30 Innocence

The old emperor lay slumped by the bedside, blood still staining the corners of his mouth. It was clear his injuries were severe, yet no matter how the imperial physicians examined him, they could determine nothing.

The figure was tall and slender with long silver hair. From Kakashi’s vantage point in the courtyard, he could only glimpse half of her profile, which was obscured by a mask.

That night, after seeing Naruto off, I walked with practiced ease into the Hokage’s office, appearing in the guise of Uchiha Itachi.

Bibi Dong clung to Qin Yang’s arm, doing so right in front of Bai Zhi and A Yin, as if to stake her claim.

Suddenly, a thunderous explosion erupted beneath Xie Ru’s feet. Caught off guard, she was blasted over two meters into the air, crashing through two trees before hitting the ground.

She looked up at me. I could only stare back at her with a blank expression, then turn away, pretending to be oblivious, as if nothing had happened.

She was determined to trap the three of them, leaving them no chance to escape, regardless of what her ultimate goal might be.

The group contacted one another, and once finished, they resumed their journey, heading straight toward that non-existent destination.

While worrying about the rogue cultivators on the front lines, they began crawling into the bunkers, preparing for the second wave of interception.

At that moment, the air around the pavilion seemed to solidify instantly. Amidst the freezing chill, a yellow protective barrier, invisible to ordinary eyes, appeared in the air, isolating the pavilion from the outside world.

He explained that Xu Hui’s pulse had never truly ceased; it had merely been extremely faint, thin, and slow. During these days, Xu Hui had taken neither medicine nor food, which had inadvertently provided the conditions for the Blood-Coagulation Bead to work. However, she was now incredibly weak and must not be fed.

Upon returning to Qianyuan Peak, Xiao Qingfeng personally went to Spirit Beast Peak to collect some spirit soil, then to Douyang Peak for some spirit spring water. After several days of labor, he finally established a home for the three of them.

Under the emperor’s firm stance, Chu Suiliang’s remonstrance instead filled him with fear. For once, he did not persist, choosing instead to insist on joining the emperor’s personal expedition.

Jiang Wan had barely gripped the hilt of her sword before she could discharge the internal force within the blade, when half her body suddenly went numb, and she fell into Zhou Fang’s grasp.

With three soft thuds, the three of them were spat out from a vortex that had appeared out of thin air, collapsing onto the ground. The vortex vanished as instantly as it had appeared, as if it had never existed at all.

In the sunset, the large earthen mound on the hilltop, marked by a stone tablet, cast a long shadow across the grass. Perhaps, before long, no one would know that such a mound existed on this hill, burying the bodies of so many young people and their dreams of pursuing the Dao.

“Indeed, as long as we do this cleanly, no one will ever know.” As Ming Chongyan spoke, a flash of cruelty involuntarily crossed his face. This malice inadvertently translated to his hand, causing Empress Wu a twinge of pain, and she couldn’t help but let out a soft groan.

“Ha, spending all day in the barracks, did you think this was the civilian world with long, shapely legs everywhere?” The pilot rolled his eyes and said with disdain.

The second and third-generation disciples of the Xuanling Sect, though filled with great passion, were inevitably constrained by the limitations of their own strength.

“You two ugly monsters, just wait until I deal with you!” Da Ya rushed over to join the fray, but was tripped by San Ya and sat upon by Er Ya. This time, she ended up rolling in the straw pile along with Si Ya.

“Xia Zixuan…” Fang Li called out to him tremulously. She had never seen him lose control of his emotions like this before.

Zhang Yulong, who had been kicked unconscious, began to stir, waking up in a daze. He lay on the ground and lifted his head, his mind still foggy, his eyes scanning his surroundings in confusion.

“Levels 1 to 5 are considered low-to-mid-tier abilities?” Never mind the B-rank or C-rank ninjas; even Zabuza only possessed two level-six skills, barely exceeding the threshold of low-to-mid-tier. This time, even he felt a flicker of temptation.

With a roar, Bai Hongfei clearly saw the drunkards collapse right before him. From their bodies, four souls emerged—souls Bai Hongfei knew all too well. They were the Undead.

“Beautiful lady?” It was the first time Kurenai had been addressed that way. Had it not been for Kakashi’s warning, she would surely have treated this clean-smiling young man with much greater gentleness.

Not long after entering the room, Liu Sanqian broke through the window, grabbed a middle-aged man, and tossed him downstairs. The other Daoist disciples immediately pinned the man’s neck with steel forks. The man did not struggle, but instead looked up at the sky in resignation.

When asked about the mastermind behind it all, discovering it was Xia Zixuan rather than Mu Zhenglin was truly shocking.

Having said that, he struck the back of his head hard with the hilt of his sword, and the man, filled with deep resentment, slumped over limply.

If things went according to Mother’s plan, the distance between herself and Tanaka Shu would close rapidly, an action that would pose a lethal threat to the others.

Thinking of this, Chao Gai’s expression hardened. Regardless of whether his arrival had caused the wheels of history to veer off their original track, the reality remained: since he was the “genuine” King Chao, he naturally could not allow the image of that unlucky fool to be recreated, nor could he allow the tragic history of Chao Gai to repeat itself.

Magistrate Luo did not know if he had truly intended to say this all along, or if he was being controlled by Zhizunbao and the others. Regardless, after hearing these words, he flew into a rage. Had it not been for the shard of a teacup stuck in his throat, he would have surely charged up and pinned Secretary Shen to the ground to give him a sound beating.

“Those who should have come have come, and those who shouldn’t have come have come as well.” Hearing this, Xia Huanhuan couldn’t help but frown as she looked at Wu Jian.

Skeleton soldiers could be considered the lowest-tier monsters on the plains. Han Feng took the lead and charged, beginning the same scene of encircling the skeletons as before.