Volume Two: Life of a Bandit, Chapter Thirty-Nine: Unifying Iron Flower City

Lu Qingtian’s figure shifted abruptly. As he lunged toward Qin Si, he demonstrated the intricacies of time acceleration to their fullest extent. The assembled Heavenly Deities, and even the Divine Kings, watched as Lu Qingtian’s figure flickered—now left, now right, now forward, now back—circling Qin Si. A flurry of blurred shadows enveloped him like layers of dense, black mist.

Qin Si stood with his hands behind his back, remaining perfectly still. He allowed Lu Qingtian to push time acceleration to its absolute limit, his eyes half-closed, looking completely indifferent.

Meanwhile, Qin Shuang, Zhao Yongkui, and the rest of the Zixuan Alliance retreated nearly thirty feet, standing with arms crossed as they watched the battle between Qin Si and Lu Qingtian with leisure.

Shui Ruoyun gazed blankly at the two combatants, then glanced at the disciples of the Clear Stream Pavilion. With a long sigh, she slowly stepped back. Behind her, Gu Tai and Fang Tao, who had resumed his human form, exchanged a glance before suddenly lunging toward Qin Shuang.

"Taste my Heavenly Cloud Fist!" Lu Qingtian had now become a faint phantom. The continuous time acceleration seemed to take a heavy toll on him, and the pressure he had built up was reaching a peak that he found difficult to control.

A faint, ghostly image drifted from his fist. Once it left his hand, it expanded rapidly, becoming a solid projection over three feet wide by the time it reached Qin Si.

The sheer scale of Lu Qingtian’s attack heartened the Heavenly Deities who remained loyal to him. They all thought that if Lu Qingtian could capture the High-level Heavenly Deity leader of the Zixuan Alliance, today’s crisis would resolve itself. Although Qin Si had just displayed formidable strength, the majority of the Heavenly Deities present still did not believe that a mere High-level Heavenly Deity could accomplish much.

The members of the Zixuan Alliance, however, remained as relaxed as before, their faces wearing easy smiles. Zhao Yongkui and the other Heavenly Deities, who had already tasted the extent of Qin Si’s power, were supremely confident in his abilities.

A faint smile played on Qin Si’s lips. With a flourish, as if performing a magic trick, a long golden spear appeared in his hand. A pitch-black lightning crackled continuously along the tip of the spear.

The black lightning flashed and vanished like an epiphyllum blooming in the dark of night. Suddenly, a massive spatial rift appeared in front of Qin Si. Lu Qingtian’s fist imprint struck the rift and was instantly swallowed by the terrifying tear in space.

Qin Si sneered, slowly waving his spear as he thrust it toward the slightly startled Lu Qingtian, following a trajectory of extreme profundity. It was slow—so slow that everyone had the illusion that they could easily dodge it.

However, the expressions of Fang Tao and Gu Tai shifted dramatically, and Shui Ruoyun’s face was filled with wonder, her watery eyes flickering with an unusual light.

Lu Qingtian felt his entire body locked by a strange power. A sudden realization dawned on him: if he tried to dodge, this strike would surely shatter his soul. Gritting his teeth, knowing that today was a matter of life or death, he abandoned all caution. He gathered all his strength and let out a roar, releasing an invisible surge of power from his body.

Just then, Fang Tao made his move. His pale purple eyes shifted, and two deep purple beams shot toward Qin Si, while he himself turned and fled rapidly toward the depths of the Tongmu Stronghold.

The Zixuan Alliance was in an uproar, and even those who had originally supported him were stunned. A dignified Divine King, resorting to a sneak attack on a High-level Heavenly Deity? Even with Qin Si being the leader of the Zixuan Alliance, the crowd found it hard to accept.

"Trying to run? Zhao Yongkui, Xuan Miao, go kill him!" A murderous glint flashed in Qin Shuang’s eyes as he commanded his subordinates.

Zhao Yongkui, grinning hideously, pursued Fang Tao alongside the Divine King Xuan Miao, sealing off all exits to the Tongmu Stronghold. They did not believe Fang Tao could get far.

Seeing Fang Tao flee, Gu Tai was stunned. He exchanged a long look with Shui Ruoyun before sighing despondently. He turned to Qin Shuang, who had just blocked the sneak attack, and said dejectedly, "Leader Qin, we surrender."

Qin Shuang kept his eyes closed. The two beams of light Fang Tao had fired were far too strange; they had actually caused the power within his own body to spiral out of control. It was fortunate that Fang Tao had been in such a hurry to escape that he hadn't used his full strength. Had he unleashed that during the heat of battle, Qin Shuang wouldn't have had the time to regain control.

Upon recovering, he heard Gu Tai’s words and smiled faintly. "Those who understand the times are wise. I believe that before long, Brother Gu, you will realize that joining my Zixuan Alliance was the most correct decision of your life. Pavilion Master Shui, are you still hesitating?"

Shui Ruoyun remained silent for a long time, a struggle playing across her delicate face. After a good while, she gritted her teeth and nodded.

