Forge a path to success

"Little Qingxia, it's been so long!" The limb spider forcefully pulled out its spear and scrambled away in a flurry. "Uncle Limb Spider and I are old acquaintances too. I even held you when you were little. How about we make an exception for you this time—"

"You despicable and shameless trash, I'll kill you!!" Qingxia roared.

Qingxia raised her spear and thrust again, the giant spear falling haphazardly, revealing no trace of skillful spearmanship, only pure rage. The limb spider retreated swiftly, allowing Qingxia to relentlessly pursue and attack. Its regenerative abilities were unbelievably strong; even after half its body was shattered by Qingkun's spear, it could recover in an instant.

Chu Hengkong was wary of Wen Yao, but dared not go all out. He shouted to Si Laer, "Bring Qingxia back! The enemy is too strange; it might be a trap!"

"She can't be calm!" Slar roared back, its fur bristling with rage. "The one who stole the Holy Pillar was a Fallen One, and only the Limb Spider could provide him with information at the time!"

Wu He and the Limb Spider, both belonging to the Black Moon Blessed Clan, shared a vague source of information within Wu He's notes. Chu Hengkong instantly understood the cause and effect; he knew that stopping Qingxia at this point was impossible.

"Qingye, observe the situation!" He leaped up and joined the battle. The spider-like creature pulled two crystal-inlaid bone staffs from its body, casting spells with multiple arms simultaneously. It summoned mud-colored magic bullets to block Chu Hengkong, then slammed its limbs into the ground, turning the surrounding soil into a foul-smelling swamp. Immediately afterwards, it entangled itself around Qingxia, preferring to be struck by the giant spear rather than give her a chance to accelerate her charge.

This disgusting tactic bought the limb spider a few seconds, but it also made Qingxia increasingly irritable: "Go ahead and play these disgusting tricks. No matter how much you struggle, you will inevitably meet your end!"

“You’re the one heading towards your doom,” the spider said pitifully. “Little Qingxia, you’ve always had a choice. You really should go back to Nightmare City… The longer you stay in the settlement, the longer you’ll be lost, and the more painful it will be in the end!”

"The source of my suffering is you all!!"

Qingxia accelerated with gravity, slamming the giant spear down like a heavy hammer. The limb spider wailed and rolled, most of its body smashed into a bloody mess, yet it instantly recovered. Chu Hengkong seized the opportunity to throw a punch, slamming it into the messenger's hideous body. He was startled when the attack hit; he clearly only hit the limb spider, but the sensation was as if he had struck a pile of people. Layers of flesh and bone were stacked, like layers of armor hidden within the limb spider's body; its injury appeared severe, but in essence, it was painless.

This messenger's vitality is practically inexhaustible; it is certainly not as incompetent as it appears. The Fallen are the most skilled at disguise, and at this moment, it must also have some scheme in mind.

“You are the same.” The spider turned to the assassin and whispered, “Do you think the victories you’ve achieved along the way are ‘real’? Do you really think you can win?”

Don't let delusion blind you. You and I are just pawns in the devil's hand. For a pawn to survive, the game must continue, endlessly…

Its next sentence echoed in Chu Hengkong's mind.

(I'll feign an opening, make my move, and you can use the opportunity to escape. Lord Vansalal is already nearing his limit of excitement; we can't continue fighting!)

The spider's instructions coincided with Chongming's warning, and Chu Hengkong steeled his heart, deciding to take the gamble. However, at that moment, a pure white spear flew in, piercing the spider's eye. The messenger of fear screamed in terror, and the white-haired centaur withdrew his bone blade, coming to Chu Hengkong's side.

"Are you alright?" Wen Yao asked with concern. "That Fallen One used illusion magic, you must be careful!"

He met Wen Yao's gaze and saw a smug, self-satisfied smile flash across the demoness's lips. At that moment, Chu Hengkong fully understood. Although he still didn't know Wen Yao's background, he understood the man's purpose in coming.

