novelraw Chapter 276 : Let's All Perish Together
Chapter 276 : Let's All Perish Together
Seeing that the vengeful ghosts released were about to be eliminated by these human cultivators who had suddenly appeared, and that the hard-won ghost gate rift was about to close, the person hiding in the shadows finally couldn't stand by any longer.
Chu Sang tilted her head to avoid the attack, glancing at the unfriendly visitor. Though surprised, she wasn't overly so. A false, benevolent smile appeared on her face,
"So you really were hiding in the ghost realm."
Now, Qin Xixue had nowhere to stay in the cultivation world, demon realm, or beast realm. The cultivation world had been searching for her for so long without finding a trace. It was obvious that she could only flee to the ghost realm to survive.
Qin Xixue's entire demeanor was now completely different from before. She wore black clothes covered in eerie ghost patterns, from some unknown ghost realm force. Her brows and eyes carried an insoluble gloom and coldness, a stark contrast to her previous image as a weak little white flower in the cultivation world. The change in her aura was so great that if it weren't for her familiar face, even Chu Sang, her sworn enemy, might not have recognized her at first glance.
Compared to her previous meek facade in the cultivation world, Qin Xixue no longer needed to pretend to be a little white flower in the ghost realm. She had found it so exhausting to pretend before... If she weren't wanted throughout the continent, she would be living quite freely now.
"Chu Sang! Why is it you again?!" Qin Xixue stared at her with a gloomy expression, her eyes filled with hatred enough to kill her a thousand times over. She gnashed her teeth in fury, "Indeed, you are the most troublesome thing. As long as you live for one day, you'll always ruin my plans!"
On the day she was expelled from her sect, that person had told her everything. She was supposed to be the chosen one of this world, and everything that should have belonged to her had been taken by Chu Sang! Yet she ended up betraying her sect and being wanted by the entire cultivation world!!!
She hated it so much. Why?!!
Why was Chu Sang living freely and happily in the cultivation world, obtaining so many good things and the protection of so many people, while she was a rat in the street that everyone wanted to beat? This shouldn't be her fate!
That person told her that as long as she killed Chu Sang, she could reclaim her identity as the chosen one and take back everything that should have belonged to her!
"......"
Chu Sang was completely speechless. Sometimes she really felt that Qin Xixue was strange. She didn't possess any of the virtuous qualities a novel's female protagonist should have. Her methods of dealing with people became more vicious and treacherous each time. In any orthodox novel, she would be listed as a brainless cannon fodder character. Yet she was inexplicably loaded with Mary Sue and crowd-pleasing protagonist buffs. Her sycophants all seemed to have their intelligence collectively lowered, willingly dying for her. Wasn't this chosen one a bit too overpowered?
After successfully winning over the bigwigs of the cultivation world, demon realm, and beast realm, she had now infiltrated the ghost realm, mixing in with some force and re-involving herself with a new identity... No matter how many times she was killed, she just wouldn't die...
Chu Sang was one hundred percent certain that someone was secretly cheating for her.
Even Mo Qingchen didn't have such good treatment.
Could this be a dark novel? Specifically designed to disgust readers?
However, fortunately, Qin Xixue's greatest cheat item, the Sumeru Ring, was gone now. No matter how much she stirred things up, she couldn't make bigger waves anymore.
"It's been a while since we last met. To be honest, I've missed you a bit. Don't be so aggressive right off the bat."
Chu Sang's face still wore that false, benevolent smile, but a bone-chilling coldness flashed in her eyes. She gripped her sword hilt tightly, spiritual energy swirling upwards. This time, she would thoroughly eliminate this scourge.
When enemies meet, there's no need for foreplay or reasons to start fighting. Qin Xixue had somehow managed to rapidly advance her cultivation to the Divine Transformation stage. The dense yin and evil ghost qi surrounding her body clearly showed that she had now entered the ranks of ghost cultivators. Her attacks were extremely vicious, even more ghost-like than orthodox ghost cultivators.
The difference in their realms wasn't great, but in terms of actual combat experience, Chu Sang wasn't just a bit stronger than Qin Xixue, but completely overwhelming!
Swish—
She thrust her sword upwards, piercing Qin Xixue's arm, then slashed horizontally. "Ah!" Qin Xixue screamed in pain, throwing a ball of black-purple ghost qi from her palm. Chu Sang swung back, releasing a golden armor talisman to defend, then thrust her sword through Qin Xixue's right palm.
Panic appeared on Qin Xixue's face. She realized she was no match for Chu Sang in close combat and tried to create distance between them to use other methods.
