Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 126: Come Together

Xu Jingming had just climbed out of the cellar, and upon witnessing the outside scene, he forcibly threw himself back inside.

The cellar door was shattered, and the inside remained suffocating. Flammable oil flowed into the cellar with flames following, and in places without fire, green tendrils spread everywhere, creating a scene resembling hell.

Asphyxiation coupled with intoxication made Xu Jingming feel woozy, as if needles pricked his head.

He should have been seated safely in that magical sedan chair, guarded by the masters’ guards of the Rong Palace. He should have passed through the desert with Qu Duanyun, safely returning to the scenic Yidu. However, by the firelight, he saw that he was surrounded by followers of the Chigou Sect. How had he returned to the Chigou Sect’s territory after leaving it the day before?

Given the dire circumstances outside, even if Xu Jingming were obtuse, he’d realize someone was after his life. After having a few drinks, he was groggily captured and almost buried with a bunch of rebels.

Qu Duanyun should have come to save him.

But no matter what means the bandits used, they kidnapped him right under Qu Duanyun’s watch. Touching the painful back of his head, Xu Jingming’s expression darkened.

Indeed, he had drunk happily last night because Taiheng acquired the Shirou—as if he himself had. He only needed to present this magical item to the Emperor, and this whole drama would end.

However, the Emperor was indifferent to the ways of the immortals. If he died in Chigou’s territory, the Emperor would not actively seek the Shirou. Consequently, Chigou would retreat from the competition, and the Shirou would naturally become Taiheng’s possession.

Such a great strategy—killing two birds with one stone!

Thinking about their journey so far, Qu Duanyun’s attitude towards him was neither humble nor arrogant, showing no sign of closeness or harmony. It was so standard that it seemed like he was just going through the motions of official business. Everyone says that the Qu Clan is extremely upright, but can he truly trust Qu Duanyun?

Xu Jingming’s face twitched, and after taking a deep breath, he started to claw his way out of the cellar again.

As a royal prince, even in death, he should die amidst luxury. If he were thrown underground, burned alongside filthy men, he wouldn’t rest in peace.

The Prince of Rong was proud and radical, but his courage was undeniable. Xu Jingming once again leaped to the cellar entrance, gripping his folding fan. As he emerged, he was confronted by Wu Huai, whose throat had been slit by Su Si.

The Red Scorpion Feet and Hua Jingchun were tightly wrapped by the tendrils. Yan Qing and Su Si also had some on them, but it didn’t hinder Su Si’s actions—he was ruthless, slashing half of Wu Huai’s neck without leaving room for survival.

Yet, not much blood gushed out.

Countless green tendrils instantly sealed the wound. Wu Huai coughed up blood; his eyes were bloodshot. With a raspy voice, he croaked, “…Young Patriarch? You?”

As he spoke hoarsely, the “jade man” that was originally dealing with Hua Jingchun quickly moved back in front of Wu Huai, taking a defensive stance.

Su Si licked the blood from his lips, grinning even brighter. “Indeed, it’s me. Unfortunately, I had the Bone Sweeping Sword remade; the hilt still bears the Chigou mark. Protector Hua should recognize it.”

Hua Jingchun: “……”

She didn’t know whether to be grateful to this man or to kill him along with Wu Huai.

“Rather than using these external trinkets, isn’t it faster to fight directly?”

Su Si tossed the knife directly to Xu Jingming.

“Prince of Rong, I’ve heard you dare to venture into the Ghost Tomb so you must have some martial arts skills. Take this for self-defense. If you die here, we’ll be in trouble.”

Without waiting for Xu Jingming’s reply, Su Si charged at Wu Huai with bare hands. Yan Qing, seemingly in sync with him, waved his sword to fend off the flames and tendrils, freeing Hua Jingchun and the Red Scorpion Feet.

“I taught him the ‘Red Chi Hand’ technique. Is that kid really…?”

Hua Jingchun recognized Su Si’s moves; her expression was filled with astonishment and uncertainty. It wasn’t like she had ignored Su Si; that kid had been eating and drinking as usual these days, never taking the chaos of the Chigou Sect seriously. With the appearance of Wu Huai, the “Young Patriarch”, she had assumed the real Young Patriarch had long been dead.

But that “Red Chi Hand” technique couldn’t be faked.

Hua Jingchun shook her head and immediately ordered, “Protect that young… that young warrior!”

The Red Scorpion Feet members were all assassins. Ignoring their wounds, they instantly began to deal with the bizarre “Jade Person”. Su Si seemed to have predicted this, so he concentrated all his energy, sticking close to Wu Huai.

Clean knife wounds could easily be blocked by thin threads, but what about when a large chunk of flesh was torn off? He didn’t want to run away with his back to Wu Huai. No matter why Wu Huai was stalling, he’d prefer to kill him as soon as possible.

