The King of Curses

Chapter 335 The changing situation
"So, this guy was lying after all?"

Yi Qingyan then took another look at the other person's appearance.

The bronze mask inlaid with rotating gears, the body reflecting the starry sky...

Judging by appearance alone, it's impossible to tell whether someone is male or female, old or young, or even human.

“It might be true for him. You know, top-tier curse masters all have something wrong with their heads.”

"I agree with that. I didn't expect you to be so self-aware."

The high school girl sighed.

"As far as I've seen, every top-tier curse master I've encountered is sick and abnormal. Someone as normal as me is probably one of a kind in this world."

An Zhizhen: "..."

It is said that the mentally ill people in mental hospitals generally do not think they are insane, but rather think that everyone else in the world is crazy, and that only they can understand the society they perceive.

Perhaps the society of curse masters is just a giant madhouse, where the more insane a person is, the more likely they are to become a leader. What's worse, this madhouse is unmanaged.

"A top-tier curse master like me, who is willing to consider the interests of all humanity, is truly one of a kind."

An Zhizhen sighed.

"Haha, that's not funny at all."

Yi Qingyan complained.

……

While the two sisters were chatting idly, the conversation between the future King of the Underworld and the King of Withered Glory was gradually deepening.

"Hey, what's your name?"

"The name has no meaning."

"It can be a code name, but I can't keep calling you 'Hey' all the time, can I?"

The gaze beneath the bronze mask was indifferent and detached, falling from the sky to the ground, from the two women in the distance, and then down to the monster before him.

“I do not have my own name, but people in the future will generally call me ‘Ku Rong’, the withering and flourishing of plants.”

……

"really."

An Zhizhen, who was far away, heard his self-introduction and thought to herself.

The other party just said that she and Yi Qingyan had deviated from their original destiny, but she was not the "culprit".

The woman knows who the so-called "culprit" is. If Ku Rong is determined to achieve the so-called "predetermined harmony," he will likely target Cen Dongsheng next.

The young man who was reborn from the future is undoubtedly the one who changed the course of history.

He changed himself, and he changed Yi Qingyan. This butterfly that traveled through time flapped its wings, and the entire society of curse masters became "unrecognizable". As for An Zhizhen, this is her greatest treasure and secret, and she naturally does not intend to give it to others.

"Qingyan, we are not confident of victory now, but we must stop these two from returning to that ship."

"I see."

Yi Qingyan said softly.

So, are we going to negotiate?

Although she looked reluctant, she still knew what was important and what was urgent.

"I'll give it a try," An Zhizhen answered in her heart.

……

An Zhizhen's figure swayed slightly, appearing in the two people's field of vision like a ghost.

His dark, deep pupils, as dark as a deep lake, met the indifferent eyes beneath the bronze mask.

"What is your purpose in stopping us from killing Wan Dugu?"

“I don’t want the innocent citizens of this city to be dragged into this war,” Kurong said. “In the preordained harmonious universe, they will not experience this calamity.”

"This is Wan Dugu's fault. He lured the battlefield here; we would have killed him on this very sea."

"Definitely. But he can't die, he shouldn't die now, he won't die here. This is the 'preordained future' I've seen."

……

"The negotiations are over."

An Zhizhen's figure returned to Yi Qingyan's side, smiling as she spoke to her.

"That's it? You haven't solved anything at all."

The high school girl frowned.

“Our purpose in coming here is to kill Wan Dugu, but Kurong doesn’t want him to die. We are natural enemies on the same side, so there’s no point in talking about it anymore.”

The woman answered.

“If his goal was merely to protect ordinary people in Kowloon, we could still find a way to reach an agreement. But in reality, he just wants to stop us.”

"...Really? Well, thankfully, I was worried for a moment."

Yi Qingyan muttered something to herself.

"What are you afraid of?"

“If he really acted to save ordinary people, wouldn’t he become a good person? Then my previous actions would make me a ‘bad person’ who bullied ‘good people’…” The girl’s thin lips curved into a mocking smile. “Now it seems that this guy still values ​​a top-level curse master more than ordinary people.”

"That's right. So our negotiations broke down."

