Watching Other Shore City from the shore, Luo Yunxiu and Star Slave witnessed this scene and were both stunned.

Knowing the inside story, they naturally guessed what had happened.

Putting themselves in her position, they had considered many possible courses of action for Xiang Haikui, but no one had imagined she would choose such a mutually destructive path, severely wounding Di Jun!

The key was that from knowledge to action, there was almost no interval—she hadn’t hesitated at all.

“She was pushed too far,” Star Slave sighed, feeling some pity. “But it’s no wonder Lord Changli chose her back then to break the deadlock and change fate. She’s truly extraordinary.”

“When I was in Yin Sha City, I already recognized that this young lady was a tough one with both courage and strategy,” Luo Yunxiu also sighed softly, her heart still filled with self-reproach.

Even Han Qi was momentarily astonished. He knew Xiang Haikui would exceed his expectations, but she had gone far beyond…

For a moment, Han Qi couldn’t determine whether his actions had been right or wrong.

At the time, he hadn’t known that Jing Ran was Di Jun and had unintentionally inspired him, so he felt somewhat responsible and decided to tell her, letting her make the decision.

Now he felt as though he had harmed her again.

It was truly vexing.

But thinking about his plan, Han Qi also felt that his bit of kindness was excessively hypocritical.

He watched the unceasing battle between Di Jun and the flood dragon in the distant sky and laughed bitterly.

…

The ninth-level Tian Kuang made Xiang Haikui’s flood dragon form even more magnificent.

Her scales and claws were several times harder than before, with black mist emanating from her body.

It wasn’t demonic energy but pure, unyielding sword energy.

Even caught in the golden blood net, she struggled through the air, her sword energy still destroying everything in its path, ripping off the roofs of the Twelve Palaces one by one.

“Do you truly want to die?!” The newly ninth-level Tian Kuang was unstoppably wild. Blood rained from Jing Ran’s body as she constantly dragged him along in their tug-of-war. “If you continue like this, you’ll truly die, do you know that?!”

“If you have the guts, keep protecting my heart meridian! Let’s see who gives up first, who dies first!” Xiang Haikui forcefully crashed against the blood net.

She discovered that her scales had two layers.

The inner layer consisted of soft scales, thin yet tough.

The outer layer was hard, with edges as sharp as sword blades.

She immediately tried to control these scales and, indeed, the outer layer could detach from her body, like flying swords that she could manipulate at will!

Thousands of scales simultaneously detached, instantly shredding the golden blood net, exploding into a spray of blood mist.

Jing Ran suffered a power backlash, nearly unable to support himself and almost falling from mid-air.

But he immediately conjured a golden long whip, one end in his hand, the other binding the flood dragon’s tail. “This whip is made from Azure Dragon bone and Torch Dragon skin. Let’s see if a mere flood dragon like you can truly defy the heavens!”

Xiang Haikui indeed couldn’t shake off the whip, so she began to flip her body, dragon head downward, crashing toward the palace buildings!

“No wonder they say a woman’s heart is the most poisonous!” Her self-harm completely rebounded onto Jing Ran. He finally understood—she was forcing him to give up the glimmer of hope he had struggled so hard to obtain!

Otherwise, she would make him suffer unbearably, as if being slowly sliced into pieces!

The powerful Tian Kuang sword energy and the Heavenly Race Di Jun’s golden light intertwined, spreading waves of terrifying spiritual power in all directions.

The seawater around Other Shore City surged into huge waves as the entire floating city began to sway.

The high officials of the Twelve Palaces had long since flown out but were stopped by Di Jun’s two trusted hidden guards, who forbade them from interfering.

“Many lowborn of various races lurking in the city wish to commit treason. You all should just maintain order!”

Some high officials were displeased upon hearing this. Mere hidden guards who couldn’t show their faces, how dare they say “you all” to them!

Yet they had no time to argue, as numerous assassins indeed pounced upon them, quickly creating chaos.