Just as the crowd was marveling at Shui Ruoyun and Gu Tai defecting to the Zixuan Alliance, the battle between Qin Si and Lu Qingtian reached its climax.

Around Lu Qingtian, black spatial rifts had appeared from nowhere, surrounding him. At the sound of Qin Si’s laughter, the rifts tightened like a closing fishing net, drawing ever closer to his body.

Feeling the destructive power contained within those black lightning bolts, Lu Qingtian frantically punched out, trying to break through this bizarre and unheard-of power. But he had not expected that even Zhao Yongkui, whose cultivation was slightly higher than his, could not break through the spatial rifts Qin Si had set up. How could he?

In no time at all, Lu Qingtian was swallowed by the spatial rifts. To the horror of the onlookers, his body suddenly turned into ash, and his soul was scattered into nothingness.

Qin Si laughed heartily as he retracted his golden spear. He walked over to the terror-stricken Gu Tai and patted him firmly on the shoulder. "Brother Gu, welcome to the Zixuan Alliance. From today on, you, along with Shui Ruoyun, Zhao Yongkui, and Ping Tian, shall be the Heavenly Kings of my Zixuan Alliance."

As he was speaking, Zhao Yongkui and Xuan Miao returned, carrying Fang Tao’s head. Fang Tao’s face was frozen in an expression of disbelief, his eyes wide open, unable to close even in death.

"Greetings to both leaders!" Someone shouted, and the remaining Divine Kings and Heavenly Deities from all sixty-two factions knelt on one knee, bowing loudly to Qin Si and Qin Shuang.

Qin Si and Qin Shuang exchanged a look, both seeing the excitement in the other’s eyes. After so long in the Hongmeng Divine Realm, through constant struggle, the relentless pursuit of higher cultivation, and endless schemes, they had finally secured Iron Flower City.

The Zixuan Alliance had finally established a foothold in the Hongmeng Divine Realm, joining the ranks of the regional powers.

Following this battle, the number of Divine Kings and Heavenly Deities in the Zixuan Alliance expanded rapidly. The two brothers, in their joy, generously rewarded all the warriors who had participated and offered consolation and rewards to the newcomers. The morale of the Zixuan Alliance soared, and the prestige of the two brothers grew even greater.

After a period of reorganization by Qin Si and Qin Shuang, the sixty-plus factions and the original members of the Zixuan Alliance were quickly integrated, and a new headquarters for the Alliance was established in a valley thirty miles outside of Iron Flower City.

Once the new headquarters was built, Qin Si found himself with time on his hands. Gu Tai, Shui Ruoyun, and Zhao Yongkui were, after all, leaders who had once managed their own factions; they were extremely familiar with commanding subordinates and the daily administration of the Alliance. Shui Ruoyun, in particular, was adept at managing affairs, allowing Qin Si to suddenly become free. After tossing a portion of the Heavenly Artifacts to Shui Ruoyun for her to distribute, he spent his days drinking and relaxing.

One day, as Qin Si sat in the great hall drinking wine, Qin Shuang suddenly appeared before him, his face wearing an unprecedented look of gravity and confusion. Before he even reached him, he said loudly, "Big brother, I need to go into seclusion for a while."

Qin Si was taken aback. Only a few days ago, Qin Shuang had finished a period of seclusion to comprehend time acceleration. He had only come out yesterday; why would he need to go back in after just one day?

"Seclusion? Didn't you just come out?"

Qin Shuang looked perplexed. "I don't know why either. When Lu Qingtian used his time acceleration technique, I had a sudden epiphany, so I went into seclusion. But this morning, I had another realization—it seems there is something even more important for me to comprehend."

He scratched his head, looking at Qin Si’s stunned expression, and said sheepishly, "It seems that, without realizing it, I’ve touched upon some aspects of time stillness..."

...Qin Si stared blankly at Qin Shuang. Was this really the same younger brother who had been so dull-witted since childhood and practiced at such an agonizingly slow pace? Even he, who considered himself a genius, did not possess this speed of cultivation. Such speed was likely only surpassed by their father. Could it be that Little Shuang had finally had a breakthrough?

In just a few short years, this guy had soared from the level of an ordinary Immortal all the way through God, Heavenly Deity, and Divine King, and now he was about to grasp the mysteries of time stillness... Was this really his brother, Qin Shuang?

*Snap.* Qin Si forcibly closed his mouth, his jaw having dropped in shock. He smiled bitterly and shook his head. "I’ve discovered that every time I’m around you, I get dealt a blow. My cultivation used to be in the sky while yours was in the dirt, but now, I’m the one stuck in the dirt..."

Qin Shuang offered an apologetic smile. He hadn't intended for this to happen, but having had the epiphany, what could he do?

"Go on then, you brat. Don't come out until you’ve comprehended time stillness, or watch out for my golden spear. Hmph, don't think that being a Divine King makes you invincible; if you run into me, even a Divine King can't beat me." Seeing Qin Shuang’s expression, Qin Si naturally understood what he was thinking. He glared at him and said cockily, "Even if I can't beat you, I’m still your big brother. You wouldn't dare hit me, would you?"