What Matters Is That You... Are Dead

"What a sinister magical artifact! Even catching me off guard, I didn't gain the upper hand—if someone truly plotted with this, killing a Qi Refining sixth-layer would indeed be possible!"

Su Shi'er sighed inwardly, staring at his opponent with a wary expression.

"Trying to ambush me? Kid, you're still too green!"

"Originally, I thought a Qi Refining third-layer prey wouldn't be much of a challenge. Who'd have guessed you're actually Qi Refining fifth-layer—interesting!"

The hook-nosed man sneered and shook his head, then stuck out his tongue to lick his lips.

As he spoke, the eerie wind around him vanished. He spun around abruptly, drawing the longbow in his hand.

Six Light Arrows shot through the air, arriving in an instant.

Su Shi'er narrowed his eyes, already prepared. The moment the Light Arrows descended, he activated the Ice Shield, which swelled against the wind and stood before him.

Such an attack wasn't enough to break the Ice Shield's defense. And he planned to use this wave of assault to counterattack.

But just as the attack was about to land, his pupils contracted slightly, and a bad feeling surged within him.

"Something's wrong!"

Shifting his thoughts without hesitation, he decisively summoned a gust of wind and soared upward.

"Boom!"

The next second, the Light Arrows struck the ground with a thunderous explosion, sending mud flying and trees toppling.

In an instant, a massive crater appeared where he had stood.

"Hiss—what kind of bow is that, with such terrifying power?!"

Su Shi'er gasped sharply. If he hadn't noticed that cold smirk and dodged in time, that hit would have left him dead or gravely wounded.

"Having a High-grade attack Magical Artifact is one thing, but you've also got a High-grade defensive Magical Artifact?! Kid, you're carrying quite a haul!"

The hook-nosed man frowned. He'd spoken of Su Shi'er as mere prey, yet when he struck, he went straight for lethal moves.

But he hadn't expected to be seen through.

That irritated him, but when his eyes landed on the icy-blue Ice Shield, greed flickered in his gaze.

He had plenty of treasures himself, but only the Yin Wind Bead was a High-grade Magical Artifact. The rest were mere Low-grade ones.

What's more, defensive Magical Artifacts were especially rare.

Staring fixedly at Su Shi'er in midair, he nocked his bow without hesitation and fired six more Light Arrows.

These six Light Arrows lacked that same sense of threat. But Su Shi'er didn't dare let his guard down—this man, seemingly wild, was actually insidious.

Though airborne, his movements were exceptionally agile. He continuously cast the Wind Calling Technique, pairing Shadowless Illusionary Steps with the Cloud-Treading Boots.

For a moment, Su Shi'er moved like a ghost, now leaping before him, now appearing behind him.

"Die!"

Suddenly, Su Shi'er shouted, raising his sword to slash head-on!

The White Mist Sword, driven by true essence, brought forth a dazzling sword light.

"You think the same trick will work twice?" The hook-nosed man snorted coldly, activating the Yin Wind Bead again.

This time, under his control, the eerie wind surged straight toward Su Shi'er.

But before the wind could reach him, the man's expression twisted violently.

"Thump, thump, thump..."

In quick succession, seven Soul Severing Nails, controlled by Su Shi'er's Object Manipulation Technique, approached silently.

As the opponent focused entirely on controlling the wind, Su Shi'er struck suddenly, driving the nails into his back.

The Soul Severing Nail was a High-grade Magical Artifact, laced with potent poison.

Even though the hook-nosed man was no weakling, once struck by the Soul Severing Nails, his body went limp, and he collapsed to the ground.

The eerie wind dissipated, and a dark, sinister bead clattered to the earth.

"How... is this possible?! A High-grade hidden-weapon Magical Artifact? Who... who the hell are you?" The hook-nosed man quickly pulled out one of the Soul Severing Nails, holding it in his hand, his face shifting in shock.

The disciples participating in the trial were mostly either newcomers or menial servants.

These people weren't strong and rarely had many good items.

Having a Mid-grade Magical Artifact was already remarkable. Owning a High-grade one made you a small tycoon.

Su Shi'er possessing both an offensive and defensive High-grade Magical Artifact had nearly made his jaw drop.

He never would have imagined there could also be a High-grade hidden-weapon Magical Artifact.

Three High-grade Magical Artifacts—if he'd known that from the start, he would never have tangled with Su Shi'er; he'd have fled immediately!

"Who I am doesn't matter! What matters is—you're dead!!" Su Shi'er said coldly, raising his sword and striking.

"Stop, I..." The hook-nosed man's eyes bulged as he tried to say something.

But the moment he opened his mouth, he felt a chill at his neck, and then the world spun.

A bowl-sized wound appeared on his throat.

One sword strike to sever the head. Confirming the man was thoroughly dead, Su Shi'er stepped forward, collected everything on him, and deftly tossed out a Fireball spell to destroy the evidence.

"Zhu Hanwei, how are you feeling?" Without rushing to examine the spoils, Su Shi'er turned to look at the fat man beside him, Zhu Hanwei.

Zhu Hanwei was staring blankly at the traces of the hook-nosed man's corpse.

He simply couldn't believe that the nightmare of a man had died just like that. Dead, reduced to nothing but a handful of ash.

Most crucially, he had been killed by Su Shi'er.

After all, Su Shi'er had joined the Yun Ge Sect in the same batch as him. And Su Shi'er's talent wasn't necessarily much better than his own.

Though he had long sensed that Su Shi'er was no simpleton, he never imagined he was this strong!

This guy—did he have some kind of lucky encounter? But what kind of encounter could make him this powerful?

Even Han Yu, the one the Peak Master valued most, probably wasn't this formidable, right?!

Zhu Hanwei marveled inwardly. Hearing the voice, he quickly replied with a respectful expression, "Don't worry, Twelfth Senior Disciple Brother, I'm fine!"

As he spoke, he waved his hand, but the wound on his leg still made the corner of his mouth twitch.

"I'll lend you this Minor Restoration Pill. There's less than a month left in the trial. Be more careful from now on."

Su Shi'er nodded faintly, flicking his wrist to toss out a low-grade Minor Restoration Pill he'd scrounged from some unlucky soul's Storage Pouch.

Having done that, he turned and walked away.

Zhu Hanwei caught the pill in his hand and swallowed it without hesitation.

Gazing at Su Shi'er's back with a grateful expression, his eyes darted a couple of times. Gritting his teeth, he limped after him.

"Twelfth Senior Disciple Brother, wait... wait for me!"

"Hm? Something else?" Su Shi'er stopped, looking at him expressionlessly.

"Senior Disciple Brother, you saved my life. It's like you've given me a new lease on existence. From today on, I, Zhu Hanwei, owe you my life. I'll follow your lead!"

Zhu Hanwei patted his chest and said with feeling.

His cultivation was already low, and he was injured. Without someone to protect him, in the remaining days, he'd likely either be killed by others or die under the claws of demon beasts!

The best option for him was to find a big brother!

He couldn't latch onto Han Yu or Xiao Yue's coattails. Within the sect, the only one he could think of was the man before him.

Su Shi'er had taken the initiative to save him at a critical moment, which showed his character wasn't bad.

In that brief instant, he had already thought it through clearly.

"Follow my lead? Not needed!" Su Shi'er squinted and shook his head decisively.

He wasn't stupid either; he knew the other party was just looking for a powerful backer to last until the trial ended.

He had little interest in that.