NOVPUB"So, the negotiation failed, sir?" the referee tentatively asked, "Shall I take care of him?"
The referee made a throat-slitting gesture while speaking.
"He’s a disciple of the Realm Emperor’s Holy Sect. You want to kill him within the city?" Nu ShiHu said coldly.
"The Holy Sect?" The referee exclaimed, quickly replying, "I wouldn’t dare, wouldn’t dare at all."
Although the Ragefire Clan is the true overlord in Ragefire City, in the vast Southern Domain, they are but a drop in the ocean.
The real behemoths are the Divine Sect and the two Great Saints.
"Heaven is high and the emperor is far away; so what of the Holy Sect?" Nu ShiHu’s gaze turned frosty as he spoke.
"It’s true that they can’t be killed within Ragefire City, but the Misty Forest is full of peril. If they die in there, no one can be blamed."
"What are you suggesting, sir?" the referee asked.
"Don’t ask what you shouldn’t," Nu ShiHu said indifferently.
...
Having left Qunying Building, Xu Zimei didn’t bother with the dueling arena again. He knew the Ragefire Clan wouldn’t renege on the deal regarding the Fusion Stones.
After all, the arena had a history of several thousand years. If it didn’t have even this bit of integrity, who would ever go there again?
Upon returning to the inn, Liu Rufeng and the others had already been waiting for a while on the ground floor.
The sky had ushered in dusk; the setting sun’s afterglow stretched across the horizon, and the leaves began to fall slowly from the trees with the autumn breeze.
When Xu Zimei returned, the group looked at him as if they were gazing upon a Heavenly Being.
"Junior Brother Lin, the more I see, the less I understand about you," Liu Yiyi said.
"Well, we weren’t close to begin with," Xu Zimei chuckled in response.
If not for this trip to seek out the Blood Lizard, it’s likely they would never have met in their lifetimes.
"That’s true," Yin Rong nodded in agreement from the side.
"But, that being said, with Junior Brother Lin by our side, we’ll be much safer in the Misty Forest."
"What about the arena? They’re not planning to weasel out of it, are they?" Fang Xiang asked.
"That, they won’t. I expect they will deliver tomorrow," Xu Zimei replied.
"That’s good then. We’ve ordered some fine wine and dishes to properly reward you, Junior Brother."
Everyone sat down at the dining table on the ground floor, chatting and laughing merrily, clearly in a good mood.
The previous gloom brought on by the deaths of Mu Zhoubai and Huangfu Xianyue had been slightly dispelled.
After all, they had solved some pressing issues. As long as they returned safely from the Misty Forest, the Sect Gate would surely nurture them wholeheartedly.
The dueling arena wasted no time. By evening, they sent someone directly to the inn to deliver a Storage Ring to Xu Zimei.
Inside the Storage Ring were a full ten million Fusion Stones, which probably represented several years of the arena’s income.
Xu Zimei took out a few Fusion Stones and examined them.
They were transparent, with a very special power within.
Humans couldn’t directly use Fusion Stones, apart from for fusing with the Blood Lizard. Those Fusion Stones were also food for the strange spirits in the Misty Forest.
...
After a silent night, as daylight gradually brightened, everyone prepared to leave Ragefire City.
Before leaving, Xu Zimei planned to buy some maps.
The scariest part about the Misty Forest was the difficulty in distinguishing directions; the mist was so unique that it couldn’t be dispersed, and it thickened the deeper one ventured.
However, on the outskirts of the forest, the mist was a bit thinner.
Over thousands of years, the citizens of Ragefire City had finally drawn up some useful maps.
The Misty Forest had four entrances, each with a different map.
Xu Zimei thought for a moment and decided to buy all four maps.
After all the preparations were done, everyone departed from Ragefire City.
Misty Forest lay to the southeast of Ragefire City, with a certain distance between them.
The group hastened on their way, and by the afternoon, the sky had gradually become overcast.
Autumn was a season of frequent rain, carrying a crisp coldness in the chilling wind.
"Looks like a change in the weather," Fang Xiang looked up at the gloomy sky and said.
"Is it really appropriate to go to Misty Forest in this weather? Should we wait a bit longer," Liu Yiyi asked.
As they were speaking, some light rain had already started falling.
The cool autumn breeze chilled not just the air but the people as well.
The weather changed rapidly, and the raindrops began to fall faster and denser.
"Let’s deal with the trouble at hand first," Xu Zimei said with a smile.
"What trouble?" Liu Yiyi asked curiously.
Just as her words fell, they saw three figures approaching on the road ahead.
The three people wore black robes and bamboo hats, one carried a long zither, one had a White Flute hanging at his waist, and another held a set of bells.
They seemed to merge with the desolate landscape, every step emanating an intense oppressive force as if they were harbingers of death.
"It seems someone doesn’t want us to leave so easily," Liu Rufeng said, holding his sword lightly.
"This Ragefire Clan really does harbor petty individuals," Yin Rong said indignantly.
The three figures arrived, silent as death.
Their bamboo hats concealed their faces, making it impossible to discern any expression.
Suddenly, one of them started to shake the bells in hand, sending visible waves of sound quickly rippling out.
Beyond the shrill ringing in their ears, there were also sounds of a woman’s scream.
One figure crouched on one knee, left leg resting on the right, placing the long zither on their leg.
The moment the strings of the zither vibrated, the earth shook and torrential rain poured, making the whole world seem twisted before their eyes.
Another figure, clad in a black robe, stood amidst the cold winds and raging rain, lips parting slightly to play a somber tune on the flute.
The sound of the flute was like thunderclaps, forming a mist that enveloped Xu Zimei and the others, while their assailants’ figures slowly faded into nothingness.
"What is this?" Yin Rong said gravely.
"A soul attack," Liu Rufeng said.
"Everyone, back to back, close together. Soul attacks are the most dangerous yet the simplest, but we don’t know their method of attack yet."
"Junior Brother Lin, come quickly," Liu Yiyi called out, seeing Xu Zimei standing still with indifference.
"It’s fine, just stick together. I can take care of myself," Xu Zimei replied.
No sooner had he spoken when within the fog, a monster appeared.
The creature was dozens of meters tall, its lower body clad only in light grey shorts, and the upper body completely bare.
Red markings adorned its body, and its crimson hair stood tall and high.
With a roar from the beast, its foot came crashing down towards the group.
"Tianhao Sword Qi," Liu Rufeng uttered sharply, swinging his sword at the monster’s foot.
With a loud "boom", the sword qi passed right through the creature’s body and disappeared into the mist.
But the creature’s foot kicked Liu Rufeng away, impacting him solidly.
Liu Rufeng spat out blood and collapsed unconscious on the spot.
The mist surged once more, ominously swallowing up Liu Rufeng’s body.
"Senior Brother Liu," Yin Rong shouted, then said, "Junior Brother Lin, save Senior Brother Liu quickly."
"I might consider saving him after you all die," Xu Zimei said with a laugh.
