章 43: The Explosions And Blood Rain

The room's temperature seemed to drop as Wenxiu sat naked on the bed, her expression shifting from confusion to concern as Fang Hao pointed his sword at her, just bringing it out of the spatial ring.

"What are you talking about, Jun?" she asked, her voice trembling.

"Start talking now, or your head will fly," Fang Hao warned, his voice filled with determination. "Wenxiu, I know you guys are planning something against me. If you tell me the truth, I might spare you."

Only now did she notice the ring on his finger, and her expression changed from confusion to seriousness, then fear. She took a deep breath to steady herself, thinking carefully before speaking.

"We've been ordered to eliminate you by any means necessary, Jun," she admitted, her voice quivering with fear. In response, Fang Hao lightly clapped his hands together, the sound echoing through the room, 'clap, 'clap'.

"Okay, this is the story, right? Now get on with the truth. This is a lot to set up just to kill me. Who sent you?" Fang Hao demanded, his eyes locked on her, his tone laced with a threat. He then added a menacing touch by slashing through a nearby bedside cabinet, splintering the wood into fragments to intimidate her further.

Wenxiu's face paled, her lower lip trembling as blood trickled from her bitten lip. Suddenly, more than ten residents burst into the room, demanding answers.

They were greeted by a mystical mist and barrier that had appeared out of nowhere, preventing them from getting closer.

"Wenxiu, what is going on?!" they yelled from behind the barrier, their voices filled with confusion and questions.

"Wenxiu, that's the name they call you, so I'll continue to call you that. Tell me, what is going on?" Fang Hao pressed, placing the sword against her cheek and drawing a thin line of blood, causing a drop to fall.

Wenxiu's lips bled from her efforts to remain silent, but she finally sighed and began to speak, her voice trembling as the villagers continued their efforts to break through the formation.

"Where do I start? It's not wrong to say we were ordered to kill you, but why? You can ask the others first. " Wenxiu began, looking down with a trace of sadness in her eyes.

Fang Hao believed her, understanding that they wouldn't go through all this trouble for nothing. He turned his attention to the commotion outside, where the group of ten humans, including his "new brother," was slowly breaking through the formation with their relentless attacks. He knew he had to act quickly.

"If you want to live, stay put," Fang Hao advised Wenxiu before he added,

"It would be a shame to ruin your pretty face." He then walked toward the formation and began to create a circular array in the sky.

Fang Hao muttered to himself, "It's been a while since I made use of it. The last time I used it against a living being was against that prisoner. I don't consider the illusions counted, do they? Should I show mercy?" He hesitated for a moment, his expression wavering, before he replaced it with resolve.

Fang Hao's decision was clear: "Who cares, I don't know them, and they attacked me first. I won't hold back."

He shook his head, reaffirming his resolve, and unleashed a beam from the array, aiming it at a woman in the group. The beam struck her in the chest, resulting in a gruesome explosion of blood.

Only now did those outside realize how dire their situation had become. Panic and frantic voices filled the air as they intensified their attacks on the formation.

The defensive barrier was showing visible cracks, and Fang Hao hadn't used any medium to set it up; he was powering it solely with a few spirit stones.

"Well, it's time I also get serious. I shall show them my cultivation manual," Fang Hao declared as he observed the cracks in the defensive formation. The mist had already surrounded the area, and it was already dark, so he didn't need to add the symbol to change it.

'CRACK' The formation shattered, and Fang Hao smirked as he activated his 'Umbral Camouflage Technique,' blending seamlessly with the shadows.

His aura vanished the moment the defensive formation broke. He began counting: "One... two..." Fang Hao soon realized there were a total of 13 Peak Shell individuals and one male with a long scar at the early Muscle Realm.

"This will be tough, but not impossible," Fang Hao muttered to himself as he formulated a plan. He decided to take out the Shell Realm enemies first.

With a deep breath, Fang Hao began creating a new array amid the concealing mist. A faint glow emerged from it before a beam of energy shot out, striking one of the Shell Realm individuals in the arm. The man screamed in agony as blood sprayed from the wound.

However, Fang Hao wasted no time and immediately activated his technique, the "Lotus, Offensive Move." He deftly decapitated the injured man with a sword adorned with petals before retreating into the shadows once more.

"Be careful, the youth has a weird circle that shoots light and contains extremely strong power. Once you locate it, shout!" The leading early Muscle Realm cultivator warned urgently. His companions nodded in response.

However, Fang Hao wasted no time. He created a second array and this time they located it quickly.

"There!" someone shouted, drawing their attention to the dangerous circle. But it was too late. A beam of light shot out, killing two of them who were standing nearby, slicing through their waists like tofu.

"JUN!!" A scream of anger resounded as Fang Hao's 'brother' mourned one of the fallen. The leading Muscle Realm cultivator scolded him, "SHUT UP and focus on killing him."

The Muscle Realm cultivator dashed forward, his sword glowing as he released spiritual energy in his attack, causing a 'ding' sound as Fang Hao was forced to block. He used the defensive petal technique, but the impact still pushed him back, making him taste blood in his mouth.

