63 Mutual Destruction

Cha Ming was in dire straits. The sharp increase in Zhou Xian's power had forced him to devote all his power to fleeing. Not only was he using his newly created Swift Staff Art to constantly evade and deflect the dark-green flying sword, he had also been forced to withdraw the Snowflake Manifestation for personal protection.

He darted to the side, only to find a flying sword charging toward him. Seeing that his speed was insufficient to avoid it at close range, he conjured a Sword Manifestation to deflect it before fleeing once more.

At this rate, I'll never be able to free Huxian. And now that my Snowflake Manifestation is absent, Gong Lan can no longer fight toe-to-toe with Zhou Xian.

All he needed was a few breaths to add the finishing touches to the counter-formation, then White Huxian would be free to continue his assault. Then he was caught mid-thought by a familiar green glimmer. Shit, I can't take much more of this, he thought. Yet, to his surprise, the sword was deflected by a metallic weapon. It was a long black spear wielded by a familiar figure.

"Feng Ming!" Cha Ming shouted. His friend didn't answer but coughed up blood instead. Cha Ming didn't hesitate to send his Healing Flower Manifestation to Feng Ming before darting off toward White Huxian. "Buy me three breaths," he shouted to Feng Ming.

The sword tried to evade Feng Ming, but the latter's spear technique was unfathomable and unpredictable. He moved between Cha Ming and the sword, using his spear's reach to smash it away. While his cultivation base was much lower than Cha Ming's, his weapon was much stronger than Zhou Xian's.

Cha Ming wasted no time and arrived beside Huxian to paint the remaining lines. The flying sword tried to fly around Feng Ming, but to no avail. It started attacking Feng Ming directly.

Clang. Clang. Clang. Every strike from the sword knocked Feng Ming back a few feet. The first few times caused him to cough up blood. This was due to a disparity between realms, and it was a miracle that he wasn't instantly killed. The fourth strike caused his hands to bleed. Finally, the sword knocked his spear two dozen feet away. But it did not kill Feng Ming. Instead, it slashed his arm in passing and traveled at lightning speed toward its true goal: Cha Ming.

However, the flying sword was too late. Cha Ming finished the last stroke of his brush when the sword was merely three feet away. Huxian, who had been attentive this entire time, jumped out in front of the flying sword, shielding Cha Ming with his body. The sword bounced off his fur with a loud clang, and Huxian's aura of purification burst out, relieving everyone from the weakening effects of Zhou Xian's aura.

Feng Ming was kneeling on the floor, shaking. He had taken far too much damage in the exchange and couldn't even stand properly, much less retrieve his spear. Furthermore, the poison had begun spreading from the wound on his arm, forcing him to circulate his cultivation base to keep it at bay. He had a satisfied smile on his face. After all, they had lost his support in exchange for Huxian's—a worthy trade!

Huxian's aura continued to soar as he joined his black clone in attacking Zhou Xian. Unfortunately, he was a tad too late, and Gong Lan was struck by a poison dragon. She was forced to kneel as she grasped the right side of her chest where the poison dragon had struck her. Black lines were snaking up her right arm and neck from the exposed region. Seeing that support had arrived, she sat down in meditation and began expelling the poison from her blood with the Blood World Scripture.

Huxian howled as he attacked Zhou Xian with both clones simultaneously. Brother, he sent mentally, I can't defeat him, he's much too strong. I need your help.

How? Cha Ming responded while rushing toward him. He had absolute trust in his brother. Fortunately, Zhou Xian's attention had been diverted and he could no longer control the flying sword.

Stand beside my white clone and put your arm on it.

Cha Ming complied, only to see the pool of darkness below Zhou Xian travel back toward the white clone. The two clones were superimposed momentarily, and Cha Ming felt a surge of energy pass through his hand and into his body and dantian.

What's this? he asked in amazement.

That is the qi that I've been plundering from Zhou Xian since the beginning of the fight, Huxian replied. I absorbed it with my black clone and purified it with my white clone. You can temporarily use it as qi or to enhance your physical prowess. It will only last for the next thirty breaths. Let's use it to gain the advantage!

