The soldiers also shouted in unison, forming seals in the air. The sun in the center suddenly churned, like overturned seawater, and all the light in the sky poured down like a tide, surging towards the black mist.
The black mist paused for a moment, then was abruptly swallowed.
The dazzling light surged, like the arrival of dawn, unstoppable, spreading for miles, instantly engulfing the black mist, and Ye Xiaoguan and the other two.
A fierce explosion followed, with flying sand and rocks, shattered light and energy, and smoke rising straight into the clouds. A gust of wind swept horizontally, and the smoke and mist spread in all directions, lingering for a long time.
The people ignored the smoke, their eyes wide open, searching within it. They wanted to see the fate of Ye Xiaoguan and the other two.
The outcome was as expected: Ye Xiaoguan and the other two were reduced to nothing.
The soldiers cheered, celebrating the annihilation of the enemy and the success of the formation.
But Mo Qi and Ye Xiaowei could not be happy at all. They stared at the black mist, lost in thought.
However, no one raised any further objections to practicing the formation.
When Mo Qi returned to his room, Zi Luo was already waiting at the door. She had changed into a pink and white strapless dress with a matching light pink and white shawl. Mo Qi glanced at her, his heart pounding, and quickly averted his gaze.
"What is it?" Mo Qi asked dryly.
"I have something to discuss with you, please open the door first," Zi Luo said.
As Mo Qi opened the door, he said, "What is there for me to discuss with you?"
As soon as Mo Qi entered the room, Zi Luo followed.
Turning around, Mo Qi found Zi Luo inches away, her breath warm and fragrant.
Mo Qi involuntarily took a large step back. "If you have something to say, just say it directly."
Zi Luo closed the door, then found a chair by the wall and sat down, gesturing to the chair beside her. "You sit down too."
Her elegant demeanor was refreshing.
Mo Qi sat down by the bed. "Go ahead."
"Actually, I am Yuwen Yan," Zi Luo said, dropping a bombshell.
Mo Qi jumped up instantly, then sat back down, laughing. "To stop me from killing you, you'll go to any lengths. If you are Yuwen Yan, then where is the real Zi Luo?"
"I am also Zi Luo," Zi Luo said calmly.
Mo Qi was stunned!
"You are challenging my intelligence," Mo Qi said after a moment.
"I remember every moment we spent together, including your promises to me," Zi Luo continued calmly. "No matter what I become, you won't dislike me."
Mo Qi's mind reeled. Then, stubbornly, he said, "You have merged with Yuwen Yan's soul, so you have inherited all her memories."
"Why are you unwilling to believe that I am Yuwen Yan?"
"Because you are not."
"Let me rephrase. In this world, there is no Yuwen Yan. The Yuwen Yan you knew is the reincarnation of the Witch Clan's saintess," Zi Luo said.
Mo Qi didn't know what to say, his mind in a turmoil.
Amidst the chaos, he managed to sort out some thoughts. "If Yuwen Yan was your reincarnation, then what was the remnant soul in your body at that time?"
"This is a technique of our Witch Clan called self-reincarnation. When the soul is insufficient to sustain life, the body is preserved, and the soul reincarnates. Through the cycle of reincarnation, it obtains another body, repairs the soul, and then returns to the original body. All these coincidences are under the control of the technique. Therefore, at that time, it seemed like Yuwen Yan awakened the saintess, but in reality, the saintess awakened herself."
"You still haven't answered my question. What was the remnant soul in the saintess's body at that time?"
"There was no remnant soul. It was the instinctive reaction of the physical body seeing its own soul. Otherwise, this technique could not have been carried out," Zi Luo said.
Mo Qi was dumbfounded.
"But, I remember, when you first woke up, you didn't seem to recognize me," Mo Qi said after a moment.
"I don't want to recognize you now, because you will kill me."
"In other words, you were acting at that time?"
"Yes. But now I realize that some things cannot be escaped. Destined things cannot be avoided." As she spoke, Zi Luo stood up and walked gently towards Mo Qi.
Mo Qi immediately became nervous and stood up. "What are you going to do?"
Zi Luo stopped. "You said that no matter what I became, you wouldn't dislike me. Are you disliking me now?"
Mo Qi curled his lips. "Why didn't you come to find me all these years?"
"I... I was struggling. Finding you was a tangled mess, and not finding you was also a tangled mess..." There was a light in her eyes that dazzled Mo Qi.
Mo Qi shook his head. "But whether you are Yuwen Yan or not, I will still kill your father. At most, I won't kill you."
"You... die." Zi Luo was furious and kicked Mo Qi onto the bed.
Mo Qi scrambled up in disarray, slipped past the dazed Zi Luo, rushed out of the room, and ran straight to the river. Without hesitation, he plunged into the river...
Finally, the pre-arranged time to attack Wei State arrived. Mo Qi led his army towards Wei State.