Among them, an arc of black light moved with extraordinary speed. Those trying to block it barely extended their hands before the arc had already swept past them.

The would-be blocker felt something hot flowing on his face, as if splashed with heated liquid. He was about to touch it when he realized his arm was already gone!

“It’s Yin Changli!” Those two hidden guards, capable of protecting the Heavenly Race’s Di Jun, were naturally not ordinary.

One of them, Dugu Ning, was the adopted son of Dugu He, the Heavenly Race’s first divine swordsman, and around the same age as Yin Changli.

Knowing they were no match for Yin Changli, they didn’t engage him directly but joined forces to create a barrier to stop him.

“Di Jun!” They simultaneously warned their master that the person he had been waiting for had appeared.

“Stop him!” Jing Ran had no time to deal with Yin Changli now; he needed to control Xiang Haikui first.

Hindered by barriers on all sides, Yin Changli revealed his true form. Just as he was about to break through, Netherworld Lord Jin Ying landed in front of his barrier: “Brother Changli, it’s been many years.”

Yin Changli smiled coldly: “Jin Ying, you always thought the Lord looked down on women and didn’t give you opportunities. After you betrayed your master to gain a position, this Netherworld under your governance seems to be getting worse and worse.”

Breaking through would waste too much time. Even while speaking, he was already using brute force to break the barrier.

But Jin Ying set up another barrier with the Netherworld Lock, clearly just wanting to deplete his energy while he was anxious. She coldly replied: “Indeed, I admit my abilities are limited, but as a member of the Heavenly Race, my actions against the Lord back then were not betrayal!”

Yin Changli couldn’t be bothered to waste words with her and was preparing to continue breaking through when suddenly a dazzling golden light flew over, like a small sun, hovering above his head.

This was Jing Ran’s Blazing Sun Strike, his most commonly used killing move after his protective golden light.

Under the blazing sun, one could instantly be incinerated to ashes.

Jing Ran didn’t trust these incompetents and had to divide his attention.

Yin Changli, facing his Blazing Sun Strike, Jin Ying’s Netherworld Lock, and the encirclement by Dugu Ning and the two hidden guards, was indeed somewhat strained.

After dealing with the assassins, the high officials of the Twelve Palaces also surrounded him.

Due to the Blazing Sun Strike, the dark red sky was illuminated as if it were daylight. Like the sun that cannot be directly viewed, this small sun at close distance was equally blinding.

Looking over, the entire sky was a sheet of white, all figures blurred by the intense light.

…

Meanwhile, in the city.

White Star Xian and Lu Xiqiao, who were supposed to receive Xiang Haikui, had no idea what to do.

Lu Xiqiao, watching that seemingly mad flood dragon, was so nervous he could barely breathe: “Should we rush up to help?”

Bai Xingxian was worried about both: “Uncle told us only to receive her.”

Just as he finished speaking, the small black ball in his palm opened its mouth, and a voice emerged: “Young Master, should we take action?”

Bai Xingxian was surprised: “Are you asking me?”

The voice anxiously replied: “This happened so suddenly, and we completely lost contact with the Clan Leader. Of course, Young Master, you must make the decision!”

Bai Xingxian was nearly in tears. How could he make decisions on such major matters?

And why call him Young Master? He was just a servant who poured tea and water.

The voice let out an “Ah!” sounding both anxious and distressed: “Before going into hibernation, the Clan Leader ordered that if anything happened to him, you would be the new Clan Leader.”

Bai Xingxian was stunned.

“Give an order quickly!” Lu Xiqiao, extremely anxious, pushed him. “At this point, we definitely need to fight! Your uncle has already arranged everything, just waiting for your order!”

“Fight, fight, fight!” Bai Xingxian’s mind was a mess. “However, Uncle deployed before, do it that way! Fight!”

“Yes, Young Master!”

The small black ball closed again.

…

At least a hundred experts surrounded Yin Changli, but thanks to the small sun overhead, their power was also suppressed, unable to approach.

