War God Long Ao

"Brother Long, Brother Dugu and I will draw everyone else's attention. You go and seize the Venerable Golden Core."

Of course, Long Ao knew what Xia Jun meant.

'But could he do that?'

As their friend, Long Ao knew he had to consider their well-being and couldn't bring them harm. For that reason, he would never agree.

"Xiaojun is right, Brother Long. It all comes down to this. A battle between Miao Cheng and me is inevitable. Since that's the case, there's no time like the present. I'll fight him in a moment."

Before Dugu Bai could finish speaking, Long Ao suddenly moved.

'I can't drag Xia Jun and Dugu Bai into this.' With that thought, Long Ao decisively made the first move. Seeing his sudden action, both Xia Jun and Dugu Bai were deeply moved. Of course, they knew exactly what he was thinking.

Without the slightest hesitation, Dugu Bai and Xia Jun also rushed out after him.

Long Ao's first move set everyone off. But just then, a shocking scene unfolded, and disbelief was written on every face.

As Long Ao shot forward, he had activated the God-Locking Pearl and the Godslaying Mirror. He didn't just lock down everyone around him; he also caused Time Reversal for three seconds. For everyone else, time flowed backward for three seconds, which meant Long Ao effectively gained a three-second head start.

What did that even mean?

Admittedly, the Godslaying Mirror and the God-Locking Pearl were incredibly powerful, but the Soul Power they consumed was also terrifying. However, things had already reached this point; Long Ao couldn't afford to worry about that now.

While everyone, including Miao Cheng, was still in shock, Long Ao had already reached the top of the giant rock. A flash of joy went through him as he suppressed the weakness in his soul and retrieved the Venerable Golden Core from within the stone.

But at that exact moment, a beam of light shot out from beneath the Venerable Golden Core. With a pained cry, Long Ao was sent flying backward, his soul severely wounded. If Long Fu hadn't used the Dragon Seal Space to block half of the attack, that single blow would have been enough to take his life.

Seeing Long Ao sent flying, Gui Lie and Zhang Zhihang were overjoyed.

They both knew full well that with Dugu Bai and Miao Cheng in the fray, they had no hope of contending for the Venerable Golden Core. It was for this exact reason that Zhang Zhihang and Gui Lie shot toward Long Ao.

Xia Jun and Dugu Bai were also shocked. Without a moment's hesitation, they too shot toward Long Ao.

But Miao Cheng wasn't about to give Dugu Bai the chance. He directly intercepted him and attacked without caring whether Dugu Bai was willing to fight, each of his moves ruthless and deadly.

Not only that, but whether intentionally or not, others simultaneously tied up Xia Jun. Just like that, Long Ao was left all alone. With his soul already severely wounded, his situation became extremely perilous.

His soul was grievously wounded.

The moment his soul was attacked, Long Ao understood exactly what had happened.

If he wasn't mistaken, the Soul Attack from beneath the Venerable Golden Core was Zhang Mo's handiwork, intended to obliterate him. 'If it weren't for Long Fu's help, I'd already be dead.'

'Zhang Mo... Utterly shameless.'

Fighting back the weakness from his wounded soul, Long Ao spun around and shot off into the distance. Zhang Zhihang and the others, however, clearly had no intention of letting him go and immediately gave chase, intent on the kill.

"Zhang Zhihang, if you dare touch Long Ao, I'll tear you to pieces!"

Although he was wary of Dugu Bai, Zhang Zhihang paid him no mind in this situation. He had already decided that he would kill Long Ao, even if it meant provoking Dugu Bai.

It was about cutting the weeds and pulling up the roots—more than just regaining face, it was about eliminating a future threat for good.

Dugu Bai and Xia Jun were absolutely livid, but they were both completely tied down and unable to break free to help Long Ao.

Dugu Bai and Xia Jun could well imagine the outcome. Could a severely wounded Long Ao fend off Zhang Zhihang's deadly pursuit? The answer was obviously no, even if Long Ao possessed the Godslaying Mirror and the God-Locking Pearl.

Waves of weakness washed over his mind, but Long Ao still held on.

Long Ao knew full well that if he couldn't hold on, death would be certain.

Before he knew it, Long Ao was chased into a dead end, arriving at a place thick with terrifying Yin Sha Qi. Ahead of him was a stone slab inscribed with several words: "Ghost Cry Ridge Forbidden Land. Trespassers Will Die."

'The Ghost Cry Ridge Forbidden Land.'

Dazed, he looked at the words on the stone slab. Long Ao still knew with perfect clarity that he had been chased all the way to the Ghost Cry Ridge Forbidden Land.

Before entering Ghost Cry Ridge, Dugu Bai, Xia Jun, and even Xia Fang had all warned him repeatedly never to enter the Ghost Cry Ridge Forbidden Land. No one who ever went in had come out alive.

But now that things had come to this, 'Do I even have a choice?'

Even if he had a million reasons not to, Long Ao ultimately chose to enter the Ghost Cry Ridge Forbidden Land. In truth, he and Guan Feng had already made an agreement that Long Ao would enter the Forbidden Land to retrieve something, but the plan had been for him to enter completely unharmed.

With his soul grievously wounded, he would likely die whether he entered or not. Since death was certain either way, Long Ao refused to die at the hands of Zhang Zhihang and his ilk.

Without any further hesitation, Long Ao darted forward. In the blink of an eye, he vanished into the Forbidden Land, where swirling black mist made it impossible to see a thing.

Of course, Zhang Zhihang, Gui Lie, and the others didn't have the courage to enter the Ghost Cry Ridge Forbidden Land. They could only stand there, their eyes fixed on the entrance, until Zhang Zhihang suddenly broke into a cold sneer.

"Hmph. Long Ao, you brought this on yourself. You have no one else to blame."

"Zhang Zhihang, I'll kill you!"

Dugu Bai and Xia Jun arrived just in time to see Long Ao being forced into the Ghost Cry Ridge Forbidden Land. Utterly enraged, they cast all caution to the wind and charged straight at Zhang Zhihang and Gui Lie.

Startled, Zhang Zhihang and Gui Lie didn't dare to clash head-on with Dugu Bai. Under normal circumstances, the two of them would have had no chance of escape, but the situation was different now.

Giving Dugu Bai no chance at revenge, Miao Cheng leaped out and engaged him in a ferocious battle.

"Miao Cheng, you and I can fight any time! Let me kill them first!"

Miao Cheng sneered inwardly. He was no fool; he knew Dugu Bai's mind was in turmoil, presenting the perfect chance to strike. 'I've spent my entire life wanting to defeat him. Why would I give up such a golden opportunity?'

Miao Cheng said nothing, simply pressing his attack, each blow fiercer and more ruthless than the last. Xia Jun fared no better; besieged by Zhang Zhihang and Gui Lie, he was covered in wounds within minutes.

Both Dugu Bai and Xia Jun knew that if things continued like this, they would undoubtedly be defeated. As the saying goes, a gentleman can wait ten years for his revenge; there was no need to persist in a losing battle. Because of this, Dugu Bai and Xia Jun fiercely fought off their opponents, then turned and made a swift retreat.