Chapter 205: Gold Powerhouses in a Chaotic Melee

"Uncle Gluttony, I'll leave Shentu Lie to you. I'm going to deal with the small fry, but I'll come back to help later!" Ever the opportunist, Taoist Priest Xuanqing turned and charged straight at the Law Enforcement Bureau elites.

These elites numbered over a hundred, all drafted from nearby major cities. The weakest among them was at Bronze Stage 3, while the strongest had reached Silver 3.

They looked like a formidable force, but in terms of true strength, even a hundred of them couldn't match a single Gold powerhouse. Living by his personal motto of self-preservation, Taoist Priest Xuanqing eagerly picked the easiest targets.

Yan Moxie didn't waste breath on banter, launching an immediate attack on Shentu Lie.

Having watched the confrontation from the shadows, he had fully pieced together the whole story. The Seven Deadly Sins must have known about Sikong Zhen's disguise all along—otherwise, why would Envy have ambushed him from behind?

A swarm of Shadow Magic Orbs blotted out the sky as they plummeted toward Shentu Lie. With a furious roar, grotesque masses of flesh erupted from Shentu Lie's body. His frame violently expanded, transforming him in the blink of an eye into a five-meter-tall giant of writhing flesh and blood. Howling, he swung his massive arms and smashed all the incoming Shadow Magic Orbs to pieces.

Gold Law: [Giant Demon]!

Yan Moxie recognized Shentu Lie's Law at a glance, apprehension flickering in his eyes. He was an assassin by trade, while Shentu Lie was undeniably a meat-shield warrior—the absolute worst enemy for an assassin to face.

With the man's thick skin and sheer bulk, even landing multiple strikes would have little decisive effect.

Faced with the charging Shentu Lie, he could only continuously leap through the shadows and attack from a distance.

"You damned flea, is jumping around all you know?" Shentu Lie bellowed, shattering rocks and cratering the ground with his every step. "Fight me head-on if you have the guts!"

Compared to Yan Moxie's disadvantage, Xueyuan was faring far worse. Already injured, he couldn't bring out his full strength and was utterly suppressed by Sikong Zhen. The relentless lightning flashing across the sky stifled the regenerative abilities the Blood Clan so proudly relied upon.

Every time he tried to heal, Sikong Zhen would blast him with a thunderbolt. The strike would leave his entire body paralyzed, instantly destroying the freshly regenerated flesh.

Most critically, the two had entirely different mindsets. Sikong Zhen believed he was trapped in a desperate situation, convinced his only chance of winning was to kill Envy first.

Xueyuan, meanwhile, just wanted to flee. As far as he was concerned, regardless of whether the Law Enforcement Bureau or the Seven Deadly Sins won, he would hardly meet a good end.

Tactically, the correct choice would have been for the nimble Yan Moxie to fight Sikong Zhen, while Xueyuan, with his blood manipulation, dealt with a pure melee brawler like Shentu Lie.

But how could Su Mu let them have their way?

He had orchestrated all of this from the shadows for the sole purpose of draining their strength to the absolute limit.

Out of everyone on the battlefield, only he and Taoist Priest Xuanqing knew the truth: there was no Seven Deadly Sins. The whole thing was a bluff.

When venturing out in the world, one's identity was entirely self-given.

Xueyuan had assigned himself the identity of Envy, Sikong Zhen was Greed, and Yan Moxie was Gluttony.

All three men had put on these masks themselves. Since they had donned the masks of the Seven Deadly Sins, they naturally had to do the work of the Seven Deadly Sins.

The truth was that this so-called Seven Deadly Sins was just an elaborate deception that had the Revolutionary Army, the Blood Clan, and the Chiyan Empire spinning in circles. It pitted them against one another in mutual paranoia, forcing them to hide their true identities and ultimately form the Seven Deadly Sins themselves!

