Chapter Ninety-Six: The Berserk Crossbow Arrow of Counterattack

But he hadn’t expected that Yiyi would be unable to cultivate. Startled, he quickly comforted her again, assuring her that she was a genius and promising to teach her cultivation once they escaped their pursuers.

However, he couldn’t examine Yiyi’s body in detail for now; he was still fleeing at full speed, with no time to spare.

“Damn it, I’ll have to splurge today!”

The system continued to spin the lottery, but the Life Essence Pill, or even a Lesser Life Essence Pill or any other healing elixir, refused to appear.

Gritting his teeth, Lin Fan took out a stalk of Dragonblood Vine, shoved it into his mouth, chewed, and swallowed it.

Though the Dragonblood Vine was primarily used to concoct the Dragon Vein Pill, which powerfully aided Qi Vein experts in opening their meridians, it could also be refined into another pill—Dragonblood Pill—a sacred medicine for healing and replenishing vitality, renowned for its formidable ability to restore blood and essence.

Alas, the Dragonblood Pill was on an entirely different level from the Dragon Vein Pill.

Dragonblood Pills could swiftly restore blood and vitality to anyone below the Qi Vein stage—even to the point of excess—but it was somewhat wasteful. There were many other items that could replenish blood and essence: Flesh Ginseng, Blood Lingzhi, Veinblood Grass, and so on. They could all increase one’s vitality by amounts comparable to a Dragonblood Pill made from Dragonblood Vine.

The only advantage was that directly consuming ingredients like Flesh Ginseng or Blood Lingzhi would not restore as quickly as a Dragonblood Pill. Yet, if these were refined with the right materials into a pill, their effect would rival the Dragonblood Pill.

But in terms of value, the difference was striking!

After all, these ingredients couldn’t be used to concoct a grade-seven spiritual pill like the Dragon Vein Pill!

It was like pouring a bottle of 1982 Lafite into your bathtub. Sure, red wine is great for the skin, but do you realize how much you’re wasting? Other wines could do the job just as well.

So, swallowing Dragonblood Vine raw to restore vitality was the height of extravagance.

Yet at this point, Lin Fan had no choice. Though his storage ring held many healing elixirs, none would take effect instantly, and none were particularly good at replenishing blood and essence.

He had suffered two grievous wounds: one on his back and one on his calf. With blood pouring from him at this rate, if he didn’t quickly restore his strength or treat the wounds, it wouldn’t be long before he died from blood loss.

After all, his cultivation was still low; he hadn’t reached the level where he could be reborn from a single drop of blood. The massive loss of vitality was already making him feel weak and powerless.

Sure enough, as soon as the Dragonblood Vine entered his stomach, it transformed into a surge of fiery energy that rushed straight to his heart, which now thudded powerfully like a roaring furnace.

With this influx of energy, his heart’s rhythm increased dozens of times over, sending torrents of fresh blood surging throughout his body.

Meanwhile, the wounds on his back and calf began to heal visibly, though the injuries were so large and deep that, after only partial healing, the process halted.

“Damn it—!”

Cursing, Lin Fan did not hesitate; he shoved the remaining two Dragonblood Vines into his mouth.

His speed was astonishing. Although the seven black-clad men behind him were chasing with all their might, they still lagged dozens of yards behind.

But these men were confident they would catch Lin Fan. Not only was he injured, but he was carrying Xi Men Yiyi on his back—he couldn’t keep running like this forever.

Moreover, more of their allies awaited ahead.

Suddenly, one of the black-clad men behind him pulled something out and, with a sharp sound, launched a colorful signal flare into the sky.

“Not good!” Lin Fan’s face changed dramatically. This was a signal device, commonly used by many factions to summon reinforcements at close range.

Since the black-clad men were firing signals now, their companions must be ahead.

Lin Fan had emerged from the depths of the Azure Python Forest after rescuing Yiyi and had been heading for the edge of the woods, only to be intercepted by black-clad men. He’d fled right, with them in pursuit.

With the signal sent up, their reinforcements could only be ahead.

After all, the black-clad men had first appeared in front of him—his left as he now ran. The right side led deeper into the Azure Python Forest, the direction he’d come from.

It made no sense for them to summon reinforcements from behind; at their speed, anyone coming from the rear would never catch up.

It must be that their companions were ahead, and the signal was to coordinate an ambush.

“No choice but to risk it all!”

Gritting his teeth, Lin Fan abruptly turned and sped deeper into the heart of the Azure Python Forest. In his current state, he would struggle even against five black-clad men to his rear.

If more appeared ahead, he would have no hope of escape.

His only option now was to plunge into the depths of the forest. With his physical cultivation at the Qi Vein level, he should be able to reach a tier-four beast’s territory before the reinforcements arrived.

He knew the art of Concealing Breath. As long as he entered the tier-four beast’s domain and suppressed his presence, the beast likely wouldn’t notice him. But with so many Qi Vein experts charging in, it would surely provoke the creature’s wrath.

