Chapter 761 - 691: All Dead

Chapter 761: Chapter 691: All Dead

"I told you to wait. Why did you enter the Red Mist Area?" Tu Xiao’an asked calmly.

Fang Yong said guiltily, "A few hours ago, during the full moon, a massive disturbance broke out on Skeleton Mountain. We suspected Lord Qin and his group had found the War Relics, so we wanted to bring our men over to help. After all, there’s strength in numbers."

"Who knew we’d get trapped right after entering the Red Mist Area, unable to escape." Fang Yong smiled bitterly.

With his level of strength, he was considered top-tier in human society, yet he couldn’t even get past the second tier of Skeleton Mountain.

’Strength in numbers?’

Tu Xiao’an laughed. "With your strength, going over there would just mean one more body to the count."

The moment he said that, the Demon Management Bureau team members grew indignant. His words were far too dismissive.

However, Tu Xiao’an had just saved their lives. As harsh as his words were, they could only swallow their anger and say nothing.

Fang Yong, however, wasn’t angry. He just smiled bitterly. "You’re right, sir. We’re too weak. Even if we made it to the Third Mountain, we wouldn’t be any help at all."

Tu Xiao’an nodded in agreement.

’It’s good to know your own limits.’

Tu Xiao’an didn’t press the point. "Who went with your Director Qin?" he asked.

"Why do you ask, sir? Do you know our Director Qin? Are you also here for the War Relics?" Fang Yong asked, looking at Tu Xiao’an with a growing sense of excitement.

’The "strength in numbers" argument is true, but it all depends on who you’re talking about.’

Tu Xiao’an shook his head. "I’m looking for someone. Do you know a woman named Luo Ziyun?"

"Luo Ziyun?" Upon hearing the name, Fang Yong gasped. "Sir, you must mean Lord Fallen God."

"Fallen God?"

Fang Yong explained, "Lord Fallen God is an expert ranked in the top twenty of the official Heavenly Ranking. She’s working with our Lord Qin to find the War Relics on this trip."

"There are three other experts from the top twenty of the official Heavenly Ranking with them as well."

’Fallen God? Luo Ziyun?’

Tu Xiao’an was quite surprised. He hadn’t expected Luo Ziyun’s status in the human Martial Cultivation Realm to be so high that her title would include the word "God."

’But on second thought,’ he mused, ’Luo Ziyun is a Cultivator from five hundred years ago. She’s practically a living fossil.’

’It makes sense that her status is so revered.’

Tu Xiao’an was thrilled to finally have news of Luo Ziyun. She hadn’t charged in alone but was part of a group.

If that was the case, things were looking up. She had some measure of safety.

After asking Fang Yong a few more simple questions, Tu Xiao’an had a clear picture. He said, "Don’t go any deeper. Turn back. Your lives are precious."

"Sir, you must be a major figure from the official Heavenly Ranking as well, right? Please, you have to find our Director Qin! Tell him to be extremely careful and that he must come back alive!"

The journey to the War Relics was fraught with peril. No matter how high their Director Qin’s cultivation was, he could still meet with disaster.

"Alright. If I run into him, I’ll pass on the message." With that, Tu Xiao’an waved toward a spot not far away.

A menacing, three-and-a-half-meter-tall Skeleton Monster darted over, startling the entire group.

"My God, what a huge Skeleton Beast!"

"Sir, this is..."

Tu Xiao’an said, "Don’t be alarmed. I’ve subdued this skeleton. It’s going to be my guide. Now, hurry back."

"You’re incredible, sir! Even a Skeleton Beast obeys you," Fang Yong said, looking at Tu Xiao’an with admiration.

Hiding his deeds and renown, Tu Xiao’an walked off into the dense Red Mist Area.

Fang Yong and his men watched Tu Xiao’an’s figure recede into the distance. One of them asked, "Captain, who the hell is that guy? He seems like a total badass."

"I don’t know. He didn’t say. But he’s definitely a major figure from the Heavenly Ranking. Having him on our side is good news for Director Qin."

"Yeah. I hope the Director can successfully seal the War Relics. Only then will Skeleton Mountain disappear, and our X City can come back to ’life’."

"Let’s go. We can’t stay here. We were lucky to meet a benefactor this time. We basically got our lives back," Fang Yong said with a wave of his hand, leading his team away.

Ah, a person’s life is governed by fate and luck. Life and death are often beyond one’s control.

Just as Fang Yong and his team were a few hundred meters away, a green phantom shot out from a tree. It was as fast as lightning, aiming straight for a team member’s chest.

The man’s body trembled violently as he let out a horrified cry. Then, his knees gave out and he collapsed to the ground.

"Hongping, what’s wrong?"

Fang Yong was stunned. As he got closer, he saw a bloody skull mark appear on Hongping’s forehead. A small green snake bored its way out and flicked its tongue coldly at Fang Yong.

Hongping was already dead.

SWISH!

The green phantom flashed again. Fang Yong’s eyes bulged, and his body began to tremble. He clutched his chest, a look of pure terror spreading across his face.

"Run!" he roared at his panicked teammates. Instantly, a bloody skull mark appeared on his own forehead, and his life faded away.

"Captain! Captain!"

"What kind of monster is this?! It killed our captain!"

A mighty High Rank War King had been killed just like that. His squad was grief-stricken. In that instant, the green phantom began to flash back and forth between the team members.

...

AHH... AHH... AHH!

Several kilometers away, Tu Xiao’an suddenly stopped. The faint sound of miserable screams reached his ears.

’Hm?’

’What’s going on?’

’Are those the screams of that group of Martial Cultivators?’ Tu Xiao’an spun around to look, but the red mist obscured his vision. He could only see a few hundred meters ahead.

This was only possible because Tu Xiao’an possessed the Snake King’s Eye. An ordinary person in the Red Mist Area could see no more than ten meters in front of them.

The faint, miserable screams continued to drift into his ears. Tu Xiao’an frowned. ’Did they run into trouble right after we parted ways?’

Tu Xiao’an felt a headache coming on. ’Do I really have to go back?’

But the miserable cries sent a jolt through him. Tu Xiao’an guessed that if he didn’t go back, the very people he had just rescued would all die.

’Fine,’ he thought. ’I can’t let my rescue go to waste.’

Tu Xiao’an shot back in the direction he came from. He wanted to see just what kind of monster could make a group of War Kings scream so pathetically.

A short while later, Tu Xiao’an stood there, his face expressionless and his brow tightly furrowed.

Before him, bodies were scattered everywhere. The expression on each of their faces was one of sheer terror.

Tu Xiao’an even saw Fang Yong’s body.

’Sigh. It seems I saved them for nothing.’

The entire group from the X City Demon Management Bureau was dead. Not a single one had survived.

’But where’s the monster?’

He had only parted ways with them five minutes ago at most, yet this group of War Kings was wiped out in an instant. ’This is ridiculous.’

’The hole...’

Tu Xiao’an’s pupils contracted. The moment he saw the bloody hole in Fang Yong’s forehead, he understood everything.

He knew who the killer was.

Looking at the state of the corpses, he saw that every single one of them had a hole in their forehead.

’It was that small, green, snake-like monster.’

’Dammit. It was hiding nearby this whole time. It never left.’

Tu Xiao’an was suddenly furious. Though his expression remained calm, a powerful killing intent flared within his heart.