Archfiend

Xu Yangyi jumped up several meters, yet as he neared, both of his arms neatly unfolded like the shining wings of a white crane. He then thrust downwards and surprisingly rose several more meters!

“Skraw!” A crane’s screech echoed, resonating throughout the entire area!

Crack! In the next second, his hand suddenly caught on to the serpent’s shimmering jet-black scale. After he grabbed it, a rain of fishy, repulsive blood sprayed out high into the air!

Unexpectedly, the seemingly steel-like scale had been torn apart bare-handed! A shower of rancid blood accompanied the shredded scale, scattering down from the sky!

“Hiiiissssss!!!” A long heaven-shaking cry produced a formless sound wave that caused the sand on the ground to fly! The blast was like the blowing of a small sandstorm!

Even now, the veins on both of Xu Yangyi’s hands were completely exposed, and his fingers were like the claws of a beast! As long as one was met with this claw, their flesh would be immediately torn asunder! He was like a miniature drilling machine, running a path through the tremendous serpent’s body!

“Go up twenty meters, that’s where the weak point is.” Mao Ba’er’s voice continued to relay guidance in his ear, “Its qi is changing there! That’s also where its heart is!” [1]

Xu Yangyi turned a deaf ear. At this moment, he was like a tiger running along the serpent’s back—one claw, one leg—completely ripping up wound after wound of significant damage. He followed these injuries and charge outside of these twenty meters with all the speed he could muster!

Whoosh! At this time, a snow-white bone spur suddenly emerged out of the serpent’s back, bringing forth blood that colored the sky and skewered his arm! Xu Yangyi’s opponent was also fighting with every ounce of its being!

Obviously, the remaining consciousness that the demon possessed told it that this human undoubtedly held the strength to break through its defenses. But the serpent’s gargantuan body and the tremendous power brought with it wasn’t of the slightest use right now. Xu Yangyi was like a hornet, ruthlessly drilling great holes in its vitals!

Life or death would be decided in these twenty meters! Xu Yangyi wanted to rush forth and slay his foe. No matter the consequence, the serpent had to expel Xu Yangyi outside these twenty meters of flesh, as well!

Thump… Thump thump thump thump thump! Countless echos of punctured flesh were accompanied by the demon’s furious roar that resonated throughout the world. In these twenty meters, an incalculable number of bone spurs, large and small, sprouted from the serpent’s punctured flesh, causing it to turn into a gigantic hedgehog! These twenty meters had become a path of blood-dyed bramble!

This gauntlet of thorns was the demon’s bones that had thrust out of its body. Life and death would be spelled in these twenty meters!

Crack! Xu Yangyi watched as the serpent’s back became covered in bony ridges and spurs in an instant. His opponent was also considerably decisive, even if it had lost its mind and a major unknown condition had occurred with its body. However… possibly because it was a demon that had lived properly to a grand old age in a complex world of human-demon coexistence, it was by no means a novice.

Xu Yangyi forcefully twisted off the bone spur in his arm, not retreating but instead advancing. His speed rose another level again! He was like a train racing towards the serpent’s head!

Becoming sharper and denser, the bone spurs seemed alive, cutting his body like blades as he took steps forward. With an ever-growing number of spurs entering his flesh, thighs, and arms, he obstructed his head with both of his hands and murmured, “Solution Ninety…”

“Pretty boy! Are you insane?!” Before Xu Yangyi’s voice even fell, a surprised voice was heard from the transceiver. “The Hundred Solutions is the only divine ability that a Heavens Law student who hasn’t graduated yet can learn! The lower the number, the greater the power! If I haven’t remembered incorrectly, Solution Ninety is already the limit of what a student that hasn’t graduated can learn! You’re going to use too much power! The burden on your body will be too great!”

“You’ll lose your life!”

Xu Yangyi ignored the voice coming from the transceiver. Right now, veins all over his body seemed to come alive! Twisting, they interweaved on his skin into a strange design!

A qilin! [2]

A qilin birthed by the sacrifice of his flesh! It was simply like a tattoo!

The second the design was formed, he erupted with a burst of scarlet radiance like a roaming fireball, shattering the bony spurs and ridges up ahead with a bang!

