One person: Starting with the Snow Drinking Blade

Chapter 369 Riot

"Gen character · Kunlun!"

Master Wang Ye's voice rang in his ears.

The ground in front of Fujiwara Sousuke suddenly bulged up, and a rocky barrier rose from the ground, blocking his path. The rocky barrier was three meters high and two meters thick, with a rough and uneven surface, and still bore traces of groundwater.

Fujiwara Sousuke's kunai struck the rock with a "ding," penetrating less than an inch. He tried to go around it, but both ends of the rock wall were embedded in the rock face, leaving him with no way to bypass it.

The rocky barrier blocked his way.

Nie Lingfeng had already rushed to the entrance of the tunnel.

He snatched Xiaoyun from Chen Duo's arms. His fingers trembled as he reached out—not from nervousness, but from fear. That fear didn't come from his mind, but from his heart, from his very bones, from every cell in his body. He was afraid he was too late; he was afraid Xiaoyun was already…

It feels cool to the touch.

Xiaoyun's body was as cold as ice. Not just ordinary cold, but a kind of cold that seeped in from the inside out, as if something inside her had sucked all the warmth away. Her skin was bluish, her lips were purple, and her nails had turned bluish-gray.

Her body was stiff, like a wooden board. Her small hands remained in the same position as before, gripping Chen Duo's collar, her fingers bent into an arc, her nails digging into her palms until they bled, but the blood was black and not fresh.

Her eyes stared blankly at the "mother hive" ahead. Those eyes didn't look like those of a living person—the pupils were dilated, almost filling the entire iris, reflecting the dark red light of the mother hive's surface. That light swirled and leaped in her pupils like a bottomless vortex.

Unconsciously, she continued to utter those broken, eerie syllables: "...ah...uh...ee..." The sounds were so soft they were almost inaudible, but each syllable was synchronized with the pulsation of her ovary. With a "thud," Xiaoyun uttered a syllable. It was as if something was controlling her vocal cords.

He did not respond to Nie Lingfeng's calls, as if his soul had been ripped out.

"Xiaoyun! Xiaoyun! Look at me!"

Nie Lingfeng shook her vigorously—not daring to be too forceful for fear of hurting her, but not too gentle either, as that would be useless. He continuously channeled pure and gentle cloud qi into her body, the white qi flowing from his palms into Xiaoyun's back like a warm stream, flowing through her cold body.

They tried to awaken her senses and dispel the evil will that was corrupting her.

however--

The effect was minimal.

Xiaoyun's body was no longer so stiff—her arms and legs were no longer as straight as wooden boards, but slightly bent, as if she had transformed from a stone statue into a puppet. But her eyes remained empty, and her "gaze" and whispers toward the "mother nest" did not cease.

and--

The "mother nest" seemed to react more violently to the input of this pure cloud energy.

It emitted an excited "hum"—the hum was no longer a painful scream, but a pleasant, satisfied murmur, as if it were enjoying something.

The will that had locked onto Xiaoyun became even more solid. Before, that will was like an invisible thread connecting the mother nest and Xiaoyun. Now that thread had thickened, becoming a rope, an iron chain, a steel cable.

They even... attempted to follow that invisible connection to erode and capture the cloud energy that Nie Lingfeng had input into Xiao Yun's body!

It's not rejection, not exclusion, but rather—devouring.

It is consuming Nie Lingfeng's Qi.

"Damn it!"

Nie Lingfeng immediately cut off the flow of Qi. The moment his fingers withdrew from Xiao Yun's back, he could feel a suction force coming from Xiao Yun's body, as if something was trying to hold on, chasing, and craving more Qi. The suction force was not strong, but it was persistent, like an outstretched hand that grabbed at the air twice before reluctantly withdrawing.

He held Xiaoyun tightly and looked up at the enormous and terrifying "mother nest".

The mass of flesh let out a dissatisfied whimper, like that of a child whose food had been stolen, the moment he cut off his breath—but the sound coming from a mass of flesh tens of meters in size was not cute, but rather chilling.

Its surface undulated, as if it were breathing. The "eye" crystals flickered on and off, their frequency exactly matching Xiaoyun's heartbeat.

Nie Lingfeng's eyes were as cold as ancient ice. That coldness wasn't the calmness of battle, but rather a suffocating chill that came from the extreme concentration of killing intent.

