The moon hung low in the night sky, casting an eerie glow over the landscape.
In the midst of this quiet night, a scarlet ray of light streaked through the sky when suddenly a colossal figure emerged from the darkness.
Standing tall at an imposing eight feet, his very presence suffocated the air with murderous intensity. Bulging muscles rippled beneath his metallic bronze skin, and long metallic hair cascaded down his back like strands of molten metal. On the giant's back were two wide bone wings that fluttered rhythmically.
The giant was blessed with six arms that were thick as pillars, he loomed in the sky like a malevolent bronze sun. His two bloodshot eyes emanated a sinister killing intent akin to a hellish blizzard.
"Xu Jiulong, today I am going to claim my vengeance. Come accept your death!" The monstrous man's voice resonated with deep seated hatred.
"Oh Xu Hanmo, what a surprise! But addressing your older brother so rudely, the demonic path has truly corroded your morals," Xu Jiulong narrowed his eyes as he spoke in a composed manner. But his guard was immediately raised as he waved his hand, shrouding Wei Wushang and the others in a thick layer of crimson mist.
Hearing this Xu Hanmo clenched his teeth in hatred and rebutted, "You self-righteous hypocrite, dare criticize me? So what if I am a demon, I still wouldn't stoop as low as you!"
Xu Hanmo's expression turned even more ferocious as he shouted with both sadness and rage, "I revealed her identity to you, even when she urged me not to. I did it because I trusted you, because we were brothers. But you broke my trust! You killed her in cold blood just so you could enjoy the rewards placed on her. Does a backstabbing shark like you have any right to talk about morals?"
Hearing this, Xu Jiulong's expression didn't change in the slightest. He even laughed lightly, "Are you done whining? You clearly do not understand the situation. That bitch was leading you astray with her vile methods, and all I did was free you. Alas, it's too late. You have already been corrupted."
"Jiulong!!" Xu Hanmo flew into a wild rage. He couldn't believe the words he was hearing.
"Hmph, I won't spill my own brother's blood. Just vanish from my sight and consider our brotherhood severed from this day forward," Xu Jiulong declared firmly. Without wasting another breath, he hastily retreated towards the sect.
He had no interest in engaging in a meaningless fight to the death.
"Bastard, where are you going? Today it's either you or me!" With frightening speed, Xu Hanmo charged towards the group like a dashing meteor.
"Hmph, if death is what you seek, I won't disappoint you," Xu Jiulong snorted coldly. He didn't want any part of this, but since the other party was hell-bent on fighting he had to comply.
Xu Jiulong suddenly made a grabbing motion and the red mist swirling beneath his feet surged madly, morphing into a monstrous dragon's maw that was ready to consume Xu Hanmo.
Xu Hanmo didn't even flinch as he plunged headlong into the gaping maw and let the giant dragon swallow him whole. The very next moment, the air shook with the violent explosions erupting from within the crimson mist. What followed was a blinding burst of a golden halo that radiated from the dragon's core.
"Looks like you've gotten stronger, but you're dreaming if you want to kill me!" Xu Jiulong sneered as he waved his hand once more, gathering the surrounding air into three colossal windblades.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!
The windblades surged forth with cataclysmic force, as if they would slice the world in half.
"Haha, is this your best? Jiulong, today I'm going to kill you fair and square, and in the most righteous way possible! Kekeke..." Xu Hanmo's mocking laughter suddenly echoed from within the lump of smoke.
Then as if devils and gods were at work, the dragon restraining him shattered. It was in this very moment that Xu Hanmo unveiled his true strength.
His two bronze hands were tightly gripping a seven-feet-long golden bow, while his remaining four arms strained to draw back an arrow that flickered with dangerous black flames.
'Not good!' Xu Jiulong's heart jolted, his expression turning solemn. He swiftly summoned more windblades to intercept the arrow. Simultaneously, he gestured with his hand sending the crimson fog shielding Wei Wushang and the group far away from the battlefield.
The battle was getting too dangerous, Xu Jiulong would feel too restricted if he where to fight while taking care of them. However, he couldn't simply let them die as it would cancel out his profits from the sect mission.
The best course of action was to send them away, but even that carried its own set of risks.
As the protective mist carrying the group moved further away from the battlefield, it began to weaken and gradually started descending toward the forest below.
