Forge a path to success.

Chapter 208 To Advance or to Retreat
For about 0.5 seconds, most of the people present were confused.

Silaer and Qingye were hesitant about their next move due to Wen Yao's involvement.

He was single-mindedly focused on killing Qingxia, a heretic.

Chu Hengkong awaits a turning point.

And, the limbed spiders that were actually lured by the torch.

All of the above were stunned by the completely unexpected turn of events.

At this moment, the first to react was—

Vande peered out of his pocket, carefully observing the enemy descending from the sky. This messenger of fear was as large as a truck, with a human-sized head that looked unnatural. Its round upper body was attached to its thick, spherical lower body, and many arms were haphazardly sewn onto its body, making it look like a black gourd full of arms.

“Just one, take him down?” Van der said.

"No, no, I went to the wrong place." The spider reflexively forced a smile. "I went to the wrong place, ahhhhh!"

A silver-white prosthetic arm transformed into a spear and thrust forward. The limb spider blocked with its two forearms, letting out a piercing shriek. At the same time, real spears filed in, plunging straight into the limb spider's side. Qingxia gripped the Qingkun Spear, her face contorted with unprecedented ferocity, her voice like a beast's roar: "We meet again, limb spider!!"

"Little Qingxia, it's been so long!" The limb spider forcefully pulled out its spear and scrambled away in a flurry. "Uncle Limb Spider and I are old acquaintances too. I even held you when you were little. How about we make an exception for you this time—"

"You despicable and shameless trash, I'll kill you!!" Qingxia roared.

Qingxia raised her spear and thrust again, the giant spear falling haphazardly, revealing no trace of skillful spearmanship, only pure rage. The limb spider retreated swiftly, allowing Qingxia to relentlessly pursue and attack. Its regenerative abilities were unbelievably strong; even after half its body was shattered by Qingkun's spear, it could recover in an instant.

Chu Hengkong was wary of Wen Yao, but dared not go all out. He shouted to Si Laer, "Bring Qingxia back! The enemy is too strange; it might be a trap!"

"She can't be calm!" Slar roared back, its fur bristling with rage. "The one who stole the Holy Pillar was a Fallen One, and only the Limb Spider could provide him with information at the time!"

Wu He and the Limb Spider, both belonging to the Black Moon Blessed Clan, shared a vague source of information within Wu He's notes. Chu Hengkong instantly understood the cause and effect; he knew that stopping Qingxia at this point was impossible.

"Qingye, observe the situation!" He leaped up and joined the battle. The spider-like creature pulled two crystal-inlaid bone staffs from its body, casting spells with multiple arms simultaneously. It summoned mud-colored magic bullets to block Chu Hengkong, then slammed its limbs into the ground, turning the surrounding soil into a foul-smelling swamp. Immediately afterwards, it entangled itself around Qingxia, preferring to be struck by the giant spear rather than give her a chance to accelerate her charge.

This disgusting tactic bought the limb spider a few seconds, but it also made Qingxia increasingly irritable: "Go ahead and play these disgusting tricks. No matter how much you struggle, you will inevitably meet your end!"

“You’re the one heading towards your doom,” the spider said pitifully. “Little Qingxia, you’ve always had a choice. You really should go back to Nightmare City… The longer you stay in the settlement, the longer you’ll be lost, and the more painful it will be in the end!”

"The source of my suffering is you all!!"

Qingxia accelerated with gravity, slamming the giant spear down like a heavy hammer. The limb spider wailed and rolled, most of its body smashed into a bloody mess, yet it recovered in the blink of an eye. Chu Hengkong seized the opportunity to throw a punch, slamming it into the messenger's hideous body. He was startled when the attack hit; he clearly only hit the limb spider, but the feeling was as if he had struck a pile of people. Layers of flesh and bone piled up, like layers of armor hidden inside the limb spider's body; its injury appeared severe, but in essence, it was painless.

This messenger's vitality is practically inexhaustible; it is certainly not as incompetent as it appears. The Fallen are the most skilled at disguise, and at this moment, it must also have some scheme in mind.

“You are the same.” The spider turned to the assassin and whispered, “Do you think the victories you’ve achieved along the way are ‘real’? Do you really think you can win?”
Don't let delusion blind you. You and I are just pawns in the devil's hand. For a pawn to survive, the game must continue, endlessly…

Its next sentence echoed in Chu Hengkong's mind.

(I'll feign an opening, make my move, and you can use the opportunity to escape. Lord Vansalal is already nearing his limit of excitement; we can't continue fighting!)

The spider's instructions coincided with Chongming's warning, and Chu Hengkong steeled his heart, deciding to take the gamble. However, at that moment, a pure white spear flew in, piercing the spider's eye. The messenger of fear screamed in terror, and the white-haired centaur withdrew his bone blade, coming to Chu Hengkong's side.

"Are you alright?" Wen Yao asked with concern. "That Fallen One used illusion magic, you must be careful!"

