The weapon refiner is not doing her job properly

Chapter 243 The Slaughterhouse (21)

But bamboo shoots can do it.

Even if it means resorting to any means, Su Ninglong will satisfy it.

The more powerful the natal magic weapon, the higher the combat power of the weapon refiner.

Her slightly arrogant remarks stunned her teammates. Wasn't she supposed to be their trump card?

Su Ninglong's profile still retained a feminine softness, but when the gaze moved upwards, her usually slightly indifferent eyes were now filled with pure fervor, shining brightly.

Tong Zi instinctively wanted to stop him, but Principal Yan's words suddenly echoed in her mind: the potential of young people is limitless.

Just like Yun Fei and his group more than ten years ago, didn't they also rise rapidly among spiritual practitioners?
However, as times have changed and more than a decade has passed, although their strength has not declined, they have long lost their former vigor and no longer charge forward recklessly as before.

They were not old yet, but they were no longer obsessed with fame and victory.

In the end, all the words of advice boiled down to one sentence: "Be careful, we'll cover you."

"We'll work together, and you're not allowed to cry if we lose." Zhao Piku reached out and patted Su Ninglong's tightly tied bun on her head, his tone teasing yet revealing his approval.

"Alright." Su Ninglong turned around, drawing her Taixu Sword. In that instant, the secret spirit sensitively sensed the killing intent within it—subtle, covetous, and greedy…

Like all the secret spirits, the body of the Filthy Feast Spirit suddenly split into several black shadows, which rushed straight towards the murderous aura.

How dare a mere human artifact provoke us? They have no sense of mortality.

In Su Ninglong's view, the attack initiated by the Mystic Spirit would inevitably trigger a counterattack.

The Mystic Spirits are devoid of emotions and desires; the Filthy Feast Spirit may simply have felt offended, or acted on instinct to eliminate the threat. The true reason remains unknown, and no one cares.

None of this affected Su Ninglong's determination to kill it.

With a wave of her hand, flames that distorted space burst forth and scattered, colliding violently with the dark figure.

The firelight illuminated the entire dark space, also revealing the silhouettes of monsters that were constantly crawling out of the cracks in the Mystic Realm.

Su Ninglong rapidly approached and engaged Hui Yanling in direct combat.

The more we fought, the more excited we became!
The Filthy Spirit is very strong, extremely strong.

It was so powerful that every time the Taixu Sword came into contact with her body, her soul trembled.

No matter how strong it is, it is destined to become food for the bamboo shoots.

If we miss this opportunity, who knows how long we'll have to wait before we can get Qi Shen to step in and seal off the area.

Their clashes were almost silent, but wave after wave of energy surges spread rampantly, forming an irresistible turbulence that even affected and tore apart the monsters that had just emerged from the Mystic Realm.

The Tai Xu Sword blazed brightly, its intense light completely enveloping Su Ninglong like a dazzling sphere. Those on the ground looked up, but could no longer make out who she was.

Qian Rujin and the others witnessed this scene and fell silent for a moment. Someone was actually taking on a secret spirit single-handedly? Who was so reckless?

Perhaps, maybe... there's only that Su Ninglong.

As everyone knows, Suninglong is arrogant and ignorant.

Many people dislike her, but very few dare to challenge her to her face.

A moment later, a hunter beside him chuckled dryly, "Looks like we're going to get a bargain."

After all, the "Key to Prophecy" has never been wrong. Every prophecy has come true accurately, and victory will ultimately belong to them.

They hadn't expected Su Ninglong to actively deplete the power of the Mystic Spirit, but this situation suited them perfectly.

Someone scoffed, "What can a little girl who hasn't even reached adulthood possibly understand? She actually dares to dream of beating us. The project initiated by the Star Alliance should naturally be led by us. Our so-called competition with the Star Alliance is just an excuse. We haven't fought each other for so many years, so this is the perfect opportunity to crush them all at once."

“When she’s exhausted, that will be our chance.” Another person lowered his voice, his tone grim. “We should take the opportunity to kick her into the Secret Spirit Realm, so she can never come back.”

They gripped the gloved secret command tightly, their eyes blazing with undisguised ambition.

As long as the Star Alliance maintains control of the overall situation, profits will naturally flow in continuously.

Qian Rujin felt a chill run through her body and also felt lost.

It's shameful enough to take advantage of someone by hiding behind a child. He doesn't agree with the idea that competition should only be about winning or losing, but he can accept it because it's "shameful but useful."

But Su Ninglong is fighting the Filthy Spirit alone.

If she is exhausted, they can simply continue the attack and complete the containment; wouldn't that be enough?

