# Chapter 18: Malice
As soon as Su Xiao landed, he crouched low, and a large axe whistled past just above his head.
Clang~
The long blade was drawn from its sheath. Seven Axe Brothers charged at him from all directions. Some raised their axes high, while others opened the vertical mouths on their torsos.
'Blade Path Sword: Time.'
A wave of energy spread outward from Su Xiao as the center point. The seven charging Axe Brothers suddenly slowed down, but only for an instant. The wave generated by 'Blade Path Sword: Time' was forcibly shattered.
The delay was very brief, but it was enough for Su Xiao to break through the encirclement of the Axe Brothers.
Boom!
The seven Axe Brothers collided into each other. Su Xiao had already sprinted dozens of meters away. A wound appeared on his back, and a chunk of flesh was torn from his left leg.
"Heh!"
A loud shout came from behind. It was Monde, who had just walked out of the gray mist. After yelling himself hoarse, this guy turned around and fled.
Su Xiao continuously leaped across the wooden rooftops. In less than ten seconds, he had put nearly a hundred meters between himself and the Axe Brothers. His left leg was injured, which would affect his speed.
Su Xiao stood on the roof of a wooden house. Blood spread beneath his left foot.
The crisp sound of a wooden house being smashed came from behind. Su Xiao took a deep breath. His left leg was severely injured, which would inevitably slow him down. If he was caught again, he would definitely die.
Thinking this, Su Xiao leaped high into the air and raised his right arm.
Baha dove down from above, grabbed Su Xiao's right arm, and flew toward the black mist high in the sky.
After flying more than 300 meters up, Baha reached the area beneath the black mist. This black mist gave off a sticky texture, clearly something that couldn't be touched.
A whistling sound came from below. Su Xiao exerted force to the right, forcibly redirecting Baha, who was in mid-flight.
Whoosh! A large axe flew past near Baha. This spinning axe nearly chopped off Baha's head.
As soon as the axe entered the black mist, it was rapidly corroded, becoming covered in rust, and slowly disintegrated into fragments.
"That was close!"
Baha accelerated its flight, gradually escaping the pursuit of the Axe Brothers.
Half an hour later, Baha descended from above. Below was still a stretch of wooden houses. As for the Axe Brothers, they were located a kilometer away. Bubu Wang had already infiltrated their ranks.
Blindly fleeing was unwise. Su Xiao's plan was to first create distance from the Axe Brothers and have Bubu Wang constantly track their position.
This way, Su Xiao could lead the Axe Brothers in circles around an area, commonly known as "walking the axe dogs."
Sitting on the roof of a wooden house, Su Xiao untied the backpack on Baha's back and took out a roll of bandages. He wouldn't use the Ancient Secret Medicine unless it was a critical moment, as he had only brought in two bottles. Any more would have been restricted.
Su Xiao wrapped bandages around the wounds on his leg, back, and shoulder. He then sat on the wooden roof to rest. He couldn't waste stamina. The Axe Brothers' pursuit deadline was still 20 hours away. During this time, he couldn't explore this area, and thus had no chance to find the "Forgotten Bone Tiles."
There were five Forgotten Bone Tiles in total. If Su Xiao found any one of them, he would pass the second stage of the Strongest Warrior Battle.
In other words, the test of the Death House had no competitive element. As long as one didn't want to die, finding a bone tile would lead to choosing to complete the Death House.
In Su Xiao's view, the reward for completing the Death Game was the main focus.
Assuming the first round of the Strongest Warrior Battle was an elimination system, weeding out most of the weaker participants, then the second stage was about accumulation. Accumulating advantages would lead to greater benefits in the fourth and fifth stages.
Just as Su Xiao was pondering, Bubu Wang sent his location and distance from Su Xiao through the team channel.
The fact that the team channel wasn't sealed was good news and one of Su Xiao's advantages.
Now, Bubu Wang's position represented the location of the Axe Brothers. Baha had already circled the area a few times and encountered no danger. This meant the nearby area was relatively safe and a good place to "walk the axe dogs."
Su Xiao had long anticipated that the Axe Brothers could track him. The good news was that tracking was different from locking on. Tracking meant the Axe Brothers followed Su Xiao's trail, while locking on would have them charging straight at him.
Everything was ready. Su Xiao began walking the axe dogs. Bubu Wang provided the location, and Baha occasionally attracted their attention from above, making it harder for the Axe Brothers to track Su Xiao.
After being chased for five hours.
Roars echoed from between the wooden houses. The Axe Brothers were furious, but speed was their weakness. Even at full pursuit, they were slightly slower than Su Xiao.
If that were all, Su Xiao would still be in danger. But with the Axe Brothers' positions known, he had plenty of room to maneuver.
After being chased for ten hours.
Three Axe Brothers were in a state of uncontrollable rage, starting to chop down the wooden houses they passed.
