The First Lackey Under The Empress

A mountain breeze swept out of the dense forest, lifting the hair from Zhao Du'an's forehead, and the dense clouds above the sky also moved quickly.

His body was stiff, his forehead was covered with fine, large beads of sweat, and he stared intently at the middle-aged warlock blocking his path.

Boom, boom, boom… …

His heart beat like a drum, and blood flowed through his veins.

The completely unfamiliar face of the middle-aged "Archmage" was clearly reflected in his pupils, with disheveled hair and a plain gray robe, as if filling his entire field of vision.

Zhao Du'an's heart sank abruptly, realizing that the situation he had been worried about had occurred.

However, he did not panic, but forced himself to calm down and raised his eyebrows:

"Again? I don't remember ever meeting you before."

The leader of the Archmage Sect seemed to be smiling, yet also seemed to have never smiled:

"When you returned to the capital from Taicang, this humble one's substitute once gazed at you from afar on the road."

Is that so? So that's why he said "meeting again"?

Zhao Du'an instinctively felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't pinpoint what it was.

He secretly grasped the sword hilt at his lower back with his right hand and quipped:

"The time you were killed by Eunuch Hai? This official really doesn't remember."

The Archmage's gaze was sharp, as if piercing his heart:

"There's no need to test me. Hai Chunlin has been left far behind by this humble one. By the time he arrives, it will be enough for this humble one to kill you a hundred times over."

A warlock who controls spatial magic is really disgusting… No wonder he was able to catch up. Although he couldn't "teleport" Eunuch Hai away, he could wait for me to run far away, and then intercept and kill me with spatial magic… Zhao Du'an's thoughts flashed, and he said sternly:

"How much did Prince Jing give you? I can give you more on behalf of the imperial court. This gathering of yours is Prince Jing's doing, isn't it? What did he promise? Perhaps, we can talk."

This time, the Archmage really smiled, and he shook his head:

"I told you, there's no need for you to test me anymore… Huh."

Without any warning, Zhao Du'an suddenly drew his sword, and the overcast suburbs seemed to brighten for a moment.

When the Frost Sword was unsheathed, the blade was covered with a layer of azure blue ice flowers, the surrounding temperature plummeted, and snowflakes fell in the air.

Accompanied by Zhao Du'an's thrust, the snowflakes, condensed by the cold air, swirled and danced.

The Peach Blossom Sword Technique can control peach blossoms, so why can't it control snowflakes?

However, Zhao Du'an's sword was more than just that.

As the sword blade was thrust out, a "buzz" sounded from his sleeve, and the dark golden Sun Crow Dagger, like a loaded bullet, followed his wrist outwards, scraping a string of sparks along the groove on the sword.

"Boom—"

Empowered by the Peach Blossom Sword Technique, the Sun Crow Dagger roared out like a miniature cannonball. At such a close distance, it appeared in front of the "Archmage's" face in the blink of an eye.

This sword was extremely fast, and it also contained the power that Zhao Du'an had secretly accumulated during his journey. If it were an ordinary Divine Chapter expert, they would undoubtedly be defeated by this sword alone. Even a Worldly Realm expert would have to treat it with caution.

However, the Archmage only said "Huh." The flying dagger, which had left afterimages, suddenly flickered in front of him, as if a frame had been removed from a movie scene.

The Sun Crow Dagger actually skipped over his body and suddenly appeared behind the middle-aged warlock, carrying a huge force, piercing into a pile of rocks in the distance, and the rocks flew in the loud noise.

It can be done like this? What is this called? Spatial jump?

Zhao Du'an's pupils constricted. Not having time to think, he supplemented his left hand with a hand seal, and lowered his voice to shout:

"Seal!"

A "卍" character rotated and flew out from between his eyebrows, expanding in a breath, turning into several tentacles, trying to bind the "Archmage."

