Chapter 246.2: Lu Changsheng Instantly Kills a True God! One Flaw in a Meticulous Plan; a Divine King Descends! (II)

A carriage rolled slowly through the gates of Hidden Mountain City, the capital of the Hidden Mountain Divine Empire.

"It's Lord Zhang's family. Let them through." The guards recognized the insignia on the carriage and waved the convoy through without daring to conduct a search.

Lord Zhang, the carriage's owner, held considerable authority in the city, and no ordinary guard would dare offend him by searching his convoy. Privilege like that existed everywhere. Even within a divine empire, surrounded by the power of faith, officials still enjoyed treatment ordinary guards could not afford to question. As a result, Lord Zhang's carriage entered Hidden Mountain City without the slightest obstruction.

Inside the carriage sat Lord Zhang's family, but they were not alone. Lu Changsheng and Yang Mao had joined the convoy as uninvited passengers.

Yang Mao had built this plan many years ago. He had secretly supported the Zhang Clan and kept them as a hidden asset in case he ever needed a secure way into the city. That precaution had now proved useful, allowing the two Martial Saints to pass through the gates without attracting suspicion.

Although martial artists could not use supernatural abilities, they were still seen as far more capable than ordinary people. Given enough time, they could win over influential clans, gain control over ordinary people, and use those connections to move through a divine empire undetected. Without the Zhang Clan's assistance, entering the heavily guarded city would have been much more difficult.

Once inside the Zhang Residence, Lu Changsheng and Yang Mao were both given a room in the guest courtyard to rest. Once they had settled in, Lu Changsheng went to Yang Mao's room to discuss their next move.

"Where exactly is the Hidden Mountain True God hiding?" asked Lu Changsheng.

"If you have truly decided to act, you must be fully prepared," Yang Mao replied, his expression grave. "The Hidden Mountain True God should be hiding beneath a temple dedicated to the Hidden Mountain deity in the eastern part of the city. It appears to be nothing more than an ordinary temple, which is precisely why no one would suspect that a True God is hiding beneath it. I spent many years investigating before I finally confirmed the location.

"So, Fellow Daoist Lu, when are you planning to make your move?"

"If your intel is accurate, tonight."

Truth be told, he already had a plan in mind. He would strike after nightfall, slay the Hidden Mountain True God as quickly as possible, and use the darkness to escape the divine empire. Ideally, he would leave the Divine Region altogether before any of the three surrounding Divine Kings could intercept him.

Yang Mao simply nodded, raising no objections.

The two remained in the guest courtyard until nightfall. No one from the Zhang Clan came to disturb them during this time.

Once night had fallen, Lu Changsheng and Yang Mao left the Zhang Residence and headed toward the temple in the eastern part of Hidden Mountain City. Whether they were called temples or divine halls made little difference. Throughout the Divine Region, both were simply places for worshipping True Gods.

Yang Mao accompanied Lu Changsheng as far as the temple, where several worshippers were still praying despite the late hour.

"Fellow Daoist Lu, I will be rooting for you."

With that, Yang Mao slipped into the darkness. He had only come to guide Lu Changsheng to the temple and had no intention of exposing himself when Lu Changsheng's attack began.

Lu Changsheng watched him disappear, then stepped out of the shadows and made his way toward the temple. As he walked, his Sense Domain spread across the surrounding area and penetrated deep beneath the building.

So Hidden Mountain True God is supposed to be hiding underneath the temple... Lu Changsheng reminded himself what Yang Mao had told him, but his train of thought was quickly cut short.

"Who goes there?"

"Halt!"

"You..."

The temple attendants caught sight of Lu Changsheng, but when they sensed the unfamiliar aura surrounding him, their expressions changed at once.

"An Evil God!"

"An Evil God has entered the temple!"

"How did an Evil God get into Hidden Mountain City?!"

Panic swept through the temple at once. Countless people fled in every direction, but Lu Changsheng ignored them.

Boom!

With a thunderous sound, his hundred-zhang-tall Primordial Chaos Saint Body manifested. It loomed across the night sky, radiating a brilliant light as its immense pressure descended over all of Hidden Mountain City.

"Wh-What is that?!"

"That's not the aura of the True God. This is an Evil God!"

"An Evil God has come!"

"Quick, pray to the True God..."

The commotion spread throughout the city, but the Hidden Mountain True God did not appear. Instead, the False God did.

"Impudent Evil God, how dare you step foot in Hidden Mountain City?!" the Hidden Mountain False God bellowed.

"So loud!" Lu Changsheng's hundred-zhang Saint Body casually extended a single finger, then flicked it.

Whizz!

A terrifying force surged forth, sweeping instantly toward the Hidden Mountain False God.

The Hidden Mountain False God let out a miserable scream. "Ghraaa!"

The power of faith it had mobilized offered no resistance and was pierced instantly. In the next moment, the god was blasted apart.

Lu Changsheng had destroyed a False God with a single flick of his finger! Although, the result was hardly surprising. The Hidden Mountain False God only had about the same level of strength as a Divine Ability martial artist.

However, the False God had never been his true target. He had attacked only to force the Hidden Mountain True God out of hiding.

"Rise!" Lu Changsheng's Primordial Chaos Saint Body brought its enormous palm down upon the ground.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The earth beneath the temple cracked, and the entire city of Hidden Mountain quaked. It was as if Lu Changsheng intended to turn the ground beneath the temple inside out.

At last, a cold voice rang out. "How insolent!"

