A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

Just when Qasim thought 112 couldn't possibly survive, the other party made a move.

112 was in a daze, and the injuries on his body were not healing as quickly as before.

He realized that the effects of the "Heavenly Fox Tears" within his body were nearing their limit.

The tiny bit of "Heavenly Fox Tear" in his body was equivalent to giving him the lives of several people, which is why he was qualified to live for more than a hundred years and still be in his prime.

But 112 has already been killed by those thorns several times, and the injuries he has suffered are more severe than all the injuries he has sustained in the past hundred years.

Even the life force of "Heavenly Fox Tears" will be exhausted.

“Speaking of which…not counting the time you died, I’m actually older than you now,” 112 said weakly, then struggled to get up.

He shook his head to clear his mind.

112 knew he was no match for those plants, but he had nothing to do but stand up.

Run away? My home is right behind me, where can I run to?

The same applies to Miss Angelia.

If Qasim gets in, he can find Miss Angelia, or even the Madam, in a little time.

Therefore, as a guard, he needed to defend the position to the death.

112's hair stood on end, and his red eyes were filled with murderous intent.

"Are you starting to talk nonsense?" Kasim said disdainfully. He could naturally see that 112 was at its last gasp and posed no threat at all.

As long as the thorns behind him remain, he will have no rivals.

With his illusion magic combined with powerful henchmen, Qasim could easily sweep through the entire Clinton district.

Of course, he had no intention of vying for power or domination. He only had a very small wish: to live forever and then explore the mysteries of life.

He was willing to give anything to achieve this seemingly insignificant wish.

People can be so stubborn, or rather, so irrational at times.

What was he thinking that would lead him to sacrifice his wife and daughters for such a goal?

Ah, but speaking of which, if the suffering of those he used as test subjects were placed on Qasim, he would go insane in an instant.

112, however, is deeply etched in the memory of the pain from over a hundred years ago.

“If you think you haven’t died enough times, I’ll grant your wish.” Qasim spread his arms, his skeletal face contorted in a grotesque expression.

Thorns grew out from around 112's feet.

As time passed, these thorns had multiplied more than doubled.

It is likely that more than half of the ground beneath the old house is occupied by the roots of these plants.

The rose petals scattered, but they brought no beauty whatsoever.

Upon seeing these roses, everyone's first reaction is one word—"vicious".

"Boom!!!!!!!!!!" All the thorns plunged down at the same time, raising a cloud of dust.

Unable to see clearly what was happening inside, Qasim squinted his eyes.

Those deeply sunken, dark eyes seemed to reveal a hint of fear.

112's figure was not among this dust.

"Where did it go!" Kasim panicked a little. This wildcat was simply a monster; it still had the ability to move at high speed even in this state.

He can now only hope that these plants will find their own enemies.

---

Meanwhile, a battle was taking place some distance from the old house.

Another battle that will determine the outcome of the battle mentioned above.

That was a battle far more exaggerated than the one here.

The enormous thorn giant swung its arms wildly, attacking the adventurers it hadn't even touched.

But the one-eyed adventurer's sword wounded it time and time again.

If it weren't for their numerical advantage, this monster capable of flattening a city would have been destroyed long ago.

"..." Bray continued to maneuver around his opponent on the ground, without attempting to climb onto him.

If we could climb onto the body of this giant monster, the battle would indeed be much easier.

But his opponent was covered in spikes, and Bray was certain he would be riddled with holes in an instant.

The ground was covered with a thick layer of thorns, but the area around the belay site was completely empty, with only bare earth.

"Swish—" The thorns on the other side were wriggling, filling in the gaps in various places.

However, its recovery rate is now much slower than before.

It seems that the damage to the monster's core is severe enough to put it into the kill zone.

Bray raised his right eyebrow, striking a pose he was familiar with.

"Onis Swordsmanship" and "Lion's Lament"

A lion's roar suddenly erupted, drowning out all other sounds.

In front of the old house.

"Clang—" The nails extended from 112's cat paws, heading straight for Kasim's throat.

Qasim's body floated half a meter backward, and then the thick thorns lashed out like whips, knocking 112 away as he lunged at him.

However, 112 adjusted its posture in mid-air, allowing itself to charge again the very next second after landing.

Although these claws cannot tear through the thorns, they are more than enough to harm Qasim.

112 did not believe that Qasim was completely immortal like himself.