Cha Ming didn't need to be told twice—he quickly used a Flame Manifestation, enhancing it with both wood and water qi. He needed to use these thirty seconds to deal as much damage as possible. He didn't have time to defend.

***

Blood gushed out of a wound on Zhang Yifeng's chest as the Merchant tore through his qi defense with his bare hands. The man's hands resembled golden claws more than anything else. They had ignored Yifeng's defensive magic robes, which hadn't been breached in a full decade. The older man gnashed his teeth and continued dousing the Merchant in his alchemist flames.

The flames an alchemist could conjure far exceeded those of normal cultivators. They could achieve much higher temperatures than even blacksmiths, fueling their fires with wood qi. Further, Zhang Yifeng didn't hesitate to use various medicinal powders, all of which enhanced the already elevated temperature of his crimson flames.

The Merchant shrieked as a powder-enhanced burst singed his arm. For the first time in the battle, the alchemist's flames had bypassed the golden man's qi barrier. A thin layer of his skin melted, but it recovered soon after.

"I hate spending more than anything else in the world, but you've forced me to do this!" The Merchant was livid, his face rife with madness. He brought his left hand to his mouth and bit down on his little finger. He didn't wail as the finger was removed, and no blood leaked out from the fresh wound. It was as though the finger was never flesh to begin with, and no bone could be seen where it had previously been connected to his hand.

The Merchant chewed loudly, and his mastication sounded like metal on metal. He quickly followed up with an incantation in a dark language. Despite not speaking the language, everyone nearby could hear the meaning in their hearts.

"The price is paid. Almighty Greed, lend me your strength!" With these words, the Merchant's aura soared a small step higher.

With his newfound strength, he charged toward Zhang Yifeng and slashed at him with his right claw. The claw no longer resembled anything like a human hand. Instead, two-inch-long silvery nails now tipped each finger.

No! I won't be able to avoid this! Yifeng closed his eyes and gritted his teeth in preparation for the incoming blow, which would likely kill him. However, it never came. He opened his eyes slightly, only to see Han Jinlong standing in front of him. A golden hand protruded from his back.

Han Jinlong coughed weakly. "You need to finish him after this, Yifeng. Save this town. Save our people." Each word was uttered with great difficulty, and Zhang Yifeng couldn't stop tears from streaming down his cheeks.

"Jinlong, you fool!" he whispered. The Merchant grunted in response to the interference and flung his arm out to throw away the smith's corpse. But the smith remained firmly attached. A panicked expression covered the Merchant's face as Zhang Yifeng noticed a frightening energy quickly rising. Han Jinlong had chosen to sacrifice himself via self-detonation!

Yifeng was able to retreat fifty feet before a massive explosion buffeted him. His qi shield soaked up the shock wave. He had no attention to spare for the fighting children and could only wish them the best. The only thought on his mind was to avenge his dear friend, to avenge his friends and family and the countless villagers who had perished at the Merchant's hands.

No pieces of Han Jinlong could be found amid the wreckage near the middle of the explosion. Only the Merchant stood there, or what was left of him. Half his torso and a full arm were missing. Yifeng no longer wondered how that thing was still standing. He could see no organs, or bones, or blood. The Merchant was only bleeding one thing, and that was gold.

Yifeng didn't hesitate to swallow a magic qi recovery pill and throw out a large packet of green powder. He channeled his wood-fueled fire qi to ignite the powder, which created a vivid green flame. This flame was double the temperature of anything he had used previously. The Merchant shrieked as his skin and extremities melted. The alchemist wasn't sure if it was due to pain or due to the realization that its demise was imminent.

He didn't let up the attack and continued pressing on. He used priceless pills and reagents to continuously boost the temperature of his flame. It might be overkill, but he knew one thing for certain: The least he owed his friend was the best funeral pyre Fairweather had ever seen.

***

Earlier

Cha Ming focused his newfound strength, channeling it to temporarily strengthen his body. His qi techniques were lackluster compared to his physical strength and combat techniques, after all. To complement his fist strength of 1,080 jin, he increased the weight of his staff to 200 jin.

