110: Tang Long, who was imprisoned

Shen Xiaochuan stood on the head of the Azure Dragon, the wind blowing against his face.

He did not move, his eyes fixed on that door.

Just now, he had felt that something was wrong inside.

It wasn't the feeling of a fight, nor was it a barrier being destroyed.

It was a weak, intermittent fluctuation of a battle soul, as if it were being pressed deep underground, about to vanish.

But he recognized this aura.

"Tang Long... is still alive," he whispered.

Shen Yan's voice came through the communicator: "Brother Shen, the East District is cleared. We didn't see the target."

Ling Feng continued: "The South Wing is sealed. The enemy has retreated to the Main Hall."

Yang Lie also reported: "The West District warehouse is burning. They can't escape."

Shen Xiaochuan raised his hand, interrupting everyone.

He closed his eyes and used his Divine Thought to probe towards the Main Hall, passing through walls, passing through the Formation, and going straight down until he hit a thick layer of Seal.

Beneath the Seal, there was the sound of iron chains.

A man was hung on a pillar, with two black iron chains pierced through his shoulders, blood dripping down the chains onto the ground.

His face was too swollen to be recognizable, but his eyes were still open, staring straight ahead.

Anbei Jinshi's voice came out from the crack in the door, sounding a bit panicked: "Shen Xiaochuan! If you take one more step forward, I will make him Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering!"

The door opened a crack, and light shone onto the steps.

Tang Long's shadow was cast on the wall.

Shen Xiaochuan opened his eyes, his gaze turning cold.

He raised his right hand and waved it backward.

The three major legions stopped immediately.

The armored vehicles cut their engines, the soldiers put away their weapons, and they stood in a row.

No one spoke.

Shen Xiaochuan looked down at the crack in the door, his voice not loud: "What did you do to him?"

Anbei Jinshi sneered: "What did I do? When I dug him out from underground, he was almost dead."

"The fact that he can still breathe now is because I left him with one breath."

"What do you want?"

"It's very simple," Anbei Jinshi said. "You take your people and retreat, retreat ten miles away. I will return him to you, alive."

Shen Xiaochuan did not speak.

He knew the other party was stalling for time.

The more panicked such people are, the more they talk.

Reinforcements hadn't arrived, and the other party couldn't hold out for much longer.

He closed his eyes, let his Divine Thought sink down, and gently touched Tang Long's consciousness.

In that instant, an extremely weak message was transmitted back.

— — Don't worry about me... destroy the city... annihilate the evil...

There were only three phrases, intermittent and carrying the stench of blood.

Shen Xiaochuan opened his eyes, his palms heating up.

He understood what Tang Long meant.

This man would rather die than become a bargaining chip for the enemy.

Anbei Jinshi was still shouting: "I know what you're thinking! You think I don't dare to kill him? I can do it right now!"

As he roared, someone inside responded.

Then Tang Long's body shuddered, and a mouthful of blood sprayed out.

Shen Xiaochuan clenched his fists.

But he did not order an attack.

He knew that as soon as he made a move, the self-destruct Formation inside would be triggered.

The location where Tang Long was held was the core of the Main Hall.

Once they attacked by force, he would be the first to be blown up.

Shen Xiaochuan suddenly said: "I can retreat."

Anbei Jinshi was stunned for a moment: "What did you say?"

Shen Xiaochuan looked at the crack in the door and said every word clearly: "I can retreat, but you must release him first and hand him over to me before I will leave."

"Impossible!" Anbei Jinshi immediately refused. "Do you think I'm stupid? You'll attack as soon as you get him!"

"Then do you intend to keep him locked up forever?" Shen Xiaochuan said in a calm tone. "You won't last ten minutes."

"All three hundred strongholds outside have been lost; your reinforcements cannot arrive."

"You use him as a bargaining chip, but in fact, you also know that you have already lost."

Anbei Jinshi was silent for a few seconds.

Then he laughed: "Lost? I haven't lost. As long as I am still standing, the flag of Great Dongying will not fall!"

He shouted loudly: "Shen Xiaochuan! If you don't retreat, I will kill him right now! If you retreat, he might still live! This is your only choice!"

Shen Xiaochuan looked down at his own hand.

A golden pattern appeared on his palm, like a chain, slowly rotating.

He whispered: "How long do you think this door can hold?"

Anbei Jinshi didn't hear clearly: "What?"

Shen Xiaochuan looked up, his gaze piercing through the crack in the door, as if he saw the man kneeling inside.

"I said," his voice was not loud, but everyone could hear it clearly, "you use a hero as a bargaining chip, but you don't know—in my eyes, you aren't even worthy of carrying his shoes."

Anbei Jinshi's expression changed: "You dare—"

Before he could finish his sentence.

Shen Xiaochuan suddenly raised his right hand.

"Heavenly Punishment."

A golden chain shot out from his palm, as thick as an arm, moving too fast to be seen.

It pierced directly through the door, tore open the Eight-Headed Serpent barrier, and rushed into the Main Hall.

The chain first wrapped around Anbei Jinshi's neck and pulled hard, lifting his entire body up.

His feet left the ground, his hands grabbed the chain, and his face quickly turned red.

Others in the hall were also bound by the golden chains and all knelt down.

Just as a warlock was about to chant a spell, the chain choked his throat, and he spat out a mouthful of blood, unable to speak another word.

Shen Xiaochuan stood on the head of the Azure Dragon, motionless.

The golden chains spread beneath his feet, covering the entire Main Hall like a net.

Anbei Jinshi struggled, his throat making a gurgling sound: "Impossible... How dare you... use Heavenly Punishment... That is a power only gods can use..."

Shen Xiaochuan ignored him.

His Divine Thought continued to sink down, passing through the Seal, and landed on Tang Long.

Although that man had iron chains pierced through his body, he was still conscious.

He heard the voice outside and knew who had come.

He moved his mouth without making a sound, but Shen Xiaochuan understood.

— — Kill him.

Shen Xiaochuan nodded, as if responding.

He looked down at the locked-up Anbei Jinshi, his voice cold: "You have no right to negotiate terms. You also have no right to mention his name."

Anbei Jinshi's eyes widened, still wanting to speak.

Shen Xiaochuan raised his hand, and the golden chain tightened.

The other party immediately rolled his eyes and passed out.

Shen Xiaochuan did not stop.

More golden chains rose from the ground, drilled into the depths of the Main Hall, wrapped around the supporting pillars, and tightened around the nodes of the Formation.

The entire Main Hall began to shake.

In the dungeon, Tang Long looked up and saw a crack open in the stone wall above his head.

A ray of light shone on his face.

He blinked, not closing his eyes.

He knew that this battle was over.

Shen Xiaochuan stood on the head of the Azure Dragon, looking at the door of the Main Hall.

The door was still there, but it was crooked.

The golden chains drilled through the crack in the door, growing inward like tree roots.

He raised his hand, and the golden pattern on his palm slowly disappeared.

No one in the three major legions spoke, all of them looking at him.

Shen Yan gripped his hammer and asked in a low voice: "Brother Shen, what's the next step?"

Shen Xiaochuan did not answer.

He lifted his foot and took a step forward.

This step landed in the air.

The Azure Dragon flew forward half a meter.

Shen Xiaochuan was now directly facing the Main Hall door, thirty meters away.

He looked at the door and said, "Open the door."