Chapter 221

Chapter 221: The Strongest Elder

A single, crisp note rang out, and the melody shifted.

It felt as if the void itself had been plucked—each string vibrating through flesh and bone.

Wang Jie’s heart lurched. He was already far away, yet he still couldn’t resist. Up ahead, the people surrounding Li Tong He sank to the ground under the pressure, including powerful figures like Yue Bai, Wu Jiang, and Lan Ning.

Even Li Tong He remained standing, staring at Su Su with raw caution in his eyes.

Behind them, cultivators crumpled. Weapons slipped from numb hands.

Blood sprayed as people vomited, faces turning ashen.

Wang Jie forced out a slow breath. The zither music seemed to transform into countless tiny warriors hacking and slashing inside his body. He tried to shift back—

His heartbeat spiked.

No. He couldn’t move.

Not right now.

The entire battlefield was under the zither’s control.

Absolute suppression.

“Su Su,” Yue Bai called out, voice loud but strained, “you’re not thinking of suppressing all of us alone, are you?”

Wu Jiang lifted his gaze. “Elder. Go.”

Li Tong He wanted to—he truly did. But his injuries were too severe, and Su Su’s pressure was focused on him. Every note drove him deeper into ruin.

Qing Ge’s eyes shone as he looked at Su Su. “Singing Phoenix Hall Divine Maiden. I’ve long heard of the Ming Huang Bridgeway Art. Might I witness it?”

Su Su didn’t answer.

She simply played.

And the melody rose higher, sharper, perfectly matched to the battlefield’s killing intent.

Li Tong He suddenly spat blood. His body swayed, then he sank down.

A Roaming-Star Realm cultivator near him forced himself upright under the music and tried to strike—only to explode into gore on his third step.

Lan Ning loosed an arrow.

It shattered in midair.

Lan Ning herself jerked as if struck and spat blood, glaring at Su Su with unwilling fury.

Behind Li Tong He, the void convulsed and a Dagger-Offering Order assassin was violently forced out of hiding.

Only then did Su Su speak. Her voice was clear and cool, flowing into everyone’s heart like spring water. “Please, do not act rashly.”

Her gaze shifted to Li Tong He. “Senior, junior will see you off.”

Li Tong He stared at her, voice torn and hoarse. “Little junior… you still can’t take this old man’s life.”

He shut his eyes and forced starforce through his body, no longer sparing attention for the Hundred-Star Realm struggle above.

If he kept watching the heavens, he would die here.

He would rather die to a Hundred-Star Realm than be killed by a little junior.

That was when Yue Bai moved.

Slowly, he stood.

Su Su’s eyes turned to him.

Yue Bai sneered. “In a fair fight, you might not even be able to suppress me.

“Right now you’re suppressing so many experts at once. What can you possibly do to me?”

Wu Jiang rose as well, hand tightening around his blade.

Qing Ge stood.

And from another direction, a middle-aged Roaming-Star Realm cultivator pushed himself upright.

Su Su frowned.

Holding down this many experts was difficult. Where were the Singing Phoenix Hall reinforcements?

Then she noticed something.

A figure—quiet, unremarkable.

A fellow disciple? A junior sister?

When had she gotten there? How had Su Su failed to notice her earlier?

“Junior Sister,” Su Su said, her voice never rising, “take Senior Li away.”

Everyone followed her gaze.

A Singing Phoenix Hall woman.

Faces changed. That meant there truly was Singing Phoenix Hall presence here.

Li Tong He’s eyes snapped open. His face turned white.

So the heavens really intended to end him.

The woman bowed respectfully toward Su Su. “Yes, Senior Sister.”

Su Su’s fingers pressed harder. The melody thickened, pinning everyone in place and ensuring no one could interfere.

The woman walked toward Li Tong He step by step. The music didn’t hinder her at all—she moved like someone strolling down a calm road.

Li Tong He tried to resist.

His body trembled, and he spat blood again.

The woman seized him and turned away, dragging him toward the Second Star-Cloud Battlefield’s direction.

Lan Ning tried to raise her bow.

The zither’s pressure crushed her down. She couldn’t even draw.

All anyone could do was watch as Li Tong He was taken away—heaven-sent merit slipping through their fingers.

The farther they moved from Su Su, the more freedom Li Tong He regained. He struggled, trying to break free.