"...An Zhizhen, tell me the truth, did you intend to start a war with them from the very beginning?"

“I would feel more at ease if I could kill a future competitor here.” An Zhizhen didn’t need to hide her motives from Yi Qingyan. “I can’t say that I have the victory in the bag now, but I have to give it a try.”

"Very good. It's rare that we agree."

As for the power of Ku Rong to interfere with fate, although it was unprecedented in both scale and nature, neither of them felt any fear of it.

Everyone is full of confidence in their own power. This "self" is an essential psychological quality for a top-level curse master. Furthermore, the outcome of a battle between top-level curse masters often depends on intelligence. Although there was no direct battle between Ku Rong and Yi Qingyan just now, some clues could be gleaned from the tug-of-war between destruction and restoration.

With the two of them working together, there's no way they can lose.

……

"I've already warned you once, let's join forces. You don't intend to teach them a lesson, but those two crazy women won't let us off the hook. Or do you have a way to defeat both of them at the same time..."

"You have no choice but to join forces with me. If I run away, you will surely die."

The other party's tone remained cold and unyielding.

If anyone else had said those words, Wan Dugu would have ripped them apart, reduced them to ashes; if the occasion had been different, he would have certainly taken action. We're all top-tier students, who's afraid of whom?

Unfortunately, this day might be the most humiliating day of Wan Dugu's life... He hoped it would be the last time he experienced it.

Therefore, he could only suppress his anger and coldly reply:

"Then come along."

Ku Rong remained motionless. The inhuman eyes beneath the bronze mask stared at him for a moment.

"Question. Can you turn back into a human?" "Not at the moment. What, is there another problem?"

"Ghosts are the enemies of humanity. Once I confirm that you have fallen into the ranks of ghosts and are beyond redemption, I will consider you an enemy from the very beginning."

"..."

He laughed—he laughed out of anger.

Wan Dugu himself was a cold-blooded and ruthless person. However, among this group of people, "cold-blooded and ruthless" was already considered to be at the level of an ordinary person; the rest were either mentally ill or incomprehensible.

"what ever."

He ignored their reactions, billowing black smoke filled the sky, and he charged menacingly towards the two women opposite him.

*
Kowloon City has descended into unprecedented chaos.

Hundreds of thousands of citizens were caught up in the power struggle between Yi Qingyan and Kurong, experiencing several near-death experiences. Even the most oblivious person could feel immense fear during this process, not to mention the surrounding buildings that had not yet been restored...

They immediately scrambled to their feet from the rubble, ran around frantically, and used their cell phones to contact each other and call for help.

Those who were not in that area could also see the spectacular sight of the sky collapsing simply by looking up: dark clouds looming over the city, and sharp flashes of light like lightning crisscrossing the sky.

Ordinary people who stare at this battlefield for even a little while will experience dizziness and headaches; these are the aftershocks of the collision between the "giants" in their mental world.

Yi Qingyan can destroy the city and erase it from the map; An Zhizhen, on the other hand, can kill everyone in the city silently.

The apocalyptic scene caused panic to spread among the people.

……

Of course, ordinary people may not be able to imagine that although they have already walked between life and death several times, this is actually the safest time for them.

As far as Yi Qingyan was concerned, since Wan Dugu did not intend to escape, she did not need to harm innocent citizens.

As for Wan Dugu, he knew all too well that his ally was a newly minted madman. To avoid him suddenly going berserk and turning against him, he could only fight honestly and would no longer consider petty tricks like kidnapping ordinary people.

……

The torrent of spatial slashes collided with the massive Yin Qi that soared into the sky, creating a terrifying aura that shattered the heavens and reversed day and night.

Wan Dugu and Yi Qingyan clashed again, while An Zhizhen chose to face the future King Kurong, as she had long been interested in his abilities.

An Zhi Zhenren is not here; she uses the power of the curse to make people see a projection of her own existence. However, unlike other "kindred spirits," her presence or absence has no impact on combat power.

With the help of immense mental power, she can overcome the physical barriers of distance and fight against opponents of the same level across the sea.

