Forge a path to success.

Chapter 177 Chasing Shadows and Slaying Beasts (6)

No chance of winning.

There is no sign of life.

The enemy's strength far exceeded expectations. The methods of Vaklo, a former angel, could not be dismantled by a mere cobbled-together plan. Unable to break through the enemy's abilities, and finding no hope of escape, Chu Hengkong reached for the paintbrush, wanting to use his last effort to shatter the means interfering with the mural before he died.

Suddenly, he caught a familiar scent, like the fragrant aroma of roses in a rose bush. A crimson light flashed between the overlapping slashes, his vision spun, the wind rushed past his ears, and the world seemed to stand still due to the extreme speed. His red hair flowed across the edge of his vision like floating blood.

He looked up blankly and saw the centaur lady's big smile.

"That's wonderful," Qingxia smiled. "You're still alive, Chu Hengkong!"

Outside the arena, a man wearing sunglasses pointed one finger towards the sky. His fingertip pointed to where the torch smoke had once risen... a conspicuous signal that could be seen even in the settlement.

"Operation Beast Slaughter, Phase Two!" Chongming shouted. "Blood Knights, move out!!"

For Chongming, who was familiar with the background of each envoy, the outcome of this battle was already decided from the very beginning.

The win rate is 0%.

In life, he was a 6-point mass Vakuro, and even in death, he remains the strongest among the messengers. Even if the mechanism of the mural is deciphered, the messenger's own strength is still an insurmountable obstacle. Without intelligence or combat experience, even with superior strength and adaptability, the newcomers will still be no match for the strongest messenger.

That's why he came up with this plan, which was a gamble from beginning to end.

The bettors are hoping the newcomers can crack the mural's mechanism.

The bet is that the newcomers can hold out for long enough.

Finally, Qingxia, who was hiding in the settlement, saw the signal and came to their aid!
"Go forth, young men!" the man who couldn't fight shouted from outside the arena, "Use your courage to deliver the mad spirits that refuse to rest in peace!!"

Inside the arena, Qingxia raced ahead, leaving many shadowy tentacles in her dust. However, unable to keep up, they crashed into the audience, shattering the terrified spectators into dust. Chu Hengkong lay in her arms in a pose resembling a princess carry, his hair whipping wildly in the wind.

"Why do you look like you're about to die again?" Qingxia said. "I have this feeling that if I leave you alone, you'll just die out there."

"Don't talk to me in that doting tone!" Chu Hengkong snapped. "Let go of my hand!"

"Okay~" The bone knife on Qingxia's back reached out like the claw of a claw machine. "Sit on my back first, General Chu. Don't undo your secret technique!"

Chu Hengkong was thrown onto the horse, and he had to hold onto Qingxia's waist tightly, otherwise the excessive speed would throw him directly out of the arena. Behind them, shadows danced wildly as the beast-transformed Vaklo galloped towards them, running alongside them at a speed that was almost equal to theirs.

"Good afternoon, Qingxia~" Vaklo said with a smile, "When are you planning to come back? Lord Vansalar misses you very much~"

"It's you again, Miss Trash!" Qingxia replied with a refreshing smile. "I'll be going back to Nightmare City soon. After I've wiped you all out."

"Are you serious? Then I'll have no choice but to take action against you."

"You wanted to do this all along, didn't you?"

“How annoying, I was seen through.” Vaklo grinned. “Gravity Strike.”

More than thirty shadowy beast heads erupted from its deformed body, hurtling towards Chu Hengkong on horseback. Chu Hengkong spun his spear, unleashing 64 spear flashes in an instant. The thrusts, fueled by the fire of ambition, caused the beast heads to explode. The final thrust pierced Vaklo's old wound, burying the embers of fire beneath its fur. With the speed provided by the galloping Qingxia, he was finally able to barely hold his own against Vaklo.

"It doesn't hurt, it doesn't hurt." Wacroo let the flames burn its body, then half-stood up and unleashed a series of shadow claw attacks, the dark claw marks slashing down like butcher knives. "Hold on tight!" Qingxia revealed a dangerous smile, her heart pounding like a drum, her surging life force causing her speed to surge once more. In a short time, she leaped up three times in a zigzag pattern, narrowly avoiding Wacroo's claw strikes.

Taking advantage of the opening while the beast was airborne, Vaklo lunged forward. Chu Hengkong turned around and thrust his spear straight at Vaklo, striking him in the head with a powerful counterattack! The giant beast was slowed down by the blow, and the two sides maintained their distance.

"General Chu, what excellent skills!" Qingxia exclaimed.

Chu Heng's heart skipped a beat; this tone reminded him of his own naiveté back then. "Don't do this," he whispered, withdrawing his white gun, its surface riddled with cracks like tree branches. Vaklo's power was too overwhelming; even this simple, durable gun was finally giving way.