"Now, where will you go, rat?" The man with the scar asked maliciously as he had Fang Hao cornered, seeing him wounded and shaking.

"Oh, is that so?" Fang Hao, hidden behind the petals, smirked and covered his mouth, spitting some blood. He merged with the shadows, leaving the man confused.

"Where did he go?" The man slashed in random directions, the sound of the wooden wall being destroyed echoing through the room. Suddenly, a voice whispered in his ear, and a glow from the array was revealed.

"Try to block this! Sword Slash Infernal Hell!" Fang Hao screamed, catching the man off guard.

He lifted his sword to block, but to his surprise, nothing happened. The array blinked and shot towards another enemy, killing him on the spot.

''BASTARD'' Knowing he was duped, he raged, slashing in various directions. Each time, Fang Hao would shut in a distance before an array beam shot in a random direction without a pattern.

"SWORD OF MIDNIGHT CHAOS!" Fang Hao roared, and with a deafening bang, another head fell to the ground as the array obliterated someone's head.

The man was growing increasingly frantic as the voice continued to come from the shadows. Fang Hao, meanwhile, was visibly sweating and leaning against a wall, he could only release another 2 array attacks at most.

The top floor was in shambles, with walls nearly broken, and the mist still shrouding the area, adding to the confusion and tension in the room.

"Late Winter King's Blade! Shadow of the Icy Blade!" Fang Hao continued to call out various attack names, his voice echoing in the darkness.

However, nothing happened as he spoke these words. The man, growing more confused and frustrated, desperately swung his sword in the darkness, trying to find his opponent.

Spotting another enemy, Fang Hao swiftly attacked him, overpowering him, making him cry out, cutting off his leg, and leaving him alive as bait.

The man's plea for mercy fell on deaf ears as Fang Hao, his heart steeled, swiftly created another array and waited for the fish to appear.

The Early Muscle Realm rushed toward the voice, only to be met with a blinding light.

The man, caught off guard, only managed to utter a "NO!" before the array beam struck him. He blocked it just slightly, but the impact was enough to hit his shoulder and send blood spattering to the ground.

He fell down, groaning in pain, and a big chunk of flesh was missing from the wound, rendering him unconscious.

''Time to get rid of the rest before getting information'' Fang Hao seeing the man wounded walking lightly towards the mist formation center and added an extra spiritual stone replanishing its power.

Fang Hao continued to hunt down his targets, using his sword art to overpower them instead of relying on the array due to his dwindling spiritual energy. As he killed one opponent after another, he grew increasingly tired.

Despite having a realm's advantage, the sheer number of the remaining enemies and their desperation began to take its toll.

Fang Hao sustained some injuries in the process, but he pressed on, managing to kill them all apart from three survivors.

Two of them had managed to run out of the mist formation, fear etched on their faces as they escaped. Fang Hao could only helplessly watch them go, realizing he had no advantage outside the mist, especially not in his weakened state.

"They can be considered lucky, unlike you, 'Brother,'" Fang Hao muttered, blood seeping from the wound on his chest.

It was a wound inflicted by his 'brother,' who now lay on the floor in front of him, clutching his neck.

Kneeling next to his defeated opponent, Fang Hao's chest heaved with exhaustion. This was the last enemy left, apart from the heavily wounded muscle realm and Wenxiu, who surprisingly hadn't moved from the bed. She sat there as if waiting for him to return.

"Oh, brother Len, how are you?" Fang Hao asked sarcastically, his fatigue evident as he took deep breaths.

"Jun, spare me, please," Len muttered as he held onto his throat, trying to stop the bleeding.

"Tell me what you know, and I will," Fang Hao nodded seriously, willing to consider sparing him. Len began speaking, "We are against our will, we are prisoners of..."

Fang Hao suddenly felt something, spotting a necklace on Len's neck similar to the one Wenxiu wore. He sensed an aura emanating from it, and in a desperate move, he quickly distanced himself from Len.

However, it was too late. The necklace exploded with a deafening 'BANG,' covering Fang Hao in blood and brain matter, leaving nothing but a gruesome aftermath.

Fang Hao looked at the headless corpse in front of him, his face displaying a mix of shock, confusion, and fear. He muttered, "That's for sure, Len. I'm certain someone is controlling you now."

Then, he addressed the necklace, his voice carrying a hint of frustration, "Fellow Daoist, what is this for?" But there was no response, leaving Fang Hao to frown in puzzlement.

Fang Hao, still covered in blood and with torn clothes, approached the wounded early muscle realm cultivator. He carefully ripped open the man's shirt, revealing the same necklace around his neck.

With curiosity, he reached out and touched it, wondering if it would have any response like the previous one.

"When I touched Wenxiu one, I felt that something was off about it; it had a formation within.''Fang Hao attempted to remove it, only for it to shine brightly.

He muttered, ''Damn,'' trying to store it in the spatial ring, but it wouldn't go in.

Then, just like before, 'Bang!' it exploded, leaving another headless corpse.

"This is not my fault, it's not," he muttered, his eye twitching. He didn't feel a hint of guilt about killing this person.