Chapter 34: The Assault of Zhou Fang

Following the address on the note, Zhang Xiao brought Bai Shunuan before a massive ancient castle. "Bah! I thought it would be just a small manor at most. Turns out he's just a nouveau riche country bumpkin," Zhang Xiao cursed aloud.

Originally, Zhang Xiao assumed that since Vickrus constantly lingered in the Forest of the Dead, his family fortune couldn't possibly be all that impressive. But seeing it now made Zhang Xiao understand what people meant by never judging a book by its cover.

He gave the door a knock, and it was opened by an elderly butler dressed in a neat black suit. Upon seeing that Zhang Xiao and Bai Shunuan appeared to be Easterners, the butler's expression flickered for a moment, but he still spoke to Zhang Xiao with utmost politeness, "Greetings, esteemed Eastern travelers. Welcome to the Akmorgan Castle. Is there anything I might assist you with?"

Hearing such polite words from the butler, Zhang Xiao was somewhat at a loss for how to respond. This was his first time encountering such formal social occasions. Fortunately, Bai Shunuan immediately stepped in to bail him out. "Hello, we are friends of Vickrus. This is the address he gave us, telling us to wait for him here."

Before the world changed, Bai Shunuan was a celebrity who frequently moved in high society, so dealing with such polite pleasantries was an absolute breeze for her. The butler took the note handed over by Zhang Xiao and, noticing the red bloodstains on it, casually brushed his finger across them. The bloodstains instantly turned into a pale blue hue.

Seeing this, the butler's smile blossomed instantly. He bowed deeply to Zhang Xiao and said, "Welcome to the Akmorgan Castle. Please, come in."

One had to admit that this fellow Vickrus was indeed a wealthy lord. The enormous ancient castle was permeated with an air of gorgeous luxury and exuded a sense of nobility. Although it could not compare to the grand and majestic atmosphere of First Emperor Qin's palace, which seemed capable of swallowing the universe, it was something ordinary people could never possess, no matter how much wealth they had. This was the vicissitude of history, the heritage of a noble bloodline. Hanging along the corridors were rows of portraits which, according to the butler, were the likenesses of all the former masters of the Akmorgan clan.

At the very front, Zhang Xiao spotted a portrait and instantly burst into laughter. It turned out that this particular portrait was of Vickrus himself, with the name Vickrus Akmorgan written beneath it.

What made Zhang Xiao laugh uncontrollably was Vickrus's outfit in the painting: wearing straw sandals on his feet, a red skirt tied around his waist, holding a carrot in one hand and a wooden stick in the other, with an apple balanced right on top of his head. The sight was so absurd that Zhang Xiao could not help but roar with laughter. Beside him, Bai Shunuan fiercely stomped down hard on Zhang Xiao's instep.

Turning to the butler, whose face had darkened, she bowed and said, "Pardon his rudeness."

Hearing this, the butler forced a smile and said, "Oh, pay it no mind. Ah! Young Master Vickrus truly brings disgrace to the family name."

Zhang Xiao's eyes narrowed. While he wasn't particularly interested in gossip, he was more than happy to hear a bit of scandal about an expert like Vickrus. The old butler shook his head with a bitter smile, "It's all because of that Saintess, curse her."

As it turned out, the Saintess the old butler referred to was the Valkyrie Paulina, whose reputation rivaled that of Vickrus. Vickrus was deeply in love with Paulina, so whenever she made a request, Vickrus would never refuse. This portrait was originally a painting of Vickrus dressed in formal aristocratic robes, but because Paulina disliked it, Vickrus had it replaced with this ridiculous picture just to win her favor. After finishing, the butler angrily tapped the nearby wall in disappointment, as if lamenting iron failing to become steel.

Zhang Xiao chuckled inwardly. Shortly after the butler finished showing them around the castle, Vickrus rushed back from the outside, his body reeking of blood. Upon seeing Zhang Xiao, Vickrus immediately boomed with laughter, "Lab, prepare the finest red wine and the most sumptuous dinner! I'm going to have a proper reunion with my friend."

Seeing the bloodstains and numerous wounds covering Vickrus's body, Zhang Xiao couldn't help but ask in puzzlement, "What's this? Has Atlantis already pushed through to the main city?"

Hearing Zhang Xiao's words, the smile on Vickrus's face froze momentarily. He nodded with a solemn expression and replied, "Yes. Districts 14, 13, and 15 have already fallen, and District 10 falling is probably just a matter of time. That's why I need your help, brother."

Zhang Xiao was not surprised by Vickrus's request. Although the two had only fought once before, Vickrus's forthright and heroic nature had left a lasting impression on Zhang Xiao. For a straightforward man like him to actually beat around the bush with Zhang Xiao would have been truly agonizing for him.

Zhang Xiao neither agreed nor refused immediately, waiting for Vickrus to explain the whole story. As it turned out, the reason Atlantis was able to conquer the three major districts in the Americas so rapidly was due to their overwhelming weapons technology. Every single one of their soldiers fought like a robot, utterly devoid of fear of death, and would instantly detonate themselves upon perishing.

The airborne warships of Atlantis were even more troublesome, hiding deep within the gale winds of the nine firmaments. Even the old monsters within the guild dared not easily risk provoking them. Not long ago, they discovered a base—an energy replenishment facility belonging to the Atlanteans, which housed massive amounts of energy and various technological artifacts.

Vickrus had already invited Paulina, the Valkyrie of the Holy See, and Galick, a genius from the Mage Guild. Yet, even if the three of them joined forces, success was far from guaranteed. It was right at this moment that Vickrus happened to run into Zhang Xiao. Knowing full well the extent of Zhang Xiao's strength, Vickrus extended an invitation without the slightest hesitation.

