548 Blood

Besides doubt, there was only astonishment. Absolute astonishment.

To the three Rebirth State guests, battles and murders were part of life, and they had learned the relationship between killing and being killed.

Therefore…

They had never once underestimated their opponents.

Even if they have realized early on that their opponents were not as powerful as them, they would not show any mercy or complacency.

And it was precisely due to this, that they were shocked at the strange sight that had unfolded.

After all, they were well-aware of the capabilities of the guest with the Death Flame. Although he had not achieved their level of mastery, in terms of technique and potential, he was not much weaker than them.

But now, the guest with the Death Flame had died.

Without any warning, he had died in front of them. He was killed by them when they could not stop the attack in time.

This made them extremely wary.

Normally, they would have stopped and tested their opponent's abilities once more. After all, it was only a fine line between killing and being killed.

But Lin Tianrong's voice reverberated in their ears with rising urgency.

"What are the three of you waiting for? Do you want to die with that idiot? Kill him now, I want him dead now!" Lin Tianrong's rage shot through the roof.

Even when they had attacked together, the masked man managed to kill the Death Fire guest with the attack of others. How humiliating! If he wasn't that weak, he would've fought.

The three Rebirth guests exchanged looks and immediately understood one another's thoughts.

They did not feel any pity for the fallen guest.

Because when they first stepped into the Eastern Palace, they were fated to be a weapon. A weapon used by Lin Tianrong according to his whims and fancies.

And now…

They were still a weapon.

But one used by another person.

Blame? Hatred?

They had neither. Because, like the guest with the Death Flame, they had a history that no one knew of. If it wasn't like this, with their Rebirth State abilities, why would they be a weapon so willingly?

"Kill him!" one of the guests shouted.

Without much nonsense or banter, this one phrase determined the path of their life, one which they could never turn back.

They still had the advantage of strength with three people.

Even if they had no advantage, or only one was left, they could not stop fighting. Because the result would be the same. It was either the masked man or them who had to die.

The three Rebirth State guards moved again.

But this time they did not attack from different directions, because they weren't exactly clear how the masked man used their attacks to kill the other guard.

Since they weren't clear…

It was an ambiguity.

And once was enough.

The trio stepped toward the masked man in the same direction. Rays of light emerged from their bodies in their respective colors: one red and the two green. Red signified flames.

The flames weren't any special Dao, but they were a powerful, ferocious Dao. And when one had achieved the Rebirth State in the Dao of the flames, he could feel his opponent's realization and control of the flames.

Green signified nature.

Nature is all-encompassing, with flowers, grass, vines, creepers…

But most importantly, nature arose from earth. Hence, when the two green light rays emerged, streaks of green lines simultaneously surfaced from the ground.

The green lines moved wildly, approaching the masked man's legs.

With impressive speed.

The masked man stood calmly at his position as if he didn't notice what was happening. In an instant, the green lines twisted around his legs, rooting him to the ground.

And at this moment, a ball of red flames reached in front of the masked man like a hungry predator about the devour his prey.

From the time the three guests moved to the ensnarement of the masked man, all happened in the blink of an eye, but it was in fact very visible.

A fiery red tooth pierced deep in the masked man's throat, sizzling as it penetrated his skin.

The surrounding guards and servants heaved a sigh a relief.

"Is he dead?!"

"With the combined force of the three Rebirth State guests, his fate was sealed even if he managed to defeat the 'Dark Death' by luck."

"Yes. It is impossible for a single person to survive this."

The guards discussed softly as they carefully observed Lin Tianrong's expression. After all, if the masked man was defeated, Lin Tianrong would calm down a little.

And the Dark Death they mentioned referred, of course, to the guest with the Death Flame.

A pseudonym.

No one knew his real name.

Lin Tianrong stared intently at the three guests and the masked man. He saw witnessed the flame piercing through the masked man's throat, but his rage did not quell.

Setting the Eastern Palace and his study on fire.

How could such a rage be quelled just by a simple death? He was full of hatred. He didn't want the masked man to die just like this.

If it was possible, he preferred slowly slicing the masked man apart with a knife.

But now…

He couldn't care anymore.

Death!

He could still let him rot in public!

Lin Tianrong had decided that he would expose his corpse in the public for seven days. He wanted to let everyone know that the royal dignity was not to be messed around.

Those who infringed the royal dignity only had one end: death.

The sizzling noise emerged from the masked man's body. It should have been a bloody sight, but strangely, it wasn't so.

Because…

There was no blood!

When everyone saw the fiery tooth pierce his throat and heard the sizzle, they knew the masked man in front of them wasn't just a persistence of vision. He did not dodge, but why had he not died upon such a blow?

This was their first thought.

