Chapter 40: A Sniper’s Dilemma and a Desperate Escape

Meanwhile, Deng Wenqing remained oblivious to the fact that his plans had been thwarted by Su Yun, unknowingly hurtling towards his demise.

Su Yun was already positioned, approximately 1500 meters to Deng Wenqing’s left. This distance perfectly maximized the power and velocity of her sniper rifle.

Her scope was precisely aimed at the side of Deng Wenqing’s temple.

Yet, Su Yun was consumed by an overwhelming tension. This was her first time taking a life, and a profound internal struggle gnawed at her.

However, the thought of her hesitation endangering her sister and her beloved wife instantly solidified her resolve.

“Hmph! Time to go.” Su Yun took a deep breath, then decisively pulled the trigger.

To delay any longer would mean the target would fly beyond her optimal shooting range.

With a swift *whoosh*, a large-caliber bullet screamed from the barrel. It arrived instantaneously, reaching Deng Wenqing’s temple, less than half a foot from his skull.

Had it connected, such a bullet would undoubtedly have caused his head to explode.

But just as Su Yun believed he was doomed, an unforeseen event unfolded. A faint golden light suddenly erupted from Deng Wenqing’s body.

This golden radiance formed a thick barrier. Su Yun’s bullet struck it, rapidly deforming under the immense pressure, before ultimately being deflected.

‘What? A protective artifact? Damn it, how could I forget about this? I’m finished.’ Su Yun watched the scene unfold through her scope.

On the other side, Deng Wenqing’s expression drastically changed upon realizing his protective talisman had activated.

He possessed a similar talisman to Lin Xue, which typically only activated automatically when facing a fatal attack.

This meant someone had just attacked him, and the assault had been powerful enough to kill him.

“Who’s there? What lowly wretch dares to ambush me?” Deng Wenqing immediately darted behind a large tree, bellowing furiously towards Su Yun’s direction.

Based on where he felt the impact, his assailant should have been to his left. Yet, when he swept the area with his spiritual sense, he saw no one. This indicated the attacker had either moved or was outside his sensory range.

The fact that his opponent had unleashed a lethal strike but remained hidden filled Deng Wenqing with an unprecedented sense of dread.

As Deng Wenqing cautiously peered out towards Su Yun’s position, another shot rang out. This one struck Deng Wenqing squarely in the center of his brows.

The impact also allowed Deng Wenqing to finally see what was attacking him.

“This? What is this?” Deng Wenqing stared at the pale golden metal, blocked by his talisman, his expression one of utter astonishment.

He felt not the slightest power fluctuation from the object, suggesting it was nothing more than an ordinary piece of metal.

Yet, this seemingly mundane item had forced his protective talisman to activate twice.

“Damn it!” Deng Wenqing quickly ducked back.

Unable to see his enemy, he could only roughly deduce their location from the direction of the projectile attacks.

‘Tch! I remember this thing has a limited number of uses, right? My master said this strike could injure a cultivator at the perfected Foundation Establishment realm, so this guy’s talisman must be at least a top-grade Tier 2 artifact.’ Su Yun made her assessment, then decisively fired another shot.

Su Yun’s bullets were the strongest armor-piercing type, forged from materials used to craft magical artifacts. How could a mere tree stop them?

Another bullet flew, piercing straight through the tree Deng Wenqing was hiding behind and striking him on the head.

Deng Wenqing once again felt a fatal attack, accompanied by the sound of the tree being penetrated beside his ear. His expression was utterly horrified.

He hastily glanced at the tree trunk, discovering a gaping hole torn through it.

“Confound it, who is trying to kill me?” Deng Wenqing’s protective talisman could only withstand five fatal blows at most. With only two uses left, he couldn’t afford to wait for death.

Deng Wenqing felt as if a grim reaper in the shadows was relentlessly staring him down.

Cold sweat streamed down his forehead.

With that, Deng Wenqing, using the tree for cover, summoned his flying sword and fled without a backward glance. He had no choice; staying put meant certain death.

However, the moment he ascended into the air, another bullet struck him. This was the fourth time.

“No!” Deng Wenqing felt utterly cold, with only one protective effect remaining.

He fled desperately, pushing his escape speed to the absolute limit.

“Damn it!” Su Yun cursed under her breath as she watched him escape. She didn’t have time to ponder; she immediately mounted her flying sword and pursued him in the direction he fled. Cradling her sniper rifle, she tried to keep him locked in her sights, hoping to attack him even while flying.

But Deng Wenqing’s escape speed was simply too great, and Su Yun found herself falling further and further behind.

