The plan was exposed.
Zhang Yang's fate was unknown.
Zhang Yingxiong was severely wounded and could no longer fight.
The fake Emperor had gained absolute dominance.
Even though Zhu Zhi and others suppressed the enemy on the other battlefield, it was of no avail!
Moreover, Di Yi had become the target of a three-way siege.
The fake Emperor, the Evil Cult Emperor, and Gu Congtian attacked together.
Di Yi couldn't even muster a defense, only able to flee in a desperate struggle!
"Di Yi! If you had submitted to this Emperor back then, none of this would have happened," the fake Emperor sneered coldly.
Having deciphered Zhang Yang and the others' final trump card, he was already assured of victory.
"Hmph! I, Di Yi, have no habit of being a traitor!" Di Yi snorted coldly, exchanging a palm strike with the Evil Cult Emperor and retreating.
"Haha, no traitor? Then go be a wandering ghost! Die for me!"
Gu Congtian suddenly appeared behind Di Yi and struck him with a palm.
Pfft~
Di Yi spat out a mouthful of blood, his internal energy instantly in chaos.
The Evil Cult Emperor seized the opportunity, his fist shattering half of Di Yi's shoulder, completely crippling him.
At this point.
The situation was decided.
Zhang Yang's three top combatants were all dealt with by the fake Emperor and his allies, completely contrary to their expectations.
"Do you still intend to struggle?" the fake Emperor asked.
Zhu Zhi and the others fell silent.
With Zhang Yang and the other two incapacitated, they had no ability to resist the fake Emperor.
Instantly.
A wave of sorrow and powerlessness washed over them.
Their morale plummeted to zero, and some even dropped their weapons.
This was not a sign of surrender, but a feeling that futile struggle was meaningless.
"Zhu Zhi, if you submit to this Emperor, I can spare your lives. Otherwise, all of you will die! You wouldn't want to be the sinner responsible for the demise of the Ming King's descendants, would you?" the fake Emperor said.
Zhu Zhi frowned, remaining silent.
If they surrendered, the descendants of the Ming King might still survive.
If they didn't surrender, there would truly be no hope.
"I will give you one minute to consider. If you do not surrender, then do not blame this Emperor for showing no mercy!" the fake Emperor declared.
"I..."
Zhu Zhi's throat moved.
He turned to look at the crowd behind him, wanting to say something, but found himself unable to speak.
Fortunately.
At Zhu Zhi's most difficult moment, a voice rang out!
Though somewhat weak, it was filled with determination!
"Who said you won?"
Zhang Yang, lying in a pool of blood, suddenly stood up, the Hao Ran Gentleman Sword in his hand dripping blood, bathed in Zhang Yang's own blood!
This!
Zhu Zhi and the others rejoiced!
Zhang Yang was not dead yet!
"Zhang Yang, did you succeed?" Zhu Zhi asked.
"Yes," Zhang Yang nodded, gripping his long sword and pointing it at the fake Emperor with an imposing aura.
"Your opponents are us three! Kill me first, and then talk!"
As his words fell.
The weakened Zhang Yang erupted with a surge of powerful vitality, crystal white light shimmering as his injuries were instantly healed.
His cultivation realm also continuously climbed, reaching the Nine-Star Yuan Mansion realm!
This scene.
Undoubtedly injected a strong dose of courage into Zhu Zhi and the others!
"Hahaha! We still have a chance! Everyone, kill!" Zhu Zhi shouted.
Although he knew it would be incredibly difficult and the hope was slim for Zhang Yang to face the three of them, it was still better than having no hope at all!
More importantly, Zhu Zhi did not want to surrender.
If there was a chance, they should fight for it!
Kill!
Instantly.
Led by Zhu Zhi, the great battle reignited.
The fake Emperor frowned slightly.
He glanced at the battlefield below Zhu Zhi, then at Zhang Yang, and a cold smirk suddenly appeared on his lips.
He stopped the Evil Cult Emperor and Gu Congtian, who were preparing to intercept Zhu Zhi's forces.