His murderous intent surged like a volcanic eruption.

This thing...

It must be destroyed.

immediately.

immediately.

But at this moment—

Although the surrounding monsters were momentarily stunned by the unusual activity of the mother nest—they seemed to be paused, standing still with their heads turned towards the mother nest as if they had heard some command—they quickly resumed their bloodthirsty roars under the more ferocious will emanating from the mother nest.

The roar was louder, more coordinated, and more organized than before.

As if hypnotized, the previously chaotic and disorganized monster horde became unified. All the "Rippers" simultaneously raised their scythes, all the "Screamers" simultaneously opened their mouths, and all the "Shapeshifters" simultaneously spewed out acid.

It lunged at the group even more frantically! Especially Nie Lingfeng's location became the monster's primary target!

Several "Rippers" charged from the front, their bone plates gleaming with a cold white luster under the dark red light, their scythe claws raised high like a row of guillotines about to fall.

Several "Screamers" swooped down from the sky, their sonic waves coalescing into visible white shockwaves that shot out simultaneously from different directions.

The "shapeshifters" flanked from the side. They had no fixed shape and flowed along the ground like mud at an astonishing speed, surging in from Nie Lingfeng's blind spot.

The shadow monsters hid in even deeper shadows, their gray-black mist blending seamlessly with the dark red light emanating from the mother nest, making it impossible to distinguish between shadow and monster.

"Brother Nie! Watch out!"

Zhang Chulan shouted anxiously, desperately trying to rush to his rescue. His lightning exploded, blasting away several "Tearers" blocking his path, but more monsters filled the gap. His foot sank into the body of a "Shapeshifter"—the monster wrapped around his ankle like mud, and strong acid began to corrode his golden shield, hissing and smoking. He shook himself several times before finally pulling his foot out, leaving a charred ring on the golden shield.

Taoist Master Wang Ye, Zhang Lingyu, and Feng Baobao were also caught in a fierce battle.

Wang Ye's Taoist robe was torn in several places, and there was a bloody gash on his left arm caused by the sonic waves of the "Screamer," with the skin torn open and blood dripping down his fingers. His Qimen formation was still running, but the speed had slowed down considerably, and the Bagua phantom under his feet appeared and disappeared intermittently, as if it might dissipate at any moment.

Zhang Lingyu's black lightning formed barriers in front of him, blocking most of the frontal attacks, but his breathing became increasingly heavy, and beads of sweat rolled down his forehead. The Yin Five Thunders were consuming too much energy, and he was beginning to feel the Qi in his dantian running low.

Feng Baobao was the most relaxed, single-handedly holding off two shadow monsters and a "Ripper." Her katana drew silver arcs in the darkness, each swing sending monster limbs to the ground. But she also had several wounds; her clothes on her left shoulder were torn, revealing her fair skin and a shallow bloodstain.

The same applies to people from the Eagle Country and the Cherry Blossom Country.

The suited elite had run out of bullets—the muzzle of his energy pistol was dull and the runes no longer flickered. He drew a military knife from his waist and engaged in close combat with a "Ripper." The knife pierced the monster's joints, spraying black blood all over his face. He was covered in wounds, the most severe being a deep gash on his thigh, ripped open by the sonic waves of a "Screamer," exposing the bone. Every step he took was excruciating, causing him to grimace in pain.

Catherine's frost powers were nearly exhausted. Her face was as white as paper, her lips were purple, and she was trembling uncontrollably—not from the cold, but from exhaustion caused by overexertion. The ice wall around her was now only a thin layer, riddled with cracks, like a piece of glass about to shatter.

Fujiwara Sousuke was in even worse shape. He couldn't lift his one arm anymore—his shoulder was dislocated, and his arm hung limply at his side. He could only use his feet, his head, and every part of his body to block the monster's attacks. One of his shoes was gone, his socks were covered in blood, and two of his toes were broken.

The scene was extremely chaotic.

"We can't stay here!"

Nie Lingfeng's mind raced. Holding the abnormally injured Xiao Yun, surrounded by monsters and coveted by powerful enemies, it would be unwise to fight the "Mother Nest" head-on. That lump of flesh was tens of meters in size; even if he slashed at it with all his might, he could only leave a cut on its surface, like pricking an elephant with a needle—the elephant would feel pain, but it wouldn't die.

