Qiao and Ding exclaimed in shock, jumping up abruptly.
Thick, purple-black smoke clung to their skin, forcefully infiltrating their bodies through their pores. As they greedily absorbed the life essence from Red Grandma, the smoke entered their bodies through their mouths.
Their skin rapidly turned purple-black, with large patches deteriorating and peeling off. Blood oozed out from underneath, shining bright red when it first emerged, but turning into black pus upon touching the ground.
Having learned the art of Element Extraction from Shi Lingqing and practiced the evil technique of Eternal Longevity, Qiao and Ding screamed in agony. The intense surge of life energy within their bodies continuously resisted the corrosive poison.
As their skin deteriorated and chunks of flesh fell off, fresh and tender skin grew underneath, only to rot and fall off again.
Enraged, Qiao and Ding screamed in frustration. Qiao's movement was hindered due to the inconvenience caused by his newly grown thigh. He sat on the ground and gritted his teeth, producing a dozen small and sharp throwing knives, glaring fiercely at Shi Dian.
Ding, on the other hand, charged forward, swinging his hands and sending dozens of triangular nails flying in a series of mysterious arcs towards Shi Dian.
Shi Dian chuckled, his right hand fiercely smashing his wooden staff into the ground. Dozens of tiny silver electric arcs, as thin as strands of hair, shot out from the tip of the staff, precisely hitting the triangular nails.
The power of the electric arcs was incredibly strong. Despite being forged from refined steel and tempered with secret methods, the triangular nails were directly shattered by the electricity. In a piercing explosion, specks of iron scraps sprayed in all directions. Ding, who had charged forward, suddenly let out a strange cry, his body twitching with small electric sparks before collapsing to the ground.
While the electric arcs in mid-air shattered the triangular nails, a thumb-thick electric current silently flowed along the ground, like a poisonous snake, striking Ding's foot. The electric sparks emitted a crisp sound as Ding desperately tried to struggle and jump up, but he couldn't control his own body.
Qiao, whose body was still enveloped in the purple-black smoke, muttered under his breath.
When Ding had rushed out earlier, he could have taken him and escaped from the encirclement of the toxic smoke. However, Ding chose not to do so and simply rushed out of the smoke on his own, without helping Qiao.
The poison continued to invade their bodies, rapidly depleting the life essence they had just taken from Red Grandma. Qiao's body oozed a large amount of filthy blood and kept producing fresh blood that flowed out from within him, presenting a ghastly appearance.
Step by step, stumbling, Shi Dian walked towards Ding who was lying on the ground, unable to move.
Qiao screamed at the top of his lungs, "Lingqing... save me... Shi Dian, he... he's gone mad!"
Shi Lingqing, who was venting her negative emotions, shuddered. With a light leap, she gracefully landed on a cluster of several meters high crystals a dozen meters away.
Watching Shi Dian sneak attack Qiao and Ding, severely injuring the two, and now standing next to Ding while lifting his staff to strike him...
Shi Lingqing scolded him angrily, "Shi Dian... What are you trying to do?"
Shi Dian turned his head, smiling at Shi Lingqing. He forcefully swung down his wooden staff, piercing Ding's head.
"Miss, I have been protecting you for nearly ten years," Shi Dian smiled tenderly at Shi Lingqing. "In the past decade, you have grown from an ignorant little girl into such beauty..."
Ding let out a mournful scream as he was killed.
Shi Lingqing's face contorted as she stared at Shi Dian, her ten fingers twitching violently.
"Do you still remember the seed I gave you on your twelfth birthday?" Shi Dian spoke in a peculiar, soft, and sticky voice. At the same time, he took a step forward, approaching Qiao who was enveloped in the purple-black toxic smoke.
"At that time, you despised that inconspicuous seed." Shi Dian smiled at Shi Lingqing, "You casually tossed it away... Little did you know, I spent all my savings to buy that seed from a secretive merchant."
"You threw it away, but I picked it up, carefully cultivated it in secret, watched it grow, bud, and bloom..." Shi Dian's smile was extremely gentle. "The merchant told me it was called the Sunflower... The flower is small but beautiful, with many colors I have never seen before."
"Dainty, beautiful, fragile, and pitiable... just like you, Miss," Shi Dian's smile twisted slightly. "So, when it finally bloomed, I pulled it out, cleaned it up, and ate it, bit by bit."
Amidst the toxic smoke, Qiao screamed in agony, fiercely slapping the ground with his hands, using the force to bounce and crawl away.
Grumbling softly, Qiao, whose body was still shrouded in the toxic smoke, muttered a curse. When Ding rushed out earlier, Qiao could have escaped the encirclement of the poisonous smoke with him. However, Ding didn't do that and rushed out of the smoke on his own, leaving Qiao behind.
The toxicity continued to infiltrate Qiao's body, rapidly consuming the life essence he had just wrested from Red Grandma. A large amount of impure blood flowed from Qiao's body, and fresh impure blood continued to seep out, giving him a horrifying appearance.
Taking one step at a time, stumbling, Shi Dian approached Ding who was lying on the ground, unable to move.
