Chapter 28: Unleashed Fury

Wu Que’s brow furrowed even deeper.

He could feel the array spread throughout the town still functioning, yet the resentment and blood energy it absorbed were pitifully thin.

The townspeople, who should have been torn to shreds by demonic minions and converted into pure nourishment, were somehow, for the most part, still alive.

Only a few scattered, already weak wandering spirits were devouring one another, but it was nowhere near enough.

“Time is running out.”

He muttered to himself, his voice laced with agitation.

“If this continues, with the townspeople not yet dead and the resentment insufficient, the final entity born from these weak spirits devouring each other will be utterly useless for my grand design.”

His head tilted slightly, and his hollow eyes once again locked onto Su Qinghan, who was peeking out from the rooftop.

“It was definitely you, you damnable woman.”

This was not a question, but a statement.

“You interfered.”

Su Qinghan chuckled, rising from behind the stone beast and dusting off her hands.

“Now, now, you can’t say that. I’m just a helpless woman, too weak to even truss a chicken.”

Wu Que fell silent.

He understood.

It was the talismans.

Those damned talismans, which he had dismissed as the tricks of a charlatan, had actually worked.

“Since the demonic minions are useless…”

He slowly drew the longsword embedded in the ground.

As the blade left the earth, it let out a grating shriek, and a crimson light swirled madly along its edge.

“Then I shall do it myself.”

The moment the words left his lips, he vanished from the stone platform!

Su Qinghan’s pupils contracted violently!

‘So fast!’

Without a second thought, she pushed off with her feet, backflipping off the roof.

At the same time, she flicked her wrists, sending a dozen yellow talismans flying to form a simple array in front of her.

“BOOM—”

Wu Que’s figure materialized from thin air, his sword slashing down!

The dozen glowing talismans, along with the roof eaves where Su Qinghan had just stood, were instantly obliterated into dust by the ferocious sword energy!

Still in mid-air, Su Qinghan scrambled to right herself.

The moment her feet touched the ground, a vicious gust of wind rushed toward her!

She had no time to catch her breath, forced to push her spirit-infused legs to their limit as she dodged frantically through the narrow street.

Sword energy crisscrossed the air!

The walls behind her, the doors and windows of the shops, the flagstones on the road—all were sliced to pieces by the unstoppable sword strikes.

“Freeze!”

Su Qinghan slapped another immobilization talisman behind her.

Wu Que didn’t even glance at it.

With a swing of his sword, the resulting energy shredded the talisman and the spiritual power it contained.

‘A warrior has a warrior’s way of fighting.’

‘And we Daoists, naturally, have our own rules.’

Her own words flashed through Su Qinghan’s mind, and she wanted nothing more than to slap herself.

‘My rules… don’t seem to be a match for his!’

“Jiu Li! Do you have any weapons of mass destruction?! Give me one!”

“Do you think I’m an armory?!” Jiu Li’s voice was on the verge of tears. “I’ve given you all my spiritual power! Be frugal with it! Run! Just run!”

‘Run?’

‘Where could I run?’

Su Qinghan knew perfectly well that the moment she turned to flee, Wu Que’s sword would fall upon the defenseless townspeople.

‘I can’t retreat!’

Another slash of sword energy grazed her shoulder, drawing a spray of blood.

The sharp pain sent her stumbling.

Wu Que appeared before her like a phantom, his longsword raised high, descending with an aura that could sever anything in its path!

‘It’s over.’

Those were the only words left in Su Qinghan’s mind.

But in that critical moment!

A crimson figure, trailing a wave of scorching heat, slammed into him!

“CLANG!”

The shriek of metal on metal was painful to the ears.

Liu Ruyan held a long saber, its blade dripping with blood, as she struggled to block Wu Que’s sword.

Her arms trembled violently, the web between her thumb and forefinger completely torn open, blood streaming down the hilt.

“You…”

Liu Ruyan stared fixedly at Su Qinghan, forcing the words through her teeth.