"This Zhang Yang is quite peculiar. Let's three join forces and deal with him first. As long as he dies, we win!" the fake Emperor said.
Gu Congtian and the Evil Cult Emperor pondered for a moment and agreed.
The three immediately charged towards Zhang Yang.
Powerful killing moves locked onto Zhang Yang!
Zhang Yang's gaze was resolute.
Seeing the three charging at him, he raised the Hao Ran Righteous Qi Sword high!
"Die!"
A magnificent sword strike was unleashed.
True Qi and Hao Ran Righteous Qi complemented each other, forming a powerful sword energy that seemed to tear through space!
This!
A sword strike of such immense power instantly caused everyone to halt and watch.
The Evil Cult Emperor and Gu Congtian, who were at the forefront, felt it most directly.
They looked at the sword, now within reach, and a chill ran down their spines!
"Emperor! Save me!"
"Second Brother, save me!"
The Evil Cult Emperor and Gu Congtian cried out in unison.
The fake Emperor, who was half a step behind them from the start, wore a smile.
"Don't worry, leave it to me!"
Despite saying this, the fake Emperor made no move.
He deliberately slowed down, allowing Gu Congtian and the Evil Cult Emperor to be struck by Zhang Yang's Hao Ran Righteous Qi Sword.
Pfft~
With the Nine-Star realm and the enhancement of the Hao Ran Righteous Qi Sword, the two Eight-Star Yuan Mansion realm cultivators, the Evil Cult Emperor and Gu Congtian, were instantly split in two.
Their shattered bodies, eroded by the sword energy, instantly exploded into dust!
"You..."
The gazes of the two as they died were all directed at the fake Emperor. Though they had a thousand words to say, they had no chance to speak.
And with the two of them absorbing the brunt of Zhang Yang's most powerful sword energy, the fake Emperor, who was half a step behind, had a much easier time!
With a wave of his hand, a nine-legged great cauldron appeared, blocking the force of Zhang Yang's sword strike.
Heh heh.
The Emperor sneered inwardly.
He had been wondering how to deal with Gu Congtian and the Evil Cult Emperor after resolving Zhang Yang and his group.
Now, with Zhang Yang's help, it was much easier for him.
However, he still put on a show of grief and rage!
"No!"
"You actually killed them!"
"Ah! Zhang Yang, I will kill you!"
The fake Emperor cried out in despair, controlling the nine-legged great cauldron and smashing it towards Zhang Yang, whose moves were now becoming predictable.
"Hmph! Hypocrite!"
Zhang Yang naturally saw through the fake Emperor's intentions and snorted coldly.
Gripping the Hao Ran Righteous Qi Sword, he engaged the fake Emperor in a fierce battle.
Both were in the Nine-Star realm.
The Hao Ran Righteous Qi Sword and the nine-legged great cauldron were both national artifacts.
For a time, they were evenly matched, neither able to gain the upper hand.
But...
After dozens of rounds.
The fake Emperor wore a smug expression.
He suddenly discarded the nine-legged great cauldron and struck Zhang Yang with a palm!
"Heh heh, you thought I was only Nine-Star? Let me tell you the truth, I have long since reached the peak of the Yuan Mansion realm!"
The fake Emperor sneered and struck Zhang Yang with a powerful palm!
He had been toying with Zhang Yang for half the day, merely to lower Zhang Yang's guard.
This sudden strike was his true trump card!
The fake Emperor was absolutely confident that this palm strike would leave Zhang Yang no chance to escape!
But!
To his disappointment, Zhang Yang seemed to have anticipated this.
He did not panic at the fake Emperor's sudden surge in power.
"Heh heh, you thought I didn't know?"
Zhang Yang also sneered, and a surge of crystal light erupted from within him.
A corporeal crystal coffin appeared!
The crystal light, dazzling with seven colors, not only blocked the fake Emperor's palm strike for Zhang Yang but also counterattacked suddenly!
A powerful suction force emerged.
The fake Emperor's expression changed drastically!
He felt his internal Yuan Qi rapidly draining, his face filled with terror and panic.
