"Kill!"
"Kill!"
"Kill!"
The army following Mu Chen was his personal elite force—loyal to the end.
Upon hearing his command, a surge of killing intent erupted from their ranks, shaking the heavens with murderous fervor.
They charged straight toward the Snake-People Tribe.
Some disciples of the Yun Lan Sect followed along, but most of them hesitated, lowering their weapons instead.
High above, Queen Medusa slowly opened her eyes.
This time, there was not a hint of hesitation in her voice.
"Kill!"
The imperial army's morale was already crumbling; their fighting strength had fallen sharply.
After Mu Chen was slain by the combined might of the three Snake-People Elders, his soldiers were swiftly suppressed.
The stench of blood filled the battlefield, dyeing heaven and earth in crimson.
Queen Medusa descended from the sky on the back of the Amethyst Winged Lion King, landing gracefully amidst the ruins.
At once, she ordered her subordinates to summon Baru.
Die had already retrieved a pile of healing and Dou Qi-restoring pills from her storage ring, distributing them between her sister and Chen Mo.
But with the extent of their injuries, those pills were barely enough to slow their deterioration.
"Your Majesty, what should we do with her?"
As Queen Medusa and Die focused entirely on Chen Mo's condition, a voice came from nearby.
Two Snake-People stood amidst the rubble, spears pointing toward Yun Yun, who lay unconscious on the ground.
"Yue Nu, check if she's still breathing," Queen Medusa ordered. Her brows furrowed slightly.
Even without considering Yun Yun's relationship with Chen Mo, the fact that she was Yun Shan's disciple was reason enough for Medusa to want her dead.
But as she recalled Yun Yun risking her life to shield Chen Mo from a fatal blow, that memory struck something deep within her heart.
Yue Nu stepped forward, bent down, and placed two fingers beneath Yun Yun's nose.
Moments later, she spoke calmly, "Reporting to Your Majesty—she's still breathing, though barely."
"Feed her a healing pill," Medusa said after a pause. "Then take her down the mountain.
Return her to the Yun Lan Sect—she's their Sect Master, and they'll need her alive to disband the sect."
She had originally intended to keep Yun Yun imprisoned, but on second thought, leaving her captive might cause unnecessary complications.
It was safer to let her sect take her back.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Yue Nu retrieved a healing pill from her ring and placed it between Yun Yun's lips, channeling some Dou Qi to help her swallow.
"Strip their storage rings," Medusa continued coldly. "Force them to remove their soul imprints—and once that's done, release them."
Though Yue Mei longed to slaughter the surviving humans, she dared not defy the Queen's orders.
After issuing her commands, Yue Mei turned toward the Amethyst Winged Lion King, anxious to check on Chen Mo's condition herself.
"Your Majesty, this sword…"
A Snake-Man soldier, sweeping the battlefield, had discovered Chen Mo's black sword—embedded in a shattered stone slab.
Just as he reached for it, the sword suddenly trembled—then shattered into countless black fragments that shot through the air, merging straight into Chen Mo's body.
The soldier stumbled back in terror.
Medusa and Die exchanged glances but were not surprised—they had witnessed this sword's strange behavior before.
For now, only Chen Mo's condition mattered.
To prevent his injuries from worsening, Queen Medusa decided to rest temporarily within the ruined Qinghong City.
Though its walls had been reduced to rubble, many inner structures remained intact—enough to serve as shelter for the Snake-People.
The city, long abandoned and devoid of civilians, now felt more like a vast military camp than a place of life.
In the Imperial Capital
News of the devastating defeat spread like wildfire. Within mere hours, the entire Jia Ma Empire was in chaos.
Four Dou Zong experts and three peak Dou Huang had fallen.
More than ten Dou Wang had perished in battle.
An army of one hundred thousand lay dead, and General Mu Chen had died with honor, refusing to surrender.
By now, nearly all of the Empire's high-ranking powerhouses were either slain or gravely injured.
The Empire no longer possessed the strength to wage war.
Inside the Imperial Palace
When Princess Yao Ye heard the report, the world seemed to spin around her.
Her vision went dark, and she nearly collapsed, catching herself against her desk.
Her face was pale as death, her voice trembling.
"You said… the entire Imperial Army of a hundred thousand… is gone?"
The reporting officer bowed his head solemnly.
"General Mu chose death over surrender, Your Highness. His remaining soldiers followed him to the grave."
Pfft!
Yao Ye's rage and grief boiled over; blood surged up her throat, and she vomited a mouthful of crimson that splattered across the desk.
"Cloud Mist Sect—!" she roared hoarsely.
"Didn't Yun Shan claim they had four Dou Zong and four Dou Huang? How could they possibly lose?"
Though she disliked the sect's arrogance, she still preferred their victory over that of the Snake-People. At least the Yun Lan Sect were human.
The soldier hesitated before replying:
"According to reports, Yun Shan and the experts he summoned—three additional Dou Zong—all perished at Chen Mo's hands, save for Han Feng, who managed to flee."
"What? Chen Mo? You mean the fourth-rank alchemist, Chen Mo?"
"Yes, Your Highness."
Bang!
Yao Ye's strength gave out. Her vision went black once more, and she collapsed unconscious to the floor.
"Your Highness!"
The Mittel Family
"What did you say?! Chen Mo single-handedly killed four Dou Zong?!" Ya Fei gasped in disbelief.
"Yes," the messenger nodded, recounting the details in full.
Ya Fei listened with growing alarm. When she heard that Chen Mo had collapsed afterward, her face changed drastically, panic flashing through her eyes.
"How is he? Is he alright?" she demanded.
Unlike others, her first concern was not the outcome of the war—but Chen Mo himself.
"This subordinate is unsure," the messenger admitted.
"The Snake-People now occupy the region. Our scouts dare not approach. But according to what we know… it seems the son-in-law's relationship with Queen Medusa is not… ordinary."
Wutan City
Unlike the Imperial Capital, this remote border town had yet to feel the shockwaves of war.
News from the front would take a day or two to reach here.
Aside from the mercenaries affected by the Monster Mountain Range now being under Snake-People control, life in Wutan City remained mostly unchanged.
The Xiao Family
In the family's grand hall, the elders and influential members of the clan gathered solemnly.
All eyes were fixed upon the three figures standing at the center.
The leading figure was a young woman dressed in a moon-white robe.
Her features were refined, her bearing elegant—like an untouched lotus yet to bloom.
It was Nalan Yanran.
She glanced around the hall, her brows furrowing slightly.
She had prepared carefully for this meeting—intending to meet Xiao Zhan privately to preserve his dignity.
Yet to her dismay, the Xiao Family had gathered everyone to witness her arrival.
After exchanging a few formal words about their families' history, Xiao Zhan finally asked the question directly:
"Niece Nalan, what brings you to the Xiao Family today?"
Nalan Yanran hesitated briefly before taking a quiet breath.
"Uncle Xiao," she said, her tone polite but resolute, "I have come to make a request."
"I wish to dissolve the engagement between myself and Xiao Yan."
****
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