Chapter 22

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Chapter 22 – Death Match

The smoke in front of Mu Xiaofeng’s eyes gradually cleared, revealing a confident smile on his face. This was met by the widened eyes and stunned expressions of his opponents. They saw a small pit forming in the collapsed ground, with Yu Mo and his team hiding inside.

Mu Xiaofeng’s heavy sword had carved a trench into the earth, effectively blocking the poisonous mist. The mist had obscured his opponent’s vision, making them believe their strategy was working, only for Mu Xiaofeng to launch a sudden counterattack.

“Hahaha, if you think you can defeat us that easily, you’re too naive,” the Wind Elemental erudite suddenly laughed, his expression twisting into something both creepy and filled with anger and hatred.

The Wind Elemental erudite gave a slight nod to the Poisonous Hand Priestess, who then took out four pills from her medicine bag. Each of the four opponents took a pill.

When Qiao Zi saw this, he knew things were about to get worse. This was the Poisonous Hand Priestess’s last-ditch effort—the “Wounds of Deadly Battle,” a technique that sacrifices the user’s life, using toxins to temporarily boost their abilities significantly.

“Mu Xiaofeng, Zhang Wenyu, get back here to treat the poison! These four are extremely dangerous right now!” Qiao Zi shouted urgently to Mu Xiaofeng and Zhang Wenyu, who were not far away.

But it was too late. Mu Xiaofeng and Zhang Wenyu had already been poisoned while breaking through the poisonous fog. They thought they could force the enemy to surrender but didn’t expect them to fight to the death.

Mu Xiaofeng’s movements were now sluggish. As they turned around, the heavy sword warrior and the dual blade shadow fighter appeared behind them. Turning your back on the enemy is a grave mistake in battle.

Realizing that they couldn’t dodge the attack, Mu Xiaofeng pushed Zhang Wenyu forward, taking the full brunt of the heavy blows himself. He collapsed to the ground.

Zhang Wenyu dodged the attack, but when he looked back at Mu Xiaofeng lying on the ground, his eyes were filled with a mix of anger and fear.

Their opponents were too powerful, and despite outnumbering them, they had no advantage in speed or strength. Was this the power of the “Wounds of Deadly Battle”?

Seeing Mu Xiaofeng fall, Qiao Zi couldn’t hold back her tears. She cried out, “Why? Why are you risking your lives to fight us? This is just an exam! We’re only here for the water!”

The Wind Elemental erudite sneered as a green light glowed in his hands. “Little girl, we can’t afford to fail anymore. Do you know the pain of never being able to graduate? The pain of not being able to learn more advanced Yuan Qi techniques? Do you know how much our families have sacrificed for this exam? Don’t blame us for being desperate. This is our only chance at success.”

As he spoke, he smashed five bottles of water on the ground. The bottles shattered, and water spread everywhere. The Wind Elemental erudite’s face twisted into a hideous grin as he hissed, “You’ve ruined our future. I’m going to kill you!”

At this point, their only goal was to kill Mu Xiaofeng and the others. Something had twisted their minds, and now they were ready to fight to the death. If Mu Xiaofeng and his team didn’t adopt the same mindset, they would be doomed.

A powerful wind blade slashed towards Mu Xiaofeng and his companions. This blade was much stronger than the previous ones. Yu Mo had no choice but to use all his Qi to form shields with his hands, creating a shield wall to block the attack.

The shield wall barely held against the Wind Elemental erudite’s assault, but it drained all of Yu Mo’s Qi. Now, he had to rely on his own body to fend off the next attack.

“Struggle all you want. I love watching the desperate struggle before death, the way hope turns into despair—it’s such a delightful sight,” the Poison Hand Priestess taunted, her voice sickeningly twisted.

The Poison Hand Priestess darted towards Yu Mo, her speed rivaling that of a warrior—likely a result of the poison’s effects. As she closed in, Yu Mo tried to raise his shields, but his arms were suddenly grabbed by the Heavy Sword Warrior and the Dual Blade Shadow fighter.

The Poison Hand Priestess viciously stabbed a wooden stake into Yu Mo’s back. The stake was black with a greenish glow, clearly meant to inject poison into Yu Mo’s body. He screamed in pain, but his teammates were helpless, forced to watch in horror.

