Chapter 7 Orochi

Orochi, after Gui Ren (Returning Blade), transformed into a gigantic monster with eight heads and eight tails.

The huge snake monster had the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi (Sword of Gathering Clouds of Heaven) on its head, eyes like winter cherries, a dragon-like form, and an earth-shattering demonic aura.

Facing a monster of this size, fists, blades, spears, and cannons were evidently meaningless.

The number of Beyond Dimension Army soldiers present was already small; upon seeing this scene, they all chose to retreat in unison. In any case, their mission was already complete, and even if they stayed, they would not be of much use and might even be killed as collateral damage.

Only two people remained standing near the martial arts stage, steadfastly unmoving.

These two people were naturally Feng Bujue and Li Ruoyu.

"Aren't you running?" Amidst the demonic wind, Brother Jue looked at Ruoyu, who was standing five meters away from him, and asked.

"Not running." Ruoyu raised a hand, lightly brushed her hair beside her cheek, and replied coldly.

"It's very dangerous to stay here, you know." Feng Bujue reminded her.

"So are you." As Ruoyu spoke, she placed her hand on the sword at her waist.

These two could be described as knowing each other inside and out, with a tacit understanding. They both understood that no matter how strong the Boss in this script was, for the players, the real threat still came from each other.

"I'm staying here out of curiosity, to see what kind of result they'll end up with." Feng Bujue added.

"Is that so?" Ruoyu stared coldly at Brother Jue, calmly exposing the latter's intentions, "I thought you wanted to wait for Orochi to reveal the whereabouts of the Hogyoku (Crumbling Orb)."

"Heh..." Feng Bujue laughed, but didn't say anything.

Ruoyu then continued, "Given the current situation, I presume you won't leave, so I'll accompany you to watch this play."

At this moment, they could already be facing each other with swords drawn. But... both of them chose to stand still in opposition.

They both understood in their hearts... Even just watching the battle beside these three monsters required considerable concentration, otherwise, they might really be killed by the scattered energy. If players fought here, they would have to risk being defeated by third-party factors, and Ruoyu clearly didn't want that.

Therefore, Feng Bujue had decided to stay here. That way... he could both observe the information revealed in the Boss battle and temporarily delay his battle with Ruoyu, killing two birds with one stone.

…………

On the other hand, south of Gucheng Castle, in a certain city alley.

After the chaotic battle began, many people in the Beyond Dimension Army became separated from the main force. After all, the Demonic Army had a large number of troops. Compared to them, the individual combat ability of the Beyond Dimension Army was strong, but the number was only a few hundred, and it was inevitable that some people would gradually stray from the formation.

Huajian, without realizing it, had become isolated...

"Hmph... finally caught a good opportunity..." At this time, Qisha, who had been lurking in the dark for a long time, finally felt that the time was ripe and prepared to strike.

His speed was very fast, and his attack was decisive. From approaching the opponent to launching his technique, it only took two seconds.

Two seconds later, a move [One Hundred and One Style. Oboro-guruma (Haze Wheel)] hit the target squarely. According to Qisha's estimation, this move was enough to determine the outcome against a medical-specialized player.

"A game is just a game, don't blame me." After retracting his move, Qisha turned his head and said.

However, the scene that entered his sight the next second caused his expression to change drastically.

"What!"

He saw that the "Huajian" who had just been attacked began to dissolve like a wax figure, scattering on the ground.

"A substitute?" The moment Qisha reacted, his gaze moved quickly, and soon... he caught sight of a figure ten meters away.

Without hesitation, he stepped forward and chased after the figure, closing the distance to two meters from Huajian in the blink of an eye.

Unexpectedly, at the same second, another figure appeared behind Huajian.

That figure was none other than Wang Tanzhi.

It turned out... Qisha wasn't the only one hiding in the dark, trying to assassinate Huajian. As the saying goes, the praying mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. Little Tan had been eyeing this head for a while, and... he had also noticed Qisha's presence, so he had been waiting for Qisha to attack first, so that he could move accordingly.

If Qisha succeeded, then Little Tan's target would naturally shift to Qisha; but if Qisha's first round of attack failed, Little Tan could take the opportunity to come out and finish the job, killing Huajian before she could stabilize herself.

