At that moment, there wasn't much else I could do—Gripping both blades of Sin and Retribution, I stabbed straight toward Crow's clawed hands.
Just as my short swords were about to pierce him,Crow's body suddenly dissolved into a plume of smoke—He vanished right before my eyes.
As I looked around, searching desperately,A chilling cold surged up behind me.
Then that familiar metallic rasp grated right beside my ear—"This life's over. In the next one, I'll make sure you're born into something better…"
As I heard his voice, I lunged forward on instinct,Twisting midair to slash behind me with my right-hand sword.
The instant I swung,My body lifted off the ground, hovering two or three meters in the air.
Before I could even process what was happening,A tremendous force came crashing down on me from above—
WHAM—I was slammed brutally into the floor.
The crushing weight pinned me, making it impossible to move.
Stars danced in my vision.
Then a chill—sharp as death—crept up my arm,Flowing toward my heart.
Wherever it passed, my body felt numb,As if it no longer belonged to me.
But just as the freezing pain reached my chest,The seed embedded there suddenly contracted,Then erupted, sending a jolt through my entire arm—Forcing that bone-chilling cold right back out.
Behind me, I heard a dull thud—Crow grunting.
The pressure vanished.
When I turned around,I saw him staggering, remerging into the crystal wall.
But this time, the crystalline barrier was dim and flickering,Like it could collapse at any moment.
Then—CRACK!A hole burst open in the wall.
Through it, I saw Director Hao Wenming staring at me.
He said calmly,"Looks like Director Gao didn't misjudge you after all…"
Then his gaze shifted to the dimming Crow and he added,"Not to tell you what to do, but—Now's the time.Send the Death Envoy on his way."
Before I could answer, another voice cut through the air:
"No! You'll have to ask me first."
Someone stepped out from within the crystal wall—He gave Hao Wenming a nod and said,"Wenming, whatever this is, take it out on me. Let Crow go."
It was Hao Zhengyi, the older twin, who looked nothing like his brother.
The moment he appeared,Something in Hao Wenming snapped.
His neck and face bulged with veins,His whole body trembling violently.
Then—he roared:"Then die in his place!"
Without another word, he swung the Celestial Ruler straight at his brother's head.
I'd known the brothers weren't close,But I hadn't realized things had gotten this bad.
The heavy blow was about to crash down—But then, from the side of the crystal wall,Someone rushed in and pulled Hao Zhengyi aside at the last second.
By now, Hao Wenming's eyes were bloodshot, lost in rage.
He had no technique—no form.Only fury.
He roared and swung the Celestial Ruler again,Aiming squarely at his brother's skull.
But Hao Zhengyi didn't flinch.He just stood there, letting the strike fall.
The person who had pulled him back shouted,"If you're gonna die, don't die here!"
He yanked Hao Zhengyi away again—Then turned and kicked Hao Wenming,Sending him flying seven or eight meters back.
Crow, still partially within the crystal wall,Took his chance.
He stepped out, walked up to Hao Zhengyi—And what he did next stunned me.
He leaned forward—And merged with Hao Zhengyi, vanishing into his body.
Man and Death Envoy, now one.
The one who saved Hao Zhengyi was Lin Feng.He'd brought his men back to the Bureau—And he and Hao Zhengyi had arrived ahead of the others.
In the distance, I saw the rest—Soul Husks and Lin Feng's team—approaching fast.
Originally, I had no intention of interfering with the Hao brothers' brawl.
But with Lin Feng here, everything changed.
"Two against one, huh?" I shouted.
By the time the words left my mouth,I was already charging in, blades in hand.
But I never expected what came next.
Before I could even strike,Hao Zhengyi—no, Crow inside him—seethed with fury.
He sucked in a long breath,But didn't exhale.
His facial muscles twisted,Eyes burning, locked on Lin Feng like he wanted to flay him alive.
Then, through gritted teeth, he snarled:"Don't…touch…my brother!"
With that, Hao Zhengyi slapped Lin Feng across the face.
SMACK—a sharp, clean hit.
Lin Feng stumbled,Reeling back several steps, nearly falling.
By then, I had arrived—And with Director Hao nearby, I didn't want to strike his brother directly.
So I turned both blades and slashed at the stunned, enraged Lin Feng instead.
Just as I made my move,A vicious gust tore through behind me—SMACK!Something like a whip cracked hard across my back.
Whoever did it was no amateur.If my physique hadn't drastically changed these past months,That single hit might've snapped my spine clean in half.
Even so, the pain nearly knocked me out.My balance broke, and I collapsed forward.
Clenching my teeth through the agony, I rolled backward,Just in case they tried to finish me off.When no follow-up came, I leapt to my feet.
Only then did I see—It was Hao Zhengyi who'd struck me.In his hand, he held a nine-section whip, pale white at the joints,Glaring coldly in my direction.
This wasn't an ordinary chain whip—Each joint looked like a miniature femur,Carved with eerie precision,The color and shape nearly indistinguishable from real bone.
At that moment, Lin Feng turned to look at me.
