Yan Zi Qing continued, “Mo Dao predicted that Protector Zhan would use the West Bridge Crossing, which is why the Xiang Yang Prince’s guards have been stationed here from the start. The Southern Hero, as you are known, surely cannot bear to see innocent elders and children dragged into this. Even more so, you wouldn’t allow these innocents to die here because of your escape.”
Mo Dao’s face twisted into a sinister grin. Zhong Xiong’s eyes, however, reflected a deeper contemplation.
Before Yan Zi Qing could launch into another verbose tirade, Zhan Zhao’s lips curled into a faint smile.
—His enemies had clearly grasped his fatal weakness. How could he still be smiling?
The sight rendered Yan Zi Qing speechless.
Zhan Zhao, however, continued calmly, picking up where Yan Zi Qing had left off: “Death isn’t so easy to come by.”
Suddenly, Zhan Zhao’s body moved like lightning. With a swift motion, he reached for one of the banners planted by the ferry. The long flagpole, now in his left hand, flew through the air like a bolt of wind, slicing through the Eye Charm Array. In an instant, the banner curled around a young child trapped within the array, lifting him into the air and depositing him safely outside the deadly zone.
The child, frozen in terror, let out a loud wail only after landing on the ground unharmed.
Mo Dao’s sinister grin froze on his face.
—He had been too confident.
Zhan Zhao had used an unthinkable method to rescue someone trapped inside the Eye Charm Array!
With a ringing laugh, Zhan Zhao said, “Thank you for confirming that the Cult of Asura’s poison wasn’t used on these people. As long as I don’t step into the array, it won’t activate, right? And as you can see, there are plenty of ways to save those trapped in the array without stepping inside it myself!”
Mo Dao sprang into the air, his figure a blur as he spat venomously,
“I want to see how many you can save!”
A faint wisp of smoke shot toward the people trapped within the array.
—But how could Zhan Zhao allow Mo Dao to take the initiative again?
As Mo Dao soared, he heard a calm voice echo, piercing straight into his core:
“Isn’t it too late to regret now?”
Even as the words rang out, Zhan Zhao’s figure moved like a phantom. Before anyone could blink, another banner was already in his right hand!
The Cult of Asura’s toxic smoke had barely begun to spread when a gust of wind, driven by the whipping flag, hurtled it back toward Mo Dao’s face. Under the force of Zhan Zhao’s internal energy, the poisonous cloud reversed its course, surging directly toward its creator.
Caught off guard, Mo Dao leapt backward in desperation. A faint “hiss” sound followed as the smoke ignited the fabric of the banner, setting it aflame.
In the blink of an eye, Zhan Zhao spun the flaming flag tightly into a staff-like roll. Before the toxic smoke could fully billow, it was trapped within the folds of the banner and vanished.
At the same time, his left hand moved with precise speed, and another trapped villager—a young mother—was swept into the air by the motion of his flag, safely flying out of the array.
Mo Dao’s face turned ashen, his expression lifeless. He gritted his teeth so hard that they audibly ground against each other.
“You actually mastered Crane Ascends to the Heavens! I underestimated you!”
His voice was slow but deliberate, each word laced with venom. The truth of the situation now lay plainly before him.
“No wonder you were able to withstand the Thousand-Jin Dragon Severing Twist from Han Shui Palace’s most formidable yang-style martial art!”
From the side, Zhong Xiong interjected coldly, “The peerless martial arts of the Ding family in Songjiang Prefecture were bound to pass to the future son-in-law of the family. I just hadn’t expected his Twin Blood Soars, Crane Ascends to the Heavens to have reached such heights!”
Mo Dao gave a derisive snort, uttering a phrase eerily similar to Zhong Xiong’s earlier words in the granary:
“I want to see how long your Crane Ascends to the Heavens can last!”
Before the words even settled, over ten shadowy figures lunged fiercely toward Zhan Zhao.
The ten-plus attackers split into three groups, each moving with deadly intent from different directions.
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