He used Burst Steps to charge at Zhou Xian while Huxian flanked him on two other sides. White Huxian's purifying power was used at full force, negating Zhou Xian's poisonous aura while forcing him to maintain it, lest the purifying aura suppress him. Black Huxian gave up his previous trick of attacking Zhou Xian's body from the shadows. Instead, he turned his sights to Zhou Xian's shadow. Thus, Zhou Xian was forced to defend on three fronts. Meanwhile, the Flame Manifestation grinded away at his armor of qi, depleting it bit by bit.

Cha Ming focused his weight by using Mountain Stance and struck out using combinations of Sword Staff and Quake Staff. Horizontal, vertical, and diagonal strikes combined into a seamless whole, while his weight control and Burst Steps combined into a whole new form of movement. He varied the weight and length of his staff in an unpredictable but aggressive fashion. With each passing moment, he became aware that he'd created the embryonic form of his third combat style—Hard Staff Art.

While he was hardly Zhou Xian's match one-on-one, that didn't matter. After all, he wasn't alone. With Huxian's help, they began beating Zhou Xian into submission. Yet Cha Ming knew that time was limited. He only had ten seconds left with this borrowed strength.

Huxian, lend me a hand and pin him down, Cha Ming sent mentally.

Huxian's two clones ran around Zhou Xian with lightning speed. Everywhere they passed, they left a ribbon of light and darkness. These ribbons seemed like solidified light and shadow. Zhou Xian was unable to react before the two clones darted in opposite directions, tightening the ribbons around the dark-robed man. Although the ribbons didn't make contact, Zhou Xian was immobile.

Cha Ming didn't require a prompt. He swiftly increased the weight of his staff once more to 500 jin and rooted himself to the ground. He pounded at Zhou Xian's head with one strike after another. Each strike threatened the integrity of his qi shield, yet nothing managed to damage the foundation-establishment cultivator. With every strike, he felt a vicious counter-force that made his blood roil.

Three seconds left. He hacked away with strike after strike, using his Hard Staff Art. After two more seconds, he was rewarded for his efforts when a trickle of blood appeared on Zhou Xian's face. But blood was rushing out of Cha Ming's mouth ten times as fast.

This is my last strike, Huxian! Cha Ming jumped back and pulled his staff all the way behind him. He used every last bit of his strength to both elongate the staff to triple its length, smashing downward at ten times the speed originally possible with a regular six-foot staff. In addition, he used Quake Staff, imbuing it with the power of vibration!

This last strike completely depleted Cha Ming's energy. A look of horror appeared on Zhou Xian's face as he realized he couldn't defend against it. He tried once more to free himself, but to no avail. Finally, he let out an angry shriek as a frightening fluctuation emitted from his body, engulfing both Cha Ming and the two Huxians in a dreadful explosion. After the first explosion, Cha Ming heard a second explosion from a hundred feet away.

Who self-detonated? Are both Master Zhang and Master Han all right? This was the last thought that flashed through his mind before he lost consciousness.

***

Two consecutive blasts made the windows and doors of the auction house shudder. The auctioneer was breathing deeply, and he was bleeding from several deep cuts. His opponents weren't faring any better. They were littered with cuts, and one of the men's arms was hanging limp by his side.

"Would you care to find out who those people were?" he asked.

The three men and the auctioneer rushed out of the building in tacit agreement. Soon, they witnessed a horrifying sight. The crumbling remnants of what used to be opulent buildings littered the streets. Yet the buildings with the simplest construction remained untouched. It was a very bizarre sight.

Two large craters occupied a large area at the center of town. Three cultivators and a spirit beast were still standing, while one cultivator was passed out. It was clear who the two craters belonged to.

"Flee!" yelled the three cultivators. The auctioneer snorted and sent all three swords at one of the cultivators. He tumbled to the ground with three swords lodged in his back. The other two managed to escape. It wasn't possible for all three of them to retreat against such a superior cultivator.

The auctioneer flew over to Zhang Yifeng, who stood near a puddle of gold, mourning. "Did Jinlong…" he started. Zhang Yifeng nodded his head in sorrow. The auctioneer shook his head and flew over to the three youngsters and the fox. Three of them were in bad condition, and one of them had already passed out. The auctioneer tossed two pellets to Gong Lan and Feng Ming, who swallowed them without hesitation. Their wounds began healing at a rate visible to the naked eye.

