Chapter 224 - Defeat

Chapter 224: Chapter 211 DefeatThe warrior had a physical advantage over Nono and, as his sword’s edge approached, a lock of her hair floated to the ground. The warrior sneered, "Your Majesty, I’ve come to negotiate with sincerity this time."

"Oh? What a coincidence, so have I," Nono struggled to regain the disadvantage as the knight’s blessing skills were successively applied to her, barely managing to hold her ground.

The warrior retracted his sword with a laugh, inserting it casually into the ground, "Haha, then let’s sit down and have a proper talk."

Nono also sat back down, and a retainer from each side stepped forward to pick up the overturned table and chairs.

Lily took a deep breath, slowly lifting the square table, her gaze fixed tightly on Bu Sheng.

The counterpart’s retainer did the same, and in an instant, the sound of swords being drawn rang out again; Lily thrust her sword viciously at Bu Sheng, while the Snow Tribe’s warrior rushed straight at Nono.

Bu Sheng didn’t show the slightest panic; Lily’s attack was stopped by a transparent barrier, and Nono wasn’t hurt either.

"If..." Bu Sheng looked at Nono, "If the Snow Tribe and the Northern Territories can live together in harmony, I believe we would make a divine couple."

"Sorry," Nono replied gravely, "different species are not meant to live together."

"Is it because your heart belongs to another?" Bu Sheng asked, "I’ve heard that the queen once invited a man to stay in her palace for many years."

"So what if I did? He is my husband," Nono’s face was as cold as frost when she mentioned Lu Hong.

"Baron Yitian is someone I’ve also heard of. Alone, he held back my armies for two days within the Endless Forest. If he were not dead, he would surely be a hero of great renown." Bu Sheng shook his head in pity, "It’s just too bad your humans harbour jealousy and covet talent, otherwise, my Snow Tribe might have suffered greatly. I really should thank you all for..." Bu Sheng struggled to recall the information from back then, "Hu Buping, Duke Hu."

"He’s not dead," Nono’s eyes reddened slightly, "He’s just been cast adrift to an unknown place. He will definitely come back for me."

"Is that so?" Bu Sheng raised an eyebrow, "It’s just too bad..."

Before he finished speaking, Bu Sheng’s body leaned slightly forward: "You won’t live to see that moment!"

No sooner had his voice fallen than a white light shot out from his chest.

"Be careful, Your Majesty!" Lily united her spirit, energy, and mind, and with a swing of her sword, she aimed at the white light.

"Stand back!" Although Nono was preoccupied with state affairs daily, she hadn’t neglected her training much. The white light was clearly the power of a magical artifact; if Lily were to block it, she would be severely injured, which wasn’t worth it.

Pushing Lily aside, Nono took out an ornate scepter from her Space Ring; the red gem set in it glimmered slightly, and the white light shot by Bu Sheng was halted within the red glow, gradually fading away.

Looking at the opponent’s weapon, Bu Sheng examined it closely, "Is that the scepter of the queens that has been passed down through the generations in the Northern Territories?"

"Exactly," Nono held the scepter, and the red light enveloped her, an invisible pressure weighing down on everyone present.

"Good, very good," as he spoke, Bu Sheng too pounded his chest, and a transparent short axe fell into his hand. Under the provocation of the queen’s scepter, it emitted a biting cold chill, and the spectral image of Kefati coalesced behind him.

The two legacy imperial weapons stood in opposition at the peak of the snowy mountain, evenly matched.

"Bu Sheng," Nono’s eyes were as cold as ice, "let’s not speak in riddles; we both know exactly what your intentions are in arranging this meeting."

"Then there’s no need for us to probe any further," Bu Sheng gripped the short axe, the ancestral aura in his hand filling him with boundless courage and strength, "This snowy mountain..."

Bu Sheng said with a chilling tone: "Only one of us will live to leave this place."

"Kill!" At his command, the ready retainers from both sides charged toward their predetermined targets.

