The Prodigies War-Chapter 2288 Dao Annihilation Tribulation Light

Huang Canghai—the Fifth Elder.

His betrayal was shocking and devastating because he wasn’t just any elder but also the younger brother of Patriarch Huang Cangtian!

Despite that, with a single stroke, he had slain Lian Qingqi.

Lian Qingqi wasn’t just a renowned dao rune founder, but also the key to controlling the Ultimate Restriction Array that protected Thousand Flame Imperial City. His death meant that the city’s defenses were now in peril!

“You bastard!”

Veins bulged on Huang Cangtian’s forehead. In rage, he drew his sword and slashed toward Huang Canghai’s neck. However, before his blade could strike, an old antique stepped in, restraining him.

“Patriarch, you mustn’t. The Fifth Elder might be under enemy’s control and he may not be acting of his own free will!”

With Huang Cangtian restrained, Huang Canghai let out a hoarse, bitter laugh. “Elder Brother, just kill me. Our Celestial Phoenix Lineage is doomed in your hands anyway. What difference does it make whether I live or die?”

“You...” Huang Cangtian trembled with rage, his hair and beard bristling, his eyes bloodshot.

The situation was already dire with the enemy at their gates, and now, with chaos erupting within their own ranks, it had become even worse.

Outside the city, Bai Lingzhen, Wu Xiuxing and others looked on with amusement before bursting into mocking laughter.

Behind them, the White Tiger and Black Tortoise armies also cackled, their laughter echoing across the battlefield like a tidal wave.

Inside the city, the experts of the Celestial Phoenix Lineage and the Divine Forge Imperial Clan wore darkened expressions, their bodies shaking with anger.

“Traitors are more despised than enemies.” Big Yellow sighed. “If they’re willing to lay down their lives for the enemy, then why not help them by sending them off?”

A chorus of voices objected, “No!”

Many refused to believe that Huang Youdao and Huang Canghai had betrayed them of their own free will. There had to be another reason, something beyond their control.

Huang Cangtian also hesitated.

Big Yellow snorted coldly and spoke in a deep voice, “With the enemy at our doorstep, if you don’t eliminate those two to restore order, then how can you expect your troops to have the morale to hold the line?”

Many glared at him with hostility. This was a matter of the Celestial Phoenix Lineage, why should an outsider interfere?

Shua!

Suddenly, Huang Cangtian swung his sword.

Before anyone could react, Huang Canghai’s head flew up, blood spraying across the air and splattering Huang Cangtian’s robes.

A stunned silence fell over the battlefield. The patriarch had executed his own younger brother!

“No matter who they are, traitors deserve death!” Huang Cangtian’s voice was cold, devoid of emotion. His gaze then shifted to Third Elder Huang Youdao. “I won’t waste my breath asking for explanations. The moment you betrayed us, you deserved to die!”

“You...you really...” Huang Youdao’s eyes widened in disbelief. He had thought the worst that could happen was being captured and imprisoned. Never had he imagined that Huang Cangtian would be so ruthless.

Shua!

Before he could finish talking, a sword flashed. His body crumpled to the ground, his face frozen in horror and disbelief even at death.

“At the brink of war, the last thing I wish is to turn my sword against my own people.” Huang Cangtian slowly withdrew his sword, his expression indifferent, his presence imposing.

All the warriors of the Celestial Phoenix Lineage and the Divine Forge Imperial Clan stood in place, shaken.

Boom!

The Ultimate Restriction Array surrounding Thousand Flame Imperial City trembled violently as the White Tiger and Black Tortoise armies unleashed a new wave of attacks.

Bai Lingzhen and Wu Xiuxing led their respective clans’ old monsters into battle. As many as a hundred Emperors were striking at once. The power they unleashed was like a river bursting its banks, sweeping across the land, shattering the heavens, and threatening to annihilate everything in its path!

The Ultimate Restriction Array shook under the relentless assault, its light flickering ominously, teetering on the verge of collapse.

Without Lian Qingqi overseeing it, even though Lian Jiuxiao and the other old monsters of the Divine Forge Imperial Clan were pouring all their strength into maintaining it, they were barely holding on.

Their voices rang out in urgency, “Lord, we can’t hold on much longer!”

Huang Cangtian looked grave. After a brief silence, he asked, “Have the younger generation of the clan been properly secured?”

Everyone nodded.

“Then it doesn’t matter.”

Huang Cangtian’s voice was calm, but the determination behind them was absolute. “Our only hope lies with the Venerable Ancestor. Will you stand and fight with me until the end?”

“Of course!” The reply was resolute and everyone’s eyes were filled with unwavering determination.

Huang Cangtian laughed loudly, “Good! Then let us, these old bones, fight with everything we have! If we must die today, let it be in battle, not on our knees!” His voice was filled with heroic defiance.

Unfortunately, the enemy's bombardment grew fiercer, each strike resounding like thunderclaps and each impact like the toll of a death knell, shrouding the battlefield in an air of suffocating despair.

Huang Cangtian turned to Xi and the others and said, “Fellow Daoists, please return to Divine Forge Workshop A1. The final line of defense must be entrusted to you.”

The presence of traitors in the clan had shaken his trust in those around him.

“Do you really want to fight to the death?” Xi asked.

Huang Cangtian smiled, “Why not?”