Hearing Vickrus's words, Zhang Xiao sat quietly, completely ignoring Bai Shunuan, who was frantically signaling him with her eyes to accept the offer. It was no wonder Bai Shunuan was so anxious; if they could acquire the technological artifacts inside that base, the research value would be simply unimaginable.

"I have two conditions. First, if I help you, I get seventy percent of the spoils of war, and I have priority in selection. Second, you must follow my command during this operation."

Upon hearing Zhang Xiao's words, Vickrus's expression shifted drastically. "On what grounds?!" he demanded. "At most, I can give you fifty percent of the loot, but I cannot hand over command."

A smile touched the corners of Zhang Xiao's mouth, his eyes flashing with points of light resembling starlight. He chuckled, "Hah, there are no grounds needed. Only the fact that my strength surpasses yours."

With that said, Zhang Xiao unleashed his monstrous, overwhelming aura without holding anything back, pressing down directly upon Vickrus.

Vickrus's face turned pale. He had never imagined that Zhang Xiao's strength could have grown by leaps and bounds in such a short span of time. The immense pressure caused Vickrus's body to start trembling uncontrollably. With a crisp snap, the chair beneath Vickrus shattered instantly, dumping him flat on his backside onto the floor.

Zhang Xiao instantly reined in his aura, hurried forward, and pulled Vickrus up. "My word, what an ancient chair. So old and lacking maintenance, it's about time for a new one."

Hearing Zhang Xiao's remark, Vickrus took a deep breath, a rugged grin breaking out across his face. "Indeed, this chair really wasn't sturdily built. We'll do it your way. Tomorrow..."

Before Vickrus could finish his sentence, Zhang Xiao's expression changed abruptly as he looked toward the outside. It wasn't just Zhang Xiao; the gazes of many people within the main city were all drawn upward. In the sky, dark clouds began to swirl violently, and a massive spatial rift tore open right out of the center of the clouds.

"Spatial teleportation!" Zhang Xiao muttered those four words, staring at the sight before him. When it came to spatial knowledge, although Zhang Xiao was not as accomplished as old monsters like Carrosius, his insight far exceeded that of ordinary people by a hundredfold.

Naturally, he could tell that the colossal rift in the sky was the gateway of a teleportation array. But what kind of entity was being teleported through a formation of such immense scale? The thought caused Zhang Xiao to furrow his brow deeply.

Just at that moment, a beam of light flashed out from the spatial rift. Zhang Xiao was momentarily stunned; unexpectedly, there was only a single person. Narrowing his eyes, Zhang Xiao saw that the newcomer was dressed in purple robes and standing upon a giant mechanical sword, hurtling at high speed directly toward his location.

"Zhang Xiao, release my sister!" A thunderous roar echoed from the sky.

Vickrus's expression shifted as he looked at Zhang Xiao and asked, "Could this person be coming after you? Could this happen to be his sister?!" As he spoke, Vickrus pointed a finger toward Bai Shunuan standing nearby.

Bai Shunuan's eyes widened into a glare as she snapped coldly, "What? Do I look like that pretty boy's sister to you?"

Hearing this, Vickrus took a careful look at Bai Shunuan and realized that although she looked quite young, the traces of time on her were not hard to discern. In terms of age, the fellow flying down from the sky probably had to call Bai Shunuan older sister.

"Hey, Zhang Xiao, you really are something else, hooking up with someone else's sister. Hurry up and let his sister out so I can have a look," Bai Shunuan mocked, her gaze sweeping back and forth over Zhang Xiao with disdain.

Yet, from start to finish, Zhang Xiao ignored the two of them entirely. With a flicker of movement, he shot straight out through the window, rising up to meet the newcomer head-on.

The newcomer was none other than Zhou Fang. Although Zhou Fang deeply admired Zhang Xiao for single-handedly storming Kunlun, he could not use that as an excuse to gamble with his sister's life. Zhou Fang already harbored deep hatred toward the Nine Great Sects, and while ordinary people went out of their way to avoid Zhang Xiao, his foolish little sister had basically thrown herself right into the tiger's mouth by seeking him out.

Disregarding the obstruction of Sect Master Song Qing of Mount Shuan, Zhou Fang had once again activated the painstaking teleportation array he had researched to come in search of Zhou Qiuyan. Seeing Zhang Xiao fly out to meet him, Zhou Fang roared, "Zhang Xiao, you claim to be the number one expert beneath the old monsters in this world. Aren't you ashamed to bully a young girl and make the entire world mock you?"

Hearing this baffling and baseless accusation, Zhang Xiao's expression turned frosty. He demanded, "Are you Zhou Fang of Mount Shuan?"

Recognizing that Zhang Xiao actually knew who he was, Zhou Fang felt a jolt of shock, but still replied, "It is indeed this Zhou. I implore Daoist Zhang to do me the favor of releasing my sister."

Hearing this, Zhang Xiao turned his head to look back into the castle, thinking to himself, *Could Bai Shunuan really be Zhou Fang's sister?* Just as Zhang Xiao was feeling perplexed, Bai Shunuan also walked out of the castle with a frown on her face. Seeing that the woman stepping out was clearly not his sister, Zhou Fang's eyes instantly turned bloodshot. The mechanical flying sword beneath his feet violently vibrated as dozens of gun barrels popped out from its frame, and countless explosive artillery shells rained down from the sword toward Zhang Xiao in a deafening barrage.

*(Friendly encouragement to fellow Daoists: the task is very simple, just a flick of the finger. But even if it isn't completed, Water will definitely release bonus chapters this Sunday. The story is about to enter its climax, so please stay tuned, fellow Daoists!)*