Chapter 131: Chapter 95: You Will Be Your Own Undoing
"Hand over the Investigation Crystal Ball, and I’ll let you leave."
Pei Ze said, his expression impassive.
Just moments ago, Tan Yang had said the very same thing to Pei Ze.
Now, hearing them from Pei Ze, the words dripped with irony.
However, Tan Yang was in no mood to dwell on the humiliation. Hearing Pei Ze’s offer, his heart leaped with joy.
He would, of course, be more than happy to avoid elimination.
As long as he remained in the maze, there was still a sliver of hope.
But he didn’t let his guard down. His eyes remained locked on Pei Ze, ready to teleport away at a moment’s notice. "How can I be sure you’re telling the truth?" he asked warily.
"We can sign a contract," Pei Ze said coolly.
"You write the terms," Tan Yang said at once.
He looked just like a badger at the mouth of its burrow, poised to dive underground, fearing a hunter might fire at any second.
Pei Ze gave a contemptuous smile, manipulating Energy Particles to write directly in the air before him.
Tan Yang watched Pei Ze’s every move without blinking, terrified he would try something.
But as he watched, a trace of confusion flickered in his eyes. His tense body slackened for an instant.
And in that instant, a wisp of black mist ghosted behind Tan Yang, suddenly twisting into the form of a crow. Its claws, gleaming with a cold light, struck the back of his neck.
CRACK!
His reinforced skin was as fragile as paper before those claws. It was instantly torn and shredded, exposing the raw flesh beneath.
Only then did Tan Yang snap back to his senses, his face a mask of absolute horror.
He instinctively tried to activate his Teleportation Ring.
But it was too late.
As the claws raked across, his head flew into the air. Blood gushed from the severed neck, spraying three or four meters high.
THUD!
The head hit the ground and rolled some distance before coming to a stop, its face frozen in a mask of despair and terror.
Pei Ze slowly lowered his hand, a cold smirk on his face.
The Hypnosis Skill could plunge a living being into a trance through gestures or incantations.
’From the very beginning, I never had any intention of letting Tan Yang go.’
’This whole charade was simply because I was afraid he would teleport away. I pretended to covet the Crystal Ball to make him lower his guard.’
Walking over to Tan Yang’s headless corpse, Pei Ze crouched down and searched it. He quickly found a dimensional bag and, upon opening it, found a Crystal Ball inside as expected.
A smile spread across his face after he inspected it.
’Not bad. Seven charges of the Detection Spell left in the Crystal Ball.’
Getting to his feet, Pei Ze took the dimensional bags from the other two corpses before leaving the room with the Fierce Wild Boarman and Wuyu.
...
「On the mountainside.」
Meng Kai’s smile froze on his face. He stared blankly at the scene projected in the air, unable to process what he was seeing for a long moment.
’They lost? Just like that?’
’Three of them working together couldn’t even scratch Pei Ze, and they ended up getting wiped out instead?’
’What kind of joke is this?!’
Meng Kai’s face instantly turned livid, and he couldn’t stop himself from cursing inwardly.
’Idiots! Useless trash!’
’They knew Pei Ze could cast Magic silently, yet they didn’t take any precautions. Unbelievably stupid!’
’It would be one thing if they just got themselves killed, but they had to go and hand Pei Ze an Investigation Crystal Ball, too.’
’Now it’ll be that much easier for Pei Ze to reach the Maze Center.’
Meng Kai was furious.
The other Shadow Students couldn’t hide the shock on their faces either.
In terms of strength, Tan Yang ranked among the top ten participants.
Yet an expert like him had been utterly powerless against Pei Ze. He was dominated from start to finish and ultimately killed on the spot before he could even activate his Teleportation Ring.
They wouldn’t have believed it if they hadn’t seen it with their own eyes.
Now, in their minds, Pei Ze’s strength had been elevated to the same level as Meng Wei, Sang Fan, and the other top contenders.
A few of them couldn’t help but sneak glances at Meng Kai.
’At this rate, Pei Ze might actually secure a spot in the trial.’
Noticing his companions’ gazes, Meng Kai’s eye twitched. He said nothing, his face grim.
He could only hope that his older brother, Su Shouhai, and Sang Fan would reach the Maze Center as quickly as possible.
As long as they got the Rainbow Gemstone first, then no matter how powerful Pei Ze was, he wouldn’t be able to snatch it from their grasp.
Watching the shifting expressions on Meng Kai’s face, Gu Lin’s lips curled into a slight smile.
Beside them, Yin Guang was still reeling from the shock of Pei Ze killing Tan Yang and his two companions, unable to snap out of it.
As more people noticed the scene of Pei Ze killing Tan Yang, a buzz went through the crowd of spectators. More and more eyes were now fixed on Pei Ze.
At that moment, Pei Ze had undoubtedly become one of the top contenders in everyone’s eyes, on par with Meng Wei and the other two, a prime candidate to secure a spot in the trial.
...
Thanks to the Investigation Crystal Ball, Pei Ze’s journey through the maze became much easier.
He used his Fog Crow to scout the way at simple forks in the road.
When the terrain grew more complex, he would use a Detection Spell to find the correct path.
By alternating between the two methods, he hardly made a wrong turn.
Aside from one encounter with a Legendary Knight-level Four-armed Ape that took some effort to defeat, his progress was remarkably smooth.
Just as he was down to his last three charges of the Detection Spell, Pei Ze finally found a new treasure chest in one of the rooms.
After defeating its guardian monster, he successfully acquired his third Crystal Ball.
"Ten more Detection Spells."
A smile touched Pei Ze’s lips.
’I don’t know how much farther it is to the Maze Center, but it’s been over forty hours since I entered. Judging by the time, I can’t be too far off.’