Su Xiao had long noticed that the Axe Brothers weren't monsters generated by some ability. They were a type of dangerous creature within the Death House, and they could also get angry.
After being chased for sixteen hours.
Only eight Axe Brothers were still chasing Su Xiao. The other six hadn't given up but had learned to be smarter, starting to circle around to intercept Su Xiao.
With the Axe Brothers adopting a strategy, the pressure on Su Xiao increased dramatically. He was nearly intercepted several times.
After being chased for nineteen hours.
The Axe Brothers had completely scattered. However, they had overlooked a crucial point: Su Xiao didn't have to keep walking them nearby. He could choose to take a bit more risk and move to a different area.
An Axe Brother stood among a stretch of unfamiliar houses. It plopped down on the ground, angrily tossing its large axe aside.
"Roar!!"
A deafening roar spread out. The grudge for today was clearly settled. It had nothing to do with the rules of the Death Game anymore. This was personal.
Click, click...
A clock without a frame appeared beside the Axe Brother. It grabbed the axe from the ground and swung it at the clock, smashing it into gray mist.
"Time's up. Return to your territory."
An aged voice sounded. Hearing this, the Axe Brother slammed its fist into the ground beside it.
"Ooh! Roar!"
"The rules are like this. Oh, by the way, the person you were chasing... is a Law Destroyer."
Hearing this, the Axe Brother's body stiffened. In the brain at the top of its spine, it recalled a scene from long ago.
"Oh~? A novel creature. Anna, let me keep it for a few days? I'll trade you 'Little Ni' for it."
"No way! This is a servant of the Death House. Also, I am now the master of the Death House. Pain, Suffering, Queen."
"Stingy. It's not like I'm asking for your 'Glutton.' From now on, I'll call you Pain Queen (Eight)."
"Mm, fine. But coming from you, you can call me Anna."
Thinking of an extremely terrifying person, the Axe Brother stood up and walked toward the banquet hall. It couldn't afford to provoke that person, so it would just avoid them.
Two kilometers away, Su Xiao watched an Axe Brother walk away. He had endured the pursuit.
A full twenty hours had passed. Other participants were far ahead. Su Xiao waited a moment, and Bubu Wang ran over from a distance.
Bringing Bubu Wang and Baha to the Death House was a wise decision. Amu was better at breaking through defenses, and Beini handled logistics.
For now, there was no clear direction to head. This area was full of wooden houses, and he hadn't encountered any "Dead" or other monsters from the Death House.
Su Xiao began heading east. After traveling at full speed for three hours, the wooden houses came to an end, blocked by black mist ahead.
Following the black mist, Su Xiao continued forward. After walking just a few hundred meters, he saw a wooden door in the black mist.
Standing before the wooden door, Su Xiao hesitated for a moment, then pushed it open. Inside was a dim wooden room with flickering candlelight.
"Welcome."
A hoarse voice came from inside the room. Under the flickering candlelight, a man so thin he was just skin and bones sat against the inner wall. An iron shackle was around his neck, and a chain from the shackle disappeared into the wall.
"Death House rule: Help me break free, and I'll do one thing for you."
The skeleton-like man raised his head. His eyes were pure black, with no distinction between whites and pupils.
"Agreed."
Su Xiao agreed without hesitation.
"A wise choice. Go find a Shadow Stone and place it..."
The black-eyed man's voice had a strange charm, but before he could finish, the wooden door was closed.
If it required a Shadow Stone, then forget it. Su Xiao had spent 20 hours walking the axe dogs and only obtained three Shadow Stones. Besides, this black-eyed man had ill intentions.
As for the Death House rules? Something that couldn't be verified had no credibility, especially when the other party was hostile.
"You'll regret this. The opportunity was given to you. Ignorant fool. Damn it, why did the Temptation Trap fail? Damn it!"
The black-eyed man's expression twisted, as if he wanted to devour someone. His teeth ground together with a clicking sound. But just then, the door opened again. As it opened, the black-eyed man's expression returned to normal.
"Is there another way? Can't you break free?"
Hearing Su Xiao's words, the black-eyed man sighed and said, "You only get something if you give something."
"So, you can't leave this room."
"Of course not. I just can't leave the Death House."
The black-eyed man's expression was natural, but Su Xiao judged that there was a high probability—over seventy percent—that the other party couldn't leave this wooden house.
"No need for a Shadow Stone. My blade is very sharp. Just stretch your neck out a bit."
"That has nothing to do with how sharp your blade is!"
The black-eyed man sensed something was wrong.
"No, it does."
Su Xiao drew the Dragon-Slaying Flash from his waist. The other party had been very "enthusiastic" earlier, using temptation and mental control. So Su Xiao would respond with "kindness." Although he was a Blade Grandmaster, an occasional "mistake" was normal. For example, a single slash "going off course" and "accidentally" cutting into the black-eyed man.