An Zhizhen had already sensed the other party's presence:

The “colossal object” slowly emerging in the spiritual world is a huge, shapeless ball of light, its colors remarkably similar to the vibrant starry sky that forms the physical body in this world, flowing like the aurora borealis.

The star that illuminates the earth suddenly released its light, dazzling and piercing through the starry sky.

In the realm of the mind, no one can rival her. All they can do is try to turn the tide in other areas, and An Zhizhen's mental interventions are virtually invincible.

But this time, her ability failed.

The anticipated confrontation did not occur; the halo released by the "Heavenly Chief" simply grazed past the starry sky, and nothing happened.

...Was it her mistake?

Indeed, due to the overwhelming presence of "Tian Kui Quan Shou," even though An Zhizhen has now mastered all its power, she still doesn't recklessly activate her abilities; she carefully selects the targets of her interference. Because human attention is limited, there is always the possibility of making a mistake.

But An Zhizhen herself is well aware of the reason.

"Interesting. You've altered your own 'fate'?"

Women boldly arrive at their answers.

"This is not the same thing as what you say about maintaining the so-called 'predetermined harmony'. Aren't you worried about ruining your own destiny?"

"No. Once a train starts moving, its direction will not change; it will move forward relentlessly until its destination. Ordinary obstacles are like a mantis trying to stop a chariot; only those with enormous effects that cause 'track shifts' require my timely intervention."

...So that's how it is. No wonder I'd never seen him before, only to see him appear now. He probably only recently realized that the changes in the society of cursed sorcerers were beyond his control, and finally couldn't sit still any longer.

An Zhizhen could even guess the details. The death of the Dragon Slayer was still within the tolerance range of Ku Rong, because he had also perished silently in his previous life; but if Wan Dugu, who could become an "Ancestor," died here, it would have a tremendous impact on the future.

"Great."

she thinks.

The possibility of "disrupting the original destiny" is exciting.

……

As the two were locked in a standoff, Wan Dugu, who was fighting Yi Qingyan in the distance, suddenly lost focus for a moment.

The fleeting opportunity was firmly grasped by Yi Qingyan. Her unstoppable spatial slash, like a white rainbow piercing the sun, severed half of the monster's body.

Wan Dugu's imposing aura weakened instantly, and his somber, suppressed voice drifted from afar:

"You keep a close eye on him!"

Ku Rong showed no sense of cooperation and was even more passive in this struggle; An Zhizhen was able to support Qingyan when fighting against him, but he couldn't even stop it.

At this point, the future "First Ancestor" finally realized that the situation was not optimistic and began to take the initiative to attack.

……

The battle between the four top-tier curse masters was about to reach its climax when a sudden turn of events disrupted the situation once again.

"—!"

Everyone felt the overwhelming force surging forth like a tsunami from the other side of the ocean, its power capable of swallowing up thousands of miles.

Unfamiliar yet powerful, it's as if another towering and invincible being has been born in this world.

An Zhizhen and Yi Qingyan exchanged a glance.

The former turned his gaze to the source of the aura, seeing a familiar and intimate being in the spiritual realm releasing unprecedented light and heat, rising into the sky like a star. This meant that the other party's spirit was undergoing a violent transformation;

The latter, who had a "blood pact" with Cen Dongsheng and forcibly connected the blood of siblings who were not related by blood, was the first to resonate with the "tremor" she felt from her brother through physical contact.

Without needing to exchange words, they made a swift decision, turning and retreating towards the Mirage. The sisters had originally planned to join forces to kill Wan Dugu, but that was no longer important at the moment.

……

Wan Dugu's eyelids twitched slightly.

The venomous, ever-present, and dangerous stinging sensation, along with the heavy mental pressure, all receded like the tide.

The two terrifying women finally stopped paying attention to him.

"This is……"

Ku Rong's tone revealed confusion.

He is said to possess the ability to "see the future," but at this moment he acts as if he has just returned from another world and knows nothing about what is happening on Earth.

"They probably went to find their men."

"Question: Do An Zhizhen and Yi Qingyan have a romantic relationship?"

“You really don’t know?” Wan Dugu laughed. “If you’re interested, I can tell you all about it…”

(End of this chapter)