If that were really the case, he wouldn't always look so afraid.

"Boom!" 112 was blasted away once again.

"Thump!!!" 112 was knocked away again.

Although Qasim easily swept them away with the plants, the desperate charge of 112 made him feel a chill.

It was as if the other party would succeed next time, and their claws would grip his throat.

The feeling of being grabbed by the throat still lingers.

Qasim didn't want to be dominated by fear anymore.

What a hassle! If it weren't for this stray cat, he wouldn't have had to go through so much trouble to get into his house.

"Meow!!!!!!!!!!" 112 roared, its eyes only half-open, yet it still charged forward.

"Haven't we learned enough lessons?" Qasim glared menacingly at 112, his next strike intended to bury the guy in the ground.

He wanted these thorns to slowly pull 112 into the soil, tormenting him relentlessly.

Qasim first cast an illusion, and then the thorns behind him swept out from all directions like whips, just like before.

With its charging stance in place, 112 had no chance of evading attacks from all directions.

A smug smile appeared on Qasim's skeletal face, and his deeply sunken, dark eyes curved into a slight arc.

"Shalala—" Then, instead of seeing 112 being sent flying, Kasim heard a strange sound.

The strange sound was coming from right next to him, and there was only one thing next to him.

He subconsciously looked at the thorny roses beside him and was shocked to find that they had all withered.

It was as if it had been dried out by the sun in an instant, without any vitality, withered and colorless.

I'm afraid that nowadays, the barbs on a thorn bush will break on their own the moment they touch anything.

The rustling sound was the sound of leaves cracking.

It's like the sound you make when you pluck a leaf that's so dry it has no resilience and crush it with your fingers.

The withering came without warning and too quickly.

Just like these plants' abnormal growth rate, they also wither abnormally quickly.

"Boom!!!" The thick thorns fell heavily to the ground, no longer wriggling, and some even split open on their own after falling.

"How did this happen..." Qasim never imagined that his greatest asset would suddenly fail.

112's claws gripped his throat.

His smug smile vanished, and the black mist, like his mood, trembled and dissipated.

Without these resilient plants, he would have been ravaged by 112 again.

In terms of combat, he was not even in the same league as his opponent.

Even if there are illusions, they can only be used to stall for time and cannot solve the real problem.

"Damn wildcats!!!" Kasim roared, using the sound to mask his fear.

He has just crawled out of his grave and is about to take another step towards the goals he set in life, so how could he possibly stop here?

If he could sweat, he would be drenched in cold sweat by now.

He came to "seek survival," not to "seek death."

"..." But 112 just stood there and choked him with its claws, and did nothing else.

Kasim couldn't even feel how much force was coming from those claws.

After a while, Qasim tried to push 112 away with a swing of his arm.

Unexpectedly, with a single swing, 112 fell.

Kasim didn't use much force at all, because he just tried it subconsciously.

112 lay on the ground, his eyes slightly closed, his breathing very slow.

His hair was filthy from the blood on his body.

Although it is not visible on the surface, 112 has multiple fractures.

The effects of a small amount of "Heavenly Fox Tears" were simply insufficient to continue supporting his wound repair.

However, the "Heavenly Fox Tears" at least kept him alive.

"..." Qasim looked down at the motionless 112, then glanced at the withered thorns behind him.

The rose petals are no longer vibrant.

There is absolutely no sign of life in these plants.

Qasim went to great lengths to acquire these henchmen, so why have they suddenly turned out like this?

Unless someone destroys the core of all the plants.

But this is simply wishful thinking, since the core of a plant has the most vigorous life force.

Even if you burn it with fire, it might not be able to burn it to death.

However, Qasim could never have guessed that the core was actually eliminated by two swords.

Qasim bent down and used his thin arms to beat the unconscious 112.

112 remained motionless, letting Qasim punch him weakly.

"You bastard! You wildcat! You mere cat-human, you mere slave, how dare you treat me like this!" Qasim's face was contorted with rage as he punched 112 again and again.

Although his body was not very strong, there were more and more bruises under his skin.

"I'll beat you to death! I'm going to beat you to death!!!!" Kasim kept punching, as if he was determined to beat 112 to death.

That damned guy scared him half to death. Kasim won't be able to vent his anger until he beats him to death.

"Get up right now!"

"Go ahead and yell at me!"

"How dare you scare me!?"

"You think you can beat me without these plants?" Qasim cursed, one curse after another.