Volume One: Palace of Intrigue and Deception, Blossoms wither

"Deadly pain!"

The dense, blood-red tentacles rammed towards I·B with overwhelming force, and the wind pressure they generated destroyed a section of the bridge surface.

"How many times do I have to say it? It won't work~ Dying Ashes!"

With a flick of the paintbrush, my attack was easily neutralized. Not only that, but the gray aura, exuding an aura of death, transformed into a sharp sword and stabbed towards me. I dared not be careless and quickly rolled away to dodge. The rock that came into contact with the gray aura immediately cracked and shattered, as if it had been weathered away!

"You dodged pretty quickly~~~ How about this then? Extreme Cold Ice Blue!"

The moment the air turned icy blue, the surrounding temperature plummeted. A thick layer of frost appeared on the gravel, the railings, and even on my body, chilling me to the bone!

"Go!"

It clung to the icy blue air, transforming into frosty mist that roared and lunged at me like a giant ice dragon!

"Blood Rainbow!"

The crimson rainbow surged forth, clashing head-on with the ice dragon. However, the moment of contact, my Blood Rainbow was frozen into ice shards! But the chill did not stop there; it bypassed the Blood Rainbow and attacked me directly!

Quickly retreat, retreat outside the range of the cold air.

Hiss---

"Ooh!"

"Xiao Ye!!" Hao Yue's worried voice came from behind.

"No, I'm fine..."

No wonder I was a little too slow to dodge. The extreme cold touched my legs, like a leech creeping into my body. The excruciating pain only lasted for a moment before my lower limbs went numb. Looking down, I saw that my once fair and tender thighs had turned into an ugly, deathly gray. In just a moment, the muscles in my lower limbs had completely died!

With a thud, I collapsed to the ground, my necrotic legs unable to support my body. But I had no time to think; I could only desperately try to circulate my blood and resist the chill creeping up my body.

"Xiao Ye, I..."

"Haoyue, stay in the back! Don't come any closer!"

In just two rounds, I was stripped of my mobility and my combat power was greatly reduced, but Haoyue's situation was even more dire. Fine black lines crawled all over her arms, and her move "Eclipse Devour" had clearly backfired on her. Exhausted, Haoyue couldn't even move and could only lie on the ground, using her willpower to resist the erosion of the supernatural power.

"Xiao Ye... if I put in a little more effort, it's not impossible to use Black Moon again--"

"But the price is your life, right? Don't even think about it! A victory bought with sacrifice isn't a victory! Besides, your Black Moon might not even be able to beat him!" I shouted to stop her, "Don't do anything foolish, Bright Moon..."

"Tsk tsk, what a touching friendship. I'm almost reluctant to take you back~♪ How about this," I·B narrowed his eyes, a wicked glint in his pupils, "Three times. If you can withstand three of my attacks in your current state, I'll let you go, how about it~?"

... After we've endured it three times, you'll let us go?

"Xiao Ye, don't listen to him! He—"

"Okay," I interrupted Haoyue, making my choice.

"Come on then, as long as you keep your promise!"

Although the chances are slim, there is still hope if he can pull through and keeps his word.

If they don't accept this and continue the hard-fought battle, I will undoubtedly lose.

"Good! You've got guts! I'll ask you one last time, no regrets?"

"Enough talk, bring it on!"

"Don't worry, don't worry, it'll be here soon~"

It's coming soon...?

It took me a minute to understand what he meant.

A stench of decay and howls echoed from afar, as a massive horde of corpses surged forth like a tidal wave. Sometime during the war, I·B had created even more zombies!

"As you can see, this is the first wave of attacks. Hang in there!♪"

The army of the dead drew ever closer, and I mustered my remaining strength to prepare for battle.

"Earth Spike!"

Crimson Crystal Spike erupted from the ground, piercing through a large swarm of zombies in an instant. However, the current Earth Spike were far less powerful and had a much smaller range than before, making it impossible to clear them all at once!

"Blood Crystal Barrage!"

Large swarms of blood crystal bullets hurtled towards the horde of zombies, but the pinpoint penetrating attacks had little effect on them. Even with their bodies pierced, they continued to advance!

"Tsk-- Blood Blade!"

But it was too late.

The first zombie broke through the barrage defense and pounced on me at lightning speed. I was almost completely exhausted and didn't even have time to defend myself before my shoulder was viciously bitten off!

One after another, the zombies swarmed forward, branding my shoulders, calves, abdomen, and head with grotesque teeth marks! Blood gushed out like a fountain, the excruciating pain blurring my consciousness. I could vaguely hear Haoyue's cries, but I had no time to care...

"They couldn't withstand the first wave? What a pity..."

Amidst the excruciating pain, only I. B.'s sigh, mixed with disappointment and contempt, clearly reached my ears.

They couldn't even withstand the first wave, huh?

This is just too embarrassing...

