Brothers and Betrayal

A warning from his instincts made Wu Tie's scalp tingle.

This was an instinct honed by countless years of evolution and mutation, a creature's near-premonition when facing an overwhelmingly powerful top predator.

Wu Tie opened his mouth and roared with all his might, venting the fear in his heart with frantic shouts. At the same time, he desperately leaped between the falling giant stones, dodging the four giant spiders descending from the tops of the stone pillars.

Terrifying monsters, their bodies monstrously huge.

With nearly a hundred-meter long legs and a central body twenty-odd meters across, the four giant spiders descended from the pillar tops like four heavy, dark clouds.

With a hiss, the bloated abdomens of the giant spiders writhed violently. Milky white fluid, as thick as a thigh, sprayed out, quickly forming large swathes of spiderwebs that covered the ground for hundreds of meters around.

Two beasts, engrossed in their frantic pursuit of Wu Tie, were engulfed by the webs. The sticky silk was incredibly tough. The two beasts struggled and roared in desperation, but they were bound tightly by the webs.

Wu Tie darted past beneath the leg of a giant spider. He was too small, and the spider didn't even notice him.

His body slammed heavily against a crumbling stalagmite. Wu Tie fled outwards without looking back.

The four giant spiders frantically spewed webs, which piled on top of each other, binding the two beasts. The two beasts struggled with all their might but were unable to break free from the webs' confinement.

Wu Tie rushed out of the continuously collapsing stone forest and fled outwards with all his strength.

The larger of the two beasts suddenly raised its head. It let out a hysterical roar, and a large amount of blue-green flames erupted from its mouth, quickly covering an area of several hundred meters.

The milky white spiderwebs instantly turned to smoke and dissipated. The two beasts ignored the fleeing Wu Tie and lunged at the four giant spiders with roars.

Dozens of giant stone pillars instantly collapsed. The beasts and giant spiders became entangled, their roars and struggles echoing. The beasts' blood and the giant spiders' colorful bodily fluids sprayed out like rain.

Wu Tie had barely escaped three to five li when the smaller beast was suddenly pierced by three slender, sharp legs. The two giant spiders let out long, high-pitched screeches, lifting the beast tens of meters into the air with their legs.

A large amount of scorching blood sprayed down from the beast's body like flames, covering the ground for hundreds of meters. A raging fire ignited, illuminating the nearby stone forest.

The other beast spat a pillar of fire from its mouth. The fierce flame pierced the bloated abdomen of a giant spider. Just as it was about to finish off the spider, it suddenly saw its companion killed by the enemy. The beast roared in grief towards the sky.

The dying giant spider and another companion simultaneously spread all their legs, frantically piercing the body of the beast.

Wu Tie heard the mournful cries and roars of these terrifying beasts. Panting, he stopped and looked back. He saw the larger beast's body suddenly swell, and a dazzling halo rapidly expanded within it.

That light was several times brighter than the Void Sun above the Wu Family Stone Fort.

The next instant, intense light and terrifying flames swept in all directions. The beast self-destructed. The flames and high temperatures covered the ground for two to three li. Hundreds of giant stone pillars were instantly pulverized, and the powerful shockwave spread outwards in rings of red heatwaves.

"Ah~~~!"

Wu Tie instinctively screamed. The shockwave swept over him, and he was sent flying hundreds of meters like a leaf in the wind, crashing heavily into a dense fern forest.

The heatwaves rolled, and the leaves of the fern forest quickly withered and turned yellow, after which the fern forest for several li burst into flames.

Wu Tie was engulfed by the flames. The fire burned his body. A faint light flowed on his pale white tight-fitting armor, and the temperature inside the armor began to rise sharply.

Wu Tie panted, enduring the sharp pain in his chest, and staggered to his feet. He walked step by step through the sea of fire, doing his best to escape in the direction away from the stone forest.

"Old Tie, you didn't mention that some of these big guys would explode like this..." Wu Tie panted. Having barely escaped the burning fern forest, his faceplate silently slid open. Wu Tie took a breath and spat out a mouthful of black, clotted blood.

The ground shook violently. Wu Tie instinctively turned back and saw that the entire stone forest had suddenly sunk.

The ground vibrated violently, and stone pillars continuously sank into the earth. In just a few breaths, the stone forest, spanning dozens of li, collapsed entirely, leaving behind a smoking, steaming pit.

Whoosh, whoosh, rapid cold winds continuously blew out from the pit. The flames and smoke, driven by the cold wind, transformed into dozens of thick fire tornadoes that churned and raged above the pit.

