Whoosh~
A flash of red dotted the sky every now and then, in sync with Zhuo Fan's right eye's golden glow.
Right behind him was a yellow light, just missing him with each jump but so fast that no one could identify what it was.
Zhuo Fan appeared a mile away, just to see the same yellow light on his trail. He gnashed his teeth, spat blood a few times and went right back to running.
Zhuo Fan kept popping up every mile, but no matter what he did, he just couldn't shake his yellow tail.
Huangpu Tianyuan was right behind him.
Three whole days, that was how long the two played around.
Zhuo Fan's chest hole was still leaking, his face whiter than paper. Yet he never stopped Shifting, not even to catch a breath.
Even a minute delay would have that freak tearing him a new one.
Zhuo Fan shook his head.
His only gripe with Nine Dragons Diamond Body was its capacity to get Huangpu Tianyuan to the Ethereal Stage once all nine dragon souls were together. Now that would spell doom for even him.
Thus, he just let the old guy have those eight dragons, reaching peak Radiant Stage, while thinking that no matter how strong he got, he would be no match for the sacred beast Qilin's leg.
With Tangible Projection, the Qilin arm would be like a strike from the heavens, smashing everything, if not killing him outright.
Reality confirmed this truth as well. Huangpu Tianyuan laid twisted under the Qilin leg even with the Nine Dragons Diamond Body.
But out of Zhuo Fan's calculations, the Bodhi Root was integrated in the Nine Dragons Diamond Body to use that Returning Dragon shtick and it let him get right back in action.
It made his body truly invincible and even left Zhuo Fan speechless on how to counter it.
Huangpu Tianyuan didn't give him room to work his brain either, counterattacking and turning this into Zhuo Fan's second life's second loss.
First was Gu Santong, of course.
Zhuo Fan had to admit, he had come short of Nine Dragons Diamond Body. And even though he did lose, it did not mean defeat.
As the ill-reputed steward of Luo clan directed his allies like a conductor, no one could stand up to those twisted and vile schemes of his.
So when this chase was the only option left, he said to hell with honor and left the battlefield in the hands of his most capable peons.
He was totally convinced, based on Luo clan's experts and those enticing tricks, that the Regent Estate would fall.
Tricks only effective if Huangpu Tianyuan was out of the picture, even if momentarily. Otherwise the old bag of diamond bones would have been a beacon of hope and the turning would have to be cut short.
Who wouldn't be afraid of this freak breaking their melon? Certainly not a fresh traitor.
Zhuo Fan just had to get Huangpu Tianyuan away for his devious plan to work.
But was the great Estate Lord Huangpu gonna take the bait? Just like that?
Yep. Zhuo Fan was that certain.
For starters, after beating Zhuo Fan, his confidence in his strength exploded to new unseen heights. With Zhuo Fan's seminal value for Luo clan's victory, if he was dead, Luo clan would be done for. If Zhuo Fan was around, no matter how ruined Luo clan would become, or how many times it was beaten, it would still be like grass in spring, sprouting from god knew where, with more power than ever. It was only a matter of time.
Huangpu Tianyuan could not let that happen. Zhuo Fan's badly wounded state was the best chance to take him out for good.
Secondly, Zhuo Fan was just too damn bright, hiding Luo clan's glow.
Each time Regent Estate faced Zhuo Fan, they had suffered great losses. To the point that all of Regent Estate believed that this war was in fact a fight against Zhuo Fan alone. Li Jingtian and other experts were negligible.
Besides, the moon shined brighter than any star.
Zhuo Fan was just too obnoxious, too outstanding, blinding their dog eyes to the reality and Luo clan's other experts.
Even Leng Wuchang fell for it.
He only had Zhuo Fan in his sights. If this guy lost, all was over. He focused on getting Huangpu Tianyuan to boost his power, the Nine Dragons Diamond Body, just to face Zhuo Fan.
But Zhuo Fan went against their thinking, leaving the fate of the war in the hands of others, giving Leng Wuchang no plan to counter and forcing him to go on the run.
Funnily enough, it wasn't even Zhuo Fan's fallback plan, but just plan B. If he'd wrecked Huangpu Tianyuan back there, he would've been leading the god damn attack by now instead of running around the place.
Zhuo Fan shook his head and sighed, staggering in his flight.
Huangpu Tianyuan had given him far greater damage than he had accounted for. [I wonder if I can hold on for plan B to complete.]
Zhuo Fan looked ahead and took a deep breath, "Cough~, just a bit more."
Zhuo Fan's right eye flashed again, just as the yellow light behind him whistled close and he felt his head hurt in pain from the sound of the attack.
Zhuo Fan blocked with his arms.
Bam!
He slammed into the rocky ground and in his place was a savage dragon's tail, "Ha-ha-ha, Zhuo Fan, after a three day long chase, you're finally out of steam."
Zhuo Fan pulled himself from the pile of rocks, out of breath, "Just 20 more miles and I would've made it. But getting away now…"
Zhuo Fan squinted, noticing his enemy's fixed gaze for any movements, and sighed.
It was hard getting out now with his beaten body. But giving himself over was never part of Zhuo Fan's style.
"Huangpu Tianyuan, did you know that I played you? Your men are being killed just about now!" Zhuo Fan mocked.
Huangpu Tianyuan laughed, "Zhuo Fan, your life is worth a thousand armies. If they lost because of Luo clan, it only proves they're useless. And I don't take kindly to dead weights around here. But if you die, there'll be no one to stop me. Be it Luo clan or the seven houses, none will matter at that point, ha-ha-ha…"
Huangpu Tianyuan's sharp eyes glinted and he shot for Zhuo Fan with his claws out, "Humph, where's that Qilin Shield? My claw is about to take your heart. Can your shield take it?"
Zhuo Fan gnashed his teeth, straining to even lift his arms. He only had the beast arms to rely on.
But those hands of his only trembled.
Sighing inside, Zhuo Fan knew he was on the brink of collapse from his wounds. Not even his arms could take an attack now.
Huangpu Tianyuan was excited, "Zhuo Fan, today's your funeral!"
"Cut the bull, I won't die here!" Zhuo Fan dredged the last bit of energy to cross his arms.
Huangpu Tianyuan smirked, putting more power in his attack, his eyes trembling in joy.
The great hero Zhuo Fan, having rained havoc in Tianyu for a decade, would find his end at his hands. For him, who was about to establish his own dynasty, it was the greatest feat of strength.
The collision was imminent, unless that red glow coming in from far had something to say about it.
It smacked Huangpu Tianyuan away into a hill a mile away, breaking it to pieces.
Once his head popped out from the rubble, he saw a pint-sized figure next to Zhuo Fan.
His eyes widened and he shouted, "Invincible Scamp, Gu Santong?!"
Zhuo Fan laughed at the timely rescue, "My life stays with me still! Old Huangpu, you loach, I can't take you down, but this little Qilin of mine will bury you, ha-ha-ha…"