But Chu Sang didn't give her a chance to escape, pressing forward relentlessly. Seeing the situation was unfavorable, Qin Xixue panicked, not knowing what to do. At that moment, a voice sounded in her mind. Suddenly, her peripheral vision caught sight of the nearly closed ghost gate not far away. Her eyes lit up, and she flew towards the ghost gate. Chu Sang thought she was trying to escape and gave chase.
Sword intent fell towards her back. Qin Xixue coughed up blood, her eyes filled with venom, but she grinned,
"Chu Sang, this time you're doomed, with absolutely no chance of survival!"
Swallowing the blood in her throat, she produced a jade seal from her palm, cut her hand, and let blood fall onto the seal. Dazzling starlight burst from the nearly closed rift in the ghost gate, and then the entire ghost gate swung wide open!
Chu Sang's breath suddenly caught, and then a sword pierced her chest.
Qin Xixue's cold smile enlarged before her eyes, each word like a curse,
"Die!"
"......"
She gripped the sword half-embedded in her chest with one hand. The sword was coated with an extremely vicious ghost corpse poison, causing her body to convulse slightly. Her eyes reflected Qin Xixue's increasingly wild smile. Her arm, which should have been powerless, suddenly became as heavy as a thousand jun. She violently grabbed Qin Xixue's sword-wielding hand and, as her body fell towards the ghost gate rift, pulled her opponent down with her.
"Ah!"
Qin Xixue's scream mixed with the howling wind, as terrifying as a fierce ghost. "You—Let go of me! Let go!"
"If we're going to die, then let's die together!"
Even if she died, she would drag someone down with her.
No one would survive!
...Madwoman! She's truly mad!!!
Qin Xixue screamed, trying to break free from her grip, but to no avail. Chu Sang was determined to drag her down with her.
Finally, both of their figures were swallowed by the ghost gate, disappearing from sight.
⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱
"Why does it seem like there are more vengeful ghosts the more we kill?"
"Have you noticed that more and more vengeful ghosts are gathering around us? There weren't this many just now. We had almost killed them all, but suddenly their numbers increased greatly. We can't kill them fast enough......"
"Look at that huge black mass in the distance... What is it... Holy crap, am I seeing things? They're all ghosts, and there are several times more than before!"
"Didn't we clear out most of the vengeful ghosts in this area? Why are there more coming!"
"Something's not right, really not right!"
"There are more and more vengeful ghosts. The entire ghost realm might fall. We... we might die here......"
"What should we do......"
"Where's Little Junior Sister? She hasn't come back yet. I'm going to find her!"
The direction of the massive surge of vengeful ghosts was exactly where Chu Sang had gone earlier—towards the ghost gate. Could something have gone wrong with Little Junior Sister? She couldn't have...
The usual playful expression on Tantai Ming's face completely disappeared. The young man's expression was tense as he tried to charge forward against the tide of vengeful ghosts. Dong Liyan grabbed him, shouting angrily, "You foolish boy, going there now is just seeking death!"
"But, but Little Junior Sister is still there. She hasn't come back!"
Wen Renyue was also extremely anxious, trying to contact Chu Sang through the communication jade slip, but receiving no message. She had vanished completely, like evaporating from the world. This scene made everyone's hearts sink, their faces extremely ugly.
Why did an accident have to happen at this time?
"All of you go back. Quickly return to the cultivation world with the Buddha Sect disciples. The Buddha Sect elders will protect you on the way. I'll go find that girl." Dong Liyan tried to keep his voice as calm as possible. "Don't worry too much. I just contacted your Master. That girl is still alive; her soul lamp hasn't gone out. It seems she's encountered some problems and is trapped... I know you're anxious and worried, but there are too many vengeful ghosts ahead. With your current strength, it would be difficult to escape unscathed. If I have to protect more people on the way, I might be hindered."
"Elder Dong, Little Junior Sister's soul lamp hasn't gone out! She's still alive, right?!"
"......Mm."
That girl's soul lamp indeed hadn't gone out. Dong Liyan had no need to tell a well-intentioned lie about this matter. But there was one thing he didn't say—
It hadn't gone out, but the soul lamp was very weak, as if she had suffered a great blow... If they didn't hurry to find her, it might not be far from extinguishing.
What exactly had happened at the ghost gate?
The disciples before him were all emotionally unstable. Dong Liyan couldn't bring himself to tell them the truth. He could only try to calm these children's emotions, have them return with the Buddha Sect disciples, report the ghost realm situation truthfully to their sects, and then have the major sects and families of the cultivation world send support. Only then would it be possible to suppress this sudden ghost tide in the ghost realm.
