Chapter 37: A Massive Reward
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Amid the vast darkness of night, the five disciples of the Jade Luo Sect, led by their senior sister, Jade Luo Chun, fled for dozens of miles with all their strength, like five startled fawns.
Their figures appeared and vanished among the dense forest. Every step was heavy and hurried, as though countless evil spirits were pursuing them from behind.
At last, when they reached a relatively open clearing, they could go no farther. One after another, they stopped, panting desperately, scarcely able to catch their breath.
They braced their hands against their knees and gulped down air, as if they had just escaped a life-or-death pursuit.
“Senior Sister... were we supposed to wait for Senior Brother Qingming...?” one of them asked in a trembling voice, uncertainty and anxiety mingling in her tone.
“Yes, Senior Sister. I think we should go back and look for Senior Brother Qingming,” another disciple agreed. Worry and unease flickered in her eyes.
Jade Luo Chun, however, shook her head with determination. Though her voice was weary, it carried an unmistakable finality.
“No! We cannot go back. Do you remember what Senior Brother Qingming told us?
“He said that no matter what happened, we had to escape and find somewhere safe to hide.
“If we go back, not only will we be unable to save Senior Brother Qingming, but we may also end up dragging him down.”
As she spoke, Jade Luo Chun raised her head and gazed toward the unknown darkness in the distance.
Determination and courage shone in her eyes, as though she were telling herself—and the junior sisters beside her—that no matter how difficult the road ahead might be, they had to persevere.
The other disciples lowered their heads and fell silent.
They knew that Jade Luo Chun was right.
Going back would only be futile. Worse, it might place Senior Brother Qingming in even greater danger.
Thus, they gathered their strength and prepared to continue onward.
The dense forest remained silent and mysterious beneath the night sky, as though concealing countless unknown dangers.
Yet the five disciples of the Jade Luo Sect were no longer afraid. Drawing close to one another and encouraging each other, they continued forward with firm, steady steps.
Meanwhile, Su Hao was moving more and more slowly as he fled.
He began carefully observing his surroundings, searching for terrain and cover he could use to his advantage.
Every tree and every stone became, in his eyes, a potential weapon or refuge.
He prayed silently that his judgment and courage would win him a sliver of hope.
At that moment, Ji Yuchen’s voice echoed through the night like the whisper of the Grim Reaper.
“You cannot escape, little mouse. Surrender obediently. Perhaps I will even leave your corpse intact.”
His voice was filled with merciless certainty and derision.
Su Hao did not answer. He merely adjusted his breathing and posture in silence, preparing to face the final clash between life and death.
He understood that this battle was not only for himself, but also for the safety of the five disciples of the Jade Luo Sect.
He had to fight with everything he had. Even if it cost him his life, he had to win them a chance to survive.
As Ji Yuchen drew closer step by step, Su Hao’s heartbeat grew more frantic.
He drew a deep breath and prepared to face the final battle of this life-or-death struggle.
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In Ji Yuchen’s cold, fathomless eyes, Su Hao ahead of him resembled a tiny oil lamp nearing the end of its fuel, burning through the last of its strength in a futile struggle.
His steps had become chaotic. At times he staggered; at times he fell, yet some invisible force seemed to drive him onward, compelling him to crawl forward with difficulty.
The dense forest beneath the night sky had become Su Hao’s graveyard. Every tree and every leaf seemed to silently witness the tragedy of his gradual march toward death.
His face was as pale as paper. Sweat fell from his brow like beads from a broken string, vanishing into the earth the instant they struck the soil.
A cruel smile curved Ji Yuchen’s lips. Like an elegant hunter, he quietly savored the desperate beauty of his prey’s final struggle.
He knew Su Hao had reached the end. A few more steps would be enough for him to crush the stubborn little mouse beneath his feet.
Yet at this crucial moment, a trace of determination and ferocity suddenly flashed through Su Hao’s eyes.
He seemed to have recognized the hopelessness of his situation and understood that escape was no longer possible.
Clenching his teeth, he summoned the last of his strength and prepared to launch one final counterattack.
His body sprang forward like an enraged beast. The weapon in his hand gleamed coldly as it shot straight toward Ji Yuchen’s vital point.
That strike contained all his anger and resentment, as though he intended to pour every ounce of despair and unwillingness into this merciless enemy.
A flicker of surprise crossed Ji Yuchen’s eyes, but he was a veteran of countless battles, and his reaction was extraordinarily swift.
He shifted to the side and effortlessly avoided Su Hao’s fatal blow.
Though the attack missed, it still allowed Ji Yuchen to sense Su Hao’s resolve and courage—the determination to stake everything on one desperate gamble.
The dense forest fell silent once more. Only Su Hao’s rough breathing echoed through the night.
He collapsed onto the ground, gasping desperately, as though he had just endured a battle between life and death.
Ji Yuchen stood some distance away, watching him coldly, as though waiting for his final struggle and despair.
Under the cover of the boundless darkness, Su Hao sped through the night like a phantom, his unyielding heart pounding violently within his chest.
The tip of his tongue lightly pressed against the cold casing of Life One Restorative Potion. It was his final card, a desperate gamble in which he was wagering his life.
