Ximen Lan and Ximen Feng were both well aware of Ximen Duoyun's intentions.
The artifacts and treasures the three of them carried far surpassed those of the Three Immortals. If they joined forces and went all out, there was a high probability they could win.
However, it would certainly be a pyrrhic victory.
The killer would surely self-destruct before dying. At least one of the three would perish, and the remaining two would be left either dead or severely wounded.
How could Ximen Duoyun be willing to sacrifice himself? He was undoubtedly the one shouting the loudest slogans, pretending to be reckless, while in reality, he was holding back most of his strength. The moment danger struck, he would turn and flee, leaving his companions to perish along with the enemy.
Inciting others to risk their lives while he reaped the benefits afterward—this kind of petty trickery was Ximen Duoyun's specialty.
But as the saying goes, "all crows under heaven are black." They were all birds of a feather, kindred spirits found in the same stagnant pool. If Ximen Duoyun could think of it, how could Ximen Feng and Ximen Lan not?
Neither of them intended to give their all. Instead, they decided to join forces to screw over Ximen Duoyun. If things truly went south, they would simply flee and tell the Patriarch they had done their best. As long as they maintained appearances, it would suffice.
The three of them each harbored their own ulterior motives, yet their faces were all masks of shared righteous indignation.
Ximen Duoyun put on an act of being ready to die for the cause, his chin held high. "Let's go together! Launch our ultimate combined strike immediately and take him down in one move!"
The other two responded in unison, "Understood!"
Three figures surged forward simultaneously. Magical radiance erupted from their palms, converging and merging into a single pillar of light that blasted toward Yue Shi with overwhelming force.
The momentum was massive. The wild grass on the wasteland was flattened by the aftershocks of the spell, and gravel was swept into the air, pulverized into countless tiny fragments within the light of the magic.
"That's it?"
Yue Shi didn't even bother to dodge. His assessment was that this was barely worth a comment. They were inferior to the three funeral-themed experts; they had the aura but lacked the substance.
He lightly raised a finger. A streak of evil light flickered at his fingertip and shot out, colliding with the pillar of light and silently tearing through the trio's combined spell.
The pillar of light shattered into countless tiny specks of radiance, dissipating into the air. The evil light continued forward, unabated, toward the three of them.
Ximen Duoyun's pupils quaked. His body reacted faster than his mind as he turned and bolted. He didn't even look back to see the result, because he knew very well that someone who could so easily break their combined attack was not someone he could handle.
The slogans he had shouted earlier were only meant for those two fools, Ximen Feng and Ximen Lan.
He had been prepared to flee at any moment, so he ran incredibly fast—so fast that he actually believed he might escape.
Swoosh! Swoosh!
Two figures blurred past him, running even faster than he was.
Ximen Duoyun focused his gaze and saw that it was Ximen Feng and Ximen Lan!
Their speed was more than a notch above his own, and they left him behind in the blink of an eye.
"Those two bastards!" Ximen Duoyun cursed loudly.
He understood instantly. Those two were just like him—they hadn't put in any real effort at all.
They had shouted louder than him and were now running faster than him. Each one was craftier than the last.
If we had just worked together, how could we have been so easily defeated?
How can everyone else be just as bad as me!
Ximen Duoyun's eyes turned bloodshot with hatred.
He seemed completely oblivious to the fact that when he usually used such underhanded tactics on others, it was because their status was lower than his. Even if they saw through his tricks, they didn't dare speak up and were forced to follow through.
Over time, Ximen Duoyun had come to believe he was exceptionally brilliant and that everyone else was a fool.
But Ximen Feng and Ximen Lan were his equals in status. How could they not see through his petty schemes?
Yue Shi watched their retreating backs, a cruel and wicked smile playing on his lips.
He raised his hand, and an even denser surge of evil light poured from his palm, shooting toward the person running the slowest.
The slowest was naturally Ximen Duoyun, because his start had been a beat late, and he had wasted a fraction of a second cursing while he ran.
That tiny fraction of time had created a significant gap.
Ximen Duoyun felt a bone-chilling aura behind him. He looked back to see the evil light already inches away.
"Dammit!"
He hurriedly threw up his defenses while pushing his internal power to the limit to accelerate. Multiple shields unfolded in front of him, layer upon layer, wrapping him like a glowing egg.
The evil light slammed into the shields, tearing through them with ease and sinking directly into his back.
Ximen Duoyun felt as if something had exploded inside him. A foreign substance that didn't belong to him spread through his blood. His bones began to melt, his muscles deformed, and something seemed to be squirming beneath his skin.
Looking down, he saw his fingers twisting. Scales grew across his skin, and an eye opened in the center of his palm.
"No... no!"
Ximen Duoyun shrieked. He knew he had been contaminated and was transforming from a living human into some kind of unspeakable thing.
After a brief moment of terror, boundless rage surged from the depths of his heart.
At this moment, the one he hated most wasn't Yue Shi, but the two companions who had already run far ahead.
If they hadn't been slacking off, how could the combined strike have been broken so quickly?
If they hadn't run faster than him, how could he have ended up like this!
The more Ximen Duoyun thought about it, the more his hatred grew as he stared at the two distant silhouettes.
"You two... I'll make sure you die with me!"
Using his last shred of clear reason, he gathered all his remaining power and blasted it toward the backs of his two companions.
Ximen Feng and Ximen Lan were fleeing for their lives. They thought Yue Shi was the only threat and that Ximen Duoyun was already finished and no longer a concern—perhaps he could even stall for a little more time.
Ximen Feng felt an attack coming from behind. The aura was all too familiar; it was Ximen Duoyun's power, but it was more violent and chaotic than usual.
He looked back, his face turning pale with shock.
"Duoyun, you've lost your mind!"
He tried to dodge, but it was too late.
The spell hit him square in the back, shattering his defenses.
His momentum stalled, and he crashed to the ground, rolling several times.
Though he wasn't severely injured, in a life-or-death escape like this, even a moment's delay was fatal.
Ximen Lan was also hit, her escape interrupted.
"Fighting amongst yourselves? How amusing."
In an instant, Yue Shi was before them, and the evil light enveloped the pair.
The two immediately began to aberrate, writhing on the ground as their bodies melted and deformed. Their legs fused together, their arms turned into meaty tentacles, and black foam bubbled from their mouths.
"Ximen Duoyun... I hate you..."
Gurgling sounds came from Ximen Lan's throat. She could no longer speak clearly, but she continued to curse Ximen Duoyun frantically.
Her eyes protruded from their sockets, their surfaces covered in black veins as her body bloated and warped.
Ximen Duoyun, seeing his two companions also contaminated and turned into hideous monsters, finally wore a look of blissful satisfaction.
"Hahaha... we die together... none of us... get away..."
The three of them quickly lost all reason, their flesh mutating from human forms into masses of tumors and mycelium—profane creatures.
The three aberrations writhed and roared on the wasteland, attacking each other.
Even as they had transformed into unspeakable monsters, they continued to hate one another.
Rate on N.U.
