Bird’s Beak and Wasp leaped off the eagle’s back without hesitation.
Meanwhile, the Bone-devouring Flying Eagle, carried by its own momentum, had no time to change direction. It crashed straight toward Chen Xin.
SWISH!
Chen Xin launched the primed Thunderbolt Fire Bomb. Although he didn’t know any Hidden Weapon Technique, Fingering Skills shared similarities with them. Using his Fingering Skill to flick the Thunderbolt Fire Bomb was more than enough to deal with this beast.
BANG! The iron-gray sphere smashed into the eagle’s head at a speed faster than the bird itself. The gunpowder inside violently detonated, sending flames soaring into the sky. The deafening explosion echoed through the clouds, startling even the military camp two miles away.
RUMBLE!
Billowing waves of heat spread outward! The completely roasted Bone-devouring Flying Eagle let out a mournful screech before crashing into the ground with a heavy THUD. Even the cold and heartless Demon Nether Envoys couldn’t help but feel a sliver of relief at that moment—thankfully, they had jumped off in time.
In mid-air, Wasp circulated his Inner Strength to repel the heatwave. Using his Lightweight Skill, he floated gracefully to the ground. Upon landing, Wasp opened his mouth, intending to chant the Bee Control Spell to reorganize the swarm for another attack. During the brief moment of lost control, the swarm had already begun to scatter. They had been forcibly summoned from various places by Wasp using the Bee Control Spell and originally belonged to different colonies.
Before he could utter more than a few syllables, Wasp caught sight of a Long Blade slashing toward him from the corner of his eye. He hastily pulled the Soul-Hooking Chain taut, raising it in front of him and circulating his power to protect his body.
SLASH! The chain shattered, and the man perished!
How could a hasty defense block Chen Xin’s fatal strike? Wasp’s headless body collapsed limply. Chen Xin spun around and swung his Long Blade. "Unstoppable" deflected the Soul-Locking Chain before another slash forced back Bird’s Beak, who had attempted a sneak attack. Not only did the ambush fail, but he was forced to retreat three steps by two counter-slashes. Bird’s Beak was now fully aware of the disparity in their power.
However, having failed his mission and lost the giant eagle, returning to the Underworld would mean a fate worse than death. He might as well risk his life in a desperate struggle.
CRACK!
The Soul-Hooking Chain whipped through the air, producing a sharp crack. It was the most vicious move of the Soul-Beating Whip Technique: Soul Scattered and Spirit Dispersed.
Chen Xin showed no fear. Wielding "Unstoppable," he unleashed a flurry of slashes, executing killer moves in rapid succession—Reverse Soul Stealing, Nightmare Birth, and Dust Returns to Earth. His aura surged like tidal waves, each crest higher than the last, culminating in a spectacular peak before he struck with Shattering Void once more.
SWOOSH!
The ferocious Sword Intent tore through the Soul-Hooking Chain and crushed Bird’s Beak, leaving bone-deep gashes all over his body. The bird-shaped Nuo mask was now covered in cracks. Behind Bird’s Beak, the once lush grassy field had been swept by the Sword Intent and reduced to a barren wasteland.
THUD.
Bird’s Beak stumbled backward, his life force draining rapidly. Finally, he collapsed on his back, the mask on his face shattering into pieces across the ground. Chen Xin looked at Bird’s Beak. Under the moonlight, the face beneath the mask was that of an ordinary man—even a very young one, looking no older than eighteen. Bird’s Beak’s face was deathly pale. It wasn’t a natural paleness, but rather the result of prolonged deprivation of sunlight.
Chen Xin pulled back "Unstoppable," preparing to move forward and deliver a finishing blow. No matter the opponent, he had to see their head severed from their body to feel at ease. It was an old habit. In the Martial World, there were countless supreme Divine Skills, as well as many peculiar Mechanisms and Pills. Methods to fake death or even return to life were endless and impossible to guard against. Chen Xin’s own Divine Illumination Skill was a perfect example of this.
SWISH. "Unstoppable" sliced across Bird’s Beak’s neck.
"Huh?" Chen Xin let out a sound of surprise. He noticed a strange scar on Bird’s Beak’s forehead. Its shape was definitely not caused by Shattering Void; instead, it looked like an injury sustained in childhood that had slowly set into its current form over the years.
Chen Xin half-squatted and pressed a palm against Bird’s Beak’s forehead. Probing with his Divine Illumination Internal Power, he discovered a damaged area in the young man’s brain. Moreover, it had been damaged since childhood. This reminded Chen Xin of an inhumane procedure: the lobotomy. This surgery was claimed to treat severe depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anger issues, and schizophrenia. An ice pick would be inserted upward through a person’s eye socket into the brain. Once positioned, it would be wildly swirled around to sever the connections of the frontal lobe. It could indeed "cure" those illnesses. After all, if a person lacked even normal emotions, they naturally wouldn’t suffer from depression, rage, or schizophrenia. Some children were even sent by their parents to have their frontal lobes severed simply because they were disobedient.
"No wonder the assassins of the Underworld possess emotions so different from ordinary people..." Chen Xin murmured as he exhaled and slowly stood up, his disgust for the Underworld organization reaching its absolute peak.
"I wonder if Xu Heyu has been captured." Gazing out beyond the dense forest, Chen Xin darted away.
...
Meanwhile, at the clearing where the Snake Slaves were refined.
