Slaying the Two Lius

The rope net was abnormally tough; Zhang Zhu struggled with it for a long time without making progress.

On the contrary, because of his frantic fumbling, Shen Yuan inside the net was injured even more severely and finally couldn't hold on, falling unconscious.

"Senior Sister Liu, Junior Sister Shen is too deeply poisoned. Hurry and save her," Zhang Zhu said urgently.

Liu Xiange looked toward Fang Huai. Though she too sensed the danger, Shen Yuan was after all her close friend, and the poison she'd taken required a Blood Gu Centipede to remove. She had no choice but to go.

"I once heard a story. How about I tell it to you?" Fang Huai turned to look at Liu Xiange.

"An old man planted a gourd vine, and it bore seven gourds. He named them the seven Calabash Brothers.

Later, the old man was captured by a demon beast. The Calabash Brothers knew they couldn't win, but they went to rescue him one by one, and in the end, they were all refined into Human Pills.

Do you know what I'm trying to say?"

"You want to tell me how to plant spirit plants so they can take form, or that all things with spirit can become pills?"

"No, I want to tell you not to learn from the Calabash Brothers saving their grandpa, or else everyone will die."

Liu Xiange's eyes were complex as she slowly spoke: "I understand what you mean, but I can't bear to watch my close friend die before my eyes."

"Senior Brother Fang, do you remember the pact the four of us made? If you ever run into danger, we won't abandon you. So you won't abandon us either, right?"

Fang Huai was silent.

Liu Xiange grabbed his hand and said, "Senior Brother Fang, I'm counting on you in a moment."

A slippery sensation came from her palm. As Liu Xiange rushed toward Shen Yuan, Fang Huai turned and walked away.

"Thwip—"

A sound of something cutting through the air came from afar, followed by the noise of a sharp weapon piercing flesh.

Looking back, Zhang Zhu and the other man each had a wooden arrow stuck in them.

The arrows carried a Paralysis Toxin. After being hit, the two fell to the ground, unable to speak or move, their eyes filled with terror.

The Liu Brothers stepped out from the shadows, shaking off the yellow earth and dead leaves they'd used for concealment, and said:

"Fang Huai, your heart is truly cruel. Weren't they your close friends? Why didn't you save them?"

"This Fang does not save fools!" Fang Huai said as he backed away.

"You came, and now you think you can leave?" The Liu Brothers pressed forward.

"Swish!"

A wooden arrow flew through the air. Fang Huai dodged to the side: "Looks like there's no peaceful end to this today!"

"What do you think?" Liu Kui charged in with his blade, attacking Fang Huai head-on.

The chopping knife clashed against the Stone Blade. Fang Huai didn't retreat a single step; instead, Liu Kui's tiger's-mouth was numbed by the impact.

Fang Huai's body-tempering was stronger than Liu Kui's, giving him an advantage in strength. Seizing the moment Liu Kui's hand went numb, he drove his knee up into the man's abdomen.

After taking that hit, cold sweat broke out on Liu Kui's forehead. He clutched his stomach and stumbled backward.

Fang Huai moved to pursue, but hearing another wooden arrow cut through the air, he had no choice but to dodge.

Liu Kui had also learned his lesson. When Fang Huai advanced, he retreated, letting Liu Wu harass from a distance.

When Fang Huai tried to kill Liu Wu, Liu Kui would swing his blade forward to act as a distraction.

One man with a blade, one with a bow—they'd fought together in the mortal martial world for years, wearing down countless experts with this method. Their coordination was flawless.

Fang Huai was stuck to these two sticky plasters. He couldn't kill them, couldn't escape, and his stamina was draining fast.

Glancing at the three in the trap, Liu Xiange was fine—she had a Gu Poison Body and was merely paralyzed.

Zhang Zhu, though poisoned, wasn't at death's door.

But Shen Yuan was in a bad state, her whole body black and purple, her life hanging in the balance.

Seeing the Liu Brothers tying him down, Fang Huai thought that if he kept this up, it wouldn't be a question of saving others—he'd be dragged down with them.

Suddenly, Fang Huai twisted his ankle, a pained expression flashing across his face.

The Liu Brothers were overjoyed at this and pressed their assault even harder.

During the struggle, Fang Huai gradually lost strength, and Liu Kui carved many wounds into his body, leaving him a gruesome sight.

