Volume One, Chapter Seventy-Seven: Joining Forces

Flesh and blood intertwined and reformed, scales healed and regenerated. The serpent emerged once more from the mist, its entire body now a vivid crimson, towering several meters higher than before. From afar, the colossal thirty-meter-long serpent coiled upon itself, creating an overwhelming visual impact.

Jian Xin sensed the arrival of Shang Qingwen behind him. The man turned his head, gazing at the elder who approached with hands clasped behind his back, about to speak, but Shang Qingwen raised a hand to silence him.

“It matters little. We’re all old men with our brows soon buried in yellow earth. Let’s make use of what remains of our strength,” said Shang Qingwen, his posture upright and imposing, his aura steadily rising as he unleashed his full power, ready to fight alongside Jian the Blacksmith.

For twenty years, he had never relaxed nor enjoyed a day of peace. Even in his twilight years, he broke through successive bottlenecks to reach the pinnacle of the Outer Realm, becoming Dongsha Village’s final trump card. Though his strength had waned with age, the self-destruction of an Outer Realm master at his peak would surely be terrifying.

Shang Qingwen was the third native-born Outer Realm master since the founding of Dongsha Village.

“Let’s try first,” Jian Xin said, unable to stop Shang Qingwen from joining the fray, urging him not to rush to his death but to fight together and see if they could slay the beast.

Shang Qingwen nodded. Though he had left words behind, if he could avoid dying, it would be for the best, as Zhang Butcher and the others had yet to reach the mid-Outer Realm and could not support the entire village.

Flames flowed around Shang Qingwen, carefully avoiding the cigarette clamped between his teeth. He was well aware of the effects brought by the lunar tide and would not waste energy on unnecessary spells. He planned to use his abilities to enhance his physique and engage the serpent in close combat.

The elderly had limited stamina and needed a swift victory.

Chen Luoluo, forming an ice sword, intended to join them, but Wei Qiaoyun stopped her. “The gap between mid-stage and full mastery is too great. Miss Chen, you shouldn’t intervene.”

Twenty years ago, Wei Qiaoyun was a young maiden. Then, several villagers at the early and mid stages of the Outer Realm stepped forward, sacrificing themselves to weaken the serpent—a memory that left her deeply scarred.

“I…” Chen Luoluo, who had never spoken before, now surprised everyone by uttering words. Her throat seemed unaccustomed to speech; she cleared it twice before continuing.

“I love combat and slaughter, but I do not like seeing my own people die.” Her voice was hoarse and calm, like an ancient well undisturbed.

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Everyone stared in astonishment at Chen Luoluo’s sudden words, even Mu Qing’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“Strike when there’s an opening, move to support. Going up isn’t rushing to die—it’s to create opportunities for the village chief and the blacksmith,” Zhang Butcher said, patting Wei Qiaoyun’s shoulder.

“You three stay back. When we win, come help us up,” he called to Yang Yichan and his companions. Unlike themselves, the three had yet to attain the power of the Outer Realm—approaching the fight would be courting death.

Yang Yichan, Chen Shan, and Jiang Yan paused, then nodded and withdrew together, knowing they must not act on impulse and cause trouble for the others.

Two battle groups formed: the blacksmith and the village chief faced the serpent directly, while the others moved around to provide support.

Fangs bared, forked tongue flickering. The serpent slowly raised its massive body, gazing down at the humans before it.

A blazing flame shot up like a meteor in reverse, as the aged Shang Qingwen launched the first attack. Jian Xin crouched, pressing his palm to the earth; with Shang Qingwen drawing the serpent’s attention, he could construct a stronger and more complete shadow domain.

Wei Qiaoyun’s water armor did not mesh well with Shang Qingwen’s fire abilities, so Zhang Butcher reconstructed his crystal sand into a close-fitting soft armor and handed it to Shang Qingwen.

His crystal shield now served little purpose; better to focus on strengthening Shang Qingwen’s defense.

Wei Qiaoyun and Zhang Shunlai knew they could not inflict real damage on the serpent now, so they chose to support the other fighters.

Chen Luoluo’s decision to attack made sense to them, but Mo De, who looked unlikely to harm the serpent, also dashed toward the inner circle of the battle.

“Miss Qin Qing, perhaps you could persuade Brother Mo not to rush in…” Zhang Butcher turned, hoping Qin Qing would intervene, only to find she had vanished. Looking again, he saw a slender figure had appeared beside Mo De.

Rubbing his eyes, Zhang Butcher wondered if he was seeing things from exhaustion.

Approaching the core of the battlefield, where explosions resounded without pause, Chen Luoluo separated from the Qin sisters, dragging her sword behind her as she raced around the battlefield’s edge, carving icy traces. She did possess a true ace, but its cost was proportional to its power—if she used it, she would effectively be withdrawing from the fight.

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Ice traces engraved upon the earth gradually calmed the restless forces here, making it smoother for Jian Xin and Shang Qingwen to wield their arts.

Noticing what Chen Luoluo was doing at the periphery, Jian Xin relaxed his furrowed brow. With her assistance, his shadow domain would form faster.

But when he sensed two faint presences, he paused. He hadn’t noticed before: the youth from Ghost Island, like himself, had also entered the battlefield.

Behind him, the young woman matched his speed and steps perfectly, her presence equally faint. If not for Jian Xin’s shadow abilities spreading across the land as he prepared his domain, he would not have detected their figures.

Dodging the gusts and fiery aftermath that swept the battlefield, Mo De kept lowering his presence. Light flickered in his hand—a copper glow silently appeared at the mouth of his Realm Stone scabbard.

He reversed his grip, sheathing the short blade, holding the scabbard in one hand and the hilt in the other, lowering his posture as the powers within him surged wildly. Copper light condensed throughout his body, then flowed into the short blade within the scabbard.

Mo De relentlessly squeezed the remnants of copper within him, gathering them together.

He opened the storage space of his Realm Stone scabbard, carefully selecting the highest quality metals to prepare for battle.

Sensitive as he was, he sensed that the village chief Shang Qingwen was ready to die, so he resolved to do everything possible to prevent it.

Just as Chen Luoluo had said, he too disliked seeing his own people die before his eyes.

The hunter concealed himself, waiting for the prey to reveal a weakness, ready to deliver that silent, lethal strike.

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