Chapter 156: The End

Qian Ye suddenly lifted his opponent, swapping positions with the assassin and using the man’s body as a shield against Lu Sha.

This timing was perfect, forcing Lu Sha to halt his charge. In the instant their positions were swapped, Lu Sha’s vision blurred, as if he saw countless red threads flashing between them. Immediately, his brother’s life force dimmed rapidly, fading almost to nothing in an instant.

Qian Ye’s hand clamped down on the man’s throat, snapping his larynx with a sickening crack.

“How dare you!!” Lu Sha’s eyes blazed red, and he let out a thunderous roar of fury, lunging at Qian Ye once more, unleashing a devastating punch aimed at his chest.

As Lu Sha attacked, dozens of streams of primal energy surged around Qian Ye, forming razor-sharp thorns that crisscrossed, creating a death zone in an instant. This was Lu Sha’s domain, the Thorns of Hell. This domain combined both offensive and restrictive capabilities, and though it lacked flashy ultimate moves, it was incredibly practical.

As the thorns pierced through the ground, Qian Ye nimbly retreated, stepping out of the Thorns of Hell in just a few paces. Dozens of thorns passed him by, yet none managed to hit him.

Lu Sha’s expression turned grim. The assassin brother, who had been tasked with the assassination, wielded an extremely rare armor-piercing cone. Since it had penetrated the thick armor of the Azure Dragon, Qian Ye couldn’t have emerged unscathed. He could see that Qian Ye’s aura was gradually weakening, but he hadn’t expected Qian Ye to escape the Thorns of Hell domain so effortlessly.

This made Lu Sha hesitate for a moment, uncertain whether to set up another Thorns of Hell. It was a significant drain on primal energy, and once activated, its position was fixed. If Qian Ye avoided it again, it would only be a waste of energy.

After Qian Ye exited Lu Sha’s domain, he neither fled nor drew his sword, but instead tossed several grenades, detonating them in a chain reaction, temporarily blocking Lu Sha’s path. Then, Qian Ye suddenly turned, giving Du Li, who was not far behind him, a half-smile, half-scowl.

From the moment Lu Sha attacked, Du Li had been stealthily maneuvering behind Qian Ye, preparing to deliver a decisive blow. But he hadn’t anticipated that Lu Sha’s domain would fail to trap Qian Ye even for a moment. And despite being in such a perilous situation, Qian Ye seemed to have eyes in the back of his head, sensing Du Li’s approach.

Qian Ye’s eyes, as clear as obsidian, now seemed like the deepest darkness, fathomless and bottomless. But if one looked long enough, they might see countless dangerous undercurrents within. The key was that Qian Ye’s expression was exactly the same as when he had defeated Du Li in one move on the dueling field.

In that battle, Du Li had been utterly and decisively beaten, and even now, he couldn’t figure out how he had lost. For some time, he had been waking up from nightmares, always seeing Qian Ye’s deep, bottomless eyes. This battle had become his inner demon.

Now, it was as if history was repeating itself, and Du Li’s entire body trembled. When Qian Ye suddenly held a heavy sword high, Du Li jolted awake, letting out a scream and turning to flee!

Du Li’s performance was unexpectedly poor, and it caught Qian Ye off guard. Whether Du Li was feigning weakness or truly helpless, Qian Ye’s eyes flashed with a sapphire light, and Du Li, who had just started running, stumbled and fell.

The Eye of Control!

This brief pause was fatal. The Eastern Peak slashed down, striking Du Li’s back, and then Qian Ye sheathed his sword, turning to face Lu Sha, who had just emerged from the grenade explosions.

Du Li was still sprinting, covering a hundred meters in an instant, nearly out of everyone’s sight. He seemed unaware that his armor was completely dented, with a large pit in the back. A few steps later, he coughed up a mouthful of blood mixed with internal organ fragments, swayed, and collapsed to the ground.

“Du Li!” Lu Sha, who had risked crossing the fire of the grenades, was a step too late. He watched in horror, his eyes bulging, and pulled out his long blade, charging towards Qian Ye, slashing downward with a mighty swing.

Qian Ye parried with the Eastern Peak, meeting Lu Sha’s blade with a resounding thud. A ripple spread out from their feet, spreading dozens of meters away.

Qian Ye took several steps back, the Eastern Peak rising again, its tip pointing at Lu Sha. The clash had been hard on Lu Sha as well, and he had to take several steps to regain his balance, his face showing shock.

Lu Sha knew that Qian Ye had only opened two primal energy vortexes, and his reserves should be far less than his own. Yet, in this direct confrontation, after the primal energies collided without any tricks, Qian Ye was only slightly at a disadvantage. But Qian Ye’s strength was immense, far exceeding Lu Sha’s expectations, and the combination of power and skill meant he couldn’t gain any advantage.

The killing intent in Lu Sha’s eyes grew, and he charged forward again, without hesitation. This time, he unleashed his full strength, holding nothing back. Qian Ye was young, with limitless potential, while Lu Sha had already reached his limit. Now that they were mortal enemies, if he didn’t kill Qian Ye while he was heavily injured, he would never get another chance.

The Eastern Peak spun in Qian Ye’s hand, its tip drawing a crescent arc, light as a feather, as he fought with Lu Sha.