“Let him go!” Qin Bao Yi, trembling, finally snapped out of her shock. She raised her staff, sending several large fireballs towards the attackers.

The fireballs hit their mark with loud bangs, but the three enemies didn’t even flinch. The flames licked at their bodies, but they seemed unfazed.

The Heavy Sword Warrior turned to Qin Bao Yi, still on fire, and said, “Little sister, don’t be in such a hurry. You’re next.” He then swung his heavy sword, extinguishing the flames around him, and charged at her. Terrified, Qin Bao Yi closed her eyes and screamed.

At that moment, Zhang Wenyu heard her scream, snapping him back to reality. Seeing the enemy lunging at Qin Bao Yi, his anger flared.

Zhang Wenyu grabbed Mu Xiaofeng and sped towards Yu Mo, kicking the two enemies away. They didn’t even have time to react before Zhang Wenyu had whisked Yu Mo away.

In a flash, Zhang Wenyu stood in front of the Heavy Sword Warrior, charging at him to stop his advance. He set down Mu Xiaofeng and Yu Mo, then turned to Qiao Zi and said, “Hurry up and heal their wounds. I’ll handle these people.”

Qin Bao Yi noticed that Zhang Wenyu’s eyes were gradually turning red, just like six years ago. She knew he was about to go berserk again.

Zhang Wenyu gripped his dagger tightly, his eyes now fully blood-red. His body expanded, tripling in size, and his skin turned dark brown. His previous Wind Elemental leather armor had torn apart completely.

With a deafening roar, Zhang Wenyu scared away all the forest birds. While the enemies were still reeling from the shock of Zhang Wenyu’s transformation, he flashed in front of the Heavy Sword Warrior and struck with such force that the warrior was sent flying before he could react.

Before the Heavy Sword Warrior could hit the ground, Zhang Wenyu appeared behind the Poison Hand Priestess and the Dual Blade Shadow fighter. They didn’t even see him move, only feeling a huge shadow looming over them.

With a heavy blow, Zhang Wenyu knocked them both to the ground, embedding them into the earth. The Wind Elemental erudite, however, showed no fear. She waved her staff, sending a powerful gust of wind at Zhang Wenyu. The force tripped him up, preventing him from moving forward, and his clothes began to shred under the pressure.

Zhang Wenyu roared again, pushing against the wind until he was in front of the Wind Elemental erudite. He stabbed his dagger at her face, but she managed to summon a thick wind shield just in time. The shield absorbed most of the impact, but the force still sent her flying, and she crashed to the ground.

In just a short time, Zhang Wenyu had taken down all four opponents. But now, he had exhausted all his strength and collapsed to the ground, unconscious. His body gradually returned to its normal size, and it was clear that he had reached his limit.

Qiao Zi and Qin Bao Yi breathed a slight sigh of relief. Qiao Zi continued treating Mu Xiaofeng and Yu Mo’s injuries, while Qin Bao Yi struggled to get up, intending to bring Zhang Wenyu back.

But just as she stood, she saw a hand reach up from the ground in front of her. The Poison Hand Priestess slowly climbed to her feet, still covered in dirt.

The Poison Hand Priestess moved her limbs, dusted herself off, and looked down at the fallen Zhang Wenyu. She sighed and muttered, “What kind of monster is this guy? He’s like a beast, with speed and strength no human should have.”

At that moment, the other three enemies also struggled to their feet. They had survived Zhang Wenyu’s attack and were ready to continue the fight. Meanwhile, Mu Xiaofeng’s team was barely hanging on, with only Qiao Zi and Qin Bao Yi still able to move.

The Wind Elemental erudite slowly walked over to Zhang Wenyu and kicked him hard. Then, she raised her staff and aimed it at Qiao Zi and Qin Bao Yi.

The other three prepared to attack as well, grinning evilly at Qiao Zi and Qin Bao Yi like a pack of bloodthirsty lions closing in on defenseless lambs.

The Wind Elemental erudite let out a final roar, “I don’t care if you’re human or beast, but don’t underestimate this battle we’re fighting with our lives on the line. Now, I’m going to tear you apart.”

A powerful wind blade flew towards the two of them, and at the same time, the other three opponents lunged. With no strength left to fight back, Qiao Zi and Qin Bao Yi could only close their eyes and brace for the worst.