Corpses dressed in Celestial Fragrance Sect uniforms lay strewn across the ground, bristling with steel arrows. Under the sudden volley of the Mechanical Crossbows, Xu Heyu and his disciples suffered heavy casualties. However, embracing the principle of "sacrificing teammates for boundless Magical Power," Xu Heyu managed to find an opening and broke through the Divine Robe Guards’ encirclement.
Xu Heyu actually possessed Outer Realm Level power. He attained it purely by piggybacking on his older brother. Relying on his status as a Praise Envoy in the White Lotus Sect, Xu Hongru had secured various Miracle Pills for Xu Heyu and granted him the privilege of using Spirit Realm Treasure Lands. By doing so, he forcefully pushed Xu Heyu, whose Talent was far from impressive, into the Outer Realm. But Xu Heyu’s Realm was ultimately undeserved. Facing a group of Divine Robe Guards who were only in the Inner Realm, he didn’t even dare to fight back after being wounded by the rain of arrows and could only flee in panic.
Once the steel arrows of the Mechanical Crossbows were depleted, the Divine Robe Guards immediately used their Lightweight Skills to give chase. They tailed Xu Heyu closely, like seasoned hunters cornering a wild beast. The Divine Robe Guards shifted their formation to surround him on three sides, leaving one side open. This prevented Xu Heyu from returning to his camp or interfering with Chen Xin’s battlefield. Instead, they trapped him within a confined area, forcing him to run in circles as if they were herding him. This was the safest method. If Xu Heyu, who possessed Outer Realm Power, truly fought for his life, the Divine Robe Guards might actually lose one or two men.
"Damn it! Don’t even think about stopping me again!"
After being constantly cornered and intercepted, Xu Heyu finally realized their tactic. Raising both palms, he recklessly struck out at the Divine Robe Guards who were trying to herd him back into the enclosure once more. Five colors—red, cyan, black, purple, and white—swirled around his palms. It was the Martial Arts he practiced, the Five Fiend Divine Palm! The five types of Palm Force each carried a deadly poison. When unleashed simultaneously with his Outer Realm Power, the attack looked overwhelmingly formidable.
The obstructing Divine Robe Guard’s expression changed. Channeling his Inner Strength to the maximum, he swung his Brocade Spring Saber straight down—Sky-piercing Knife Technique: Powerful Slash of Mount Hua!
BANG!
The Divine Robe Guard was sent flying backward. With a pained expression, he hastily circulated his power to suppress the Palm Poison. But Xu Heyu didn’t fare much better. Despite being a grand Outer Realm expert striking first, he had fought to a standstill against an Inner Realm opponent. Furthermore, his right thumb had been sliced off by the Brocade Spring Saber.
"ARGH!!!"
Xu Heyu’s facial features twisted in agony. He had never endured such pain in his entire life, but under the threat of death, he tapped into his hidden potential. Enduring the excruciating pain, he executed his Lightweight Skill to escape. Seeing this, the other encircling Divine Robe Guards immediately gave chase. But three breaths later, they all came to a sudden halt. Chen Xin had instantly appeared in front of Xu Heyu, killing him with a single slash.
"You guys needed to chase trash like this for so long?" Chen Xin asked, raising an eyebrow. The twenty Divine Robe Guards he brought had extensive experience, yet they couldn’t even kill an Outer Realm fighter propped up by pills?
The questioned Divine Robe Guards looked embarrassed. Xu Heyu’s Outer Realm Evaluation on the interface constantly bounced back and forth between "Integration" and "Refined and Masterful," though his Realm was stably at the Outer Realm... These Divine Robe Guards were simply playing it too safe.
SWISH!
In the span of a few breaths, Chen Xin crossed hundreds of meters and arrived behind the injured and poisoned Divine Robe Guard. Pressing a palm against his back, he circulated his power to help expel the Palm Poison.
"Thank you, Copper Order," the assisted Divine Robe Guard said, cupping his fists.
"Go notify Governor Yang. The rest of you, follow me," Chen Xin said with a nod, leading his subordinates back to the clearing where the Snake Slaves were refined.
By this time, the other bound, able-bodied men had awakened. They stared in sheer terror at the sole unlucky man who had been transformed into a Snake Slave. They had seen Snake Slaves before. Venerable Wuxiang (Xu Heyu) had told them that these were "Yellow Turban Warriors" bestowed by heaven in recognition of the Celestial Fragrance Sect’s merits in answering a cosmic tribulation. That was why they were masked, possessed boundless strength, and were invulnerable to weapons. They had originally believed it... but after waking up and witnessing this scene, even the most ignorant fool would know how little credibility there was to these so-called heaven-bestowed "Yellow Turban Warriors."
When Chen Xin returned using his Lightweight Skill, he was met with this exact scene: the men who hadn’t been refined wore expressions of thoughtful realization, terrified disgust, or towering rage.
"It seems you’ve all discovered the truth," Chen Xin said, pressing his palm onto the head of the single unlucky Snake Slave. Looking at the others, he asked, "I know you still have family and friends inside the Celestial Fragrance Sect. Do you want to rescue them and expose the Celestial Fragrance Sect’s conspiracy?"
Seeing everyone give a slight nod—the largest movement they could manage while tied up—Chen Xin applied force with his palm, channeling his Divine Illumination Internal Power to cripple the Snake Slave’s mobility.
"Untie them!"