After struggling for quite a while, Shen Jianfeng bolstered his courage, gripping the Nine-Phased Divine Dragon Spear, and finally stepped onto the stairs.
Shui Ningxin whispered tearfully, "Thank you..."
"Ahem, don’t mention it. Although I’m doing this to help you, isn’t it also a form of training for myself? Who knows, maybe I’ll stumble upon some blessed fortune inside this Dragon Scale Divine Hall." Shen Jianfeng feigned nonchalance. "The Restrictions along this path were violently broken by someone, which is why the Spiritual Qi here is running rampant. As long as we’re careful, we should be fine."
After saying this, Shen Jianfeng immediately communicated with the Artifact Spirit of the Nine-Phased Divine Dragon Spear using his Divine Thought.
The Artifact Spirit cursed impatiently, "Shen Jianfeng, are you ever going to stop? You haven’t let me rest this entire journey. Do I have a grudge against you or something? Are you trying to torture me to death?"
"How could we have a grudge? It’s clearly destiny! As the saying goes, destiny brings people together from a thousand miles away... alright, I’ll shut up." Shen Jianfeng was a little afraid of the Artifact Spirit. After all, with his meager abilities, it was nearly impossible for him to subdue the Artifact Spirit inside. It was only kept in check because Shen Lang had helped suppress it.
"I don’t know the first thing about Restriction Arrays," Shen Jianfeng said timidly, "and this place is covered in Restrictions. That’s why I need your help."
The Artifact Spirit inside the Nine-Phased Divine Dragon Spear laughed out of pure anger. "Damn it, I am a Beast Soul! I am the Artifact Spirit of an offensive Profound Artifact! And you expect me to break arrays for you? How am I so unlucky to be stuck with a piece of trash like you? Forget breaking the array—you might as well just die! It’d be quick and clean!"
"Hey, isn’t a Beast Soul like you being a little too arrogant? No matter what, Jianfeng is your master. Don’t you think you’re going too far?" Shui Ningxin chimed in.
The Artifact Spirit scoffed coldly but did not reply. Over the past few days, it had bickered with Shui Ningxin nearly a hundred times and had basically never won. Bickering was an innate talent for almost all women. Only an idiot would bicker with a woman, and only a lunatic would argue with one. Having suffered a few losses, the Artifact Spirit had long since learned its lesson.
Shen Jianfeng quickly tried to pacify it. "I only asked you because you’re a Beast Soul. You’re naturally highly sensitive to danger! Based on my experience, the Restrictions on these stairs have already been broken. You just need to sense them and find a safe path, and then we can easily head up."
The Artifact Spirit nearly died from exasperation. "You just said you don’t know the first thing about Restriction Arrays! Where did this ’experience’ come from? You don’t know shit! Do you think you’re Shen Lang? You little bastard, you’re treating me like a damn dog!"
Shen Jianfeng shook his head repeatedly. "No, no! How could a dog ever compare to you? You’re far more amazing than a dog. Even a hundred dogs couldn’t match you!"
The words sounded extremely strange. The Artifact Spirit felt something was wrong, but it couldn’t quite figure out what. Left with no choice, it gloomily followed Shen Jianfeng’s instructions. If it refused, Shen Jianfeng would nag it for three days and three nights. With Shui Ningxin assisting him, they could talk a dead person back to life!
The shaft of the Nine-Phased Divine Dragon Spear trembled and transformed into a blood-red giant python with a single horn. The python flicked its tongue, glanced around, and spoke in a human voice. "Follow behind me. Damn it, exactly how much did I owe you in my past life?"
"Hehehe, I knew you were amazing, little python. Don’t worry, we won’t fall behind." Shen Jianfeng let out a cheeky laugh and immediately followed behind the blood-red giant python.
The Restrictions along these stairs, the Hungry Ghost Dao, and other inevitable paths had already been completely dismantled. Furthermore, there were basically no other Powerhouses left on the path. The Demon Beasts at the various Light Cards had either been killed or had fled, leaving the area as safe as could be. Capitalizing on this stroke of luck, Shen Jianfeng followed the giant python upward step by step without the slightest hindrance, advancing more leisurely and comfortably than anyone else.
