Flower of Azure

Chapter 2 - War of the Underworld Prison

A pat of the railing, the strong and moist sea breeze rushing towards my face along with misty water vapor, blowing my temples as it fluttered.

A loud song, a skyrocketing sound of singing, the clouds scattered in surprise. A careful check of the countless green hills, and Penglai could be seen at a glance.

Wearing a scarf, I wandered through the sky like the ancient Wang Qiao. I raised my head up to the sky, and with a scream, I went straight to the high temple of heaven.

...

The torrential rain gradually ceased, the squally wind remained, and the roar of artillery fire continued one after another. The stormy waves surged, as if countless green hills were undulating. Dozens of warships floated and sank, and the sound of killing shook the sky.

Xuanyuan Zhan wore a white robe. His sharp brows were carved to his temples, and his expression was one of absolute dominance. He led a group of people as they stood on a cliff, watching the stalemate on both sides nervously.

Dozens of martial arts masters rushed out of the waves. Although they were absolutely drenched, they still turned over and rushed into the warship of the Demon Sect. Like a dragon entering the sea, dozens went forward with dozens following behind, fighting this bloody battle.

“Leader, we have received reports that the seven warships of the Demon Sect have been sunk."

Xuanyuan Zhan's thick eyebrows furrowed. He waved his hand. “Take down the four main ships first. Let Wu Shuang, Shangguan Tianpeng and the others lead a part of the ships to surround them from the back so that we can attack them from both sides. Then get Xing Fu to lead a few masters to enter from the back of the island and attack the main altar of the Demon Sect.”

For a time, artillery fire roared and deafened countless ears. The hull of the ship was continuously hit by artillery shells. There was a sudden shock. Pieces of wood flew in random directions, penetrating everyone's body. Blood and screams could be seen and heard endlessly.

The rocket chirped continuously as it flew across the air. The dense rain landed on the deck like nails, on the cabin, and on the human body... the flames flew, spreading upward along the mast ropes, and the flag sails quickly burned. It caused the wind to blow wildly, half of the sky reflected red, and the afterglow of the setting sun looked even more miserable than before.

Looking around, the river surface has become a raging sea of flames. Under the drizzling rain, it undulated and became more intense. Even the river water gradually boiled with white mist evaporating from it.

Nie Xinghai stood tall on the lookout platform on the island. He remained calm and collected as he gave out commands.

"Master, another warship has sunk."

Nie Xinghai raised his sharp eyebrows slightly, and with a domineering look on his face, he said, “I didn't expect this Xuanyuan Zhan to be this good. But if he thinks that with just these two or three strikes he will be able to lead people to take down our sacred altar, he underestimates me too much. Xiang Hongyan!”

“Yes, sir.”

Gentle rain drizzled upon the land; flames danced while smoke filled the sky. Suddenly, a pungent stench spread across the air.

Xuanyuan Zhan and the others hurriedly held their breath and concentrated their minds. “Oh no, they are releasing poison again.”

Everyone's hair stood straight. They could only feel the scent of waves rushing to them like a violent wind.

At the same time, the flames on the grass in the valley seemed to be engulfed by a hurricane. It rushed into the air, and if one were to look down from above, they could see that it rolled back like ripples. It quickly swept and spread towards the center, the view extremely magnificent.

The black, poisonous smoke moved around, huffing repeatedly, rushing like a black cloud. It pressed down heavily on the top of everyone's heads, absolutely suffocating them. Not long after, everyone felt a dull ache in their chests and vomited. They couldn’t see anything clearly anymore, they could only feel that the sky was shaking, and the fire in their bodies was scorching. It seemed to burn with a scarlet fire all around… One after another, everyone inhaled the poison and collapsed.

Xuanyuan Zhan's frown became deeper. A month ago, Mengshan, Qingyu, E Mei, and the Beggar Gang, led by the martial arts leader Xuanyuan Zhan, jointly encircled and suppressed Tensha Island which held the main altar of the Demon Sect. In the past two years, the Demon Sect gathered a powerful army, and the speed of their development and growth was staggering. Xuanyuan Zhan has always been cautious, taking precautions before they happen. Hence, he couldn’t just sit idly and watch as the Demon Sect committed evil and grew stronger by the day. In fear of endless troubles in the future, he invited all sects to come together to encircle and suppress them. However, Shaolin Wudang and other big factions were reluctant and refused to join, and so their strength was greatly reduced. Furthermore, the people of the Underworld Prison were powerful and full of schemes. They were good at using poison. The main altar of the Underworld Prison relied on the dangers of nature, and it was difficult to penetrate. Xuanyuan Zhan saw that his side was suffering heavy casualties, and if he did not retreat quickly, they would all be wiped out.

A burst of wild laughter appeared, and everyone was in an uproar. When they looked up, they saw colorful clouds billowing in the sky and neon lights dancing like water, gradually forming a mirage-like image.

But in this aerial picture, a man with a black robe and a high crown stood proudly. It was Nie Xinghai, the leader of the Demon Sect.

