Chapter 60: Inside and Outside the Woodland

With the enhancement of the Masterpiece Paintings, the first three waves of demon hordes no longer looked like challenges to Jiang Shi and the others; instead, they felt like playing a game of slicing vegetables. It was as if the Nightmare Grove was no longer a terrifying, perilous forbidden zone, but rather an amusement park for young maidens.

However, happy times are always fleeting.

"This quantity... isn't it a bit too much?" Qian Gongyu's voice trembled slightly. "It didn't seem like there were this many yesterday, right?"

After the fourth wave of the demon horde began, the dense fog did not press too close to the sanctuary, stopping at a distance of two hundred meters instead. At first, they didn't understand why the fog had suddenly turned so "cowardly," until the demons began their march across the mountains and plains.

There were simply too many.

Red-furred apes with molten lava growing along their spines crawled out from the fog. Even with their hunched postures, they were taller than adult humans, their bodies packed with knotted muscles and their faces ferocious and terrifying. They were packed so densely that a single glance revealed nearly a thousand of them, with many more still visible within the fog. Their footsteps sounded earth-shattering; had it been raining, the raindrops would have turned to steam the moment they touched the molten lava on the apes' backs before even hitting the ground.

Leading them were five giant ape kings. If the backs of ordinary red apes merely bore scorching lava, the lava on the backs of the ape kings was actively erupting, constantly flowing with glowing orange-red magma.

"The Red Ape King, a demon king from the Qi Kingdom's Third-Tier Secret Realm, 'Molten Oil Cave,'" Jie Yuanshao said, remaining calm, though her right hand gripping the sword hilt betrayed her emotions. "Ancient texts refer to it as the premier demon of the Third Tier!"

Thousands of demons, and the premier demon king of the Third Tier!

"I had a vague feeling something was wrong during the first three waves, and now I can confirm that today's demon horde is indeed more difficult than yesterday's," Shang Xinlei said. "Although there were still five demon kings yesterday, their power levels varied, and their affinities were so poor that they even canceled out each other's offensives, while their subordinate demons were disorganized and lacked coordination. Today's formation is the true might of five demon kings uniting!"

"Sister Shang, my good sister, how can you still be praising them right now?!" Qian Gongyu cried, tears almost welling up. "Shouldn't we hurry back and rely on the city walls for defense? Anyway, I've already killed over two hundred demons; as long as I can carry this blood artifact out, I'll be completely satisfied. Let's leave the rest of the work to the statues..."

"But she doesn't seem to think it's enough." Shang Xinlei pointed forward. "She is far greedier than any of us."

Jiang Shi had somehow produced another blood-artifact saber from nowhere. Both sabers shimmered with spiritual energy, unmistakably having killed a hundred demons to unlock their first seals. While the others were still struggling to unlock the seals requiring three hundred demon kills, Jiang Shi had already begun unsealing a second blood artifact, and she clearly wasn't as easily satisfied as Qian Gongyu—she intended to rack up two thousand demon kills and turn both of these blood artifacts into legendary enhancement materials!

Faced with the requirement of two thousand kills, the overwhelming tide of the red ape army was no obstacle in her eyes at all; instead, it was a lavish and sumptuous feast!

As the Red Ape Kings pounded their chests and roared, the red apes echoed in unison, surging toward Jiang Shi like chariots and tidal waves!

"I am not satisfied with just taking away an ordinary token." Shang Xinlei walked past them. "Why do you think Jiang Shi built the Masterpiece Painting wonder in the first place?"

Qian Gongyu paused. Watching Jie Yuanshao and Shang Xinlei charge into the enemy ranks as well, she finally grasped the subtext of Shang Xinlei's words—without the Masterpiece Painting, the three of them would have been forced to fight with their backs against the edge of the city wall, naturally unable to compete with Jiang Shi for kills.

Even though Jiang Shi needed to slay two thousand demons to unseal her blood artifacts, choosing to build the Masterpiece Painting yielded more disadvantages than advantages for her, because without it, she could have roamed unhindered through millions of troops anyway, without anyone competing against her for kills.

Yet without the Masterpiece Painting, Qian Gongyu and the others would never have stood a chance of slaying a thousand demons.

