Volume 3 Chapter 35

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Volume 3 Chapter 35: The Next Night (End) — Death and Injuries

On Huandao Island at night, darkness was so thick you couldn’t see your hand in front of your face. This endless dark seemed to swallow everything, including light, joy, and truth.

Darkness can devour light and also conceal plots.

But in a corner of Huandao Island’s sky, golden rays flickered, and magical plants floated, accompanied by the continuous, piercing cries of serpents, making the otherwise silent island lively.

Lively, yet cruel.

In the air, the smell of blood and burning grew stronger, but even stronger was the sensation of slaughter and madness that filled the world.

In the darkness, who is greedily absorbing and enjoying all this? And in the shadows, who is eagerly watching this bloody drama unfold?

People say you must experience things yourself to truly understand them. Are Xu Qingfan and others, forced into causing slaughter, truly happy in their victory? If the Green Snake Dragon had its own wisdom, what thoughts would it have when facing an inevitable fate?

Perhaps, they can only resent their fate.

Or maybe they blame the fate created by humans, the victories, defeats, deaths, and rights and wrongs made by humans.

At this moment, whether it was the sharp golden spears manifested by Jin Qinghan or the various powerful plants formed by Xu Qingfan’s fingers, they caused some harm to the Green Snake Dragon on the ground, but compared to Feng Qingtian’s "Flame Phoenix," they seemed insignificant.

When Xu Qingfan and Jin Qinghan made their moves, Feng Qingtian did not hurry to act. He hovered quietly in the air, eyes slightly closed, making intricate gestures. Flames began to ripple across his body, growing more intense, quickly enveloping him in a blazing fire.

When Feng Qingtian’s figure was nearly invisible within the flames, a clear dragon-like cry suddenly echoed across the sky. With that cry, the fire on Feng Qingtian surged out, transforming into the form of a vivid phoenix in the sky, and then swiftly swooped down towards the Green Snake Dragon on the ground.

This is one of the three great skills of the Feng family—the "Flame Phoenix," the signature ability of the Feng family!

As the "Flame Phoenix" swooped down towards the Green Snake Dragon on the ground, the Green Snake Dragon, having completely lost its senses and instincts, did not retreat under Xu Qingfan and Jin Qinghan’s combined attacks. Yet, in the face of the fierce presence of the Phoenix, it couldn’t help but back away a little, proving the legend that the Phoenix is a nemesis to all snakes is not without substance.

The "Flame Phoenix," formed by Feng Qingtian’s entire energy, flew at great speed under his control. In the blink of an eye, it reached the group of Green Snake Dragons and gently pecked the largest one at its vulnerable spot.

Though the peck seemed gentle, like scratching an itch through a boot, intense Phoenix Spirit Fire erupted from the Green Snake Dragon’s body. Consumed by the fire from within, it was immobilized within seconds, leaving nothing but bones.

After this, the "Flame Phoenix" swiftly headed towards another target without pause.

The "Flame Phoenix" circled around the Green Snake Dragons, occasionally pecking them at their weak point. The movements appeared complex but were incredibly fast, quickly eliminating a large number of Green Snake Dragons.

In the sky, Xu Qingfan and Jin Qinghan continued their relentless attacks with powerful Taoist spells, yet their impact paled in comparison to Feng Qingtian’s. So far, aside from those burned by their own "poison flame," most of the dead Green Snake Dragons were due to Feng Qingtian’s actions.

Witnessing this scene, Xu Qingfan couldn’t help but feel admiration. No matter how defeated Feng Qingtian appeared in the "Dark Rain Barrier," he remained the sole heir of the Feng family and the top genius among the new generation of Jiuhua Mountain disciples. Someone like him could never stay down for long; given even the slightest chance, he would shine with his unique brilliance.

As time passed and the slaughter continued, although Xu Qingfan’s and the others’ energy had nearly recovered only to be consumed again, the number of Green Snake Dragons on the ground was decreasing at an astonishing rate.

The ground was covered with the bodies of Green Snake Dragons with blue scales and gold patterns, many of them bloodied and incomplete. Some were burned by "poison flames" released unintentionally by themselves or their companions, while others were killed by Feng Qingtian’s "Flame Phoenix," and, of course, some were slain by Xu Qingfan and Jin Qinghan.

As Xu Qingfan watched the few remaining Green Snake Dragons under the control of the "Mind Taking Technique" futilely resist without even thinking of escape, he suddenly pondered a serious yet pointless question.

Before arriving at Huandao Island, Xu Qingfan already knew that only two types of demon beasts lived there: the Seven-colored Deer and the Green Snake Dragons, and all other creatures had fled under their dominance.

These two demon beasts had been enemies for generations, yet were equally matched in strength. The Green Snake Dragons needed to consume the inner dan of Seven-colored Deer to advance, while the Seven-colored Deer valiantly resisted under the guidance of their own kind, maintaining a delicate balance despite the ongoing struggle.

