Yu Konghou's thoughts were naturally unknown to Raging Orchid No Trace. Struck by Xue Xianzi's palm and poisoned repeatedly by Yu Konghou, his mind was already clouded. But whether Zhu Yan's mind was clear or not made little difference—no one could predict the whims of this killing star or what he might do at any given moment.
Five steps away, Yu Konghou could already see the scorching Inner Energy radiating from Zhu Yan's entire body. The energy surged outward, stirring up dust and withered grass around him, even burning several patches of his own sleeves.
"You—killed Xue Tao," Zhu Yan said, each word deliberate.
Yu Konghou's face twisted in fury. "You—!" He had been deeply devoted to Xue Tao, exhausting himself for her sake, giving so much. And now this beast, the moment he broke free, snatched her away and killed her—only to turn around and accuse him of her death? Yu Konghou had harmed countless people in his life, but never had he seen someone turn the tables so brazenly. Trembling with rage, the thought of Xue Tao slain by this fiend ignited both hatred and grief in his heart. He swore to tear Zhu Yan limb from limb.
Raging Orchid No Trace had been drugged and imprisoned in the deepest part of Piaoling Mei Yuan by Yu Konghou. Despite his terrifying combat prowess, Yu Konghou had intended to refine him into a perfect battle puppet. But with Xiao Hong and Liu Yan already defected, the others had failed to master the technique. Tang Lici must have seized this weakness, using the String-Pulling Soul-Seizing Technique to plant some suggestion in Zhu Yan's mind, making this killing god believe he was the one who had harmed Xue Tao.
Regardless of how it happened, the situation was now unavoidable. The immediate plan: kill Zhu Yan first.
Raging Orchid No Trace slowly drew the eight-foot longsword from his back and hurled it forward. Yu Konghou sidestepped—but the blade wasn’t aimed at him. It flew past his side and embedded itself in a tree nearby.
After tossing the sword, Zhu Yan discarded the scabbard and pulled out two iron rods. Yu Konghou was baffled. He had known Zhu Yan for years, had seen him wield that eight-foot sword countless times, but never once had he seen him use iron rods. Then, with a twist of his hands, Zhu Yan joined the two rods together, forming a single long staff.
Even if a short rod could become a long one, it couldn’t possibly surpass the weapon he had mastered for years. Gripping Ten Thousand Miles of Peach Blossoms , Yu Konghou remained cautious, deciding to test this half-mad Zhu Yan.
Hidden in the grass, Ren Qingchou clung to consciousness, unsure why Hong Guniang had tasked him with stalling Yu Konghou. When Raging Orchid No Trace appeared, his eyes widened.
This was the man who had grievously wounded Xue Xianzi.
Ren Qingchou began counting his breaths, trying to regulate his condition as quickly as possible. The poison in his right leg had invaded his meridians—if he didn’t want it to reach his organs, he needed to calm his mind and wait for the venom to dissipate before circulating his energy. But both of the fiends who had injured Xue Xianzi were here. Elder Zhong had only fallen into their hands because... because he had tried to save him .
He couldn’t just do nothing.
But what could he do?
On the brink of death, Ren Qingchou’s mind was unusually clear. He also knew that Raging Orchid No Trace appearing here meant someone had released him—to set a wolf upon a tiger. But then—where was the one who had set him free? If a mastermind could orchestrate such a move, they wouldn’t stop there. After all, setting wolf against tiger was just one move. A true strategist would have a follow-up.
So... where was it?In the distance, Raging Orchid No Trace swung his long staff toward Yu Konghou, who sidestepped to evade. Yu Konghou was unsure of the techniques behind Zhu Yan’s staff and remained highly cautious. Suddenly, with a sharp crack , a blade extended from the tip of the staff. The blade was shaped like a fishbone, with three rows—six curved edges in total—angled backward. Once embedded in flesh, such a weapon would be nearly impossible to extract. And with Raging Orchid No Trace’s arm strength, pulling it free would leave a grievous, gaping wound, ensuring the enemy collapsed from severe injury.
This was no sword—it resembled a bizarre, grotesque halberd.
Raging Orchid No Trace bent his knees, holding the halberd horizontally before him. His eyes narrowed slightly, his voice icy and indifferent, as if Yu Konghou were nothing more than an insect beneath his notice. "Prepare to die."
Around Yu Konghou’s wrist coiled Ten Thousand Miles of Peach Blossoms , while his right hand flicked to reveal a sword.
