Chapter 27: Surnamed Su, You...
Zachariah's left forearm was severed, and Lilith thudded to the ground, blood gushing from her neck. Though it looked gruesome, Lilith was a demon, so she wouldn't die anytime soon.
Boom!
A loud crash came from below. Hearing this, Su Xiao's expression darkened. Clearly, the demons and the feathered race had reached the lower levels. Fortunately, the two sides would likely tear into each other, buying him time.
Su Xiao kicked Lilith in the side, nearly knocking her unconscious. But Lilith breathed a sigh of relief—that kick ensured she'd survive. The moment it landed, she felt something pierce her body, followed by a chill spreading from her lower back. It was clearly an injected recovery potion.
Kicking Lilith a dozen meters away, Su Xiao drew his blade and charged at Zachariah, who was still bound by Sha. If not now, when?
Slash, slash, slash...
Su Xiao greeted him with three polite slashes: one to the eyes, one to the heart, and one to the unprotected lower abdomen. As for the neck—a vital spot—Sha was strangling it, so stabbing was possible, but slashing was out of the question.
While Su Xiao slashed without pressure, Sha wasn't faring well. She felt like she was hugging a porcupine; his blood vessels had nearly pierced her heart and skull several times, but that ability couldn't be used consecutively.
Now that Lilith had broken free, though Zachariah was in agony from Su Xiao's cuts, he shifted his attack to Sha.
Sha's combat experience was vast. She bent her knee and thrust upward, sending Zachariah flying with a loud thud.
The moment Zachariah was launched, Su Xiao's right arm muscles bulged as he slashed at his throat.
At this point, Zachariah had at least a dozen cuts. The guy had no combat finesse—just trade wounds. No one could withstand that.
Over a dozen streams of blood burst from Zachariah's body, writhing like blood snakes from all directions toward Su Xiao.
Su Xiao ducked to avoid two blood snakes. Blue arcs surged along Dragon-Slaying Flash as he struck Zachariah's neck.
Slash!
Blood sprayed several meters high. Su Xiao's blade nearly severed a third of Zachariah's throat. But eleven blood snakes latched onto Su Xiao.
Instantly, his entire body went numb, health plummeting like water. Zachariah stared at him intently, reaching out with both hands. The severed forearm had already regenerated—in fact, once Zachariah's health dropped below 40%, the real fight had just begun.
Clang!
A sharp sound rang out as Lilith hooked Zachariah with her war scythe. His defense was now so tough that even breaking through was a struggle for Lilith. But Su Xiao noticed the scythe was unusual—it was slowly restoring Lilith's vitality, and a consciousness dwelled within it. This was likely a demonic growth weapon.
Though Lilith's scythe didn't wound Zachariah, it saved Su Xiao's life. If Zachariah had pounced on him, Su Xiao would be dead or half-dead.
Zachariah's eyes flashed with malice as he grabbed for Lilith.
Whoosh!
A piercing wind sounded as Sha appeared beside Zachariah, a crimson scorpion phantom behind her.
'Mad Scorpion Tail Whip.'
In an instant, Sha's leg swept to Zachariah's face.
Thud!!
With Zachariah at the center, everything around was shattered. He broke the sound barrier, crashing into the side wall.
"So damn... tough."
Sha staggered forward, her leg clearly injured. Her ultimate move was just that brutal.
Now, looking at the wall Zachariah had hit—a six-to-seven-meter stone wall covered in cracks—green vines sprouted from the hole he'd made.
"I must say, you've wounded me badly."
Zachariah stepped out of the hole, his neck twisted from Sha's kick.
"Pain makes me clearer..."
He straightened his neck. Just then, a spatial fluctuation appeared behind him, and Su Xiao materialized.
Slash~
A flash of blade light left a bloodstain on Zachariah's nape. A light, casual cut—so shallow Zachariah could ignore it.
Su Xiao flicked the blood off his blade and slowly sheathed it. No matter how strong Zachariah's vitality or regeneration, the fight was over.
Zachariah stood frozen, his pupils turning gray, then consumed by a dark blue smoke.
Crack, crack, crack...
Zachariah crumbled like broken ceramic. His skin peeled first, then muscles and bones. The man who'd seemed like a war god was now withering away without even a last word.
"What the hell kind of ability is that?"
Sha, covered in blood, slumped to the ground. Lilith was even more straightforward—her eyes rolled back, and she passed out.
This proved that combat wasn't about stats. Zachariah's defense was monstrous, but he clearly hadn't mastered this ability long, using it only to trade wounds. If he'd had time to familiarize himself, at least two of Su Xiao's group would have died to beat him.
"Some... unique technique."
Su Xiao pushed his thumb forward, drawing Dragon-Slaying Flash a bit. A dark blue smoke flew from Zachariah's body into the blade.
[You have obtained a Chest: Epic (20%).]
Looking at the chest in his hand, Su Xiao was satisfied. An epic chest with 20% purity had a decent chance of yielding epic equipment.
Remember, this was with Sha and Lilith's help. If Su Xiao had killed Zachariah alone, the chest's purity would have soared to at least 60%.
Greed was a bottomless pit. Su Xiao was content with the current gains, but more than the chest, he had something more important to do.
With Zachariah out of the way, smooth sailing wasn't guaranteed. According to Bubu Wang's intel, the demons and feathered race were already fighting underground, unlikely to settle quickly. As for the hiding spot of the Ash Sprout, no one cared—everyone's focus was on the Soul Fruit.
"Cough, cough, let's continue."
Sha coughed up blood. Su Xiao glanced at her, then pulled out a withered flower.
"What's that..."
"Sending you to Reincarnation Paradise."
"But I haven't helped you get the Ash Sprout yet."
Sha tilted her head and shrugged.
"I don't want a burden tagging along to find the Ash Sprout."
"Blunt."
Su Xiao ignored Sha. The [Life Flower] floated slowly, and a petal containing space-time power shattered.
Based on Su Xiao's experience, as long as he provided the teleportation conditions and space-time power, Reincarnation Paradise wouldn't reject a powerhouse like Sha—especially since Su Xiao was supplying the space-time power.
A spatial vortex appeared, pitch black inside.
"Go in."
"Uh..."
Sha hesitated, staring at the black vortex. Something felt off, but after a moment's pause, she stepped in.
A disorienting sensation hit her. When her vision cleared, she heard the rustle of wind through vegetation and a faint floral scent.
"This is... Reincarnation Paradise? Holy crap!!"
Sha's expression froze, looking utterly wrecked.
Bright blue sky, white clouds, black soil, a breeze, and a sea of red flowers rustling—these were all [Life Flowers]. This place was called the Life Flower Sea, the deepest part of the Black Abyss.
A tall Black Maple Tree stood in the Life Flower Sea. Sha stared at it, knowing it was priceless, but she felt no greed—because entering the Black Abyss's depths was almost certain death.
A man with blood-red eyes sat beneath the Black Maple Tree, half-naked, his clothes tattered. Seeing him, Sha's mouth twitched. She'd actually met the infamous Blade Demon.
"Surnamed Su, you'll die a horrible death."
Sha laughed, almost breaking down. The Blade Demon just watched her silently, neither killing nor acknowledging her.
Clank, clank, clank...
Chain sounds echoed. Before Sha could react, chains appeared around her. Strangely, seeing them gave her a sense of peace.
"Welcome to Reincarnation Paradise."
Hearing this voice, Sha suddenly felt alive again.