Take Me Away

The kid could see!

He could see that terrifying woman!!!

Did his family know?

What about the examiners?

Every hair on Xu Yuan's body stood on end.

Run.

Run!

Leave right now, even if it meant abandoning the exam!

The thought had barely surfaced before he forced it down.

No.

Any sign that something was wrong would reveal that he could "see."

—Jiang Xueyao, Yang Xiaobing, and Zhao Afei couldn't see the monster.

So.

Neither can I!

That's right.

After all, this was the Eight-School Joint Examination. It was meant for every candidate.

How could they possibly set such an enormous test specifically for "candidates who could see invisible beings"?

If such a screening mechanism existed—

That would prove the ability was extraordinarily rare.

All the more reason not to expose himself!

Because he had no idea what would happen if he did!

Xu Yuan adjusted his expression, looking relaxed and at ease as he smiled and said:

"Does your family not pay enough attention to you?"

"Adults are busy sometimes. It doesn't mean they're ignoring you."

"Your parents love you, really."

The little boy pursed his lips and lowered his head, apparently giving up on explaining.

Not far behind them.

The terrifying woman finished eating.

She drew a deep breath, then unleashed a roar that seemed to come from thousands upon thousands of throats at once.

Her voice brimmed with mad longing. It pierced every obstacle and echoed back and forth through the dark, cold underground, finally merging into one long chant steeped in fury and murderous intent:

"Set—"

"Me—"

"—Free!"

"Who—can—set—me—free—"

In an instant.

Illusions sprang up everywhere.

Countless faces twisted in agony and boundless Iron-Enclosed Hells appeared all around them, then turned into molten lava and raging flames, flying skulls and Blood River Yakshas. Layer upon layer, without end, they threatened to overwhelm anyone who saw them with terror.

The little boy's face went deathly pale. His mouth hung open like a fish suffocating out of water.

Cold sweat began pouring off Xu Yuan again. He had to wipe his face and forehead lightly to keep it from running into his eyes.

Fortunately, the underground tunnel was so dark that no one could see anyone else clearly.

Xu Yuan forced down a swallow and drew every muscle in his face taut to keep them from twitching or twisting out of control.

He pulled air up through his throat, lifting his voice with it:

"Don't tell me—"

"Your family treats you badly? Tell me. I'll stand up for you."

Emotion had crept into his voice.

A high school student heard of an injustice, got worked up, and wanted to set things right.

What could be more natural?

Come on.

Here's your chance.

If you take it, we might both get out of this!

Almost instantly—

"My sister hits me every day! They abuse me!"

The little boy shouted.

He gets it.

Xu Yuan held his breath and asked softly, "How old are you, kid?"

"Eight." The little boy covered his face and sobbed, sneaking a look at Xu Yuan through his fingers. "Mom, Dad, and my sister torment me every day. I can't go on like this."

Xu Yuan stroked the little boy's head with genuine concern.

He really gets it.

Child abuse was a serious crime.

Now he had more than enough reason not to take the boy deeper into the tunnel.

No one could fault him for that!

Xu Yuan's tone grew gentler and warmer:

"How about I take you somewhere safe?"

The little boy bounced on the spot a few times, looking both anxious and afraid. He answered without hesitation:

"That'd be great! Let's go, then. Back the way you came—hurry!"

It seemed.

He had found a new will to live.

But Xu Yuan didn't move.

"Hurry! Can we go now?" Too anxious to wait, the little boy urged him on, grabbed his arm, and tugged him toward the way back.

He gets it almost too well!

But leaving would not be so easy now.

Xu Yuan looked down the tunnel, his gaze deep as a bottomless sea.

The enemy was terrifying.

He really should flee.

But—

She was already looking this way.

Rustle, rustle, rustle...

A faint sound arose.

The ground rippled.

Something was racing toward them underground.

Fast!

But the rippling ground and the sound it made were perfectly ordinary. Anyone could see them.

Then—

Xu Yuan drew a deep breath, closed his eyes for a moment, and opened them again.

Spiritual energy.

It surged wildly through his body in an instant.

While running at full speed, Xu Yuan suddenly spun around and accelerated, drawing the Qiong Jia Sword with one hand.

Spiritual light flared along its edge.

Clang!

Swallow Song Sword Art: Arc Dance!

The sword sliced through the air, drawing a razor-thin line through the darkness.

Several dark shapes burst from the earth and met Xu Yuan's blade, weaving about like a blur of afterimages.

Sword and shadows tangled back and forth.

Xu Yuan's eyes remained utterly calm. His hand moved at its absolute limit, sending an unbroken succession of curved sword shadows through the air.

The blade.