“Little Xuanyuan, you were defeated by me in the Mengshan Sword Tournament that day, and I was kind enough to keep you alive. Yet now you are leading a group of people to attack me. Is it for revenge out of shame?”

Xuanyuan Zhan strongly suppressed the anger in his heart.

"Nie Xinghai, you old cheat. You have committed many evil deeds. You ought to stop all this and surrender. I will lead all my comrades in martial arts today and destroy your nest!”

After he finished speaking, he rushed to the sky and dropped a huge blow. Although they were a few hundred meters apart, Nie Xinghai's glazed phantom was cut into hundreds of pieces.

Suddenly, a blue fog drifted from somewhere, and a clear tune from a flute resounded. Everyone who was in the fog regained most of their consciousness. When they looked up, they saw on the cliff on the right bank of the big river a continuous fire and a woman with a colorful dress standing gracefully, playing a green flute melodiously. Her black hair was tied up in a ponytail, and dozens of fine braids lingered by her ears. Her skirt fluttered and flowed along with her sleeves.

The light from the fire shone on her face, displaying her pale, clear and radiant skin. Her thin brows were raised with a slight hint of anger. She had narrow and curved eyes, and her smile reminded one of an autumn wave. Her plump lips made one want to take a bite when they saw it. Her lips bumbled like a peach as she played the green flute, as if she was trying to gain the attention of a lover. This bizarre fascination dried the throats and tongues of the people around, and it made their heartbeat speeded up inexplicably.

When Xuanyuan Zhan saw her, he was overjoyed. He said, “Ruohua, it's sister Ruohua who is here!”

“The third of the Tang Clan!” Everyone cheered.

When Nie Xinghai saw her, he merely laughed, “What can a little poisonous immortal do to me?"

Before he could finish speaking, Ban Ruohua’s expression turned cold and the aura around her became murderous. The tune of the flute suddenly rose and broke through the clouds.

Everyone's hair stood straight, their body feeling cold all over. But soon after they heard the sound of weird cries, and tens of thousands of poisonous insects rushed towards the main altar of the Demon Sect.

At this time, Xiang Hongyan also began to play the poisonous flute to conjure a shield against the insects. The warships of both sides withdrew one after another. The river water was already dyed red with blood, but in an instant, it was dyed dark green by various poisons.

The two fought with their flutes for a long time. Xiang Hongyan could see that this was no easy fight. Nie Xinghai let out a sneer and slowly put his palm on Xiang Hongyan's back. A surge of power rushed towards Xiang Hongyan, and a cyan light radiated from the flute and slashed towards Ban Ruohua. Ban Ruohua had no choice but to take the hit and spit out a mouthful of blood. Xuanyuan Zhan hurriedly soared to the sky, blocking all the green lights in the air.

Ban Ruohua was originally the third of the Tang Clan. But two years ago, she broke away from the Tang Clan for unknown reasons. She travelled alone through the world, and the martial arts world knew her as The Poisonous Immortal who was both righteous yet evil. She also acted perversely, but according to her own temperament. She learned about poison and hidden weapons ever since she was a child, but her martial arts skills and internal strength was extremely weak.

As the war progressed, Xuanyuan Zhan became more and more fierce. With a long roar, he pointed his sword straight towards Nie Xinghai. Nie Xinghai let go of Xiang Hongyan, made a seal with his hands, and with his deep internal strength, he forced Xuanyuan Zhan back.

Suddenly, a ray of silver light struck down from mid-air. It was so bright that people couldn't open their eyes. Nie Xinghai was horrified. He drew out the big knife from his waist and slashed it down. Amidst the rumbling sound, the air waves surged outwards like a whirlpool. It was grotesque, like an unpredictable rainbow of neon clouds, yet also magnificent and strange with a variety of weather.

Nie Xinghai took two steps back and laughed.

“Great execution of the Thunder Cut!”

Everyone raised their heads. They saw one person fluttering in white, slowly spinning down from mid-air, like a flying immortal from beyond the skies. He had his hands behind his back as he stood proudly on the cliff. His features were sharp and handsome, his aura casual yet seemingly untouchable. With a scorching gaze, he overlooked the crowd. His smile was arrogant with a taste of self-admiration. In the midst of the people’s shock, they realized that it was the divine physician Luo Xuan.

Xuanyuan Zhan was overjoyed again. “Brother Luo!”

Suddenly, Ban Ruohua vomited a mouthful of blood and fell down the cliff. Everyone was shocked.

Luo Xuan hurriedly flew over and caught her in his arms. He lightly tapped on a rock and held her up in the air. When he lowered his head, he saw Ban Ruohua in his arms looking at him with a smile. Her gaze was full of emotions, specifically, they were full of practically overflowing affection.

Luo Xuan turned his face away. He touched the ground lightly on his toes without even affecting a wisp of dust. He slowly put Ban Ruohua down. Ban Ruohua coughed and swayed twice before Luo Xuan quickly helped her stand on her feet again.

When Xuanyuan Zhan saw Ban Ruohua staring at Luo Xuan, he shook his head helplessly with a faint stab of pain in his heart.

He waved his hand and ordered, “Retreat…”