Then the woman spoke—

In a man’s voice.

“Where’s the return warship? It still hasn’t arrived?”

Li Tong He froze.

The woman turned her head slightly toward him. “If the Singing Phoenix Hall people really arrive, we’re finished. Where’s the return warship?”

Li Tong He snapped back to himself. Whoever this “woman” was, it didn’t matter.

He pointed in a direction.

The disguised figure immediately turned and dragged him that way.

Before long, they found a warship tucked inside a cave carved into a mountain of shattered planet fragments.

The disguised figure helped Li Tong He aboard. “Move. Now.

“Return to the Command Hub.”

Li Tong He gave the order. The warship’s engines rumbled to life, and it slipped out of the Han Hai Battlefield.

With Su Su holding the battlefield’s center in a vise, no one could intercept. The warship escaped cleanly.

The familiar, deep starry sky opened around them.

Only then did Li Tong He finally exhale, turning to stare at the “woman.” “You are…?”

The disguised figure smiled. “Elder, recover first. Then we’ll talk.”

Li Tong He nodded. Yes. Recover first.

He assumed this was a Black-White Heaven mole planted inside the Singing Phoenix Hall. Such things were common.

He entered the rest chamber at once.

The disguised figure went to another room and began recovering with the Nine-Form Diagram.

And the truth became clear.

He was Wang Jie.

Keeping Li Tong He alive under Su Su’s suppression had been nearly impossible. If Wang Jie hadn’t been able to disguise himself as someone from the Singing Phoenix Hall, it never would have worked.

Su Su could have held everyone down indefinitely while waiting for reinforcements.

Wang Jie’s luck had been decent—the Singing Phoenix Hall support hadn’t arrived too early.

He looked back toward Han Hai, wondering what Su Su’s face would look like when she learned the truth.

This identity was burned. He could never use it again.

Back on the Han Hai Battlefield, after Li Tong He vanished into the void, Su Su’s fingers finally stopped.

The pressure eased.

People surged upright, furious, ready to strike—only to see Singing Phoenix Hall reinforcements arriving in force.

A line of women formed behind Su Su like a wall.

Everyone swallowed their anger and withdrew.

Wu Jiang’s eyes were dim. Black-White Heaven had nearly lost a Hundred-Star Realm elder. The war was turning against them.

Su Su looked down at the battlefield, chin lifted, gaze proud.

Suppressing so many powerful figures with her own strength was worth pride.

Her name was Su Su—Singing Phoenix Hall Divine Maiden.

Her goal lay far beyond this battlefield: the supreme heaven-chosen of First Nebula.

“Senior Sister,” someone asked, “where is Li Tong He?”

Su Su paused, then turned sharply. “That junior sister didn’t bring him back?”

“Which junior sister?”

Su Su traced a painting in the void. A sketch formed instantly—the woman’s face, her posture, the details of her disguise.

A Singing Phoenix Hall disciple behind her paled and stepped forward, bowing hurriedly. “Reporting to Senior Sister—this is Senior Sister Chen Qi… but she died several days ago.”

Su Su’s expression cracked.

She spun and immediately chased in the direction Li Tong He had been taken.

She searched.

And found nothing.

Her face twisted with rage.

She had been played.

Who dared?

It didn’t make sense. How could someone disguise themselves right under her eyes without being detected?

Unless…

Unless the other party was Hundred-Star Realm.

But if they were Hundred-Star Realm, why bother disguising?

Or was it some powerful disguise chen artifact?

Who?

She—Su Su, Singing Phoenix Hall Divine Maiden—had been fooled.

If this story spread, it would become a humiliating joke.

She had pinned down the battlefield with her music, only for someone to mock her to her face and steal Li Tong He away.

Humiliation. Pure humiliation.

“Send the order,” Su Su snapped. “Investigate all sides. Find out who saved Li Tong He.

“I want every scrap of information on this person.”

The Singing Phoenix Hall disciples behind her answered as one. “Yes, Senior Sister.”

In the starry sky, aboard the warship, Li Tong He finally met the truth.

Wang Jie stood before him and bowed. “Disciple Wang Jie greets Elder.”

Li Tong He stared. “You… you’re male?”

Wang Jie smiled. “Yes.”

“It was you who saved me?”

“I did not fail.”

