Feigning Death
The previously lifeless demon rose from its corpse and stood up, which made Ying Fusu feel a little regretful.
He did not finish off the enemy according to the Qin army's organizational structure, which brought about considerable trouble later on.
The Venerable One was under pressure from the power channeled by the Qingzhou Cauldron, rendering him unable to move. The candle in the opponent's mouth had a limited burning time; if he had waited any longer, the Venerable One would have been forced to reappear in reality and thus be killed.
The real trouble right now stems from Zhang Xuezhou.
The Tai'a sword was taken away, and Ying Fusu took out a feathered arrow and aimed it.
The arrows were aimed and targeted, but Ying Fusu also felt a sense of uncertainty in his aim.
The opponent was clearly standing there, but Ying Fusu felt that there was a high probability that his arrow would miss after it flew out.
"His wingspan should allow him to fly very fast, but this is an underground palace with limited space to maneuver. If one arrow isn't enough to kill him, then two arrows will do; if two arrows aren't enough, then three!"
His right hand pressed down on the arrow, and as the phosphorescent light in his eyes narrowed slightly, the arrow pierced through the darkness and shot out.
"Ah, it's a poisoned arrow!"
The opponent's screams of pain rang out, and Ying Fusu was taken aback as he watched his opponent's body slowly fall to the ground.
After taking the Tai'a sword from him and recognizing him as a powerful demon king, Ying Fusu took this opponent extremely seriously, even preparing to kill him repeatedly with his bare hands.
His frustration at the difficulty in aiming the arrows further convinced him that his opponent was a powerful Demon Race strategist who was feigning weakness to deceive others.
But Ying Fusu didn't expect that his arrow would actually hit the enemy.
The myriad Sword Qi failed to harm the opponent, but a single arrow that pierced through in an instant struck.
"It's just a feathered arrow made of arrow grass," Ying Fusu said. "This kind of arrow grass is effective in killing on contact with blood; if you think it's poison, that's fine too!"
Ying Fusu rarely explained the reasons to his dead opponents, but those who could catch his Tai'a sword should not die in such a humiliating way.
He briefly explained the reason, then glanced at Zhu Jiuyin, whose eyes were filled with resentment and despair.
"What, are you disappointed that your capable demon king assistant hasn't served your purpose?"
Ying Fusu drew his bow again, and the silhouette of the feathered arrow, carved with the sun, moon, and stars, reappeared on the bowstring.
"The old dynasty has fallen, and the new dynasty has risen. According to our lord, you are like a setting Western Mountain, unable to possess invincible power. The Shang and Zhou dynasties are precedents; you cannot defy this trend..."
His Majesty murmured.
Even the Venerable One never imagined that he would end up being slaughtered by arrows.
This shouldn't be his fate, nor should it be something Ying Fusu could have done.
"My lord? When did you, you old monster, get a new master?"
Ying Fusu didn't stop, but he couldn't help but be a little surprised, feeling that this old monster, His Majesty, changed allegiances very quickly.
"Have you returned to the Heavenly Court's forces of those Western barbarians?"
He fired another arrow, and the esteemed one, struck by it, struggled and slammed his head hard against the ground.
His Majesty's clumsy attempts to Body Control made Ying Fusu shake his head.
"The Heavenly Court is old and corrupt; anyone, whether human or demon, who relies on Heavenly Court will meet a bad end," Ying Fusu said. "You rashly rushed into the constructions of my Great Qin to seek a continuation of the Heavenly Court's fortune. This is an impossible task, and you will inevitably suffer a backlash and die!"
"Impossible, impossible..."
The Venerable One repeatedly banged his head against the underground palace, the slow, muffled sounds like thunder.
He shouted, clearly not believing in his fate.
Blood gushed from his forehead like a fountain, filling the underground palace with a warm, pungent smell.
"A centipede!"
As Ying Fusu's indifferent voice fell, he clearly no longer paid attention to the Venerable One, whose head was pierced and blood was flowing continuously.