Perhaps then, amid the chaos, he could escape. If he made it through several such territories, he might shake off his pursuers for good.

Of course, if the opportunity was right, he might even finish off a few of them.

After all, he still had…!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Like a ghost, Lin Fan darted toward the territory of the tier-four beast.

“Stop him! Quickly!” The black-clad men realized Lin Fan’s intention. Although they didn’t know what means he possessed to dare venture into a tier-four beast’s lair, their faces paled behind their masks, and some even cried out in panic.

If Lin Fan escaped with Xi Men Yiyi, and they failed to bring her back, their master would fly into a rage, and none of them would survive.

With no time for words, they pushed themselves to the limit, their figures flashing like lightning, the air filling with the sound of their pursuit.

But Lin Fan’s abrupt turn had taken him among the towering trees of the Azure Python Forest. By the time they reached the spot where he’d changed course, he was already gone.

Faintly, there was a sound ahead, speeding away. The group immediately chased in that direction.

Swish!

Just as they moved, a blade of snowy light like a waterfall slashed down from above, forcing them to dodge aside.

But one of them wasn’t quick enough; the blade pierced him through.

A white longsword thrust through the top of the black-clad man’s skull, down his throat, and into his heart and lungs.

“Courting death—!” The others roared, surging with energy. Wild true essence blasted toward Lin Fan.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Lin Fan’s blade flashed like a curtain of rain, blocking three of the attacks, but he was still struck by one.

He forced down a mouthful of blood and, without pause, turned and fled again.

Crack!

Just as Lin Fan escaped, the evening sky darkened further. Thunder rumbled, and a fine, drizzling rain began to fall.

The lightning illuminated the entire forest. Lin Fan, his white robe stained with blood, fled in utter desperation.

“After him!” The remaining four black-clad men’s faces were as grim as death. Though they were all deathsworn, that didn’t mean they had no thoughts of their own.

Their master had brought three squads of Black Guards: one to remain at his side, ready to obey any command.

Squads Two and Three had been dispatched. Squad Two was sent to eliminate anyone connected to Xi Men Shuhua, to prevent any leaks.

Squad Three was sent to track down Xi Men Yiyi based on information from White Sha, and to kill White Sha and his people as well.

Now, Squad Two had already returned and was not far ahead, but Squad Three had not only failed to capture Xi Men Yiyi, they had suffered heavy losses.

If their master found out, he would consider them incompetent and inflict a punishment worse than death—one they could not even beg to escape.

Now, the only hope of lightening their punishment was to quickly kill this boy.

Then grovel before their master and beg his forgiveness!

“Chase you? Screw that—take this!”

Just as the black-clad men muttered in low voices, Lin Fan’s shout rang out from afar—and a hail of arrows launched toward them, dozens in an instant.

“Negative Emotion Points from Tie An: +999!”

“Negative Emotion Points from Tie Bing: +999!”

“Negative Emotion Points from…”

Such a battle between masters—all Qi Vein experts—yet he resorted to such vulgar tactics, like a street thug, spewing curses all the while?

Didn’t he feel ashamed?

The black-clad men were instantly enraged, yelling as they unleashed their wild energy to smash the incoming arrows.

If a true master had loosed a single powerful arrow, they would have needed to dodge carefully. But for a youth to fire so many bolts at once—how powerful could they be?

Even if the arrows were infused with true essence, spreading it over so many bolts would dilute their strength.

So, they didn’t bother dodging and charged straight into the hail of arrows…

Boom! Boom! Boom!

But as their energy met the arrows, their faces changed: each bolt carried the full force of a Qi Vein expert’s strike!

With so many arrows, even a mid-stage Qi Vein expert would have to retreat. But now, it was too late to dodge!

Explosions erupted everywhere as energy surged wildly. Arrows pierced giant trees, bored into the earth, and the ground and timber shattered under the onslaught.

The black-clad men, though they managed to bat aside or evade some arrows, could not escape them all. In an instant, their bodies blossomed with crimson as blood sprayed.

Before they could catch their breath, another volley of arrows rained down, forcing them to defend, faces pale.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

From afar, Lin Fan’s hands worked the triggers without pause. Each bolt cost two thousand negative emotion points. As ten arrows fired from the Godbreaker Crossbow, he instantly reloaded.

Holding the Godbreaker Crossbow in both hands, Lin Fan could unleash over twenty bolts in a single breath. He no longer cared about his dwindling negative emotion points; he fired with wild abandon.

At this moment, he was like a man wielding twin machine guns, sweeping the black-clad men with a relentless storm.

His system’s lottery had ground to a halt. After buying beast fruit for Little Gold, he’d had fifty-odd thousand negative emotion points left, but saving Xi Men Yiyi and killing so many foes had brought him up to five hundred and fifty thousand.

He’d spent three hundred thousand on the lottery, hoping for a healing item, but got nothing, so he’d stopped.

The remaining two hundred and fifty thousand negative emotion points he’d spent entirely on Godbreaker Crossbow bolts!

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