Qian Gongyu's expression instantly twisted into a struggle as agonizing as constipation. She neither ran back nor charged forward with them, looking as though she were being manipulated by two separate souls. Wanting to run because she felt she shouldn't stay, yet wanting to charge while lacking the courage, she remained frozen in place until the red apes closed in. Only then, spurred by the illusory strength of their shared bonds, did she let out a helpless, furious shriek: "I'll kill them, I'll kill them, all right?!"

By this point, the bond effects among them had grown extraordinary. The Pearl Tears Alliance was still at its basic tier, but because they had built the new Slaughter Warrior statue during the first three rounds, the Comrades-in-Arms bond had upgraded to intermediate tier.

[Comrades-in-Arms: When the number of Comrades-in-Arms members is ≥4, for every Comrades-in-Arms member nearby, self Qi & Blood +100, Agility +100, and all melee attacks deal 30% splash damage. Comrades-in-Arms members will support one another. (Blade Warrior, Chaos Warrior, Dragon-Slaying Warrior, Slaughter Warrior)]

There were no numerical changes, save for the addition of splash damage. Yet a mere bonus of 400 Qi & Blood and 400 Agility was enough to transform them into humanoid tyrannosaurs, a match for even the premier Third-Tier demon, the Red Ape King. Even a Third-Tier Emissary who specialized in Qi & Blood would be blown apart by a single punch from them!

Even so, they remained in perilous danger amidst this army of millions. An increase in Qi & Blood did not equate to enhanced defensive durability; it only drastically raised their strength, recovery rate, and health pool. If they were swarmed and concentrated upon by the red apes to break their defensive tokens, they would still be entangled and suffer critical injuries. They were like cheetahs running amok through a herd of wild oxen; the moment their footing slowed and a wild ox struck them, merciless trampling would follow.

Dancing upon the edge of blades, brushing past life and death!

Without halting a single step, spilling blood with every stride, stepping over mountains of corpses and wading through seas of blood, Shang Xinlei felt as though her long-stagnant flying-ring technique had finally ascended to a new realm. At last, the moment her flying ring returned from a strike, she flicked her fingers gently. The massive surge of Qi & Blood revolving within her transformed into the unstoppable kinetic energy of the flying ring, looping around her in a wide circle to carve out a brilliant landscape of blooming flowers and blood!

Flying Ring Secret Technique: Blood Wheel!

She had actually succeeded in executing a flying ring secret technique in actual combat!

Many Emissaries wasted decades, failing to master secret techniques even after practicing advanced techniques to extreme familiarity; they could hardly even manage them in training, let alone in real combat.

Shang Xinlei had only recently broken through to the Second Tier, and her secret technique had only succeeded once or twice during training. She never expected that an instinctive flash of inspiration would allow her to pull it off successfully on the spot. Now, all she needed to do was steadily master the secret technique, and she would be able to undergo her third tier transition within five years!

Even within the Shang family, a Third-Tier Emissary was no longer a minor figure devoid of a voice!

Overwhelmed by her surge of emotion, Shang Xinlei froze in place for a second or two. But the demons certainly didn't slack off; the red apes she had just cleared from the surrounding area immediately swarmed back in. There was a good reason why secret-realm monsters were called demons: they feared neither pain nor death, possessed neither mercy nor compassion, and harbored only a berserk killing intent like rabid dogs. They were the absolute physical embodiment of the word "demon."

The defensive barriers of her heart-protecting mirror shattered one after another. Shang Xinlei was unmistakably wearing a Third-Tier defensive token, but that could not salvage her momentary lapse in concentration. The greatest characteristic of the flying ring was its continuous, uninterrupted offensive; once interrupted, getting back to peak condition required a few seconds of startup time—and her heart-protecting mirror couldn't hold out for those few seconds. The red apes would tear her apart!

They might not tear her apart completely, given how astronomically high her Qi & Blood was compared to the Third Tier, but that made it all the more terrifying: having her limbs torn off, her entire body shattered, experiencing agonizing pain, yet refusing to die simply due to her formidable vitality...

