Up to now, at least more than half of the experts and forces that gathered around had retreated.
Ding Hao defeated most of his opponents without spilling a drop of blood.
“Well, are you going to attack me as well?” Ding Hao looked at a figure shrouded in purple light in the distance. He was also a Martial Sage expert.
“I would never give up the Sky-fleeing Stone Key. What’s more, you killed my nephew, Zi Xiong. Today, it’s time for us to settle the score,” the figure wreathed in purple flames sneered.
He was Dugu Wuji, the younger brother of the city lord of the Purple Cloud City which was a major force in the Divine Central Continent. Although his face was hidden, Ding Hao recognized him at a glance. He was one of those few Human Clan sages who colluded with Yue Tianxing to make things difficult for Yu Miejue in the Towering Buddha Pagoda. Ding Hao didn’t expect that he was also here.
Ding Hao said disdainfully, “Even the aggressive and bloodthirsty Demon Clan will be grateful, but a Human Clan sage like you would have the nerve to say such words.”
The purple flame around Dugu Wuji’s body gradually dissipated, revealing his old and withered body inside. There were deep wrinkles and spots on his face, and his body exuded a strong smell of death and decay.
He was neither angry nor sinister, just said, “At that time, you did save my life by killing the Spirit of the Dead. Well, I won’t blame you for Zi Xiong’s death now. However, as you can see, my life is coming to an end and I don’t have many days left in this world. Haha, resentment or gratitude is just a thing of the past. Now I just want to live, so I must get the Sky-fleeing Stone Key. I will even kill biological parents if they stand in the way of getting it!”
“You have no sense of shame!” Ding Hao was angry.
He was simply worse than an animal by saying this.
Dugu Wuji said with a sneer, “When you are old and near your ends, you will know how beautiful life is and how reluctant you are to leave the world. However, you don’t get these because you are only in your early twenties. How young you are, and I can even smell the warm sunshine on you. But time and tide wait for no man. Ding Hao, you will meet your ends one day even if you are in the divine realm. At that time, you will feel what I feel today.”
“Even if one has to die, he should have the dignity and pride of the strong,” Ding Hao said.
“That’s true, but easier said than done.” Dugu Wuji laughed and said, “I know you’re very strong and I can’t do anything to you, but if you don’t hand over the Sky-fleeing Stone Key, I’ll kill all the people in Qing River Town today and the people of the Swordsmanship-seeking Sect. What’s more, I’ll kill those you care about and those closest to you until you compromise. I already have one foot in the grave, so I’m ready to risk everything. Haha, I’m not worried about your blood oath!”
“You are getting yourself death!” Ding Hao was burning with the intention to murder.
Dugu Wuji laughed grimly and indifferently. “If I can’t get the Sky-fleeing Stone Key, I’ll die too. I’ll die anyway, so why don’t I have a try?”
“Then you die now!”
Before Ding Hao had finished his words, he took action in an instant.
In the blink of an eye, he was in front of Dugu Wuji, holding the magic sword in his left hand. The blade emitted red light and cut Dugu Wuji’s body into two halves.
“Hahaha… I’ve seen your strength, so I will definitely be prepared.”
Dugu Wuji’s voice came from afar.
There was no blood flowing out from the cut body. It turned out to be a Puppet of War who looked like a vivid person and deceived everyone. Dugu Wuji used this substitute to make a sound and completely concealed his real body.
Now that an expert in the sage realm was making every effort of concealing himself, Ding Hao could not find any traces for a while.
“Haha, Ding Hao, think about it carefully. You can’t always protect everyone. If you don’t want to have a taste of losing your loved ones, then hand over the Sky-fleeing Stone Key…” Dugu Wuji’s vicious voice came from the distance.
Furious as Ding Hao was, he could do nothing for a while.
Almost at the same time-
“Kill!” A metallic noise came. The Puppet Army of Flaming Metal all over the sky, like a strong tide, suddenly rushed madly towards Ding Hao. Just in an instant, this serene world became chaotic, and the puppet army flooded in like hot lava.
All of a sudden, Ding Hao was drowned in the red flood.
He took a deep breath, held a sword in his hand, and released all his physical strength to fight against the army like a furious dragon with a human body.
Both the Devil Saber and the Rusted Sword were divine weapons that could cut off iron easily. With a little infusion of Qi, they could knock away any approaching metal puppets. Deep cracks appeared on the bright red metal bodies, revealing their mottled and exquisite components. It could be seen that these metal puppets burning with the power of fire were really wonderful works of art.
