Chapter 602: Bai Chengsheng’s plan

Lin Feng suddenly pulled out the sword, a spray of blood following the motion.

"What the hell are you doing, Lin Feng!?" Jiang shouted, his eyes widening in both shock and fury.

"Trying to kill a fellow commander is a crime punishable by death!" Gu Chen declared in restrained anger, drawing his massive spear.

Meanwhile, Bai Qingxian turned her focus to Maximilian, who had fallen to his knees.

"A-Arthur!" she called out to him. A faint glow of energy covered her finger as she poured her Soulforce into Maximilian’s wound, trying to stop his bleeding.

It didn’t seem to work. Blood continued leaking from his mouth and abdomen, his eyes barely open.

"Pl-please hold on, Arthur," Bai Qingxian pleaded, her voice slightly breaking with worry.

Gu Chen’s grip around the shaft of his spear tightened. His murderous glare shifted to Lin Feng, unleashing a crushing pressure upon him.

"Khwak!" Lin Feng’s body was immediately pressed down. He barely managed to keep himself from slamming onto the roof by using his blade for support.

"C-Commander Gu, h-he is just a r-rogue cultivator," Lin Feng muttered as if he had been wrongly accused. "D-do you intend to fight me over a nobody?"

"Arthur has done far more for the Southern Legion than you ever have," Gu Chen declared, the spear in his hand becoming covered in flaming energy. "Yet you dared to betray him."

He was about to swing his spear at him when Mo Feng ordered in a commanding tone, "Stop it, Gu Chen. The commanders aren’t allowed to fight each other."

"Did you not see what he has done, General Mo?" Gu Chen shouted in anger. It was the first time Maximilian had seen him lose his composure.

"Don’t forget your place, Gu Chen," Mo Feng muttered, walking toward him through the air, his old eyes narrowing at him. "Lift your Soulforce pressure from Lin Feng."

Gu Chen seemed completely reluctant to oblige. Nonetheless, he followed the order, retracting his Soulforce pressure.

"Lin Feng has committed an unforgivable crime," Gu Chen declared. "We demand justice for Commander Arthur."

"We demand justice for Commander Arthur!" Jiang Yichen and Bai Qingxian also declared in resolute tones.

Gu Chen was only one step away from reaching the Eternal Stage, while Jiang Yichen and Bai Qingxian were at the Early and Middle Stages respectively. They were irreplaceable assets to the Southern Legion. Completely denying their request would cause a rift within the entire Southern Legion.

Mo Feng looked at Maximilian, who seemed barely alive. The roof of the chariot beneath him was covered in a pool of his blood.

’If only this brat didn’t possess the Divine Artifact...’ he muttered inwardly, clearly frustrated by the current predicament.

His gaze shifted to Lin Feng, causing him to flinch in fear.

"Lin Feng, for attacking a fellow commander, I—"

"Mo Feng, you cannot punish him," Bai Chengsheng’s threatening voice came from the high sky.

All eyes shifted upward, where he stood holding the dark Lóng with his bare hands. His Legendary Grade Fan had already been destroyed by the Lóng, forcing him to use his hands to stop it.

He clenched his hand, crushing the small dragon into fragments of energy.

Death lightning burst from within, spreading rapidly into his arm and destroying every cell in it’s wake.

His emerald eyes widened in horror. He immediately swung his other arm, laced with a sharp blade of energy, and severed it at the elbow before the lightning could spread any further.

The severed arm didn’t even make it to the ground, disintegrating into oblivion mid-air.

"S-such cursed lightning," Bai Chengsheng gasped between heavy breaths. He had almost seen his life flash before his eyes. "How did Vyomendra get his hands on something so ominous? Or is it... that someone from that clan is also helping the beasts from the shadows?"

He decided not to dwell on it for now. The first array of Baihu Stronghold had been destroyed. His gaze shifted to Vyomendra’s injured figure atop the wall. The only Sacred Beast of the Tiger Clan had been turned into a cripple.

He still decided not to finish him off. Even though Vyomendra seemed to be on the verge of death, he was an injured tiger.

Claiming his life would definitely come with a price.

Moreover, Bai Chengsheng had just lost his arm. His first priority was to claim the Divine Artifact. That was the only way he could make up for it.

"The sword Arthur possesses is a Divine Grade Artifact," Bai Chengsheng revealed to the commanders as he slowly descended. "Now that he has used most of his life essence to unleash that last attack, he will no longer be able to use the sword to its full potential."

Once he reached the same level in the air, he slowly walked toward them, keeping his face unreadable despite having just lost an arm.

"That would be too much of a loss. The sword is capable of shifting the tide of war against the beasts. Alas, it is connected to Arthur’s blood essence, so it cannot be used by any other cultivator as long as he lives."

His emerald eyes shifted to Maximilian’s figure, who seemed barely conscious, as he continued, "Wouldn’t it be better for him to sacrifice his life so someone truly worthy of this sword could actually wield it? He shouldn’t be so selfish as to place his own life over the lives of countless human cultivators." 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

He moved toward Lin Feng, who instantly dropped to his knees and offered the sword to Bai Chengsheng with both hands.

He took the sword with a faint smile hidden beneath his white facial hair and approached Maximilian.

He handed him the sword and ordered, "I will allow you to end yourself with this Divine Artifact. Consider it an honor."

His words left everyone speechless. How could someone be so vile and heartless? He had not only used a Soul Gnawing Gu on an enemy, but was also telling his own ally to sacrifice his life just after he had used his very life essence to break the array of Baihu Stronghold.