His target was fixed on the figure ahead—Ji Yuchen, the leader of the evil cultivators, an enemy whose smile held both chill and cunning. Su Hao swore to drag him into the abyss, even if the price was his own life.
Ji Yuchen’s pupils contracted sharply. Su Hao’s sudden attack had failed, yet it had been like a razor-edged shard of ice slicing through the cold wind, tearing through Ji Yuchen’s composure and sending an indescribable chill up his spine.
The night wind swept past with a mournful keening, brushing his face and leaving icy traces behind. He could not help shivering.
He was secretly astonished.
“This seemingly insignificant insect actually possesses such ruthless courage and strength.”
When he faced Su Hao again, Ji Yuchen’s gaze held a greater gravity. Every minute movement revealed caution and vigilance.
He advanced slowly, his movements carrying the ease of a cat toying with a mouse, yet also the taut readiness of a leopard about to pounce.
Each probing attack was like a carefully laid trap, waiting for Su Hao to step into it.
Su Hao knew that the opponent before him was no ordinary man. His reckless attack had merely proven how naïve and ignorant he had been.
He drew a deep breath and forced down the impatience and fear in his heart.
His right hand tightened around his sword. His left hand quietly turned over, gripping the dagger that gleamed with cold light. Like a leopard poised to spring, he concealed himself within the night, waiting for the perfect moment to deliver a fatal strike.
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The night deepened, and the moonlight grew thin. The standoff between the two men resembled a duel between warriors on an ancient battlefield, an immense tension contained within the silence.
Every breath Su Hao took was heavy. His gaze was resolute and unwavering, as though declaring:
“Even if I exhaust the last shred of my strength, I will drag you into this feast of death and make your body the offering to my victory.”
A suffocating tension filled the air. Every faint sound seemed magnified without limit, as though time itself had frozen, awaiting the decisive moment.
On that dark and wind-swept night, Ji Yuchen suddenly attacked like a specter. A streak of silver sword light tore through the sky with thunderous force and descended upon Su Hao’s right arm.
The sword flashed. Su Hao’s right arm was severed at the shoulder, and blood gushed forth like a spring, staining his clothes and the land forgotten by the moonlight.
Yet Su Hao remained standing like a stone statue. He clenched his teeth and forced the searing pain down without making a sound.
Seeing this, Ji Yuchen’s lips curved into a cruel smile, as though he were admiring his prey struggling in despair.
He swung his sword again. This time, the blade flashed like a dragon, carrying the overwhelming force of roaring mountains and raging seas as it severed both of Su Hao’s legs at the thighs.
Su Hao’s body swayed precariously, as though he might collapse at any moment. Yet an unyielding flame burned in his eyes—the flame of defiance against fate and longing for survival.
“Little ant, let’s see what else you have.”
Ji Yuchen sneered as he slowly walked toward Su Hao and sheathed his sword.
He extended his left hand to seize Su Hao’s dagger-wielding arm, seemingly certain of victory and intent only on extinguishing this final struggle.
Yet at that critical instant, Su Hao made an utterly unexpected move.
He suddenly opened his mouth and crushed the Life One Restorative Potion between his teeth. The green medicinal liquid instantly dissolved in his mouth, as though a mysterious power were surging through his body.
A look of astonishment flashed through Ji Yuchen’s eyes. He had never imagined that Su Hao still possessed such a method.
The stumps of Su Hao’s arm and legs began to writhe. New flesh seemed to sprout at astonishing speed, bones rejoining and flesh rapidly knitting together.
The sight was as unbelievable as a magic trick, yet it was real and utterly shocking.
A trace of fear flickered through Ji Yuchen’s eyes, but his merciless will quickly suppressed it.
Enduring the agony, Su Hao used his newly regenerated right arm to seize Ji Yuchen around the neck. With his left hand, he drove the dagger toward Ji Yuchen’s heart like a bolt of lightning.
At that moment, time seemed to freeze. The air grew thick with the stench of blood and the tension of impending death.
The dagger plunged deep into Ji Yuchen’s chest. Su Hao summoned all his strength and jerked it upward, carving a fatal wound through Ji Yuchen’s heart.
Ji Yuchen’s body convulsed violently, then he hurled Su Hao away with all his might.
Su Hao flew more than twenty meters like a kite with its string cut before crashing heavily to the ground.
Fury and unwillingness filled Ji Yuchen’s eyes. He stared wide-eyed at Su Hao, glaring at him with every ounce of hatred he possessed.
Su Hao, meanwhile, stood where he was, breathing heavily. His eyes held both the joy of victory and profound exhaustion from the brutal battle.
In the night, the shadows of the two men stretched long beneath the moonlight, frozen into the most breathtaking scene of the entire night.
[You have slain the clone of Ji Yuchen, leader of the evil cultivators. Side quest progress increased by 3 points. You have received 5 Cosmic Cleansing Stones and one Yuchen Treasure Chest (Blue). Side quest progress: 26 points.]
At the same time, within a cavern dwelling atop the main peak of the Righteous Sect, a shrill roar rang out:
“That little mouse actually destroyed one of my clones!”
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