Chapter Three: The Golden Riders of Midday

“Every grievance has its source, every debt its debtor. Senior, there’s no need to quarrel with us mere pawns!”

Below, a sinister soulmaster with wings broke free from the assault of the plants and shouted defiantly. Instead of fleeing outward, he swiftly flew toward Lu Chuang.

Hearing his words, Lu Chuang narrowed his eyes. He controlled the plants but did not hinder the soulmaster’s approach, allowing him to reach a spot not far from himself unharmed.

The soulmaster, noticing the plants no longer attacked, felt a surge of hope, realizing his gamble had paid off. Yet he dared not relax for a moment and immediately revealed what he knew.

“We are—”

Before he could finish, a thunderous roar rang out, cutting through the air like a majestic river of power. Following it came an endless radiance of golden sword light!

Under the sword’s majestic glow, the soulmaster was unable to mount even a defense and exploded into a cloud of blood and mist. Yet the sword light did not wane; it continued to slash toward Lu Chuang!

The golden light filled all eyes with brilliance, yet Lu Chuang remained unmoving. Behind him, a towering chungan tree stood firm, its leaves falling like rain, countless branches and leaves forming a high wall before him.

But the sword light, like an unparalleled siege weapon, shattered the wall with sheer force and charged at Lu Chuang relentlessly!

In the critical moment, the chungan tree dropped a branch that swept across the sword light. Upon impact, a tremendous roar burst forth; in an instant, the sword light dissipated, and the branch was shattered into fragments.

Lu Chuang touched his cheek, where black blood trickled down, then finally raised his eyes toward the distance. There stood a man clad in white-gold armor, holding a longsword—the very one who had just unleashed that strike.

Floating beside him were six soul rings, unmistakably marking him as a Soul Emperor.

Behind him were dozens of similarly armored soulmasters, their soul power closely linked to his. The attack just now had been a combined strike.

At last, Lu Chuang understood the strength he wielded under the blessing of the Immortal Sand Soul Revival Technique—surpassing most Soul Emperors and pressing close to the Soul Saint level.

Meeting Lu Chuang’s gaze, the armored man stepped forward and proclaimed loudly, “Thanks to this friend’s intervention, this group of rogue soulmasters who have plagued our Douling Empire for days have been brought to justice. For this, the Day Feather Golden Riders hereby invite you to join our celebratory feast!”

He made no mention of the deadly strike that had nearly ended Lu Chuang’s life, speaking with sincere righteousness as if it were a straightforward matter.

Recalling the soulmaster’s last words and the sudden appearance of the Day Feather Golden Riders, many clues coalesced in Lu Chuang’s mind, gradually revealing the truth.

A strange smile crossed Lu Chuang’s face, and in the next moment, a tide of plants surged toward the Day Feather Golden Riders!

Seeing Lu Chuang’s unhesitating attack, the leader of the Golden Riders immediately linked his soul power with the others, erecting a barrier to block the assault of the plants.

“Damn it!”

The leader cursed under his breath. According to plan, they were only supposed to appear at the end to finish things, but suddenly a Soul Saint emerged from nowhere and disrupted everything.

Observing covertly, he had decided to strike to silence those rogue soulmasters once they slipped up and to eliminate the suspected Soul Saint at the same time.

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