A storm erupted around them, sweeping across nearly a hundred meters, causing the giant trees to sway. Several chambers on the tree crowns began to react, their outer surfaces undulating, indicating that the monstrous creatures inside were on the verge of breaking out.

Even as Qian Ye’s combat skills approached perfection, he felt the pressure from the Eastern Peak growing heavier. Lu Sha, a true master who had gained fame over nearly two decades, used simple, powerful techniques, each slash and strike targeting the weakest points, leaving few openings himself.

Lu Sha’s combat techniques were honed through countless battles. Each strike was immensely heavy, like a giant axe or hammer, relentlessly pounding Qian Ye. Such an opponent was most troublesome. Lu Sha’s primal energy, strength, and speed were all formidable, though none were top-tier, but he had no weaknesses.

This fierce battle, with primal energy colliding, sweeping, and exploding, created a barrier that pushed everyone back a hundred meters, preventing any interference.

Kong Fangyuan, guarded by loyal warriors, watched with a cold sweat. He hadn’t realized that Lu Sha had never shown his full strength until now.

He regretted not listening to his uncle’s advice about recruiting such a dangerous individual. Even if Kong’s team was intact, they wouldn’t necessarily be a match for Lu Sha. If not for the constant pursuit by the werewolf count, Lu Sha could have easily turned the tables mid-journey.

And Qian Ye had surpassed his expectations. Despite being ambushed and seriously injured, he was still fighting fiercely with Lu Sha, worthy of the highest treatment from the Li family.

Suddenly, Qian Ye and Lu Sha separated, standing ten meters apart, facing each other.

Kong Fangyuan’s eyes twitched. The battlefield was filled with thorny spines, clearly showing that Lu Sha had given his all, while Qian Ye’s domain remained unseen, likely suppressed by Lu Sha. Yet, Qian Ye moved freely, ignoring the thorns.

Kong Fangyuan clearly saw a sharp thorn slice through Qian Ye’s leg armor, followed by another thorn cutting into the same spot, piercing his calf.

Kong Fangyuan knew the power of Lu Sha’s thorns all too well. In a recent battle, even a spider-demon viscount’s leg had been severed by a thorn. Yet, the thorn that cut Qian Ye’s calf left only a small wound, barely bleeding.

After a moment of stalemate, a fountain of blood suddenly gushed from Qian Ye’s waist, spraying several meters, the color of the blood an unnatural, glowing green.

A faint smile finally appeared on Lu Sha’s stern face. “It seems my brother didn’t die in vain. You are indeed a formidable foe, but today, you will join my brothers in the grave!”

“Join them and kill them again?”

Lu Sha’s eyes narrowed. “You can’t control your injuries. In a quarter of an hour, I’ll exhaust you. Any last words? Speak quickly, and if I’m in a good mood, I might even fulfill them.”

Qian Ye replied calmly, “I don’t have the patience for your last words. Goodbye.”

Seeing Qian Ye casually plant the Eastern Peak into the ground and draw his twin guns, Lu Sha, who had been on high alert, was taken aback. “Do you think I’ll let you finish charging?”

The distance between them was only ten meters, a single charge could bring them close, and it was also within the range of primal energy extension and domain coverage. It was the least suitable for firearms, and most people wouldn’t even have time to complete a charge.

As Qian Ye’s reputation grew, many records were unearthed, including his early rise in Evernight as an ultra-long-range sniper. However, a sniper needed distance to unleash their full power, which was why Lu Sha, disregarding the consequences, had rushed to eliminate Qian Ye on the spot.

Having seen Qian Ye’s marksmanship in sniping the werewolf count, Lu Sha knew that if he missed this opportunity, even if he found Qian Ye in the misty forest, a long-range sniper would be a devastating threat.

Lu Sha didn’t understand why Qian Ye would make such a mistake, but he never hesitated to exploit his enemy’s foolishness. The primal energy vortexes within Lu Sha spun to their maximum speed, surging out of his arms, almost solidifying.

Scarlet primal energy mist rose around Qian Ye, flecked with golden light, becoming brighter and brighter, filling everyone’s vision, obscuring everything else! Simultaneously, a pair of luminous wings unfolded behind Qian Ye, and his twin guns merged, a brilliant light appearing at the muzzle, momentarily overpowering the clashing primal energies in the arena.

Moments later, the light dissipated, and everyone’s vision slowly returned.

Lu Sha’s face was a mask of shock, staring at the perfectly round hole in his chest. The hole, the size of a fist, went straight through, revealing the internal organs and flesh, but where the heart should have been, there was nothing.

The remaining organs were still moving, but devoid of life. They were merely retaining their form, squirming by inertia.

As they moved, they gradually turned gray, then disintegrated into fine powder before Lu Sha’s eyes. Lu Sha struggled slightly, a cloud of fine ash bursting from the hole. Only he knew that these ashes were what remained of his organs.

Lu Sha raised his head, fixing Qian Ye with a glare. “You… won’t escape… I’ll be waiting for you… below…”

Qian Ye slowly retracted the Twin Flowers, looking at Lu Sha in silence.

Lu Sha’s final words were cut short as he slowly fell, never to move again. He hadn’t underestimated his opponent, and his last attack had been his strongest. Even if facing five-level pistols, or a seventh-level gun fired by a warrior of his rank, it would have at most broken his defenses.

But he faced the Primal Gun.