Logically, the numbers of these two demon beasts should be about equal. There were a total of ninety-seven Seven-colored Deer, and nearly a hundred Green Snake Dragons before him now.

This means that all the Green Snake Dragons on Huandao Island had gathered here, and now they had been wiped out by Xu Qingfan and his companions.

Previously, the elite disciples from various major factions of the cultivation world madly captured Seven-colored Deer on Huandao Island for victory in the Newcomer Competition. After two full days, how many Seven-colored Deer were left on Huandao Island?

In other words, once the first round of the Newcomer Competition concluded, there would be no living creatures left on Huandao Island, turning it into a deserted island.

Was it worth driving a species to extinction on an island just for a competition and some scheme?

Have the elders of the cultivation world who created the Newcomer Competition, and the ones who devised this unclear plot, ever thought about this issue?

Or perhaps, in their eyes, all these sacrifices are simply taken for granted? As long as they achieve their goal, and since they themselves are neither Green Snake Dragon nor Seven-colored Deer, why should they care?

Just as Xu Qingfan watched the few remaining Green Snake Dragons on the ground with a slight sigh, Lv Qingshang released the restraint on the Green Snake Dragons, smiled, and said, "Haha, nearly a hundred human-level advanced demon beasts, yet they were so easily defeated by us. I bet when we return to Zhantai and tell our fellow brothers, they won’t believe us."

Hearing Lv Qingshang’s words, Xu Qingfan’s body suddenly shook, and the vaguely worried look in his eyes instantly became serious.

Indeed, over a hundred Green Snake Dragons, each with strength equivalent to a Lingji Stage cultivator’s human-level advanced demon beast. Although they couldn’t fly, and the person controlling them with the "Mind Taking Technique" was not very precise in their manipulation, only attacking with "poison flame" while abandoning the Green Snake Dragons’ advantage of swiftly moving on the ground—Green Snake Dragons are still human-level advanced demon beasts. And considering there are so many, to be wiped out so easily by us, is it not too simple?

Regardless of what the purpose of the person controlling them might be, should they really let these Green Snake Dragons die in vain?

Could there be some hidden plan?

When there were only four or five Green Snake Dragons left, on the brink of being completely wiped out, the tense atmosphere among the Jiuhua Mountain crowd during the battle slightly relaxed. Just as Xu Qingfan was about to remind everyone to stay alert, an unexpected change occurred.

A figure of a cultivator, indistinct and hazy, suddenly shot out from the darkness, rapidly flying towards Xu Qingfan and the other four in the sky.

This person practiced an unknown cultivation method, and the Spirit Qi within was so subtle that Xu Qingfan and the others didn’t notice it at all.

More importantly, the moment this person appeared, the Spirit Qi within became intense and chaotic, and during the brief flight towards Xu Qingfan and the others, the body expanded visibly.

"Explosive Spirit Technique! Everyone, get out of the way!" Xu Qingfan shouted in shock as he noticed the unusual changes in the three people’s bodies and Spirit Qi, remembering a rare Taoist spell, and quickly flew away.

Jin Qinghan and Lv Qingshang also reacted swiftly, flying rapidly towards the distance as soon as Xu Qingfan shouted.

The "Explosive Spirit Technique" is considered the most powerful Taoist spell known in the cultivation world, without exception. Even a cultivator in the early stage of the Qi Refining Stage can severely injure a cultivator in the late stage of the Inedia Stage after using it. However, it is rare because using the "Explosive Spirit Technique" costs the life of the cultivator, reversing their Spirit Qi to explode and kill the enemy, but they themselves cannot avoid the fatal consequence.

Cultivators pursue longevity and won’t easily perish with their enemies, so despite its power, few learn this rare spell, using it only when faced with deep-seated enmity.

Yet now, not only did a cultivator who practiced this rare Taoist spell appear, but also launched it at Xu Qingfan, causing them great alarm.

After flying several dozen feet, Xu Qingfan suddenly felt something was wrong and looked back, seeing Feng Qingtian still floating motionless.

Feng Qingtian’s "Flame Phoenix" required full concentration, as it gathered all his Spirit Qi. Being distracted during its execution would result in backlash, nearly as dangerous as the "Explosive Spirit Technique." Moving forcefully would be too slow to escape its range. Though aware of the danger, Feng Qingtian could only attempt to summon back the "Flame Phoenix" defensively, unable to dodge at all.

Seeing the situation, Xu Qingfan was very anxious. Just as he hesitated about going back to rescue Feng Qingtian, Wang Qingjun, who was closest to Feng Qingtian, stepped in front of him without hesitation. He unleashed his defensive skill, "Water Whirlpool," to shield both himself and Feng Qingtian.

In the blink of an eye, the mysterious cultivator performing the "Explosive Spirit Technique" rushed towards them and collided fiercely with Wang Qingjun’s "Water Whirlpool."

"Boom…"

A deafening roar erupted, and the dazzling light from the explosion illuminated the entire Huandao Island, turning the previously dim world as bright as day.