Right at this hair-breadth moment, two sabers cut into the battlefield like a whirlwind—like a storm, like a tidal wave—mincing the red apes before Shang Xinlei into paste and sweeping forward in a torrent!

The splattered blood was sharper than arrows, piercing countless bloody holes through the red apes, while the sonic ripples radiating around them subjected the beasts to a slow, agonizing death accompanied by miserable shrieks and roars.

The splash-damage authority of the Comrades-in-Arms was fully unleashed at this very moment.

Shang Xinlei stared wide-eyed, fixing her gaze on Jiang Shi, who was carving her way through the horde of demons.

How on earth was one to describe the person before her? A hyper-violent fanatic consumed by peerless beauty? A fearless butcher?

Shang Xinlei seized the moment to absorb spiritual jade, watching as Jiang Shi plowed through the beast herd like a war chariot. Her twin saber techniques appeared exceedingly crude—at least far cruder than her own saber techniques—relying entirely on brute strength and raw Qi & Blood as she swung her twin sabers wildly. Scarcely a single red ape could withstand a blow from her, and even the molten lava on their backs was forcibly caved in by the sheer weight of her blade strikes. Shang Xinlei guessed that Jiang Shi's blood artifacts must possess the authority to absorb blood and repair tokens, as hers did too.

Out in the outside world, Jiang Shi alone could rout a massive army, forcing even the loyal retainers of the major aristocratic families to cower before her overwhelming ferocity. Yet here, within the secret realm, their enemies were frenzied demons.

Fortunately, among them was Jiang Shi, someone even more unhinged than the demons.

Shang Xinlei suddenly understood Jiang Shi. No wonder she held all worldly conflicts in such disdain; compared to the demons of the secret realm, every single struggle in this world seemed far too childish. She seemed born to belong to the secret realm, perfectly adapted to everything within it. Even though Shang Xinlei and the others were stronger than Jiang Shi in terms of cultivation, within the terrifying environment of the secret realm, they were barely stronger than infants.

Jiang Shi hacked out a path of blood and corpses amidst the demon horde, walking before suddenly changing direction.

Shang Xinlei glanced over and knew instantly that she was going to support Jie Yuanshao and Qian Gongyu.

A mixture of amusement and exasperation welled up in her heart. You made yourself out to be so pitiful just a moment ago, saying things like "I have no one to rely on" and "I don't want to depend on others"... yet right now, you are clearly the one we are relying on!

Clearly burdened by an impoverished background yet harboring lofty ambitions; clearly isolated and alone yet taking care of us; clearly of humble strength yet living entirely as she pleased.

Why on earth did someone like you exist in this world?

And why did you... have to cross paths with me?

***

By the time the fourth wave ended, almost everyone was drenched in blood, looking at a glance like a quartet of serial killers. Even Jie Yuanshao, who harbored a mild penchant for cleanliness, had completely desensitized herself, lying straight down on the soft chairs in the castle hall covered in dirt and grime, her eyes vacant as if she had been wrung dry.

Qian Gongyu collapsed from sheer exhaustion, shouting, "I don't want to move anymore! I don't want to scavenge for resources anymore!"

"Very well."

Everyone paused, blinking in surprise. They looked at Jiang Shi, then back at Qian Gongyu, wondering if something had transpired between the two of them. Otherwise, why would Jiang Shi indulge Qian Gongyu so much?

Qian Gongyu was also slightly flattered, saying with a trace of embarrassment, "I was just complaining; I didn't truly mean I wouldn't go..."

"If we trigger the fifth demon horde ahead of schedule, the current rest period will roll over into the next round," Jiang Shi explained. "Shall we advance it?"

Exchanging glances, the others nodded one after another: "Let's!"

Besides, the next round only featured a single Fourth-Tier demon; they could rest comfortably in the castle while the statues took care of the fighting.

Whatever operations Jiang Shi performed, ear-splitting roars soon echoed from outside, flames scorching the sky above the Nightmare Grove an orange-red. Seeing Jiang Shi turn and head back out, they asked curiously, "What are you going out for?"

"Did I not mention it? Causing damage to Fourth-Tier demons also counts toward the kill count of the blood artifacts," Jiang Shi said. "Rest well."

