Chapter 1166: The Mad Spear
"It's not just my 'Combustion,'" Song Qi said.
"What else?"
"The rest of us. All of our lives," Song Qi said.
The members of the "Cat" team began to gather behind Song Qi. Even the unconscious Luo Eleven was slung over Wu Twelve's shoulder.
"Can lives be enough?" Bai Hu's hoarse voice slowly emerged, tinged with suspicion.
"This is the last layer of meaning for the existence of 'Cat,'" Song Qi replied. "Dying alongside 'Zhu Que' there—that's the final destination for all of us."
"What about your conviction?" Bai Hu asked again. "With your 'Combustion,' what can you actually detonate?"
"I'm different from you," Song Qi said. "I've heard you can detonate the air in front of you. That kind of power is beyond my reach."
Seeing that Bai Hu harbored no ill intent, Song Qi coiled the hair tie back around his wrist.
"So I'm asking..." Bai Hu continued. "With just your 'Combustion' and those dozen or so lives behind you, are you planning to face Zhu Que head-on?"
"As I said, I'm different from you," Song Qi said, turning around. "I can't detonate the air, but I can detonate myself."
"Yourself...?" Bai Hu frowned slightly, never having considered such a scenario.
A person unable to detonate the air before him, yet able to detonate himself. Was that a sign of powerful conviction, or twisted conviction?
"Are 'Gust' and 'Flourishing Wood' here too?" Bai Hu asked again.
Chou Twenty and Liu Twenty-One stepped forward in unison, standing behind Song Qi, both wearing expressions of defiance.
"What level can 'Gust' and 'Flourishing Wood' reach?"
"What level we can reach—what the fuck does that have to do with you?" Chou Twenty asked with a scowl. "Don't think that whole 'respect your elders' bullshit works here. If you're gonna kill us, do it. If not, get the hell out."
"Twenty." Liu Twenty-One patted Chou Twenty's shoulder. "Easy on the cursing. Don't wear yourself out. If you can't handle it, I'll do the cursing."
"What the hell are you yapping about?" Chou Twenty said. "My 'Gust' can peel three layers of skin off you. You wanna try it?"
"But I'm not certain I can kill Zhu Que," Bai Hu said softly.
"Mm...?"
The three of them paused slightly at those words.
"He doesn't care about consequences," Bai Hu said. "Though he doesn't have Xuan Wu's overwhelming power, he's far too similar to Qing Long."
"You mean a treacherous, cunning bastard." Song Qi nodded. "Isn't that perfect?"
"Perfect?" Bai Hu laughed. "He'll use every means to kill you. He won't give you any chance to kill him, unlike Xuan Wu."
"The fear is that he'd be just like Xuan Wu," Song Qi said. "After killing Xuan Wu, not a single person in 'Cat' had an easy time—neither physically nor mentally."
Bai Hu's expression shifted slightly. "Is that so..."
"Though no one wants to admit it, we ultimately dismantled her," Song Qi said coldly. "We set a fire in her heart and burned her from the inside out. If Zhu Que is also a tragic soul, and we have to do it all over again, then the one being dismantled from within would be us."
"What an interesting bunch of people..." Bai Hu let out a wry laugh. "I'm glad I'm burdened with your 'Immortal Arts.'"
"And I'm glad there's still someone normal like you among the 'Divine Beasts,'" Song Qi said.
"Normal...?" Bai Hu shook his head. "No. I was the first to go mad."
"Good to be mad," Song Qi nodded. "Die early, be reborn early. Go mad first, see clearly first. To you, everything is just a long dream."
Bai Hu said nothing more. He walked to the side and bent down to pick up fragments from the ground.
Song Qi wanted to ask a few more questions about Zhu Que, but upon reflection, for Bai Hu at this moment, staying out of it was already the greatest help.
So he kept silent, turned around, and led his group away.
"In his mouth," Bai Hu suddenly said while still bent over.
"Hm?" Hearing Bai Hu's voice, Song Qi slowly turned back, squinting at him.
"Those three 'eyeballs' are all in his mouth," Bai Hu said. "With 'Pocket Reach,' the fight should be over quickly."
"It's about what I imagined," Song Qi said. "Now that our 'Strongest Shield' is dead, the next step is for the 'Strongest Spear' to pierce another 'spear.' The outcome will be decided in very little time."
"You're not piercing an ordinary 'spear.' You're piercing a 'mad spear,'" Bai Hu said. "He's the most unorthodox of all the 'Divine Beasts.' The three 'eyeballs' in his mouth aren't under his control, so day after day he gnaws on them. The pain also makes them more obedient to him."
"Mad enough," Song Qi nodded. "I was worried we wouldn't have enough time. Now it seems perfect."
"May you live," Bai Hu said.
"May you die soon," Song Qi bowed his head.
He gave a slight bow to Bai Hu, expressing his final thanks. Then the group vanished into the empty square, splitting into many small squads and heading off in different directions.
Bai Hu, like an elderly scavenger, picked up fragments one by one from the ground.
Soon after, many "Participants" ran past angrily, yet not a single person turned their head to glance at Bai Hu.
As if, following Xuan Wu, even Bai Hu had merged with the "Land of Finality," becoming part of the background.
No one would notice him, nor did anyone know where he would go next.
The giant bell and display screen that had always been his refuge were shattered. Where else could he stay?
Speaking of which, when the giant bell and display screen shattered... why did he hear a mournful wail?
Bai Hu slowly raised his head toward the crimson sky.
When the fragments of the giant bell and display screen rained down, he had distinctly heard the wails of two restless souls.
But how many lonely souls were wailing here?
"Little Xuanzi, my name is Hu Yiran. I'm a few years older than you, so just call me 'Bro.'"
"All right... Brother Hu."
"'Brother Hu'...? Who still talks like that nowadays...?"
"Sorry... I..."
"Qing Long said your name is Wu Xuan. From now on, we'll call you 'Xuan Wu.' And since my name has 'Hu' in it, I'll be 'Bai Hu.' He said from now on... we won't have our own names anymore."
"No names... huh? But Brother Yan..."
"Little Yan... even though that title has nothing to do with his name, he can only be 'Zhu Que.' Little Xuanzi, you must remember not to mention your real name. Otherwise, it counts as a violation. You'll die."
"Then when they ask who I am, what should I say?"
"Just say, 'I have no name, but here, they call me Xuan Wu.'"
Bai Hu gathered the fragments in his hands, brought them to Xuan Wu's side, and gently placed them into her arms. Then he let out a long sigh and sat down.
"I've retrieved all the pieces I could find for you. What I couldn't... I'll slowly make up for here," Bai Hu said with a bitter smile. "Too bad I never asked if you had any unfinished wishes... Forgive me. In a place like 'Peach Spring,' after being here so long, I rarely experience farewells."
Just as Bai Hu was about to close his eyes and rest, he noticed Xuan Wu's severed arm.
The arm still had one finger extended, pointing in the direction Song Qi had just left.