We must first get Xiaoyun out of the direct influence of the "mother nest's" will, stabilize her condition, and then plan our next move.

His gaze swept across the surroundings.

The console on the platform... People from the Eagle Nation and the Japanese Nation want to control the "Mother Nest"...

perhaps……

A bold and adventurous plan instantly took shape in his mind.

It's not perfect, it's not foolproof, and the success rate is less than 30%. But it's currently the only way.

"Wang Ye! Maximum range Chaotic Golden Barrier! Slow down all monsters and enemies! Chu Lan, Ling Yu, Bao'er, move closer to me! Chen Duo, prepare the strongest nerve interference and hallucinogenic poison, target the area near the control panel, covering the people of the Eagle Country and the Sakura Country!"

Nie Lingfeng's voice, transmitted through his Qi, rang clearly in the ears of his companions. The voice wasn't loud, but everyone heard it clearly, as if someone were speaking right next to them.

"clear!"

"receive!"

Upon hearing this, Daoist Wang Ye took a deep breath.

He took a deep breath, so deep that his chest felt like it was about to burst, and his ribs creaked. An unnatural flush rose on his face—not a healthy rosy glow, but a fiery, burning red, as if he had been burned. It was the outward manifestation of his blood and qi surging to their peak.

Clearly, mobilizing such a large-scale chaotic gong was an extremely heavy burden for him.

But he didn't hesitate at all.

The Qimen Dunjia formation beneath his feet spun wildly, expanding to its limit. The illusory image of the Bagua spread outwards from his feet at an extremely fast speed, like a carpet spread out, covering the platform and the surrounding area of ​​nearly a hundred meters.

Every trigram was glowing—Qian, Kun, Zhen, Xun, Kan, Li, Gen, and Dui—all eight trigrams lit up simultaneously, their light dazzling. This was a phenomenon that only occurred when the Qimen Dunjia formation was pushed to its limit, signifying that he was using the most core and also the most dangerous power of Feng Hou Qimen.

He spat out a small mouthful of blood—not from the corner of his mouth, but from deep within his throat, warm, salty, and fishy—which landed in the Qimen formation beneath his feet.

The moment the essence and blood merged into the formation, the illusory image of the Eight Trigrams suddenly lit up, its brightness increasing at least three times.

"Feng Hou Qi Men - Luan Jin Tuo - Time Delay Domain! Open!"

"Buzz—!!!"

An invisible force field, far larger and more stagnant than before, suddenly spread out from Wang Ye as the center!

The force field didn't "push" outwards, but rather spread outwards like ripples when a pebble is thrown into water. However, unlike the pebble, the ripples weren't circular; they spread outwards in all directions from Wang Ye's feet, like an expanding transparent bubble.

It covered the entire platform and an area of ​​nearly 100 meters around it!

All moving objects within the range—the monster, the three from the Eagle Kingdom, Fujiwara Sousuke from the Sakura Kingdom, even the flying pebbles and drops of blood—

Everything slowed down instantly!

It wasn't a stop, but a slowing down. Like a movie played at 0.5x speed. The monsters' movements became a slideshow, scythes slowly slicing through the air, acid slowly squeezing out of the shapeshifter's mouthparts, forming a round droplet in the air, slowly moving forward.

The action of the British elite in his suit drawing his sword turned into slow motion; his arm rose slowly and visibly, and the tip of the sword left the scabbard inch by inch.

Catherine's hand movements as she raised it to cast a spell slowed down. She opened her fingers one by one, and ice crystals slowly condensed at her fingertips, each crystal taking several seconds to form.

Fujiwara Sousuke's body was suspended in mid-air as he charged forward, one foot off the ground and the other still on the ground, making him look like a suspended sculpture.

Even the columns of liquid splashing from the pool of blood froze in mid-air—those dark red, viscous liquids stood motionless in the air like pillars.

Although the delay effect only lasted for a second or two due to the large area and numerous targets—no matter how strong Wang Ye was, it was impossible for him to lock onto so many targets for too long at the same time—it was enough!

A second or two is just a blink of an eye for an ordinary person.

But for someone of Nie Lingfeng's caliber, a second or two can determine life or death.

At the same time, Zhang Chulan, Zhang Lingyu, and Feng Baobao risked injury to forcefully shake off the monsters around them and rapidly approached Nie Lingfeng's location.