Chapter 1680 - 1982: Annihilation (Part 2)
Seeing Su Mei’s change in expression, Ling Chen asked, "Master Su, what’s the matter?"
"Do you... do you know what kind of wine this is?" Su Mei’s voice carried a slight tremor, and bright tears seemed to glisten in her eyes.
Ling Chen shook his head; he didn’t know that much. When he opened the bottle cap just now, he only felt that the wine inside was very fragrant and mellow, nothing particularly special about it. Su Mei parted her lips, about to explain, but was interrupted by the hurried sound of footsteps from the crowd outside.
The crowd turned their heads to see dozens of disciples from the Heavenly Dragon Sect suddenly rush out from behind the surrounding trees, each holding swords and knives, directly charging into the crowd. Seeing this, Ling Chen’s complexion changed slightly, and he said urgently, "Porridge girl, protect Master Su." With that, he swiftly darted forward and carried Song Ge, who was lying on the ground, onto his shoulder.
"Quick, go!"
The voice came, and Ling Chen turned his gaze to see Du Kang, in the midst of several trees not far away, fighting three Dark Pavilion members simultaneously. Seeing the power Du Kang displayed, Ling Chen couldn’t help but be shocked. Just a moment ago, Du Kang appeared weak and frail in front of him, but now he could face three opponents at once and firmly suppress them. Wasn’t this change too great?
"What are you still standing around for? Go quickly, don’t forget what you promised me."
Du Kang’s urgent voice sounded again, Ling Chen gritted his teeth, hesitated no longer, and took Song Ge to quickly find the porridge girl. However, at this moment, the person who had been hiding in the shadows finally moved.
Ling Chen felt a sudden gust of wind brush past, and a figure appeared instantly before him. At this moment, as the person drew near, Ling Chen finally saw his appearance clearly.
Chen Quan!
Ling Chen was stunned; this shock was no small matter. He never expected Chen Quan to appear here. Could he be the trump card of the Heavenly Dragon Sect? But wasn’t Chen Quan following Zhu Hong? Why was he associating with the Heavenly Dragon Sect?
In an instant, many thoughts flashed through Ling Chen’s mind.
"Ling Chen!"
Hearing the porridge girl’s shout, Ling Chen snapped back to reality and focused his gaze once more on Chen Quan. At this moment, the other’s eyes were locked onto him, releasing a powerful aura, like a towering mountain, that exerted a suffocating pressure on Ling Chen.
Despite not having seen him for a long time, Chen Quan’s strength remained intimidating, instilling fear in people’s hearts. Even though he had now successfully broken through the Heavenly List realm, against such a powerful opponent as Chen Quan, he still lacked confidence.
"You go first, I’ll hold him off for you."
A familiar voice sounded in his ear, prompting Ling Chen to quickly turn his head to look beside him, only to see Du Kang with his hands behind his back, slowly approaching. Not far behind him lay three people, the same three Dark Pavilion members he had just fought.
They were all dead! Ling Chen was shocked. How long had it been since Du Kang killed them all? His power was terrifyingly formidable.
"Elder Du..." He averted his gaze and looked at Du Kang again, noticing the other’s face was impossibly red, as if it were ablaze, looking particularly eerie.
"Go quickly!" Du Kang took a deep breath, as if suppressing something, and said in a muffled voice, "I can’t hold on much longer." Just as he finished speaking, a spurt of blood suddenly spewed from his mouth.
"Elder Du!"
Ling Chen’s expression changed; he was just about to speak when he saw Du Kang lean forward, suddenly accelerating and rushing toward Chen Quan. As the two clashed, Ling Chen gritted his teeth, hesitated no more, and swiftly went to meet up with the porridge girl and Su Mei, carrying Song Ge.
"Let’s go."
The porridge girl nodded, grabbed Su Mei’s arm, and charged straight out of the crowd. The scene was chaotic at that moment, with Heavenly Dragon Sect and Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion disciples engaged in fierce combat everywhere, with screams and cries surrounding them, and severed limbs and blood were everywhere.
Ling Chen led the charge at the front, using his powerful Heavenly List-level strength to defeat every opponent he encountered. Soon, the four of them carved a bloody path out of the crowd and successfully broke through. After escaping more than ten meters, Ling Chen stopped, glanced back at Du Kang, who was still fighting. At this moment, Du Kang was covered in blood, his clothes stained red, looking miserable. However, he was oblivious to it, still desperately attacking, successfully holding back Chen Quan.
Sigh!
With a light sigh, Ling Chen shook his head and turned to look at Su Mei beside him. She stood dumbfounded next to the porridge girl, her expression blank, as if everything happening in front of her had nothing to do with her. No trace of emotional fluctuation could be seen in her eyes, only a lifeless stillness.
"Ling Chen, Elder Du he..."
Seeing the porridge girl hesitating to speak, Ling Chen sighed and said, "This is Elder Du’s own choice; we can’t change it. The only thing we can do is fulfill his last request." In truth, when Du Kang snatched the bottle of wine from him, he already guessed something, and Su Mei’s subsequent expression further confirmed his suspicion.
The wine in that bottle was likely similar to the Soul Devouring Skills of the Dark Pavilion, capable of rapidly unleashing human potential and exhibiting extraordinary strength in a short time. However, despite the wine’s powerful effect, the cost was one’s own life. Du Kang probably anticipated tonight’s outcome, so he didn’t mind sacrificing himself, holding back Chen Quan and those Dark Pavilion experts with his life, creating a chance for them to escape.
After leaving the battlefield, Ling Chen and the others hurriedly moved toward the northern area of the forest, and after ten minutes, Ling Chen stopped, looking behind him and seeing no pursuers from the Heavenly Dragon Sect.
"Let’s find a place to rest first, and I’ll go back to see the situation."
The porridge girl answered, cautioning him, "Be careful."
Shortly after, Ling Chen returned to the site of the confrontation between the two factions. By now, the battle had ended; corpses of the Heavenly Dragon Sect and the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion disciples were scattered everywhere. The members of the Heavenly Dragon Sect seemed to have retreated, leaving nothing behind but corpses.
Walking among the piles of bodies, Ling Chen looked around and finally found Du Kang pinned beneath several corpses.
"Elder Du!" Ling Chen exclaimed, rushing over quickly and moving the bodies off Du Kang. "Elder Du, Elder Du..." Holding Du Kang, who was covered in blood and devoid of life, Ling Chen suppressed the pain in his heart, gently calling his name, but the other could no longer respond.
"Elder Du, rest assured, I will fulfill my promise to you and ensure no harm comes to Su Mei."
Ling Chen murmured to himself, his usually resilient character overcome with tears. Looking at Du Kang’s blood-stained face, memories of their past encounters flashed vividly in his mind, as if they had happened just yesterday.
"It’s all over, Elder Du, you can finally rest without worry, no longer burdened like before."