飘零影音

Chapter 65 - Arc 6: Pinglan County Wang Family | Chapter 65: Three Down

Translator: Lynn

Suddenly, a rush of wind filled the air, accompanied by a pale blue light descending rapidly. It struck the flying sword, causing it to veer off course with a “ping” sound. However, it was Xu Ziqing’s shoulder that was pierced by the sword, tearing his clothes and exposing his fair skin, which was now stained with blood.

Startled, Ruan Yuanliang looked up and saw a magnificent eagle with half-gold and half-black feathers hovering above. It opened its beak and released a light green ball of air, hurtling toward Ruan Yuanliang.

Reacting swiftly, Ruan Yuanliang dodged, and the air ball struck the ground, creating a deep fist-sized pit.

“What an extraordinary air mass!” Ruan Yuanliang thought to himself. The wind force within the air mass had been compressed, forming a small supernatural power.

Xu Ziqing hadn’t intended to involve Chonghua in the conflict, but due to their blood contract, they were intrinsically connected. Therefore, Chonghua couldn’t help but notice Xu Ziqing’s dire situation and disregarded its own safety, swooping down to save Xu Ziqing’s life.

Enraged, Ruan Yuanliang shouted, “Die, you beast!”

He raised his hand and released his flying sword, which transformed into a golden light soaring toward the sky. Ruan Yuanliang recognized Chonghua as Xu Ziqing’s beast companion, and he believed that getting rid of it would be a significant obstacle eliminated. However, upon closer inspection, he noticed that while the eagle appeared majestic, its demonic aura was dispersed, indicating that its demon core was incomplete. It didn’t even qualify as a first-ranked monster, so what threat could it pose, even with its innate supernatural powers? It was nothing more than a paper tiger.

The flying sword moved at incredible speed, resembling a golden star as it pursued the eagle. Chonghua flapped its wings desperately, narrowly evading each strike. However, with each near miss, a black feather would be plucked from its young, immature wings, causing immense pain.

Ruan Yuanliang desired a swift confrontation. He aimed to take Xu Ziqing’s life and showed no mercy towards his loyal beast companion. Reciting an incantation, he raised two fingers and tapped the flying sword, remotely controlling its movements. The flying sword accelerated, emanating a brilliant light as it transformed into strips of golden sword energy, surrounding Chonghua from all directions like a cage.

Caught in a dilemma, Chonghua couldn’t bring itself to abandon Xu Ziqing. It didn’t dare to fly too far away, yet it had limited options. The wind ball it had previously expelled had depleted its energy, leaving it unable to launch any further attacks.

The situation grew increasingly dire as Chonghua was gradually ensnared by the golden sword net. Just as it seemed that capture was imminent, a golden light streaked past and struck its right wing. Chonghua let out a pained howl, its body swaying as if it might plummet from the sky.

In the midst of chaos, Xu Ziqing could only perceive a rising bloodlust emanating from his dantian, flooding his mind and screaming incessantly.

“Kill, kill, kill!”

The word “kill” reverberated relentlessly within his thoughts, and he felt an insatiable hunger associated with the act of killing.

A tremendously appetizing scent wafted into his nostrils, and he experienced an intense sweetness and savoriness. However, it wasn’t enough; he yearned to consume more.

“Howl!” Suddenly, a deep, agonized cry resounded, piercing through the air and striking his heart with a heavy blow.

What was that sound? That pain… Who was it?

Who… it felt so familiar and intimate…

A gentle warmth brushed against his face, and at that moment, he recognized it.

It was Chonghua!

Gradually, a glimmer of clarity pierced through his murderous intent.

Xu Ziqing realized that something was amiss.

These were not his own thoughts, nor his desires. He didn’t possess such an overwhelming appetite for destruction.

So why was this happening?

As his mind cleared, his spiritual awareness returned, accompanied by a surge of excruciating pain.

