closer.
The Old Ancestor had called her disobedient, yet there he was, wielding the dual spears as he stepped out of the void to face the enemy, leaving behind only wisps of black mist.
In that moment.
Scene after scene flashed before her eyes.
She missed home.
She thought of her serious yet benevolent Great-Grandfather and her gentle Great-Grandmother.
She thought of her four grandparents in their small home in Merit City.
She remembered Granduncle Yaozu teaching her swordsmanship, Grandaunt Yaoqing carefully treating her wounds, her hot-tempered Grandfather and Grandmother, and the Grandaunt who taught her to read...
She thought of her two stern eldest uncles, her carefree father, her six younger uncles, and her three older brothers.
Only in their presence did she ever feel like a little girl.
And then there were the juniors of the clan...
She remembered the Ancestral Worship ceremonies held every ten years, the reunion dinners where the whole family ate together, the discussions about which child was the silliest, and the loud laughter that erupted every time they reminisced about funny stories from the past...
She missed home.
She wanted to go home.
But ringing in her ears were battle cries.
They belonged to the 320,000 Immortal Soldiers who had traveled a long, arduous journey to follow her here.
Every single one of them wanted to go home, to return with the supreme honor of having protected the Human Race, their hearts burning with hot blood.
They should have been wearing the most dazzling armor, sitting atop majestic Spirit Beasts, and basking in the admiring gazes of the common people, returning to homes decked out with lanterns and colored banners.
They should have been on their triumphal return, arms slung around each other's shoulders, arguing over whose merits were greater.
The wind stopped.
Li Tianyue brushed back her short hair and gripped her dual swords tightly.
Yet her long robe continued to snap in the wind—because the Nine-Headed Ghost Lion was charging!
This daughter of the Li Clan, who had spent the better part of her life fighting on the battlefield, spoke with a hoarse voice.
"Old Ancestor, Tianyue is obedient... I am obedient. In the next life, Tianyue will listen to your words again."
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