Su Cheng's current condition was exceptionally dire.
The enormous blade mark across his chest had almost severed him in half, extinguishing any hope of survival.
However, he had deliberately avoided a fatal blow to vital organs. With his medical expertise, he could prolong his life for a few more days.
But what was even more terrifying was the evil divine power corroding his body. Even though these powers were now dwindling, they were still unbearable for an ordinary soul master like him.
If it weren't for the residual effects of the sacred attribute of the ten-thousand-year soul bone still active, he would have been a corpse by now.
Su Cheng accurately assessed his current physical condition.
"I have less than two hours to live..."
He realized that he had underestimated the power of the gods.
Indeed, an ordinary mortal soul master, without the foresight to detonate their soul bone directly, allowing themselves a short-lived touch of divinity, would not even be able to keep up with the movements of those two, let alone step forward to block their attacks.
Even blocking this blow was only possible because Su Cheng had been prepared in advance.
He had sensed Bi bi Dong's hidden move long before.
Those blade shadows were suspicious.
Although Qian Renxue surpassed him in overall strength, her battlefield instincts were lacking. Her journey had been too smooth, her combat experience too limited, and her combat wisdom far inferior to Bi bi Dong, who was almost twice her age.
It was Su Cheng who reacted faster.
Su Cheng smirked, a slightly eerie smile playing on his lips. "It's really cold..."
It wasn't just the winter chill; it was the bone-chilling cold creeping into his marrow from the erosion of the evil divine power that made him tremble involuntarily.
"Teacher..." Qian Renxue, who had silently approached, stared blankly at the broken body before her.
His upper body was almost severed, held together by strands of energy, barely stemming the continuous gush of blood.
His right leg was missing, emitting a faint golden light at the base, engaged in a tug-of-war with the pervading purple mist spreading from his body.
His face was covered in dust and blood stains, and he occasionally coughed up dark purple blood.
At this moment, Su Cheng no longer possessed his former calm demeanor; he looked exceptionally disheveled.
Qian Renxue's tears finally flowed uncontrollably as she knelt down beside him, gently stroking his cheek with her palm.
A faint red light shimmered in her eyes, unmistakable even amidst the dazzling golden glow.
"Cough, Xiaoxue..." Su Cheng propped himself up with his fingers on the ground, struggling to sit up straight, casting a glance at the figure further away.
Bi bi Dong remained motionless in her original position.
"Teacher, why..."
"Cough, listen to me first... Use your spiritual power, her weakness... Cough..."
"Don't speak, I'll save you first." Qian Renxue choked out, gathering golden light in her hand.
At the same time, a faint flame appeared on her body.
However, she began to burn her own divine power directly!
"Quiet, Xiaoxue, listen to me first..."
But Qian Renxue turned a deaf ear to his words, unrelentingly infusing her angelic power into his body.
However, after a moment, she found that her divine power couldn't integrate at all.
At the same time, Su Cheng's body was surrounded by sword shadows, blocking the gentle healing power released by Qian Renshuang's hand.
If she forcefully broke through this barrier to administer treatment, it would only worsen his injuries and hasten his death.
"Teacher?!" Qian Renxue looked up in astonishment at Su Cheng.
"It's no use. I know my condition. Don't waste your effort." Su Cheng said lightly, staring into Qian Renxue's eyes.
"Now... Cough..." Between his words, another mouthful of dark purple blood, tinged with a strong aura of Rakshasa divine power, spat out, sizzling as it hit the ground.
"Can you listen to me now?"
"I was mistaken. She's not the Asura God, she's the Rakshasa God. She's no longer Bi bi Dong; her mind has long been corrupted by those evil wills. Spiritual power... Cough...
Spiritual power is her weakness, but it's your strength."
"Rakshasa..." Upon hearing this name, Qian Renshuang instinctively felt a wave of disgust, as if the two were natural enemies.
"Yes, the Rakshasa God, the most evil deity. Keeping her alive is a menace to the whole world. Xue'er, go kill Bi bi Dong; she's gone mad. Don't show mercy, make a decisive move." He gazed at Qian Renxue. "Xiaoxue, kill her!"
Upon hearing these words, Qian Renxue's eyes flashed with intense red light, almost overpowering the original golden glow.
The myriad negative emotions she had been suppressing—grief, anger, murderous intent—suddenly burst forth, previously overshadowed by her concern for Su Cheng.
Now, hearing his words of confirmation, these emotions erupted uncontrollably.
Especially seeing Su Cheng's current condition, she was on the verge of losing her rationality.
Her father was dead, her grandfather was dead, and now her most important teacher might also be dying.
All because of that Rakshasa God!
"That's not Bi bi Dong..."
Swish!
The flames reignited on the Angelic Holy Sword.
But this time, the flames were no longer the dazzling golden color; they were tinged with a faint hint of blood.
"Cough..."
Watching Qian Renxue reenter the battlefield, Su Cheng coughed up another mouthful of blood.
He really didn't have much time left.
He could only cling to life with the energy from the ten-thousand-year soul bone and his own medical skills.
But Su Cheng had no regrets.
As a weakling, manipulating the powerful was never easy.
No matter how cold and hostile the relationship between Qian Renshuang and Bidi Dong, how could the bond of blood between mother and daughter be easily severed?
If he didn't intervene personally, neither of them would end up losing their lives regardless of who won or lost.
[Main Quest: Fifth Ring: Curtain Call]
Task Content: Defeat or expel at least 80% of the Battle Soul Hall's forces.
Task Reward: Final bonus based on overall completion.
Su Cheng didn't pay attention to the changes in the quest progress. Exhausted, he had reached this point by giving it his all. Balancing the strength of two god-level entities, dividing the strength of the Battle Soul Hall's members, and subtly guiding the demise of the three top-tier offerings—almost all of this was accomplished by him alone.
But now, it was finally his turn to enter the game.
If he didn't allow the two women to engage in a life-and-death battle today, this confrontation would instead become the catalyst for the mother and daughter to resolve their issues.
Any emotion would be worn down by time, including love and hatred.
Not to mention, there's no better outlet for emotions than battle.
If he missed this opportunity, he would lose his chance to manipulate events in the future.
It's better to sacrifice a pawn than to lose the entire game.
No chess player is willing to sacrifice any of their pieces, but at the same time, no piece is too sacred to be sacrificed, including himself.