—The path of retreating without a fight has been blocked.

This person won't allow them to return safely.

Amidst Qingxia's manic state, Silar's worries, and Chongming's anxieties before his departure, a multitude of emotions intertwined in Chu Hengkong's mind, leading him to make a judgment.

"Qingye, Silar, come with me!"

Having no way to retreat, we might as well go all in. Concentrate all our forces and kill this envoy first!

"That's exactly how it should be!" Qingxia exclaimed excitedly. "Let's kill it together!"

"Idiot!" the limb spider hissed. "So stupid! Warm Harrier, and you too! You'll all regret this!"

A sharp killing intent cut off his scream. In an instant, the Nightfall slash arrived, a silent attack like a sword drawn in the dark. The spider gasped, its multiple hands reaching out to leap up, but several falling leaves flew like knives, pinning his palms to the ground.

Slar stopped his attack and nodded. The slash from the night struck the limb spider's face, the shadow power seeping into its bones like chilling air, causing the spider to scream in agony. He wasn't good at head-on combat, and besides, the enemy was far stronger than when he first arrived in the wilderness. If this continued, there was no chance of a counterattack; it would die, it would die—!

"I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die!!" The spider screamed and rolled around, tearing the leaf apart in pain. "Curse Lightning, come quick!!"

A rumble of thunder echoed in the sky, sounding somewhat hesitant: "You said you would activate your divine magic before I made my move... but I haven't seen you use any divine magic yet..."

The spider had lost four more arms, and with its hair disheveled, it howled desperately, "I can't use Dark Moon Divine Magic anymore! If you don't come soon, I'll—ooh!!"

Qingye sheathed his sword, formed hand seals, and the Super-Heavy Sin Web silently formed, pinning the limb spider to the ground with the weight of its sins. Taking advantage of the moment, Chu Hengkong unlocked the chains of his prosthetic arm, unleashed his fully charged Heavenly Spear, and thrust it towards the limb spider's brow with the fire of ambition.

Once a decision is made, it must be carried through to the end. He has no intention of giving the envoy a chance to demonstrate his abilities. He will take advantage of the numerical advantage to surround and kill him on the spot and take down his corrupt heart!

Bound by the Heart-Binding Technique, the spider was momentarily unable to move. It watched helplessly as the burning spear tip pierced towards it. At that moment, deep purple lightning struck, and a charred hand emerged from the lightning, grasping the burning Heavenly Spear!

It was a shirtless, purple-haired man whose skin was an unnaturally charred black, like a corpse struck by lightning, with tiny sparks of electricity dancing on his skin. He pulled a gleaming silver metal hammer from behind his back, and purple lightning flickered in his eyes.

"Are you brave? Are you heroes?" the purple-haired man roared, his voice crackling with fury. "Are you men worthy of a battle?"

A burst of red light shot from Chu Heng's empty hand, and the matter-disintegrating ray precisely pierced through Zhou Lei's shoulder, melting the handle of the gleaming silver hammer. He broke free of his restraints and landed, only to find Zhou Lei's presence blurred. His wounds suddenly disappeared, his weapon was as good as new, and his muscular body had swelled up, making his aura even more powerful.

"General Chu, be careful, this guy is very strong!" Qingxia shouted. "Try to deal with it using inconspicuous attacks, and don't get hit by the lightning!"

"Everyone must be careful. This person has a strange aura and may be an evil spirit."

Wen Yao conjured a runic soft sword and thrust it straight forward. Zhou Lei swung his heavy hammer, deflecting the sword. A bolt of lightning as thick as a tree trunk struck down, and Wen Yao raised his left hand, catching the lightning with his bare fist.

"Anger, hatred, resentment, sorrow, lightning strikes... Curse! Curse! Curse!"

