“Damn it!” Yuan Ling struggled out from a pile of ruins. Looking at the wounds covering his body, he cursed under his breath, quickly taking out a vial of “antidote” from his spatial device and drinking it.
“I haven’t even married a wife yet. To die like this would really be too damn frustrating.”
“Heh…” Xuan Lang gritted his teeth and climbed to his feet, forcefully wiping the blood and grime from his face as he grunted. “An Yi has been pestering you for so many years. Wouldn’t it be over if you just nodded?”
“Why the hell should I be the one to nod first!” Yuan Ling grabbed Xuan Lang by the back of his collar. The two of them rolled to the side together, narrowly avoiding a spike of earth. “Fuck, these monsters have gotten ridiculously powerful. They actually have abilities!”
“You two clearly have feelings for each other, so why keep fooling around! Go ahead and drag it out. I want to see how long you two can keep this up.”
“Whoever keeps dragging it out with him is not a man!” Yuan Ling spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva. He and Xuan Lang stood back-to-back, warily watching the encircling horde of zombies gradually closing in around them. “If I can make it back alive this time, I’ll find someone and get married the very next day!”
“The day after that, I’ll go to An Yi and help you collect your corpse.” Xuan Lang sneered.
“I say, what the hell are you two babbling about!!” Chong Mu’s special potion melted the head of a zombie that had pinned him to the ground. He shouted angrily, “Do you think you haven’t died fast enough!!”
The zombies around them grew more and more numerous. They were hopelessly outnumbered, and the disparity in strength was enormous. By now, there were hardly any people left who were still standing.
Xuan Lang bared his teeth, trying to force out a smile, but he pulled at his wounds instead, leaving his entire face twisted with pain. “Being able to fight these ‘heroes’ in a battle like this, dying won’t be a loss!”
The word “heroes” carried a hint of sarcasm when Xuan Lang said it.
“Hey!” Xuan Lang elbowed Yuan Ling. “If you die, do you think An Yi will die for love with you?”
“He dares! Even after we get down there, I’ll kill him too!”
“Fuck!” Chong Mu cursed. Looking at the special potion that was already nearly empty, he viciously threw his gun aside and gathered his ability in his hands. “Come on! Even if I die, I’m taking a few of you bastards down with me!!”
The encirclement gradually tightened. Xuan Lang and the others were slowly buried beneath the writhing mass of zombies.
Suddenly, a streak of flame crossed the sky, breaking through the zombie encirclement and crashing down around Xuan Lang and the others.
The raging flames burned, forming four walls of fire that separated them from the surrounding grotesque and terrifying zombies.
Xuan Lang and the others were stunned by this sudden change. They looked at one another, their faces filled with shock.
Lian Qiguang stepped over the bones littering the ground, illuminated by the flames filling the sky, and walked expressionlessly toward Xuan Lang and the others. The surrounding zombies bared their fangs and claws, emitting savage roars from their mouths, yet not a single one dared to step forward.
“Big Sister-in-law…” Yuan Ling murmured softly as he watched Lian Qiguang draw closer.
Lian Qiguang passed through the horde of zombies and stopped in front of Xuan Lang and the others. He turned around and coldly looked toward the surrounding zombies, terrifying killing intent surging throughout his entire body.
Wherever Lian Qiguang went, the leading group of super-intelligent entities all timidly lowered their heads, not daring to meet his gaze.
“You’ve all gotten quite capable?” Lian Qiguang spoke coldly, anger suppressed deep within his eyes. “After all these years, you’ve actually learned the zombies’ old ways back then to perfection.”
“Lord Dark Light, this… this was the Commander’s order.” Seeing Lian Qiguang become angry, a man stepped forward and quietly explained.
Dark Light… Lord…
Xuan Lang and the others looked at one another, feeling as though their entire heads had become a little muddled.
Had they accidentally overheard something they absolutely should not have?
“You’re all nothing but good-for-nothings!” Anger surged within Lian Qiguang’s heart. Combined with the uneasiness and irritability he had felt these past few days, his rationality collapsed in an instant. “Look at what you’ve turned this world into! Don’t you like killing? Come! Fight me! Life or death, no rules!”
Lian Qiguang’s fury frightened the group. They quickly bent at the waist.
“Lord Dark Light, please calm your anger!”
