"Ptoo." Qi Suian spat out a glob of writhing, bloody spittle. The glob floated back in mid-air and reabsorbed into his body.
Every member of the Eternal United States’s Fifth Hunting Squad had been killed by Qi Suian.
All that was left was the simple matter of cleanup.
"AI Brain, how many zombies are left?" Qi Suian asked.
He’d figured it out by now. Between the protagonist’s halo and home-field advantage, the Floating Cannons weren’t going to be enough to kill him.
Only Qi Suian, who also possessed a protagonist’s halo, could actually kill the man. Otherwise, not even a Destructive Sacred Object would guarantee a kill.
After all, abilities like attracting good fortune, avoiding calamity, and turning disaster into opportunity weren’t just for show.
[Three hundred. Are you planning to besiege the protagonist?]
"Correct. The Floating Cannons have been firing all this time and haven’t killed him. We can’t drag this out."
"If this drags on, who knows who else might show up." This fight had been a difficult one for Qi Suian.
If another wave of enemies showed up, he’d definitely be overwhelmed.
’But if I kill the protagonist and let my halo devour his, I’ll gain a partial home-field advantage myself. Then things will be much easier.’
At Qi Suian’s word, the Mad Cathedral began to writhe, inching its way toward Nalan You.
Qi Suian, meanwhile, seized the moment to rest. He knew he would have to join the fight personally soon.
His Death Recast ability could restore his body, but the mental fatigue was immense. He had killed so many people with his own two hands.
The AI Brain, meanwhile, directed repair bots to begin fixing the Tai Sui God.
"This is probably the toughest protagonist I’ve ever had to kill," Qi Suian said, his eyes narrowed.
[You’re forgetting, there’s still one more among the survivors. I doubt he’s some minor character either.]
The AI Brain was reminding him not to get ahead of himself; the situation with the Dragon Whale Sect wasn’t simple either.
"Hah. Once I’ve killed these two protagonists and strengthened my own halo, everyone else will be nothing more than lambs to the slaughter."
As long as he wasn’t facing a protagonist, Qi Suian saw everyone else as lambs to the slaughter.
Of course, X-class entities were the exception.
But encountering an X-class existence wasn’t an easy thing.
They were always the most powerful life forms, items, or artifacts in their respective Doomsday Worlds.
There might only be one on an entire planet. As long as Qi Suian wasn’t trying to blow up the planet itself, he was unlikely to run into one.
[We have reached the edge of the target area. You need to prepare.]
[The moment the Floating Cannons cease their attack, the target may attempt to withdraw.]
[Given the target’s protagonist halo and home-field advantage, his chance of escape is extremely high.]
The AI Brain’s reminders flashed.
Qi Suian stretched his limbs. "Wind Master flight system, run it at full overload."
"Mad Cathedral, keep up. I’ll figure out a way to block that sacred object he’s holding. You get the zombies over here to act as shields for me, and do it fast."
"And have the Floating Cannons provide cover fire with their Dark Energy Beams."
As he spoke, all the Floating Cannons in the sky ceased their assault in unison.
Immediately, the Tai Sui God shot forward like a black cannonball, smashing directly into the enemy’s position.
It moved so fast the enemy had no time to react.
The impact sent him flying.
But he wasn’t dead. The gold spear in his hand was faintly emitting a golden radiance.
Qi Suian lunged forward to deliver the killing blow but was stopped by the radiance.
The force of Qi Suian’s blow sent excruciating pain through every part of Nalan You’s body. Death was right at his doorstep.
"Destiny: Piercing Death!" Nalan You roared. Using the Destiny Spear’s properties of "sure-hit" and "sure-kill," he killed the very fate of his own impending death.
He survived. His injuries began to heal.
Then he saw the Iron Armor Man nearby. His expression shifted, and without a moment’s hesitation, he hurled the Destiny Spear at him.
At such a close range, he was confident the Destiny Spear would kill his target.
Seeing this, Qi Suian brought down the Dark Energy Beams from the sky, forming a defensive wall before him.
The spear pierced through; the defensive wall of Dark Energy Beams was ’killed’.
Nalan You swallowed and retracted the Destiny Spear. He suddenly felt a strange impulse.
It was a bizarre desire to kill Qi Suian and devour something from him.
It wasn’t just him; the Destiny Spear in his hand was also trembling faintly, as if it, too, craved Qi Suian’s death.
He had never experienced such a feeling before and didn’t know why.
Fortunately, he didn’t need to know. As long as he killed his opponent, the reason for everything would become clear.
But his gaze quickly fell upon the Mad Cathedral and a massive horde of zombies, writhing toward him at high speed.
"Nice sacred object. The user, on the other hand, is a bit lacking."
"Train for a few more years before you try to kill me," Qi Suian said, launching his attack.
Once the zombies arrived, Qi Suian had cannon fodder to take the hits for him.
Every time Nalan You threw the Destiny Spear, Qi Suian would block its sure-hit and sure-kill effects by throwing a zombie in its path.
A "sure-hit" didn’t necessarily have to strike the intended target; as long as it hit *something*, the condition was met.
