Feng Tianxiang had clearly convinced himself that Chu Chen would never emerge alive from the secret realm.

"Otherwise, why would I have mobilized our main forces to lay siege to your Sacred Flame Imperial Palace?"

"Your defeat is predetermined. You would do well to submit to my embrace early."

"Do not let so many of your people follow you to the grave."

Feng Tianxiang was consumed by an obsessive infatuation. Even at this stage, he still hungered to hold Lin Shuwang in his arms.

Yet, when he looked at her cold, detached expression, his heart bled in agony. He could barely endure it.

He wanted Chu Chen dead. Only with Chu Chen gone would she perhaps turn to him.

Lin Shuwang met his gaze, her mind long since resolved. Even if it meant death, she would never leave with him.

"You think you can handle my husband? Delusional."

"Even if he is temporarily trapped within the secret realm, he will break free."

"You will never possess me. I belong only to Chu Chen."

Her words thrust into Feng Tianxiang's chest like a jagged blade.

"That Chu Chen is nothing but a callow youth! What makes him so exceptional?"

"Whatever he can provide for you, I can provide tenfold. Whatever he cannot give you, I still can!"

"If the two of us unite, God Phoenix Valley and the Sacred Flame Imperial Palace will merge. By then, the entire continent will bow to us."

"We will become the most formidable existence under the heavens!"

Feng Tianxiang stared at her with burning, fervent eyes, but Lin Shuwang merely shook her head, refusing to entertain a single word.

"Hmph!"

"Obstinate fool!"

"Then watch how I strike you down!"

"I offer you such profound devotion, yet you treat me with such disdain!"

Feng Tianxiang was nearly combusting with fury.

He had not anticipated that Lin Shuwang would remain so stubbornly unyielding, her heart entirely occupied by Chu Chen.

What was so great about that brat? He, Feng Tianxiang, commanded the entire God Phoenix Valley-how could he possibly be inferior to Chu Chen?

Fury threatened to erupt from his very eyes.

His Saint Artifact armor surged with terrifying power. With a forceful shudder, it shattered the frozen ice threads that filled the sky, sending them raining down in fractured shards across the ground.

Seeing this, Lin Shuwang's gaze grew icy.

Even among Saint King Artifacts, there were clear gradations of power. Though her Chi-Dragon Sword contained the wandering soul of a chi-dragon capable of freezing vast expanses of space, the ice attribute was inherently disadvantaged against heavier, more defensive artifacts.

With a resonant hum, the runes and light patterns on the Saint Artifact armor trembled violently, manifesting a massive shroud of energy that instantly sealed Lin Shuwang within.

Yet, trapped inside the volatile fluctuations of the artifact's energy web, Lin Shuwang remained entirely composed.

Even at such a critical juncture, her serenity did not waver.

She flicked the Chi-Dragon Sword gently. Myriad sword shadows coalesced into streams of frost arrows and glacial torrents, smashing ruthlessly against the dense web of light woven by the armor.

Amidst a succession of thunderous detonations, hairline fractures began to spiderweb across the massive barrier.

However, it refused to break completely. As Feng Tianxiang continuously channeled his spiritual power into the armor, the cracks mended at a visible pace.

"Hahaha!"

"Lin Shuwang, surrender is your only honorable path!"

"Sacrificing the entire Sacred Flame Imperial Palace for your stubbornness is sheer madness."

"I suggest you reflect on this clearly!"

Feng Tianxiang sneered down at her through the glowing confines of the barrier.

Despite her disadvantageous position, Lin Shuwang's confidence remained absolute.

Though the Chi-Dragon Sword could not immediately shatter the barrier, a mere Saint King Artifact was ultimately insufficient to bind her.

Before long, she gathered her strength and forcibly rent the constraints of the Saint King Artifact apart, stepping free.

Once clear, she leveled a cold, impassive gaze at him.

"Show me whatever else you have," Lin Shuwang declared with lofty pride.

She soared into the high sky, her palms continuously channeling torrents of Qi. Brilliant spiritual light enveloped her like a sacred sun.

To emerge completely unscathed after enduring Feng Tianxiang's heaviest assaults proved that her cultivation was profoundly formidable. Defeating her through standard combat was an impossible task.

Realizing his prolonged offenses were bearing no fruit, Feng Tianxiang's expression turned increasingly sinister.

Over at the secret realm, Chu Chen could emerge at any moment. The expedition was nearing its end, meaning he had to subjugate the Sacred Flame Imperial Palace immediately.

Although the palace disciples were currently pinned down and suffering heavy casualties, the city defenses had not yet fallen.

High above the Sacred Flame Imperial Palace, a massive grand formation pulsed rhythmically, weaving a resilient canopy of light that deflected the surrounding onslaught.

"You leave me no choice."

"I approached you with diplomatic words."

"I offered you my absolute devotion, yet you refuse to return to God Phoenix Valley with me."

"In that case, do not blame me for being ruthless!" Feng Tianxiang snarled, his sanity fraying under the delay.

"No one forced your hand," Lin Shuwang countered, her voice freezing. "You have been the aggressor all along."

"Matters of the heart cannot be coerced."

"I love only Chu Chen."

"Cease your pathetic delusions."

Her absolute rejection made Feng Tianxiang's heart bleed with resentment.

"If that is your final stance, then..."

He ground his teeth so hard they nearly shattered. He could not comprehend how he was inferior to Chu Chen, nor why she remained so irrevocably devoted to him.

He wanted Chu Chen dead.

Buzz! Buzz!

Blinding torrents of supreme spiritual light began to undulate wildly.

The item Feng Tianxiang produced next sent a jolt of genuine shock through Lin Shuwang's heart.

Resting before him was an ancient, exquisitely crafted zither, its surface intricately carved with the likeness of a massive divine phoenix.

The zither hovered quietly in the void, yet its mere presence unleashed a suffocating, cataclysmic pressure that bore down upon the entire battlefield.

Lin Shuwang's breath hitched.

He had drawn an Extreme Dao Imperial Weapon-the ultimate heirloom and valley-protecting treasure of God Phoenix Valley: the Divine Phoenix Ancient Zither.

As the image of the divine bird rippled across the wood, even a casual stroke of the strings would elicit a celestial melody capable of crushing the world beneath its weight.

"Did you truly have to push me to deploy the Divine Phoenix Ancient Zither?"

"Once this zither plays, rivers of blood will flow."

"The entire Sacred Flame Imperial Palace will be reduced to ash. Do you understand?"

Feng Tianxiang placed his hands over the strings and gave a sharp pluck. A massive wave of acoustic Qi erupted like a localized hurricane, smashing violently against the palace's protective formation.

Boom!

Though the barrier held, the sheer concussive shockwave bypassing the shield instantly obliterated a substantial number of Sacred Flame Imperial Palace disciples below.

Watching her people perish in droves tore at Lin Shuwang's heart.

To halt this slaughter, she would have to deploy her own Extreme Dao Imperial Weapon.

Yet, if two weapons of such world-ending caliber clashed directly, the resulting fallout would be far beyond what the Sacred Flame Imperial Palace could endure. The entire sect grounds would likely collapse into ruins from the collateral damage.

"Stay your hand!" Lin Shuwang cried out.

But Feng Tianxiang ignored her entirely. His fingers danced across the strings, sending wave after wave of destructive acoustic energy crashing into the world around them.