At the same time as the Demon Sealing Spell was activated, Zhao Du'an quietly sacrificed the "Spirit Flame", trying to burn his nerves and distract him.

The Archmage still overlooked him, with a calm expression, raised his right hand and gently swiped, and all the golden ropes transformed from the Demon Sealing Spell snapped.

As for the "Spirit Flame" that could burn the soul, it seemed to be useless on him.

"You have quite a few tricks…" The Archmage walked towards Zhao Du'an as if he were taking a leisurely stroll, with a mysterious smile on his face.

Is this the pinnacle of the Worldly Realm? It's almost like heaven and earth compared to a high-grade Divine Chapter expert.

Zhao Du'an did not hesitate. A dark green seal slowly rotated in his palm, and a large amount of water vapor was stimulated from the "Black Tortoise Seal", condensing into "spears".

"Go!"

Zhao Du'an uttered a word, and the endless spears condensed from water vapor were like locusts, converging fire on the Archmage.

This was the first time he had used it since obtaining the Black Tortoise Seal. The river water stored in this top-grade magic weapon, supplemented by his own magic power, made each spear exceptionally fierce.

"This is… the Black Tortoise Seal?" The Archmage was really surprised.

The space in front of him fluctuated, rippling in circles, as if the entire space had become his shield.

After the water spears pierced in, they were forcibly moved to the Archmage's rear by the power of space, just like the "Sun Crow Dagger".

The spears roared out, bombarding the earth, splashing countless soil and rocks. The momentum was terrifying. In the blink of an eye, the forest behind the Archmage was plowed by missiles, full of devastation.

This concentrated bombardment alone was enough to wipe out a small team of heavy armored cavalry!

"The Black Tortoise Seal was obtained by the royal family? No wonder it hasn't appeared in the world for many years. The female emperor actually bestowed it upon you. It's really a great favor, but unfortunately, your power is not enough to exert even one-tenth or two of this treasure's power."

The Archmage, wearing a gray robe and with black hair draped over his shoulders, walked leisurely. When he "rushed" out of the large area of water spears, he was surprised to see nothing in front of him.

Only a large mass of water in the distance was frantically rushing towards the nearest stream.

This was the "Water Escape" method that Zhao Du'an had mastered after playing with the "Black Tortoise Seal" for several months. As long as he could enter the stream, he could rely on the authority of the "Water God" to integrate into the water veins and escape temporarily.

However, just as he was one step away from the stream, he suddenly crashed into an invisible barrier.

"Bang!"

Zhao Du'an canceled the Water Escape state, and looked with an ugly face at the Archmage who had already approached behind him.

The latter had a confident, cat-and-mouse posture, as if no one could escape:

"What other tricks do you have? Use them all."

Zhao Du'an's heart moved, and he said:

"You are also testing me, aren't you? You are worried that I have a trump card on me that is enough to kill you, so you have never killed me, wanting to force me to actively reveal all my trump cards."

The Archmage did not deny it.

Zhao Du'an sighed. The "Leader of the Archmage Sect", the pinnacle of the Worldly Realm, a half-step Celestial Being, was indeed not someone he could deal with now.

Under the crisis of life and death, knowing the other party's intentions, he could only call Pei Niannu in his heart.

However, the familiar "descent" aura had just appeared when it was suddenly interrupted by some force.

Summoning failed!

Pei Niannu cannot descend into reality!

"There's no need to try. The 'Martial God' of the Yu Kingdom royal family can be possessed by divine descent, and this humble one naturally has a way to crack it. It seems that this is your last resort." The smile on the middle-aged warlock's mouth widened.

At this moment, Zhao Du'an actually had the idea of "it should be so". How could a strong man of the half-step Celestial Being level not be prepared?

As of now, it seems that the only way left is to crush the teleportation jade in his hand, but facing a warlock who controls "space", can teleportation escape? Will it also be blocked? Or…

Even if he teleports away, with his unlucky state, will he… Zhao Du'an suddenly couldn't muster the idea of resisting, and slowly closed his eyes, witnessing the palm sent by the middle-aged warlock that was enough to kill him.

