Chapter 674: Separation

Li Qingshan’s pupils contracted sharply!

Cold light flashed. With extraordinary flexibility, Li Qingshan bent backward, narrowly avoiding two of the blades, while the third one tilted suddenly and grazed his shoulder!

The silver armor parried the blade, throwing off blinding sparks. Li Qingshan retreated, leaving behind an afterimage, and thus escaped the disaster.

Crimson blood stained Li Qingshan’s shoulder. He stood on the muddy road, one hand gripping his silver spear, his gaze toward the three silver monsters extremely grave.

He didn't know what these silver monsters were. They didn't possess a Path of the Gods or a specific rank, but their speed and strength had already surpassed the Second Rank, touching the threshold of the Third Rank... Li Qingshan was only Second Rank himself. If not for the massive boost in strength from the True Self Manifestation, he likely would have died under the siege of the three monsters just now.

Just as Li Qingshan expected, defeating them was impossible... The only thing he could do was buy time for the ordinary people to escape.

The three silver monsters locked onto Li Qingshan. Their smooth, mercury-like feet trod across the muddy ground as their bodies rapidly deformed. Additional arms grew from the sides of their necks and ribs, the tips of which melted into sharp sword points, all aimed directly at Li Qingshan!

Three monsters, eighteen arms capable of cutting through anything. The chilling cold light reflected on Li Qingshan’s face, and a sense of life-and-death crisis descended upon him.

As the cold light rapidly tore through the air, Li Qingshan could only grip his spear tightly and be forced to meet them.

*Clang, clang, clang—!!*

The four figures fought together. Silver light flashed across the ground. Li Qingshan, dressed in theatrical robes and armor, was forced into a steady retreat under the siege of the three, with more and more wounds appearing on his body—a shocking sight!

Just then, two figures swooped in from afar.

Colored ink splattered onto the ground, climbing onto one of the silver monsters like a swarm of slithering snakes, turning into shackles that bound it tightly. The other person pressed their hands into the void, and light and shadow transformed into slender arrows, shattering the bound monster in an instant!

In an instant, the pressure on Li Qingshan was greatly reduced.

He looked back and saw two Architects from the Floating Life Painting. Judging by their aura, both were Third Rank. They must have just been passing by and decided to help.

Seeing this, Li Qingshan seized the opportunity to mobilize his power, actively engaging one of the silver monsters. The spear light and blade edges collided rapidly, the clanging sounds echoing across the sky.

"Resisting the siege of three silver monsters as a Second Rank—who is this guy?" one of the Architects asked in surprise, watching the valiant Li Qingshan.

"Don't know. Probably another possessor of a Path of the Gods hiding within the Red Dust Realm," the other replied while sealing off the second silver monster. "Looks like the Path of the Thespian..."

As they spoke, the two Architects had already joined forces to kill another silver monster, turning their attention to the final target fighting Li Qingshan.

Seeing the ink dancing in his peripheral vision, Li Qingshan parried the silver monster's arm with his spear and retreated rapidly without hesitation. Almost simultaneously, the swarm of ink snakes and light-shadow arrows grazed his temple, piercing through the body of the last silver monster!

Witnessing the final silver monster fall, Li Qingshan finally let out a long breath...

His stature gradually shrank, and the military flags and armor on his body vanished with the wind, returning him to the appearance of an ordinary person. Only now, his clothes were soaked in blood, and he looked incredibly disheveled.

"Thank you both for your help." Li Qingshan cupped his hands toward them.

"You have decent strength," one Architect nodded slightly. "Although your rank is low, you're still capable of dealing with these monsters... We are short-handed right now; come back to the Main City with us."

Li Qingshan was stunned; he hadn't expected these two to extend an olive branch directly... But it made sense. The Witchcraft Association alone was enough to give the Floating Life Painting a headache, and now there was a massive Silver Legion. Although these silver monsters weren't individually strong, their numbers were vast, and the Floating Life Painting couldn't possibly handle it all.

"This..." Li Qingshan was in a dilemma.

"When the nest is overturned, are there any intact eggs? If the Red Dust Realm is destroyed, no one can stay out of it," the other Architect said in a deep voice. "What are you still hesitating for?"

Li Qingshan didn't answer.

In normal times, Li Qingshan would certainly be willing to contribute his strength. After all, with the nation in crisis, he wouldn't be a coward who avoids the fight... But...

His gaze turned toward the direction of Willow Town, his eyes full of worry.

"Apologies, you two," Li Qingshan took a deep breath. "I still have some unfinished business... Once it's over, if I have the strength left, I will definitely help!"

With that, he turned and sprinted toward Willow Town without looking back!

"Hey, you!"

The Architect’s expression darkened as he watched Li Qingshan run off, but he didn't fly into a rage or try to stop him. He just flicked his sleeves hard and snorted coldly, "These actors, what cowards!"

"Forget it. At the end of the day, he's just a Second Rank; no need to waste so much time on him... Let's go."

The two looked in the direction Li Qingshan had left, then headed straight toward the Red Dust Main City.

……

"I... I can't run anymore!"

"Rest a bit, rest a bit... *cough, cough, cough, cough...*"

Behind Kong Baosheng, a couple with two children sat down on the rocks in the shade of the dirt slope, panting and drenched in sweat.

Seeing this, Kong Baosheng stopped running as well. After looking around to confirm it was safe, he sat down too.

The three silver monsters hadn't followed them; they were safe... But Kong Baosheng was still worried about Li Qingshan. He wondered if he had managed to escape those monsters?

"Daddy, I'm so hungry..."

"Be good, let's endure a little longer. Once we get to the Main City, there will be food..." a man drenched in sweat said softly.

"Where... where have we run to?" the woman asked blankly.

"I don't know. We were in such a rush, I didn't pay attention to the direction."

"Then, then won't we run into those monsters again??"

"No... we can't rest. Only when we reach the Red Dust Main City will we be truly safe!" The man made up his mind, gritted his teeth, stood up from the rock, picked up his three- or four-year-old daughter, and walked toward Kong Baosheng.

"Hello, do you know how to get to the Red Dust Main City?"

Kong Baosheng nodded slightly.

"That's great!" A flash of joy crossed the woman's eyes. "I forgot to ask earlier... You must be going to the Main City to take refuge too, right? If it's convenient, we can stick together. We can look out for each other if anything happens..."

"No, I..."

Kong Baosheng was about to explain that he was going to Willow Town, but after a moment of hesitation, he fell silent.

Actually, Kong Baosheng didn't really want to go to Willow Town. From the beginning, he had wanted to stay at the Jinghong Building... His appearance here was only because Li Qingshan had knocked him out and brought him along. If he had insisted on going back earlier, Li Qingshan would likely have been put in a difficult position, perhaps even abandoning his trip to Willow Town to escort him back to the Main City... Kong Baosheng knew Li Qingshan’s grandmother was still in Willow Town, and he didn't want to make things difficult for him.

But now, if Li Qingshan could successfully escape the silver monsters, he could return to Willow Town to see his grandmother and safely wait to reunite with Chen Ling... Whether he himself went to Willow Town didn't seem so important anymore.

Kong Baosheng had also considered taking this family to Willow Town for refuge, but firstly, they might not believe it was safer, and secondly, even if they went, Li Qingshan’s home might not be able to accommodate so many people. Now that everyone else in Willow Town had left to take refuge, there was no food to eat...

Kong Baosheng was silent for a long time. He looked deeply in the direction of Willow Town, then back toward the direction of the Main City, and took a deep breath...

"Alright, I'll take you to the Main City!"