At close range, I noticed something was off—His jawline and face didn't match.It must've been reconstructed after I shattered his jaw with a bullet last time.
Lin Feng stared at me coldly and said,"Whatever you have to say—take it outside."
That was clearly meant for Hao Zhengyi.
Hao Zhengyi gave a small nod."So long as no one touches my brother, I don't care what happens."
No sooner had he finished speakingThan Hao Wenming—still dazed—finally stood up.
With a retch, he vomited a mouthful of blood.
Seeing that, Hao Zhengyi's glare snapped toward Lin Feng,His hand on the whip trembling—Like he was ready to lash out again.
Lin Feng took a guilty step back and muttered,"Think about why you're really here."
That seemed to bring Hao Zhengyi back from the edge.
But it wasn't over.
Hao Wenming wiped the blood from his mouth,Glared at Lin Feng with murder in his eyes,Snatched his Celestial Ruler off the ground,And staggered toward us again.
Now Lin Feng was stuck.
If he attacked Hao Wenming, Hao Zhengyi would beat him down.
But if he didn't, Wenming would never let him walk away.
Finally, Lin Feng clenched his jaw,His body twisted,Then vanished from where he stood.
I'd seen this trick before—The same stealth kill he used on Po Jun two years ago.
I opened my mouth to shout a warning to Hao Wenming—But before I could, the seed in my chest tightened,And every hair on my body stood on end.
A wave of terror washed over me.
I realized instantly—He wasn't aiming for Wenming. He was aiming for me.
No time to think.I twisted on the spot,Sweeping my twin blades outward in a spinning arc,Forming a protective circle.
Just as I did, I felt the Blade of Retribution scrape against something.
Then—A blur of movement—Lin Feng reappeared in front of me.
A hand-sized chunk of flesh had been sliced from his chest,Still dangling from a strip of fascia attached to his rib.
The bone was exposed,Oozing with black, ink-like fluid—Just looking at it made my stomach twist.
Even he hadn't expected this outcome.
He jumped back, narrowly dodging my follow-up slash with the Blade of Sin.
Retreating five or six steps,Lin Feng clutched the wound, eyes wide,Staring at my short swords in disbelief.
I was about to press the advantage—To put a few more clean holes in him—
When a voice suddenly shouted behind me:
"Get back!"
It was Gao Liang.
At the same moment, Lin Feng opened his mouth—And spewed a jet of deathborne miasma,Shooting straight toward my face like a black arrow.
He moved so fast that Gao Liang's warning only distracted me,Leaving me no time to dodge.
On reflex, I raised both short swords to shield myself.
I never expected what happened next.
The Blade of Sin began to tremble violently,So much that I nearly lost my grip.
But the more the miasma touched the blade,The more it seemed to thin out,Until within two or three seconds,It completely vanished.
At first, I thought the blade had dispelled it.
But in the final moment, I saw it—
The last wisps of that black mistWere drawn into the sword,Absorbed, not neutralized.
And after feeding on the death energy,The blade went calm, like it had just been fed.
Lin Feng stared, stunned.He hesitated—then backed away,Returning to Hao Zhengyi's side.
Hao Wenming didn't charge forward either—Gao Liang and Xiao Heshang had come rushing over to hold him back.Wenming kept glaring at them, still seething.
"You two came back for what?!"I shouted at Xiao Heshang."I told Hao to go up first—we didn't need backup."
Master Xiao looked annoyed.He tossed down the Beam Lock rope,Still tied to a snapped piece of steel.
"Next time you lift Fatty up," he growled, "I'll cover you!"
By now, Lin Feng's people and the Soul Husks had surrounded us.
A few whispered in his ear,While another patched up the wound on his chest.
After giving a few quiet commands,Lin Feng's people slowly closed in around the four of us.
Seeing we were boxed in,Lin Feng finally chuckled and looked at Gao Liang.
"Director Gao, to be honest,I didn't come here for vengeance for Section Chief Xiao.
We're only after the second half of the Heavenly Principle Diagram.
Once we have it,We'll leave. No trouble."
Gao Liang just stared coldly at him the whole time.
When Lin Feng finished,Gao's lips curled faintly into a smile.
He glanced at the Soul Husks and Lin Feng's lackeys,Then said,"Must've taken a lot of effort these years…Forget Chixiao—Even Soul Husks you've gathered so many.
Let me guess—last time at Xiao Yin Mountain with Li Yongjin?
You said you burned them all, remember?"
He paused, then looked straight at Lin Feng's people.
"Su Mingchang, Kong Da, Tang Laojiu—Why don't you show your faces already?
What's with the fake skin? It's suffocating."
He grinned and turned to Xiao Heshang.
"Remember Su Mingchang and Tang Laojiu?The two that slipped from your hands back in '79?"
"I could recognize their ashes if they were burned alive."Xiao Heshang scoffed,His gaze slicing across the group Lin Feng had brought.
"These bastards haven't changed one bit.
Always hiding when it's dangerous,and jumping in when there's profit."