As Shen Jianfeng made his way up, the first-floor platform was utterly silent. However, the Fifth Floor platform was incredibly lively.
Taotie led a group of subordinates, hunting Candle Dragon down so relentlessly that the latter had no path to heaven and no door to the earth. When Emperor Martial Realm Powerhouses made their move, their clashes were Earth-Shattering, shaking the mountains and tearing the ground!
Unfortunately for the peerless Fierce Beast Candle Dragon, its true body was still recuperating from injuries. Only an avatar had come here, bringing along a single Emperor Martial Realm powerhouse as a subordinate. As a result, it was ganged up on by several powerhouses from the Taotie Lineage, suffering miserably and fleeing in panic. It only managed to keep its life by relying on the Restrictions within the Dragon Scale Divine Hall. However, the members of the Candle Dragon Lineage who had entered the Yumu Cave Blessed Land were now scattered and broken, with the majority already eradicated by Taotie. Even the Emperor Martial Realm powerhouse had been severely injured by Taotie, left clinging to half a life.
Black Phoenix Lin Yafeng had found Xue Dangdang to mediate the conflict. This should have quickly put an end to all the chaos. Yet, her plan completely failed due to the appearance of the White Banner Master, Bai Luobing.
At this moment, Taotie’s forces were hunting Candle Dragon in the area between the Fourth Floor and the Fifth Floor. Meanwhile, Lin Yafeng and Xue Dangdang were intercepted by Bai Luobing, the White Banner Master of the Five-Colored Banner from the War God Hall. No matter what they tried, they could not shake him off!
"Bai Luobing, what exactly do you want? Do you really think I’m afraid of you?!" Lin Yafeng’s exceptionally ugly face twisted into an even more terrifying visage out of anger. Her Cultivation was on par with Bai Luobing’s; both were above the Five Great Demon Generals of the Demon God Hall. However, because she was desperate to rush over and stop Taotie from killing Candle Dragon, she had suffered a few hidden losses. More importantly, since she had to protect Xue Dangdang, she had fallen entirely into a disadvantageous position under Bai Luobing’s hands after a few exchanges.
The White Banner Master, Bai Luobing, was rumored to be the most mysterious and unpredictable among the Five-Color Banner Masters. He was intelligent, exceedingly knowledgeable, and deeply resourceful, possessing heaven-shaking Cultivation. He was a thorn in the side of the Demon God Hall. Although Lin Yafeng possessed the constitution of a Phoenix and her Cultivation was a notch higher than that of Taotie and Candle Dragon, she still lacked the strength to truly defeat him. Not to mention, she was currently dragging Dingdang along...
Seeing Bai Luobing standing in the void ahead with his hands clasped behind his back, completely sealing off all forward paths, Lin Yafeng was driven mad with rage! Yet, she dared not make a reckless move. After roaming the Star Continent unchecked for so many years, this was the first time she had felt so stifled!
"I don’t want anything in particular, nor do I think Miss Lin would be afraid of Mr. Bai. It’s just that it’s been a long time since we last met, and I wanted to keep Miss Lin here for a little chat," Bai Luobing said with an unhurried grace, his white robes fluttering in the air.
At this moment, Bai Luobing’s face was no longer obscured by a layer of mist, revealing his true features. His face was like flawless jade, gentle and scholarly. He radiated no arrogant aura nor displayed sharp gazes, yet simply standing there with his hands behind his back fully exhibited the demeanor of a grandmaster, exuding a presence that commanded admiration.
Lin Yafeng rolled her eyes, her furious expression vanishing instantly, replaced by a soft, coquettish demeanor. "Oh? Has the illustrious White Banner Master taken a liking to me? I knew it. You must have a secret crush on me. Otherwise, why would you seek me out time and again instead of Lan Mengling and the others?" Lin Yafeng said as she shot Bai Luobing a seductive wink.
