Chapter 76

The sphere cracked with a cry of agony, a deep wail that seemed to echo all around him. Streaks of black light poured out of it, cutting through the rotten fog like dark spears. They shattered the book shelves and crushed the pillars of the Library, gravel and bits of marble raining about in a shambling mess.

Something thumped in Lei’s chest. The warmth was still there, around his eyes, forcing him to trail every dark streak like he was possessed. It nudged him like a stubborn child, insistent, yearning.

Lei raised his hands and let the flame out. Tongues of it darted forth, sparks scattering round the bookshelves and setting them ablaze, the Governor’s men hissing painfully against their sight.

“You!” came the Governor’s voice, furious. He swept his sword in a wide slash to force Fatty Lou and Zhu Luli to back off, and then hacked at the ethereal chains. Metal clanked harmlessly off the sword’s rusted surface, Sun Hu pulling them back as he stepped out from his hiding place.

The Governor’s men, all healed as the rotten mana kept feeding them, lumbered forward in a scattered line. The ones that still had eyes seemed aghast at the dark streaks flailing against the burning flames.

“What’s happening?” Fatty Lou said, glancing at Lei, sweat dripping down his chin. “Those streaks…”

“The thorn is crumbling,” Zhu Luli motioned with her head to the broken sphere, black mist still oozing out from it. Then she stared at Lei and blinked. “Your eyes… Where did those flames come from?”

Lei tapped a fist over his chest, just as confused. “I’m not completely sure, but that’s not important right now. We have a bastard to kill.”

“A Chosen here in Jiangzhen,” the Governor muttered, yellow eyes fixed on Lei. The men around him parted to give him way, and he walked out from their circle with the sword clenched in his hand. “Who sent you? How could they know? Everything was hidden! Even these men knew nothing of the ritual, so how?”

All eyes turned at him, which made Lei laugh for some reason. “I guess you’re not good at hiding as you’ve thought, Governor. Though I’m curious… Didn’t you know what happened in the mountain and how we’ve dealt with that Elder Huang? Can’t be that big of a surprise, right?”

“The mountain…” the Governor’s eyes snapped at the older man who stood a step behind him, the one that kidnapped Snake and Stone. “You’ve told me it wasn’t important. A mere slip on your side. What exactly had happened there?”

“I’m not familiar with the details,” the man said with a gravelly voice. He had a few gray hairs left dancing over his wrinkled face, skin slimy and clawed fingers all yellow and black. He averted his gaze. “I’ve been told by one of those thugs that a stray group of cultivators barged into the mountain and rescued the kids, but Master remained undisturbed. That’s why I didn’t tell you anything.”

“They killed your brother—“

“He was doing his job, and he did it well,” the man cut the Governor’s words sharply. He didn’t seem to fear him even though the Governor stood a head taller than him and oozed with rotten mana. In fact, it was the Governor who seemed to be taken aback by the man’s indifferent gaze. “I’ve lost thousands of brothers to get here. One more is nothing.”

The Governor’s eyes narrowed at him, fingers tight around the sword’s handle.

“The past doesn’t matter now,” the man continued, sweeping Lei with a cold gaze. “What matters is the ritual.”

“The thorn—“

“It’s too late for them to do anything. We have gathered enough mana to aid him. Master is on his way,” the man said with a smile that sent chills down Lei’s spine. He then raised his clawed hands and stared at him. “But it’s still nice of you to present your head to us, Chosen. The last one had managed to stall the inevitable, but you… You’re still a budding, weak disciple. I’ll make sure nothing stands in our way this time. Kill him.”

Even though most of them looked barely human, the Governor’s men glanced hesitantly at the Governor rather than obeying the rotten man’s command. They still seemed to be intent on serving him.

The Governor himself looked conflicted, but that only lasted a second when he raised the sword and aimed its tip toward Lei’s group. “Move! I don’t care about the others, but get me that man’s head.”

A single command erased what hesitation was there in the men’s eyes. They reared back like a bunch of beasts and lunged at Lei’s group with madness that burned deep inside their eyes.

Lei raised the mace and twirled it round himself to force the beasts back, Zhu Luli and Fatty Lou using the opportunity to swipe at a few that tattered unevenly around the sides. A pair of ethereal chains caught one of them by the ankles, who Lei recognized as Dai Aiguo, and sent him sprawling over to a bunch of burning shelves.

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It was chaos that followed after it. Zhu Luli’s sharp fingers drilled holes through their rotten shells. Fatty Lou’s fists crushed them brazenly, which he often followed with throwing the regenerating beast into the air where Sun Hu’s chains waited.

Meanwhile, the Governor slashed at Lei with a force that made the air scream. Lei stepped back and ducked under it when the tip grew dangerously close in his vision. He sprang up swinging the mace, the heavy weapon light in his hands, and came at the Governor from the side as the bastard struggled to lift the sword up in time.

