"A stroke of luck, and that's our fault?" Lu Zhi asked innocently, deliberately provoking, "We're not like you, gloating over bullying a mere rat. I felt embarrassed just watching you. What era is this, still engaging in animal cruelty? You traveled all the way from your foreign lair to our country, made such a commotion, and the divine artifact still ended up in our hands. Don't you feel ashamed?"
This was Lu Zhi's first time attempting to retort. Seeing the foreign apostle radiating murderous intent, he knew he had successfully drawn the animosity upon himself, buying Qin Huai time to awaken the Rat God.
"You wish to die? I'll grant it!" The foreign apostle stomped his foot with all his might, launching himself forward like an arrow.
Lu Zhi dared not confront the foreign apostle head-on. The branches of the Manluo whip shot out like a snake's shadow, attempting to intercept the apostle's advance. However, the apostle easily dodged them. As the foreign apostle closed in, throwing a punch, the Manluo transformed into a shield, blocking Lu Zhi.
A heavy punch, like a massive stone weighing a thousand jin, descended. The disparity in psychic energy sent Lu Zhi flying. Just as he was about to crash into the wall, the Manluo transformed into a net, catching him and slowing his impact.
Lu Zhi's face turned pale, his lips thinning and drawing blood.
He had always believed that he could stand against an S-class expert without the divine power of the God's Imprint.
Alas, his estimation was wrong.
No wonder Shen Qi had said the gap between an A and an S-class was like a heaven-sent chasm. If Lu Zhi hadn't fought against lower-tier gods before, he wouldn't have believed that S-class transcendent beings already possessed quasi-divine strength. Any higher, and they would be mere lower-tier gods.
With this thought, Lu Zhi's gaze toward the foreign apostle grew colder. He casually wiped away the blood from his lips and slowly stood up.
The enemy was not foolish. He knew that the ability to shatter was ineffective against Lu Zhi's treasure, the Manluo, so he chose to engage in close-quarters combat with psychic energy, Lu Zhi's weakest point.
To put it bluntly, Lu Zhi's ability to reach this point and remain unharmed was entirely dependent on Shen Qi being by his side. Now, he wanted to test how long he could last against an S-class expert on his own.
Lu Zhi's dark eyes were calm as he enveloped his entire body in psychic energy. He swung the Manluo in his hand again, resuming his struggle with the foreign apostle.
Meanwhile, Qin Huai had already placed the Crown of the Departed into the recess of the divine coffin lid, but nothing happened.
Anxiously, he watched Lu Zhi and the foreign apostle fight, with Lu Zhi gradually falling into a disadvantage. He quickly asked the Rat Emperor, "What's going on? You said that with the divine artifact, we could awaken the Rat God, but there's no reaction at all!"
The Rat Emperor was also baffled. "How could there be no reaction? Is the divine artifact incorrect?"
"Incorrect?" Qin Huai was stunned, and the next moment, he retorted, "How could it be incorrect? The size of this recess perfectly matches the shape of the crown, how could it be incorrect!"
The Rat Emperor scratched his head, also pacing anxiously. "What do we do, what do we do, what do we do! If the Rat God doesn't awaken, we're all doomed, ahhhh!!!"
*Boom!*
Qin Huai turned his head and saw Lu Zhi being hurled towards them like a runaway kite. Without a second thought, Qin Huai rushed forward to save him. However, the foreign apostle seemed to have anticipated his move, changing the angle of his attack and targeting Qin Huai.
Lu Zhi's pupils contracted slightly. He roared a command to the Manluo, and its rapidly growing branches swiftly enveloped them both. Terrifying psychic energy, carrying destructive power, pressed down. When it clashed with the Manluo's branches, it produced the sound of metal striking metal.
They were both flung away with a whizz, crashing into the wall with a dull thud.
"Cough, cough, cough..." Lu Zhi clutched his chest and gasped as he stood up, asking, "Qin Huai, are you alright?"
