Chapter Thirty: A Single Strike Decides the Fate of the World

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The slightly sultry sunlight spilled onto the ground, the lingering smoke and dust had not yet fully dissipated, fighter jets swept swiftly across the sky, the distant rumble of artillery fire echoed intermittently, as if the entire world was embroiled in battle, accentuating the deathly silence of this place.

After the Void Sky Warrior was slain by Luo Longyu’s fierce blade of corpse energy, quiet descended upon the land.

Luo Longyu stood before the enormous gash carved by his blade, the wound deep as a canyon, cracks radiating in all directions. His face was ashen, skin shriveled like a ghoul, half his body grotesquely deformed, the skin on his head torn during battle by the Void Sky Warrior, exposing his terrifying skull.

He stood motionless, gazing at the canyon cut by the corpse energy blade, lost in thought, unmoving for a long while.

The sound of helicopter rotors soon echoed from the distant sky. Four Z-10 attack helicopters rushed to the scene, only to find the battle already over. They hovered briefly in the air, confirmed the threat had been eliminated, and prepared to return.

“So... is this your limit, Xuan Yuan Corpse Dao?” A sinister voice suddenly rang out, startling Luo Longyu as he was about to turn away.

The ground split open, and a blood-red giant fist burst through, striking Luo Longyu squarely on the jaw, sending him flying high into the air.

A furious roar shook the heavens. A blood-red giant shadow erupted from the earth, appearing instantly above Luo Longyu. An elbow strike smashed him down from the heights, and Luo Longyu, struck by pain, plummeted like a shell.

But before he could hit the ground, the blood-red figure appeared beneath him again, launching him skyward with another punch at a speed that made one’s scalp tingle.

Everyone was stunned by this sudden turn of events. Mu Yimian scrambled to her feet, gazing in disbelief at the unfolding scene.

“The threat isn’t over! Prepare for battle!”

“Iron Eagle Three reporting—blood-red humanoid detected, strong energy response on the instruments, over!”

“Target’s speed too fast, unable to lock on, over!”

Amidst the chaos, the four helicopters that were about to depart quickly circled back, but the blood-red figure moved so swiftly it was impossible to track him with the naked eye, much less attack.

Luo Longyu, battered and disoriented, felt several ribs broken in his chest, his corpse body gravely wounded, but he could not locate his opponent, leaving him frustrated and furious.

“Xuan Yuan Corpse Dao, so this is all you amount to!” Luo Longyu sensed a fleeting shadow behind him, the blood-red figure appeared, grinning coldly, his right fist glowing with deadly light, striking Luo Longyu’s crown.

It felt as if thunder struck his head, bones and tendons snapping throughout his body, and he crashed to the ground with a thunderous impact, lying amidst the ruins, unable to move. Even the corpse wheel on his back was shattered.

The blood-red figure finally paused, resembling a giant ape, with two horns sprouting from its head, a pair of fleshy wings on its back—truly a demon.

“Is this... the true form of the Void Sky Warrior?” Luo Mengxuan murmured, then suddenly reacted, turning to the soldiers and shouting, “Shoot him! I’ll save Luo Longyu!”

“Open fire!” With a loud command, the soldiers on the ground unleashed a hail of rifle fire, but to the Void Sky Warrior, such attacks were meaningless.

The four helicopters in the sky opened fire simultaneously, their cannons roaring as they circled and attacked the Void Sky Warrior. Just as he raised his hand to retaliate, two airborne missiles streaked toward him.

The Void Sky Warrior’s expression darkened, he raised a light shield to intercept the missiles, and in retaliation hurled three balls of light toward the helicopters. The pilots maneuvered frantically; one helicopter failed to dodge, erupting into flames and crashing.

“Three! Three has crashed, Three has crashed!”

“Hurry, rescue the crew!” Several soldiers on the ground sprinted toward the crash site, desperate to save the pilots, dead or alive.

Seizing the opening bought by the PLA’s fierce resistance, Luo Mengxuan flashed to Luo Longyu’s side, lifted him, and fled into the distance without hesitation.

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“We can’t leave... can’t abandon the soldiers...” Luo Longyu spoke with difficulty.

Luo Mengxuan glanced at him, replying, “Don’t talk nonsense, that thing is too strong. If we stay, we’ll die too. Little Darling, go!” With that, Luo Mengxuan tossed the parrot from her shoulder.

The parrot cried loudly, “Charge! Charge!” and flew headlong toward the Void Sky Warrior.

“Sorry, Little Darling.” Luo Mengxuan looked back with tearful eyes.

The Void Sky Warrior saw Luo Mengxuan escaping with Luo Longyu and wanted to give chase, but was struck in the back by a missile from a helicopter, leaving a deep wound that bled profusely.

“Courting death!” Enraged, the Void Sky Warrior conjured a blast that sent the helicopter spinning out of control, crashing and scattering debris.

At that moment, Little Darling dove into the fray, igniting into a ball of fire. In an instant, the phoenix’s cry soared across the sky; Little Darling transformed from the flames into a giant scarlet phoenix. With a shriek, the phoenix seized the Void Sky Warrior’s crown with its claws. The warrior remained unmoved, brandishing a blade and slashing at the phoenix, scattering feathers.

Yet the phoenix did not retreat; instead, it twisted its body, released the crown, and gripped the warrior’s shoulders with its sharp claws, pinning him mid-air.

On a nearby mountain, a special ops squad observing the battle exclaimed, “He’s contained! He’s contained!” They quickly aimed a laser pointer at the Void Sky Warrior.

“Wolf calling Sword, Wolf calling Sword. Target contained, laser coordinates sent, over!”