Qiao screamed at the top of his lungs, "Lingqing... save me... Shi Dian, he... he's gone mad!"
In the midst of venting her negative emotions, Shi Lingqing trembled. She leaped out of the crater she had violently created, landing lightly on a crystalline cluster tens of meters away. She watched as Shi Dian used a poisonous attack against Qiao and Ding, seriously injuring them and approaching Ding's side as he raised his wooden staff, intending to kill him...
Shi Lingqing angrily rebuked, "Shi Dian... What are you doing?"
Shi Dian turned to look at Shi Lingqing, his smile growing wider. The staff in his hand fell heavily, piercing Ding's head.
"Miss, I have been your guard for almost ten years," Shi Dian smiled warmly at Shi Lingqing. "Over the past ten years, you have grown from an ignorant little girl into a beautiful woman..."
Ding screamed tragically as he was killed.
Shi Lingqing's face contorted as she looked at Shi Dian, her ten fingers fiercely twitching.
"Do you remember the seed I gave you on your twelfth birthday?" Shi Dian spoke with an uncomfortable, soft, and sticky voice while taking slow steps towards Qiao, who was covered in a purple-black toxic smoke.
"At that time, you looked down on that inconspicuous seed." Shi Dian smiled at Shi Lingqing. "You casually discarded it... Little did you know, I spent all my savings to buy that seed from a secret vendor."
"You threw it away, but I picked it up, carefully and secretly nurtured it, watched it grow, bud, and bloom..." Shi Dian's smile was exceptionally gentle. "The vendor told me it's called a Sunflower... The flower is small but beautiful, and it has many colors that I have never seen before."
"Lovely, beautiful, delicate, and deserving of sympathy... just like you, Miss." Shi Dian's smile became twisted. "So, when it bloomed, I uprooted it, cleaning it thoroughly before consuming it bit by bit."
Amidst the toxic smoke, Qiao screamed in agony, slapping the ground with his hands, using the force to leap and crawl, attempting to escape.
Shi Lingqing let out a sharp scream. Blood-red flames ignited on her body, forming handprints of blood-colored flames that pummeled down from the sky like a fiery cloud, crashing towards Shi Dian.
While looking at the handprints Shi Lingqing slapped out, Shi Dian suddenly shouted loudly, "Miss... don't you think, awakening a divine ability at such a critical moment, makes me more useful than those two useless fellows? They can have you, but why can't I?"
Shi Lingqing's body visibly paused mid-air, and the dozens of handprints formed by blood-colored flames dissipated instantly.
With her exquisite figure exposed, Shi Lingqing slowly descended from the sky, gracefully landing in front of Shi Dian. She swayed her figure, lightly reached out her hand, and gently caressed Shi Dian's chin.
Full of murderous intent, with an evil glint in her eyes, Shi Dian resembled a pet receiving affection from its master. His body suddenly lost all its energy, and his tense posture became slightly bent. He slightly lowered his waist and looked at Shi Lingqing with a smiling face.
"Miss... it's wonderful. Since Qianyu City is destroyed, there is no one left to stop us from being together... I have gained power, I have awakened my abilities. Now, I can protect you. No one will dare to treat you, like those two damn bastards did," Shi Dian's smile grew more intense.
Intentionally stepping on the charcoal left behind by Qiao after his body turned to ashes, Shi Dian spoke sternly, "You know why? On that day, when you lured them into betraying the Mist Blade and sold out their brothers, I was not far away... I witnessed how they treated you, I heard your moans!"
Gritting his teeth, Shi Dian laughed, "So, they must die. They can't live... but you, I don't despise you even though you have been bitten by two stray dogs... Who makes me... love you like this?"
Shi Dian's words came out in a rapid succession, only taking a short time to speak this long string of crazy and foolish words.
As Shi Lingqing descended from the sky, her palms intertwined, and each palm imprint, formed by blood-colored flames, swiftly fell from the sky like a fire cloud, striking Shi Dian.
Shi Dian stared at the palm imprints unleashed by Shi Lingqing. Suddenly, he sternly roared, "Miss... Don't you think that at this crucial moment, my awakened innate divine ability is much more useful than those two wastes? They can have you, so why can't I?"
Shi Lingqing's body momentarily froze in mid-air, and the dozens of palm imprints made of blood-colored flames dissipated instantly.
Revealing her splendid figure, Shi Lingqing slowly landed in front of Shi Dian. She swayed her body and walked up to Shi Dian, extending her hand to gently touch his chin.
Full of powerful aura, with her eyes emitting an eerie red glow, Shi Lingqing, as if caressing a beloved pet, saw Shi Dian's aura instantly dissipate, and his body straightened by a fraction. He slightly bent down, his face smiling at Shi Lingqing.
"Miss... That's wonderful. Qianyu City has been destroyed, and no one can stop us from being together... I have gained power, awakened my ability, and can protect you now. There won't be anyone treating you so disgracefully like those two damned wretches," Shi Dian's eyes welled up with tears.
Deeply gazing into Shi Dian's handsome face, each word she spoke decisive and unwavering, Shi Lingqing lightly sighed, "So, it turns out, you have always harbored such thoughts towards me... You have suffered for me, indeed."