Listening to the roars of the demons outside drawing closer, Shang Xinlei remarked, "Now that two statues have been upgraded, they should be able to resolve this Fourth-Tier demon very quickly."

"Mm."

"Indeed."

The firewood in the fireplace crackled and popped. The sounds of the demons rang out once more, appearing to have reached the city wall and engaged in battle with the statues. Jie Yuanshao sighed, dragging her fatigued body to her feet. "In such a safe environment, I'd feel I was doing this opportunity a disservice if I didn't exchange blows with a Fourth-Tier demon."

"Oh please, wouldn't it be wonderful if we just sat here chatting and drinking tea?" Qian Gongyu rummaged through a nearby cabinet. "There are even pastries to eat!"

"Then let's go," Shang Xinlei said, extending a hand toward Qian Gongyu. "You've rested enough, haven't you?"

"How long has it even been..." Qian Gongyu grumbled, taking Shang Xinlei's hand with a thoroughly reluctant expression as she pulled herself up.

"Xiao Yu, we bear the crimson robes and purple ribbons; aren't you showing a bit of disrespect toward us right now?"

"Sorry, the education I received doesn't allow me to respect a smelly Fourth Young Miss of the Shang family."

"You... you really are an aristocrat through and through!"

***

"Strange, why did today's fifth wave of demons arrive so quickly?"

At the entrance of the Nightmare Grove, Jie Long heard the commotion echoing from within and guessed aloud, "The fifth wave started shortly after the fourth ended... Could they be controlling the start time of the demon hordes?"

"Uncle Zilong,"

Qun Yushu walked over and asked, "Are they coming back soon? The midday banquet is about to begin."

"They mentioned wanting to push through to the tenth stage, so it's still early," Jie Long sighed. "Though I'm not very optimistic. After all, there's a Fourth-Tier demon starting from the fifth stage; the difficulty after this is unimaginable."

"I actually have a lot of confidence," Qun Yushu said. "The target of the tenth stage was definitely proposed by Jiang Shi. She isn't someone who acts unrealistically."

"It seems you still harbor a great deal of interest in her."

"Someone so striking and formidable—who wouldn't be interested? Though I treat her with the respect one gives a father—the kind where you keep your distance."

"The Qun family isn't planning to recruit her anymore?"

"The family certainly wants to, but I don't think the odds are high," Qun Yushu said. "From the very first moment I saw her, I knew she wasn't someone who would ever submit to staying beneath others. Even if she joins any aristocratic family, she won't accept any constraints; she would merely leverage their influence to accomplish her own goals."

"Arrogance, huh? Perfectly normal. If I possessed her talent, ability, and appearance, I'd dare lose my temper at the old patriarch of my family too." Jie Long chuckled; the two of them shared common ground when it came to rebelling against their elders.

"Arrogance? No, no, no, I don't think she's particularly arrogant." Qun Yushu shook his head. "She... she simply feels the rest of us are far too boring. It's like watching a group of ants moving sugar cubes; observing them from a high vantage point might be amusing, but if the ants invited you to join in moving sugar cubes with them, you'd find it tedious too, wouldn't you?"

"Generally speaking, that is what people call arrogance," Jie Long remarked with a sigh. "I used to be like that, thinking my peers were too boring, until I ran into enough walls and finally matured... Since we live in the mundane world, we have to accept its rules."

"Then, do you think Jiang Shi can ever become mundane?" Qun Yushu suddenly asked.

Before Jie Long could reply, a clamorous commotion suddenly erupted from a tent not far away.

"Someone's dead!"

"The young master of the Luo family is dead! Quickly call someone over!"

"It must have been done by a Demonic-Path Emissary!"

"Seal the camp and search the surroundings thoroughly!"

Jie Long whipped his head around to look at Qun Yushu, only to find that Qun Yushu was also gazing toward the panicked crowd in the distance.

"Don't misunderstand, I had no idea what was going to happen," Qun Yushu smiled. "I only knew that something certainly would."

"Then whose side are you on?" Jie Long asked.

"I will stand on the side of the mundane world," Qun Yushu glanced at Jie Long, "and so will you."