But the moment the mace crushed a portion of the Governor’s shoulder, the rotten waves that spilled from the dark streaks instantly poured over and patched the wound. In return, the fog thinned visibly, just as it thinned whenever the tongues of flame consumed the dark streaks.

Once we’ve dealt with all those streaks, these bastards will stop regenerating.

Which was why Lei had to stall this man while the Maiden’s Flame did the job. It seemed Zhu Luli and the others recognized the fact as they too had decided to favor hit-and-run tactics instead of throwing themselves at the enemy.

There was a problem, though. The more the Governor pressed him, the more Lei had to give up on precious space, which pushed him further toward the staircase. Around him, the shelves burned in lanes, and the fire sprawled over to the second floor, encapsulating them in a fairly narrow area. Lei thought his own flame wouldn’t scorch him, but the terrible heat seemed to think otherwise.

So eventually, he would have to face the bastard.

He was okay with that. More than okay, in fact, he was expecting it. For too long, he’d been struggling against this enemy. For too long, he’d been tied with their ropes instead of living his life. This wasn’t how he thought his second chance would go.

This city and his brother-in-arms. The kids and the new family he’d found. The restaurant. He had everything, more than he could’ve ever thought of, and yet it seemed it all came with a price. Nothing was fair in either of the worlds. What was fair, instead, was taken by one’s own hands.

That was what Lei had to do. Claim them as his own. Refuse whoever dared to barge into his life. Make them regret.

The Dao Seed’s tiny sprout fluttered within his body, sending another wave of purified energy up his meridians. His fingers clutched the mace so strongly that the wooden handle nearly cracked.

A wave of hot air splashed against his back. The heels of his feet thumped to the first step of the staircase that burned alive behind him. There was no running anymore.

Lei stopped. He saw the sword coming from a mile away. He ducked under it, let the rusted weapon clank against the marbled step, and drove his right shoulder into the Governor’s stomach. The bastard doubled down and wheezed out through his lips. He fumbled with the sword, but the mace was there, waiting to claim its prize, coming from below with fury.

It crunched on his chin and tore half of his face off, sending him reeling back. Lei followed him closely and swiped at the hand holding the sword. The weapon clattered down. The Governor was left there bare and confused and disoriented as he gazed stupidly around him. Searching for help that wasn’t there. Looking for a spot that was claimed by the Maiden’s Flame.

What he found instead was Lei’s mace. The weapon caught him by the side of his chest and hurled him down to the ground. He spat out blackish blood and waved a clawed hand at Lei. Rotten mana oozed with his command, coming in waves and drilling into Lei’s body.

“More, you fucking bastard!” Lei screamed at his face as he hauled the mace in the air. “Send me more!”

Arms aching, muscles straining, he brought the sword down just as the Maiden’s Flame consumed the last dark streak coursing in the air. There was nothing left to aid these bastards. With one last crunch, Lei would send the Governor to whatever the hell he belonged.

A shadow darted from the side. Clawed fingers swiped at the mace and forced Lei to step back. He was thrown off balance, mace in the air, eyes trailing the shadow. Elder Huang’s brother. That old bastard turned and twisted in the air before lunging at him with both hands stretched.

I can’t…

Lei tried to think, to come up with a way that would protect him from those closing claws, but his body refused to move. He was too slow. The mace weighed him down, and gravity worked against him. His Spiritual Sensitivity skill was screaming in his mind, but there was nothing he could do. Nowhere to move.

“The System will punish me for this,” the old man hissed with wicked pleasure. “But I’ll do everything for the Legion. Die, Chosen. This world will be ours!”

The claws inched slowly toward his eyes. Lei watched him with breath stuck in his throat. It was over. He would—

“Back off!”

A little arm stretched from the side, fingers glistening painfully sharp. Another one was coming from the back, this one muscled and strong, fist aiming at the rotten man’s face. They both found purchase the moment Lei’s feet touched the ground and sent the men sprawling.

Snake gave Lei just a momentary glance before lunging back at the bastard. His Thousand Node Fingers drilled into him like sharp awls, spattering yellowish blood all over his robe. Stone was close, pinning the man with both arms to the ground, allowing Snake to deal one blow after another.

Beyond, Lei saw Little Yao and Little Mei pulling a beast away from Zhu Luli, who was deep in their ranks. Fatty Lou was there beside her, with Sun Hu holding their backs as they slowly forced the Governor’s men toward the burning shelves.

“I’m not alone…” Lei muttered, then scowled when he caught the Governor reaching for his sword. “But looks like you are, you piece of shit. No one’s left for you.”

The Governor looked at him, eyes narrowed down and fingers trembling as they touched the sword’s handle. His chest rattled with a strange laughter as he looked up at the Library’s ceiling. The fog was almost gone, the dark streaks no more, but the man was cackling madly.

“It’s over!” he was saying when the ground underneath their feet trembled all of a sudden. “It’s over. He’s healed! Back to whole again!”

The ceiling broke. A wave of rotten mana swept across the Library and quenched all the flames burning around them. It filled the interior with a sickening, heavy fog that made them sluggish.