Smirking, Shi Lingqing casually pointed toward Wu Tie, who had jumped out of the crater, and lightly said, "The ancient treasure in the palace, which looks like broken bones, and the ancient saint corpse, I want them both."
Electric light suddenly surged from Shi Dian's eyes as he fiercely glared at Wu Tie.
"Kill him and give me the treasures I want... From now on, you will be my most trusted, closest confidant," Shi Lingqing smiled radiantly and threw a seductive look at Shi Dian.
Shi Dian's face turned crimson, and veins bulged from his neck. His breath grew heavier as he stared fiercely at Shi Lingqing's alluring figure, scanning it from head to toe. Hastily, he took large steps towards Wu Tie.
Wu Tie just landed on the ground.
He clearly heard everything that had just transpired.
Qiao and Ding were dead, the two traitors who fell for Shi Lingqing's tricks and betrayed the Nine Palms Command and Red Grandma, died by Shi Dian's hand.
In this whole process, the trickery of human hearts, the ugliness of human nature, the cunning and cruelty of this world...all these things he had never experienced before were like a series of heavenly thunders, continuously striking Wu Tie's heart.
It was as if a drop of ink had fallen into a pond, gradually staining its color.
Suppressing the dizziness resulting from being continuously attacked by Shi Lingqing, Wu Tie struggled to straighten his body, heavily gasping for breath. As he watched Shi Dian, who came closer with determined steps, Wu Tie pondered for a moment and then chuckled a few times.
Wu Tie himself felt that his laughter was unpleasant. Although there was no mirror around, he thought that his smile must be ugly.
"I really didn't expect that in the end, the two of you would survive," Wu Tie's mind was a bit muddled. He looked at Shi Lingqing, whose clothes were burned by the blood-colored flames she had used, and then at Shi Dian, who was messy all over, and said with a sigh, "Was it worth it?"
Shi Lingqing and Shi Dian were momentarily stunned before bursting into laughter at the same time.
Shi Lingqing laughed so heartily that she almost fell to the ground. Pointing at Wu Tie, she laughed out loud, "I want to live... To live, to be above everyone else, to be gloriously radiant. Do you ask 'was it worth it'? Are you joking with me?"
Shi Dian also laughed heartily as he approached Wu Tie. Thin electric currents kept surging out of his body, gradually converging into a thumb-thick electric current flowing over his body. Heavy thunder resounded from within Shi Dian, and he loudly declared, "Was it worth it? For Miss, I can sacrifice everything!"
Wu Tie wanted to say something else, but Shi Lingqing's eyes suddenly turned blood red, and she silently and swiftly floated behind Shi Dian, her hands like knives as they ruthlessly stabbed into Shi Dian's vulnerable rear heart.
Shi Dian's body suddenly froze, and the electric current all over him immediately dissipated. He turned around in disbelief, continuously making a 'koko' sound in his throat.
Shi Lingqing gazed at him tenderly and calmly said, "You didn't say anything wrong. You're just a lowly family guard, and I can let anyone enjoy my body except for you slaves."
"Do you know the characteristics of the Element Extraction Technique?" Shi Lingqing happily smiled, "Apart from taking the life essence that Red Grandma and I share, at my level, I can also seize and use someone else's innate divine ability."
"Electricity and Thunder... it's a pretty good innate divine ability. To think it was awakened from you, why not offer it to me?" Shi Lingqing's laughter gradually grew louder, thread after thread of electric currents continued to surge out from Shi Dian's body and enter her own body.
"This power, that you have as a servant of the Shi family in Qianyu City, belongs to me. Shi Dian, do you agree?" Shi Lingqing sighed softly, "As a servant, you have had desires for me from a young age. Shouldn't you, in the end, die?"
Shi Dian's body convulsed intensely, his right hand tightly gripping the wooden staff. Several times, he attempted to attack Shi Lingqing with it.
Shi Lingqing smiled brilliantly at Shi Dian, watching his every move.
Shi Dian tried several times but still didn't make a move.
Finally, he looked at Shi Lingqing and sighed softly, "May you be beautiful and everlasting in this life... Eternal Life Teach... Ha... Miss, being able to die for you, I have no regrets... You, must live well."
Shi Dian turned around and looked at Wu Tie, speaking softly, "Never let these filthy boys defile you again..."
Shi Dian's body exploded, turning into a mist of blood.
Within the mist, one fist-sized blood mist was enveloped by countless thin electric sparks. Shi Lingqing opened her mouth and swallowed the electric sparks in one gulp.
Soon, a burst of thin electric sparks also emanated from Shi Lingqing's body, and a low rumble could be heard in the air.
Wu Tie looked at Shi Lingqing, who appeared uncomfortable. He muttered to himself, "Why did you have to make things so complicated?"
Shi Lingqing took a deep breath and smiled as she looked at Wu Tie, "Once all those who hindered me, obstructed me, are dead, isn't everything in this world much simpler?"
Amidst her laughter, Shi Lingqing transformed into a bundle of electric light surrounded by flames, whizzing towards Wu Tie.
(End of Chapter 32)