276: Covering my face with a brocade handkerchief, I have no regrets in this life!

It's over... everything is over... The Empress Dowager looked at the human tragedy before her, at her son's pale face, and at the loyal officials and righteous warriors falling one after another, feeling only dizzy and utterly despairing.

The brocade handkerchief she had held tightly in her hand, due to this immense shock and despair, could no longer be gripped and slipped silently from her trembling fingers.

The brocade handkerchief, like a dying butterfly in the wind, drifted down, falling towards the ground.

“Whoosh—!”

An extremely subtle, yet sharp enough to pierce the stagnant air, whooshing sound erupted without warning!

The source of the sound was not from anyone within the Hall, but from outside the open main gate of the Hall of Celestial Purity, from the direction where the morning sun was rising!

A cold gleam!

A cold gleam, so fast that it surpassed the limits of visual capture, as if it condensed time, Karma, and inevitability, like an instant teleportation, before the sound even reached everyone's ears, it had already traversed the entire square, flashing past Zhu Wushi's eyes.

“Puff!”

A soft sound, like a hot knife cutting into butter.

That silver gleam, with unparalleled precision, plunged into Yuan Shisanxian's throat.

It was a dagger!

A three-inch, seven-fen long flying dagger, forged from ice, emitting a chilling cold light!

Little Li Flying Dagger!

Double speed + Heavenly Demon Disintegration Skill + Ice-Fire Acceleration + Little Li Flying Dagger + sneak attack!

A flicker of shock crossed Yuan Shisanxian's face; his mind hadn't even processed it before it froze.

His pupils rapidly dilated, and in their scattered depths, the dark figure standing with his hands behind his back, who had appeared outside the Hall at some unknown point, was reflected.

He hadn't even been able to react, not even a complete expression of astonishment had fully emerged.

The flying dagger contained not only unparalleled speed and precision, but also a terrifying killing intent that severed life and extinguished the Soul, destroying all of his vitality the instant he was struck!

And almost at the exact same moment the flying dagger plunged into Yuan Shisanxian's throat!

A dark figure, like a black lightning bolt, followed the flying dagger with astonishing speed, appearing before Yuan Shisanxian!

It was Lu Jiuyuan!

He was expressionless, his eyes cold.

The moment he appeared, his right hand, with fingers like hooks, had already covered Yuan Shisanxian's crown!

“Yuan Shisanxian!”

Without the slightest hesitation, without a trace of mercy.

His five fingers exerted force, a grip and a twist!

“Crack—!”

A bone-chilling sound of a skull shattering exploded!

Yuan Shisanxian's withered head, like a watermelon smashed by a heavy hammer, burst on the spot!

Red and white matter splattered!

And the headless corpse, still maintaining a standing posture, swayed before softly collapsing to the ground.

At the same time, Lu Jiuyuan took a step, appearing beside the Empress Dowager, and with a casual flick of his left hand downwards, steadily caught the brocade handkerchief that was about to fall to the ground.

“We meet again!”

All of this happened in a flash of lightning!

From the flying dagger piercing the air, to Yuan Shisanxian's throat being struck, then to Lu Jiuyuan appearing, crushing his skull, and catching the brocade handkerchief, the entire process was fluid and fast beyond the limits of ordinary human thought!

It wasn't until Yuan Shisanxian's headless corpse hit the ground with a dull thud that everyone inside and outside the Hall seemed to awaken from an extremely unreal dream!

“My son’s Imperial Uncle!!” The Empress Dowager was the first to exclaim in a choked voice, filled with unbelievable ecstasy.

“Imperial Uncle!!” Cheng Shifei, Yunluo, and the Emperor were also incredibly agitated, the joy of escaping death washing away their previous despair.

“Imperial Uncle!!” This was Emotionless, Cold Blood, Iron Hand, Life Chaser!

The composure and indifferent control on Zhu Wushi's face showed cracks for the first time.

His pupils suddenly constricted to pinprick size, staring intently at the suddenly appeared Lu Jiuyuan, and that freshly created headless corpse.

A bone-chilling sense of crisis, like a venomous snake, instantly coiled around his spine!

Yuan Shisanxian is dead!

Right before his eyes, he was pierced through the throat by a dagger, immediately followed by his skull being decisively crushed!

Even he only managed to catch a glimpse of the dazzling cold light of the flying dagger, but couldn't fully perceive how Yuan Shisanxian was struck.

This speed, this ruthlessness, this absolute dominance of effortlessly taking the life of a top master under countless gazes... “Lu, Jiu, Yuan!”

Zhu Wushi almost squeezed out these three words from between his teeth, his voice carrying a dryness he himself hadn't noticed.

“You're actually not dead! Yuan Shisanxian clearly said he killed you!”