But when they hadn't the time to develop this thought, they noticed something peculiar: the masked man's throat had no trace of blood.

They had seen it clearly: the fiery red tooth piercing deeply into his throat. By why was there no blood?

What a strange sight.

Everyone had the same doubts. Even Lin Tianrong was dazed. But there were no explanations for this.

And the most puzzled among them was…

Of course, the guest of the highest level of Rebirth State among the trio, the flaming guest.

"How is this possible?!" The flaming guest stared gravely at the masked man. He could not believe his eyes.

After all, he was certain that the fiery red really pierced his throat. He could feel it. Unmistakable.

But why…

Nothing happened?!

He could not comprehend.

The other two guests did not understand too. This level of strangeness had exceeded their knowledge. Even if one had seen it personally, it was hard to believe.

"Now, I want to see if you're a human or a ghost!" One of the guests couldn't resist anymore. With a motion of his hand, the green lines which previously entangled the masked man transformed into vines with the sharpness of knives. Then they pierced into his thighs.

And then…

Nothing happened.

Although the vines had pierced into his thighs, there was also no blood, not even a drop.

"What is going on?" The other guest who was holding the masked man down finally spoke. He could not make sense of this situation.

And at this time, the masked man shook his body and adjusted his neck, then looked at the green vines on his legs.

"So that was it?" The masked man said with a low voice. A relaxed voice with a hint of disappointment.

The guards and servants were utterly shocked.

Because they were certain that the masked man was not dead, and in fact, living well.

"What is happening?"

"He was obviously hit, but nothing happened to him?"

"What Dao is this? How have I never heard of such a Dao?"

The guards and servants were puzzled, but they were clear of one point. Since the masked man was still alive, all of these had yet to end.

They turned their attention to Lin Tianrong.

Just a glance was enough to make them shiver. Because Lin Tianrong has reached the peak of his fury, an air of unstable energy circulated around his body.

His expression was sinister as if his face radiated evil.

"Kill him, kill him! Shoot the arrows, now!" Lin Tianrong commanded without hesitation. He only had one single thought.

To kill the masked man.

To kill him regardless of anything.

Nearly a hundred archers heard Lin Tianrong and froze momentarily. Naturally, they looked at the three guests standing very close to the masked man.

But they eventually sprang into action.

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

A series of arrows sprang out of their bows and into the air, gleaming brilliantly. Every arrow had a flowing light ray, and if one looked closely enough, he could see markings and symbols etched on it.

The arrows rained on the masked man and the three guests. With such a short distance, the archers did not have to shoot upward into the sky, instead, straight at them.

This also meant that the arrows' force could reach its maximum.

The three guests were also shocked at Lin Tianrong's order, and the wave arrows raining upon them.

But none of them spoke a word.

Because they knew that when Lin Tianrong gave these orders, he had already lost patience in them.

The trio gritted their teeth while the rays of light on their bodies transformed into shields, protecting them from the arrows.

But it was not the end.

And while the shields took shape, they charged at the masked man. They knew that the only thing that could stop these arrows was killing the masked man.

Although they still did not understand why this man hadn't died, they had no time to think.

"Kill him!"

"Die!"

"Go to hell!"

The three guests shouted simultaneously, and in an instant, they have reached beside the masked man. One red fist and two green fists punched toward his heart.

The masked man did not move.

He was so close to them!

But the three guests did not slacken, because while their fists had not punched on the masked man, anything could happen.

Their fists were tight and merciless.

Finally, in the instant when their fists reached his chest, the masked man moved. He took a small step back.

With that, the red fiery tooth and the green vines that had entangled him were instantly withdrawn from his body.

"This…"

The three guests were shocked.

Although they had seen this happen to the guest with the Death Flame, now it happened to them.

It was still as shocking.

"Boom!"

The three fists collided with the fiery red tooth and green lines, instantly annihilating them while generating a powerful blast wave.

But the trio did not intend to stop.

Charge on!

And they chased toward the masked man.

And at this moment, something peculiar happened again. When the three of them smashed the fiery red tooth and sharp green vines, more green lines emerged from the ground.

And these lines were much thicker, as thick as fingers, and instantly, they completely entangled the three guests.

And now, the bright red flame rose again, but instead of one, now there were three fiery red teeth.

"You…"

The guests were stunned. It was a little too bizarre.

Perhaps it was not that surprising that the masked man mastered the Dao of the flames.

But to refine the flame into a bright red and transform it exactly into three fiery red teeth, it was certainly extreme.

They really wanted to ask, how would this happen?

But they didn't get a chance. The three teeth were already in front of them and zoomed right into their throats.

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

Three defeating blasts was accompanied by a brilliant glow that lit up the whole sky, while a terrifying blast wave radiated outwards.