A dust-yellow wind swept up grit, drawing long trails across the boundless wilderness.
A lone figure in white trudged onward, his plain robes snapping in the sandy wind, mottled spots of blood seeping through the fabric over his chest.
He carried a heavy Black Coffin on his back, each step leaving a deep, bloody footprint in the cracked earth.
His robes were whiter than snow; the Black Coffin was dark as a prison.
Black and white looked desolate and forlorn beneath the vast heavens.
"Goddamn you, Gu Huangquan, can't you walk on your own?" The moment Painter opened his mouth, he shattered the bleak atmosphere.
He turned his head and cursed at the Black Coffin behind him. "Azure Dragon didn't kill me, but sooner or later, you'll crush me to death!"
A muffled voice came from the Black Coffin. "What about the spatial Taboo Object you stole from Collector? Can't you use it to travel?"
"You think I don't want to? I used spatial travel earlier to get away from that bastard Azure Dragon. Who could've known he was this strong now? Not only did he ignore gene collapse, he shattered space with a single punch. My precious treasure got damaged because of it.
"It can still teleport, but the destination isn't accurate anymore. What if it sends me underground?
"Quit talking and get down here and walk!"
Painter glanced down at his bloodstained clothes. At this rate, he figured he would die halfway there, before he ever reached the Steel Brotherhood.
"I can't walk," came the muffled reply from the Black Coffin.
Painter flew into a rage. "Why can't you walk?!"
"Why do you think, my good brother?" Gu Huangquan's voice remained cold, though he stressed the words "my good brother."
"My corpse was already damaged, and then you