Lu Jiuyuan slowly raised his head, his gaze calmly fixed on Zhu Wushi.

“Those who don't know how to finish the job will never kill me!”

“Lord Protector, how do you wish to die?”

“You can't kill me! I absorbed Cao Zhengchun's Tiangang Boy Art, and I also absorbed Zhuge Zhengwo's Half Brocade.

Now, I am Invincible Vajra; the more severe my injuries, the stronger my recovery.

You can't kill me!”

Lu Jiuyuan turned to look at the Empress Dowager, smiling as he asked, “Is this handkerchief suitable for this moment?”

“Good!” The Empress Dowager nodded, looking at Zhu Wushi: “It's perfectly suitable for this moment!”

“Iron Valiant Divine Marquis, please die in peace!”

Lu Jiuyuan took a step, his entire body's thick Earth True Qi, Essence, Qi, and Spirit, skin, tendons, and bones merged, and his whole body became golden and resplendent.

With the second step, his aura surged again, the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Skill activated, and the Ice True Qi and Flame True Qi instantly became violent.

With the third step, the Ice-Fire True Qi collided, circulating within his Invincible Vajra Meridians at dozens of times the normal speed.

How fast were these three steps?

The moment Lu Jiuyuan's words fell, he had already transformed into a golden-red stream of light that pierced through heaven and earth!

Zhu Wushi didn't even have time to assume a complete defensive posture; he only saw Lu Jiuyuan's figure blur and stretch in place, and the next moment, an indescribable destructive force had already reached him!

That was not a fist, nor a palm, nor a finger, nor a sword.

That was Lu Jiuyuan transforming himself into an indestructible, human-shaped divine sword, imbued with endless fury and a will to kill!

“No—!!!”

Zhu Wushi only managed to let out a short, terrified roar, frantically pushing the Heavenly Dipper Primordial Energy and Half Brocade Internal Energy he had just absorbed and not yet fully integrated to their limits, causing a substantial, scorching white light shield to erupt around him!

“Boom!!!!!!!!”

The human-sword and the light shield violently collided!

There was no stalemate, no neutralization.

The protective Qi shield, which condensed Zhu Wushi's eight hundred years of cultivation and was known as “Invincible Vajra, stronger with more injuries,” shattered like paper under the impact of the golden-red stream of light, unable to block even for an instant!

The stream of light passed through his body!

Time seemed to freeze at this moment.

Lu Jiuyuan's figure appeared ten zhang behind Zhu Wushi, his back to him, slowly straightening his body, the golden light and violent aura around him receding like a tide, returning to his normal dark robe state.

And Zhu Wushi remained frozen in place, still in the posture of blocking with his arms and pushing his cultivation.

He looked down, disbelievingly at his chest.

There, a huge, front-to-back transparent hole had replaced the original position of his chest.

The edges were charred black, as if scorched by flames, yet also covered with a layer of glistening frost, emitting a chilling cold.

No blood gushed out, because all the tissue was completely annihilated by the extreme high temperature and cold in that instant.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but no sound came out.

The ambition, madness, and terror in his eyes, like a flickering candle in the wind, quickly extinguished, finally turning into a dead, ashen gray.

The Half Brocade's characteristic, touted as “stronger with more injuries,” became a ridiculous joke in the face of this absolute, instantaneous, and complete destruction.

Injury requires a process of endurance and transformation.

But when the body enduring is completely annihilated in an instant, even the strongest recovery ability is meaningless.

“Thud...”

Zhu Wushi's powerful body fell forward, heavily hitting the cold white marble floor, half of his face landing, kicking up a bit of dust.

“Su Xin... I'm sorry... I can't do it...”

This Iron Valiant Divine Marquis, who had painstakingly schemed for decades, absorbed countless powers, calculated every move, and was just one step away from ascending to the throne,

Ultimately, he died before the palace where his dreams began, died within the ambition he believed made him invincible.

Lu Jiuyuan loosened his hand, and the brocade handkerchief in his hand slowly floated, flying a long distance, covering Zhu Wushi's side face.

Inside and outside the Hall of Celestial Purity, there was a deathly silence.

Everyone was so shocked by this earth-shattering, yet so swiftly ended scene, that they were speechless.

From Lu Jiuyuan's appearance, to the flying dagger severing the throat, crushing Yuan Shisanxian's skull, and then transforming into a sword to instantly kill Zhu Wushi, the entire process took only a mere ten breaths!

Fast! Ruthless! Precise!

Absolutely overbearing, sweeping everything before him!

“D-dead?” Cheng Shifei muttered to himself, rubbing his eyes, seemingly unable to believe it.

“Dead! Zhu Tie Dan is dead! Imperial Uncle won!”

Princess Yunluo suddenly jumped up, excitedly grabbing Cheng Shifei's arm, crying and laughing.