The two remaining Spirit Lords introduced themselves as Immortal Glass Melody Gui Li and Immortal Adoring Poet Zhu Yao'er. They were both prioresses, with Gui Li being the one who was assigned to the Eastern Sanmu Subcontinent and with who Jasmine had made contact.
The four of them, as a group, advanced on the four kings and Abbotess Liang. Four sets of spiritual energies combined to form a solid wall that was heavy with yin attributes. They weren't here to play, not when a member of the enemy order was here.
Their belligerence caught the others off guard.
"Noble ladies of the Virtuous Order… what do you intend?" Huang Wuji asked.
Li Shishi pointed a finger at him, "Solemn Duke Huang, you should have already known that this subcontinent is aligned with the Virtuous Order. Members of the Sororal Order are not allowed here and they are not allowed to recruit here."
Huang Wuji coughed to hide his embarrassment. "Ah… really?"
"But that's not right. Gong Liyun is here. She used to be a member of the Sororal Order!" Ming Mu said.
"That doesn't matter. Since she was expelled, she doesn't need to have anything to do with her old order. The Sororal Order is not kind to those to break their rules. I'm sure there was plenty of torture and punishment and that they did not part on good terms." Li Shishi said.
"Lies!" Abbotess Liang shouted, "She is just…"
"Silence, swine!" Jian Ying shouted over her, "Reds aren't allowed here and you know it. This place has been the territory of us whites ever since the beginning."
She brandished her painter's brush, "Now if you come with us quietly, you might be able to keep your worthless life!"
The two fiery abbotesses traded a few more insults back and forth while squaring off against each other. The other abbotess of the Virtuous Order spoke quickly with the four kings of the subcontinent and managed to reach a consensus.
Neither the Sororal Order nor the Virtuous Order were existences that they dared to mess with. It wasn't smart to take sides with either one since they wouldn't get anything in return. It was an easy decision for them all to make.
"Abbotess Liang," Huang Wuji said, "This old one cannot allow you to remain in the city any longer."
"We had a deal!" Abbotess Liang screeched.
She scanned Ming Mu and Gong Liyun for support but they both avoided her gaze.
With a gust of wind, the four kings backed away from the plaza, giving those remaining ample room to settle their differences.
At the same time, a stirring melody filled with air. It came from Immortal Dawn Euphony Li Shishi and she was singing. The words she sang could not be understood but it was filled with spiritual strength that cut through ordinary spiritual shields. It directly targeted the weak area of one's senses.
Abbotess Liang should have been prepared for this attack but she wasn't. She gave a shrill screech as the song causing a splitting headache. She wrapped several layers of cloth around her head but it was too late.
Dizzy from pain, she did the only thing anyone could do. She stabbed her fingers into her ears. With two spurts of blood, she punctured both eardrums, freeing herself from the enthralling, deadly music!
"You want to take me down? Better be prepared to die!" She snarled and charged at them, purple gown fluttering in the wind.
"Noisy!" Immortal Painter of Rivers Jian Ying shouted and stabbed her brush forward.
A hail of long needles shot down, intercepting Abbotess Liang's course. She was forced to veer off and fly circles to avoid being turned into a pincushion.
"Run, piggie! Hehehe! Run!" Jian Ying laughed as she continued to attack.
Abbotess Liang was doing well to dodge the continuous volley of missiles but it was still two against one. Li Shishi's slow, ensnaring song changed into a high-pitched tremolo. The effect changed instantly, turning into waves and waves of cutting sharpness, like a thousand blades.
The transparent attack slammed into Abbotess Liang's fluttering clothes, stopping her in midair and slicing cleanly through. The next moment a thousand needles peppered her as well, ripping countless holes until the purple fabric was torn to shreds.
But beneath those clothes, Abbotess Liang had disappeared. There wasn't even a drop of blood left behind.
She reappeared a split second later in front of Jian Ying like a blossoming flower. Two large purple fists shot out, one after the other, covering the sky.
Bang! Bang!
Jian Ying held her brush out and managed to block in time but she wasn't unscathed. She was blasted into the ground, plowing a deep groove straight through the paving stones.
More song blades arrived, colliding with Abbotess Liang and drawing several spurts of blood. She screeched again pain and anger but her speed and strength were barely affected. She charged at the singing Li Shishi but Jian Ying emerged from the ground and made her dodge away again.
The battle continued like this in a state of stalemate. The Dao of the purple gown was a well-rounded one. It had speed, strength, and equal attack power as well as defensive ability. It was not easy to defeat quickly and needed time and patience. Both sides understood this and as the battle dragged on, Abbotess Liang started to look more and more desperate.
Another combination attack of blades and needles slammed into her, exploding her purple clothes into shreds. She disappeared once again but this time, reappeared not in front of either of her two opponents but her primary target.
"No!" Li Shishi shouted.
"Stop!" Jian Ying cried.
Abbotess Liang appeared right in front of Chen Wentian and Long Yifei. They had no time to react before a pair of giant purple hands wrapped around them.
Hoooonng!
A dull metallic sound like a massive gong erupted.
A semi-transparent bronze dome appeared around Chen Wentian and Long Yifei, protecting them both. He held a contraption in his hand that looked like an umbrella.
It was the Cloudy Bronze Parasol!
It was a protective Spirit Lord item capable of stopping even a Spirit King, if only for a short while. The item had been given to He Xingping to protect his wife but since his alter-ego had also been in the plaza to partake in the marriage-seeking event, he had been able to sneakily transfer the item back.
Abbotess Liang didn't give up and continued to squeeze, putting everything she had into it. The bronze dome soon started to crack. Ethereal runes that formed the shield crumbled one by one as it was steadily broken through.
Seeing this, the two Spirit Lords of the Virtuous Order launched attacks but they were easily deflected.
"You think this will stop me?" Abbotess Liang laughed and squeezed harder.
The next instant, a cloud of transparent blades and a downpour of silver needles slammed into her body. Blood spurted out like crimson rain. She stumbled and spat out a mouthful of blood but remained standing.
Abbotess Liang was truly crazy. She could have avoided the attack but she chose to take it to have a chance at obtaining Long Yifei.
The bronze umbrella shuddered a split second later and shattered into nothingness. Abbotess Liang's eyes flashed with triumph as her purple hands reached forward to crush Chen Wentian and take Long Yifei.
Chen Wentian's flames stood no chance and were snuffed out. A giant hand made of cloth closed around his head and shoulders and squeezed.
Poof!
Both of them disappeared into a cloud of black smoke.
"Impossible!" Abbotess Liang howled, bewildered.
She whirled around to see Chen Wentian smile at her from behind a boulder. How long they had been there, nobody knew. The one clear thing was that she had been defeated. She could no longer stay here anymore.
Abbotess Liang shot into the air, leaving a trail of blood in her wake. In an instant, she was already high above the city.
"Where are you going!?" Jian Ying shouted.
Both Spirit Kings of the Virtuous Order gave chase, spiraling into the sky after their enemy.
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