Worms vs. Wormless

Meng Huai stepped forward to face the man in black from a distance. The air was thick with tension, and their gazes locked as though sparks might fly.

Meng Huai said coldly, "They say strangers become friends the second time around. This is our second meeting. Shouldn't we at least introduce ourselves?"

The man in black said hoarsely, "When my wife and child died, I died with them. But the Night God Church gave me hope. From now on, I am Ye Yin, the Night God Church's Right Protector."

Meng Huai frowned. "Don't listen to their nonsense. The dead have never come back to life. There are plenty of people more powerful than us, but I've never seen any of them resurrect someone.

"Besides, this is the age of declining spiritual power. With our abilities, we barely qualify as practitioners, let alone true cultivators. The terms may sound close, but we aren't even fit to carry their shoes.

"If so many masters before us couldn't do it, what makes you think the Night God Church can? You're just deceiving yourself. Stop dreaming."

Ye Yin fell silent for a moment. "What you said makes perfect sense. But as long as there's even the slightest chance, I can't let it slip away. What if it really works?"

Meng Huai blinked. "So for this supposed glimmer of hope, you're willing to help them commit atrocities? You don't even care about your conscience anymore?"

Ye Yin roared fiercely, **"Don't talk to me about conscience! I used to live carefully and do my work earnestly. Whenever I met someone who needed help, I lent a hand. And what did that get me?

"Heaven is blind! Good people never get what they deserve, while those without a shred of conscience live in luxury and wield absolute power.

"Take this incident. If I hadn't had these abilities, how would those people ever have received their punishment? Go listen to the families cheering, and you'll know who's right and who's wrong."**

Meng Huai was left speechless. Ye Yin had a point. These days, only people who had thrown away their consciences could live well.

He nodded. "Looks like I can't convince you. I don't even believe what I just said myself. Let's talk about something practical. Chang Yanping is putting up a billion for charity, so I'm protecting his life."

Ye Yin frowned. "Fine. Since you're a good man, I'll do you this favor. I've killed almost everyone who deserved it anyway. I'll let him live."

Chang Yanping let out a long sigh of relief. He didn't care whether anyone else lived or died, as long as his own life was spared.

Meng Huai suddenly backed up several steps, grabbed Chang Yanping by the collar, and dragged him several meters away.

The concrete where Chang Yanping had just been standing turned black and began giving off fumes. Clearly, Ye Yin had launched an attack.

Meng Huai curled his lip. "I knew no one who joined the Night God Church was any good. Believe a word you say, and I wouldn't even know what killed me."

Ye Yin's gaze shifted slightly. "It seems I really underestimated you. You can actually sense my Wormless Gu."

Meng Huai smiled nonchalantly. "Wormless Gu is impressive, but no ability in this world is flawless. Look hard enough, and you'll find a weakness."

As he spoke, he formed seals with both hands, then opened his mouth and spat out two long black worms. They shot toward Ye Yin like arrows piercing the clouds.

Ye Yin darted backward. Watching the two worms constantly change course, he formed seals with both hands as well and unleashed over a dozen qi worms in succession, cutting the two worms into more than a dozen pieces.

Meng Huai looked at Ye Yin. "Every grievance has its culprit, and every debt has its debtor. You've more or less had your revenge. There's no need to kill any more people. I'll fight you today. If I win, this ends here, and neither of us owes the other anything."

Ye Yin sneered. "Since you're so confident, I accept. I swear by the Night God that after our fight, this matter will end here."

As he spoke, he blew outward. Gusts of icy wind immediately swept across the rooftop, coating it in frost.

Chang Yanping stared in disbelief. Dian City had a hot climate, and even days below ten degrees were rare. Seeing frost form on the ground was simply unbelievable.

Meng Huai's expression darkened. He took a bottle of Erguotou from his backpack and drained it in one go. Then he formed a Hand Seal and spat out a ball of fire.

The flames struck the ground and instantly melted the frost. The resulting water ate into the concrete floor, leaving it riddled with pits.

Meng Huai sprinted forward, constantly releasing worms while sensing his opponent's Qi Worms and changing direction to dodge them.

His guess had been exactly right. Although Ye Yin's Wormless Gu was silent and imperceptible, it could not turn. It could only attack in a straight line.

Ye Yin's expression turned grim. He dodged Meng Huai's gu worms while unleashing a barrage of attacks, calculating his opponent's evasive routes.

As the distance between them closed, Meng Huai suddenly hurled the liquor bottle. The unexpected attack struck Ye Yin squarely on the head.

Ye Yin staggered, seeing stars as dizziness washed over him. He hastily shook his head and released Qi Worms across a wide area, forming a dense defensive barrier in front of himself.

Meng Huai released a plump worm, which exploded in midair with a thunderous boom and blasted open the defensive wall. Then he rushed up to Ye Yin and threw a cannon punch.

Ye Yin had never expected the brat to have a move like that. The blow left him with a black eye, swelling it completely shut and robbing him of vision on that side.

Meng Huai grabbed Ye Yin by the hair and rained wild punches down on him. Ye Yin howled in pain, unable to break free.

As he punched, Meng Huai shouted, "I was the school bully from the time I was a kid! I fought my way through life! A goody-two-shoes like you doesn't stand a chance against me in a brawl!"

Ye Yin struggled and roared, "This is supposed to be a Gu Arts duel! What the hell do you call this?"

Meng Huai knocked Ye Yin to the ground and kicked him as he spoke. "Spare me that bullshit. Even the founding emperor said it doesn't matter whether a cat is black or white. If it catches mice, it's a good cat.

"It doesn't matter what methods I use, as long as I put you on the ground. Do you give up, bastard? If not, I'll kick your balls to pieces."

Chang Yanping watched from the sidelines, dumbstruck, his entire worldview shattered. He had expected an impressive, high-level duel, not for the fight to turn into this.

Ye Yin struggled to form a hand seal. In a flash, he vanished and reappeared atop a distant fire-water tank.

Holding a hand to the corner of his mouth, he said, "You damned bastard! You're utterly shameless! Using methods like that—you've disgraced every Gu Master!"

Meng Huai took a deep breath and kept steadying himself. Now that they were apart again, his opponent's Wormless Gu still posed a serious threat.

He formed seals with both hands once more, preparing to call upon his Life-Bound Golden Silkworm Gu and settle the fight once and for all.

Just then, an uninvited guest suddenly appeared, instantly changing the situation.