Lily’s swordsmanship was extraordinary, well-known at Hanguguan Pass during five years of war. To confront her, Bu Sheng specifically had the Sword Saint of the Snow Tribe’s eldest son, a warrior at the Second-Transformation Peak and peerless in the Sword Dao, summoned from the bitterly cold lands.

The two masters fought, creating a battlefield of their own where no one dared to intrude.

"You are strong," Zhu Guan’s face showed excitement, "Father was right; there are many talented people in the world, and the Sword Dao is the same."

"It’s a pity that you must die today," Lily swung her sword, producing three sword shadows that took a T-shape as they thrust at her foe.

"Hahaha, let you be the first step on my path to proving my Dao!" Zhu Guan effortlessly blocked Lily’s attack, creating a pattern of sword flowers, the magic stirring, his blade pointing at her vital spots.

Since she began practicing swordsmanship, Lily had never felt such pressure, except when facing her master. It was clear that this Zhu Guan’s swordsmanship was not inferior to hers. But as Nono’s main force, she had to defeat him quickly to assist the queen in killing Bu Sheng.

In such a mindset, Lily fought more and more fiercely, and having lost her Sword Heart, she was soon overpowered by Zhu Guan and wounded in the lung.

"Be careful, Lady Lily!" A Second-Transformation Peak Mage in her retinue quickly mobilized his magic, and lightning split the sky, forcing Zhu Guan’s pursuit away. But he, too, was distracted, and his opponent grasped the chance to shatter his right foot with an ice spell.

"It seems your subordinates are somewhat weak?" Bu Sheng spoke, "But if the queen is willing to marry into my Snow Tribe, I am willing to co-rule this world with you."

"You wish," Nono’s heart sank as she saw Lily wounded. She had never seen this expert swordsman Zhu Guan before and had no records on him. However, she guessed that anyone who could defeat Lily in the Sword Dao must be the heir to the Sword Saint of the Snow Tribe.

The Northern Territories were ultimately struggling alone. With the majority of the empire’s forces tied up in the Endless Forest, the high-level Second Transition experts Nono could call on were limited, making it easy for Bu Sheng to single out.

Facing the overwhelmed Lily and her retainers, Nono took a deep breath. The situation being so dire, her only option was to take action herself, leveraging the power of the queen’s scepter.

"Fire!" At her piercing shout, towering clouds above flared with rolling flames.

Bu Sheng naturally was not afraid, and he raised his short-handled axe high: "Great ancestors, bestow upon me strength!"

Stimulated by the summoning and the flow of magic power, the phantom of Kefati grew incessantly, piercing the heavens. Enormous bony hands tore through the sky, dispersing the fiery light.

As the short-handled axe unleashed its might, the queen’s scepter seemed to be provoked, its red radiance expanding swiftly. A vague figure also materialized in the sky, the founding sovereign of the Xiahe lineage, the first queen.

Under the clash of such paramount artifacts, an invisible pressure made it so that the followers of both sides could barely catch their breaths, let alone muster their skills.

Lily and Zhu Guan both retreated; standing under the field of the national artifacts, they had already proven themselves far more formidable than others.

"Ancestral battle axe, I have long admired your renown," Nono said as she looked at the Crystal Short Cauldron in Bu Sheng’s hand, realizing that it was unrealistic to eliminate her opponent now, as the queen’s scepter was equally matched with it.

"Do we need to continue?" Bu Sheng smiled slightly.

"That depends on your performance," replied Nono, who would not withdraw the majesty of her scepter. With matters as escalated as they had become, caution was paramount.

Maintaining this deadlock was not a solution, and Bu Sheng took a step back: "I will withdraw the ancestral power first, how about that?"

"Agreed!" Nono answered solemnly.

Feeling the aura of Kefati gradually fading, Nono also carefully retracted the brilliance of her scepter.

Suddenly, Bu Sheng shouted loudly: "Die!" The Ancestral Battle Axe erupted with dazzling white light, and he lunged fiercely at Nono.

"You’re too naive," Nono had long been on guard against Bu Sheng’s sneak attack. The scepter poured out red energy, firmly shielding its mistress.