Crack! Crack! Crack! In the air, blood-dyed bone spurs rained down like a floral shower. Beneath moonlight, the flaming ball of fire swiftly charged towards the top of the tremendous serpent's head in exuberance. If anyone saw this sight, it was guaranteed that they wouldn’t be able to yell!

“Hiss!” A piercing hiss cried out. Life or death in a twinkling instant. The realms of both sides weren’t high and their hidden aces weren’t many. The tremendous serpent’s giant eyes flashed; the shadow of death was swiftly approaching it. Followed by a furious roar, the demon’s entire body began to roll around like a wheel!

Rumble rumble rumble… The ground faintly trembled as if a fairly strong earthquake was happening! After a mere three seconds, the demon stopped, however. All its scales clanked as they trembled. 

It was a frightening quake, a shuddering like the god of death was standing atop its head. A hand, a human hand, a powerful hand, one that was smothered in blood, was already pressing down exactly on its Achilles’ heel. 

Under moonlight, Xu Yangyi was covered in bone spurs, having truly become a hedgehog. His chest slightly heaved up and down, and he was covered in fresh blood from head to toe. He towered over the serpent-demon’s vitals. 

The wretched taste of blood was strong… He licked his lips and let some of the scorching liquid incense his placid arteries, allowing the fishy taste to flow down his throat.

Its blood… This was the demon’s flavor…This was his final resort as he lifted his hand ahead.

“Solution Ninety-One… Severing Dragon Typhoon!”

Swish! Between heaven and earth, a streak of dull-blue light flickered, appearing like a flash of eminence at midnight and a thunderclap in the sky. At this moment, be it moonlight or starlight, both simultaneously lost color. Everyone’s gazes were gathered on the flashing and waning of the scintillating rays above. [3]

An instant of magnificence. [4]

Only a momentary resplendence, so illusory that it made one feel it wasn’t real.

Xu Yangyi half-crouched on the ground, his left hand faintly trembling. In that sudden moment, the veins on his left hand abruptly burst open, and an arrow of blood fiercely jetted out.

Boom! Behind him, a thundering sound echoed and dust scattered into the air. With a body as thick as the size of a room, and a length of over a dozen meters, half of the tremendous serpent’s bisected body fell down behind him, accompanied by a heaven-rumbling explosion of dust.

Xu Yangyi’s bodily strength ebbed away like a tidal wave. Every single one of his bones were clamoring in a pain overload. At this time, however, a sharp voice was suddenly heard from the transceiver. 

“Pretty boy! Watch out!”

In the place where the serpent had been bisected, a dazzlingly brilliant red light spilled forth! The ray was like a sun rising amidst the darkness!

CRASH! All around, cracking and rumbling could be heard, and Xu Yangyi roared terribly!

It was the sound of the Big Dipper Heaventail Formation breaking apart! This streak of devilish red light had directly sundered the array with a bang! Moreover, it was coming straight for him!

It was quite slender… at least in comparison to the corpse of the great serpent. The ray was only around the thickness of an arm, and it was zoned straight in on Xu Yangyi’s heart! Nonetheless… the demon slayer was glued in place!

The ray of red light was such that it couldn’t be said to be red light. His gaze had only met it for a brief instant, but all his strength and qi had disappeared in a flash!

“Mao Ba’er!” 

He bellowed furiously, and a voice immediately screeched out from the transceiver. “Understood!”

At the moment the Big Dipper Heaventail Formation had gradually shattered, the corpse of the tremendous serpent had vanished in the blink of an eye!

“Fuck me…” Xu Yangyi fiercely grinded his teeth. The hell you understand!

He wanted Mao Ba’er to think up of a solution, yet the first thing the other did was stow away the spoils of war! He hadn’t even finished speaking, though, because an even stranger scene then occurred!

Swooosh… Little by little, a gently swaying golden lotus sprouted from the ground. It was sparkling and translucent, pure and limpid. Cloudy mists wound around the flower, making it appear as if it existed in another world, another dimension.

Splendid and beautiful, it was like a hidden orchid in an empty valley, in full bloom beneath moonlight. In its wake, there was a second flower… then a third … and a fourth… until there were countless flowers!

Xu Yangyi was instantly surrounded by fields of golden lotuses! He was like a saint walking among golden lotuses!

