Chapter 67: Rat Person! When Did Lao Er Learn…

Gu Changhuai sighed inwardly—he had said long ago that the most detestable demon in the Cultivation World was the Left Protector, completely rigid and unaffected by any words.

He thought so, at least.

If he weren’t working under the Left Protector, he would have certainly praised them as a cool bro, but unfortunately, this ruthless and merciless Left Protector was his direct superior. Almost every Shadow Demon had suffered under their harsh hand, including Gu Changhuai.

Today, there was no way to gloss over this matter easily.

The two wielded identical long sabers, striking without mercy, each move countered by the other. The spreading demonic energy naturally formed a Kill Domain around them, barring anyone else from approaching.

Pei Tianyi could only watch helplessly from the sidelines. His vision blurred repeatedly, his lips pale as he lowered his head. The Heaven-Shattering Arrow had pierced slightly into his chest, its residual power shaking and injuring his spiritual meridians. Something in his dantian seemed to have loosened…

His grip tightened on his sword, and a faint red light flashed in his eyes. His natal spirit sword trembled uncontrollably, its blade seemingly tainted with a hazy gray hue.

Pei Tianyi struggled to open his eyes and looked toward Gu Changhuai, who was locked in fierce combat with the Left Protector.

Inside the Kill Domain, the two continued to clash. The lingering echoes of clashing blades hurt the ears, and even a trace of their intent was enough to chill the blood. Such strength.

It also meant he could not assist, could not intervene, could not even get close. He was just like a useless waste, unable even to block a single arrow from that Demon Clansman!

In that instant,

The Heart Demon he had suppressed for so long burst forth.

It was as if thousands of voices whispered in his ear: to gain power, to break through his cultivation, to avoid becoming a waste, to help him—it was actually very simple. He just needed to—

Enter the demonic path.

“Pei Tianyi!” A lazy, cold voice suddenly rang out like a beam of heavenly light, shattering those thousands of bewitching murmurs.

Pei Tianyi snapped back to his senses.

Gu Changhuai parried the saber tip thrusting toward his heart, seizing the moment to remind him, “Focus your mind, calm your heart!” A surge of demonic aura rose from the kid—it was impossible to ignore.

Awakened by Gu Changhuai’s call, Pei Tianyi immediately began silently reciting the Clear Heart Mantra on the side.

He could not be bewitched by the Heart Demon.

He could not enter the demonic path.

He could not…

Within the Kill Domain,

Gu Changhuai deflected a saber strike and suddenly thrust out a hand to claw at the Left Protector’s heart. Just as Shattered Shadow was about to connect, the Left Protector’s figure turned ghostly, dissolving into black mist and vanishing from sight. A wave of killing intent surged from behind, and Gu Changhuai spun to block it.

Damn it!

He had said it before—the Left Protector was so annoying!

An uncatchable rat!

Rat person! So irritating!

…

Gu Changhuai figured the Left Protector was like an tireless ox. Roughly calculating, the Kill Domain had formed for nearly an hour.

In other words, they had been fighting for an hour.

Up to now, though the Left Protector used killing moves, they were measured and controlled. He coped with them effortlessly.

At least, from Gu Changhuai’s observations and judgment, aside from that initial arrow and saber strike filled with genuine killing intent—which seemed to stem from failing to kill him—the Left Protector’s subsequent moves lacked full commitment.

This was quite intriguing.

It left Gu Changhuai unable to fathom the Left Protector’s true intentions—did they really want to kill him, or had they suddenly sparked a desire to test his skills?

But going through the motions was always his specialty. Since the Left Protector wasn’t fighting to the death, he naturally wouldn’t expend extra effort.

He mirrored the Left Protector’s actions with equally measured killing strikes, making it appear to outsiders beyond the Kill Domain that they were battling fiercely, each move lethal.

In reality, inside the Kill Domain, the two were like chess players, trading moves casually.