The ghost tide came far too unexpectedly, completely beyond everyone's expectations. Dong Liyan had given the Pagoda Lock to Chu Sang because he believed in the child's abilities. Not only was she clever and quick-witted, but she was also one of only two Divine Transformation stage disciples present. Moreover, this child had deep Buddhist affinities, even surpassing that Buddha Sect's Buddha's son. This task shouldn't have been difficult for her. He hadn't expected an accident to occur. It was his fault...
The spread of the ghost tide was terrifyingly fast. At this rate, in three days at most, the ghost realm would completely fall.
This was no longer something that two small teams could stop. Allowing these children to stay would very likely result in their loss to the ghost tide. They must leave as quickly as possible.
"...Alright, I'll lead the Junior Brothers and Sisters away first. Elder Dong, please be careful!"
Gu Chang'an was also worried about Chu Sang's comfort, but as the eldest senior brother, he had to consider the overall situation. The suddenly erupting ghost tide was beyond their control. Now they had to retreat as quickly as possible. Saving as many as they could was the priority. They couldn't let anyone else have an accident.
Dong Liyan took out a flying ship that grew with the wind. The ship was equipped with top-grade protective formations, sufficient to safely escort the disciples out of the ghost realm.
After everyone had left, Dong Liyan's face sank. The vengeful ghosts weren't much of a threat to him. He wasn't a living person to begin with. As long as his soul didn't perish, he could find a new body. He just didn't know what condition that girl was in now...
⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱
Ghost qi almost obscured her vision. Endless vengeful ghosts floated before her eyes. Chu Sang got up from the ground and felt her body. She hadn't died?
Not far away, another person had fallen—naturally, it was Qin Xixue.
She casually swung her sword. "Ah!" Qin Xixue rolled to the side, scrambling up trembling with fear. Her clothes were stained with quite a bit of blood, her face particularly pale. In the ghostly firelight, she looked even more like a hideous vengeful ghost.
"You have a way out, don't you? The jade seal you were holding just now, it's the key to open the ghost gate?"
Chu Sang walked towards her with sword in hand, her tone flat.
Qin Xixue swallowed, taking two steps back. She raised her head, forcing a calm expression, "You've already fallen in. Don't even think about getting out! In three hours at most, you'll be completely devoured by the ghost qi here, disappearing from this world forever!"
"Today, one of us two must die!"
The fear faded from her face as she raised her chin, looking smugly at the black blood seeping from Chu Sang's chest. The wound had already started turning black, spreading to nearly half her body. The ghost qi accelerated the corpse poison's invasion of her flesh. Forget three hours; in one hour at most, Chu Sang would be assimilated into a fierce ghost!
The proud daughter of heaven becoming a despicable evil thing—just thinking about it was truly satisfying!
"Oh, you mean this?"
Chu Sang nonchalantly looked down at her wound. She flicked her finger on her clothes, and a golden light appeared on her body, instantly dispersing the remaining ghost qi and corpse poison. A Divine Transformation stage cultivator's physical recovery ability is extremely strong. Without the corpse poison's erosion, the physical wound healed extremely quickly, returning to normal. Soon, not even a trace of injury could be seen.
Qin Xixue's face paled again. She bit her lower lip hard. What, what was this thing that wasn't even affected by ghost qi and corpse poison??!
"But there's one thing you said that's indeed correct." Chu Sang looked up at her. "Today, one of us two must die."
"Only it's not me, but you."
Qin Xixue laughed in extreme anger, "You don't really think you can defeat me, do you? This place was specially prepared for you. You'll be trapped here forever, never able to leave! And you won't be able to use your spiritual power! Rather than watching you be devoured by ghost qi, I'd rather see you die by my sword with my own eyes, to resolve years of hatred!"
Chu Sang was surprised by her words. She tested her internal spiritual power again and found that it was indeed sealed.
This situation made her envision how Fourth Senior Brother and Yan Wangxing must have felt when trapped in the divine decree's illusion. So this was what it felt like to have one's spiritual power completely sealed and unusable. It was indeed... quite unpleasant.
Chu Sang always disliked putting herself at a disadvantage, at least verbally.
So.
She chose to make her enemy uncomfortable.
"Oh, speaking too soon can easily turn into a joke."
Qin Xixue coldly tugged at her lips, completely ignoring her meaningless trash talk. Ghost qi surged forward once again. Chu Sang also withdrew the smile from her face, forced to meet the attack. The ghost qi inside the ghost gate was several times denser than outside, almost materialized. Qin Xixue, who had fallen to become a ghost cultivator, was like a fish in water here. Her power was nearly doubled compared to outside. Meanwhile, Chu Sang's spiritual power was sealed, completely unusable. She could only rely on physical techniques and combat skills, defending as a form of attack, to avoid a miserable defeat.
But anyone could see that Chu Sang was at a disadvantage in this battle. Once the timeline was extended, she would undoubtedly be defeated!