Preparing to fight to the death.

However, just as his eyelids were about to close, Zhao Du'an suddenly felt a lightness on his body for no reason, as if some kind of power that had entangled him for more than seven days had finally dissipated.

He saw a golden light sweeping from the horizon, like a golden meteor.

When he first saw it, it was far away on the horizon, but in a few blinks of an eye, it was already close at hand.

The golden light was layered, violently churning, and surrounding a cold, refined, dignified, and majestic female figure descending from the gray and heavy dark clouds.

Zhao Du'an suddenly widened his eyes, and looked in surprise at the appearance of the person who came:

Any words of praise in the world would not be enough to describe her.

Her skin was as white as snow, and three thousand strands of blue silk draped down like a waterfall, and a faint golden seal pattern lit up between her eyebrows, dazzling and eye-catching.

She was dressed in white, stepping on an ancient sword.

The sword's edge tore the air, and the tip opened a conical air shield, blocking the strong wind.

The end left a gray-white turbulent flow in the clouds, just like the white lines that Zhao Du'an saw in his previous life when an airplane passed through the clouds, leaving behind on the flight path.

She approached the ground in the blink of an eye. While she was in mid-air, she turned her wrist, and the cyan blade under her feet leaped up, handing the sword hilt into the woman's hand. A pair of dazzling clear pupils coldly overlooked the "Archmage" below.

Great Yu's Empress, Xu Zhenguan!

"The female emperor…"

The middle-aged Archmage turned his head and looked back in astonishment, muttering in his mouth, a look of deduction flashed in his eyes, and then he seemed to understand something, and sighed:

"His life is not meant to end."

He didn't try to kill Zhao Du'an by force, because the moment the Empress descended, an immense, invisible aura firmly locked onto the back of his heart.

As long as he delayed for even half a breath, the Tai'a Sword would be enough to pierce his heart and kill him here.

The "Archmage" didn't hesitate. As he turned, he wrapped his hands around himself, and layers upon layers of phantoms appeared around him, as if countless versions of himself were overlapping at that moment.

At that moment, he hid himself behind many layers of spatial rifts.

"Those who offend the subjects of my Yu Kingdom shall die!"

Xu Zhenguan was exceptionally cold. The moment she spoke, the celestial mechanics within a ten-mile radius stirred, and the space between heaven and earth was filled with sword energy. Her snow-white fingers released the sword hilt and formed a sword seal.

Her fingers drew a semicircle in mid-air, and the Tai'a Sword was also guided by her aura, streaking across this heaven and earth. In the vast forest, every blade of grass and tree was a soldier.

"Go!"

Xu Zhenguan pointed at the "Archmage" from the air. The Tai'a Sword, wrapped in boundless killing intent, transformed into a streak of light, illuminating this heaven and earth for an instant.

"Boom!"

The sword's edge broke the sound barrier, like a long rainbow, "nailing" the leader of the Archmage Sect into the earth!

Zhao Du'an was blown away by the shockwave, somersaulting several times in the air before crashing to the ground. When he stood up, dizzy and disoriented, he saw a huge, deep pit in the forest ahead.

At the bottom of the pit was the Tai'a Sword, plunged into the mud.

There was no "Archmage" at the bottom of the pit, only a large pile of torn gray robes and a large pool of bright red blood.

He escaped? Even Zhenbao couldn't keep him here? That's right, this guy is probably really approaching the "Pseudo-Celestial Being" realm, and Zhenbao isn't a complete "Celestial Being Realm" either… Plus, with his expertise in spatial magic, it's indeed extremely difficult to keep him here.

As Zhao Du'an's thoughts flashed through his mind, he saw the Tai'a Sword at the bottom of the pit tremble, and with a whoosh, it pulled itself out and flew back into the hands of the Empress, who descended like a goddess, and plunged itself into the scabbard in her hand.