Wu Tie stared blankly at the pit, which resembled a fiery hell, and shivered involuntarily.

Fortunately, he had escaped quickly.

Faint, sharp cries of giant spiders could be heard from the depths of the pit, but the cries quickly died down. Soon, no sound came from within.

The cold wind howled, and the fire tornadoes soon disappeared. Only the vines and moss clinging to the stones were ignited by the high temperature, still emitting smoke that spread outwards in the blowing wind.

Wu Tie wiped his face, which was covered in blood, sweat, and foul-smelling egg fluid. Gritting his teeth, he softly cursed "Luolin" and angrily turned, following the traces left by the beasts and returning at full speed along the path he had come.

Along the way, he hunted a few prey to replenish his physical consumption and practiced the Foundation Establishment Form once, bringing his body to optimal condition. After running for over two hundred li along his original path, Wu Tie heard shrill howls from afar.

The sound was familiar; it seemed to be the cry of the young man with the longbow who was always by Luolin's side.

Wu Tie grinned through gritted teeth, hefted his spear, and with a few leaps, sprinted rapidly in the direction of the screams.

He repeatedly leaped into the air and glided forward. After running for a short while, in a depression ahead, Wu Tie saw several familiar figures.

Shi Lingqing, surrounded by two Ox Tribe warriors and three Human Race guards, looked at Luolin, who was shouting in the distance, with a half-smile.

Only Old Wu and Ding remained by Luolin's side. Old Wu's left hand had been severed at the shoulder, and Ding was using a piece of cloth to bandage the wound. Blood flowed like a stream down Ding's arm.

Between Shi Lingqing and Luolin, Qiao, who wielded a chain knife, had a pale complexion and a delicate, effeminate appearance. He looked at Luolin expressionlessly. The young man with the longbow had both legs severed at the knee. Qiao stepped on his head, his chain knife held tightly at his throat.

Wu Tie landed silently, crouched on the ground, and using the cover of a few ferns, he carefully crawled forward.

From dozens of meters away, Wu Tie could see that the chain knife in Qiao's hand had already cut open the young man's neck, and a thin trickle of blood was flowing down the youth's neck.

"Boss, Third Brother, and Ding... don't move," Qiao's voice was cold, hard, and firm. "You know I'm timid. If I get startled and twitch, Feng Yu's life will be gone."

The young man with the longbow was named Feng Yu?

Luolin was still shouting, but his shouts contained only angry curses and no other valuable content.

Old Wu gritted his teeth tightly. After Ding finished bandaging his wound, he raised his right hand, holding a yellowish stone pillar, and smashed it heavily onto the ground: "Qiao... so, the other three brothers, you killed them?"

Wu Tie quickly recalled the wounds on the young man who had fallen dead outside Shi Lingqing's wooden shed.

He hadn't noticed at the time, but now Wu Tie remembered that the youth's wound seemed to be on his back – a hideous gash that had almost split his entire back open.

Qiao's chain blade seemed perfectly suited for inflicting such wounds.

"It was me," Qiao let out a breath, looking at Old Wu calmly. "I'm sorry... those three brothers, I killed them... And your arm, Old Wu, Feng Yu's leg, there's no need to even mention it. You saw it yourselves, I cut them off."

Grinning, Qiao shook his head at Luolin. "Calm down, Third Brother. Look, Ding is much calmer than you. You and Ding have both been poisoned by me. Although the dose is light, the more you shout, the faster the poison will act. You might even die."

Luolin's body trembled violently, and then he spat out a mouthful of black blood.

His body swayed slightly, and he pointed his straight blade at Qiao, wanting to say something, but Old Wu spoke up from the side. "Third Brother, shut up... let Qiao speak. I want to hear why he did this."

Even though his arm had been cut off by his own brother, and his companions had suffered heavy casualties, Old Wu's tone remained calm. "Qiao, we grew up together, we've faced life and death together. We're no different from brothers..."

Qiao gave a cold laugh. "What's the point of saying that now?"

Old Wu immediately changed the subject. "Aren't you afraid of retaliation from the Mist Blades?"

Qiao smiled. He looked at Old Wu and shook his head. "The Mist Blades are terrifying, I admit. But here, who knows that I killed you? Who knows that I betrayed the Mist Blades' rules?"

Old Wu opened his mouth, fell silent for a moment, and finally uttered two words with difficulty: "The reason?"

Qiao smiled and subconsciously glanced back.

In that instant of turning his head, the earth-yellow stone pillar in Old Wu's hand suddenly erupted with a strong light. He violently slammed the pillar onto the ground, and with a loud bang, a stone spear, as thick as an arm and over three meters long, protruded from the ground in front of him.