He swung his fist with tremendous force, slamming the power of lightning into the earth. In an instant, everyone's vision was obscured by purple light, as more than a dozen irregular lightning bolts erupted from the ground, resembling a purple forest formed by lightning. With each "curse" uttered, the number of lightning bolts instantly doubled.

In the blink of an eye, the entire battlefield was occupied by the Thunder Tree. Without saying a word, Qingxia grabbed Silar and ran through the gaps in the forest. Qingye directly used the Fog Transformation Technique to hide in the fog and prepare to strike.

Seeing the powerful force of the cursed lightning and the chaotic scene, Chu Hengkong immediately realized that this was a rare opportunity. He secretly grasped the chain of misfortune and whispered the ending to himself.

[Wen Yao was caught in a concentrated attack by the Cursed Thunder and was temporarily separated from us.]

But no sooner had he finished speaking than Chu Hengkong heard a crisp breaking sound. Unfortunately, the chain hadn't been able to break free; instead, the detached chains had wrapped around the prosthetic hand on their own.

—The probability of Wen Yao being hit by lightning is too low, and the unfortunate chain activation has failed!

(Thanks to Ozone Layer and yzc for their generous donations!)

Chapter 209 Chaos Intensifies

Chu Hengkong's heart tightened. At this moment, he was finally able to accurately assess the person's strength. His previous caution and inaction were the right choice, but in this chaotic battlefield, he had no other options at the moment.

Should we just keep fighting with the Thunder God and try to figure out a solution after we're out of the battle? Or find another excuse to lure the Warm Hawk out of the settlement? That won't work. If we can't figure out the enemy's strength, the initiative will always be in their hands.

Still not strong enough...!

"Miss Qingye! We can handle this. Please go find the gardener first!"

At this moment, Silal spoke from horseback, and Qingye, hidden in the mist, nodded and dissipated. Silal, holding a leaf, gave the assassin an encouraging look.

"Children, don't panic," the old man said. "Just fight! If you win, you live; if you lose, you die! The battlefield is that simple!"

"Grandpa, don't lecture us during the fight!" Qingxia said helplessly. "We're not new recruits anymore..."

"No, it's very helpful." Chu Hengkong took a deep breath. "Let's shift our target and take it out first. Miss Wen Yao, can we expect some fighting prowess from you?"

"I will naturally do my best."

Wen Yao exhaled, blowing out a wisp of colorful powder, like butterfly scales. The powder fell onto Zhou Lei's body, instantly forming complex runes and slowing its movements. Qing Xia seized the opportunity to use the gravity of the Qingkun Spear to suppress Zhou Lei, while Chu Hengkong rose and shattered the lightning with his prosthetic arm. Zhou Lei let out a furious roar.

"Why do you have reservations? You haven't used your full strength!"

He angrily swung his heavy hammer, but Chu Hengkong clenched his fist and swung it back, knocking Zhou Lei's weapon away. A crimson light flashed across his back as the awakened Immortal Machine quietly underwent temporary modifications.

We shouldn't be using all our strength now. First, buy as much time as possible, make some preparations, and then we'll see what news comes from Qingye.

·

The spider hurriedly made its way through the fog, its thoughts a jumbled mess.

What exactly happened? With so many biological reactions, even if the Cursed Thunder admitted its mistake, it should have noticed it much earlier during its descent. The concealment of the historical fog isn't that strong; it must have been Wen Yao who secretly tampered with things.

But what good would this do her?! She should have been the last person to want to see the Demon King's army defeated; from a purely self-interested perspective, she shouldn't have done something like this. What was she after by mixing in with the newcomers? Was it simply to deceive Xiao Qingxia, or...?

"Damn it, crazy woman!" The spider gritted its teeth nervously. It remembered, "It's been so long since I've dealt with them, I'd forgotten. Those insects don't care about anything for pleasure!"

Although Cursed Thunder was powerful, it couldn't hold out for long against so many skilled opponents; its defeat would be disastrous. Fortunately, there was a backup plan. The Limb Spider hurriedly ran into the battleground and spotted another pillar of fire to the west.