“I’ve saved every one of you before. Half of you were personally brought up by me. I taught you with my own hands! Look at what you’ve become now. How did I teach you back then? Did you throw everything I taught you to the dogs?!”
This time, Lian Qiguang was truly angry.
Although he was deeply disappointed in these people, after three thousand years, being able to once again see so many familiar faces still brought him some comfort. Lian Qiguang could not deceive himself about that.
Some of these people had been personally trained by him in the military. Some had once followed him through life-and-death situations, completing countless missions together.
Yet he had never expected that when they met again, they would actually have to face one another with blades and swords and become mortal enemies.
“Lord Dark Light.”
Qi Yin slowly stepped out, calmly looking at Lian Qiguang’s furious expression.
“We cannot return to the past. The two of us are already standing on opposing sides. We will fight until death.”
Lian Qiguang looked toward Qi Yin and suddenly struck out, grabbing Qi Yin by the neck. His black eyes were cold enough to pierce to the bone.
“All of this originated from you!”
Restrained in Lian Qiguang’s hand, Qi Yin curved his lips into a smile. There was no panic despite the fact that he could be killed at any moment. He spoke softly.
“Being able to see Lord again, I have no regrets. If I could start over, I would still make the same choice.”
Lian Qiguang coldly stared at Qi Yin.
After a long while, he suddenly exerted force and threw Qi Yin away, then turned around to look at Xuan Lang and the others behind him.
“Where’s Shaoxuan?”
Xuan Lang glanced to the side, swallowed, and stiffly pointed in a direction.
“He went that way.”
Lian Qiguang followed the direction Xuan Lang pointed and expressionlessly swept his eyes across the surroundings.
“If anything happens to even one of these people, you have all personally witnessed what I’m capable of.”
After saying this, Lian Qiguang used his ability and instantly disappeared from the encirclement, flying toward Xiahou Shaoxuan’s location.
Left behind, Xuan Lang and the others looked at one another.
Looking at the group of zombies around them that were all staring straight at them, they could not help shrinking back.
They had received far too many shocks today.
They admitted that their legs were a little weak and they could barely stand anymore.
Xiahou Shaoxuan used Qianming to support his battered, bloodstained body against the ground, coldly staring at Wuma Yan opposite him.
Wuma Yan’s gorgeous traditional Chinese-style outfit was now covered in blade marks, yet there were surprisingly few actual wounds on his body.
Looking at Xiahou Shaoxuan, Wuma Yan’s blood-red eyes were filled with the bloody brutality of madness. His crazed jealousy was almost burning him alive.
“…Qianming. Teacher actually gave Qianming to you too!”
Wuma Yan gritted his teeth, speaking each word one by one, his twisted features filled with unwillingness.
“Qianming is something Teacher always carried with him. Even I wasn’t allowed to touch it, yet he actually gave it to you.”
“Heh…” Xiahou Shaoxuan pulled out a cold smile and slowly straightened himself, looking mockingly at Wuma Yan.
“So what if you knew him first? So what if you spent several decades with him? The only person he loves is me. In his heart, you are nothing!”
“Shut up!!” Wuma Yan screamed furiously.
Black mist gathered around him, whipping up a hundred-meter storm that surged toward Xiahou Shaoxuan like a tidal wave. Wherever it passed, craters several feet deep were torn open.
Xiahou Shaoxuan’s eyes were cold. He reversed his grip on Qianming and held it horizontally before his chest. His metal-type ability condensed into a hundred golden shields, which dropped around him one after another, forming a defensive barrier.
The two forces collided, sending the surrounding broken walls and ruins flying.
Xiahou Shaoxuan’s brows furrowed tightly. His feet sank deep into the ground, and he was forced backward several inches. Cracks began appearing across the shields surrounding him one after another before they shattered into pieces.
There was no way Xiahou Shaoxuan could say he was not surprised.
His ability had already broken through the Breakthrough Stage and reached an entirely new height, yet he was still no match for the person before him.
After three thousand years, where exactly was the limit of this man’s power?
One shield after another shattered. Wuma Yan continuously poured out his ability, his savage face carrying a terrifying madness.
Kill him! Kill him…
Kill this man, and Teacher will come back.
Teacher will belong completely to him!!
The storm raged violently. Within a thousand meters, not a single living creature could be seen. Beneath the two of them, everything had already become a wasteland, forming a gigantic crater.
“Pfft!!”
The sound of flesh being torn apart rang out.
