Chapter 143: Has Zhang Yang Died?

“What!? Grandmother!?? How can you say something like that!” Upon hearing Master Jinghai’s words, Qin Xiaochuan angrily struggled to his feet from the rubble, staring in shock at Abu flying in the air—who was none other than his grandmother, Master Jinghai.

Ignoring Qin Xiaochuan’s protest, Master Jinghai looked at Sikong Lang before continuing, “With this guy’s strength, relying solely on his own power, he can’t unleash his full potential. To force him to give his all, someone must die before his eyes. Since everyone is going to die soon anyway, if sacrificing one person can draw out your potential, then that’s a good thing.”

“Stop joking, you old hag!” Qin Xiaochuan jumped up from the ground and furiously pointed at Abu’s body. “I really misjudged you. How could I ever celebrate letting my comrade die just to unlock my potential? That’s utterly foolish!”

Unfazed by Qin Xiaochuan’s anger, Abu, flapping her small wings fiercely in midair, struck Qin Xiaochuan on the head. The face of Master Jinghai inside her turned serious as she said, “This is the world you have thrown yourself into, Qin Xiaochuan! Without strength, no matter what you do, you’re powerless! If you’re unwilling, then just stop watching.”

“Hmph…” Having finished speaking with Master Jinghai, Sikong Lang snapped his fingers, sending two energy bombs flying toward Qin Xiaochuan and Master Jinghai, hitting them both. “Looks like the negotiations are over. I had been thinking of using this move to force you,” he said, watching Qin Xiaochuan shakily rise from the ground. “If you’re not mature enough to wield your power skillfully, then this is the only way.”

“Ugh~~~… you bastard!” Qin Xiaochuan roared in frustration.

Ignoring Qin Xiaochuan’s fury, Sikong Lang glanced at Zhang Yang, Bai Ying, Feiyan, and Little Yanwang across from him and let out a long breath. After a moment, he pointed at Zhang Yang. “You’re the one.”

“!!”

“To draw out Qin Xiaochuan’s power—for me—please go die!” Sikong Lang stepped forward toward Zhang Yang, showing he truly intended to kill Qin Xiaochuan’s companion, as Master Jinghai had suggested.

“Stop, Sikong Lang!” Seeing Sikong Lang advance on Zhang Yang, Qin Xiaochuan lunged forward, swinging his fist hard against Sikong Lang’s back of the head and back. But the force wasn’t enough to even make Sikong Lang dodge; he didn’t even turn his head. With a casual gesture, Sikong Lang sent Qin Xiaochuan flying away. “Don’t get in my way.”

“Damn it!” Ignoring the pain, Qin Xiaochuan got up from the ground and charged at Sikong Lang again, trying to stop him, but couldn’t even get Sikong Lang to pause. After standing up, Qin Xiaochuan was knocked flying again, landing in the spectator stands.

Watching Qin Xiaochuan being repeatedly thrown aside, Bai Ying couldn’t sit still and said to Feiyan, “Sikong Lang has completely lost it. He wants Qin Xiaochuan to be as strong as him. If he makes a move, we’ll all jump in.”

“Bare-handed? Don’t you barely have any demon energy left?”

“You’re the same! After using the Black Dragon Wave, how much demon energy do you have left? Or are you thinking of running now?”

“Stop joking!” Hearing Bai Ying talk about retreating, Feiyan firmly refused. “If we fight, we fight. Who’s afraid of whom?”

“Uwaah~~!!” After Sikong Lang punched him again in the stomach, Qin Xiaochuan knelt on the ground, vomiting blood continuously.

“Poor Qin Xiaochuan! What a pitiful sight!”

“Ahhhhhh!!!” Enraged by Sikong Lang’s taunt, Qin Xiaochuan raised his right hand, but Sikong Lang vanished instantly, reappearing behind him. With a light pat on Qin Xiaochuan’s back, Sikong Lang slammed him into the ground. “You’re already powerless!”

‘Powerless?’ After being slammed down, Qin Xiaochuan was completely stunned. Not only did he have no strength left, he couldn’t even move a finger. He was so disappointed in himself that he had lost the courage to continue attacking. Despite his best efforts, he had failed to injure Sikong Lang at all. Now, he couldn’t even get up. What on earth was happening?

“Let me!” Zhang Yang stepped in front of Bai Ying and Feiyan, staring at Sikong Lang. No one else could stop him from being killed, so there was no need for others to sacrifice themselves for him. “I’ll do it alone.”

“But, Zhang Yang, are you really planning to let us watch you be killed without doing anything?”

