The Battle Is About to Begin

When he arrived aboard the enormous wooden ship, Tian Yunchu realized that she had landed inside a wooden structure.

The floor and ceiling were both made entirely of wood. Combined with the faintly swaying ground beneath her feet, it gave Tian Yunchu the distinct feeling that she was inside the ship’s cabin.

In the distance, two Zhong Cis stood facing one another, each holding a longsword.

Apart from them, a group of armored skeleton soldiers shifted restlessly in the distance.

“Sister!”

Tian Yunchu called out, then stared at the two identical women before her.

They were easy enough to distinguish despite wearing the same clothes. One was covered in dirt and looked thoroughly disheveled, while the other was almost spotless.

Moreover, one woman held a silver sword, while the other held a red one.

Tian Yunchu had seen clearly that the sister who rescued her had been holding the red sword.

She hurried over and positioned herself beside Xu Mu.

Zhong Ci furrowed her willow brows and stared at Xu Mu. “Who are you? Why are you pretending to be me?”

“You’re the one pretending!”

Tian Yunchu pointed at Zhong Ci and shouted coldly.

Zhong Ci’s expression grew increasingly chilly. The thought of what this person might do while using that body made her feel sick.

She tightened her grip on her longsword and slashed at Xu Mu.

Seeing this, Tian Yunchu snorted. “How dare you attack my sister!”

She struck out with one palm.

Whoosh!

A golden barrier appeared in front of her and shot toward Zhong Ci.

Zhong Ci immediately noticed what was happening and unleashed several sword auras in succession. The moment they touched the barrier, they shattered and vanished.

Her expression changed, and she quickly dodged to the side.

Boom!

With a thunderous crash, the barrier slammed into the wooden wall in the distance.

The wall did not break. Instead, the floor beneath their feet began to shake violently.

Tian Yunchu was just about to attack again when Xu Mu grabbed her by the shoulder.

“I really am an impostor,” Xu Mu suddenly said.

“What?”

Tian Yunchu’s body instantly stiffened.

“Just like you were before, my body is enclosed by a formation,” Xu Mu continued.

“Then… you should be a woman, right?”

Tian Yunchu’s expression gradually turned ugly. It had never occurred to her that the person before her was a man.

Because of that, she had not been on guard at all and had openly displayed her assets in front of him.

If he really was a man, Tian Yunchu felt she might as well die.

“I’m a man,” Xu Mu said calmly. “Sorry.”

“I’m finished! How am I ever going to get married now…?”

Tian Yunchu suddenly froze mid-sentence. “You’re Xu Mu?”

She suddenly remembered the name Xu Mu had mentioned earlier. She had not connected the dots at first because, instinctively, she had assumed he was a woman.

But now that she knew he was a man, and with that name in mind, she finally recalled that she had heard of him before.

“Xu Mu?”

The Zhong Ci in the distance frowned as well. “Are you really Xu Mu?”

“That’s me. I saved you in Yanjing before,” Xu Mu replied calmly.

Only then did the Zhong Ci in the distance sheathe her sword. “What exactly is going on?”

“Why don’t we let the beauty beside us explain? That way, you won’t think I’m lying.”

After speaking, Xu Mu turned his attention to the gathering skeletons in the distance.

They had been standing there, itching to move, but had not attacked. They probably had not entered the attack range.

Tian Yunchu briefly explained how she had transformed herself into someone else’s appearance.

Only then did Zhong Ci understand. “I did find a seated skeleton earlier, but the moment I approached it, all the others went berserk and attacked me. I had no way to get close.”

After all, she was only in the early Transcendent Realm. Facing so many skeletons at the World-Breaking level, surviving was already an achievement.

“Don’t worry. There’s a formation around my body. I’m not interested in the formation’s creations,” Xu Mu said, pointing at the area in front of him.

“I believe you.”

Zhong Ci nodded slightly.

Xu Mu had saved her before without asking for anything in return. Besides, he was also a member of the Sanitation Bureau.

When they had asked him to come this time, that senior cleaner had personally told him to protect them.

“By the way, Xu Mu, since your weapon can break formations, why don’t you use it to break the one around yourself?” Tian Yunchu asked from the side.

“There are two reasons. First, I want to know the purpose of this formation. It might come in handy later.”

Xu Mu continued, “Second, you should know that I’m wanted now, right?”

“Of course. The Black Moon Clan has gone completely insane. Your life is worth a heaven-grade cultivation technique.”

Tian Yunchu’s face was filled with curiosity. “What exactly did you do to them?”

“A friend and I worked together and nearly killed Zidian.”

Xu Mu deliberately made it sound understated.

“What?”

Tian Yunchu’s eyes widened. Then she burst out laughing. “No wonder! Zidian is the Black Moon Clan’s future heir. Hahaha! That man finally got what was coming to him!”

“You seem pretty happy about it,” Xu Mu remarked, glancing at Tian Yunchu.

“Of course I am. That bastard Zidian relies on his talent to flirt with women everywhere. He tried to make a move on me before, but when I rejected him, he became so embarrassed and angry that he spread rumors claiming I was chasing after him—and that he rejected me because I was too short.”

At the mention of that man, Tian Yunchu wore an expression of disgust.

Xu Mu walked toward the distance. “Let’s go over there first.”

The moment he stepped onto the stairs, the skeletons in the distance swarmed toward them.

Zhong Ci and Tian Yunchu immediately assumed combat stances behind him, but Xu Mu simply swung his sword once. Every skeleton was instantly cut apart.

Zhong Ci’s eyes narrowed at the sight.

In her mind, the only member of the younger generation who had ever possessed such overwhelming suppressive power had been Xiao Gui.

Now, however, there was another—Xu Mu.

Although Xu Mu’s cultivation level was currently inferior to Xiao Gui’s, he was younger. Who could say how far he would grow over the next few years?

[Affection +2]

Tian Yunchu was also deeply shocked.

No wonder Xu Mu had been able to join forces with others to defeat Zidian. His cultivation level was clearly inferior to hers, yet his combat strength far surpassed hers.

Judging from the way Zhong Ci treated Xu Mu, Tian Yunchu could also get a rough idea of what kind of person he was.

[Affection +5]

Xu Mu looked at the skeletons lying on the ground as they began trying to stand back up. He immediately said, “Move. There’s no point wasting time here.”

Along the way, Xu Mu dealt with every skeleton that blocked their path.

The three of them passed through the corridor ahead and arrived before a huge arena.

Xu Mu surveyed the surroundings and discovered that the arena was circular, with a full ten exits spaced around it.

Apart from their own entrance, they could also see other people standing near several of the remaining exits.

“What the hell?”

Xu Mu looked toward an exit in the distance—and saw himself.

Chen Xuan, Lin Ruoshi, and the others were there as well.

Li Hongdou was among them, along with Dorothea of the Holy Light Clan.

Xu Mu closed his eyes and sensed the area. Aside from the two people beside him, he could not sense anyone else.

He reached out and touched the space ahead, only to be stopped by a barrier. Clearly, everyone around the arena was trapped inside a different formation.

“Hahaha! Welcome to my ruins.”

Just then, a man clad head to toe in golden armor stepped onto a platform high above them. “The battle is about to begin. Is everyone ready? Keep an eye on the women around you—the victor gets to claim them all.”