Now it all depends on what Burning Ashes does. As long as they can get ahead, there's still hope. Hopefully, our old friend can slow down a bit...!

To the west of the battlefield, flames surged fiercely, scorching the black moonlight. Burning Ember, carrying a longbow, stood beside the fire, deliberately concealing his light and heat, materializing his luminous body into a middle-aged scholar dressed in a scholar's robe.

Such a sign should be conspicuous enough, Burning Ash thought. It sensed chaotic magical surging in the distance, likely indicating that other messengers were fighting the newcomers, but that matter had nothing to do with it. Outside of the final battle, everyone was responsible for their own battlefield.

It spotted Shax; days of grueling fighting had made him appear even more dangerous than anticipated, like a hawk cornered. The sniper carried a familiar aura of Burning Ember.

"Are you from Earth, Shax?" Ember asked.

The sniper glanced at him: "What, you can tell where someone is from?"

"The Empire's technology can do it, but elemental magic is not good at it," Burning Ember said frankly. "I met another Earthling before who claimed to be an assassin."

Shakes laughed: "That's brilliant. Who is it this time? A pervert? An animal? An antisocial person? Whichever it is, they're all far inferior to me."

“No, you are all the same. In your eyes, there is a powerful light unlike any other. It is a light rarely seen here, a light that inspires longing,” said Burning Ash. “In my life, as a commander of the army, I never had the chance to fight such people. I regret it!”

“I see.” Shax’s lips twitched with amusement. This guy was “one of us,” albeit a counterfeit.

He tossed a signal flare, and Burning Ash plucked a burning tuft of his beard and tossed it to him. This way, they would know each other's approximate location, and within the next ten minutes, they would see how far they got before a single shot decided the outcome. Savage, foolish, yet fair.

"It starts in ten minutes." Shax tensed, turning and walking into the mist, reminding himself not to let his guard down—

At that moment, a massive, dark, and muscular creature descended from the sky, its stitched-on hands binding Shax tightly like spider legs. Shax stared at the pale face that had suddenly appeared before him, his brain, tormented for days, nearly shutting down on the spot.

The burning embers behind him had the same blank expression as him.

"Sorry I'm late!" the limb spider shouted dramatically. "Proceed as planned. Move out, incinerate!"

The burning embers gaped open like a mole seeing the sun for the first time.

Shax reacted instantly, and he was even angrier than he had anticipated. "Ember, you fucking bastard...!"

"I'm not!" The embers glowed in despair. "I didn't!!"

"You orchestrated this whole plan, and now you're playing the good guy?!" The Spider seemed even more shocked than its old colleague. "Stop beating around the bush! If you won't do it, I will!"

With a powerful tug, it pulverized the sarcus into a pile of ice shards. The spider, staring at the ice crystals scattered on the ground, was just as shocked as its old colleague.

"Oh no, oh no, oh no," it muttered nervously. "Oh no, oh no, oh no!!"

Ten meters away, Nightfall emerged from the mist and appeared alongside the rescued Shax. Using the Mist-Transfer Technique to conceal herself, and her honed leg strength to catch up with the Limb Spider, she replaced Shax with the Ice Substitute Technique and concealed her form with the Mist Robe. Anyone with extensive experience in combat with those suffering from broken hearts would have noticed her actions… Unfortunately, the Limb Spider and the Burning Ember were far inferior to Nightfall in close combat, and neither of them discovered the truth in time.

"You've gotten a bit slow since I last saw you, Mr. Sniper. Is it because you haven't slept in a long time?" Qingye pulled up her scarf.

“You’ve become decent, you heartbreaker.” Shax picked up the communicator. “It’s a trap. Strike.”

"I knew it!"

Somewhere on the battlefield, a small animal emerged from a cabbage-shaped mobile pod. Using this specially designed, concealed plant vehicle, it quietly slipped away from the battle fortress.

