Damn it! Damn it!
"How could such a lowly Scarecrow possess such terrifying power!"
Gao Qiu, his red robe stained with blood, carried the still unconscious Gexi and ran wildly.
And behind him...
"Shhh!"
That was the sound of countless dry grasses rubbing together.
Hundreds upon hundreds of distorted Scarecrow puppets are hunting them down!
Although the Watcher Scarecrow's true form hasn't caught up yet.
But Gao Qiu knew better than anyone else that the monster capable of switching bodies was lurking deep behind the enemy lines!
Because that eerie Blood Moon in the sky is getting closer and closer!
These puppets are merely a vanguard used to wear them down!
"Huff... huff..."
Gao Xia, who was carrying Zhang Lingqi, spoke up.
"Oh dear, my good brother, why are you running so fast?"
"Weren't you laughing quite happily in Dragon God's Harem just now?"
"Aren't we supposed to accept those beautiful women as compensation for emotional distress?"
"If it weren't for your old habit flaring up again, and you getting blinded by beauty."
"They were delayed for a few seconds in front of that dilapidated factory, and that [Life Ignition]..."
"Will it fall into that monster's hands so easily?"
"Shut up!"
Gao Qiu was hit where it hurt, and his face turned ashen with anger, but he was powerless to refute it.
If he hadn't been so foolish as to glance at the factory building again just now...
Perhaps things really shouldn't have escalated to this point.
Zhang Lingqi, who was being carried on Gao Xia's shoulder, remained frozen in place.
Watching the two brothers fighting amongst themselves, I couldn't help but sneer inwardly.
"So this is what the higher-ups of the Desolate God Society are like."
"A team that is only superficially united is destined to go nowhere, no matter how strong the individual members are."
Zhang Lingqi was making plans in his mind.
"Once we break through this layer of Profound Ice, we must find an opportunity to obtain their secret."
"Shut up, all of you! Save your energy for escaping!"
Guyue Xuyu was running in the lead, suddenly stopped and turned around to smooth things over.
"There's something unusual ahead, be careful."
"What's this?"
Gao Qiu stopped and followed Guyue Xuyu's gaze, his eyes full of doubt.
At the edge of the swamp ahead stood countless gray-white sculptures.
And as they gradually ventured deeper into the area...
These sculptures are becoming more and more common, and even flying insects in mid-air are being frozen in stone!
"The poses of these sculptures... are so realistic."
Gao Xia frowned, stepped forward and tapped on a stone carving of a venomous python, her expression grave.
"Could there be a real creature in there?"
"If there's an enemy lurking ahead that can petrify large numbers of living things, we're in big trouble."
"We're surrounded by wolves in front and tigers behind; we have no way out."
Guyue Xuyu gripped the longbow tightly and said coldly.
Let's go.
"With me here, only a god can kill you."
Hearing this, everyone felt a little more at ease.
After all, when facing the Scarecrow just now...
It was indeed this other party who pulled them back from the Ghost Gate.
However.
Just as the group stepped into the sculpture group, preparing to bypass the swamp from the side...
"Boom!"
A powerful pressure suddenly erupted from behind a withered tree in front of them!
Immediately afterward, a figure rushed out and blocked their way!
"I was just taking a beauty nap!"
"You bunch of reckless ants, how dare you bother me?!"
Medusa stared at the uninvited guests before her, brandishing a knife handle in her hand!
"You bunch of trash, weren't you the ones who threw the knife handle at me just now?!"
Medusa was grumpy when she woke up.
"How dare you bully me! You even dare to covet my treasures? You're all tired of living!"
"Buzz!"
A petrifying beam swept across!
Before the Evil God.
The five people didn't even have a chance to react before they were petrified on the spot.
"Yes, yes, yes! Big Boss is right! These ignorant fools deserve to be taught a lesson!"
The Clown leaned out halfway and fawned over him.
Then he secretly wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
"That scared the hell out of me..."
"Thank goodness this woman thought it was those unlucky guys who did it! God bless her!"
And just then...
"Shhh!"
The thousands of Scarecrow puppets that had been chasing them finally surged through the thick fog.
Medusa looked at the swarm of withered grass that had seemingly oblivious to their impending doom, and laughed in exasperation.
"Good heavens, they actually dared to bring so many thugs to cause trouble?"
"Do you really think I'm made of clay?!"
She commanded, "Hey you! The kid in the military uniform!"
"Go, move those eyesore sculptures aside."
"I'm going to tear these straw men apart and burn them for firewood today!"