“Earth… Earthburst Golden Lotus?!” Mao Ba’er yelled. If he’d just screeched a moment ago, then his present yelling could be considered to have torn his heart out and cracked his lungs wide. “Pretty boy! Get out! Get out now! If those hit you dead center, you’re fucking screwed!” [5]

The red light shined upon Xu Yangyi’s bitterly smiling face.

Get out? At this moment, he seemed to be locked in place. Even if he wanted to move, he couldn’t.

Bang! In the next second, he felt as if a heavy fist had slammed into his stomach! His surroundings turned dark in front of him, and he was simply unable to control himself from wildly spraying out a mouthful of blood. He flew back four or five meters away, struck aside like a tattered sack. His body landed heavily on the ground once again!

Xu Yangyi didn’t regain consciousness until he saw the moon for a few seconds. He then jumped up onto his feet; his first action was to touch his heart. He set his hand there, but only felt solid muscle. Surprisingly, there wasn’t a trace of a scar!

“This is…” He lowered his head to look, and his gaze suddenly tensed. There was a fist-sized black lotus on his chest. It was unknown when, but it had already branded itself onto his chest.

“Are… Are you alright?” Mao Ba’er’s suspicious, uncertain voice rang out in his earpiece.

Xu Yangyi shut his eyes and felt his entire body, shaking his head in confirmation. No one said anything. A legion of lingering suspicions laid within his and Mao Ba’er’s hearts.

That thing, that ray of light… was more frightening than any creature explained in a book to them! A human’s first reaction upon running into danger was to escape, yet that streak of light had simply “rejected” his “intent” of evading!

Speak of light and there will be light. This was more like a kind of “inherent” law of the world, like Newton’s Law of Universal Gravitation. The Earth had its own intrinsic gravitational pull, and this ray of light had its own intrinsic law that made dodging impossible.

But while he’d been struck by this mysterious force, Xu Yangyi wasn’t injured at all! Not only was the black lotus on his chest not devilish, it revealed its own kind of mysterious charm instead, similar to an ornate tattoo.

Xu Yangyi didn’t lower his guard one bit. The lotus’s appearance was too strange and there wasn’t any reasoning to justify it.

Crunch… All of a sudden, a soft sound entered his ears. As if he’d awakened from a dream, he immediately looked over. As far as his vision stretched, he was momentarily stunned again. Just now, the lawn and tilestone path were devoid of any living things, but now… it had become filled with lotuses!

Wilted lotuses, real, not fake. They definitely couldn’t have withered away moments ago. Instead, they were the kind that had already dried away in the wind. With a touch, they transformed into dried-up yellow catkins.

But the sound just now was from a person stepping on the lotus-covered ground.

Xu Yangyi’s vision flashed, and he recalled that not only had the streak of light branded a strange pattern on his chest just now… it had also broken through the Big Dipper Heaventail Formation!

The serpent’s corpse had been swiftly collected by Mao Ba’er as a spoil of war. They didn’t see it, but…

What about the current desolation that filled their eyes, similar to the gigantic craters on the moon’s surface? And as for the sudden advent of the field covered in withered lotuses?

The mood was silent, a stillness like that of death.

Clunk… It wasn’t known whose rifle fell on the ground since no one cared, but Xu Yangyi saw clearly. A second-year soldier with two yellow bars on his shoulder had dropped it. Presently, the soldier was looking over the field incredulously and said in a daze, “My… god…”

Afterwards, there wasn’t another whisper.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to say something, but rather the current scene was simply so shocking that no one had words for it.

1. This doesn’t actually say weak point.The exact wording is 七寸, meaning seven inches. I was kinda confused at first, but this word is used to describe the weak points of snakes (the position of their hearts and where to hit) and later on, a more general term for just the weak point of any creature. I thought you guys would find it interesting.

2. Qilin - this is a chinese unicorn pretty much. Search Qilin for better representation.

3. “Flash of eminence”. As it is, this word refers to a flower known as “The Queen of the Night” and “The Dutchman’s Pipe”. However, in Chinese, it is used to refer to a person who makes sudden unexpected gains in a momentary period of time, which is then often chalked up to luck.

4. 刹那芳华 - an instant of youth more like it. Used often to refer to the fleeting beauty of women as they were young.

5. Earthburst Golden Lotus is actually a real flower. Scientific name is “Ensete Lasiocarpum”.