novelraw Chapter 164 - 159: 3 Parties Converge, Awaiting the Kill on a Moonlit Night
Chapter 164 - 159: 3 Parties Converge, Awaiting the Kill on a Moonlit Night
In a building near the hotel where Yi Beidou was staying.
The nine Saint Experts from the command headquarters had already gathered here.
"Mr. Yi has refused our request to have him temporarily move out of the hotel and stay at the command headquarters for the night. He said that if any riff-raff comes looking for trouble, it would be the perfect opportunity to see what they’re made of."
A staff member reported to Wei Cheng and the others with a helpless air upon his return.
They had sent people to the hotel to try and persuade him, but they didn’t even get to see him. The message was relayed by Meng Qianyuan.
If he had been willing to stay at the command headquarters for the night, his safety would be much more assured, and it would save them a lot of trouble.
"That definitely sounds like him."
Wei Cheng wasn’t the least bit surprised.
He knew Yi Beidou well. If the man had actually listened and accepted their protection, he would have suspected his body had been taken over.
Now *that* would be truly strange.
"A young man ought to have that kind of dauntless spirit. We old folks can’t just sit around idly. Let’s spread out and watch over him for the night."
The old man in the tunic suit said with a smile, clearly not bothered by Yi Beidou’s attitude.
If a Martial Artist lacked mettle and confidence, if he lost his edge and fighting spirit, how could he possibly have reached such a level at his age?
’Here I stand, ready to crush any foe—that is the true spirit of a Martial Artist.’
"With the nine of us Saint Experts spread out around the hotel, radiating our auras, even an Ancient One would have to think twice about the consequences of showing up."
The old woman dressed like a nun spoke up.
After all, they weren’t from the younger generation. They were veteran Saint Experts, long famous throughout Donghua, who had mastered numerous Secret Techniques.
Most importantly, they were old and didn’t have many years left. They also had no intention of walking the evil path of Corpse Dissolution, which meant they weren’t afraid to fight to the death. Even if several Ancient Ones came in person, it was doubtful they could escape their grasp.
If they could take one or two of those old monsters with them before they died, it would be a cause for joyous celebration.
Those creatures were masters of weighing risks and rewards. Forcing them to take a huge risk would make them hesitate.
They might be able to get in, but once a fight broke out, getting out would be another story.
"It’s a shame the Elder Celestial Master underwent the Transformation Dao. If he were here, our success would be guaranteed."
someone lamented.
Everyone nodded. If the Elder Celestial Master were still alive, it was likely that not even an Ancient One would dare come within miles of him, or they would be instantly detected.
"What we should be more concerned about now is that Devi Punk from the Starry Sky Country. We have to wonder if he’ll use some dirty tricks in tomorrow’s duel."
Zhong Ang said gravely.
They knew that one could use external aids to temporarily boost their strength. Given Yi Beidou’s character, he would never resort to such methods, but the same couldn’t be said for someone from the Starry Sky Country.
That was their biggest worry.
But at this point, all they could do was adapt to the situation as it unfolded.
They quickly went their separate ways, dispersing into the area around Yi Beidou’s hotel. They made no effort to conceal their auras, brazenly releasing the powerful presence of Saint Experts.
Anyone proficient in the Qi Observation Skill would have seen pillars of light shooting toward the heavens, blazing like signal beacons.
Inside the hotel, Yi Beidou sensed the auras flaring up. He frowned slightly but quickly regained his composure.
He had refused to go to the command headquarters for protection, but he couldn’t interfere with what others chose to do.
’A pity,’ he thought. ’With this display, those reincarnators hiding in the shadows probably won’t dare to make a move.’
It would certainly cut down on the "surprises."
He refocused his mind, reviewing the battles he had experienced that day.
Earth Giant God Yuri, Source Stream Ulysses, and even Zhou Qingchen’s Immortal Ascension Secret Technique all flashed through his mind.
Everything he had seen and heard would become his "fodder," helping him glimpse an even higher realm of power.
「Before long, the night deepened.」
Unbeknownst to anyone, three plainly dressed young men were gradually approaching Yi Beidou’s hotel.
"One, two, three... a total of nine auras surrounding the target. Brazen, with no attempt at concealment. They’re sending us a warning."
"And they’re all old-timers. If they decided to put their lives on the line, even our true selves would have to think twice."
the Black Earl said with a smile.
If their true selves were here, these people naturally wouldn’t be able to stop them.
But this was Donghua territory. In the current climate, security throughout Modu was deceptively tight, and the Donghua Army was on high alert.
A clash with modern weaponry and exposing their current identities was not in their best interest.
Their enemy’s countermeasures were sound, but what they hadn’t counted on was that these three weren’t worried about exposure or death at all.
Because the ones who had appeared here were merely expendable incarnations.
It was time to show the world the Divine Powers and authority they wielded.
"Any further and we’ll be in their detection range. These bodies weren’t designed to serve as incarnations, after all. I doubt we’ll be able to perfectly conceal our auras once we get that close. Do either of you have a way to hide us?"
