Leng Yaozhu's attention was entirely focused on the newly obtained Spirit Tool, and by the time she caught a glimpse of Dark Phoenix Leng Yulai's movement out of the corner of her eye, it was already too late.
Her pupils suddenly constricted as she prepared to step forward and stop her.
But Dark Phoenix Leng Yulai moved too fast and was too close; just as she extended her hand, the tip of the short sword had already sunk into Dark Phoenix Leng Yulai's chest.
No blood splashed out; the short sword seemed to melt, transforming into a surge of dark energy that poured into Dark Phoenix Leng Yulai's body.
In that instant, Dark Phoenix Leng Yulai's eyes turned completely ashen, and her once lively gaze dimmed at a visible speed, her aura of life rapidly draining from her body like fine sand in an hourglass.
Leng Yaozhu squatted down and pulled her younger sister into her embrace. Her eyes were filled with shock and heartache, and she cried out with a trembling voice: "What are you doing?!"
Looking at her elder sister's flustered state at the moment, the corners of Dark Phoenix Leng Yulai's mouth curled into an extremely faint smile: "Sister, it's useless. This is a one-time-use Divine Artifact, the Demon God Sword; even Ya Li cannot undo the curse within it."
"This Divine Artifact was originally prepared for you and Ya Li. I never expected... it would end up being used on myself."
"I have made too many mistakes over the years and have countless blood on my hands. Ending up like this can be considered getting what I deserve."
As her vitality continued to be devoured, Dark Phoenix Leng Yulai's complexion grew increasingly pale, even her lips losing all color.
Leng Yaozhu squatted beside her, her eyes filled with sorrow, her voice carrying an extreme, suppressed choke: "After all this hard work for us sisters to reunite, won't you even leave us a little time to be together?"
The corners of Dark Phoenix Leng Yulai's mouth twitched again, and her voice began to come in fits and starts, as if it could be blown away by the wind at any moment.
"A person... full of sins like me, is not worth Sister... grieving for me. Death... is my only destination now."
Her voice grew smaller and smaller, so light it sounded like she was speaking to herself: "If... there is an afterlife... I hope I can still... be your sister... be a good sister..."
As she spoke, she laboriously raised her right hand, her fingers curling slightly as if she wanted to stroke her elder sister's face.
But that hand only reached halfway before it was as if the last ounce of strength was drained away by something. Her fingertips trembled slightly, and then they fell powerlessly, making no further movement.
Leng Yaozhu knelt beside her, looking into those completely lifeless eyes, her whole person feeling as if she had been nailed to the spot.
She opened her mouth, but found she could make no sound at all. In the quiet square, only her extremely suppressed breathing remained.
Leng Yaozhu hugged her younger sister's body, feeling the form in her embrace losing its warmth bit by bit. Tears silently slid down, following her cheeks to drip onto Dark Phoenix Leng Yulai's lapel.
She had searched for her younger sister for decades, never expecting that the moment of their reunion would turn out to be an eternal farewell.
Huo Yuhao slowly walked to Leng Yaozhu's side, bent down slightly, and called out softly: "Aunt Leng?"
Hearing this, Leng Yaozhu gently lowered Dark Phoenix Leng Yulai's body, her movements slow and careful, as if afraid of waking someone who was sleeping peacefully.
She then stood up, raised her hand to wipe away the tear stains on her face, and squeezed out a smile at the corners of her mouth as she looked at Huo Yuhao: "Rest assured, I'm fine."
With a thought, Dark Phoenix Leng Yulai's corpse on the ground vanished, stored away into her personal storage Spirit Tool.
The metal sphere was still held in her hand, resting quietly in her palm.
At that moment, the battle on the other side had also been decided.
Han Tianyi slowly opened his eyes. Those eyes carried a trace of slight fatigue, but his expression remained as usual.
Not far away, Dark Bell Nanalie trembled all over, collapsing onto the square like a chopped-down dead tree.
She had not passed out, but her Spiritual Sea had suffered trauma. The whole person seemed a bit dizzy, unable to even fully focus her gaze.
Although she had been fighting Han Tianyi in the Spirit Domain, she had also been constantly paying attention to everything happening in the outside world.
The moment Dark Phoenix Leng Yulai died, she knew that she wouldn't be able to escape today.
Supporting herself with both hands on the cold ground of the square, she gave a bitter smile: "Since I've lost, just deal with me however you like."
Huo Yuhao walked over to her side and likewise fitted her with a Spirit Power suppressor.
