Volume Two: The Life of a Bandit - Chapter Seventy-Five: The Great Battle Begins

"Boom!"

A massive explosion echoed through the entire space. Qin Shuang and the other two felt their bodies grow light, and the scene before their eyes returned to the Divine Realm.

"Sky-One Water Pavilion, we are irreconcilable enemies!"

Suddenly, Duan Shuai let out a furious roar toward the sky. His eyes were bloodshot as he stared fixedly at the smoking ruins of the City of Broken Waters below.

In the Divine Realm, building a city was an extremely arduous task, yet destroying one was so effortless. Two thousand Divine Monarchs had obliterated the City of Broken Waters in the blink of an eye.

The significance of the City of Broken Waters to the Water-Breaking Sect was different from that of the Zi Xuan Alliance; the City of Broken Waters was the root of the Water-Breaking Sect. Now that it had been destroyed, it felt as though someone had demolished Duan Shuai's own home.

"Impossible! How can this be?!"

Far in the distance, Wu Long wore a look of utter horror. A small mirror floated before him, radiating the aura of a Primordial spiritual treasure.

"What a pity. Although I've comprehended a great deal more, my application is still lacking. Otherwise, I definitely wouldn't have let him escape!" Qin Si shook his head slightly. Just now, he had used his newly comprehended spatial technique to attack Wu Long. Unfortunately, Wu Long possessed a supreme Primordial spiritual treasure, allowing Qin Si only to injure him rather than kill him.

Recalling the moment just before, Wu Long was still trembling inwardly. Although he had refused to believe that Qin Si could shatter his grand array, Wu Long had remained cautious, summoning his supreme Primordial spiritual treasure, the Heaven-Shattering Mirror, early on. If not for that premature preparation, when that patch of black space enveloped him, Wu Long might truly have perished.

"Sect Master Duan, do not grieve. Doesn't the Sky-One Water Pavilion control six cities? Once we conquer the Sky-One Water Pavilion, you may freely choose one and rename it the City of Broken Waters!"

Qin Si flew to Duan Shuai's side and patted his shoulder, his eyes nevertheless fixed on Wu Long in the distance.

"Conquer the Sky-One Water Pavilion!"

Wu Long's heart skipped a beat. If it had been the past, he would never have believed that the tiny Zi Xuan Alliance could conquer their Sky-One Water Pavilion. At best, they were just a small faction with potential that might pose a threat to the Sky-One Water Pavilion, but to say they could contend with the Sky-One Water Pavilion on equal terms was something Wu Long would never have believed.

In the Divine Realm, the comparison between major factions relied first on the Sovereign behind them, and second on the number of expert Divine Monarchs they possessed. In the first aspect, the Zi Xuan Alliance held no advantage whatsoever. Although the Zi Xuan Alliance also had a legendary, mysterious Sovereign behind them, their number of Sovereigns was far too few. Even counting Wu Ye of the Water-Breaking Sect, there were only two Sovereigns. As the tenth most powerful bandit faction in the Divine Realm, the Sky-One Water Pavilion had six Sovereigns supporting them from behind.

In terms of the number of Divine Monarchs, the Sky-One Water Pavilion, with over two thousand Divine Monarchs, naturally could not be matched by the Zi Xuan Alliance, which possessed only a few hundred. Yet at this moment, Wu Long suddenly lost confidence in himself.

Wu Long even doubted whether the Sky-One Water Pavilion could truly withstand the Zi Xuan Alliance—or rather, whether they could withstand the Zi Xuan Alliance led by such a freakish entity as Qin Si.

Hua Jianxiong and Zheng Qiu, who had destroyed the City of Broken Waters, both flew to Wu Long's side. The convergence of the three forces instantly restored Wu Long's confidence, which had just been shaken by Qin Si.

This Qin Si before them would undoubtedly become a grave hazard to the Sky-One Water Pavilion in the future; no matter what, he had to be eliminated today! Wu Long gritted his teeth and swore inwardly. For many years, no one had ever driven him to this extent.

Fortunately, out of prudence, he had spent a fortune to invite two helpers. Now, that decision proved to be immensely wise. Relying solely on the forces of the Sky-One Water Pavilion, it would have been an unknown whether they could wipe out the Zi Xuan Alliance.

Having regained his confidence, Wu Long was not worried at all. With the Moon Radiance Alliance and the Soul-Breaking Manor backing them, the Zi Xuan Alliance had zero chance of victory. The Moon Radiance Alliance ranked sixth among bandit factions, while the Soul-Breaking Manor ranked eighth; both were even more powerful than the Sky-One Water Pavilion.

"Pavilion Master Wu Long, could it be that your Time-Space Dimensional Grand Array was broken?" Hua Jianxiong and Zheng Qiu also wore astonished expressions. Looking at the remnants of the Sky-One Water Pavilion, a trace of uneasiness inexplicably surfaced in the depths of their hearts.

"That's right. The opponent is stronger than we imagined. Fortunately, they only have these few experts. If we truly let them develop further, I'm afraid the one destroyed in the end would be our Sky-One Water Pavilion!"

Wu Long forced a bitter smile and nodded in admission. He did not conceal the fact that his grand array had been broken, and he even pointed out the formidable nature of their opponents. In suppressing the growth of minor factions, the ten major bandit syndicates shared a unified stance; none of them wanted to see a faction emerge that could threaten their status.