Qingxia turned her head, a hint of regret flashing in her eyes. "I can't be Zilong anymore..." "You're actually regretting this?!" "Want to use my gun?" She summoned the Xiaolong Qingkun Spear and held it in her hand, but Chu Hengkong shook his head. "It'll break too. Stop!"

In the urgency of the situation, he forcefully tightened his grip on Qingxia's waist. Without hesitation, the banshee raised its forelegs high and came to a sudden stop. Almost simultaneously, Wacro appeared beside them like a phantom, its speed also strangely slowing. The three exchanged surprised glances in mid-air. Then, an invisible wind arose, and Chu Hengkong thrust his spear forward with tremendous force, a powerful blow sending Wacro flying to the other side of the arena!

Why did such a bizarre battle occur? Because after the previous exchange, Wakoro subtly changed the target of "Shadow Pursuit," making himself faster than Qingxia. It was precisely because Chu Hengkong saw through the enemy's plan that he was able to use his earlier sudden stop to launch the preemptive attack. Otherwise, both of them would already be dead.

"Looks like I can't run too fast..." Qingxia said with a hint of regret.

“Use your gun to control the speed,” Chu Hengkong devised a solution. “Always make sure one person is faster; that’s how we have a chance of winning.”

If Qingxia is chosen again, she will use the Qingkun Spear to accelerate Chu Hengkong's movements, and vice versa. Vaklo won't keep choosing the same target, because the Qi of a Thousand Autumns is currently increasing Chu Hengkong's speed. Misjudgments leading to changes in speed difference will make the pursuit time uncontrollable, and currently, time is the most crucial resource for both sides.

One side must race against time to retrieve the paintbrush and secure victory, while the other must buy time for their companion in the painting to gain a chance to win.

"I understand now, this must be what they call Tian Ji's horse race," Qingxia said excitedly. "Tian Ji had to run faster than the horses to survive."

"Forget that word completely for me." Chu Hengkong desperately wanted to sigh. "Then run! Run!"

"Oh la la la la la~"

Qingxia ran happily, narrowly avoiding Wacro's charge. Wacro dug its claws into the ground, the planar force making its claws flow like water, passing under the running Qingxia and rising suddenly in front of her.

"Shadow Spell - Hidden Shadow Barrier".

The gigantic beast's claws were held horizontally in front, their long claws carrying planar magic as they thrust forward. Vaklo relentlessly pursued from behind, their battle plan already in peril. Suddenly, a silver light flashed before Qingxia's eyes, and the mountain-like claws snapped off at the root. It was a strange, silver-white weapon—a scythe used to reap lives! "The dark side of the current resides within me; it is the scythe that cuts through the shadows of fate."

Chu Hengkong sheathed his spear and gripped his left arm tightly. His prosthetic body melted and deformed as he chanted, the part below his elbow sharpening and bending to form the blade of a scythe. The Great Demon's unique weapon was then generated, becoming one with his arm.

"Cursed Armor, Spinning Scythe of Calamity!"

He swung his scythe sideways, unleashing a gust of wind to counter Vaklo's shadow claws. In an instant, they exchanged blows no less than a hundred times; the fierce clash of high-level power even caused cracks to appear in the emanating shadows. Both raced through this inescapable arena, running a true battle on the line between life and death!

·
Meanwhile, in the murals—

"Run, Nightfall!" Van der cried out hoarsely, "I beg you, can you go faster?!"

"I've already said I'm not a martial arts practitioner and don't have Mr. Chu's insane speed!"

Qingye stuffed the Eye Demon into her outer armor pocket and ran frantically, guided by it. She almost became a pale yellow line, but behind that line, demons relentlessly pursued. Lockvar, riding on the back of a demon-slaying monster, was smilingly directing various low-level heretics to surround and kill her.

Qingye concealed herself using the Shadow Robe Technique, but this Heart-Binding Technique was useless against Lockvar. Lockvar, who controlled shadows, could easily see through Qingye's trail.

"You really don't need to target me! If you like strong people so much, why don't you go find Sister Huaisu?!" Qingye shouted.

“Sure, Miss Heartbreaker,” Lockwa’s eyes flashed with a cold light, “as long as you hand over that eyeball.”

(This guy's too perceptive...!)

As Qingye ran, she ducked and rolled, dodging the transparent, colorless longsword. The invisible demon possessed her, lurking in the shadows, drew her sword, ready to fight again. Qingye slashed upwards, cleaving the invisible demon in two. Colorless blood splattered into the air, and Qingye leaped up, stepping on the demon's corpse. Her silhouette flashed in mid-air, splitting into two figures. This was an illusion technique that used optical effects to confuse the enemy.