By this point, their purpose for coming to Douling Continent this time had basically been fully achieved.
Huo Yuhao turned around, looked at Leng Yaozhu, and asked: "Aunt Leng, are we heading straight back to Douluo Continent next?"
Leng Yaozhu shook her head, her gaze falling on the metal sphere. She was silent for a moment before speaking: "We are returning to Douluo Continent, but now that we have obtained the evidence, before going back..."
She raised her head. Although the sorrow in her eyes had not yet completely dissipated, her gaze immediately turned firm: "We can propose the impeachment of Qiangu Dongfeng right now."
...
For a Spirit Master to go into closed-door cultivation, not being seen for ten days or half a month was a normal occurrence.
Therefore, after Leng Yaozhu announced her closed-door cultivation, no one was suspicious at first, and the upper and lower levels of the Spirit Pagoda continued to operate as usual.
As for Huo Yuhao's whereabouts, Qiangu Dongfeng had always kept people watching.
During those first few days, Gu Yue helped cover for him, telling the outside world only that Huo Yuhao was also in closed-door cultivation to consolidate his cultivation, which barely managed to cover things up.
But when there was no sign of him for days on end, Qiangu Dongfeng naturally grew suspicious.
He secretly mobilized personnel inside the Spirit Pagoda to investigate, and ultimately discovered that not only Leng Yaozhu and Huo Yuhao, but even Han Tianyi had vanished from the Spirit Pagoda together.
This was clearly no coincidence; this was definitely a sign that something big was about to go down.
Qiangu Dongfeng was still unclear about their specific objective, and having sent people to investigate in various directions without finding any trace of the three of them, he could only sit in his office with a dark face, waiting for the next piece of news.
And when news regarding Leng Yaozhu was transmitted back to the Spirit Pagoda once again, it stirred up a huge uproar throughout the entire Spirit Pagoda.
Because transmitted along with her news was also a piece of evidence directly pointing to Spirit Pagoda Master Qiangu Dongfeng colluding with the Holy Spirit Cult.
This time it was not some groundless gossip, but genuine, ironclad proof.
There was not only physical evidence in the form of retained audio recordings, but also Evil Soul Masters from the Holy Spirit Cult acting as human witnesses. These human witnesses would later be escorted back to headquarters.
The moment the news spread, the entire Spirit Pagoda almost blew its top instantly.
Leng Yaozhu's faction was the first to launch an attack. They launched a verbal onslaught against Qiangu Dongfeng's faction, with sharp words and relentless pressure, and even directly submitted a joint proposal to convene the Spirit Pagoda Assembly ahead of schedule.
For a time, the upper and lower levels of the Spirit Pagoda were extremely bustling and lively.
Spirit Pagoda, Qiangu Dongfeng's office.
The heavy curtains were half-drawn, and the indoor lighting was dim.
Qiangu Dongfeng sat in the sofa, his expression ashen, the veins on his temples throbbing slightly. The files between his fingers had been clenched into deep creases.
He truly hadn't expected that Leng Yaozhu would actually run all the way to Douling Continent and obtain definitive evidence of his contact with the Holy Spirit Cult.
Naturally, he couldn't have recorded himself, so the only possibility was that it had leaked from the Holy Spirit Cult's side.
The moment he thought about how he had been played by those Evil Soul Masters, the anger in Qiangu Dongfeng's chest suddenly surged up like a fire doused in oil, "greeting" the Holy Spirit Cult from top to bottom and beginning to end.
Just as he was sitting on the sofa in an irritable mood, the office door was suddenly pushed open.
Qiangu Dongfeng didn't even raise his head, his tone carrying the irritability of someone who had been disturbed: "Didn't I say not to come and bother me?!"
Then a voice came over, causing Qiangu Dongfeng's originally tensed shoulders to suddenly stiffen.
"You, this Tower Master, have quite a big temper right now!"
Qiangu Dongfeng was stunned for a moment, then quickly stood up from the sofa as if jolted awake by something, the anger on his face vanishing completely in that instant.
His gaze looked toward the direction of the door, and he called out with a rare sense of reverence in his tone: "Father."
The person walking in at this moment was none other than Qiangu Dongfeng's father, as well as the previous Tower Master of the Spirit Pagoda, Old Tower Master Qiangu Dieting.
That figure was tall and robust, with steady steps. Years seemed to have left no trace on his face, for he looked even younger than Qiangu Dongfeng.
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A/N:
I hope all of you are enjoying this story so far. I would appreciate some Power Stones if you can spare any. Leave a review if you like the story. Thank you.