Xi’s sharp, beautiful eyes swept across the battlefield. “There are hundreds of Emperors outside the city, but only nineteen Emperor Ancestors. Once we eliminate them, their defeat is inevitable.”

A heavy silence followed. No one doubted her logic, but the problem was that...

Those were nineteen Emperor Ancestors!

Even a single one could unleash world-shattering power, let alone nineteen of them.

It was no exaggeration to say that among the Emperor Stage, Emperor Ancestors stood at the pinnacle, reigning supreme over all Emperors!

In comparison, the Celestial Phoenix Lineage and Divine Forge Imperial Clan had only six Emperor Ancestors combined. At least in terms of numbers, they were at a complete disadvantage.

Of course, even with Xi and Big Yellow, they were still outnumbered!

Just as everyone thought that Xi was stating the obvious, she continued, “If I go all out, I can hold down at least five to seven Emperor Ancestors.”

There were audible gasps from the crowd. .

The weight of her words was terrifying. Upon recalling how she had battled two Emperor Ancestors, Wanliu and Qianyin, they realized that Xi was not the type to boast.

Big Yellow hesitated for a moment, then muttered, “I... well, maybe...at most...three?”

Its uncertainty drew skeptical looks, which irritated the dog. With a cold huff, it corrected itself, “Two is a sure thing. Three? No problem at all!”

“If needed, I can help you,” Xia Zhi added calmly.

Regardless of whether Xi, Big Yellow and Xia Zhi could truly manage such feats, their willingness to stand and fight stirred Huang Cangtian and the others deeply.

At this moment of life and death, these outsiders were stepping forward without hesitation. Compared to the Third Elder and Fifth Elder who had betrayed them, the contrast was striking! How would they not be moved?

“Thank you!” Huang Cangtian bowed.

The old antiques of the Celestial Phoenix Lineage and the Divine Forge Imperial Clan also bowed in unison.

Big Yellow, looking slightly uncomfortable, coughed and muttered, “Don’t read too much into it. We’re only doing this for that kid Lin Xun.”

Currently, Lin Xun was crafting his life-bound Emperor weapon inside Divine Forge Workshop A1. If the enemy broke through and disrupted the process, then it would be an unprecedented disaster.

In that sense, Big Yellow was absolutely right.

Rumble—

Meanwhile, the enemy's assault intensified, and the Ultimate Restriction Array of Thousand Flame Imperial City shuddered violently, its structure on the verge of collapse.

“If you don’t want the city to fall and give the enemy a chance to storm the Divine Forge Workshop, then now is the time to strike.” As Xi said that, she moved first, stepping out of the city with a graceful ease, showing not a shred of fear or panic.

Xia Zhi and Big Yellow followed.

Their unshaken composure sent a surge of blood through everyone’s veins. Without further thought, they all charged out after them.

“Kill!”

“At this point, there’s nothing left to discuss, just take down as many as possible!”

“Let’s go!”

With a roar, Huang Cangtian, along with a group of Celestial Phoenix Lineage old antiques, also rushed into battle.

Lian Jiuxiao and a group of old antiques from the Divine Forge Imperial Clan remained behind, working tirelessly to maintain the Ultimate Restriction Array within the city.

“They’ve come out,” Bai Lingzhen remarked in surprise

Wu Xiuxing chuckled, his tone calm and indifferent, “A cornered beast will always make a last-ditch struggle. They must realize their defeat is inevitable.”

Despite their indifferent comments, both reacted instantly. The moment Xi and the others appeared, they became the primary targets.

Rumble—

An earthshaking battle erupted without suspense, plunging the heavens and earth into chaos. Torrents of divine radiance raged across the battlefield, Emperor weapons clashing with devastating force. Blinding explosions of light painted the sky in a spectacle of destruction, as if doomsday had descended upon the world.

......

Meanwhile, deep within the secret realm of Divine Forge Workshop A1.

Tribulation lightning cascaded like an endless waterfall, as if it would not stop until it obliterated the life-bound Emperor weapon that had yet to fully take form.

Thousand Fire Spirit Emperor bore the brunt of the tribulation alongside Lin Xun. The relentless heavenly tribulation left her wounded as she fought to keep the weapon intact.

“How can this tribulation be so terrifying?”

Even Thousand Fire Spirit Emperor couldn’t hide her astonishment. She had once witnessed the calamity that had befallen the Treasure Refining Furnace when it forged the Kunlun nine Emperor weapons.

Back then, even the Treasure Refining Furnace had to sacrifice itself to preserve the nine weapons from destruction.

However, the tribulation Lin Xun faced now was even more terrifying.

Not only was its power greater, but there was also something inexplicably sinister about it, as if it wouldn't stop until the weapon was completely destroyed.

Lin Xun’s expression was solemn, his face pale as a sheet.

The refining process had reached the final, most critical moment, but due to the relentless interference of the lightning tribulation, it was impossible for the weapon embryo, already forged by the All-Wonder Dao Fire, to complete its final transformation.

Boom!

Deep within the churning tribulation clouds, a strange and ominous roar echoed. A streak of greyish tribulation light flashed, swirling with an eerie, taboo-like radiance. As it slowly took shape, Thousand Fire Spirit Emperor’s eyes widened in horror, her scalp tingling. “This...could it be the legendary Dao Annihilation Tribulation Light?”