Qin Huai's complexion was also not good, but at least he hadn't sustained severe injuries. Most of the impact had been absorbed by Lu Zhi. He couldn't help but say in a deep voice, "I'll hold him off later. You take this chance to escape."
Lu Zhi was surprised. He casually wiped away the blood from his lips, placed one hand on the coffin lid, and stood up. The branches of the Manluo wrapped around Lu Zhi's palm, and a faint green light emerged, slowly healing the scraped skin on his palm. Blood dripped onto the coffin lid.
"Are you kidding me? How could I abandon a friend and flee? Lu Zhi glanced at the unresponsive crown and tutted. "Although I don't know why the crown is already placed inside but still can't awaken the Rat God, since that's the case, we might as well take it out and use it. An SS-class treasure, he probably can't shatter it either."
Qin Huai heard this and his tone grew slightly solemn. "I still cannot truly master the crown's power." This was why Qin Huai had suggested awakening the Rat God.
Seeing that the two were still alive, the foreign apostle cursed them in a foreign language with a cold laugh, likely saying their struggle was futile and a waste of his time.
"How will you know if you don't try? After all, the crown chose you," Lu Zhi said, reaching out to retrieve the crown. Then...
"Damn it, why can't I take it out?" Lu Zhi exerted all his strength, but the crown seemed to be clamped in the recess, immovable.
Qin Huai said, "Let me try."
But he still couldn't take out the crown.
Lu Zhi's face darkened, and he blurted out angrily, "This guy, could it be that he's already awake but just being lazy?"
"Watch out!" Qin Huai noticed the foreign apostle attacking again and pushed Lu Zhi.
Lu Zhi's eyes darkened. He had no choice but to use the God's Imprint and borrow Shen Qi's power to fight him.
Shen Qi had said that the limit of his current physical strength usage was thirty percent, but it could only be used for fifteen minutes at most. For an S-class transcendent, fifteen percent should be enough to deal with him.
However, it would expose his identity as a believer of a god in front of Qin Huai.
*Clang!*
The foreign apostle kicked Qin Huai away, almost knocking him unconscious. The Manluo quickly rescued Qin Huai.
Lu Zhi frowned, deep in thought. "It seems his ability indeed cannot affect living things."
Otherwise, Qin Huai's body would have been shattered along with him being kicked away.
Another point was that the foreign apostle also couldn't shatter the Rat God's treasury, otherwise, he wouldn't have been entangled with them until now.
Therefore, his ability was ineffective against all items imbued with divine power.
Lu Zhi stared intently at the foreign apostle, helped Qin Huai sit by the divine coffin, and said, "You rest first. I'll handle the rest."
Qin Huai's face was pale. "You must be careful."
Lu Zhi nodded, stood in front of Qin Huai, and placed his hand on his chest, near the heart. The God's Imprint gradually became hot, a golden light flashed in his dark eyes, and his aura suddenly turned terrifying.
The foreign apostle froze, his blue eyes revealing astonishment, followed by excited trembling. "I never thought I'd encounter a believer of a god here!"
White crushed bricks condensed in his palm, and Lu Zhi's gaze grew increasingly indifferent.
The foreign apostle suddenly raised his right hand, and a sapphire ring erupted with intense blue light.
Lu Zhi's eyes darkened. Was this the foreign apostle's true trump card?
Just as they were about to make their move, a *clang* sound interrupted the tense atmosphere.
The divine coffin, which had been tightly shut, began to glow with radiant light. The coffin lid made a *dong dong dong* sound, and with a *bang*, it was lifted open from the inside.
A divine pressure filled the entire treasury. The foreign apostle's expression changed drastically, and the sapphire ring in his hand suddenly shot out a blue water shield, enveloping him. A beam of golden light shot out from the divine coffin towards the water shield.
With a deafening *boom*, the water shield's defense, which had condensed most of its power, was easily shattered. The foreign apostle grunted, holding his chest. The next moment, he broke a bead and vanished from his spot.
Lu Zhi and Qin Huai were both stunned.
Following this, a childish voice echoed from within the coffin: "Hmph, you foreign runt, it's fortunate you ran fast."