Chapter 96 — Old Sentiments

Qin Wujiu frowned, not having expected the man to be so fierce. At this moment, if he but turned the Severed Longing Divine Dagger to pursue, he could most likely wound him grievously. Yet before this sword of the Slaying Dragon—one that pressed ever onward, unstoppable by any—he judged that he himself could hardly withstand it, and so had no choice but to dodge aside.

In that moment of divided attention, his hand slowed, and he could no longer spare care for the Demon-Controlling Flute that commanded the Dead Marsh Giant Ants. Behind him, Zeng Shuyan and Li Xun, hard pressed in their defense, at last managed to catch their breath. Though it was but a brief span, those savage giant ants, charging in wave upon wave with no fear of death, had truly given them a splitting headache.

Zeng Shuyan shouted, "Hey, Senior Brother Fa Cheng, look at the time! Are you still enlightening people? Please hurry up and act—otherwise, if these beasts eat us, you'll have to recite the Rebirth Mantra for me!"

Fa Cheng gave a bitter smile and said no more. Seeing Qin Wujiu in the field once again hold off Lin Jinghong's attacks, each wave higher than the last, he called out clearly, "Benefactor Qin, take care."

As the words fell, the Reincarnation Bead, glittering with golden light, flew in from the side.

Qin Wujiu frowned. This Lin Jinghong before him was already of a cultivation higher than he had expected, and now Fa Cheng was added to the fray. He gave a cold hum, and without any visible movement, three black shadows suddenly flew from the sleeve of his right arm, swiftly separating and hurtling toward Fa Cheng from three directions.

Fa Cheng's expression turned grave; he dared not be careless. The Reincarnation Bead, midway in flight, suddenly blazed with golden light and blocked two of the black shadows with incredible speed—yet one still slipped through the golden radiance.

Fa Cheng gave a "hmph," then suddenly joined his fingers like a blade and extended his pale palm flat toward the flying shadow, crying out, "Du!"

The black shadow trembled violently in midair, and a moment later, as though struck by a heavy blow, dropped from the sky. It was a small black snake with a triangular head, plainly highly venomous. It fell to the ground, twisted and writhed a few times, then lay still—dead, presumably.

Qin Wujiu started, then nodded in praise. "'The Power of Stillness'! Truly worthy of the Brahma Sound Temple's foremost heir. The Master's cultivation is indeed something I deeply admire. But the Master kills living things so freely—I wonder whether the Buddha will hold it against you?"

Before Fa Cheng could answer, Lin Jinghong was already pressing the attack fiercely ahead, wrapping Qin Wujiu in a shroud of azure light. He sneered, "You monsters slay countless living things and heap up endless sins every day, yet at a time like this you put on a face of lofty righteousness and question others. Truly shameless!"

Qin Wujiu laughed loudly, dodging the indestructible edge of the Slaying Dragon Sword, and the Severed Longing Divine Dagger rose with clear light to strike back. At the same time, with a shake of his right hand, seven or eight more shadows flew from his sleeve in moments—brown, black, dark red, crimson-yellow. By the treasure light, all could see they were scorpions, centipedes, and other highly venomous creatures of every kind, rushing at Fa Cheng and penning him off at a distance, unable to come near.

All were struck dumb, thinking that the demonic sect villains were indeed uncanny—to hide so many venomous insects and monsters on their persons, and not fear being bitten in turn. Among them, Zeng Shuyan, standing far off, let his thoughts wander farthest of all: he actually wondered whether, if those senior and junior sisters of his sect were to see this countless swarm of venomous insects, they might be so frightened their whole bodies went limp and they could not even lift their artifacts.

The thought had barely flashed through his mind when his grip slackened, and he nearly took a bite from a giant ant at his feet. Fortunately it only tore the edge of his shoe. The fright was no small matter, and he hastily collected himself to deal with the situation.

But he and Li Xun had to hold off these countless giant ants at once, and the pressure was truly immense. In this brief span they had killed over a hundred more, yet the beasts seemed endless, still surging forward in waves.

Zeng Shuyan and Li Xun exchanged a glance, and each saw the intent to retreat in the other's eyes. Zeng Shuyan was just about to turn and urge the others on when, from the corner of his eye, he suddenly caught a faint flash of blue deep in the forest.

Instinctively, he started!

Ahead, Qin Wujiu's brows were tightly knit, and almost at the same moment, the thought of retreat sprouted in his heart. The four in the field today were truly hard to deal with. The Dead Marsh Giant Ants, which he had thought invincible, had been held off squarely by those two, unable to advance a single step for the longest time. And the ferocity of the Slaying Dragon Sword in the hands of this Canglan Sect disciple was truly beyond anything he had seen in his life—now and again the man would unleash a sword force that pressed ever forward, leaving no path of retreat at all. It was a real headache.

And over there, those various venomous creatures would clearly not hold Fa Cheng for long. If the man should come over, the day would likely be lost. Qin Wujiu was the Poison God's most prized disciple; young as he was, he possessed great decisiveness. In this moment he made his choice: with a shake of his right hand, three more strange toads flew out to entangle Fa Cheng, while the clear radiance of the Severed Longing in his right hand blazed forth. Suddenly he launched a great counterattack, so fierce that even Lin Jinghong had to fall back several steps.

Seizing this moment, Qin Wujiu suddenly leapt up and away from the others, laughing long as he said, "Let us call it a night here—"

Before his voice died away, he suddenly heard Zeng Shuyan shout from ahead, "Senior Sister Lu, quick, cut him off—"

Qin Wujiu was startled. From the corner of his eye he at once saw blue light rising in the darkness beside him. He was startled but not flustered; the Severed Longing was already laid across the path of the blue light. He was confident that no matter how powerful this strike, he could withstand it.

But unexpectedly, though the blue light rose in the dark night, amid the shrill wind the whole world suddenly fell silent. From the other side of the darkness, a sensation of icy cold welled up without a sound and struck him hard on the right side of his body.

For all Qin Wujiu's usual meticulousness, he was caught off guard in that flash of lightning and flint. With a "wa," he spat out a great mouthful of blood, his chest and lapels dyed crimson. At this crisis of life and death, he forced himself to hold on. In moments his right arm gave a series of "susu" sounds, and in the blink of an eye he released several dozen highly venomous monsters to block the others for a moment, while his figure flew far back at the same time. After a long while his voice came from afar, full of hatred, its strength already failing, yet shrill and sharp: "Ming Li, you're ruthless! The debt of this staff—we'll settle it another day..."

The sudden turn of events left everyone present stunned. Qin Wujiu had vanished, and the countless Dead Marsh Giant Ants below lost their controller—but such savage creatures were ever bloodthirsty, and instead charged forward even more ferociously. Zeng Shuyan and Li Xun could not hold them, and moments later even Fa Cheng and Lin Jinghong were surrounded.