"Huh? Oh, okay! Yes, Big Boss! I'll go right away!"
The Clown quickly nodded and bowed in agreement, then stepped forward to move the sculptures away.
But as soon as he walked up to the sculpture and looked down...
He was stunned.
"Hmm? These people... the more I look at them, the more familiar they seem?"
The Clown rubbed his eyes, leaned closer, and examined each one carefully.
He didn't recognize the young man wearing sunglasses, except for the one he didn't know.
The first one, dressed in a red official robe, looked terrified...
Isn't that Gao Qiu, the twelfth seat of the Desolate God Society, codenamed [Merchant]?!
The second one, wearing a suit, carrying a person...
Isn't that Gao Xia, the fourth seat of the Desolate God Society, codenamed [Magician]?!
The third one, carried on someone's shoulder, dressed in black...
Isn't this Zhang Lingqi, the traitor wanted by China?!
Seeing the first three petrified, the Clown felt no sympathy, but rather a secret sense of satisfaction.
Especially when he saw that old geezer Gao Qiu had fallen to this state, he almost couldn't help but burst out laughing.
But...
When his gaze fell upon the last female sculpture with a pair of dragon horns on her head...
The Clown's smile froze!
"Lord Void... Void Lord?!"
The Clown's legs gave way, and he collapsed into the muddy water!
He turned his head, trembling, and glanced at Medusa, who was twisting her waist and tearing the Scarecrow to pieces.
"Fuck! Who is this guy?! Even Lord Void was instantly killed!"
But...
After the initial shock, the Clown forced himself to calm down.
"Thank goodness, thank goodness, a stroke of luck amidst misfortune."
"At least the Nightmare isn't here, otherwise, given his emotional nature, he would have gone berserk on the spot if he saw this..."
However.
Just as the Clown was about to relax...
"Clown, what are you doing here?!"
A voice rang in his ears.
"Who!"
The Clown was so startled he jumped up from the ground!
A dark shadow suddenly emerged from Zhang Lingqi's petrified waist.
It's a [Nightmare]!
The Clown was terrified and quickly pulled him to a hidden corner behind the boulder.
"Shh! Are you fucking crazy?! What are you doing here?!"
The Clown lowered his voice and asked in terror.
It's a long story.
Nightmare sighed.
He quickly transformed into a shadow and lurked on Zhang Lingqi to evade detection.
He intended to wait for the right opportunity to eavesdrop on news about the Dragon God.
However, by a twist of fate, I witnessed the entire Watcher Scarecrow within Time Rift.
Simply hand it to the Clown.
"But now is not the time to care about me!"
Nightmare grabbed the Clown by the collar, staring at Medusa who was wreaking havoc in the distance.
"Just who is that blonde woman?!"
"How could even Lord Void be petrified by her beam of light?!"
"How the hell should I know!"
The Clown shook his head, cold sweat pouring down his face.
"All I know is that when those China soldiers were chatting on the road just now, they called her something like... Medusa."
Medusa...
Nightmare frowned. "Where have I heard this name before?"
"Forget it! This name is too common."
"In the Barbaric Realm, eight out of ten snake-people like to call themselves Medusa; she's probably a reclusive monster."
Nightmare shook his head. "Now, you'd better figure out a way to hide the statues of Lord Void and the others!"
"We absolutely cannot let them get smashed, or they'll really be dead!"
The Clown nodded repeatedly.
He peeked out, taking advantage of the moment when Medusa was furiously beating the Scarecrow.
He quickly looked around, searching for a safe hiding spot to conceal the sculpture.
But misfortunes never come singly...
Just as the Clown was about to move Guyue Xuyu's sculpture...
"Boom!"
Another voice rang out.
But this time, the sound didn't come from the front, but...
It resounded from the depths of the earth beneath their feet!
"Run? You think... you can escape?!"
Accompanied by a declaration.
"Bang!"
The ground beneath the Clown and the Nightmare exploded!
Amidst the splashing mud, the true form of the Watcher Scarecrow emerges from the earth!
Clearly, the vengeful Scarecrow, after sensing Medusa's terrifying petrification...
They cleverly chose to bypass the mad dog and sneak underground to pinpoint their enemy's location!
"Hand over their sculptures...!"
The Watcher Scarecrow looks down upon the Clown and the Nightmare.
"I'll hold this monster off!"
Nightmare shoved the Clown aside, "Take Lord Void and the others and get out of here!"
The Clown retreated, shaking his head. "No! This is impossible!"
