Half an hour later.
The desert, an uninhabited zone.
Atop a sand dune several hundred miles from the Sword Pavilion, a figure sat cross-legged in the wind, his muddy kasaya fluttering amid the sand and dust.
His head hung low, his eyes closed, as if he were asleep.
Boom—!!!
A dark crimson figure fell from the sky like a meteor, sending yellow sand flying across the heavens.
The next moment, a streak of blade light pierced the void. Chilling killing intent tore through the dust and slashed straight at Destiny Monk's brow!
Yet Destiny Monk simply sat there in silence, his eyes shut, as though he had heard nothing.
The blade stopped abruptly before his brow. Its sharp edge cut open his skin, and a trace of crimson blood seeped out, flowing down the bridge of his nose before dripping onto the desert.
"Do you think I'll go soft just because you're sitting there, letting me do whatever I want to you?"
Lin Qiye gripped the hilt of Divine Calamity and spoke coldly.
"What should I do, then?" Destiny Monk said slowly. "Fight back? I can't beat you... Since I can't win and can't escape, why should I resist?"
"Is that why you came to this desert?"
"Here, no matter how much commotion we make, it won't affect the outside world, and no one will see it... isn't that right?" Destiny Monk opened his eyes and stared into Lin Qiye's.
"This game isn't over yet, but the two of us, the players, are already turning on each other and fighting to the death. If the enemy saw this, they would only think us laughable and foolish."
Lin Qiye narrowed his eyes as a thread of killing intent drifted from his blade...
"Perhaps we only need one player."
"Perhaps." Destiny Monk's