"Is this what it feels like to make fools of Gold powerhouses? How amusing." With his true body hidden within the dream realm, Su Mu smiled. Behind his Tinted Glasses, his eyes gleamed with such intense excitement that a morbid flush colored his pale cheeks.

Suddenly, he shifted his gaze to the besieged Taoist Priest Xuanqing and sent a telepathic message. "Wait until Xueyuan is heavily injured. Then, step in and join forces with Yan Moxie to deal with Shentu Lie."

"You got it, boss—er... Lord Divine Envoy," Taoist Priest Xuanqing replied. He was having a little too much fun acting and was getting overly immersed in the role.

"Say... Lord Divine Envoy, could you lend me a hand over here? These little brats are actually quite fierce. I don't have much lifespan left, and I'll need to save it to deal with Shentu Lie," Taoist Priest Xuanqing said, sounding remarkably guilty as he frantically parried the barrage of attacks.

Su Mu frowned. He had assumed Taoist Priest Xuanqing was just putting on an act to look like he was struggling; he hadn't expected the man to genuinely perform this poorly.

When fighting Yan Moxie, he had complained about not having enough lifespan. Now he was fighting a bunch of Bronze and Silver tier opponents, and his lifespan still wasn't enough?

Could a Gold powerhouse really be this underwhelming?

Su Mu guessed there were only two possibilities: either Taoist Priest Xuanqing truly was that weak, or he was simply too stingy, not wanting to waste all his lifespan in battle and preferring to save a bit more for himself.

It was most likely the latter. At the moment, Taoist Priest Xuanqing was fighting entirely with his swordsmanship and the formidable physical attributes granted by the Celestial Sovereign of Longevity's blessing. He hadn't used Longevity Daoist Magic at all.

Just in case, Su Mu decided to step in and help Taoist Priest Xuanqing. There was no telling what hidden trump cards Shentu Lie and Sikong Zhen might be holding in reserve, and since he couldn't transfer lifespan to the priest mid-battle, it was best to conserve it for now.

He teleported directly into the center of the crowd. The fiercely battling Law Enforcement Bureau elites didn't even notice his presence.

A split second later, Endless Demonic Sound activated!

Sea God's Whispers instantly detonated within the crowd!

An ambush was always the most cost-effective combat method. Even in their wildest dreams, these elites never expected eerie whispers to suddenly echo in their ears.

Thrum!

As the Sea God's Whispers rang out, every Transcendent below the Silver tier instantly grimaced in agony. Those with particularly fragile souls felt as if their heads were splitting open, immediately collapsing to the ground and clutching their skulls.

While the Silver powerhouses didn't react as violently as those in the Bronze tier, they were still significantly affected. Their expressions went blank as they fell into a momentary daze.

Taoist Priest Xuanqing seized the opportunity. Longevity Dao Art: Ten Thousand Swords!

A sky-blotting storm of longswords rained down. The Law Enforcement Bureau elites suffered heavy casualties, with countless people run through by the blades and pinned to the ground.

"That's enough. Go help Yan Moxie," Su Mu ordered.

Taoist Priest Xuanqing swung his sword violently. A flash of cold light erupted, seeming to tear the very air apart as a terrifying surge of power cascaded from the blade. A colossal wave of sword qi shot forward like a brilliant, blinding streak of lightning.

It tore forward at an astonishing speed, plowing a deep trench through the earth and sending clouds of dust and shattered rock flying into the air.

This strike blasted away the remaining Law Enforcement Bureau elites. Amid countless agonizing screams, it left nothing but a trail of severed limbs and mangled corpses in its wake.

Taoist Priest Xuanqing then transformed into a streak of sword light, surging forward like a descending immortal to ambush Shentu Lie from behind.

Currently exchanging blows with Yan Moxie, Shentu Lie sensed the incoming sword qi at his back. He merely let out a disdainful sneer, not even bothering to defend himself.

Squelch!

The longsword sank all the way to the hilt into the center of Shentu Lie's back, yet he fought on as if nothing had happened, not a single trace of pain registering on his face.