The lethality of this wink was by no means small. Had it been any other Emperor Martial Realm powerhouse, they would have probably thrown up their dinner, if not coughed up blood. However, Bai Luobing maintained his gentle and elegant appearance. His gaze toward Lin Yafeng remained entirely unchanged from beginning to end.
"Outrageous! This Bai Luobing is exactly as the rumors say—immune to everything!" Lin Yafeng fumed inwardly, though the smile on her face grew even more radiant. "Actually, it makes sense. For a peerless beauty like me with a face like the moon and flowers, there are simply too many people secretly pining for me. It’s just a pity that I’m already a married woman..."
Xue Dangdang, standing by her side, could barely tolerate it, yet Bai Luobing merely smiled faintly, remaining completely unperturbed.
Lin Yafeng continued, "Regardless, since you’ve already confessed your feelings to me, calling me Miss Lin is a bit too distant... Call me Ms Lin, won’t you?"
Bai Luobing nodded. "Alright, Ms Lin."
Lin Yafeng was slightly dumbfounded. If it were anyone else, they would have already suffered internal injuries or fled hundreds of miles away by now. Yet Bai Luobing hadn’t even batted an eye, and he directly accepted the title "Ms Lin"!
"By the way, Brother Bing, did you stop me because you want to prevent me from mediating between Taotie and Candle Dragon?" Lin Yafeng let out a charming laugh.
Bai Luobing smiled and nodded. "Exactly. So I can only wrong you a little and ask you to stay here and chat with me for a while."
"Your mother!" Lin Yafeng spat out through gritted teeth.
A smile still hung on Bai Luobing’s face as he spoke softly and slowly, as if chatting with a close friend. "I wonder who the little girl beside you is? It seems you care for her very much, Ms Lin? You’d rather use your own body to block my Ice Palm Force than let her suffer the slightest bit of harm. However, as far as I know, you do not have any children."
Lin Yafeng was alarmed, realizing the opponent had seen through her excessive caution regarding Dingdang. If Bai Luobing shifted his focus to Dingdang, things would become extremely troublesome...
"Sister Lin, just leave me here and fight this man without holding back. You don’t need to worry about me; he can’t do anything to me," Xue Dangdang said proudly.
A strange glint flashed through Bai Luobing’s eyes before he chuckled again. "I have no feud with you, Ms Lin, nor do I enjoy bullying children. If possible, it would be best if we didn’t fight. You just need to wait here for three days."
Completely outmaneuvered by her opponent, Lin Yafeng roared, her eyes surging with monstrous Evil Qi. "You certainly plotted this out well! You want to intercept me here, let Candle Dragon and the others fight until both sides are severely wounded, and then make your move, right?"
Bai Luobing nodded frankly. "Exactly."
Lin Yafeng was furious to the extreme. If they were in the Demon God Hall and she flared up like this, even the Five Great Demon Generals would have to back down. However, facing Bai Luobing of the War God Hall, she had absolutely no way to counter him. If Dingdang weren’t here, given her temperament, she would absolutely engage Bai Luobing in a massive battle to the death. But with Dingdang present, she absolutely could not allow even a single mishap. What if Bai Luobing had left a backup plan, or if other War God Hall powerhouses were hiding nearby, waiting for an opportunity to strike at Dingdang?
Lin Yafeng let out a charming laugh, switching her demeanor once again. "Very well. It really has been a long time since we last met. Having a heart-to-heart chat isn’t a bad idea."
She actually went down, found a clean bluestone, and sat down with Xue Dangdang. Meanwhile, Bai Luobing kept a constant smile on his face as he also descended, taking a seat three hundred meters opposite the Black Phoenix.
Amidst this bizarre atmosphere... a strange, purple-robed figure materialized out of thin air right beside Xue Dangdang!
The Purple-robed Person mentioned by Lu Qianqiu, the one who had sealed the Dragon Race with a single palm... had appeared silently in front of Xue Dangdang, wearing a mask!
Yet the most terrifying part was that both the Black Phoenix and Bai Luobing, despite being at the Emperor Martial Realm Late Stage, remained completely oblivious, entirely unaware that a mysterious person had just appeared on the scene!