And as for "sure-kill," well, killing one thing was still a kill.
The conceptual power of Nalan You’s Destiny Spear was broad, which meant it was highly versatile.
But at the same time, its activation parameters were extremely vague.
As the saying goes, you can’t have it both ways. Since his weapon possessed such a broad conceptual power, its power in a more narrowly defined sense was naturally diminished.
Seeing Qi Suian closing the distance between them, Nalan You’s expression grew more and more grim.
At last, the thought of escape finally crossed his mind.
But he realized with despair that if he dared to turn his back, Qi Suian would instantly rush over and smash his head in.
But if he tried to retreat without turning, his speed couldn’t match his opponent’s. Getting caught was only a matter of time.
"You’re not from the Eternal United States. We have no history and no quarrel. Why must you kill me?" Nalan You tried to negotiate.
Qi Suian sneered. "True, we have no quarrel. But we do have a conflict of interest."
A cold glint flashed in Nalan You’s eyes. He didn’t think he himself possessed anything of value.
The only interest, he feared, was the Forbidden Sacred Object: Destiny Spear in his hands.
His mind raced, connecting the dots. Adding his earlier impulse, desire, and craving to the mix, he came to a conclusion.
The Iron Armor Man also possessed a Forbidden Sacred Object from the Destiny Spear series.
That’s why there was a conflict of interest. Otherwise, how could a minor figure like him ever be involved with such an opponent?
’Sacred Objects from the same series attract each other, especially when they can be assembled into a Destiny Sacred Object...’ Nalan You realized.
But before he had time to act on this thought, Qi Suian was already upon him.
"Destiny: Sure-Hit Power!"
"Destiny: Death Fate!"
"Destiny: Doomsday Moment!"
At this moment, Nalan You felt no fear. Instead, he was preternaturally calm.
Facing Qi Suian, who was now just a stone’s throw away, he unleashed the Destiny Spear and all the desperate, life-risking abilities at his disposal.
Even if it meant paying a heavy price, as long as he could survive, it would all be worth it.
The Destiny Spear broke free from his grasp, transforming into a meteor of pure gold as it shot toward the Tai Sui God.
At the same instant, Qi Suian’s sense of impending doom peaked. He was certain this attack could pierce the spatial barrier of his expedition-grade ecological circulation system.
His opponent had locked onto him. Neither zombies nor a barrier of Dark Energy Beams could stop this attack.
’Run.’
The thought flashed through his mind, and Qi Suian chose to trust his instincts without hesitation.
He abandoned his plan to kill Nalan You. Black smoke began to spew from his Wind Master flight system, and he could even see sparks starting to fly.
Qi Suian fled, the Destiny Spear hot on his heels.
He planned to circle around and come back to kill Nalan You.
He had given up for the moment, but not for good.
Seeing Qi Suian’s predicament, Nalan You realized his opponent’s plan and immediately turned to flee as well.
However, hordes of zombies swarmed forward to block his path, and even the Mad Cathedral seemed intent on swallowing him whole.
With so many obstacles, his escape was agonizingly slow.
Moreover, he was now paying the price for the three abilities he had just unleashed.
His hair turned gray, wrinkles formed on his face, and his skin began to age rapidly.
Even for a protagonist, some prices could not be avoided.
He had amplified the spear’s sure-hit, sure-kill, and lock-on abilities. As long as the Destiny Spear’s pursuit continued, he would have to keep paying the price to maintain it.
The price, naturally, was his age.
Not his lifespan or life force, but his physical age.
That was why he was showing signs of senescence.
It would continue until he aged to death.
Or was killed first, of course.
The more desperate the situation became, the calmer Nalan You grew. He felt as if the entire world was brimming with opportunities for survival.
This wasn’t an illusion. All he needed was...
Before Nalan You could even fully form the thought, he saw the Iron Armor Man, having led the Destiny Spear on a grand tour, returning.
He wanted to run, but none of those "opportunities for survival" were there to help him. It was as if they had all been an illusion.
"As the great sage Terror-zi once said: ’Since you are here, you might as well settle in!’" Qi Suian proclaimed, blasting past Nalan You at incredible speed.
"What that means is, since you’re here, this is where you’ll be buried."
In the Tai Sui God’s right hand, he now held Nalan You’s head, with the spine and a trail of organs still attached.
Nalan You wasn’t completely dead yet. He blinked, as if he still hadn’t processed what had happened.
And then, Qi Suian crushed his skull with one hand.
Everything fell quiet. With its master’s death, the Destiny Spear that had been hunting him lost its power and clattered to the ground.
"Whew, finally taken care of." A smile spread across Qi Suian’s face as he felt his own protagonist halo, Celestial Fate: Profound, ravenously devouring the halo plundered from Nalan You’s corpse.
"Now, besides the survivor protagonist, everyone else in this Sacred Artifact World is nothing more than a lamb to the slaughter."
"If a Destructive Sacred Object appeared before me now, I’d even dare to... go up and touch it to check its stats." Qi Suian felt he had made great progress.
After all, before he would have kept his distance. Now, daring to even get close was a qualitative leap.