Wu Huai wasn’t someone to be taken lightly either. With his long sword, he drew countless sword flowers, each emanating a deadly aura. However, the wound left by Yin Ci hadn’t healed, making Wu Huai’s movements slightly sluggish. When facing the ruthlessly aggressive Su Si, the scene resembled a punishment of Lingchi—if he wasn’t careful, Su Si would rip off a piece of his flesh and throw it into the fire along with its skin, giving no opportunity for the threads to “stitch” it back.

The air was filled with the lethal smell of roasting flesh.

Yan Qing’s side wasn’t going smoothly—even when he and many assassins faced the “Jade Person”, they couldn’t gain the upper hand. No matter how they tried to slash at it, more threads would wrap around it, making the green humanoid regenerate as before.

So Yan Qing could only utilize his skills to repeatedly send it flying, giving Su Si the opportunity to face Wu Huai one-on-one. Compared to when it was first spat out by Wu Huai, the entity had grown quite a bit, its size resembling that of a slender young man.

“A’Si, the thread cage is shrinking!” Yan Qing suddenly realized.

The threads forming the Jade Person kept drawing from the “separation cover”. Just moments ago, the cover was as tall as four or five people, but now it was only about two people high. If it shrank further, they’d all have to return to the underground cellar, waiting to suffocate to death.

With the resilient threads blocking the entrance of the cellar, Yan Qing wouldn’t be able to break them open quickly. Wu Huai’s arrival suggested he had no intention of letting anyone leave alive.

Su Si momentarily paused but didn’t respond.

Xu Jingming had a bigger reaction. He tightly held the butcher knife, attempting to cut an opening in the cover to escape as soon as possible. But as soon as his blade touched the isolating threads, the Jade Person charged at him like a mad dog. If not for Yan Qing’s quick action, Xu Jingming would have been fatally stabbed.

The Jade Person, stopped by many swords just in front of Xu Jingming, extended its sharp “arm” forward, stopping just an inch away from Xu Jingming’s head. Upon closer examination, the vague features of the Jade Person appeared to be fused from thin roots, giving it a jade-like texture. Its “skin” still had the intricate patterns of interconnected roots, making one dizzy. Xu Jingming couldn’t look at it for long without feeling like he might vomit.

After this turmoil, The Prince of Rong didn’t dare touch the cover anymore. He made a gloomy face, quickly cutting the threads off his body, looking like a string bean removing its own tendons. The Jade Person seemed to have neither cognition nor pain perception. Seeing Xu Jingming stop his desperate actions, it turned its attention, despite its many “wounds”, to Su Si.

Luckily, Su Si was reckless.

He allowed the threads to wound him repeatedly, ignoring the assassins falling one by one around him, biting onto Wu Huai relentlessly without any distractions. Wu Huai was covered in wounds, and his missing flesh was filled with filaments, looking terrifying.

“I’ve also studied the ‘Red Chi Hand’.” Wu Huai dodged while speaking hoarsely. “You can wound me, but you can’t kill me.”

The thread cage above everyone’s head was shrinking rapidly, now only one and a half persons tall. Su Si’s strength lay in speed, and Yan Qing’s stone sword required ample space for big swings, increasingly restraining both of them. Although the situation seemed to be at a standstill on the surface, Wu Huai was gaining the upper hand.

Su Si’s attacks gradually slowed. Before long, he was driven by Wu Huai to the corner of the cage.

“What a pity.” Wu Huai sighed, raising his sword. “You’re extremely talented. If you had joined the Immortal Assembly, you would have achieved great things.”

Su Si seemed like a butterfly trapped in a web. He had lost a lot of blood. The surrounding threads kept coming, and the undead-like Wu Huai was still standing. Yan Qing was using all his strength to block the Jade Person, and nobody could assist him.

His lips trembled for a moment before whispering something. Wu Huai didn’t hear it and moved closer. “What did you say?”

With an expression of anguish and plea, Su Si repeated it softly. Wu Huai still didn’t catch it and, seeing him look like he was on his last breath, he moved even closer. This time, he clearly heard Su Si’s words:

Su Si: “Fuck you, motherfucker.”

Immediately after, Su Si backed into the thread cage. Predictably, the Jade Person charged forward the next moment. Wu Huai, having his back to the Jade Person, instinctively turned to face it. At the same instant, Yan Qing, with his Sword of Compassion, joined the fray. With four of them gathered at the edge of the cage, Wu Huai found it difficult to adjust his movements.

This wasn’t good.

The sound of the stone sword blocking the Jade Person’s charge echoed together with the light sound of footsteps rubbing against the ground.

Before Wu Huai could dodge, someone took the opportunity to climb onto his back. Su Si, using all the remaining strength and the elasticity of the thin net, pasted himself onto Wu Huai’s back. He wrapped his arms around Wu Huai’s neck and locked his legs around Wu Huai’s waist, like a vengeful ghost coming to take a life.

“Be careful!” Protector Hua shouted urgently. “This man cannot be choked to death!”