Yet, the white light from the Ancestral Battle Axe directly penetrated Nono’s defenses and struck the queen’s scepter. As the scepter dimmed, a backlash of force nearly caused Nono to lose grip of the national artifact.

What is this? Nono’s brow slightly furrowed as the queen’s scepter went quiet and the Ancestral Battle Axe also lost its effectiveness.

Lily immediately stood in front of Nono: "Your Majesty, be careful!"

"It’s alright," Nono looked towards Bu Sheng: "Do you have any more tricks up your sleeve?"

"Tricks?" Bu Sheng laughed heartily: "I am of the royal family of the Snow Clan; both potential and talent are top-notch. Without the protection of the national artifact, you stand no chance against me."

"Then, let’s put it to the test!" Nono shouted, with Holy Light radiating all over her body.

"Kill!" As Bu Sheng bellowed, the people from both sides clashed once more.

Lily faced Zhu Guan again, but this time Lily was more apprehensive. Bu Sheng was right, although Nono was of the main bloodline of the Xiahe family, humans did not possess the Snow Clan’s innate aptitude for cultivation. Without the protection of the national artifact, Nono truly was not his match.

"You are distracted," Zhu Guan was extremely dissatisfied, and seven sword shadows slashed through Lily’s stomach armor, oozing trickles of fresh blood: "Daring to be distracted while clashing with me is seeking death!"

Lily took several steps back to widen the distance; at this moment, Bu Sheng had already launched an attack on Nono.

Nono couldn’t defeat Bu Sheng, but likewise, Bu Sheng couldn’t easily approach her. Relying solely on the magic scrolls and magical items stored in her Space Ring, she gave her opponent a significant headache.

The power of the scrolls, although not third-transition, sealed within were skills at Second-Transformation Peak, sufficient to trouble Bu Sheng.

Flame, thunder, ice, earth spikes—colors of magical skills constantly shifted, dissolving Bu Sheng’s offensive one by one.

"Break!" Bu Sheng shouted angrily, his internal magic power surged, committed to tearing apart Nono’s defenses.

"You lose!" To break through the magical items’ defenses, Bu Sheng had exerted all his strength and wouldn’t have reserves to launch an attack. Nono calculated precisely and drew her longsword, piercing harshly towards Bu Sheng’s heart.

"Is that so?" Bu Sheng merely smiled, as a white aurora streaked across the sky, charging towards her.

"Your Majesty, be careful!" Lily exclaimed in shock, disregarding the threat of Zhu Guan.

Zhu Guan seized the opportunity and slashed down with both swords, severing the opponent’s tendons and stepping on them with a roar, "You dare to be distracted? This is a battle of Sword Dao, not child’s play!"

For Zhu Guan, clashing with Lily was to prove his swordsmanship to his father, and her inattention infuriated him.

The aurora was too swift; Nono couldn’t dodge in time, and with her magical items tied up by Bu Sheng, in a blink, a small hole appeared in her chest with no blood flowing. However, under the invasion of the aurora’s magic power, from her heart, she slowly froze into ice inch by inch. Nono’s gaze gradually dimmed, and she completely lost her vitality.

The queen’s scepter sensed what had happened, transformed into a streamer, and flew into the sky, disappearing from sight.

"Your Majesty!" Lily cried in agony, the departure of the queen’s scepter signified the demise of the current queen.

Far in Jinrui City, Konstantin was handling the military deployment of the Endless Forest when suddenly the Holy Emperor Sword at his waist let out a mournful cry.

Konstantin was stunned, staring at the trembling Holy Emperor Sword before his expression turned to anger: "The Emperor Sword mourns, the scepter loses its master!"

Yes, the queen’s scepter had lost its mistress, and the Emperor Sword would lament for it.

"The North cannot be without a queen!" Konstantin raged. Currently, just for the sake of the battle at Divine Blood River, he was already stretched thin, and the North had been preserved only thanks to Nono.

Now that the queen had died, who else in the North could take charge of the situation?