"Your Majesty…" Zhao Du'an opened his mouth, "Why are you here? Aren't you still far from Jianning Prefecture…?"

Xu Zhenguan swept her divine sense around, confirming that her beloved dog was unharmed, and then breathed a sigh of relief, frowned, and said:

"We'll talk about that later. What's the situation here?"

Only then did Zhao Du'an remember that Lao Hai and the others were still fighting hard in the rear, and he quickly explained the situation.

Xu Zhenguan raised an eyebrow, gripped the sword in one hand, grabbed his belt with the other, and soared into the air with him. Under Zhao Du'an's guidance, they sped towards the mountains and forests where the Archmage Sect's base was located.

Halfway there, they saw a large group of people, led by the old eunuch in the python robe, gathered together, coming towards them.

When the two sides met, Eunuch Hai was also stunned. Then, recalling the golden light that he had seen in the sky from afar, he revealed a look of understanding: "Greetings, Your Majesty."

Behind the old eunuch, the others also bowed one after another: "Greetings, Your Majesty!"

Zhao Du'an's feet touched the ground, and his eyes swept around, discovering that Tang Jinzhong, Song Jinxi, Lang Shiba, Ji Yue, and other familiar faces were all there.

Many of the Martial Arts Hall members were injured, but there were no obvious losses.

"Where are the Archmage Sect's sorcerers?" the Empress asked.

Song Jinxi hurriedly reported:

"Reporting to Your Majesty, in order to cover Zhao Shaobao's departure, we fought with those sorcerers. After Shaobao left, the leader of the Archmage Sect suddenly disappeared while fighting.

That group of sorcerers lost their desire to fight and suddenly turned around and fled. We were worried about Lord Zhao's safety, so we didn't pursue them, but came to assist."

Tang Jinzhong, carrying a stunned sorcerer, said in a muffled voice: "We also left behind three or four sorcerers."

He pointed to several sorcerers in the group who were either stunned or on the verge of death.

Zhao Du'an wasn't surprised and said:

"This group of sorcerers only had the advantage of an ambush. If they really fought, they wouldn't be a match for us. The leader of the Archmage Sect went to intercept me, so the others naturally fled. Your Majesty, perhaps we can catch up?"

The Empress suddenly looked into the distance, her beautiful eyes emitting a faint light. After a moment, she shook her head and said:

"There should be a teleportation formation hidden nearby. They've all run far away. Don't pursue a desperate enemy, lest they lure the tiger away from the mountain and cause trouble in the city. Let's return to the city first."

Zhao Du'an nodded with lingering fear: "As you command."

Immediately, he seemed to remember something and explained:

"Your Majesty, my luck might not be good right now…"

… …

… …

In a mountain forest valley.

The ground covered with yellow leaves suddenly lit up with a strange array of light beams. A huge circular magic circle lit up, then went out.

A large group of Archmage Sect sorcerers appeared in the forest, some sitting down, some treating their wounds, and some vigilantly looking around.

Body Refinement Sorcerer Xiong Ba covered his body, which was covered in blood. His sorcerer's robe was almost torn to shreds.

He sat down on the ground with a thud, turned his head, and saw the little fatty lovingly holding the "Ghost Banner" that had been punched with several holes. He couldn't help but laugh loudly: "Why aren't you dead?"

The little fatty's anger rose from his heart, and he sarcastically retorted: "Aren't you still alive?"

"Alright, we're temporarily safe now. Fortunately, the leader is proficient in teleportation magic and had made arrangements in advance, otherwise it would have been really dangerous…" The wretched old Daoist counted the stock of talismans in his Daoist robe and sighed:

"It's also fortunate that the leader arrived early today, otherwise we would have been in danger. These Imperial Guards are really not easy to deal with."

The crowd sighed one after another, and someone worriedly said:

"I wonder how the leader is."