Mo Qi also equipped his troops with excellent weapons and equipment, including catapults, Nine Heavens Divine Arrows, and Thunderbolt Pills. Under Mo Qi's powerful weaponry and formation offensive, the Flowing Cloud Tribe advanced unimpeded, breaking through all resistance.
Mo Qi adopted Lian Min's attack strategy, dispatching Ye Xingchen and Ye Xiaowei to lead the main army in attacking cities and capturing territories, while he himself, along with some elders, headed straight for the royal palace.
The saying goes, "To catch a thief, first catch the king." As long as King Tian Heng of Wei was killed, coupled with the continuous victories on the battlefield, Wei State would quickly collapse.
At this time, Tian Heng was indulging in feasting and revelry.
Recently, a minister had presented him with a beauty from some unknown world. She was exquisitely beautiful, with a petite and delicate figure, skin that glowed white, and a face so refined it looked as if it were drawn by a divine brush, without a single flaw.
All the other beauties in the palace paled in comparison.
Most wonderfully, she also had a pair of phantom wings. He longed to see what she would look like when she spread her wings and flew.
Tian Heng was instantly smitten and declared his intention to take her as a concubine, even a queen if she wished.
However, this beauty was unappreciative.
She said she was a married woman with children and hoped Tian Heng would let her go.
What did having a husband matter? What did having children matter?
He had the entire realm!
Tian Heng directly told the beauty, "Whether you agree or not, you must agree."
The beauty was equally unyielding. "I would rather die than agree."
Tian Heng was somewhat helpless. He didn't want to go through all the trouble only to end up with a corpse.
So, he began to try to win her over. He stopped attending court, spending his days feasting and enjoying music and dances with the beauty, hoping that such wealth and splendor would soften her heart and make her yield to him.
But the beauty always appeared melancholic and dispirited, showing no interest in any song or dance.
The phrase she often uttered was, "Help me find my husband."
Tian Heng was annoyed at first, but over time, he began to respond perfunctorily, "I have already sent people to look for him."
At this moment, a minister reported that the border was in crisis, with the Flowing Cloud Tribe army attacking.
What were the Flowing Cloud Tribe? A bunch of ants. Could they even scratch his fingernails?
Tian Heng paid no attention, dismissed the minister, and continued his feasting.
The only thing he was concerned about was making the beauty submit to him.
If all else failed, he would resort to force. If he couldn't have her alive, what was the pity if she died?
However, moments later, the entire royal palace shook violently. Explosions and shouts of killing filled the air. People panicked and began to flee.
"What's happening?" Tian Heng finally became flustered, stood up, and looked around in confusion.
A palace servant, covered in blood, rushed in. "Your Majesty, the leader of the Flowing Cloud Tribe has broken in."
After saying that, he collapsed to the ground.
Tian Heng, seeing the people fleeing in all directions, became enraged. He roared, "Why are you panicking? Stop!"
A few close attendants stopped, but most continued to run. The once lively hall suddenly became deserted.
Tian Heng went to pull Yao Shuang's hand. "Beauty, let's escape together."
Yao Shuang, however, immediately shook off Tian Heng's hand, her face as cold as ice. "You should escape quickly. My husband is coming to pick me up."
"The leader of the Flowing Cloud Tribe is your husband?" Tian Heng paused.
"I don't know. I divined that my husband would meet me soon, but I don't know anything else," Yao Shuang said.
Tian Heng's previously calm face was now filled with ferocity. "Since I cannot have you, no one else will have you."
With these words, Tian Heng formed seals, and dozens of beams of light shot out in all directions, whistling and spinning in the air. The entire space vibrated and churned.
Yao Shuang was no match for him. Seeing the onslaught like a stampede of ten thousand horses, she turned pale with fear.
But she could not just sit there and wait to die. She unfurled her body, flapped her wings, and vanished from her spot, teleporting to the side.
However, Tian Heng had anticipated this. He changed his hand seals, and the dozens of beams of light in the air all turned, some parallel, some overlapping, like sharp light blades, slashing towards Yao Shuang.
No matter how Yao Shuang dodged, those light blades followed her relentlessly.
An elegant figure moved forward, followed by countless dazzling beams of light, weaving through the air.
A few close attendants remaining in the hall became collateral damage.
Under normal circumstances, facing Tian Heng, they might not have had a chance of winning, but they could have resisted for a while.
But at this moment, they were completely unprepared, as they had been leisurely watching the show just a moment ago. Who knew they would be caught in the crossfire so soon?
Therefore, as Yao Shuang passed by them, those beams of light mercilessly engulfed them.
This, however, bought Yao Shuang some time!
But soon, the hall was empty (except for Yao Shuang and Tian Heng). It was vast and empty, and Yao Shuang became the sole target.
Yao Shuang circled the hall a few times, unable to escape the light projections. She felt increasingly cornered, the attacks behind her closing in tighter and tighter. She could even feel the pain of her skin being torn and burned.
Occasionally, she would counterattack, raising her hand behind her. A veil-like golden light floated out, blocking and scattering some of the light blades, but Yao Shuang's movements also slowed down.