Jing Ran was almost being counterproductive, but everyone understood he was famously self-reliant.

Yin Changli closed his eyes, his long hair floating up like underwater plants.

As a black scale appeared on his forehead, the Netherworld’s sky gradually darkened.

This was the Torch Dragon clan’s talent, capable of reversing day and night.

Even though the Netherworld had no day or night, it could make the turbid energy more concentrated.

The originally dark red of the Netherworld grew increasingly black, as if ink had been poured over it.

The small sun-like orb above their heads was encased layer by layer in sticky, resin-like dark substance.

It was extinguished!

After this pressure disappeared, those surrounding him retreated several more steps, filled with fear.

Jing Ran, still holding the whip, was startled, his gaze cold and fixed: “I didn’t expect that even after your scales were flayed, losing the Torch Dragon’s power, you would still have such a strong talent.”

A white scale appeared in Yin Changli’s hand, transforming into an entirely white sword as he attacked Jin Ying, who blocked his path: “Thank you for Di Jun’s compliment.”

“Speaking of which, Yin Changli, in all these years, this is the first time I’ve seen you. Back then, kneeling at my feet, submitting to me, your lonely, miserable appearance is still vivid in my memory.”

“Today’s me must be eye-opening for Di Jun, but unfortunately, Di Jun hasn’t improved at all over the years—instead becoming increasingly despicable. I always regarded Di Jun as my lifelong formidable enemy, but now only disappointment remains.”

“Hmph, against despicable people, naturally, one uses despicable methods. My only regret is that single thread of mercy back then.”

“Not eliminating the root when cutting the grass was indeed Di Jun’s mistake.”

After exchanging a few words, both fell silent.

Jing Ran was agitated; Yin Changli wasn’t much better.

Both men’s focus was on that mad dragon.

Yin Changli, using a self-damaging method, split himself to escape the battle circle, turning once more into an arc of light, passing between Jing Ran and the flood dragon with a crack, severing the golden whip.

The explosive sound made everyone’s eardrums painfully throb.

Jing Ran spat blood, while the flood dragon, propelled by momentum, was about to crash into the palace tower.

Yin Changli transformed into his beast form, twice the size of the flood dragon, wrapping around her and forcibly containing her.

Jing Ran’s energy, focused on her heart meridian, was interrupted, replaced by his own.

Yin Changli already knew what had happened.

Before they parted, she had known nothing.

In the blink of an eye, she was fighting to the death with Di Jun. She must have learned it from Luo Yunxiu, and it must have been Han Qi…

He should have thought of this earlier, but instead, he was the last to know, leading to the current situation.

If only he had hesitated a little less, acted a little more impulsively, things wouldn’t have come to this!

Does it hurt?

Yin Changli, I ask you, does your heart hurt?

From a young age, you’ve been a weak, incompetent person who likes to escape when facing problems.

Unwilling to witness slaughter, unable to stop it, you chose to close your eyes like a coward.

You’ve always aspired to be like your father, a true man.

Gentle yet powerful, wise yet brave.

Accepting and embracing everything in this world, whether good or bad, even you, the son who brought him shame.

You thought that after experiencing ups and downs, you had become sufficiently resilient.

You glimpsed fate, defied heaven, considered yourself unmatched in strategy, and seemed to see through the vicissitudes of the world.

But in reality, you never did.

Why could a cup of liquor intoxicate an entire ocean?

Because that ocean in your heart was merely a castle in the air.

You never had a heart like your father’s that could embrace everything while remaining unyielding!

So once shaken, the false ice above your ocean began to slowly shatter, exposing the fact that you are a weak, incompetent waste!

The dazed Xiang Haikui was coming to her senses now, feeling the energy on her heart meridian had changed hands, and began struggling again: “Get away!”

She bit him fiercely, taking scales and flesh.

After a long while, Yin Changli’s pale, weak voice was heard: “If you don’t want to merge with this child, I have a thousand ways…”

“Please, don’t do this…”