The ability in Wuma Yan’s hands suddenly stopped.
After remaining silent for a long time, he slowly lowered his head.
At his chest, a vine had pierced straight through his heart, leaving behind a horrifying black hole.
He should not have been able to feel anything.
But why?
Why could he still feel that heart-corroding, bone-deep pain?
Lian Qiguang stood behind Wuma Yan. His wood-type ability severed the black mist beneath Wuma Yan’s control, and he hurriedly ran toward Xiahou Shaoxuan.
His normally still black eyes were filled with lingering fear and terror.
Just now, the man before him had almost died.
Just a little more…
“Wife…”
Xiahou Shaoxuan stared blankly at Lian Qiguang. He slowly raised his bloodstained hand and gently brushed it across Lian Qiguang’s brows and eyes, feeling the warmth of the person beside him.
“I’ll heal your injuries.”
Lian Qiguang reached out, green light flowing within his palm.
But before he could send the green light into Xiahou Shaoxuan’s body, Xiahou Shaoxuan suddenly pulled Lian Qiguang forcefully into his arms, tightly embracing that slender body.
His trembling hands continuously stroked the back of the person in his arms, carrying the preciousness of having nearly lost and finally regained him.
Watching the two embrace, Wuma Yan opened his mouth, yet he could not utter a single word.
The tearing pain in his chest was suffocating, its coldness leaving him in utter despair.
“Why…”
Wuma Yan stared blankly at Lian Qiguang. His blood-red eyes carried endless sorrow.
“Teacher, tell me, why…”
Lian Qiguang released Xiahou Shaoxuan and expressionlessly looked toward Wuma Yan.
“Wuma Yan, I told you. You are not allowed to hurt him.”
“But he deserves to die.”
Wuma Yan widened his eyes. His handsome face was filled with confusion and emptiness.
“If I kill him, Teacher, you will come back. You won’t leave me again.”
“Wuma Yan, no one can imprison me. No one.”
“I only want to protect Teacher!! I love you, Teacher!”
“I don’t need it!”
Lian Qiguang shouted harshly.
“I don’t need the protection that imprisons me, nor do I need your heavy love. It’s too exhausting.”
Lian Qiguang stretched out his hand, vines spreading across it.
“Wuma Yan, when you do something wrong, you have to pay the price.”
Hundreds of vines rapidly grew, twisting together as they flew toward Wuma Yan.
Seeing the coldness in Lian Qiguang’s eyes, Wuma Yan slowly curved his lips into a smile.
‘If Teacher wants me to die, then I’ll give this life to Teacher.’
The vines were already right before his eyes when suddenly, a black shadow flashed past and spread both arms, blocking Wuma Yan’s body.
Scarlet blood splashed into the air, blooming into strange, bewitching flowers of blood.
Like a field of red spider lilies, their妖異 beauty painfully stabbed everyone’s eyes.
Qiu Limao stood in front of Wuma Yan.
One vine after another pierced through his arms, his forearms, his body, leaving him riddled with holes in a horrifying and shocking sight.
Lian Qiguang’s eyes flickered.
He swiftly withdrew the fire-type ability wrapped around the vines, causing the vines to dissolve.
Wuma Yan reached out and caught Qiu Limao’s collapsing body.
His blood-red eyes were still filled with confusion and incomprehension.
Qiu Limao struggled to pull up the corners of his lips. Blood continuously spilled from his mouth, staining Wuma Yan’s dark hair crimson.
“…Live.”
Qiu Limao raised his hand and struggled to grab Wuma Yan’s collar. His weak voice seemed as though it would disappear forever in the next moment.
“Live…”
“If, just this once, you are willing to do it for me.”
“Please… please live…”
Holding the cold body soaked in blood in his arms, Wuma Yan trembled as he raised his head.
His pair of desperate, sorrowful eyes helplessly looked at Lian Qiguang.
Wuma Yan opened his mouth, a strange sound coming from within it.
It was the sound of crying.
A heart-rending, soul-shattering sob.
The sorrow of a zombie was that it could never shed tears, no matter how deeply it suffered, no matter how much the pain pierced its bones.
Wuma Yan tightly held the blood-covered person in his arms and staggered away from this hell.
Lian Qiguang silently watched Wuma Yan’s retreating figure.
He did not go after him to kill him.
As for this child…
In the end, he still could not bear to let him go.