“Seriously, he’s fast!” Su Yun had no choice but to temporarily abandon the chase.

She couldn’t catch him, nor did she know where he would ultimately flee. So, she had to stop for now. Perhaps this fellow was simply not destined to die, having escaped after enduring four fatal strikes from Su Yun.

Su Yun decisively turned around, retrieving her communication token to contact Fan Yang and inquire about his location.

Fan Yang had already suppressed the early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, rendering him immobile.

Lin Xue, seizing the opportunity, went to assist a fellow disciple in attacking a ninth-stage Qi Refining cultivator.

“Damn it, mission failed, retreat!” The mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator battling Zhou Xueqi, seeing their side completely overwhelmed, suddenly disengaged from Zhou Xueqi and ordered a retreat.

However, leaving now was no longer an option they could simply choose.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Zhou Xueqi immediately gave chase.

The other fleeing cultivators found it difficult to shake off the pursuit of the Spirit Sword Mountain disciples, given the minimal difference in their strength.

Ultimately, two individuals were left behind. One was the early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator Fan Yang had completely suppressed; he was severely wounded and utterly incapable of escaping. The other was injured by Lin Xue and her fellow disciple, and similarly could not flee.

“Speak, who are you? Who sent you to kill me?” Lin Xue pointed at the mercenary cultivator lying on the ground, questioning him coldly.

To Lin Xue’s surprise, the man suddenly let out a sinister chuckle, then convulsed violently before drawing his last breath.

Lin Xue and her companion’s expressions changed. They quickly removed the man’s mask, only to find blood streaming from all seven of his orifices. His death was gruesome, and the blood was black.

“He poisoned himself? Who are these people? They don’t seem like ordinary rogue cultivators.” The Heavenly Sword Peak disciple beside Lin Xue frowned, remarking.

Common rogue cultivators wouldn’t possess such courage. These individuals were clearly rigorously trained; they would decisively end their own lives if their mission failed.

“Bastard! If you want to kill me, I won’t let you off easy either!” The early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator injured by Fan Yang still refused to surrender, or rather, had no intention of being captured willingly.

From his hand, a talisman with extremely potent energy fluctuations suddenly appeared.

Upon seeing the talisman, Fan Yang’s face turned green. He quickly retreated, maintaining his distance from the man.

The cultivator plastered the talisman onto his own body, then recklessly lunged towards Lin Xue’s position.

“It’s a Self-Detonation Talisman! Junior Sister Lin, run!” Fan Yang roared, witnessing the man’s actions.

A Self-Detonation Talisman was a special type of talisman. When affixed to one’s body, it could convert one’s own power and life force into multiple times their destructive force. An early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator using this item could easily blast a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator to death and heavily injure a late-stage one.

At this moment, Fan Yang could only distance himself from the man and warn Lin Xue and the others.

He and Lin Xue were not yet close enough for him to sacrifice his life for hers.

“Madman!” Lin Xue and her senior brother cursed simultaneously under their breath, then hastily retreated.

As cultivators, it was essential to recognize commonly used magical treasures, lest one suffer a great loss.

The Self-Detonation Talisman could be said to be the most common desperate measure for Foundation Establishment cultivators.

This fellow, even in death, wanted to drag Lin Xue down with him.

However, to Lin Xue’s surprise, just as she thought he was targeting her, the man suddenly let out a sinister laugh, then abruptly changed direction, lunging back towards Fan Yang.

Fan Yang was completely unprepared for this.

“Eh? What’s going on?” Fan Yang was stunned.

This fellow wasn’t an idiot. He knew Lin Xue had a golden protective talisman, so he couldn’t kill her with an explosion.

He wanted to catch Fan Yang off guard, making him drop his vigilance.

“Hahahaha… You’re my target, big guy!” The man was already within three meters of Fan Yang.

It was too late for Fan Yang to dodge; at this distance, he couldn’t escape. His only option was to fully protect himself immediately.

But just then, the head of the early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, who intended to self-detonate, suddenly exploded like a watermelon, as if struck by something. It was incredibly abrupt.

The scene was utterly sickening, especially for Fan Yang, who was splattered with the man’s exploded brain matter.

Fortunately, the man was killed in time, and the Self-Detonation Talisman ultimately failed to activate.

“This, ugh…” Lin Xue and her companion, not far away, witnessed the sight and simultaneously turned away, bending over to retch.

Thousands of meters away, Su Yun, after firing that shot, was also hunched over, dry-heaving relentlessly.

Su Yun had witnessed the headshot with perfect clarity, and she knew nightmares would plague her for days to come.