Nightmare looked into the Clown's eyes and felt a strange surge of emotion.
"I never expected that this guy, who's always full of lies, would be so loyal and righteous in a life-or-death situation..."
But in reality, what the Clown truly thinks is...
"Are you out of your mind?! Five stone sculptures, how could you possibly move them all at once!"
"Besides, even if I could move it, what do I care whether that old bastard Gao Qiu lives or dies!"
"Since you're all courting death, let's all go together."
Just as the two were struggling, several other China soldiers who were digging in the soil also noticed the commotion.
Seeing the Clown in military uniform being attacked by a monster, they immediately grabbed their guns and rushed to his aid.
"Protect our comrades!"
The Watcher Scarecrow glanced at the uniforms worn by the soldiers, its eyes flickering slightly.
The power is too great... We can't afford to accidentally injure anyone.
It lowered the [Life Ignition] in its hand.
"To deal with trash like you who aren't even top-tier, there's no need for this sword, nor for Black Flame."
As soon as it finished speaking, it formed a hand seal.
"Straw Entanglement!"
Countless straws burst forth from its body, sweeping towards the Nightmare and the Clown!
Nightmare reacted extremely quickly, its body turning into smoke, thus escaping the strangulation of the straw.
The Clown then slid and rolled, disappearing into the crowd of soldiers rushing to his aid, using his comrades as Meat Shield.
"Shadow Assassination!"
Nightmare reformed in mid-air, and with a wave of its hands, Black Mist condensed into more than a dozen daggers.
Stab at the Scarecrow's vital points!
However, they faced a counterattack.
The Watcher Scarecrow didn't even try to dodge.
It has already demonstrated its capabilities after defeating Gao Qiu.
[Sequence 011: False King] has been parsed and copied over!
"False King, manifest!"
The Scarecrow sneered.
A burst of blue light shone from its hand, creating a counterfeit weapon that resembled the Raging Wave Axe out of thin air.
[Raging Straw Axe]!
It brandished the Pirated Copy giant axe, but instead of chopping down the daggers, it smashed it into the ground!
"Boom!"
The power of the straw bound all the charging China soldiers together like dumplings!
At the same time, Nightmare's black dagger pierced the Scarecrow's body.
"Pfft pfft..."
No blood flowed out.
Those daggers pierced through its body like they were piercing through a pile of tattered sacks.
It did not cause any harm at all.
"This..."
The Nightmare was terrified upon seeing this.
He finally realized how terrifying this monster was!
The opponent clearly overcame the attacks of Lord Void and the others, crushing and chasing them all the way here!
His true strength has definitely reached the Demigod level, or even higher!
It was simply beyond the capabilities of an assassin skilled in assassination and illusion to confront head-on!
The Nightmare, driven to the brink of despair, gasped for breath.
In his mind, time slowed down at that moment.
His short and tragic life flashed by.
He is an eerie being born from the deepest nightmares of countless children in this world.
From the day he gained consciousness, all he felt was the fear of the world towards him.
No one wanted to get close to him, even though he had never intentionally hurt anyone.
Everyone who saw him screamed and fled as if they had seen a plague.
But no one knew that he actually disliked the darkness at all.
In his heart, forged from fear, lay his deepest desire...
All I want is a home.
Someone who can accept him...
I'm not afraid of him...
His own home.
Until that day...
In the endless wilderness, Helge and the Void appear.
Instead of looking at him like he was a monster, they reached out their hands to him.
They gave him a code name and a place to stay.
From that moment on, the Desolate God Society became his only refuge.
That's his home!
"I will never allow... anyone to destroy my home!"
An unprecedented flame suddenly ignited in the Nightmare's eyes.
Even if all the other members of the Desolate God Society are selfish and Madman.
Even if nobody really cares about the existence of this organization...
"I will also... protect this place!"
Driven by desperation and the desire to protect their homeland!
The Nightmare's soul roared!
"Domain Deployment [Nightmare Terror]!"
Boom!
A black spiritual wave enveloped the swamp within a radius of several miles!
But this time, his domain was completely different from any previous invasion of the enemy's memories and dreams!
He is burning his own soul!
He was willing to risk his life to forcibly reverse the rules of reality...
He brought the most terrifying dream in his mind to Materialization in the Real World!
"Clown..."
Nightmare turned its head, and a smile appeared on its face, which was made of Black Mist.
He looked at the Clown hiding in the crowd and uttered his last words in this world.
We must... protect our home.
The moment the words left his mouth, Nightmare's body shattered inch by inch, turning into black light that shot into the sky!