Glancing back at Bai Ying, Zhang Yang said nothing, just patted his shoulder. Then, looking at Little Yanwang beside him, an expression of entrusting and resolve appeared in his eyes. “Since Lord Little Yanwang has entrusted his life to Qin Xiaochuan, I’ll take a gamble too. Even if it’s a worthless life, I won’t give up!” With that, Zhang Yang turned and ran toward Sikong Lang.

“Qin Xiaochuan!!” When Zhang Yang reached Sikong Lang, the latter extended three fingers and stabbed them through Zhang Yang’s chest. Blood splattered everywhere. Pointing at the kneeling Qin Xiaochuan, Zhang Yang summoned his last strength and gasped, “You… should have more… strength… don’t… disappoint me!”

With those words, Zhang Yang collapsed, and Bai Ying rushed over to catch him.

Seeing Bai Ying’s pained expression, Qin Xiaochuan’s eyes suddenly went blank, as if he had lost his soul, staring vacantly at the ground.

“Should I kill another?” Arms crossed, Sikong Lang looked at Qin Xiaochuan kneeling on the ground, his face emotionless. “If you want, I’ll do it.”

At Sikong Lang’s words, Qin Xiaochuan suddenly stood up and vanished in an instant.

“!!”

Seeing Qin Xiaochuan suddenly appear behind him, Sikong Lang shuddered inwardly. Had he broken through?

“How shameful! I can’t even save my own comrades!” Standing behind Sikong Lang, Qin Xiaochuan exuded a hollow aura, like a walking corpse. His eyes remained empty, and the spiritual energy within him became chaotic, as if it had lost its master’s control, leaking endlessly from his body.

“Qin Xiaochuan’s spiritual energy is changing!” Bai Ying felt a chill wash over him as he observed the aura exuding from Qin Xiaochuan. This energy was unlike any spiritual energy he had ever felt—cold, devoid of warmth, heat, emotion, or vitality, like a pool of dead water. Despite its vastness, it gave a sense of freezing coldness. Was this Qin Xiaochuan’s new power?

“A breakthrough!?” Sikong Lang’s body stiffened as he faced Qin Xiaochuan. The icy oppression stirred something within him—an unfamiliar tension, anxiety, anticipation, and excitement. It was the first time in a long while he had been involved in a battle where the outcome was uncertain. This was the feeling he had been yearning for, the fight he truly craved. “Not bad, this is exactly what I hoped for!” Excited, Sikong Lang launched an attack at Qin Xiaochuan. “Thank you, Qin Xiaochuan. Your powerful strength is beginning to reveal itself, approaching the level of mine!”

“...Like you...” Hearing Sikong Lang’s words, Qin Xiaochuan neither dodged nor attacked but pondered their meaning. “No! It’s not the same!” Just as he realized this, Sikong Lang’s fist flew at him.

“What’s different!?” Qin Xiaochuan’s words barely left his mouth before Sikong Lang’s powerful punch sent him flying, crashing into the ground and skidding toward the spectator stands. After several harsh scrapes against the ground, Qin Xiaochuan’s body slammed into a railing, stopped by a concrete wall.

“Get up, Qin Xiaochuan,” Sikong Lang said excitedly, watching him fly away. “My power hasn’t changed, but the damage you take should be less now. If this isn’t getting stronger, what is?”

Pushing aside the rubble on his body, Qin Xiaochuan rose to his feet. “It does hurt less than before.”

“He is indeed gradually closing in,” Feiyan said, puzzled by the chaotic aura around Qin Xiaochuan. Despite the turmoil, he was still increasing the spiritual energy within him. What kind of power was this?

“But their powers are fundamentally different,” Bai Ying observed. He felt something unusual in Qin Xiaochuan—not merely an increase in spiritual energy or approaching Sikong Lang’s invincible strength. Qin Xiaochuan’s body seemed like a vacuum, constantly emitting cold air. This chill was neither spiritual energy nor a straightforward power but more like Qin Xiaochuan’s self-reproach and dissatisfaction. He radiated an icy aura that repelled others, but it continuously counteracted the soul-sucking force emanating from Sikong Lang, as if Qin Xiaochuan’s aura was deliberately neutralizing Sikong Lang’s pull.

“I’ve never seen anything like this,” Wo stood up from the ground, watching Qin Xiaochuan surrounded by cold energy. “His spiritual energy is extremely chaotic. Though it’s increasing, it also brings a sense of unease.”

“But... but Wo, I feel less pain than before! It’s like I’m protected by some power. The sensation of being pulled is gone,” Lingju also stood up, no longer trembling. The sucking force had vanished. Watching Qin Xiaochuan nearby, Lingju believed it was his aura that countered that force. Yet this aura was still growing, unstable, as Wo said, with a dangerous sense of impending explosion.