Gu Changhuai said nothing, and the Left Protector said nothing either. The Left Protector wasn’t one for words anyway… He didn’t expect any useful response from them. Asking was pointless, so he saved his breath.

After all, the Left Protector was the Demon Venerable’s most trusted direct subordinate, not some turncoat like Han Ya who bent with the wind.

He was mainly wary that the Left Protector was holding some malicious intent. Wherever the Left Protector appeared, trouble followed—they must have come on the Demon Venerable’s orders.

Though he figured he couldn’t get anything out of them, as the exchanges dragged on and boredom set in, he couldn’t help but speak up. “How about we say something at least?”

The response was a saber blade gleaming with cold light from the Left Protector. He sighed and dodged, “No wonder you’re unpopular in the Demon Realm—your temper’s too hot-headed. What did the Demon Venerable send you for? Can’t I hear it? I haven’t betrayed the realm. Just a couple days ago, I cut off Rong Ye’s hair and sent it to the Demon Venerable.”

Then he nearly lost a lock of his own hair to the Left Protector. He swung his saber, the blade grazing dangerously past the Left Protector’s face.

“Why can’t you understand good intentions? Did the Demon Venerable send you to help Pei Tianyi enter the demonic path?”

He continued, “This kid isn’t even good material for demonic cultivation. He’s as stubborn as his dad. Why do you keep hounding him?”

Then Gu Changhuai keenly caught a cold laugh from the Left Protector.

Hm?

Something was off.

His eyes shifted slightly as he noticed seven or eight Painting Nightmares had appeared around Pei Tianyi at some point, silently encircling him.

Sneak attack?!

Gu Changhuai reproachfully pointed at the Left Protector, “This is going too far. I treat you like a brother, and you pull a sneak attack on me?”

His moves sharpened instantly. Caught off guard, the Left Protector retreated half a step. By then, Pei Tianyi was nearly overwhelmed by the Painting Nightmares’ shadows. Gu Changhuai shouted, “Xue Lao Er, still watching the show? Help out!”

In the next instant,

An arrow flew from behind the Gobi, crashing wildly into the encirclement of Painting Nightmares and exploding, repelling the seven or eight around Pei Tianyi. The Painting Nightmares uniformly raised their heads, their expressions uniformly fierce. Thorny vine whips appeared in their hands.

Xue Lao Er emerged from behind the Gobi, cursing under his breath. “You only call me when you need something. With how fast you change faces, you should join a mortal opera troupe!”

He grumbled, but he wasn’t idle. A curved saber appeared in his hand, blocking a thorny whip flung by a Painting Nightmare.

The Left Protector glanced at Xue Lao Er with those deadpan eyes before turning back to Gu Changhuai. A low, cold voice laced with killing intent emerged. “You two… have betrayed the realm…”

Gu Changhuai interrupted rapidly, “No, no, no—don’t spout nonsense without evidence. I told you, we just took a liking to the kid. We’re utterly loyal to the Demon Venerable.”

“The Left Protector, please see the truth! We’re innocent!” Xue Lao Er kicked away a lunging Painting Nightmare and cleaved another with his saber. His demeanor remained sinister and eerie, his tone icy. “Betray the realm? We serve the Demon Venerable wholeheartedly and obey his every command!”

His actions and words were completely at odds.

Gu Changhuai was shocked.

Whoa.

When did Lao Er learn to play dirty?!

Yet, one could fend off a single Painting Nightmare, but not a horde. With Gu Changhuai pinned in the Kill Domain by the Left Protector, Xue Lao Er was entangled by three or four Painting Nightmares.

Then Gu Changhuai saw two more Painting Nightmares beside Pei Tianyi. One pulled out a red pearl… Lady Mengying’s Heart Pill!

It was too late. His pupils contracted.

The Heart Pill had already been shoved into the wound in Pei Tianyi’s chest by the Painting Nightmare, embedding into his heart and shattering the seal. At the same time, the ground trembled violently, as if a massive boulder had crashed in the center of the Battlefield.