"No! What's going on? Zhang Yang, release me quickly."
"Heh heh, you must be dreaming!"
Zhang Yang continued to control the crystal coffin, absorbing the fake Emperor's Yuan Qi.
This crystal coffin was not the one that had been shattered earlier.
It was the true body!
When Zhang Yang was severely injured and the crystal coffin was shattered, the crystal coffin hidden in the Zhang family ancestral house suddenly appeared.
It was the appearance of this crystal coffin that allowed Zhang Yang to quickly fuse with the Nine-Star Talisman Stone, thus gaining the strength to contend with the fake Emperor.
"No!"
"Zhang Yang, stop immediately! If I die, the soul of the true Emperor will also die! As long as you spare me, I can leave this body and let the true Emperor awaken!" the fake Emperor pleaded in fear.
"Do you think I can't rescue the true Emperor's soul if I kill you? You underestimate my crystal coffin too much!" Zhang Yang chuckled.
Boom!
As his words fell.
A surge of power from Zhang Yang's body erupted, pushing the crystal coffin to its absolute limit!
The fake Emperor's internal power was completely drained, and even his soul was annihilated by the crystal coffin.
After dealing with the fake Emperor.
Zhang Yang continued his assault.
He controlled the crystal coffin to envelop the followers of the Evil Cult Emperor and Gu Congtian!
"Die!"
A simple word was spoken.
The white light emanating from the crystal coffin enveloped these individuals.
At a visible speed, it drained their Yuan Qi, annihilating them all!
At this point.
All the lackeys of the fake Emperor and his forces were wiped out.
Zhu Zhi and the others erupted in cheers!
"Hahaha!"
"We finally won!"
"We defeated the fake Emperor!"
"..."
Each cheer was louder than the last.
However, they soon calmed down.
Although they had won, it was a Pyrrhic victory. Many were severely wounded, and some had even died.
"Don't worry, they're not completely dead yet."
Zhang Yang spoke to himself.
As he said this, the crystal coffin emitted an even more dazzling white light.
All the severely wounded and recently deceased were enveloped within it.
Using the power of the "Carefree Immortal Scripture" and the crystal coffin, Zhang Yang revived all these individuals.
As for the remaining power.
It was all returned to the unconscious Emperor.
Phew~
Having completed all this, Zhang Yang finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, with the help of the fake Emperor and his allies, he had successfully saved those who had sacrificed themselves on their side.
Today's battle was not a costly victory; they had suffered no casualties.
Soon.
Those who had been treated by Zhang Yang began to wake up one by one.
The Emperor also slowly regained consciousness...
"I am still alive. Thank you all."
The Emperor looked at familiar faces like Zhu Zhi, Di Yi, and the Five Dragons of Huaxia, expressing his gratitude to each of them.
When he turned to thank Zhang Yang, he found that Zhang Yang had already left with his people at some unknown time.
...
Half a month later.
The battle of the Imperial City was completely quelled.
The true Emperor had returned.
The Five Dragons of Huaxia became the greatest protective force of Huaxia, gradually regaining their former glory.
The descendants of the Ming King were bestowed favors by the Emperor, no longer being called "Japanese pirates," and Zhu Zhi was even enfeoffed as the King of Alliance by the Emperor.
The other factions, such as the Beast King of Zhenxi, also received rewards.
Peace returned to the land.
Only Zhang Yang.
He refused all rewards offered by the Emperor.
Taking Han Xiyao and Luo Yiren with him, he returned to Jiangnan City, living a life like ordinary people.
"Zhang Yang, after fighting for so long, are you truly willing to give up everything?" Han Xiyao asked.
"Yes, take at least something, otherwise, it's a loss," Luo Yiren agreed.
"Heh heh, with you two here, what else do I need?"
Zhang Yang shook his head, continuing to embrace the two women as they gazed at the distant sunset.
The events of the past three months had deeply moved Zhang Yang, but this was not the life he desired.
He only wished to live an ordinary, simple life.
...
The End of the Book.