Chapter 58: Shocking Everyone

"How is this possible?!" Elder Wuqing stared with dilated pupils, finding it utterly unbelievable.

His own Moon Shield had actually been broken?

How could this be?!

Before Elder Wuqing could even begin to process this, a ferocious wave of energy surged instantly into his body, tearing straight through his meridian channels into his limbs and skeletal structure, followed immediately by the sound of his internal organs being shattered into dust.

"Pfft!"

A mouthful of dark, aged blood violently spewed forth.

His aura instantly withered, and his body went limp as he plummeted straight down from the sky.

"Hehe, old dog, does that feel good?" Su Yang chuckled softly. Disregarding his own injuries, he felt his body grow terribly heavy, followed instantly by a wave of heart-rending, soul-crushing pain.

"Ah!!" Su Yang could not help but let out a miserable shriek before his vision went completely black, and he too began to fall.

At the same time, the massive sphere formed by the intent of battle began to dissipate.

As the battle intent faded, the crowd only saw two figures plummeting from the void, one right after the other, descending at an extreme speed...

"What is that..."

"What on earth is happening?"

" Isn't that Elder Wuqing?"

"Could it be that both of them fought to a mutual destruction? Or are they both..."

"Hiss~"

Everyone within the Prince's Estate could not help but draw in a sharp breath of cold air.

In particular, Prince Liang, the Third Prince, and Xuantian could clearly see that Elder Wuqing's pupils were dilated, devoid of the slightest trace of life.

As for the other falling figure, Su Yang, though missing his left arm and appearing terribly weak, still clung faintly to half a breath of life.

If that was the case, the victor had been decided.

"He actually... truly pulled it off?" Xuantian stammered, his mouth agape in absolute disbelief.

"Well, well, well, he actually managed to kill Elder Wuqing? Did this prince not see wrongly?" The Prince of Liang wore an expression of utter shock as well.

As for the Third Prince, he looked exceptionally excited. "Is this the power of the Supreme Bloodline? It truly fills this prince with anticipation."

Given the speed of Elder Wuqing's descent, by this point, anyone with even decent cultivation could sense that he possessed no aura whatsoever.

That is to say, Elder Wuqing was dead—thoroughly, completely, and irredeemably dead.

Yu Qiuyue covered her mouth, as if wanting to vent her inner shock with a scream, but she held it back. Her slender frame trembled slightly as she murmured inwardly, "Just what kind of monstrous freak is he?"

Li Shanshan, disregarding the astonished gazes of the crowd, flew at breakneck speed directly toward the spot where Su Yang was falling.

Hot tears still streamed down her face, yet she was overflowing with boundless joy.

Because... he had done it! He hadn't died, he... was still alive.

The woman atop the white tiger was likewise filled with disbelief. Having lived for so long, she had witnessed many monstrous talents, and the imperial court had more than its fair share, but she had never seen anything like today.

That was a genuine Origin Realm expert, not some fake put-on.

As for Su Yang, the one who had defeated him, despite possessing the Supreme Bloodline, was merely at the Great Completion of the Three Mysterious Realms. Even with some peculiar methods, he shouldn't have been able to kill Elder Wuqing!

Yet now... everything unfolding before her eyes felt dreamlike and illusory.

"It seems... there is no need for this palace to step in." The woman exhaled a breath, cast another glance at the Third Prince not far away, and patted the white tiger beneath her. "Little White, let's go back."

"Roar~" The white tiger let out a deep growl and then turned, vanishing into the void.

Boom!

A deafening crash jolted the crowd, who had not yet recovered from their shock and disbelief.

Elder Wuqing's body had crashed into a street below, gouging out a massive crater.

Shattered stones were scattered everywhere.

The nearby townspeople fled into the distance, not daring to approach carelessly.

Seeing this, the figures within the Prince's Estate flickered like afterimages, vanishing from the spot in unison. In the blink of an eye, one, two, three, four, five, six... numerous figures appeared at the site of Elder Wuqing's fall.

Everyone seemed eager to confirm whether the old man lying there like a dead dog truly was Elder Wuqing.

At that moment, the bamboo hat drifted down from the sky. No longer acting as a lethal weapon, it drifted quietly like an ordinary hat, landing softly over Elder Wuqing's face and obscuring his eyes, which remained wide open in death.

"Hiss, it really is Elder Wuqing."

"Indeed, it's truly him..."

Once everyone confirmed it, silence fell over the crowd. Then, as if choreographed, they all turned their gazes toward the other figure who was about to land.

Their hearts were flooded with a chaotic swirl of emotions.

A figure flashed through the air, gently catching Su Yang in her embrace. She was careful not to apply too much force, knowing that Su Yang must be in excruciating pain, and she refused to let him suffer even the slightest further injury.

Deep within her body, the dormant, long-suppressed Yin qi seemed on the verge of erupting once more.

Just then, Su Yang weakly pinched Li Shanshan's hand and murmured, "No... don't..."

"Su Yang... are you alright? Where does it hurt?" With hazy eyes, Su Yang felt the warmth of her body, and the corners of his lips curved upward into a faint smile. He whispered, "Three years as a blood slave couldn't take my life... What could... mere injuries like this... possibly amount to..."

With those words, Su Yang lost consciousness once more.

Seeing this, Li Shanshan broke into a brilliant smile, gently wiping away the tear tracks on her face.

At that moment, Xuantian appeared before the two of them. Seeing the unconscious Su Yang, he ignored Li Shanshan's reluctance and deftly took him into his own arms. First, he fed Su Yang a medicinal pill, then channeled a stream of spiritual energy into him, and finally tapped several key acupoints before turning to Li Shanshan. "Leave him to me. You don't need to worry."

With those words, he cradled Su Yang and rushed away.

However, right at that moment, a towering wave of spiritual energy surged from afar.

Three figures materialized with terrifying speed, blocking Xuantian's path. Recognizing their faces, Xuantian's expression turned grave. "It's you? Sect Master Yue."

"Sect Master Xuan, long time no see. Where are you heading in such a rush?" the leading woman asked, her tone chillingly cold.

She glanced at Su Yang in Xuantian's arms, then cast her gaze toward the lifeless body of Elder Wuqing not far away, a layer of frost gradually covering her cheeks.

The appearance of these three immediately drew the attention of the various major factions across Central Prefecture.

Gasps of astonishment erupted from the crowd:

"The Profound Moon Sect! Sect Master Yue has come as well?"

"Not just her, look—First Elder He Yongchang and Law Enforcement Elder Feng Xuemei are here too."

"Good heavens, what is happening today? So many powerhouses gathered together in Central Prefecture! Could a war be about to break out?"

"..."

In an instant, deep dread gripped the hearts of many.

If a war were to erupt right here and now, Central Prefecture would likely be wiped off the map.

"Damn it! Elder Wuqing is actually dead!"

"What on earth happened?" First Elder He Yongchang roared with fury. As the First Elder of the Profound Moon Sect, he knew all too well the value of an Origin Realm expert to the sect... Cultivating a powerhouse of this caliber required an immense expenditure of resources, time, and effort.

Elder Wuqing's emergence from seclusion should have been a joyous occasion.

Yet, mere days later, a joyous occasion had turned into a funeral?