First it collided with a tree, snapping numerous branches before finally settling on the muddy ground below.
Wei Wushang swiftly adjusted his position and rose to his feet. He attempted to catch a glimpse of the ongoing battle but found his view obstructed by the towering trees that surrounded him.
In the forest, after a momentary silence the youngsters began to panic.
"Fuck! I thought I was gonna meet my ancestors, h*ly fucking shit!" Zhang Hao swore as he hurried over to his sister's aid. Who had somewhat of an awkward landing with her face pressed into the muddy ground and her buttocks arched up toward the sky like an overturned cart.
On the other side, the trembling Li Zhihua had thoroughly wet herself.
The only person who appeared calm was Wei Wushang, but even his heart was in turmoil.
Numerous thoughts in his mind raced like a wild stallion, it was clear that things had taken a awful turn.
"That fight is not something I can interfere with," Wei Wushang muttered to himself, his brows furrowed in deep thought.
'If I were to stay there any longer, my life would surely be in extreme danger. But even now, as we've been moved further away from the battlefield we're not out of danger. Depending on the outcome of the battle we could very well die!'
'If Xu Jiulong were to win, then there's nothing to worry about. However, if that monstrous thing, Xu Hanmo emerges victorious then there's an extremely high chance he'll come after us to silence us. Crap, what should I do?'
Wei Wushang's frown deepened, but moments later he raised his right hand and gave himself a sharp smack on the back of the head.
'Calm down, I must calm down!'
'I shouldn't focus on things that are beyond my control, but rather focus on dangers that I can still influence.'
'Right now, I'm deep within the forest, and during our descent I didn't notice any human settlements. This is the biggest problem now. Surviving in the wild until we either get rescued or get killed.'
Despite being an inexperienced youth, Wei Wushang was exerting every ounce of effort in this difficult situation. Furthermore, with the assistance of his Myriad Thoughts martial spirit, his thoughts were churning at a lightning pace.
As Wei Wushang pondered, his expression suddenly changed for the worse. Without hesitation, he dragged Li Zhihua and rushed toward the Zhang siblings, urgently shouting, "Zhang Mei, martial spirit now! We're surrounded!"
Zhang Mei was stunned by his words. However, her eyes quickly lit up as she spread her divine sense to scan the surroundings. The results of her investigation caused her to almost jump in fright.
"Hurry up!" Wei Wushang urged as he brought over the dumbfounded Li Zhihua.
Zhang Mei struggled to regain her composure and channeled her spiritual essence into her Earthly Prison martial spirit.
A small, luminous yellow cube materialized above Zhang Mei's head. In the blink of an eye, it rapidly expanded and formed a cage around them.
Immediately after the cage had formed, a pack of wolves burst out from the nearby bushes and circled around the yellow barrier.
These six wolves had grey fur and dark blue eyes that gave them a dangerous appearance. However, what truly caught the eye were their razor-sharp teeth and savage claws that looked more like kitchen knives.
The wolves let out bloodcurdling howls as they charged at the barrier with all their might. They scratched with their claws, bit with their teeth, but they could only make the barrier budge a little.
"I am safe..." Wei Wushang breathed out a sigh of relief.
But then he heard Zhang Mei saying, "Oh no, I've already used up most of my spiritual essence while cultivating earlier. I can't sustain this barrier for more than fifteen minutes!"
'Huh? Only fifteen minutes!' Wei Wushang's mind shook.
Even though he was now an Rank 1 Qi Expansion stage cultivator, he didn't possess superhuman strength. Perhaps if he had an offensive-type martial spirit, he could probably eliminate these wolves.
However, he only had a martial spirit capable of generating more thoughts.
Unless and until Wei Wushang masters a necessary martial technique, he will remain weak.
But that was for the future, if he had one at all. As things stood now, even the next hour looked quite grim.
But Wei Wushang didn't let the grim situation affect him. He turned toward Zhang Hao and questioned, "Brother Zhang, don't you have an offensive-type martial spirit? Could you do us a favour and deal with these wolves?"
In response, Zhang Hao flashed a bitter smile, "I would've handled these wolves, but I'm in the same boat as my sister. My spiritual essence is critically low at the moment. It would take me another twenty minutes of meditation just to use my martial spirit once. Damn it, it seems we'll not be making out this shit show alive."