He then tossed another bottle to Gong Lan. "Feed this to that kid. He'll recover soon. I'm going to the county lord's manor to investigate the situation," he said before flying off.

When he arrived, he found a house full of fainted maids, two dead guards, one dead county lord, and Bei Ling.

"Oh, my dear old friend…" the auctioneer muttered softly. "At least you died with a smile on your face. Not many people in this city can say the same." With these words, he flew off to find several trusted individuals, waking them one by one.

There was much work to be done.

***

Zhou Li suddenly awoke from his cultivation session. It was the middle of the night, and he hadn't heard any word from Fairweather. Despite his multiple attempts, he had not managed to divine the situation. Therefore, he could only hope for the best and make the meddler pay the highest price possible for his actions.

"Protector Song, did you find the rat yet?" Zhou Li asked the empty room. A golden-armored figure appeared in front of him, kneeling.

"Young Master, my apologies for my incompetence. I still can't find any trace of anyone. Are you sure this isn't a long-distance curse?" he asked doubtfully.

"Yes, I'm sure," Zhou Li responded. "It's not possible for someone to interfere at a long range, not unless the one interfering is a Transcendent. However, the price a Transcendent would pay is much too large for this trifling matter. He must be nearby."

The armored man nodded slowly.

Suddenly, Zhou Li grimaced as he realized a very important thread of karma had been severed. Another even more important thread was severed shortly after. There was only one explanation for this—both his brother and the Merchant had fallen.

"Who dares!" he yelled out. Seething with rage, he withdrew a small black pouch from his belt and took out six crystals. They emanated a sensation of pure evil, as though they were sin incarnate. Zhou Li slammed his chest with his fist and spat a mouthful of heart blood on the crystals, then immediately burned away the offering with obsidian flames. His aura surged as he yelled, "You will not hamper me. Not this time!"

The man in the golden armor stood by with a serious expression as Zhou Li took out a small mirror from his pouch. The mirror was covered with an inky film. He expanded it to ten times its size in the span of a few breaths. Then he flung out his hands, incinerating the black film with his obsidian flames. Unlike the previous times, the black film melted away with no resistance.

The mirror quickly portrayed a bird's-eye view of Fairweather City. There, he saw several symbols. There were two bloodied sabers, a black armor with white runes, and an alchemist's flame. Two other symbols were there, but their symbols were blurred.

"You will show me!" he yelled fiercely, coughing up blood in the process. The fog obscuring one of the symbols was lifted, showing a coin engraved with a white circle and a black star, as well as five colored points. A golden tether connected it to the other blurred figure.

It's you! he thought. He knew that this figure had killed his brother—they were connected by a blood-red thread of karma, a blood debt. A sinister grin appeared on Zhou Li's face as he withdrew six more crystals.

Anything I do to you will affect the other. You've both been a thorn in my side—that will end today. All for the small price of twelve Sin Crystals.

He coughed up his heart blood once more, using his blood and the six crystals to fuel the obsidian flame again. The flame traveled along the blood-red karma thread at a slow pace. Once the last bit of black flame was sent down, he grasped the red thread and gathered a portion of it into a small pearl in his hand. He then flicked the pearl into a fengxue compass , which immediately began pointing in Fairweather's direction.

"Protector Song," he said, "take this compass and hunt down the man named Du Cha Ming. Kill both him and the fox. This compass will point to him until he dies. I won't be able to accompany you—I have a troublesome opponent to meet in court in a few hours. Return to me once the task is completed."

The man bowed and immediately flew out of the room. He didn't use a flying sword. No, he flew unassisted! He passed over the guards and the city's people without being noticed. Except by one man. The man had been sitting cross-legged beneath the window Protector Song had just left from. He was wreathed in shadows and couldn't be discovered by anyone.

A smile appeared on Wang Jun's face as he saw the man fly off. He formed several dozen hand seals, which manifested a needle that flew out toward Protector Song. It completely avoided him but settled down on the Fengxue compass he was carrying. Wang Jun let out a sigh as he felt another ten years of his life flow out from between his fingers. Cha Ming was the biggest bet in his life, and his only friend.

In for a penny, in for a pound.