War God Long Ao

In the end, Long Ao didn't make a move himself.

He focused all his energy on resisting the cold aura rushing at him from all directions. Long Ao had discovered that this icy aura was poisonous. It didn't seem like much at first, but inhaling too much would affect his combat ability.

Corpse Slave.

Death God Mantis.

The Corpse Slave was at the Transformation Thunder Tribulation Realm, whereas the Death God Mantis was at the Unity Realm. Both had reached their peak state, but the two were not on the same level.

The Soul Slaves and Corpse Slaves that Long Fu refined using the Blood Pool all possessed an Undying Body, making them practically indestructible.

Because of this, Long Ao wasn't the least bit worried. He focused all his energy on resisting the icy aura, knowing the battle between the Corpse Slave and the Death God Mantis wouldn't be decided quickly.

As the battle escalated, the Death God Mantis gradually started to falter against the Corpse Slave's attacks.

The fight between the Corpse Slave and the Death God Mantis was a complete mismatch. The Corpse Slave finally brought a palm down on the crown of the Death God Mantis's head, obliterating it.

Long Ao was overjoyed.

Without a moment's hesitation, Long Ao rushed to the Death God Mantis's side and pulled its soul into the Dragon Seal Space.

Ye Yidao had only been at the Peak of Unity Realm, but after being refined and fused by Long Fu, he was ultimately forged into a Corpse Slave at the Transformation Realm. This was precisely why Long Ao was fully confident he could fight even a Transformed Martial Artist.

A Corpse Slave at the Transformation Realm.

Long Ao was unwilling to expose his Corpse Slave unless he had no other choice. The current situation, however, had become desperate. So, instead of recalling the Corpse Slave, he prepared to use its power to leave this godforsaken place.

Seeing that the Death God Mantis had been killed, Long Ying jumped in fright. He couldn't spare a thought for anything else and immediately turned to flee.

But with the Corpse Slave's help, Long Ao had already left the cellar. Things had come to this; there was no way Long Ao was going to let Long Ying escape.

If Long Ao were alone, catching Long Ying might have been difficult. But with the Corpse Slave's help, it would be much easier. A Corpse Slave at the Transformation Realm was on a level that even Long Ao couldn't compare to, let alone Long Ying.

The Innate Unity Realm and the Transformation Thunder Tribulation Realm were vastly different. They were on completely different levels of existence.

"Long Ao, you can't kill me."

"Hmph."

Long Ao felt like laughing. 'Things have already come to this, and he's still saying that? The height of shamelessness.'

"Long Ao, if you dare kill me, the Long Clan won't let you off!"

He scoffed. 'Would the Long Clan even get involved in this?'

'If the Long Clan got involved in every little thing, they'd have their hands full.'

'Back when I killed those people from the Thundercloud City Long Family, the Long Clan didn't interfere either. Thinking about it, it made sense. The Long Clan has countless branches, divided into nine levels, from the Ninth Level Long Family all the way up to the First Level Long Family.'

"Kill him."

"Long Ao, you can't kill me!"

Long Ao didn't waste another word. He couldn't even be bothered to act himself, so he directly gave the Corpse Slave an order.

Upon receiving the order, the Corpse Slave at the Transformation Realm shot forward. The disparity in their strength had already sealed the outcome. Long Ying couldn't even withstand three moves before he was ruthlessly slain, his soul pulled into the Dragon Seal Space.

Without lingering at the Long Family estate, Long Ao turned and left.

Within minutes, news of Long Ying's death had spread throughout Nebula City. When everyone learned that the killer was Long Ao, the entire city erupted. No one could believe that Long Ao was so brazen as to openly assassinate the Patriarch of the Long Family.

In Nebula City, besides the Nebula Royal Family, power was divided among four major families: the Long Family, the Miao Family, the Cheng Family, and the Nangong Clan.

This balance of power had remained unbroken for countless years. But with Long Ying's death at Long Ao's hands, the Long Family's strength and status plummeted. Ordinarily, the other three great families would have surely intervened, but now, none of them dared to make a rash move, preferring to watch the conflict from the sidelines.

The Nebula Royal Family, having also received the news, remained silent and made no move, acting as if nothing had happened.

「In a tavern.」

"Brother Long, you were too reckless in killing Tang Lin and Yang Yi."

Long Ao truly considered Ouyang Fei a friend. Otherwise, he wouldn't be sitting here drinking with him now. After all, he and the Nebula Royal Family were now like fire and water; a future life-or-death confrontation was inevitable.

It wasn't just Ouyang Fei; even Long Ao felt a sense of resignation about the matter. 'But did I really have a choice?'

"Brother Ouyang, I'll say what I've always said: no matter what happens between me and the Nebula Royal Family, you and I will always be brothers."

Ouyang Fei's face lit up. He wasn't a fool; he knew that with Long Ao's current strength and status, even he, the Crown Prince, could not compare.

Ranked eleventh on the Hundred Battles Ranking—that alone was enough for Long Ao to stand above countless peers of his generation.

"Brother Long, I want to ask a favor of you. I hope you'll agree."

In truth, Long Ao already knew what Ouyang Fei was going to say before he even said it, but he nodded anyway. "Brother Ouyang, no matter what it is, I'll agree."

"Brother Long, I hope that whatever happens in the future, you won't... wipe them out completely. Do it for my sake."

"As for your immediate family, I can agree. For anyone else, I can't make any promises."

Nodding, Ouyang Fei finally breathed a sigh of relief. Just then, Long Ao continued, "Brother Ouyang, rest assured. No matter what happens between me and the Nebula Royal Family, the Nebula Kingdom will always belong to the Ouyang Family. You will become the Emperor of the Nebula Kingdom one day, and I will help you soar. Someday, I will help the Nebula Kingdom surpass the Two Great Empires."

Ouyang Fei was overjoyed. He knew perfectly well how much weight Long Ao's words now carried.

"Brother Long, if I am able to ascend the throne, I hope Red Fire Town and your Long Family will return to the Nebula Kingdom. Please, believe me, I will treat your family well."

"No problem." Of course, Long Ao didn't doubt Ouyang Fei's words. Besides, he understood that it was indeed difficult for a family to thrive after detaching itself from a kingdom.

They both raised their cups and drained them in one go.

"Brother Long, my father, the Emperor, is furious that you killed Tang Lin and Yang Yi. It's only because the Ancestor is on the verge of a breakthrough that he hasn't had time to deal with you. You must prepare yourself. The day the Ancestor emerges from his seclusion will be the day he comes for you."

'A breakthrough is imminent?'

Long Ao knew exactly what an imminent breakthrough for the Nebula Ancestor meant. If he wasn't mistaken, the Nebula Ancestor was currently a Peak Martial Artist of Unity. A breakthrough would mean he would officially step into the Transformation Realm. If that happened, things would become extremely tricky.