Each tremor severed a shadow coming at him. Not one stroke missed.

In the snap of a finger.

The sword stopped.

Every dark shape fell.

A textbook-perfect fight!

Xu Yuan sheathed his sword, pushed off the ground, retreated, turned, and chased after the hound formed from the Talisman.

Run!

Run faster!!!

Xu Yuan had never run so desperately in either of his lives.

All that remained where he had stood was a giant earthworm, cut into several pieces.

A few breaths later.

Seven or eight long black legs came to rest beside the earthworm's corpse.

There was no sound.

The earthworm's remains writhed and shook violently, as though something had taken possession of them.

All its flesh fused together and grew into a new body.

It became a black snake.

This was something that could not be seen.

The black snake slithered up one of the long legs and onto the woman's arm.

The woman looked toward where Xu Yuan had disappeared and began to walk.

But in the next instant.

The ground split open.

Another black snake emerged from underground. It flicked its tongue at her, hissing as though telling her something.

The woman stopped.

"They've gathered underground?"

"Putting up a desperate fight..."

The woman spoke.

Boom—

Countless snake-shaped shadows poured from her body and covered the entire tunnel.

Each snake flicked its tongue and spoke in a voice, some male, some female:

"Set me free..."

"Set me free!"

"Set me free, set me free, set us free—"

Chanting as they went, they slithered into the depths of the tunnel and vanished.

The woman turned as well and walked step by step down the tunnel in the other direction.

"Drum Tower Street Subway Station... isn't far."

"Devour, or be devoured."

"You'll all become me."

Her murmurs merged with the darkness and gradually faded beyond hearing.

Darkness.

Utter silence.

Then—

From belowground to the surface, the whole vast city of Border City began to sway and tremble.

Elsewhere.

Xu Yuan had just caught up with the hound when he suddenly slashed at the wall beside him.

A worm that had just poked its head out was pierced by the Qiong Jia Sword and dissolved into black mist.

The next second.

Countless worms emerged from the ground, the walls, and the ceiling.

"We can't get away!"

The little boy shouted in despair and struggled to jump off the hound's back.

Smack.

A soft sound rang out.

A hand struck the back of his neck. He lost consciousness at once and slumped back onto the hound.

Xu Yuan withdrew his hand and said:

"Xiao Bing, run as fast as you can."

"Okay!" the hound answered.

Man and hound picked up speed together.

The moment they moved, they set off a chain reaction—

The worms emerging from the walls shot toward them like bolts of lightning, reaching to coil around Xu Yuan and the boy.

There were too many!

They filled the entire underground tunnel!

—For anyone trying to escape through the tunnel, it was a death trap with no way out!

Yet Xu Yuan moved.

As he ran at full speed, he drew the Qiong Jia Sword, held it sideways, and swung it again and again.

Swallow Song Sword Art: Falling Leaves!

The move was blindingly fast, a true thrusting technique meant to seal an opponent's throat with a single stroke.

And yet.

Compared with his earlier strikes, this one held far less killing intent and far more nimble, effortless grace.

The flat of his sword struck a black snake's head and pressed lightly—

The black snake was pushed back at once.

It opened its mouth to bite that hateful human swordsman again, only to find he had already run beyond its reach.

That was right!

Xu Yuan had used no spiritual energy.

He had not even used much muscle strength.

With this sword move, he merely let the flat of his blade "cling" to the black snakes and pressed them back, clearing a safe passage for himself.

That required no great expenditure of spiritual energy to unleash a sword technique.

Nor did it take much strength to swing and slash.

—He only needed to block them and make them retreat.

At the Qi Refining Second Layer, Xu Yuan had strength to spare.

But—

It demanded a terrifying instinct for battle and speed of reaction.

Xu Yuan ran shoulder to shoulder with the hound without slowing in the slightest, "sweeping back" the worms around them all the way, as though taking a leisurely stroll through a garden.

—They were actually beginning to break free of the worms' encirclement!

It was nothing short of miraculous!

Clang, clang, clang, clang—

Four chimes rang out in succession.

Above Xu Yuan's head, four lights flashed one after another.

"You have triggered four consecutive light bursts."

"A total of four examiners have praised your combat talent and ability."

"Their assessments are as follows:"

"Although the exam forcibly restricted the black snakes to the Qi Refining First Layer, who else could move through a swarm of monsters with such unruffled ease?"

"Who could sweep back every enemy without missing a single one, keeping his sword and hand steady from start to finish without changing pace?"

"This takes more than skill. It also takes a measure of combat imagination and a heart that remains calm under pressure."

"So—"

"Among this year's examinees, we have finally found a true combat genius."