One of the Nightfallen warriors charged into the enemy ranks with a knife, only to be devoured and dispersed by the demons within a few rounds. The real Nightfallen warrior, with the agility of a gymnast, ascended the execution platform. She ran across the gap created by the sledgehammer, but instead of leaping down, she continued climbing along the pyramid-like outer wall.

"It's probably in this direction," Van der said groggily. "It should be something quite conspicuous...something with a very strong presence..."

Vande was in too poor a state to be counted on this time. Qingye quickly made a judgment. She ran around the execution platform in circles, carefully searching for anything suspicious. The attacking fireflies and demon-possessed individuals followed closely behind, climbing up the outer wall, but at the same time letting out cries of pain. They had collided with unseen lines of shadow.

"Extremely Serious Crime Network".

The Heartbreak Technique, which transformed sin into weight, was activated, causing the monsters to sink into the earth, unable to move, due to their own sins. Qingye ascended to the top of the pyramid; the Shadow Needle torture device that had impaled the ghostly body stood not far away, behind which stood the black stone statue of Vansalal. Qingye took a deep breath and ran towards the center of the execution platform. As she ran, she suddenly reversed her grip on her sword and slashed behind her, the long blade striking the blade-like claws!

The planar, shadowy power pressed down with the claws, but the longsword remained undamaged; the shadow rippled across the graceful blade like water. Nightfall executed a series of backflips to create distance, and Lockvar rose from her shadow.

“That sword is ‘Crowned Rising,’ isn’t it?” Lockvar said nostalgically. “You really are a member of the Mitsutoki family. If that sword were still here, would Akira still be alive?”

Qingye, who was cautiously holding his knife, was taken aback upon hearing this: "You know the patriarch... Lord Martial Venerable?"

"Martial Venerable?" Locke gasped in surprise. "He's become a 7-point particle? This is truly... unexpected..."

As they chatted, Roque lunged forward, slashing with his claws. Qingye countered with her kasaya-zaki, using her relic to block the force of the flattened attack. Then, she swept one hand across the back of her blade, using both palms to push Roque off balance.

Three shadow shurikens pierced the ground as Qingye formed hand seals, preparing to unleash the Super Heavy Sin Technique. Lockvar casually stepped forward, shadows flowing beneath his robes, disrupting the formation. Its head mutated into a giant dog, snapping down to bite, but Qingye ducked and rolled to dodge, simultaneously stabbing at the beast's jaw with a backhand strike.

Lockvar transformed his head back into a human face to evade the attack, and several shadow needles flicked from his sleeve, one of which pierced Qingye's left wrist. At the same time, Qingye joined two fingers together, using shadow threads to hook a shadow shuriken that pierced Lockvar's body.

Black shadows flowed from the wounds, staining the white robes black. The shadows healed Lokva's wounds, and Qingye used shadow thread to stitch up the wound on her wrist. She stared intently at the center of the execution platform—the statue of the Demon King, or perhaps the execution device; the curse could only exist on either of these. But Lokva had built a thick wall of shadows; without defeating it, there was no way to touch the key.

"Not bad, not bad~ Your reaction time is also very quick. Lord Vansalar likes guys like you too." Lockvar chuckled. "You want revenge on me, don't you? But I won't let you have your way. I, Lockvar, will defend this place to the death!"

The enemy's strength is undoubtedly superior to our own.

Even the clone that was ambushed possessed considerable power. If it weren't for the unfortunate chain reaction, even the three of them together would likely have been no match for Vakuro.

Yet, there's this urge to speak out stuck in my throat. Is it because the enemy was struck by a chain of misfortunes, rendering them unable to unleash their full power? Is it because the enemy is merely an avatar, unable to give their all? Is it because of the enemy's seemingly enthusiastic, yet ultimately empty, words?

No. None of that. Qingye gripped her longsword tightly, her lips pressed together.

Why are you... so weak?

“…” Locke stopped what he was doing.

“Even if you are an outsider, you are still a strong person who has fought against the patriarch.” Qingye said, “How could you have fallen for our little tricks? You should have been able to defeat us ignorant juniors in one move.”

These kids are going too far with their provocations these days.

Although I've never been particularly bright, I wouldn't normally fall for this kind of trick. I remember countless spells, and even if they've deteriorated, I still have endless methods to use. I also had information about the unfortunate chain of events, and I was able to react when I saw that prosthetic arm.

Originally, there was no need to even use the mechanics of the murals. Originally, I wouldn't have fallen for such a petty trick. Originally, even if I were suppressed to point 3, I could easily toy with these little guys. Originally, even in the lowest wilderness, I could scare the fools above into not daring to take another step.

Of course, there's a reason for all of this. Listen to me, you ignorant little girl.

Roquewa's ears drooped, and his pupil-less eyes revealed an expression that people called "helplessness."

"I guess I'm getting old," it said softly.

(End of this chapter)