With great effort, Xu Ziqing slowly opened his eyes. Initially in a daze, he now regained his clarity.

He could smell it now, the very essence he had craved before: blood.

Looking down, he noticed a slender demonic vine protruding from his palm, greedily absorbing the flesh of the giant ape before him. The Ghost Yinyang sisters were engaged in combat with Nian Hongzhi and Wang Jun, seemingly assisting him.

At that moment, everything fell into place, and Xu Ziqing lifted his head abruptly.

In the sky above, a golden radiance relentlessly pursued Chonghua, whose wing was injured, causing blood to trickle down. This sight snapped Xu Ziqing out of his stupor.

Realizing that Chonghua couldn’t endure much longer, Xu Ziqing reluctantly composed himself and raised his finger, commanding, “Go!”

A streak of blue light, accompanied by a piercing wind sound, shot into the sky and collided heavily with the golden flying sword.

The flying sword missed its mark. Witnessing Xu Ziqing’s awakening, Chonghua stumbled towards the depths of the dense forest, dragging its heavily wounded body. It had become a burden now, desperately needing to tend to its own injuries.

Observing Chonghua’s departure, Xu Ziqing felt a slight sense of relief.

However, at that moment, as he glanced at Ruan Yuanliang, his heart stirred once more.

Anger surged back into his mind, replacing the prior clarity. The Vajra Giant Ape’s body was now reduced to a mere skeleton, rapidly collapsing. Yet, the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine, having absorbed copious amounts of blood, glowed with a ruby-red hue.

The Bloodthirsty Demon Vine slowly circled around Xu Ziqing, swinging twice in front of him.

With Chonghua gone, Ruan Yuanliang manipulated the flying sword once more, launching it toward Xu Ziqing.

Suddenly, the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine sprang up, striking the flying sword with a resounding “slap”!

In an instant, a layer of red light enveloped the sword, causing it to plummet to the ground, and its aura dimmed.

Evidently, the flying sword had been contaminated by the blood energy, resulting in a significant loss of its spiritual power.

Ruan Yuanliang was shocked, and when he looked at Xu Ziqing again, fear gripped him even tighter.

It turned out that at that moment, Xu Ziqing had already transformed his countenance. An incredibly peculiar aura surrounded him as the dense smell of blood condensed into a mist, enveloping his figure in the blue shirt. It was impossible to discern any traces of the vitality typically associated with monks.

If the previous Xu Ziqing exuded gentleness and elegance, akin to a refreshing spring breeze, then the current Xu Ziqing emitted an intense aura of murderous intent. His expression was vacant, resembling that of a puppet.

It was as though he had become two different individuals!

The present Xu Ziqing instilled a deep terror within Ruan Yuanliang.

Raising his hand, Ruan Yuanliang intended to retrieve another magical item from his storage bag to instill some sense of security.

However, before he could retrieve it, a white figure flickered before his eyes, followed by a chilling sensation in his chest and excruciating pain.

Lowering his gaze, Ruan Yuanliang discovered that he had been impaled, similar to how Xu Ziqing was attacked from behind earlier. Only now, he was facing his assailant head-on.

The blood-red vines had penetrated his body, firmly ensnaring him while… sucking him dry.

In that instant, the strength in his entire body seemed to be rapidly drained away. Ruan Yuanliang keenly felt the vitality within him being swiftly stripped away along the vines that pierced his body.

His spiritual power gradually dissipated… and his physical strength waned. He could distinctly sense it all, yet he was unable to move an inch, unable to even lift a finger.

Then, darkness engulfed his world.

Meanwhile, Nian Hongzhi and Wang Jun were engaged in combat against the Gui Yin-Yang sisters. Although the fight was intense, neither side fought with the intent to kill. They exchanged blows, but it was not a fight to the death.

Just as Nian Hongzhi grew somewhat impatient and prepared to deliver a decisive strike, an eerie sensation washed over him. Instantly, he turned around, his eyes widening in disbelief.