Gulibo took one last look at the Battle Cabbage Fortress, the lush and towering vegetable it had nurtured with its own hands. Thinking of the days it had spent living and dying alongside the cabbage leaves, tears welled in its eyes.

"Goodbye, my good friend. I'll definitely grow an even tastier vegetable than you!" Gulibo waved its little paws. "Outer armor disengages, entering close combat mode!"

The combat cabbage, over ten meters tall, slowly rose from the ground like a missile poised for launch. Its roots, wrapped in soil, stood upright, forming black "feet." The outer leaves peeled away layer by layer, as if released from restraints. The core structure hidden inside the fortress became independent, and the life force in the outer leaves was transmitted through the cells within the cabbage, beginning to strengthen the internal structure, making the core increasingly robust and powerful.

The isolated core of the plant resembled a human figure. After the transformation, nutrients were concentrated on specific parts, causing it to grow thick arms and a majestic head like a general. The emerald green plant giant threw two punches into the air, letting out a roar that shook the battlefield.

"war!"

Battle Fortress Cabbage Transformation - Emerald Core Warrior!

Its leaves flow with the proud blood of warriors, and it shares the same hatred for the enemy as the Allied soldiers. This is a mutated variety, modeled on the melee combat pattern in its genetic material, and specially modified by Gulibo according to the battlefield situation, for use in the annihilation of giant creatures.

Without needing further instructions, the Emerald Core Warrior immediately detected the powerful external force's reaction. It unleashed a powerful punch, its emerald fist resembling a canopy of a great tree, hurtling straight towards the two external forces.

"Cabbage hit someone!!!" the spider screamed in despair.

Burning Ember, pointing at the limbed spider, shouted excitedly, "Hit it! Kill it!!!"

It grabbed the spider and slammed it into the warrior's giant fist. The spider, quick-witted and agile, immediately used pollutants as a medium to cast a Dark Moon Illusion. This trick to confuse the senses caused the warrior to momentarily lose her senses, and the giant fist landed five meters off course, with the blasted soil forming a small mudslide.

The spider wiped the cold sweat from its brow: "My God, how far has the war progressed in the later stages?! Even the divine tree city-states of our time weren't this insane, were they?!"

"Stop acting like a colleague, I'll kill you!" Burning Ember roared in fury and hurled a giant fireball at him.

The spider opened its mouth and inhaled, swallowing the fireball like a candy. It rubbed its limbs pitifully, its face contorted in misery: "Ember, don't despise me, I'm only doing this for my own life..."

"You've told me the truth, you bastard!"

"If I, who's so afraid of death, am going to die, then nobody will fare any better!" the Spider cried. "So how about we team up for now? We can talk about your duel later. We can't lose this one, we really can't lose this one!"

Burning Flame was enraged, its face blazing with fury. Rationally, it knew the spider's words were true; emotionally, it wanted nothing more than to burn this disgusting pig to ashes with a single flaming arrow. But ultimately, its duty as commander of the Demon King's army prevailed, and fear overcame its rage. It drew its bow, preparing to meet the next iron fist.

"You just wait...?"

But this time, the Emerald Warrior's iron fist didn't land in time. It strangely turned halfway around, throwing a punch in the opposite direction of the battlefield—

He punched Zhou Lei on the head.

The purple-haired messenger's lightning strike abruptly stopped, and purple lightning bolts surged upwards as if attracted by a lightning rod, charring the entire right arm of the Emerald Heart Warrior. The struck messenger was once again "refreshed" due to the severe injury, his height becoming three times that of before, and he stared blankly at the warrior engulfed in flames.

"You... are you a hero?" Zhou Lei hesitated. "You are not a hero..."

Gulibo, inside the cabbage, jumped up in a panic: "Wrong number! Wrong person!!"

Chapter 210 The Land of Despair