Wei Wushang's face was dim like water, but he gritted his teeth and ordered, "Start meditating, now!"
Zhang Hao sighed before nodding and began meditating.
"This is it, this is the end. We're all going to die," Li Zhihua wailed, her last ounce of hope crumbling as tears flowed down her face.
"Don't cry, it's not entirely hopeless. If I shrink the radius of the barrier, I might be able to endure for an extra minute. But everyone must absolutely remember this, my Earthly Prison barrier can only block external attacks. When I narrow the barrier, you all must be cautious not to touch it or you might directly pass through it," Zhang Mei spoke in a soft tone.
She was encouraging Li Zhihua not to give up hope, but in reality those words were also meant for herself.
"Even if we can hold on for an extra minute, what's the use? He still needs four more minutes. Isn't it just delaying the inevitable?" Li Zhihua sobbed even more profusely.
Zhang Mei's face paled. The tiny glimmer of hope in her heart dwindled significantly.
"She's right unfortunately. I believe this is it for us. My dear sister, forgive me for failing to protect you," Zhang Hao sighed, having already lost all hope.
"Brother..." Zhang Mei's eyes reddened with tears, but she stubbornly held them in.
Zhang Hao continued, his voice now bitter with feelings of injustice, "it's not fair! What have we done to deserve this? Why have the heavens condemned such a tragic fate upon us? This is just not fair!"
"Please brother, don't say such words. I, I can't be strong..." tears escaped her eyes as Zhang Mei's hope finally shattered completely.
From the start, she had been struggling to hold herself together under pressure of the wolves, but her brother's despairing words finally sent her plunging into the pit of hopelessness.
And since Zhang Mei lost her focus, the yellow barrier surrounding them began to falter, with cracks spreading across its surface. The situation was turning for the worse!
But at that moment, she felt a firm grip on her shoulder. And just as she started to turn, a voice reached her ears.
"Don't listen to them. In this battlefield of life and death, do not be a coward. Zhang Mei, look around.... this place, don't you find it just so boring?"
"Wha-?"
"Tell me, have you ever wondered what the Desolate Harmony Sect is really like? Aren't you curious about the mysteries it holds? What about people that live there, aren't you curious about them? I am, and you should be too. This world is too fascinating, too full of surprises, and too mysterious to give up on so soon. So don't despair just yet. Zhang Mei, do what you can. Fight for every moment, because every second is precious!" Wei Wushang encouraged, his eyes piercing into her tearful gaze.
"Huh..." Zhang Mei's eyes, red and swollen from tears, slowly widened as she absorbed Wei Wushang's words.
Gradually, the despair that had clouded her heart began to lift. Giving rise to newfound hope.
What just happened with Zhang Mei wasn't a miracle. It was the influence of words and the right attitude.
"Brother Wei," Zhang Hao called out with a smile, "Would you care to explain how being surrounded by a pack of bloodthirsty wolves feels boring to you? Are you... prehaps, fucking with us?!" He was still smiling, but it was clearly from anger.
Wei Wushang snorted coldly, but did not answer him. It was often in the face of adversity that people crumble into despair or seek comfort in expressing their frustrations.
At such times they tend to surrender to hopelessness, stop believing in themselves. And betray both their true selves and their dreams.
But what they fail to see is that within their hearts lies a power that only the courageous can see.
The power of belief!
Believing in oneself is not a weakness. To believe that hope endures beyond the darkest moments demands strength. And to realize and believe that no situation is truly desperate. Only desperate people in their desperation make the times seem so, takes great insight!
Even though the outcome of the battle between immortals was uncertain.
Though Wei Wushang was surrounded by savage beasts eager to tear into his flesh, and with incompetent allies that were too busy crying and complaining when time was running out, he did not lose hope.
Wei Wushang camly glanced at his allies before his gaze briefly shifted to the barrier, which had already mended its cracks and regained its former strength, but he barely spared it a second glance.
His eyes moved past the barrier toward the wolves that were pouncing on it in hopes of destroying it.
However, he quickly lost interest in them as well.
It was only when he looked up at the solitary moon that hung high in the sky, did the young man's face finally show emotion.
"Its still so far, so distant. How can my journey end at the likes of these lowly beasts? I won't let it. I, Wei Wushang, will survive through this and carve my path to the summit, no matter what!" He declared suddenly, his expression resolute, driven by sheer will to survive.