White Elephant Lord asked Cyan Sword and the Black Earl.
"Then I’ll handle it."
The Black Earl held out a finger as blood began to seep from its pores.
"You don’t mind, do you?"
he asked, looking at the other two.
They both nodded slightly.
The Black Earl began to draw a pattern on each of their foreheads with the blood from his finger—it was an inverted hexagram.
Once he was finished,
HUMMM!!
A flash of inky light flickered in his eyes. The surrounding landscape instantly dimmed, growing hazy and unsettlingly strange.
It was as if an "underworld filter" had been laid over everything.
The plants in the surrounding greenbelt turned gray, their branches swaying like the disheveled hair of some grotesque woman. The yellow glow of the streetlights became a bloody red, and from a distance, the metal poles resembled pale, bony joints. The entire sky turned pitch-black, with only a single, crimson moon hanging within it...
In the blink of an eye, the three seemed to have entered another dimension.
Corrupted Otherworld!!
"Let’s go. As long as you stay within three meters of me, we can avoid detection. And if we stick to the shadows, we can fool electronic surveillance and the naked eye of anyone below the Saint level to a certain degree."
"This body is ultimately too weak. This is the best I can do."
The Black Earl strode forward, with White Elephant Lord and Cyan Sword falling in step beside him.
The group moved through the darkest parts of the streets, evading numerous cameras and monitors. They advanced quickly toward the hotel, completely unnoticed by the veteran Donghua Saint Experts scattered nearby.
However, their disguise was not entirely flawless.
「At this very moment.」
In the area surrounding the hotel, just outside the patrol perimeter of the nine Saint Experts, a tall figure leaned against an alley wall, resting with his eyes closed. He stood in such deep shadow that even pedestrians passing through the alley failed to notice his presence.
Suddenly, Devi snapped his eyes open, as if he had sensed something.
He then frowned slightly.
He couldn’t determine their exact location or see through their concealment.
’Looks like the ones making a move tonight are no simple matter.’
His expression quickly returned to calm.
’It doesn’t matter if I can’t find them,’ he thought. ’As long as I know their final destination, I just have to get there first.’
He was well aware that the area around Yi Beidou’s residence was teeming with Saint Experts. If he revealed himself, he’d have no way to explain his presence and would likely be mistaken for an accomplice and attacked by all of them.
It was an incredibly risky move.
But so what?
If he decided something needed to be done, he would do it. No one could change his will.
TAP, TAP!
He stepped out of the alley and tapped a finger to the center of his brow.
BZZZT!
In that instant, all the nearby streetlights and electrical fixtures flickered before returning to normal.
This was a magnetic fluctuation caused by Devi pushing his concealment ability to its absolute limit. With a push off the ground, he shot toward the hotel at incredible speed.
「Meanwhile.」
"Hm?"
Yi Beidou, who had been in his room contemplating the previous day’s battle, suddenly tensed.
He possessed exceptionally strong psychic abilities to begin with, and after mastering the Demon Flame, they had been enhanced even further. On top of that, his Celestial Demon Sensing was extremely sensitive to malicious intent, and he himself was the focal point of this entire affair.
The three Ancient One incarnations had all underestimated his psychic prowess.
Still, even he couldn’t sense their exact location or when they would arrive. He could only vaguely perceive that the source of malice had already entered the Saints’ patrol perimeter without being detected.
But even though he could sense the impending hostility and danger, Yi Beidou didn’t raise the alarm. Instead, he let them continue.
’I’d like to see just who has come to call.’
Yi Beidou muttered to himself.
’Corpse Dissolving Immortals? Or those legendary Ancient Ones?’
The night was dark and windy. He waited for the killers to arrive, utterly fearless.
About fifteen minutes later, the three Outer Body Incarnations arrived before Yi Beidou’s hotel.
With a light step, the three of them vaulted over the surrounding wall and entered the hotel grounds, sticking to the shadows as they crept swiftly toward the source of Yi Beidou’s aura.
Just as they neared Yi Beidou’s building,
"I’ve been waiting for you."
a calm voice rang out from the building.
The next moment,
CRASH!
a window on an upper floor suddenly shattered, and a figure leaped down from the seventh story.
"Hm?"
The three assassins’ eyes narrowed, their gazes locking onto the figure.
They were certain it was their target.
’He discovered us?’
’His intuition is quite sharp.’
’Instead of hiding, he came right for us. It seems he knew we were here all along, yet he didn’t raise the alarm to alert the experts nearby?’
’The arrogance of youth.’
’Still, this saves us a lot of trouble.’
BOOM!
Just as Yi Beidou landed heavily on the ground and the three assassins exchanged a look, preparing to attack, they all froze.
"Looks like I’m not too late."
another calm voice sounded from the shadows at the corner of a nearby building.
Accompanied by the sound of footsteps, a devastatingly handsome, blond-haired, blue-eyed young man slowly emerged from the shadows and into their view.