Finally, his body tilted, exposing a gap that Liu Kui seized.

"Crack—"

Liu Kui leaped up and struck straight down on Fang Huai's shoulder. The force was so great that the blade lodged itself in the bone.

After this move, Liu Kui quickly retreated, waving for Liu Wu to shoot from afar.

"Swish!"

The wooden arrow struck Fang Huai's thigh. Under the numbing effect of the toxin, Fang Huai finally couldn't hold on and collapsed.

Seeing his target hit, Liu Wu stopped hiding, stood up, and walked forward.

The reason he no longer hid was that the poison arrows were mixed with Numbing Snake Grass toxin, which rapidly paralyzed the muscles, leaving a person unable to move.

Fang Huai landed face-down on the ground with a heavy thud, limbs twitching, blood splattering everywhere.

The Liu Brothers were in no hurry, calmly waiting off to the side.

"Brother, this kid's definitely carrying some good stuff. Let me search him."

"Not yet. Wait until he's good and dead."

Soon, Fang Huai stopped convulsing.

Liu Kui sneered coldly: "Relying on dual cultivation to boost the Body Forging Technique—it's still crooked path in the end. Even if the body is strong, a dull mind is useless."

Liu Wu lowered his bow, stepped up to Fang Huai, and reached into his chest, fumbling for the Storage Bag: "I actually had a decent impression of you, wanted to befriend you. But someone paid a heavy price for us to kill you, so don't blame us for being ruthless."

Suddenly, his wrist was seized. Fang Huai propped himself up and drove the Stone Blade into his throat.

"I don't blame you. Because you're about to die."

Liu Wu stumbled back, clutching his throat, his face full of disbelief. The arrow was clearly coated in poison—why could Fang Huai still get up?

And besides, Fang Huai had suffered such severe injuries—how was he acting like nothing was wrong?

"You! You... why..."

"If you can't figure it out, then don't bother. Strong body, dull mind—useless!"

Fang Huai stabbed Liu Wu once more in the chest, and the man fell backward in despair.

"Little brother!" Liu Kui howled at the sky.

His body was failing him. His blood felt as if it had been drained dry, dizziness clouding his vision, and he no longer even had the strength to grip his blade.

Fang Huai had long seen through the layered trap Shen Yuan had fallen into.

The reason he had held back, pretending to be indifferent toward Liu Xiange, Zhang Zhu, and Shen Yuan, was to lure out the person behind the scenes.

What he feared wasn't open attacks, but hidden arrows.

Looking at the [Blood Drain] label on Liu Kui, he felt a lingering chill. Though his plan had been thorough, he had still underestimated the two men's strength.

If not for their carelessness in failing to finish him off, he would have surely fallen here today.

Thinking this, he grabbed Liu Kui by the throat and said harshly: "Who sent you?"

Liu Wu had said someone paid them heavily to kill him—that probably wasn't a lie.

After all, if the Liu Brothers could really afford to use two Clear Spirit Grass plants as bait, they wouldn't have risked blocking the entrance for a few Miasma-Clearing Pills.

Liu Kui's expression twisted: "Dream on. You killed my brother—I'll make you live in fear for the rest of your life..."

Fang Huai sneered and tightened his grip. Liu Kui's face instantly turned red, and he couldn't speak.

Thinking that since the man dared to rob and kill, he would surely have Hemostasis Pills on him, Fang Huai reached into the Storage Bag on his body.

As expected, there were a few pills in the pouch labeled [Hemostasis and Fluid Generation].

A cold gleam flashed, and both Liu Kui's hand and foot tendons were severed.

Fang Huai dropped Liu Kui to the ground, ignoring the man's curses. He first took a Hemostasis Pill, then bandaged his own wounds.

He picked up Liu Kui's blade and slung Liu Wu's bow over his back.

The blade was a good blade, the bow a good bow—in the mortal world, they would be worth a fortune, hard to come by.

These two weapons, which in the mundane realm would spark conflict among noble houses, were now all his spoils.

Seeing Fang Huai ignore his existence, Liu Kui raged: "If you don't kill me, you'll regret it. Sooner or later, I'll have my revenge!"

Before he could finish, a cold gleam flashed before his eyes, and a sweet, coppery taste surged in his throat.

Fang Huai wiped the blood from the blade, glanced down at Liu Kui's fallen body, and said flatly: "You won't get that chance."