Curiosity piqued, Guiyang, who stood across from him, also turned to look.

Witnessing the scene, both of them involuntarily halted their movements.

I witnessed a gory vine connecting Xu Ziqing’s palm to Ruan Yuanliang’s chest, with blood flowing through it insatiably.

As the vines greedily sucked blood, Xu Ziqing appeared to have lost consciousness.

Meanwhile, Ruan Yuanliang rapidly withered, as if all his essence and blood had been drained, leaving behind a skeletal figure.

In front of everyone’s eyes, the blood-colored vine was pulled out with a “boo” sound. The leaf buds on its tip oozed blood droplets, which trickled down the vine slowly.

Nian Hongzhi was overcome with a chilling sensation, never expecting that Xu Ziqing’s body would be parasitized by this entity!

Was Xu Ziqing controlling the vine? No… it seemed more like the vine was controlling Xu Ziqing!

At that moment, as Nian Hongzhi looked at Xu Ziqing again, a sense of danger surged through his mind. It was as if he was facing a calamity. How could he still contemplate ending Xu Ziqing’s life? Escaping was the only viable option!

So Nian Hongzhi immediately shouted, “Second brother, let’s go!” With those words, he hurled the long knife from his hand.

Wang Jun also witnessed the horrifying scene and naturally created an opening. He tossed out his flying sword, which met Nian Hongzhi’s long knife, transforming into a phantom dragon and soaring upward.

Nian Hongzhi’s agility was remarkable, and he too leaped high.

Yet, the bloody vine moved even faster!

I observed the crimson blur sway before my eyes, and the two were about to land on the other side, but the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine had already surged ahead of them.

In a hurry, Nian Hongzhi dared not touch it with his bare skin, so he drew out another Wujin dagger and slashed at the vine!

“Clang!”

The Bloodthirsty Demon Vine and the Wujin dagger clashed, emitting the sound of metal meeting metal. However, the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine remained unscathed. On the contrary, a red light emanated from the Wujin dagger, gradually dimming as the flying sword had done before.

Unperturbed by the dagger’s destruction, Nian Hongzhi relied on his own strength and the skills acquired from numerous missions to confront the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine.

As Nian Hongzhi wrestled with the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine, Wang Jun sought to escape. The few of them had become sworn brothers and sisters in their shared desire to flee from the Ziguang Sect’s Sect Master. Although they had formed a bond over the course of a year, their bond was not worth their lives. However, now that his flying sword and Nian Hongzhi’s long sword had transformed into a flood dragon, Wang Jun could only withstand the opposition and brave the wind to make his escape.

Gritting his teeth, Wang Jun no longer wished to delay. He made the decision to abandon the Jiaolong.

As the wind whirled around him, he was on the verge of dissolving into the gusts.

However, what unfolded was even more unimaginable—the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine underwent a sudden change.

Just as Wang Jun was about to escape, a leaf bud on the blood-colored vine split open. From it, a slender white vine burst forth, rapidly elongating. Astonishingly, it birthed another vine that branched out!

The vine shot up with incredible speed, closing in on Wang Jun in the blink of an eye, piercing his neck!

Wang Jun could only hear the gurgling sound of his blood flowing. He witnessed the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine sucking his own life force, while the snow-white vines rapidly transitioned from light red to blood red. Coldness encompassed his entire body, and his eyes dimmed swiftly.

Wang Jun perished, leaving Nian Hongzhi as the sole combatant against the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine.

After draining Wang Jun, the newly grown vines made a sharp turn, flanking Nian Hongzhi from another direction.

Nian Hongzhi couldn’t free himself from their grip; he could only watch helplessly as the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine closed in, ultimately ensnaring him tightly!

As his consciousness faded, Nian Hongzhi felt his fingers release the dagger, and the blood-red vines that had seemed to taunt him earlier mercilessly pierced into his body…

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