Chapter 93: The Mist Realm

In an instant, the whole world fell silent.

Xue Wen, pinned in place by the enormous siege bolt, could not even collapse to the ground.

With all her strength, she tried to turn her head, hoping to see Gu Feng one last time. But the bolt held her fast, and with her life draining away, she no longer had the strength to look back. In the end, she breathed her last.

Xue Ziyan let out a grievous cry. “Xue Wen!” She was about to rush forward when Xue Lin seized her by the arm.

Eight siege bolts had struck Xue Wen: one pierced straight through her mouth, four tore into her chest and abdomen, one pinned her left hand, and one each had gone through both legs.

The sight of her death was horrific, yet in truth she had suffered little. The instant the bolts hit, she had gone numb; she had not even fallen unconscious before she died.

Gu Feng stared at Xue Wen’s corpse, his whole body trembling.

“System, aren’t you supposed to be all-powerful? Bring Xue Wen back to life for me.”

“I really can’t help you with that. After Xue Wen died, her soul went to the Underworld. At most, I can preserve the body for you. Once you go to the Underworld and find her soul, she can be resurrected.”

“Fine. Preserve her body for me. So what if it’s the Underworld? I’ll go there no matter what.”

“Kid, let me remind you: if you want to enter the Underworld, you must at least reach level one hundred. Otherwise, you can’t go.”

“Damn it, don’t I have you? Aren’t you the system? Why can’t you do it?”

“Please. A system isn’t omnipotent.”

“Right. Preserving the body will cost one million points. Seeing how poor you are, I’ll allow you three months to pay up. Otherwise, the body will be erased.”

“All right. Tell me, what’s in the treasury?”

“Heh heh, kid, let me tell you, there really are some good things in there. Go in first.”

Gu Feng said to the others, “Wait for me here. I’ll go in alone.”

Watching Xue Wen’s body vanish, Xue Ziyan asked through her grief, “Feng, Xue Wen, she...?”

“Don’t worry. One day, Xue Wen will return to our side.”

“Feng! You can bring Xue Wen back to life?”

Gu Yan said, “Sister Ziyan, don’t worry. Look, Brother has died over and over from endless suicide and still isn’t dead. If he says he can bring Xue Wen back, then he definitely can.”

Only after thinking of the possibility that Xue Wen could be revived did everyone finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Feng Waner looked at Gu Feng, wanting very much to say, “Can you bring my husband back to life?” But she knew she and Gu Feng were not especially close yet, and even if he could, why should he help her?

Gu Feng entered the treasury alone.

With the system present, all mechanisms were nothing more than decoration.

Soon he came to a great hall filled with piles of gold coins. In the past, Gu Feng would have been delighted; now, he merely took the gold coins without a ripple of emotion.

After stripping the three halls bare, Gu Feng frowned and asked, “Where are the good things?”

“Go farther in. See that wall? That’s Heaven-Scar Stone. Heh heh, these mortals can’t damage it, so whatever’s inside must still be there.”

“By the way, Heaven-Scar Stone is good stuff too. That huge piece can be exchanged for fifty thousand points. Once you reach level thirty, you’ll be able to redeem it.”

“Then hurry up and take it.”

“If you need the system’s help digging it out, there’ll be a ten-thousand-point labor fee.”

“Dig.”

“Heh heh, kid, you’re getting more and more straightforward.”

“Hmph. I already owe a million points. What’s a little more?”

So the system began excavating and collecting the Heaven-Scar Stone.

...

Outside, a bolt of lightning shot toward White Spirit City from far away, and in the blink of an eye it had arrived above the city lord’s estate. His spiritual sense locked onto Gu Yan and the others; they matched the portrait given by the hidden informant exactly. Then, like a flash of teleportation, he appeared behind them.

The few people standing before the treasury entrance did not sense his arrival at all.

Only when he spoke did they hear it: “Who has the superior-grade spirit item? Hand it over.”

Hearing the cold voice behind them, the women were startled and spun around at once. The man before them looked middle-aged, and they could not tell what his cultivation level was.

Xue Lin exclaimed in shock, “You’re a Grand Spiritual Master.”

“That’s not something you should be asking. Hand over the superior-grade spirit item.”

Xue Ziyan shouted, “What superior-grade spirit item? We don’t have one.”

“You don’t have one?”

In a flash, he appeared beside Xue Ziyan and wrapped a hand around her throat. To him, it required only the slightest pressure.

Crack.

Xue Ziyan coughed up blood-flecked froth. Terror filled her eyes, along with a trace of reluctance toward Gu Feng. Her head sagged, and she died.

“Ah! Sister Ziyan!”

Xue Lin’s body trembled. With two younger women dying before her eyes in such a short time, fury welled up within her.

“You can die, then! Didn’t you want a superior-grade spirit item? Come and take it!”

“The spirit item’s skill: Frost Freeze.”

The man was too fast; he dodged instantly. Seeing that Xue Lin truly held a superior-grade spirit item, a look of shock flashed through his eyes. He immediately rushed toward Xue Lin and reached for the Frost Punishment.

Xue Lin clung to it with all her might, and because the superior-grade spirit item had already recognized a master, he could only obtain it if Xue Lin willingly severed the bond. Since that was impossible, he would have to kill her.

The gap between a Grand Spiritual Master and a Spiritual Master, even one at the peak of the realm, was simply too vast. Xue Lin was far stronger than others of her level; one could even say she was invincible among her peers, yet she still had no power to resist.

He swung a hand like a blade toward Xue Lin’s neck.

“No, Sister Xue Lin!” Gu Yan’s cry tore from her throat in anguish.

After obtaining the superior-grade spirit item, the man looked at Gu Yan. At first he had intended to kill her, but then he discovered that her beauty was astonishing, enough to stir even him. So he changed his mind.

His body swayed, and he appeared before Gu Yan, scooping her up before soaring into the air.

Because Gu Feng was grieving Xue Wen’s death, he had completely forgotten to have the system monitor the outside world, and knew nothing of what was happening beyond the treasury.

After the system finished taking the Heaven-Scar Stone, a massive natural cavern was revealed. It was not very deep, and inside there was nothing at all.

“Old man, where’s the treasure you told me about?”

“Heh heh. I was afraid it might run away, so I took it along with the rest.”

“Took it along with the rest? What exactly is it?”

“Hahaha! Kid, see for yourself.”

A screen appeared in Gu Feng’s mind, and within it, a current of energy was flowing.

“That is...”

“That’s right. This is chaotic energy. Heh heh, I really didn’t expect to find chaotic energy in such a forlorn place.”

“Chaotic energy should count as mine, then.”

“It counts as yours. As long as you gather ten million points, I can help you forge a chaotic talent physique. By then, your cultivation will soar, and going to the Underworld will be much faster.”

“Points, always points. I can only take on point quests after reaching level thirty. No, I need to get to level thirty.”

“All right, you can leave now. There are still some scraps inside, but they’re not mature yet.”

At last, Gu Feng, distracted and absent-minded, remembered the others outside and had the system check for him.

The system immediately relayed the outside situation to Gu Feng, and what he saw left him stunned.

Xue Ziyan was dead. Xue Lin was dead. Gu Yan and Feng Waner were gone.

At that moment, Feng Waner’s figure appeared at the treasury entrance. Seeing the scene before her, she was utterly dazed.

“How could this happen?”

She had only gone to the washroom. When she came back, it was already like this. What on earth had happened?