The Hidden Mountain True God finally emerged from beneath the temple. Yang Mao's information had been correct; it had been hiding there all along. And as Lu Changsheng began tearing open the ground, it had no choice but to reveal itself.

The Hidden Mountain True God's body was massive too, only slightly smaller than Lu Changsheng's Saint Body, but the resemblance ended there. Their strength was vastly different.

Lu Changsheng wasted no time on words. He simply raised his fist and struck through the air. Three immeasurable divine abilities converged within the blow, each amplified several hundred times. The resulting power was vast and overwhelming, as though nothing in its path could possibly withstand it.

"Who are you?" the True God roared, its voice filled with fury. In truth, though, fear had already taken root in its heart.

It could tell from Lu Changsheng's Saint Body that its opponent was only a Martial Saint, yet it had never imagined that a Martial Saint could unleash such a terrifying attack through the Saint Body alone.

The fist had not even reached it, but the Hidden Mountain True God already felt death closing in. It knew with absolute certainty that if it failed to block the punch, it would die.

The True God gathered all its strength and unleashed every defensive measure at its disposal, but none of them made the slightest difference. The force of Lu Changsheng's punch tore through them all and struck its enormous body.

"Kyaaa!" The Hidden Mountain True God let out a shrill scream as it exploded, and its remaining form collapsed and shattered into fragments.

Just like that, Lu Changsheng had slain a True God with a single blow. In the end, there was no need for fifteen minutes.

Watching from the darkness, Yang Mao stared in disbelief. He had already confirmed Lu Changsheng's strength in the arena, but seeing Lu Changsheng kill a True God with one punch still left him utterly astounded.

True Gods were far from weak. Even the weakest among them could rival the most powerful Human Saints, and defeating one usually required several supreme Human Saints to surround it and gradually wear it down. And yet, Lu Changsheng had destroyed the Hidden Mountain True God before it could even fight back.

Slaying a True God instantly was not rare; it was completely unheard of.

The death of the Hidden Mountain True God sent a shock through the entire city. Its believers suddenly felt an emptiness within their hearts as the divine presence they had always sensed vanished without warning. They immediately understood what had happened.

"How could the True God fall?"

"Who could have killed the True God?"

"Could it be that Evil God who had infiltrated the city?"

"The great True God has fallen..."

All at once, wails of grief erupted from believers everywhere, and soon the entire city knew that the Hidden Mountain True God had perished. The fall of a True God often meant that big changes were coming.

Lu Changsheng had no intention of remaining to witness it. He swept out one hand and gathered everything left behind by the True God. Unfortunately, the True God's shattered body had produced only two large fragments and more than a dozen smaller ones, but Lu Changsheng collected them all anyway.

"Let's go, Fellow Daoist Yang," he said to Yang Mao, drawing him out from the shadows.

Then, their silhouettes turned into streaks of light and vanished southward.

The Hidden Mountain Divine Empire was bordered by Divine Kings on three sides, leaving the south as their only safe route. According to Yang Mao's estimate, they had nearly fifteen minutes before any of those Divine Kings could reach them. Therefore, both of them fled south at full speed, hoping to escape before anyone could intercept them.

However, they did not get very far.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A thunderous rumble shook the sky, and an overwhelming aura erupted directly ahead of them. A gigantic face emerged overhead, blotting out the sky. Its crushing pressure pressed down on Lu Changsheng and Yang Mao's hearts.

"How dare you two Martial Saints step foot in Hidden Mountain Divine Empire! Die!" The voice boomed across the sky like thunder as a tremendous force swept toward Lu Changsheng and Yang Mao.

"A Divine King?!" cried Yang Mao, unable to believe his eyes. "Why would there be a Divine King here?"

His investigation had confirmed that the three nearby Divine Kings ruled territories to the east, west, and north of the Hidden Mountain Divine Empire. None should have been anywhere near the southern route. Could their luck really be so terrible as to run into one by pure coincidence?

As it turned out, it truly was a matter of luck. This Divine King had come to the southern side of the Hidden Mountain Divine Empire for an entirely unrelated matter, but upon sensing the aura of Martial Saints erupting from Hidden Mountain City, it had concealed itself and waited. Rather than attacking immediately, it allowed Lu Changsheng and Yang Mao to flee in its direction before revealing itself once they were close enough, thus cutting off their escape.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

An enormous palm formed above Lu Changsheng and Yang Mao, completely covering the sky so that there was nowhere to flee.

Yang Mao immediately activated his Great Teleportation Talisman. His silhouette flickered, but instead of vanishing into the distance, he reappeared only a short way away and crashed to the ground.

Thud!

The teleportation had failed. Or rather, this area had already been sealed and locked down in advance by the Divine King's divine power.

A Great Teleportation Talisman could cross vast distances, but only through unobstructed space. Once the space had been locked down, neither Lesser Teleportation Talismans nor Great Teleportation Talismans, nor any escape techniques, were of any use.

At this point, Lu Changsheng and Yang Mao were like fish in a net before this Divine King.

Yang Mao's face turned ashen as he realized that the Divine King had anticipated their escape and sealed the area before revealing itself.

"It's over... The Divine King has trapped us in here. We have no choice but to fight... But your chances are miniscule..."

There was nothing more he could do. This was precisely why Yang Mao had always avoided taking risks. Regardless of how meticulous the plan was, one could never eliminate the element of luck.

Now, their luck had clearly run out. They had fallen into a death trap.