“You demon… why are you saving people?”

Su Qinghan scrambled up from the ground, clutching her bleeding shoulder and wincing in pain.

“Lady, our eyebrows are about to be singed off, and you’re still hung up on my identity? Can’t we just focus on the common enemy first?”

She whipped out another stack of talismans and shoved them at Liu Ruyan.

“Stick these on him! I’ll cast the spell.”

Liu Ruyan froze for a second, then roared, “I’m holding back his sword! You want me to go stick paper on him?! Are you an idiot?!”

“Oh, right! Hold him off! Let me do it!”

Su Qinghan took a deep breath, formed a hand seal, and began to chant.

“Call the heavenly thunder! Ignite the earthly fire! By the supreme command, let it be so!”

She pointed sharply at Wu Que.

And yet, nothing happened.

The air was utterly still.

‘Did you really have to run out of spiritual power at a time like this?’

Su Qinghan: “…”

Liu Ruyan: “…”

For the first time, a hint of something close to a sneer appeared on Wu Que’s face.

“Damned charlatan.”

He flicked his wrist, unleashing a tremendous force.

Liu Ruyan grunted, and she and her saber were sent flying, crashing heavily into a distant wall as she coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Wu Que paid them no more mind.

He turned, raised his sword, and started toward the nearest residence.

“Stop!”

Su Qinghan charged forward again.

This time, she used no talismans, instead gathering every last wisp of her spiritual power into her fist and aiming a vicious blow at the center of Wu Que’s back.

Without turning his head, Wu Que whipped his scabbard back.

“BAM!”

Su Qinghan felt as if she’d been hit by a charging rhinoceros.

She was sent flying backward, rolling several times on the ground before coming to a stop.

A sweet, metallic taste filled her throat, and she spat out a mouthful of blood.

‘The difference in our strength is too great.’

‘We’re not even in the same league.’

Wu Que’s pace quickened, his expression growing more frantic as he calculated the remaining time.

He raised his sword, preparing to cleave the still-lit residence before him in two.

Just then.

A clear, delicate cry, choked with tears, echoed from the other end of the square.

“Father! Stop!”

“Please! I’m begging you!”

Wu Que’s upraised sword froze in mid-air.

His entire body went rigid.

Slowly, inch by inch, he turned around.

At the entrance to the square stood a young woman in a pink silk dress, her face streaked with tears, her body trembling with fear.

It was his daughter, Wu Linlin.

Wu Que was stunned.

‘His daughter… how could she be here?’

‘Wasn’t she supposed to be in the safest courtyard outside the city?’

A thought flashed through his mind like lightning.

‘The cat demon!’

‘It’s that damned cat demon! It must have skinned my daughter and taken her appearance to deceive me!’

A monstrous wave of fury instantly consumed all his reason.

“DEMON!!”

He let out an inhuman roar.

“How dare you… use my daughter’s face!!”

In an instant, he vanished from where he stood.

Wu Linlin’s vision blurred, and that familiar yet alien figure was suddenly before her.

She had just opened her mouth to call out, “Father—”

“CRACK!”

“CRACK!”

Two sickening crunches of breaking bone rang out with chilling clarity!

An agonizing, soul-tearing pain shot through both of her arms!

Wu Linlin screamed and collapsed to the ground, staring in disbelief at her father, at those eyes so cold they held not a shred of emotion.

“Father…”

Her voice was broken, filled with despair.

“I… I really am Linlin…”

Wu Que looked down at her, his voice as frigid as if it had drifted up from the ninth circle of hell.

“Cease your tricks, dead cat demon.”

“After I cripple you, I have my ways of restoring my daughter’s face.”

As he spoke, he reached for the crown of Wu Linlin’s head.

Just then, from behind a nearby collapsed courtyard wall, a furry little head poked out.

Miao Beisang blinked, waved a paw at Wu Que, and offered him a perfectly innocent smile.

“Good evening, Lord Magistrate.”

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