Chapter 881 - 499: Fleeing in Utter Defeat

Zou Feng reasoned that since the Wuxiang Emperor was still alive, the most logical next step for someone with his modus operandi would be to finish the job and assassinate Xu Xiongda. After all, this was the best—and possibly the last—opportunity to do so. The previously invincible Vice Sect Leader of the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect had suffered unprecedented, devastating injuries in the recent upheaval—wounds the likes of which he hadn’t experienced in millennia. If he took one more heavy blow, Xu Xiongda would very likely perish right then and there.

Although the opportunity was ripe, Xu Xiongda was already heavily guarded by several Elders forming a protective circle around him. It seemed highly unrealistic for the Wuxiang Emperor to strike under these conditions.

Unless...

A terrifying possibility suddenly dawned on Zou Feng. The more he thought about it, the worse he felt. Abandoning his pursuit of the retreating Divine Domain Royal Family, he spun around and looked toward Xu Xiongda. From a great distance, Zou Feng bellowed, "Sect Leader Xu, watch out! There’s an assassin!"

Xu Xiongda, currently teetering on the edge of unconsciousness, didn’t react to the warning. However, the surrounding Elders treated it as a grave threat, immediately going on high alert. But their vigilance was directed outward, scanning the perimeter for potential ambushers. They weren’t guarding against where the true danger lay.

In Zou Feng’s estimation, one of these very Elders was the true threat they needed to defend against. Time was of the essence. No longer caring if he might be mistaken, Zou Feng roared directly at the most suspicious person of the lot. "Elder Liu, do not take another step closer to Sect Leader Xu!"

The "Elder Liu" Zou Feng referred to was Liu Changming, one of the three Supreme Elders. He was also the Elder who had previously assisted Zou Feng in repelling the Wuxiang Emperor. Zou Feng’s reasoning for suspecting him was simple: among all the Elders present, Liu Changming was the only one who had dealt with the Wuxiang Emperor face-to-face. Moreover, during that confrontation, Liu Changming had clearly gotten the worst of it, coughing up blood right in front of Zou Feng.

Afterward, Liu Changming had recuperated aboard the Holy Lotus. But when Zou Feng went to check on his injuries, Liu Changming had already left without a word. During the time he was missing, there was no telling if the Wuxiang Emperor had targeted him again. Thinking back on it now, when they held the meeting on the Fallen God, Liu Changming had been suspiciously low-profile for a Supreme Elder, barely speaking a word.

As soon as Zou Feng shouted his accusation, the men protecting Xu Xiongda collectively turned their gaze toward Liu Changming. Their eyes were filled with confusion, which quickly gave way to wariness. If anyone else had voiced such suspicions about Liu Changming, they wouldn’t have taken it to heart. But Zou Feng was a newly promoted direct disciple with a stellar combat record, and it was obvious that he was highly favored by Xu Xiongda. Consequently, his words carried significant weight.

Suddenly finding himself the center of everyone’s scrutiny, Liu Changming looked utterly bewildered. But his confusion quickly turned to fury as he glared at the approaching Zou Feng. "You... you suspect me of being a traitor?! Absurd!" With a sweep of his long sleeve, Liu Changming pointed a trembling finger at Zou Feng, unable to contain his anger. "Zou Feng, if you cannot provide a reasonable explanation today, I will absolutely not forgive you!"

Standing to the side, Lin Mu spoke up with a dark expression. "Junior Brother Liu has absolutely no reason to defect to the Dubhe Divine Domain. Zou Feng, why do you think there’s a problem with him?"

At this point, Zou Feng decided to just go all out. After all, no matter how he looked at it, Liu Changming was the prime suspect. Halting some thirty yards away from the group, Zou Feng declared, "Of course, it’s impossible for Elder Liu to become a traitor. But the real question is... is this person even Elder Liu anymore?!"

Simultaneously, Zou Feng secretly accessed the List of Gods. He transferred all the remaining side effects he currently harbored directly onto the Wuxiang Emperor. He didn’t expect these residual side effects to make the Wuxiang Emperor cough up blood again or anything drastic; he just needed to provoke a slight reaction.

PFFT!

The moment the side effects were transferred, someone present let out a loud, muffled fart. Everyone’s expressions instantly became extremely bizarre. Given the cultivation Realms of everyone present, unless they intentionally wanted to unleash some kind of "Soul Gate Sword Qi" or "Soul Gate Impact," it was absolutely impossible for them to break wind. So, who in their right mind would choose to actively rip a fart during such a tense standoff?!

It wasn’t hard to locate the culprit. It was none other than the very man currently under scrutiny and interrogation—Supreme Elder Liu Changming.

The others were still struggling to comprehend what was happening, but Zou Feng now had absolute certainty. His deduction had been spot on.

"He isn’t Elder Liu! He’s the Wuxiang Emperor!" Zou Feng roared once again.

Seeing as things had come to this, the Wuxiang Emperor knew that keeping up the charade was meaningless. While he couldn’t deliver a point-blank strike to Xu Xiongda, the current distance would just have to do. In the next moment, before anyone could react, numerous small fissures suddenly split open all over "Liu Changming’s" body. Blinding white light erupted from these fissures, washing the surroundings in a glare so intense that it rendered everyone blind.

An instant after dyeing the surroundings white, "Liu Changming" violently exploded.

BOOM!

The blast was far more terrifying than a Nascent Soul’s self-detonation. A mushroom cloud even billowed up from the epicenter. The resulting shockwave forced Zou Feng to evade the brunt of the impact. Pushing his defenses to the absolute limit, he frantically scrambled back. Fortunately, because he had been expecting a trick, his retreat was incredibly timely.

Yet, just as it seemed he would successfully weather the blast’s shockwave, an intense sense of impending doom washed over him.

He thought, "Damn it, this bastard just won’t quit, will he?!"

Zou Feng immediately realized what was about to happen. Without a doubt, furious at having his plans ruined, the Wuxiang Emperor intended to use the chaos of the explosion to take Zou Feng down with him before escaping.