“What a powerful puppet army. Such a sharp Rusted Sword and a Devil Saber can’t cut off them” Ding Hao was slightly surprised.
The bodies of these puppets were covered with dense inscription formations, and their bodies were made of dense gold, which were extremely hard and powerful.
Ding Hao soon realized that every single metal puppet was as powerful as a master in the peak of the Martial Grand Emperor realm. What’s worse, these puppets had no wisdom or feelings, so they didn’t know what fear was. Hundreds of puppets moved methodically and collaborated with each other closely. With nearly invulnerable bodies and boundless energy, the whole puppet army was even more powerful and horrible than the Martial Grand Emperor.
If an ordinary master or even a Half-step Martial Sage was trapped in such a formation, he would have no way out but death.
Ding Hao fought against the enemy with his Devil Saber and the Rusted Sword, and at the same time, he carefully observed the inscriptions on the surface of the puppet army. Those inscriptions, which were as thin as hair and extremely beautiful, carried different capabilities that could dominate the movements and attacks of the puppet army. Ding Hao himself was a master of inscription, so he could easily understand the implications.
“These puppets, so quaint and ancient, seemed to be passed down from the Archean Period instead of being created in modern times… Could it be that the commander of the army was an old monster who had already existed for a hundred thousand years?”
Ding Hao looked at the huge luxurious carriage in the distance in surprise.
It was bizarre as even a god-level master could not have an age of a hundred thousand years.
“I’ve already trapped him. Everybody, what are you waiting for? Hurry up and search for the Sky-fleeing Stone Key.” A mechanical cold voice came from the huge luxurious carriage.
After hearing what he said, other masters around were tempted and ready to rush into Qing River Town.
Ding Hao was shocked and did not hesitate anymore. He suddenly activated all his Divine Senses to awake the golden light ball in his mind. Now his forehead was excruciatingly painful, then it cracked, and at last, a wonderful golden eye appeared. It looked as if a divine opened his eyes indifferently, bringing out a streak of golden light and immediately penetrating this world.
The golden light from the eye swept through the flaming metal puppets layer by layer, and then it pierced through the enormous luxurious carriage.
It was as though the light could make all the secrets in the world exposed.
“Ah…” An extremely frightening roar came from the carriage in the distance. It sounded as if it had encountered something extremely horrible.
At the same time…
“I got it. Haha, I see!”
Ding Hao laughed.
His powerful Divine Senses spread out like a tide, covering all the surrounding the Flaming Metal Puppet Army and the huge luxurious carriage in the distance. Layers of transparent ripples slid over the void, causing waves of wrinkles. Then something incredible happened-
All of the puppets suddenly stopped attacking.
It was as though the formation within the puppets had suddenly failed and then they froze.
“Hahaha, thank you!” Ding Hao’s laughter echoed in the sky.
“No…” A panicked voice came from the huge metal carriage. It sounded as if his mother died.
In the next moment, the Flaming Metal Puppets Army which had been frozen just now regained their energy and began to move. However, they did not attack Ding Hao this time. Instead, they turned around to point their weapons and spears at the huge metal carriage and surround it in the middle.
“How could this be possible? How could you understand this secret formation?” A panicked voice came from the giant metal carriage.
Ding Hao suddenly appeared on the shaft of the carriage after a flash. With a cold snort, he reached out and pulled a short figure out of the carriage directly.
He was only about one meter tall and looked like a child, but there were already some wrinkles on his face, and his long beard and gray hair showed that he was no longer young. As for the short figure… the inscription master who led the huge Flaming Metal Puppet Army was a born ugly dwarf.
The dwarf struggled in horror, but he could no longer control the Flaming Metal Puppet Army and the luxurious metal carriage, and he only had limited capability, not even in the Martial King Realm. Therefore, in Ding Hao’s hands, he was like a weak chick that was unable to resist at all.
This scene made many experts around extremely surprised.
The Flaming Metal Puppet Army, also called the Death Flaming Army, was a force that could not be understated on the Divine Central Continent. It was an organization of mercenaries who earned money by killing others. It had once broken through many sects of the Human Clan and the forces of the Demon Clan, and even some Martial Sage experts were killed by this army. Many people speculated that it was controlled by a powerful inscription expert in the Saint level. However, no one had ever been able to get close to the carriage and open the door to see who sat inside.
Just like the Devil Hall, this Flaming Metal Puppet Army was a mysterious force.
