“You deserve to die!” Hua Qing called upon every fibre in his being to aim another shot of Soul Banishing Order at Miguo’s forehead.
Even though he sent blood pouring out of Miguo’s seven orifices, he continued to pelt and stomp Miguo until Zhuo Fengru shouted, “Saving Miss Su takes priority!”
When he held his fingers under Su Li’s nose, Hua Qing felt her warm blood go from her mouth to his finger. The acute distress rendered him unable to decide if he should staunch her bleeding or check her joints, forgetting that he wasn’t proficient at neither task.
Zhuo Fengru reminded, “There’s someone who can help her even if you can’t.”
Hua Qing scooped Su Li up and rushed to Ming Feizhen. “Brother Ming, what do we do? M-Miss Su is dying!”
The rampaging true qi in Ming Feizhen’s body was on the cusp of bursting from him, so, as he lied onto the ground, he said, “Give me a second… to adjust myself.”
In truth, Ming Feizhen barely had the strength to keep his eyelids apart. At best, people only understood the aggression of Six Evils as an incredibly hostile and sinister energy that was a product of nature. The first time he came into contact with the energy, he learnt that it was just that, an energy source, not a sentient entity. He crushed the Fengpeng’s consciousness years ago with his teeth, literally. His battle now wasn’t to stop the Fengpeng but to prevent himself becoming the next Fengpeng.
Hua Qing couldn’t help feeling antsy, not because he was inconsiderate towards Ming Feizhen, but because he could feel Su Li’s body temperature dropping. One look at his aghast face was enough evidence to signal that he, too, wouldn’t survive if she didn’t make it. “Miss Su, it’s all right. Brother Ming is equipped with a lot of knowledge. He’ll save you. It’s all right…”
Ming Feizhen was as still as a log… or a corpse. Hua Qing didn’t want to find out which it was, so he just kept watching whilst mumbling.
Rumble! The rumbling was a product of the lotus platform breaking apart.
Hua Qing, heart thumping comparably to a galloping horse, looked over his shoulder to see a nightmare resurface.
“Your little show before your death is quite the surprise.” Miguo, hands in a pranam pose, glowed – literally and figuratively – unlike before. “That finger spear surpassed my expectations. Howbeit, there’s one thing my senior is unaware of.”
Because Hua Qing touched the sarira with his hand that had Su Li’s blood on it, it gleamed as bright as the sun.
“Judging from your reaction, you don’t comprehend what happened. Allow me to elucidate since there’s plenty of time. I no longer need to avoid anyone.” Miguo ambled instead of walking briskly as he previously did, each step imprinting a spot of light on the ground. “Utilising the relic as a training tool has always been a method of Miguo Branch that’s been abandoned for three generations; not even my senior and I knew about it. I discovered the holy relic could help me reach this realm after reading about it in our old records. I could control the relic, absorb internal energy, store essence and utilise the energy within. Alas, I couldn’t make the energy my own due to a need for high-volume energy to endure the backlash. My years of collecting energy wasn’t enough, but, thanks to you accumulating energy from several adepts, combined with my disciples’ life force, it was finally enough, albeit barely.
“What I didn’t expect was for Shen Wuzheng to defuse the majority of the formation so promptly. My plan would’ve fallen through had it not been thanks for your idiotic act of bringing Su Clan’s daughter her. Have you any idea that her pure blood and essence is worth a glazed sarira?”
Upon closer inspection, it was true that Miguo had absorbed Su Li’s blood from his skin into his body – at least presumably so.
“Well, I don’t blame you for your ignorance. After all, I wasn’t cognisant of the fact until Valley of Villains informed me. Either way, the fact that I knew what you didn’t became the deciding factor between our tug-of-war. Now, it’s time for me to take your energy, as well.”
As the relic shone brighter, Hua Qing hunched over accordingly as his life force slipped away. The blinding-white light on the platform disappeared once he forfeited all of his internal energy, restoring the relic to the form of an ordinary pearl.
“It’s time.” Following Miguo’s conceited declaration, a light-form lotus spawned on the ground. At the same time the six golden petals took form, Miguo started emanating a golden glow. “Hahahahaha!” He looked down to his fist and exclaimed, “This is power, supreme power!”
Though Miguo’s golden glow was pale compared to the relic’s, a martial artist who had reached the pinnacle could fathom what his golden energy symbolised.
Miguo strode up to Hua Qing and then past him without sparing the latter a glance. He wasn’t feeling benevolent towards the “ants” all of a sudden. He merely didn’t deem them worthy of his time and effort.
Hua Qing could only hug Su Li tighter as if his embrace could prevent her warmth escaping from her. Despite wanting to go to his sworn brother’s side to protect him from Miguo, he no longer had the strength to do anything. Peace, life and death seemed so distant.
Is there anything else I want to do in my final moments? Is there anything I want to do in my final moments? There is. I want to become a celebrated hero. I want villains to fear me. When they run into me…
Hua Qing stood up. “Baldy!”
Wugou told Hua Qing back then, “If you’re ever cornered and need to distract Miguo, tell him this and then run,” he smiled before continuing, “because he’ll hunt you with a vengeance.”
“You didn’t fail to win leadership because Lord San Shen beat you but because you’re ugly!”
Miguo actually halted in his tracks.
“As ugly as your momma!”
Miguo really turned around. “You’re wasting my time – the second it takes to kill you.” He ripped out a punch from his chamber at Hua Qing’s face.
“You’re so ugly that you must’ve eaten six thousand tonnes of dog crap!”
“You’ve done enough.”
Hua Qing didn’t open his eyes, but a trail of tears coursed down his cheek for he recognised the voice that saved him from becoming mincemeat. “You really good now?”
Upon opening his eyes, he espied Ming Feizhen holding Miguo’s fist in one hand. The golden glint had seemingly been erased.
Irritated with the cockroaches that kept deferring his plan, Miguo attempted to cast his Enlightenment so that he could pull his fist out; however, the attempt elicited a sharp pain in his hand. Casting his gaze to his caught hand, he saw a mush of bones, blood and flesh that resembled some body part crushed in between boulders.
Crack!
“Argh!” Miguo scuttled back as he listened to his hand bones crack.
Gaze focused downward, Ming Feizhen revealed his white pearls. “It seems you can’t be beaten to death but can be verbally blasted to death. Who among us will be the last man standing?”
Given staying on his legs was an ordeal, it took time for Hua Qing to raise his head. “Wh-what’s with your eyes?”
Keeping his red eyes affixed on Miguo, Ming Feizhen replied, “I’m fine. Take Lass Su elsewhere. I’m going to whoop the baldy.”
“But… what if the thing inside you goes out of control? What are you going to do, then?”
Ming Feizhen elevated a corner of his lips without aggression. “Then, I’ll whoop it, too.”
