The Eightieth Stage
When the stone gate of the 80th level was pushed open, a wave of heat rushed out first.
Ning Buhui squinted. Before him stretched an endless desert. The scorching sun hung overhead, baking the sand dunes until they turned white, and the air was filled with the dry, scorching smell. The wind whipped up sand grains that stung his face like needles. He stepped into the sand, his feet sinking half an inch, each step more strenuous than on flat ground.
Eight people stood among the sand dunes.
They were all the same height and build, with calm expressions and a small black and white pagoda suspended in their palms. Eight pairs of eyes opened at the same time, and eight gazes pierced through the sandstorm and locked onto him.
Ning Buhui a deep breath. Seven clones were difficult enough, eight would only be more difficult.
The eight clones gave him no time to breathe. They moved almost simultaneously, their formation like a spreading net: three pressed forward from the right front, two flanked from the left rear, and the three in the center remained stationary. Ning Buhui immediately saw their intentions: a strong attack from the right flank to draw him into a direct confrontation, a flanking maneuver from the left to block his retreat, and the three in the center to provide support and cover for him at any moment. This formation was exactly the same as his own usual tactics, because they were him.
Without a second thought, he immediately cast four buffs on himself. The four beams of light —Butterfly Dance Flowing Radiance, Vine Armor Spring Life, Wind Thunder Wing Shadow, Bear Iron Wall —entered his body, causing his strength to surge. He then rushed towards the right-hand sand dune, intending to use the undulating terrain to break up the opponent's formation. However, the three clones on the right accelerated simultaneously, pressing towards him in a triangular formation at an astonishing speed. He had only taken a few steps when the two clones on the left had already circled around to the side, unleashing Thunder Prison Imprisons Wind that overlapped and covered him, sealing his movement abilities. He immediately counterattacked, using Butterfly Suppresses the Nether Spring to strike the controlling clone on the left. The black butterfly landed on the clone's shoulder, causing the clone's next Soul Skill to consume a huge amount of energy, instantly interrupting the casting. Ning Buhui unleashed a barrage of chains, shooting nine chains towards the clone.
But the other seven clones moved.
The three clones in the middle simultaneously moved towards their companion who was bound by chains. Two blocked his path and received the chains, while one encased the bound clone in Bear Iron Wall. Nine chains entangled the two blocking clones, and the third mirror image used this moment to pull the bound mirror image out of the chains' range. The entire process took less than two breaths. The coordination was terrifyingly perfect.
Ning Buhui withdrew the chains and retreated. The previous probing attack had given both sides a general understanding of each other's strength. The eight clones turned towards him simultaneously, their formation tightening again like a net.
A direct confrontation is not advisable; he needs to change his tactics.
He no longer engaged in direct confrontation, instead using the sand dune terrain to launch an ambush. He Warp behind a dune, and as the first clone circled around, he unleashed a Soul-Devouring Divine Light. The light wave struck the clone's chest, causing it to freeze for a moment. Ning Buhui followed up with a Void Rending Slash, then, without greed for damage, immediately retreated. The silver light pierced the opponent's ribs, not fatal, but merely causing it to stagger back a few steps. The other seven had already surrounded him. Two attacked from the left and right, two blocked his path from behind, and three provided support from the middle. Fortunately, Ning Buhui retreated early, or he would have been surrounded.
He flew to a sand dune a kilometer away, left a wave of Soul Power on the top of the dune, and immediately Warp to the bottom of the dune, hiding in the sand and quietly waiting for his eight mirror clones to catch up.
As predicted, the eight clones didn't stop and chased after the place where he left behind the Soul Power fluctuations. After seven clones had quickly run past, Ning Buhui instantly teleported behind the last injured clone. Because of the surprise attack, the opponent obviously didn't expect him to be lying in ambush under the sand dune. Caught off guard, he was stunned on the spot by Ning Buhui 'Soul-Suppressing God-Devouring Strike. Seeing that the sneak attack was successful, Ning Buhui followed up with a Void Rending Slash, cutting straight at the opponent's throat, and then immediately fled.
After Ning Buhui fled, the seven clones in front finally reacted and rushed back to help, but it was too late. The injured clone had already turned into dust and disappeared in the sandstorm.
Ning Buhui retreated and hid, ambushing and attacking, and killed another mirror image clone of the opponent. However, he also paid a price.
He already had more than a dozen wounds on his body. His rattan armor was broken and repaired repeatedly, and his Soul Power was more than half depleted. He still had six of his eight clones left, but it was even more difficult for him to launch a sneak attack. His opponent had also realized that he wanted to finish him off in one fell swoop.
Now, the opposing teams are paired up, supporting each other and pursuing together. Although the coverage area has decreased, it has also prevented casualties and eliminated the opportunity for Ning Buhui to launch a sneak attack.
Ning Buhui tried to ambush him several times, but to no avail, and the fight became increasingly difficult. His Soul Power was now down to only 30%, and he had sustained several new injuries.
He knew he couldn't continue like this, or he would be the first to be worn down.
He chose to fight head-on, trading injury for life. Taking advantage of the moment when one of the opponent's powerful clones ventured out to probe, he simultaneously unleashed Soul-Suppressing God-Devouring and Soul-Devouring Divine Light upon the opponent, followed by a Mountain Suppressing Falling Strike, instantly killing the opponent on the spot. The price was that he was hit on the back by another clone's Spiral Spinning Pagoda Strangulation, his rattan armor shattered instantly, a large section of his leather armor was also torn, and blood flowed down his back.
Five left. He gasped for breath, his consciousness beginning to fade. But the opposing team also only had five left. Three focused on support, one on control, and one on offense. The offensive one had already had its Soul Power depleted by him. The others probably had about 20% of their Soul Power remaining.
Ning Buhui gritted his teeth and charged forward, ignoring the other attacks. He only managed to avoid vital points, forcibly locking the powerful attacking clone with nine chains, Void Rending Slash. The remaining three support and control characters, without cover, were left only to be killed one by one.
The last auxiliary clone attempted to counterattack with the Soul-Devouring Divine Light, Ning Buhui took the hit head-on. His mind went blank, and blood flowed from his seven orifices, but he did not fall. Relying on his willpower, he gritted his teeth and countered with a Void Rending Slash, cleaving his opponent in two.
All eight clones vanished.
Ning Buhui lay sprawled on the sand like a corpse, gasping for breath. He was covered in blood, his Soul Power completely depleted. Due to the excessive draining of his Soul Power, his meridians were throbbing with pain. The wounds on his left shoulder and back were so deep that the bone was visible.
He lay there for a while before getting up, taking out a pill from his ring and swallowing it. He closed his eyes and waited for the medicine to take effect. The desert scene faded, restoring the stone chamber to its original state. He lay there motionless, his whole body aching as if it were falling apart.
The stone gate of the eighty-first level slowly appeared, with two words engraved on the lintel: "Question Your Heart".