Li Tong He let out a breath that sounded almost like laughter. “You even fooled me. I couldn’t see through your disguise—so it’s only natural Su Su couldn’t either.

“Wait… Wang Jie?

“That name…”

His eyes sharpened as recognition struck. “So it’s you. The Wang Jie who kidnapped an elder council junior… and made my son suffer in the Star-Devourer struggle.”

Wang Jie’s smile turned awkward. He knew Li Tong He’s son was Li Cai. Strictly speaking, Wang Jie had taken Wen Yuan’s token—Wen Yuan had already seized it from Li Cai—but the resulting chaos had indeed cost Li Cai dearly. He bowed again. “Disciple offended you. Please forgive me, Elder.”

Li Tong He waved it off. “Bold. Careful. Unusual methods. Wang Jie, you’re not bad.”

Wang Jie finally relaxed. It was good that Elder Li didn’t hold a grudge.

Elder Ming already had him in his sights. Wang Jie didn’t need another elder turning hostile.

“Do you know my relationship with Senior Xing Xue?” Li Tong He asked.

Wang Jie hesitated. “This junior does not.”

Li Tong He motioned for him to sit. “My father, Li Xiang, was a close friend of Senior Xing Xue.”

“So there’s a connection,” Wang Jie said softly.

“There was,” Li Tong He replied, his expression distant. “But Senior Xing Xue ran away from home, and that connection ended. Even as my father lay dying, he refused to forgive it.”

Wang Jie didn’t know what to say.

Li Tong He studied him. “You saved my life. That merit is equivalent to killing a Hundred-Star Realm powerhouse. You don’t need war merit exchange. Tell me what you want—if I can do it, I’ll do my best.”

Wang Jie stood. “Junior asks Elder to back me, so Elder Ming cannot continue targeting me.”

Li Tong He didn’t even blink. “Elder Ming is from Senior Zhi Qing’s line. It’s normal for him to target you.

“No wonder you were thrown into the Han Hai Battlefield.

“It’s already impressive you survived.”

He paused, then added, “From now on, in this Ying Yang Battlefield, you will not be targeted.”

Wang Jie bowed deeply. “Thank you, Elder.”

They spoke a while longer, until Li Tong He’s injuries demanded his attention. He returned to healing; he had only come out early to see who had saved him.

After some time, Li Tong He ordered the warship to halt.

“Wang Jie,” he said, staring into the starry distance, “do you know Elder Wu Yuan?”

“I’ve heard of him,” Wang Jie replied. “They say he’s the youngest elder.”

Li Tong He’s mouth curved. “The youngest—and the strongest.”

Wang Jie blinked in surprise.

Li Tong He chuckled. “Wu Yuan was once the number one Six-Path Roamer. After advancing to Hundred-Star Realm, he left the disciple ranks.”

“Six-Path Roamers are terrifying,” Wang Jie said. “Then Elder Wu Yuan’s strength…”

“Haha. Don’t rely on imagination.” Li Tong He shook his head. “Sometimes the gap within the same realm is far bigger than you think.

“He once defeated a Six-Path Roamer of the same realm in a single move, but he also once lost in a single move to someone in Guarding Star Realm. Don’t try to measure people like that. Ordinary cultivators can’t imagine it.”

A warship approached in the distance.

Wang Jie’s eyes widened. Losing in one move to Guarding Star Realm?

Was that one of the four wandering gods… or someone from Tian Cang’s side?

Wu Yuan arrived.

He looked like a capable young man, about the same apparent age as Zhi Ye—though cultivators could preserve their appearance. Still, Wu Yuan felt genuinely young. Without his cultivation, he could have passed for an ordinary disciple.

He had become an elder not long ago, yet Li Tong He had already declared him the strongest in the elder council. That alone spoke volumes.

Li Tong He stepped forward and spoke bluntly. “I was ambushed by Third Nebula. We all knew each other’s strength, but Qin Mo happened to break through into Hundred-Star Realm.

“He must have broken through outside the Han Hai Battlefield. No one detected it.

“The two of them joined hands and heavily injured me.”

Wu Yuan’s expression didn’t change. “Understood.”

Then he turned and left, warship engines already warming.

Wang Jie couldn’t help asking, “Elder Wu Yuan is…?”

Li Tong He’s voice was quiet and absolute. “Qin Mo is dead for sure.”