They actually wanted to take the opportunity to kill her?
Why did the Star Alliance become like this? When did it start? It became utterly inhuman.

By the way, I don't even cherish my own teammates anymore.

Qian Rujin covered her forehead, feeling that her own mentality was not normal.

Initially, I was full of confidence and felt that victory was assured;
But halfway through the fight, a vague sense of crisis gradually emerged;

Now, all that remained in his heart was an inexplicable unease, as if even the seemingly inevitable outcome of a "narrow victory" was quietly deviating from its expected trajectory.

Will the person above them, who is locked in a fierce battle with the Mystic Spirit, really allow them to successfully contain it?

Does he really think that sacrificing his teammates to secure the victory for the Star Alliance is a worthwhile thing to do?
Moreover, since Su Ninglong dared to challenge Hui Yanling in front of everyone, how could she be completely unprepared and allow them to launch a sneak attack?
While most four-star Mystic Spirits can only be contained through teamwork and slow attrition, there are precedents of killing Mystic Spirits directly inside contaminated zones.

Qian Rujin didn't agree with the veteran's words, but heard the other party continue, "There are too many Mystic Spirits here. Let's establish a defensive line first and not get too close. The Star Alliance group hasn't lost any members yet. Let them wear down a bit more, preferably one or two of them. Tong Zi, or Zhao Piku, either one will do. Only by narrowing the gap like this will our victory be more 'glorious'."

Everyone nodded in agreement, unanimously approving of the plan.

Brilliance? Qian Rujin didn't recognize the word.

I'm reminded of the early years when the Star Alliance was first established.

He once swore a solemn oath: he could give up some things, but he would never stab someone in the back.

Abandonment is often out of helplessness; but betrayal is purely out of malice.

"Team Leader Qian, what are you spacing out for?" His teammate looked him over warily. "Could you have been contaminated?"

Qian Rujin snapped back to reality, met the wary gazes of the others, and shook his head: "It's alright, everyone calm yourselves down and don't let the corruption affect you." He paused, his voice lowering, "But I don't agree with the plan you just mentioned. I swore a solemn oath never to betray a Spirit Master unless they launch a sneak attack first."

The oaths of the Spirits are binding, and they have heard to some extent about the Star Alliance's code of conduct. They rarely have the opportunity to cooperate with this hunter recruited from the Star Alliance; Qian Rujin spends most of her time leading teaching teams and guiding students in and out of contaminated areas.

After the date for the competition was set, everyone was full of expectations for this collaboration.

But now, seeing his aloof attitude of not wanting to "go with the flow," I can't help but feel a little disappointed, thinking that Qian Rujin is nothing special.

They've all left the Star Alliance, yet they're still clinging to those old rules. It's pointless and only makes them seem like petty people.

Fortunately, at this time, there was a large rift between the Star Alliance and the Star Alliance, with each occupying its own territory.

If Tong Zi heard this, given her fiery temper, she would probably rush over and slap them a few times.

The Star Alliance never claims to be a good person, but it would never hope for more deaths in a situation like this.

However, right now, no one has the energy to care about these things.

The monsters in the Mystic Realm could no longer be suppressed and crawled out one after another.

……

At the temporary camp outside the slaughterhouse, Yuan Dusen of the Star Alliance, accompanied by his assistant Sun, came to visit Qi Shen, wanting to inquire about the situation inside the slaughterhouse.

They had just reached the door of Qi Shen's hut when they bumped into Yun Fei, who had also come there.

Yuan Dusen vividly remembered Yun Fei's arrogant attitude in the conference room, so he naturally didn't have a pleasant expression and asked with a dark face, "Why are you here too?"

"If you can come, why can't I?" Yun Fei chuckled. "To be honest, my relationship with Qi Shen is much closer than yours."

That mouth of hers is still incredibly infuriating after all these years; it hasn't changed at all.

Speaking of which, the family of Yuan Dusen had a conflict with Qi Shen.

Qi Shen was infuriating; he lacked the moral principle of not extending blame to one's own family, and he was prone to taking his anger out on others.

He disliked the Yuan Du family, and as one of the core members of the family, Qi Shen naturally didn't want to have much contact with Yuan Du Sen.

Yuan Dusen came to see Qi Shen this time with a heavy heart.

“I’m not here to reminisce,” he said curtly. “As the commander of this mission, Mr. Qi is aware of the latest situation in the contaminated area. It is perfectly reasonable for us to come and inquire according to procedure.”

After all, three days had passed and the person inside still hadn't come out, and he felt a growing unease.

Qian Rujin was concerned about the prediction of a "narrow victory," and he himself could not ignore it. If the price of this "narrow victory" was almost total annihilation, then there would be no need to continue the project at all.