So, you give me--

"Roll!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Head, face, neck, chest, abdomen, waist, legs—sharp, blood- Blood Blade shot from his entire body, sweeping away hordes of zombies with overwhelming force! I can't die! How could this little thing possibly kill me! Don't underestimate me!!!

Limbs and internal organs flew everywhere; the near-death outburst wiped out all the zombies that pounced on me!

"Ha... ha... haa..." I gasped for breath, every part of my body aching. This was the first time in my life I had truly experienced the feeling of being covered in wounds; each wound was enormous and deep, revealing bone and internal organs! I was certain that if I had lingered for even a few more seconds, I would have died!

Blood Energy escaped from the wound, slowly repairing the injury. So I have this function after all? Maybe the injuries I suffered before weren't severe enough to trigger it...

Clap clap clap clap clap I. B clapped lightly, a look of pleasure on his face. "Yo, not bad~ I thought you wouldn't make it through the first wave, looks like you can still unleash some potential even in dire straits! Without further ado, here comes the second attack~~♪"

Knowing I was powerless to retaliate, I. B. approached me with a smug look on his face, humming a tune as he fiddled with his palette. His brush was dipped in red, purple, and black paint, the dark drops emitting an ominous ripple.

"Don't worry, this isn't a physical attack; it'll depend on your perseverance~"

He looked directly into my eyes, which were a mixture of anger and unease. With a flick of his brush, a drop of paint in a mixture of red, purple, and black flew toward me and landed right on my head.

"... Huh?"

It seems... nothing happened?

The groaning I. B., the broken bridge, the groaning moon, the scattered remains of zombies—everything remained the same, everything continued as usual: the sun rises and sets, chickens lay eggs, eggs hatch, ants burrow underground, swallows build nests, everyone develops from a fertilized egg, experiencing infancy, adolescence, youth, middle age, old age, and finally death. Born from nothingness, returning to nothingness after death, nothing remains, all is vanity, all is in vain. Only pain remains—pain, pain...

Pain is maggots burrowing into the bone marrow, pain is fungus embedded in the skin, pain is thorns entwining the brain, pain is steel needles piercing the heart, pain is the ocean drowning the torso, pain is a campfire burning the limbs, pain is leeches sucking out the blood, pain is a razor tearing out the tendons and bones. So painful, so painful, so painful, so painful, so painful! Why, why, why does it hurt so much?! So painful, so painful, so painful!!

"How was it? That drop of paint contained the concept of 'pain,' just a tiny bit was enough to give you a glimpse into heaven and hell~~~ How did it feel? If you don't mind, could you write me a thousand-word reflection? Hey, are you listening...? What? I thought you didn't care about the pain since you weren't making a sound, but it turns out your tongue was cramping from the pain~ Tsk tsk, you're quite something to roll your eyes like that, and you're even drooling~~~"

"Xiao Ye, Xiao Ye, Xiao Ye! Stop it, you bastard! Don't touch her! Waaaaaah!!!!!!!!! Waaaaah... Please, take it out on me, let her go! Please, please, please, please..."

I. B.'s taunts and Haoyue's mournful cries came at the same time, but I knew nothing more. The concept of pain permeated my entire body, tormenting and ravaging me. This pain did not come from any particular direction, but emanated from every cell in my body, inescapable, unresistable, and even impossible to struggle against! The world vanished, everything around me disappeared, leaving only a collection of pain. My consciousness went blank under endless torment, and my spirit tended towards nothingness under repeated ravages. I could do nothing but desperately hold on with a heart on the verge of madness.

How much time has actually passed?

One second? One minute? One year?

When I regained my consciousness, the deadly pain finally disappeared, leaving only a lingering, chilling sensation. My body had memorized the feeling of pain, and it still trembles even now.

Both physically and mentally, they have truly reached their limits.

"The second wave of attacks is over. Congratulations on surviving! ♪ But it's a real shame, judging from your miserable state, you definitely can't withstand a third attack, so--"

Through the blurry vision, I. B.'s figure came into view. He was holding something in his hand—was it... a broken wooden stick stained silver-gray?

"This is the third strike. I'll use this hand to pierce your heart, completely stripping you of your ability to move, and then I'll take you away quickly..."

Haoyue and I were completely exhausted from fighting, so I·B chose to engage in close combat and finish me off.

"It might hurt a little, but don't worry, I'll try to be gentle!!!"

I silently closed my eyes.

My journey has come to an end.

Pfft

I heard the sound of a stick-like object piercing flesh.

I didn't feel any pain.

Is it because the nerves are completely numb?

But if that's the case—why can I feel warm liquid splashing on me?

A feeling of dislike arose in my heart.

Slowly open your eyes--

"Hurry, run... cough cough... Little... Ye..."

Someone is blocking my way.

It was an incomparably poignant and beautiful sight.

The bright white moon was tainted by an eerie red.

The delicate flower was cruelly broken.

Crimson blood gushed out from where Haoyue had been pierced.