"Um?"
The Watcher Scarecrow instinctively sensed that energy!
But it was too late.
Nightmare is the ultimate nightmare Materialization through life itself.
It was a cataclysmic event in the history of Blue Star's civilization, representing destruction and death...
Nuclear explosion!
"Boom!"
A bright white sun exploded in the heart of the swamp!
The intense heat and shockwave engulfed everything!
"Quick! Protect them!"
One second before being engulfed by the white light.
The Watcher Scarecrow did something that surprised everyone.
Instead of protecting itself with straw, it manipulated the Scarecrow puppet that had just emerged from the burrow.
They were piled up in front of the bound China soldiers and the Clown!
The soldiers, bound to the ground, closed their eyes.
They thought these monsters were going to take them down with them before they died.
But unexpectedly...
They actually used their own straw bodies to build a wall for them!
This nuclear explosion tore through the spatial barrier of the Time Rift!
"Snap!"
As space collapsed, an unknown spatial vortex opened at the center of the explosion!
The Clown closest to the vortex, and the five petrified high-rise sculptures.
They were sucked into the darkness.
And behind them.
Only the soldiers, protected by the Scarecrow's body, remained.
And in the distance, Medusa, her steps halted by thousands of Scarecrow puppets...
I don't know how much time passed.
"Ouch... it hurts..."
The Clown rubbed his head, which felt like it was about to explode, and got up from the ground.
He has now returned to his original form.
The surrounding light was dim, and he shook his head.
"Nightmare..."
He came to his senses, looked around, and found no one there.
He couldn't even sense any trace of the Nightmare.
"Hey! Nightmare! Stop joking around and get out here right now!"
The Clown shouted loudly, but there was no response.
"Thump."
The Clown knelt on the ground.
He knew that the nuclear explosion was a miracle bought with the life of Nightmare.
This time, the fool who always hid in the shadows, longing for a home, has truly vanished forever.
"Idiot... a complete idiot."
The Clown gritted his teeth, tears streaming down his face uncontrollably.
He pounded the ground, making a vow. "Don't worry... I will take good care of this Desolate God Society family for you..."
Even if I'm the only one left, I will fight to the very last moment.
"Rustle..."
In this somber atmosphere, the sound of dry grass rustling behind the Clown rang out.
One...
Two...
Countless straws burning with Black Flame are weaving in mid-air!
Just moments later, the Watcher Scarecrow reappeared before the Clown!
"Hehe... what a touching scene."
The Watcher Scarecrow did not die in the nuclear explosion.
Despite possessing immortality, it was sucked in along with the spatial rift created by the explosion.
"I didn't expect there would still be one who slipped through the net."
"That guy who released the Black Mist, his final counterattack really pleased me."
"To repay him for making me happy..."
The Scarecrow drew out [Life Ignition], saying, "Let me also grant you a grand death."
Fuck your mother!
The Clown gritted his teeth, his anger turning into a cruel laugh.
"Who the hell is the villain?!"
Why is it that in this damn world, I'm always the one who gets the short end of the stick?!
"Prepare to die!"
The Watcher Scarecrow, no longer uttering words, raised [Life Ignition] and walked step by step toward the Clown.
But.
What happened the next second left them both stunned.
The Scarecrow clearly took a step towards the Clown, but it...
He turned his back to the Clown and took a big step back in the opposite direction!
"What... what's going on?"
The Watcher Scarecrow held up its sword, full of doubt.
It tried to walk forward, but its body moved backward uncontrollably.
It swung its sword to the left, but the blade strangely slashed towards the space on its right.
"Hahaha... hahahaha!"
The Clown noticed something was amiss in his surroundings.
He stood up and looked at the walls around him, which reflected countless images.
This is no ordinary Time Rift.
This is...
A narrow slit within a narrow slit!
It's Deadly Place image of the Jedi created by that nuclear explosion!
Here, directions... are all completely confused!
And.
The Clown gazed longingly at the smooth mirrors that were everywhere.
The material exuded an aura he knew all too well!
It wasn't glass at all, but the exact same material as his White Tiger Dagger.
[Gengjin Divine Iron]!
What made the Clown feel breathless was...
It is another rare treasure that often accompanies the appearance of large quantities of Gengjin Divine Iron.
The Clown turned his head and looked in the direction of the most concentrated reflection in this space!
It was all refracted by countless Gengjin Divine Iron.
In the deepest part of the space, a black flame floats!
That is...
Tribulation Flame!!!