“Coordinates received, Sword system preparing to fire, ten-second countdown. Ten, nine, eight...”

On a distant highway, a heavy truck carrying a container screeched to a halt. The container opened, revealing a massive turret, which quickly powered up and aimed at the distant sky.

“Coordinates entered, firing trajectory calculated, ready to fire!”

“Five, four, three, two, one—fire!”

With the gunner’s press of the trigger, the electromagnetic cannon unleashed its kinetic fury, the sound ripping through the air and shaking every ear.

The special ops squad listened as the projectile screamed overhead, then watched as it struck the Void Sky Warrior’s chest, piercing him in an instant, shooting into the distant mountains and setting off a violent explosion.

Hit by such devastating force, a gaping hole opened in the warrior’s chest. The scarlet phoenix cried out, spewing blazing light from its beak, driving the warrior deep into the earth, the surrounding ground melting under the intense heat.

Struck by the electromagnetic cannon, the warrior’s combat strength plummeted. The phoenix’s sudden intervention, combined with the PLA’s sharp tactics, left him at a severe disadvantage.

“Ha! Beautiful! Beautiful!” Several soldiers cheered loudly, stunned by the electromagnetic cannon’s unexpected attack.

J-11 fighter jets swept by again, missiles shrieking, striking the area where the phoenix attacked. Two Z-10s also arrived, unleashing a frenzied barrage on the fiery zone.

Raging cries of frustration echoed from the flames, but wounded by the electromagnetic cannon and suppressed by the phoenix’s relentless assault, the Void Sky Warrior was caught off guard—he could not fathom why this phoenix, previously dormant, now struck him so fiercely.

The Z-10s spared no ammunition, firing until empty before withdrawing. The phoenix’s blazing divine light lasted over ten minutes, turning the ground to magma, with the warrior’s ravaged body floating amidst it.

The phoenix swooped down, seized the warrior from the magma, and slammed him to the ground. Its wings whipped up a fiery gale, stripping flesh from bone, skin rotting away in a gruesome spectacle.

The Void Sky Warrior howled in agony, struggling as the firestorm raged, his body continually burned away, exposing skeleton and incinerating organs to ash.

“You worms cannot kill me. Destroy one of my bodies, and I will return for vengeance! The King of the Void Sky is eternal!” With this final declaration, his skeleton was blown to powder, scattering in the wind.

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The scarlet phoenix hovered in midair, wings outstretched, as the soldiers below waved in gratitude. Though the phoenix was a mythological creature, in Chinese legend it is one of the Four Sacred Beasts and held in high esteem. The soldiers had witnessed its desperate struggle and felt deep gratitude.

Moreover, since the invasion of the void beings, the troops had seen countless strange occurrences—even dragons appeared—so the arrival of a phoenix did not surprise them much.

The phoenix let out a long cry, turned, and flew toward the direction where Luo Mengxuan had vanished. Soon, its body was engulfed in flames, feathers falling, and it reverted to a palm-sized parrot, disappearing from sight.

“Immortal battles—what a spectacle... Hey, hey, buddy, don’t move around.” Watching the direction in which the parrot vanished, a soldier supporting a pilot couldn’t help but sigh.

“But honestly, who are Luo Longyu and that girl? To have a phoenix as a companion—extraordinary.”

“Nonsense! In these times, have you seen any ordinary people?”

“True, but I think the electromagnetic cannon was the real stunner—there must be allied forces nearby.”

“Enough chatter! Come over and help flip the vehicle—who knows if it’s still usable!” The platoon leader shouted from the side.

The rescued pilot gazed at the crash site of the other helicopter, eyes red with tears as he saluted. The other soldiers, seeing this, said nothing, silently helping to move the jeep.

This war had lasted so long, so many comrades had fallen, they could no longer count—now, numbness had set in.

Luo Mengxuan carried Luo Longyu to an abandoned town, laying him on a bed. She let out a long breath, muttering, “I’m exhausted.” Then she hurried to the window, her gaze dim as she looked to the distant sky. In her mind, Little Darling’s fate seemed grim—against such a powerful foe, without immense strength, the battle was unwinnable.

As she pondered, tears streamed down her cheeks. Just then, Little Darling suddenly flew in through the window, landing on her shoulder, stunning Luo Mengxuan—she thought she was hallucinating.

“Back! Back!” Only when Little Darling tilted its head, asking for food, did Luo Mengxuan, overjoyed, embrace the little parrot, tears of happiness streaming down her face. “Little Darling! You’re safe! Thank goodness!”

“Scared! So scared!” Little Darling chirped.

“Oh right, what happened to the Void Sky Warrior?” Luo Mengxuan placed Little Darling on a chair, crouching and asking.

“Dead! Dead!” Little Darling pecked at the chair.

“Dead?” Luo Mengxuan was taken aback, hardly believing it—killed by Little Darling? How could that be? The foe was so powerful, but Little Darling couldn’t explain the details—the electromagnetic cannon was something none of them recognized.

Luo Longyu, lying on the bed, heard Little Darling and asked weakly, “The Void Sky Warrior... is dead?”

“Yes, yes, Little Darling killed him.” Luo Mengxuan hurried to Luo Longyu’s side, convinced the warrior was slain by Little Darling, though it seemed incredible.

“That’s good, that’s good... Mengxuan, you and Little Darling leave the room. I need to recover, worried I might harm you...” Luo Longyu was well aware of his dire state.

Luo Mengxuan looked at him, her expression heavy, nodded, and said, “Take care of yourself. We’ll be outside.” She carried Little Darling out, glancing back anxiously at Luo Longyu as she left.