From this angle, Su Si’s range of motion was quite limited. The most lethal move would be strangulation. However, there was already a slit on Wu Huai’s neck. As long as the filaments made a small gap, Wu Huai would still be able to breathe.

Su Si gave her a smile that could send a shiver down one’s spine.

What happened next made even the skilled assassins of the Red Scorpion Feet ashamed. Su Si didn’t twist Wu Huai’s neck. Instead, with veins bulging, he grabbed Wu Huai’s head and pulled it backwards along the throat injury.

Using his elbow as a fulcrum, his strength was immense. The fine threads finally couldn’t hold, and the wound on Wu Huai’s throat reopened.

Su Si heard the sound of flesh tearing but didn’t stop. His eyes fixed on Yan Qing as his fingers dug into the sides of Wu Huai’s skull.

A sticky sound of flesh being ripped apart echoed.

Without any hesitation, Su Si took advantage of the initial knife wound and gruesomely tore off Wu Huai’s head. The head was still attached to a part of the spine, and the green threads on it were scrambling around in confusion.

Holding the head, Su Si landed gracefully with a faint smile on his face. As Wu Huai’s breathing stopped, the jade figure dispersed into chaotic threads, quickly burrowing into the ground. The surrounding net of threads immediately shattered, and without the magic shield, flames illuminated the sky.

Seeing the beheading, Xu Jingming carefully placed a knife in front of him and then used his fan to hide his pale face. Su Si paid no attention to him; his eyes were still fixed on Yan Qing.

Using his sword to prop himself up, Yan Qing met Su Si’s gaze and comforted him with a smile. “A’Si, you’ve suffered.”

Relieved, Su Si continued to roast the head over the fire, fearing Wu Huai might revive.

Hua Jingchun, with her injured leg, knelt on the ground, catching her breath. She then said loudly, “I pay my respects to the Young Patriarch!”

“Respect to the Young Patriarch!” Half of the Red Scorpion Feet had died, but the remaining followed Hua Jingchun’s lead.

“Oh, I just wanted to tease him and cheer you guys up,” Su Si said, turning around. “Let’s talk about this later.”

With that, he winked at Yan Qing, and then, exhausted, he fainted with the head in his grasp.

When Su Si woke up, the first thing he saw was the magnified face of Sect Master Shi.

He was so startled he shook the bed, only then realizing his entire body was bandaged, he groaned in pain. Lord Bai jumped over, stepping on his fresh wound, causing Su Si to scream even louder.

Shi Jingzhi looked disgusted and said, “Awake, are you?”

It was pitch dark outside the window, and there was still a faint smell of burning in the air. He probably wasn’t unconscious for too long. Su Si took a deep breath and looked around—

Yan Qing had minor injuries and was sitting on a chair, drinking medicine. Xu Jingming had a cloth gag in his mouth and was firmly tied to another chair. Wu Huai’s head was placed on a tea table, and despite her injuries, Protector Hua stubbornly stood with a crutch.

The remaining two, the master and disciple, had a displeased look. Yin Ci looked pale, seemingly recovering from a severe illness.

Looking at everyone, Su Si thought they all seemed fine. He ignored the angry muffled noises from Xu Jingming and said, “Sect Master, I killed Wu Huai and have made a merit. Don’t I deserve some sleep?”

“Yes, you have merit,” Shi Jingzhi hummed, still looking somewhat displeased. “But you stole Chigou’s wine and revealed your identity without permission. The good and the bad cancel out. As a reward, I won’t punish you.”

Unbeknownst to Su Si, Shi Jingzhi had discovered a shocking secret. Su Si’s eyes darted between the disheveled master and disciple, and he grew genuinely aggrieved. To hell with canceling out merits and faults! This cunning fox not only didn’t reward him but also held grudges!

Su Si tried to sit up, but the pain caused him to gasp.

“I’ve called everyone here for an important discussion,” Shi Jingzhi said, exuding the aura of a sect leader. “I heard Taiheng has found the ‘Shirou’. But they don’t have the ‘key’. It won’t be easy for them… Okay, Xu Jingming, you don’t need to cover your ears. I won’t kill you to silence you.”

Only then did Xu Jingming stop struggling.

Yin Ci gave a helpless smile. Whether it was an illusion or not, Su Si felt there was a subtle change in the man’s aura.

Yin Ci turned to Protector Hua and said calmly, “The Kushan Sect is small and can’t compete with the overwhelming numbers of Taiheng. While the chaos over the ‘Shirou’ hasn’t yet subsided, we want to promote a great martial arts conference.”

Su Si and Yan Qing: “…” Can’t compete? Who are you trying to fool?

Poor Protector Hua, who was kept in the dark, responded, “What does the righteous path have to do with our Divine Sect?”

Yin Ci looked at her for a moment, his gaze briefly touching Wu Huai’s head. “Does Chigou want revenge?”

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