Chapter 19: So This Is Where You Were
The heavy stone dripped with fresh blood as Xiang Yu hoisted it from the corpse, its crimson trails painting macabre patterns across the rough surface. His stomach churned at the grisly scene, but he forced his expression to harden into a mask of determination. This was survival—nothing more, nothing less. The cultivation world's brutal mathematics had reduced his choices to a simple equation: kill or be killed.
With measured breaths, Xiang Yu began his careful return to the forest clearing, each step calculated to minimize noise. His senses remained hyperalert, scanning continuously for any sign of the remaining disciples. Upon reaching the edge of the clearing, he didn't immediately enter—instead, he observed from the shadows, watching for movement, listening for voices.
The area remained undisturbed. No footprints marred the soft earth beyond those already present, no whispers carried on the gentle breeze. A cautious smile tugged at his lips. This confirmed his suspicion that the hunting party lacked any means of communication between members. Each disciple was operating independently, unaware of their dwindling numbers.
Perfect, he thought. Time for the next one.
Strategically, Xiang Yu avoided targeting either of the two strongest disciples. Instead, he selected what appeared to be the second weakest among the remaining three. His eyes tracked the path this particular disciple had taken, and without hesitation, he began his pursuit, murder weapon still clutched firmly in his grip.
The disciples hadn't ventured far, their progress slowed by frequent stops to investigate potential hiding spots. Xiang Yu spotted his target easily, crouching behind bushes and trees whenever the disciple paused to investigate something. His approach was methodical—advancing when the disciple moved, freezing when they stopped.
During one such advance, disaster nearly struck. A dry branch snapped beneath his foot with a sound that seemed to echo through the silent forest like a thunderclap. Xiang Yu immediately pressed himself against a nearby tree trunk, heart hammering against his ribs.
The disciple, who had been examining a cluster of bushes, straightened immediately. "Who's there?" he called, turning toward the sound and beginning to approach Xiang Yu's position.
Adapting instantly, Xiang Yu raised his blood-stained stone high above his head. He stood perfectly still, every muscle tensed and ready, focusing entirely on the approaching footsteps. The moment that disciple stepped past the tree, he would strike.
The disciple walked with confident strides, completely unconcerned. What threat could a mere mortal possibly pose to someone at the second layer of Body Refining? Such overwhelming confidence would prove fatal.
As the disciple stepped past the tree, Xiang Yu brought the stone crashing down with terrible force. It connected squarely with the back of the disciple's head, instantly collapsing his skull. The man's eyes rolled backward as he crumpled lifelessly to the ground.
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Standing over his second victim, Xiang Yu noticed something peculiar—the revulsion that had nearly overwhelmed him after his first kill had diminished significantly. So those serial killers in documentaries were right, he reflected grimly. It does get easier each time.
With pragmatic efficiency, he searched the corpse for anything valuable, but again found nothing worthwhile. Retrieving his bloody stone, Xiang Yu mentally calculated his progress. Two down, three to go.
Were his methods cowardly? Perhaps. But Xiang Yu hadn't asked for this conflict, hadn't agreed to any rules of engagement. Why should he concern himself with fairness when his opponents wouldn't hesitate to kill him on sight?
Returning to the clearing once more, he selected his next target—the strongest looking of the lower three. This one would require extra caution.
He followed the chosen path, soon spotting his quarry. Once again, he began his careful stalking routine, watching the disciple's movements with predatory focus. When the moment seemed right, Xiang Yu advanced with his stone raised high.
But something went terribly wrong. Just as he was about to deliver the killing blow, the disciple unexpectedly turned around. The stone missed its intended target, instead crushing the disciple's shoulder and arm against the ground as they fell.
A piercing scream of agony tore through the forest, sending birds exploding from the treetops in panicked flight. Xiang Yu knew immediately that he'd made a catastrophic error.
Without hesitation, he drew his knife from its sheath and plunged it repeatedly into the disciple's neck, desperately trying to silence the screams. The wet sounds of blade penetrating flesh continued until the disciple finally lay still.
Standing quickly, Xiang Yu prepared to flee. The earlier scream had undoubtedly revealed his position—the remaining hunters would converge on this location within minutes.
Just as he turned to run, a cold voice froze him in place:
"So this is where you were..."
...
The azure energy surrounding Li Yao's blade intensified, casting ethereal light across her determined features. With deadly grace, she swung downward, her sword cleaving through the air with such force that reality itself seemed to split apart, creating a path for the blade's descent. The dean, moments from striking her, looked up in alarm as primal fear seized his heart. His instincts screamed a single, unmistakable truth – this attack would end his life.
Without conscious thought, self-preservation took over. He abandoned his attack, pivoting sharply and pushing his cultivation to its limits as he fled. Yet no matter how desperately he ran, the sword's shadow on the ground expanded behind him, stretching impossibly as it pursued him like fate itself.
Li Yao's blade continued gathering power, the energy extending its reach, transforming the physical weapon into something transcendent. The dean poured every ounce of spiritual energy into his legs, his feet barely touching the ground as he propelled himself forward with frantic speed. Despite his desperate flight, the sword found him – a brilliant arc of blue light slashed across his back, sending him tumbling across the battlefield.
He rolled several times before coming to a stop, struggling to rise on trembling limbs. He had to escape; survival depended on it. But as he managed to stand, his heart sank – Li Yao stood before him, her emotionless gaze more terrifying than any anger could have been.
"You-you actually cultivated a sword technique to the perfect stage?" he gasped, disbelief etched across his features. "And it's not a low-level one either." The implications staggered him. Cultivators typically spent centuries mastering techniques to such levels of perfection. He himself, after three hundred years of dedicated cultivation, had yet to achieve such mastery with any technique. Was this the true potential of genius? Or something more unfathomable?
Li Yao offered no response to his shocked query. She simply raised her sword once more, its edge glinting with deadly promise.
"Wait, wait!" The dean's voice cracked with desperation. "You can't kill me! It's against the rules. The sect won't let you go!" His words tumbled out frantically as he clutched at the final strands of hope.
Li Yao regarded him with cold indifference. "It's okay," she replied, her voice soft yet chilling. "No one will find out."
The sword plunged downward toward his heart as he screamed, "No!" His protest ended abruptly as the blade found its mark, silencing him forever.
Standing over her vanquished enemy, Li Yao's contemptuous gaze swept across his corpse. She methodically searched his body, collecting several items that seemed underwhelming given his status.
"Tch! Trash," she muttered dismissively. Yet she carefully tucked the items into her pouch anyway. "Still, they might be useful to senior brother."
Her attention returned to the dean's lifeless form. Leaving the body here would create complications. While an investigation might eventually reveal that he had been the aggressor, Li Yao had no interest in subjecting her senior brother to such scrutiny. If sect members discovered they couldn't deal with her directly, they would inevitably target him instead.
Without hesitation, she channeled her qi into the corpse. Blue flames erupted across the body, consuming it with supernatural intensity. Within seconds, nothing remained – no evidence, no trace of the conflict that had unfolded.
As the last embers faded, a high-pitched scream pierced the forest silence, coming from deep within the trees. Li Yao's heart lurched with sudden concern.
"Oh no! Senior brother!" she exclaimed, immediately rushing toward the source of the sound, her robes fluttering behind her as she raced to reach him before it was too late.