He met Wen Yao's gaze and saw a smug, self-satisfied smile flash across the demoness's lips. At that moment, Chu Hengkong fully understood. Although he still didn't know Wen Yao's background, he understood the man's intentions. The path of retreating without a fight was blocked.

This person won't allow them to return safely.

Amidst Qingxia's manic state, Silar's worries, and Chongming's anxieties before his departure, a multitude of emotions intertwined in Chu Hengkong's mind, leading him to make a judgment.

"Qingye, Silar, come with me!"

Having no way to retreat, we might as well go all in. Concentrate all our forces and kill this envoy first!
"That's exactly how it should be!" Qingxia exclaimed excitedly. "Let's kill it together!"

"Idiot!" the limb spider hissed. "So stupid! Warm Harrier, and you too! You'll all regret this!"

A sharp killing intent cut off his scream. In an instant, the Nightfall slash arrived, a silent attack like a sword drawn in the dark. The spider gasped, its multiple hands reaching out to leap up, but several falling leaves flew like knives, pinning his palms to the ground.

Slar stopped his attack and nodded. The slash from the night struck the limb spider's face, the shadow power seeping into its bones like chilling air, causing the spider to scream in agony. He wasn't good at head-on combat, and besides, the enemy was far stronger than when he first arrived in the wilderness. If this continued, there was no chance of a counterattack; it would die, it would die—!
"I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die!!" The spider screamed and rolled around, tearing the leaf apart in pain. "Curse Lightning, come quick!!"

A rumble of thunder echoed in the sky, sounding somewhat hesitant: "You said you would activate your divine magic before I made my move... but I haven't seen you use any divine magic yet..."

The spider had lost four more arms, and with its hair disheveled, it howled desperately, "I can't use Dark Moon Divine Magic anymore! If you don't come soon, I'll—ooh!!"

Qingye sheathed his sword, formed hand seals, and the Super-Heavy Sin Web silently formed, pinning the limb spider to the ground with the weight of its sins. Taking advantage of the moment, Chu Hengkong unlocked the chains of his prosthetic arm, unleashed his fully charged Heavenly Spear, and thrust it towards the limb spider's brow with the fire of ambition.

Once a decision is made, it must be carried through to the end. He has no intention of giving the envoy a chance to demonstrate his abilities. He will take advantage of the numerical advantage to surround and kill him on the spot and take down his corrupt heart!

Bound by the Heart-Binding Technique, the spider was momentarily unable to move. It watched helplessly as the burning spear tip pierced towards it. At that moment, deep purple lightning struck, and a charred hand emerged from the lightning, grasping the burning Heavenly Spear!

It was a shirtless, purple-haired man whose skin was an unnaturally charred black, like a corpse struck by lightning, with tiny sparks of electricity dancing on his skin. He pulled a gleaming silver metal hammer from behind his back, and purple lightning flickered in his eyes.

"Are you brave? Are you heroes?" the purple-haired man roared, his voice crackling with fury. "Are you men worthy of a battle?"

A burst of red light shot from Chu Heng's empty hand, and the matter-disintegrating ray precisely pierced through Zhou Lei's shoulder, melting the handle of the gleaming silver hammer. He broke free of his restraints and landed, only to find Zhou Lei's presence blurred. His wounds suddenly disappeared, his weapon was as good as new, and his muscular body had swelled up, making his aura even more powerful.

"General Chu, be careful, this guy is very strong!" Qingxia shouted. "Try to deal with it using inconspicuous attacks, and don't get hit by the lightning!"

"Everyone must be careful. This person has a strange aura and may be an evil spirit."

Wen Yao conjured a runic soft sword and thrust it straight forward. Zhou Lei swung his heavy hammer, deflecting the sword. A bolt of lightning as thick as a tree trunk struck down, and Wen Yao raised his left hand, catching the lightning with his bare fist.

"Anger, hatred, resentment, sorrow, lightning strikes... Curse! Curse! Curse!"

He swung his fist with tremendous force, slamming the power of lightning into the earth. In an instant, everyone's vision was obscured by purple light, as more than a dozen irregular lightning bolts erupted from the ground, resembling a purple forest formed by lightning. With each "curse" uttered, the number of lightning bolts instantly doubled.

In the blink of an eye, the entire battlefield was occupied by the Thunder Tree. Without saying a word, Qingxia grabbed Silar and ran through the gaps in the forest. Qingye directly used the Fog Transformation Technique to hide in the fog and prepare to strike.

Seeing the powerful force of the cursed lightning and the chaotic scene, Chu Hengkong immediately realized that this was a rare opportunity. He secretly grasped the chain of misfortune and whispered the ending to himself.

[Wen Yao was caught in a concentrated attack by the Cursed Thunder and was temporarily separated from us.]

But no sooner had he finished speaking than Chu Hengkong heard a crisp breaking sound. Unfortunately, the chain hadn't been able to break free; instead, the detached chains had wrapped around the prosthetic hand on their own.

—The probability of Wen Yao being hit by lightning is too low, and the unfortunate chain activation has failed!
　(Thanks to Ozone Layer and yzc for their generous donations!)

　　
　
(End of this chapter)