The stone spear whistled as it shot out of the ground, like an arrow, soaring towards Luolin.

Shi Dian, standing beside Shi Lingqing, let out a strange laugh. He flicked his wooden staff, and a strong wind rose from the ground. The gale flew to Qiao's front at several times the speed of the stone spear, quickly condensing into a circular wind shield about a meter square.

The stone spear collided with the wind shield. The wind shield spun rapidly like a vortex, and countless thumb-sized wind blades rubbed against each other within it.

The stone spear shattered piece by piece, and the wind shield was ground down bit by bit.

Qiao, using the wind shield as cover, grabbed Feng Yu by the neck and retreated a few steps to Shi Lingqing's side, handing Feng Yu over to an Ox Tribe warrior whose face was cut.

The Ox Tribe warrior let out a strange laugh. After taking Feng Yu, he unceremoniously grabbed Feng Yu's arm and snapped it with a 'crack, crack'. Feng Yu cried out in pain, his body convulsing violently, blood continuously dripping from the wound on his knee.

The stone spear and the wind shield were destroyed together, and Qiao stood by Shi Lingqing's side with a smile.

Shi Lingqing chuckled and nodded at the suddenly enlightened Old Wu. "What other reason could there be? A man's betrayal is simple. Power, future, wealth, and... a beauty."

"A woman," Old Wu shook his head and gave a wry smile. "Qiao, you betrayed us for her?"

Qiao remained silent, only nodding.

"When?" Old Wu also spat out a mouthful of black blood. He released the stone pillar stuck in the ground, reached up, and wiped the black bloodstain from his chin. He said in a low voice, "I'm poisoned too? It seems those three brothers were easily killed by you because they were all poisoned?"

Qiao was silent for a moment, then said in a deep voice, "Two days ago, remember? I went to scout for a way to lure away that bothersome brat... I went out alone, and I stayed out for over a day before returning."

Shi Lingqing moved closer to Qiao, naturally wrapping her arms around his arm.

She smiled brilliantly. "I like smart people, because smart people don't stick to rigid principles. Smart people can communicate better with each other. Qiao is a smart person. He knows what's most beneficial for him."

Old Wu took a breath. He looked deeply at Shi Lingqing and Qiao, and sneered, "You, slept with him?"

Qiao couldn't control the pride in his heart and laughed sincerely. "She's mine now. Old Wu, you can't imagine what I experienced that day."

Shi Lingqing's fair little face flushed crimson.

Hiding under some large-leafed ferns, Wu Tie stared blankly at this scene of brothers turning against each other.

He stared even more blankly at Shi Lingqing.

The perfect image he had of her in his heart shattered. An indescribable, sour sting welled up from the depths of his heart, like countless small knives slowly flowing through his blood vessels to his internal organs, causing his heart and liver to ache.

Suddenly, Luolin let out a piercing howl. He brandished his straight blade, transforming into three afterimages. The three shadows slithered like snakes, stirring up a foul wind as they lunged at Qiao. "Qiao... I'll kill you!"

Shi Dian raised his wooden staff, and an Ox Tribe warrior and two Human Race guards simultaneously raised their weapons.

Just as they were about to engage the lunging Luolin, Qiao suddenly roared, "Charge... they're trying to escape!"

Before his voice fell, Luolin shot three thumb-sized black pellets from his left hand. The small pills landed, and with a 'poof, poof' sound, large clouds of black smoke billowed up. Luolin suddenly sprang back.

A thin, cold glint flew from Luolin's hand.

Shi Lingqing and the others, whose attention was entirely focused on Luolin, completely ignored this glint that was not directed at them.

Luolin, Old Wu, and Ding fled at full speed. The Ox Tribe warrior holding Feng Yu suddenly let out a strange cry.

Feng Yu, covered in blood, wore a strange smile as a flying knife was deeply embedded in his throat.

Wu Tie's whole body trembled, and he shivered involuntarily.

As Luolin and the others retreated, before retreating, Luolin seemed to be fighting desperately, only to use this flying knife to kill Feng Yu.

Wu Tie couldn't understand this action.

He gritted his teeth, suddenly leaped into the air, and then quickly pursued Luolin and the others.

Shi Lingqing suddenly saw a white figure fly up from the fern forest. She immediately cried out in surprise and frowned deeply.

It's National Day! Wishing everyone a happy National Day. Brothers and sisters who are away from home, have fun and eat well!

The important thing is to eat well!

Well, I wish everyone a plump and satisfying National Day!