"So you guys actually care about the hunters' lives, huh?" Yun Fei said sarcastically, clearly making a veiled attack. "I thought you could solve everything with just your theoretical knowledge and your words. Come to think of it, your ability to talk big is far superior to that of a Word Master."

Assistant Sun's ordinary face instantly turned a liverish color with anger, and his ferocious expression made him more recognizable.

She knew that Yun Fei's words were clearly a veiled insult.

Outside Qi Shen's cabin, the atmosphere suddenly became tense. Assistant Sun's face flushed red and then turned pale. She really couldn't understand why the hunter, who was responsible for practical combat, and she, who was responsible for academic support, had to embarrass her in front of her when they were clearly doing their respective jobs.
Yuan Dusen was furious and immediately retorted, "With a pet like Qirui as your backing, you naturally dare to act recklessly. We don't have that kind of confidence. What's wrong with caring more about the safety of our teammates?"

He stared at Yun Fei, feeling that this man was never one to back down with his words, and wished he could seal him up with cement.

Just then, a deep and clear voice came from inside the house, penetrating the door and striking everyone's eardrums:
"Don't worry, there's no turning back."

It is Qi Shen.

He had clearly heard the argument outside, and though his smile was friendly, he uttered devilish words: "I have sealed off the entire slaughterhouse."

Hara Watari's heart skipped a beat: "...What do you mean?"

"I've completely sealed the exit with the 'Demon Slayer' token. No one inside will get out until the Filthy Feast Spirit is destroyed." Qi Shen turned around, his wide robes tracing a heavy arc in the air before slowly falling. His unrestrained voice rang out again: "Even Qi Rui can't get in now. The Filthy Feast Spirit has appeared. There are only two outcomes: either all the hunters are wiped out, or it's successfully contained."

"Why didn't you inform us in advance about such a major operation?" Hara Watari trembled with anger, especially unable to tolerate the other party's indifferent calm. "There are living people inside! Do you think this is about the weather?!"

"Why should I notify you?" Qi Shen's voice revealed a hint of confusion. He seemed genuinely perplexed and turned to Shen Zhaoming to ask, "Weren't you all trained? How can someone who's leading the team not even remember the most basic rules?"

The Guardians seal off the contaminated area without needing to apply for approval from anyone; it is their duty. If the Filthy Spirit escapes, that would be Qi Shen's greatest dereliction of duty.

Seeing that Hara Watari was about to explode, Shen Zhaoming calmly added fuel to the fire:

"Perhaps these regulations are completely unimportant to him, so he simply didn't read them carefully. Anyway, as long as you 'don't know,' you can always find a reason to blame others."

“You Star Alliance people shouldn’t push your luck.” Yuan Dusen’s voice trembled. “That’s not what I meant. I meant that you should at least have informed us before blocking us.”

Yun Fei sneered and retorted:

"Mr. Yuan Du, don't be so ridiculous. You couldn't even sense Qi Shen's actions in sealing off the contaminated area? Are all the spiritualists in your Star Glory Alliance dead?"

Yun Fei's few words left Yuan Dusen speechless.

When he arrived, some hunters did try to report to him, but he impatiently interrupted them with "We'll talk about it later." They rushed over in a hurry, only to miss the most crucial information.

Yuan Dusen turned and left with a dark expression. He came from a privileged background and had worked for many years, but he had never felt so frustrated as he had this year.

But it doesn't matter, he firmly believes that he will win in the end.

At that time, all the ridicule they are suffering now will only be a slap in the face.

He firmly believed in the "Key of Prophecy," that the Star Alliance would ultimately prevail, and that the Yuan Du family would never make the wrong bet.

After Yuan Dusen walked away, Yun Fei turned to Qi Rui, who was panting heavily next to Qi Shen, and asked in a more serious tone, "What is the situation inside?"

Qi Rui raised its huge cat eyes and glanced at him, its gaze seeming to say: Have you passed the tenth level of cat language? How am I supposed to explain such a complicated question to you?

"I almost forgot you can't speak human language," Yun Fei chuckled, then asked in a different way, "Are any of our people injured?"

Qi Rui shook his head.

"What about the Star Alliance? Are the casualties in single digits... or double digits?"

Qirui raised its two front paws, looking exactly like a "cat surrendering" meme.

Shen Zhaoming and Qi Shen, standing nearby, couldn't help but turn away and chuckle. Teacher Yun was too mean; even though the situation was critical, she still had the mind to tease Qi Rui like an ordinary house cat.

"The Star Alliance suffered such heavy losses? So you went in just now not to save people, but because they wanted to use your abilities?"

The big cat retracted its paws and nodded calmly as it answered Yun Fei's question.