Chapter 402: Fifth World: Cloaked Man Back In Business

Wen Qinxi stood still surrounded by the dark mist that made it difficult for him to see his hand right in front of him. The musty air made it hard to breathe but he didn't make a sound scanning his surroundings with great vigilance.

The air was still giving off a tranquil atmosphere but that was all an illusion. All his senses were perceiving danger with his hair standing on end. A chill spread all over his back when a silent shadow flew by in a swift motion making him tightly grip the hilt of magic frost. His breathing shallow and heart racing he closed his eyes to calm himself.

This body was designed for such a situation but if he panicked nothing but death will await him. He had to brainwash himself to suppress his fear otherwise he would die. Thinking this way he heightened his senses listening carefully for any movements.

What he didn't know was that once he closed his eyes a bone-chilling pair of spice-blue eyes appeared with the rest of the body shrouded in darkness watching him as though eyeing its prey.

The creature seemed dissatisfied with Wen Qinxi's reaction. Shouldn't the victim scream when they see a pair of eyes looming within the dark mist? With its long nails, it scratched the ground making an eerie sound that could get one's imagination running wild.

Wen Qinxi kept his eyes closed while tilting his head to the side to figure out which direction the sounds were coming from.

Scratch!.... Scratch!

Were the drawn-out sounds coming from his right intending to scare him but Wen Qinxi didn't open his eyes. Losing its patience the creature leapt out of the shadows with a horrifying croaking sound lunging at Wen Qinxi. Its crooked fingers aimed at Wen Qinxi's neck to slash him with its long fingernails.

A luminous blue light suddenly shone from magic frost before the creature could reach its target. The sound of flesh being sliced and blood splattering to the ground followed accompanying the loud screeches from the creature.

That loud screech seemed to cause a disturbance in the dark mist like a drop of water causing ripples in a calm lake. "Kill!... Kill them all, HA HAHAHA!" was the sinister voice of the woman who had been silent all this while. As soon as she issued her command, blood-curdling screams pervaded the air. The sound of fighting soon followed as the cultivators stood their ground. 

Sensing a horde of those filthy creatures coming his way, Wen Qinxi abruptly opened his eyes and swung magic frost emitting an enchanting blue arc. The creatures were no match to this tremendous attack and were directly slashed in half.

Killing them wasn't an issue but when they came in swarms it made it incredibly laborious. It was only now that Wen Qinxi got a closer look from the glint of light coming from his sword. The creatures were most definitely humans before they were turned.

Wen Qinxi could only conclude that they were the missing villagers but their appearance right now would make it hard for their relatives to identify them. Their spines were crooked and twisted in unnatural ways with some of them walking on all fours. Not only were the bodies contorted weirdly but their skins had ugly blue patches like someone or something bit through and left its traces.

The horde grew bigger and bigger making it incredibly difficult for Wen Qinxi. He was now inching closer to being on the defence rather than offence. It was in this moment of carelessness that he ended up getting his cheek scratched by a brazen creature that descended from above him.

If he hadn't dodged the attack he would have ended up with more than just a scratch. Angered by these brain dead monsters, Wen Qinxi lost it. He leapt up into the air in a graceful spin like a ballerina and stretched out his hands gathering water from his surroundings. In a matter of seconds, he was surrounded by water droplets painting a tranquil picture.

But there was nothing tranquil about it because the water droplets suddenly transformed into sharply pointed ice shards aimed at the ground below. His closed eyes suddenly opened in a gut-wrenching way before the ice shards rained down like bullets on the creatures.

The sudden attack had the creatures screaming and screeching in agony. The remaining surviving creatures vanished into the thick mist after the woman yelled from the cover of darkness. "Stop.... stop hurting my babies. I will kill you... I will kill all of you... AAAAAHHHHHH!!" she said with a horrendous scream that made Wen Qinxi's ears hurt.

Having exacerbated his strength, Wen Qinxi descended from up above ready to face off with whatever was remaining of the creatures using his collection of talisman. To his surprise, the mist actively avoided him as though afraid of him.

But it wasn't fear of him but fear of someone else. Wen Qinxi remained vigilant with his fingers gripping his sword. It was a good thing he didn't relax because three gruesome minutes later a figure appeared from the mist heading his way. Wen Qinxi swung his sword in that direction his action ruthless and precise.

If the strike hit its target the person would surely die but this wasn't an ordinary person. Magic frost was caught just as it was about to strike the man's neck. The cloaked man held the edge of magic frost and twisted it but his hands didn't bleed.

Wen Qinxi opened his eyes wide in astonishment. A creepy smile appeared from within the shadows of the hood making Wen Qinxi's blood run cold. Muffled chuckles escaped the man's throat before he said, "Interesting."

The cloaked man then proceeded to strike Wen Qinxi's chest with his palm sending him flying a few feet. But before he hit the ground the cloaked man flashed over and grabbed his neck before vanishing with the both of them.

***

While Wen Qinxi was dealing with a dire situation, Qie Ranzhe was on the prowl for the cause of all this. The cultivators had dealt with the situation in the villages by killing off the creatures but this was a band-aid solution. They didn't uproot the problem resulting in this mess.

He instructed his disciples to maintain the barrier before vanishing into the thick mist surrounded by an oppressive aura. Maybe it was because he was too scary or that his cultivation rank was high but those vicious creatures seemed to be running away from him.

Qie Ranzhe took out a talisman with weird symbols drawn on it and whispered something into it before tossing it into the air like a paper plane. The talisman split into bright orange wisps seeking out cultivators. Once each wisp attached itself to a cultivator it would transmit Qie Ranzhe's message before vanishing into thin air.

"Leave," was the simple and straightforward message sent by Qie Ranzhe. The cultivators that had been hard at battle were hesitant but knowing Qie Ranzhe's reputation it was best they leave lest they got caught up in the crossfire.