Fearing being killed for his overwhelming merits, the empress decided to marry him.

blow--

The instant the dagger pierced Murong Xue's heart, Shen Lang felt a life-threatening crisis looming close at hand.

The blade pierced three inches deep, and he decisively withdrew it. In the instant his body leaned back, a tearing and twisting sound echoed through the void.

Murong Xue extended a claw, her long, pale nail leaving a striking gash in the azure firelight.

"so close."

Having narrowly escaped death, Shen Lang had no time to feel relieved before a new killing intent attacked from behind.

The wind from the blade brought with it a chilling, ghostly wail, as Wei Shuyu's heavy sword struck down in the instant Shen Lang lost his balance.

"Bang!"

With a crisp sound, Shen Lang raised his dagger at the critical moment to block the deadly attack.

As the blades clashed, three feet of snow were kicked up from the ground and swirled in the air.

"drink--"

Having failed with his first strike, Wei Shuyu attempted another, aiming to cleave Shen Lang in two with a single blow.

But Shen Lang was even faster. The instant his opponent raised his knife, he pushed his right palm into the ground and unleashed thirteen consecutive kicks at Wei Shuyu's legs.

Even though Wei Shuyu was now a living dead man, unafraid of any pain, he still couldn't help but take a half step back under Shen Lang's swift offensive.

With this retreat, his hand movements slowed down by a third.

Taking advantage of the moment, Shen Lang spun around and landed on his feet, his dagger flashing with light.

"Tai Xu - Wind Rift".

With his superb agility and the swiftness of his blade, he constantly darted back and forth across Wei Shuyu's body.

Wei Shuyu seemed oblivious, standing straight in place, enduring Shen Lang's relentless attacks without showing any sign of collapsing.

As Shen Lang was about to strike, he noticed the cold glint on the dagger and was immediately taken aback.

"No blood?"

Just as he was wondering what was happening, three thousand strands of black hair flew up and aimed straight for his throat.

Shen Lang slashed off a strand of hair with a backhand stroke, then countered Wei Shuyu's attack with a palm strike.

boom--

A loud bang followed, and a shockwave exploded.

A trickle of blood escaped from the corner of Shen Lang's mouth, and his body involuntarily took two steps back.

In a moment of distraction, a white silk ribbon had already wrapped around his body.

"Hehehe, Shen Lang, come down and keep me company!"

Murong Xue suddenly pulled out the white silk ribbon, knocking Shen Lang to the ground.

With a shrill scream, Shen Lang was flung away.

"Tai Xu - Riding the Wind".

Just as his body was about to crash into the mountain wall, Shen Lang once again unleashed the Tai Xu Blade Intent, using his swift lightness skill to step onto the stone wall, and then leaped towards Murong Xue.

"Tai Xu Yan Guang".

In the blink of an eye, Shen Lang's figure had already passed Murong Xue, leaving another bright red bloodstain on her neck.

"Great Void - Divine Descent!"

Having landed a successful blow, Shen Lang paid no attention to the outcome behind him. Instead, he unleashed his inner energy once more and thrust his blade at Wei Shuyu.

puff-

The grating sound of slicing meat echoed through the dark night sky.

Standing behind Shen Lang, Wei Shuyu slowly knelt on one knee, the outcome of the battle seemingly already clear.

But just then, Murong Xue, who had fallen earlier, slowly stood up from the snow.

Under the azure firelight, Shen Lang witnessed firsthand how the wound on her neck was healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.

In just a few breaths, all that remained on his neck was the wound left by Shen Lang years ago.

"Shen Lang, you can't kill me. Do you even know how deep my resentment towards you is?"

Murong Xue's fingernails grew rapidly as she walked step by step toward Shen Lang.

"I can't find peace without dragging you down to hell with me, so come down and join me!"

After a shrill scream, Murong Xue moved like a ghost, striking directly at Shen Lang's vital point.

Shen Lang frowned and immediately launched a counterattack.

The two fought fiercely in the dense forest, and in the blink of an eye, they had exchanged a hundred blows.

The more Shen Lang fought, the more surprised and alarmed he became.

No matter how many wounds Murong Xue had, they would all heal completely in a few breaths.

Moreover, as time went on, Shen Lang noticed that the other party had no trace of human life, and his facial expression was very stiff, unlike what a normal person should have.

"A living dead!"

After a terrifying thought occurred to him, Shen Lang finally realized that he had indeed killed the two men with a single blow back then, and there was absolutely no chance of them surviving.

The fact that they are standing in front of me now can only mean that someone has forcibly kept them in this world through some means.

As for who it could be, Shen Lang thought it could only be Murong Ke.

After all, he had learned from Wanyan Wo that the tens of thousands of living dead in Yizhou were the work of Murong Ke.

And this unextinguishable fire has the power to resurrect the dead, turning them into living dead.

Having figured this out, Shen Lang decisively drew his sword, ending his entanglement with Murong Xue, and focused his gaze on the two undying flames in the dense forest.

"It seems you've already noticed."

Suddenly, Wei Shuyu straightened up and made an extremely strange gesture towards Shen Lang.

His head suddenly sank, tilting at a 90-degree angle to his shoulder, and a blood-red light emanated from the eyepiece of the Yaksha mask, making it extremely eerie.

Shen Lang sneered: "It seems I was right. Your survival is all thanks to the power of this inextinguishable fire. To be resurrected from the dead is against the rules of heaven and earth."

"You live like this, neither human nor ghost, still retaining your former consciousness. Don't you feel pain?"

Wei Shuyu: "Until I see the day you are executed, any pain I feel is nothing more than a gentle breeze and drizzle."

Shen Lang pulled out a second dagger from behind his back.

"Wei Shuyu, I want to ask you a question."

"what?"

"You couldn't stop me when you were alive, and now that you're dead, what are your chances of stopping me?"

"Ok?"

For a moment, Wei Shuyu was distracted. Shen Lang reversed his grip on the two swords, leaned slightly forward, and at the same time, the new realm of Taixu sword intent had already blossomed.

"Great Void - Annihilation!"

In an instant, Shen Lang was enveloped by the lightning, transforming into a figure that sped through the dense forest.

"This is……"

Even though he was already a living dead and fearless of life and death, he still felt a sense of inexplicable fear when he saw Shen Lang unleash such terrifying swordplay.

*Pfft, pfft, pfft*

In the blink of an eye, the blade's force and energy swept across the scene, and amidst flashes of lightning and thunder, Wei Shuyu and Murong Xue's legs were severed.

Taking advantage of the moment when the two were restrained, Shen Lang leaped into the void and attacked the Undying Flame.

But just as he was about to catch the Unextinguished Flame...

A spinning top the size of a thumb suddenly flew out from the inextinguishable flame and headed straight for Shen Lang's face.

Just as Shen Lang caught the blade with the tip of his dagger, a deep voice suddenly rang in his ears.

"Shen Lang, everything you are experiencing now is just a dream before your death. It is not real. Your true fate was already set back at Fengsui Fortress."

The next moment, Shen Lang felt a splitting headache, cried out in pain, covered his head with both hands, and fell from the void.

The moment it fell to the ground, the top began to spin rapidly.

"What the hell is going on?"

As the top spun, Shen Lang felt as if his memory had become seriously distorted, as if something was being rapidly pulled out of his head.

"This is the Wheel of Fortune that can dispel all illusions. Think it over carefully, you wandering soul, it's time to find your own home."

"what--"

After the ancient god whispered something, Shen Lang let out a painful scream.

When I opened my eyes again, I found myself in front of a desolate Gobi Desert.