As soon as he finished speaking, a stone nearby suddenly bulged, and the "Man in the Stone" emerged from within and said to the crowd:

"The leader says to temporarily hide in the mountains and forests to recuperate, and take revenge another day."

The sorcerers had a backbone again and breathed a sigh of relief.

… …

… …

Jing Wang Manor.

In a pavilion, Jing Wang Xu Wen was playing chess with his Consort today.

Lu Yan'er wasn't good at Go. Even though Jing Wang gave her three stones, she still collapsed in the middle game and conceded defeat.

"You played carelessly today. If it were in the past, you would have held on until the endgame." Jing Wang glanced at his Consort and said faintly.

Lu Consort, who was elegant and quiet in front of outsiders, and habitually cold-faced in private, said calmly:

"I was wondering if Zhao Du'an was dead or not."

Jing Wang stared at his Consort for a few moments and smiled: "Knowing that you harbor resentment because you were seriously injured by him in the last Lake Pavilion battle, calculating the days, the curse technique has been in effect for seven days today. Now that it's past noon, the power of the curse should have disappeared, and that Zhao fellow should be dying of illness. This King has already sent people to keep an eye on him, and they will report back immediately if there's any news."

Lu Yan'er lowered her head silently, picking up the chess pieces on the wooden chessboard:

"Just relying on that White-Clothed Sect sorcerer in the manor? I see that you're still reluctant. Didn't you say that you've mobilized many sorcerers to come over? Why didn't you all take action together?"

Jing Wang didn't suspect anything else and sighed:

"The Archmage Sect's sorcerers aren't under this King's control. They only listen to the orders of that person who calls himself the 'Archmage'."

Lu Yan'er casually said: "Then why don't you ask the Archmage to take action? Isn't Zhao Du'an a major concern for you?"

Jing Wang shook his head:

"The Archmage isn't in Jianning yet. He should be arriving in the next two days. It's said that his cultivation is approaching the Pseudo-Celestial Being realm, comparable to Hai Chunlin, who single-handedly ascended Green Mountain in his peak years. If we have this person's help…"

Lu Yan'er paused in her action of picking up the chess pieces, a look of seriousness flashed in her eyes, and she said without leaving a trace:

"The Empress is about to perform the Fengshan ceremony. At this time, you've invited the Archmage Sect over… Aren't you really afraid that the Empress will directly kill you?"

Jing Wang shook his head and said: "She won't. The closer she gets to the Fengshan ceremony, the less likely she is to do so."

Suddenly, the Heir Apparent Xu Jinglong rushed over. Before he arrived, his voice came first:

"Father! Something bad has happened! The secret agent reported that Zhao Du'an is not dead, nor is he in the Transportation Office. Someone saw him leading Eunuch Hai and others out of the city, heading towards… heading towards…"

"Heading towards where?"

Jing Wang suddenly stood up and stared at him, questioning him closely.

Xu Jinglong glanced at Lu Consort, who was silently picking up chess pieces, and still said:

"Heading towards the Archmage Sect's side."

Jing Wang's face instantly turned ashen. He stood in the pavilion, pacing back and forth, as if thinking about something. After a moment, he suddenly walked towards the outside of the pavilion.

"Father? Where are you going?" Xu Jinglong hurriedly followed.

Jing Wang didn't answer, heading straight towards a pavilion in the manor, which was the pavilion where the White-Clothed Sect's curse sorcerer had been continuously performing rituals in the manor for the past few days.

The seven-day period had already passed. In theory, after noon, the continuous curse should have ended.

However, just as the father and son walked to the bottom of the pavilion, suddenly, the father and son heard a sharp and muffled whistling sound in the air.

Jing Wang and Xu Jinglong raised their heads, their pupils suddenly contracting. They saw the Tai'a Sword, wrapped in golden light, whistling through the dark sky.

… …

First update, will revise later.