This wasn't a powerful, otherworldly creature that he could kill completely at will. He could only give it time to let its life slip away and die. He wouldn't waste the remaining power in his body on dealing with the stiff, yet still alive, dragon-snake body.
He stepped onto the Qingzhou Cauldron and leaped downwards.
"It's a pity you died a few years too late, otherwise these scales could have given my Qin Dynasty thousands more sets of fine armor!"
He kicked the Venerable One's burning hot body, gave a brief comment on the Venerable One's physique, and then leaped backward.
The three-zhang-tall demon body lying on the ground came into view. The demon body was still as clear as jade and looked extremely clean.
Ying Fusu also kicked, but felt that the other party's limbs were stiff as iron, completely lacking the solidity, softness, and heat of the Venerable's body.
"That was a quick and painless death!"
He caught 108,000 sword strikes from the Tai'a Sword, but failed to catch the arrows shot from the Dragon-Controlling Bow. This made Ying Fusu shake his head, feeling that such a master had died inexplicably.
The Tai'a sword is a precious sword used by ordinary people, but when held in the hands of the opponent's enormous demonic body, it is like a dagger.
Ying Fusu flipped his palm and then grabbed the other's right hand that was holding the Tai'a sword.
A hard yet warm body sensation surged through Ying Fusu's mind, and a chill ran through him. Before he could retract his hand, the giant hand that had been gripping the Tai'a sword flipped over.
"You faked your death?"
Ying Fusu opened his slightly narrowed eyes, glanced at those steady eyes, and then looked at the huge hand that was gripping his arm tightly.
Although he still spoke, Ying Fusu channeled his Law Power, causing his black imperial robes to flutter even without wind, and bursts of flames appeared on his body.
Are you afraid of fire?
Ying Fusu swept his gaze across the area, and flames surged and coiled around the enormous demonic body.
This intense flame was not normal yang fire, and was not used for lighting; rather, it was bluish-black in color.
"This is the karmic fire of the underworld's secret realm—poisonous flames, intense heat, and harmful to the soul..."
Ying Fusu spoke in a low voice, but his eyes were filled with seriousness.
To be able to catch his Tai'a sword, to survive being hit by arrows in grass, and to withstand his karmic fire without letting up—this opponent is indeed extremely strong.
However, the opponent also had the same drawback as Zhu Jiuyin: after being hit by the Qingzhou Cauldron, the opponent's body could only move to a limited extent.
Otherwise, the opponent wouldn't just use their right hand to grab it; they would use both hands and feet, and he would be killed in the opponent's feigned death attack.
"Hey~"
With a shout, Ying Fusu took out a fist-sized seal from his left hand and smashed it down on the other person's head.
As the seal fell, Ying Fusu saw sparks fly from the other's head, and a look of pain appeared on his face.
Let go!
Ying Fusu cried out, only to see that the other party's right hand, which was gripping his arm, did not loosen its grip at all. Instead, it continued to exert force, causing the terracotta warrior's arm to gradually twist and crack.
He struggled for a moment, then gripped the crown on his head into his palm.
"By the mandate of Heaven and the grace of Earth, I humbly beseech Your Majesty to strike the Kui Dragon Bell to aid your son..."
Ying Fusu muttered incantations, and the golden light of the crown he grasped in his left hand shone brightly, vaguely revealing the illusory shadows of the Xianyang Palace. A nine-zhang-tall statue of the First Emperor stood in the center of the palace, with countless civil and military officials sitting in the four directions.
He tossed the crown in his hand, and the phantom image of the Xianyang Palace, carrying the statue of the First Emperor, fell to the ground.
As the palace fell, it was as if the sky had collapsed and the earth had split open. Ying Fusu pointed his left hand at the three-zhang-long demonic body.
Just as he was about to conclude that this Demon Race expert would inevitably be suppressed by the crown carrying the fortune of the Great Qin Dynasty, thus creating an opportunity for his defeat, he suddenly felt a dark aura appear in his eyes, and a school of fish, like a dazzling galaxy, began to slowly swim around him.