It was one of the twin blades from his youth—the right-hand sword, Kunlun Jade . He had once wielded a left-hand sword, Bright Moon Void , but it had been damaged years ago and never reforged. Having long abandoned his famed weapons, Yu Konghou now carried only Kunlun Jade and Ten Thousand Miles of Peach Blossoms .
Yet his greatest reliance was neither of these blades, but the martial arts he had cultivated.
The techniques he and Fu Cui practiced originated from fragments of an ancient, esoteric manual. Though incomplete, the recorded arts were extraordinary—progress was swift, and they could even absorb others’ Internal Force for their own use. Once mastered, this divine art would render one nearly invincible. Even in its unfinished state, it offered numerous life-preserving methods. No matter how formidable Raging Orchid No Trace was, Yu Konghou stood on unshakable ground.
As these thoughts flashed through his mind, Raging Orchid No Trace swung the Strange Halberd in a wide arc, slashing toward Yu Konghou. The halberd cut through the air, its shaft trembling slightly as a scorching current of energy erupted outward. Withered grass lifted from the ground, bursting into flames before crumbling to ash.
The swirling ash nearly blinded Yu Konghou. The Strange Halberd no longer seemed like a mere weapon—it was a searing blaze, wild and unrestrained, as if its wielder scorned the world itself. This fire, vast and untamed, threatened to set the plains ablaze.
Yu Konghou closed his eyes. With a light flick of Kunlun Jade , a faint ding rang out as the sword met the halberd’s tip. Despite the halberd’s fiery momentum, his precision struck true. The scorching Inner Energy of Essence of Demon's Pearl Spit boiled like water, yet it could not harm him from a distance. The moment their weapons clashed, both fighters retreated a step. Though the exchange appeared effortless, it had consumed nearly seventy to eighty percent of their strength.
Just as Yu Konghou repelled the attack with his sword, the Strange Halberd’s blade silently extended another three inches. Reacting swiftly, Yu Konghou twisted Kunlun Jade and slashed toward the protruding edge.
The jade-like short sword struck the extended blade—yet it met no resistance. The sudden extension was nothing but an illusion of Inner Energy, vanishing into nothingness the instant it appeared. Yu Konghou’s sword cut through empty air, the rebounding Inner Energy surging back into him, churning his blood and leaving him stunned. This bizarre energy, visible to the naked eye, had appeared and disappeared in an instant! If it had solidified at the moment of impact, wouldn’t it have meant instant, bloody death? Moreover, Essence of Demon's Pearl Spit carried a fiery venom capable of dissolving flesh and blood—far beyond the power of ordinary Inner Energy.The sudden apparition was none other than the "Demon's Pearl" from the tenth layer of the "Essence of Demon's Pearl Spit" technique.
According to the "Essence of Demon's Pearl Spit," once cultivated to the tenth layer, one's inner energy could manifest into physical form. At this stage, the peculiar inner energy laced with fiery toxins would coalesce into an image—what the technique referred to as the "pearl" spat out by the "demon." If struck by this "Demon's Pearl" energy, the victim would, as the legends foretold, have their blood boil, their body char black, and their flesh wither until death. Yet, no one in this world had ever mastered the "Essence of Demon's Pearl Spit" and lived to tell the tale, so Yu Konghou had naturally never witnessed such an eerie method of materializing inner energy.
Nor had he ever seen Raging Orchid No Trace wield this Strange Halberd before.
Was Zhu Yan the type to keep a low profile, playing the fool to catch the wise?
Would he deliberately stick to an eight-foot-long sword just to conceal that his weapon of choice was actually a halberd?
Raging Orchid No Trace—he had never once betrayed the meaning of the word "raging." He was, in essence, his truest self.
If he could kill Xue Tao with a single sword stroke, what else was there for him to hide?
Thus, before this journey, Raging Orchid No Trace should not have known this bizarre technique of materializing inner energy. Yu Konghou's thoughts raced—Raging Orchid No Trace's eight-foot sword had always been his unwavering weapon of choice. Yet now, he suddenly brandished a Strange Halberd and unleashed an unseen martial art—all these changes had occurred after he was rescued by someone.
Yu Konghou's face turned icy—so, Tang Lici—just what kind of ability did he possess to guide Zhu Yan to new heights, to make him abandon his sword for a halberd? And this halberd undoubtedly held even greater peculiarities.
For the moment, Yu Konghou couldn't discern what was strange about it, but Ren Qingchou, lying motionless to the side, saw it all too clearly.
The "backup plan" of the oriole was slowly stirring within the woods.
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