"The Time-Space Dimensional Grand Array is one of the top three grand arrays in the Divine Realm!" Zheng Qiu's expression turned somewhat sluggish. The Sky-One Water Pavilion was the weakest among the top ten bandit factions, primarily because too few of their Divine Monarchs had comprehended time standstill. The Sky-One Water Pavilion was able to truly stand firm in the Divine Realm precisely because of this Time-Space Dimensional Grand Array. Legend had it that even a Sovereign would find it difficult to shatter this array.

"Just the twelve of them?" Hua Jianxiong wore an expression identical to Zheng Qiu's, for the reputation of the Time-Space Dimensional Grand Array in the Divine Realm was indeed formidable.

"No, to be precise, just one. Qin Si, the Alliance Master of the Zi Xuan Alliance—he alone broke my grand array!" Wu Long stared fixedly at Qin Si, who was still trying to console Duan Shuai at that moment.

After being comforted by Qin Si for a while, Duan Shuai's mood finally improved somewhat. However, looking at the two thousand-plus Divine Monarchs before him, he could not bring himself to feel happy. The city promised by Qin Si could only become a reality once the Sky-One Water Pavilion was truly defeated.

"You two, this plan may have some unexpected changes. We must spare no effort to kill these twelve individuals before us. I believe that as long as we eliminate them, the two small factions of the Water-Breaking Sect and the Zi Xuan Alliance will effectively be finished!"

Wu Long calmed his emotions and said to Hua Jianxiong and Zheng Qiu beside him. The two nodded; once these twelve people were killed, the remaining Divine Monarchs would be much easier to handle.

"Very well. We take money to eliminate disasters; we shall join Pavilion Master Wu Long in slaying these arrogant little thieves!" Zheng Qiu chuckled. With a wave of his hand, the one thousand Divine Monarchs behind him rapidly dispersed. They did not possess a grand array as formidable as the Sky-One Water Pavilion's, but the combined attack of a thousand Divine Monarchs was something even a Sovereign would have to avoid taking head-on.

At Hua Jianxiong's gesture, the one thousand Divine Monarchs behind him also scattered. Combined with Wu Long's remaining eight hundred-plus subordinates, over two thousand eight hundred Divine Monarchs locked their gazes firmly on the twelve figures in the center.

"It seems we will have to fight a brutal battle to secure the city promised to you!" The corners of Qin Si's mouth curved into a bitter smile. Over two thousand eight hundred Divine Monarchs—even with his newly comprehended skills, he was not arrogant enough to think he could handle them all by himself.

"A bitter fight it is, then. No matter how harsh it gets, as long as we hold out, the ones who die in the end will be the Sky-One Water Pavilion, not us!"

Duan Shuai cast a resentful glance at the surrounding figures. Having long since resolved himself to fight to the death, his mindset was actually much steadier than Qin Si's.

"Haha, well said! As long as we hold out, they are the ones who die, not us!" Qin Si was momentarily stunned before being infected by Duan Shuai's sentiment, bursting into hearty laughter.

"Li Yang, how are you holding up?"

Qin Shuang was still supporting Li Yang, whose energy was nearly depleted. Li Yang had expended a great deal of vital energy earlier by invoking Heavenly Punishment, and such energy was not easily recovered—which was why Li Yang rarely resorted to his ultimate technique lightly.

"I'm fine. It's just that today's hurdle won't be easily crossed, I'm afraid!"

Li Yang shook his head, clutching a small statue in his hand as he spoke in a low voice.

"Brother Li Yang, it's us who dragged you into this!" Qin Shuang's expression turned gloomy as well. Facing over two thousand eight hundred Divine Monarchs, he had already prepared to employ his avatar with Sovereign-level strength, though what the outcome would be after using it remained entirely unknown.

"Xiao Shuang, remember, we are brothers. Since we are brothers, we should face things together. Never say such things again in the future!" Li Yang suddenly raised his head, gazed at Qin Shuang for a moment, and spoke with solemn gravity.

"I understand. We are brothers; today we shall weather this storm together!" Qin Shuang forced a smile to his face and nodded forcefully.

As for the others, although worry lingered on their faces, their expressions were filled with unwavering determination. Twelve against two thousand eight hundred—win or lose, this battle would be permanently recorded in the history of the Divine Realm and chanted by countless divine beings.

"Brothers, I won't say any more. Once we clear this hurdle today, the future Divine Realm will be ours to traverse at will!" Qin Si flew into the center of the twelve, looked around at everyone, and said solemnly.

"Very well, now the time has come for us to unleash our full fury. Attack!"

Suddenly, Qin Si whirled around, roaring toward the direction of Wu Long and the others. The moment the final word fell, his figure had already shot forward like a bolt of lightning.

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

The remaining eleven roared in unison toward the sky, all turning to charge directly into the army of Divine Monarchs. Though few in numbers, their momentum was not the least bit inferior to that of those two thousand eight hundred Divine Monarchs.

Qin Si was the fastest, reaching a spot just hundreds of meters in front of Wu Long in the blink of an eye. His strategy was to capture the ringleader first; no matter how difficult, he had to eliminate these leaders before him.

With the Fire-Origin Spirit Pearl suspended above his crown and a supreme Primordial spiritual treasure golden spear in his grasp, at this moment, Qin Si looked like a very god of war—sacred and inviolable.

(To be continued)