"Hmph... this kid... really doesn't show any mercy." At this moment, Qisha thought to himself, "Oh well... letting him have this kill is fine, it's just some skill points, one less opponent is one less."

And Little Tan's thoughts at this moment were similar to Qisha's: "It was definitely right not to rush out first, I knew Huajian would use [Wax Doll Substitute], but... this skill can't be used twice in a short period of time. This kill... I'll take it!"

One in front, one behind, blade wind, fist wind.

Swift as the wind, fierce as thunder.

Huajian was a medical-specialized player, and her level was the lowest among the crowd. It was inevitable that she would become the target of everyone's attention. Previously, because there were many people and too many eyes, it was always inconvenient for players to attack "friendly troops," but now... there was no one around, so they didn't need to be polite anymore.

Seeing that Huajian was under attack from both sides, and that both of them were experts who could kill her with a single blow, it seemed... that her fate in this script was sealed.

But... her face didn't show any panic or despair. On the contrary, the corner of her mouth... revealed a hint of a cold smile.

Clang! Clang!

In the next instant, two metallic sounds rang out, and two fast shadows appeared.

Wang Tanzhi's combat dagger and Qisha's gauntlets were both blocked.

Because... two peerless swordsmen had arrived like lightning, protecting Huajian's side.

"Cough... Huajian-sama was right..." Kyoshiro, with a flick of his sword, forced Qisha back several feet.

"So... you two really are spies sent by Orochi." Kurogane Jin'e's sword aura bloomed, forcing Little Tan to retreat ten meters.

With the appearance of two swordsmen who had been healed and were now fully recovered, the battle situation immediately changed drastically.

At this time, Huajian said with a serious expression, "That's of course, why would I lie to you..." She paused, looked at Qisha and Little Tan respectively, "I said long ago, as long as I act alone, they will reveal their true colors."

"Tch... I've been set up." Qisha's face darkened slightly, and he thought to himself, "I thought I was the hunter, and she was the prey. But... I'm the prey, and she... is a clever hunter who dares to use herself as bait." Thinking of this, his eyes changed slightly, "Heh... those guys from the Inferno Front are all so troublesome..."

"Hmm..." On the other side, Little Tan squinted his eyes and thought, "I've fallen into the trap... I've been outmaneuvered this time..."

Little Tan and Qisha both understood that in this situation, they had been forced into a dead end. Explanations... were probably superfluous. Even if the two of them were eloquent, in the face of the facts that had just happened, it would probably seem pale and powerless. If they abandoned the battle and fled... the news that the two of them were "Orochi's spies" would soon be spread. At that time, the Beyond Dimension Army would hunt them down, and the Orochi Army wouldn't be polite to them either. In short, they would be "damned if they do, damned if they don't."

Therefore, the only choice left for them was to kill Huajian, Kyoshiro, and Kurogane Jin'e all here, so that there would be no witnesses. But... how easy would that be? It would be fine if the two of them were in cahoots, but the problem was... they still had to be wary of each other; from the looks of it, this wasn't a two-on-three situation, but a one-on-one against three... and the side with three people still had medical support. It was self-evident which side was more advantageous.

"There's no way... I can only bite the bullet and go for it." After thinking for a few seconds, Little Tan, with no other choice, decided to solve the problem with force.

"Hmph... let's just fight, wouldn't it be fine to kill everyone in the room?" Qisha's situation was similar. Compared to using his brain... he undoubtedly preferred to solve problems with his fists.

…………

At the same time, Gucheng Castle, Tenshu (Castle Tower).

Boom—

With a loud explosion, the gate of the Tenshu Pavilion was shattered.

The Demonic Army soldiers guarding the gate fell like wheat, crumbling and unable to form any resistance, unable to stop those who broke through the gate.

Windtrace, Gen Musashi, and Kuroko, the three experts in the Xuangang Sword Formation were unstoppable, and arrived at the Tenshu at the fastest speed.

After they broke through the gate, their initial exploration revealed no mechanisms or formations. There were also no soldiers or demon generals guarding the interior of the Tenshu Pavilion.

Seeing this scene, although the three of them were suspicious, they didn't hesitate too much. They simply exchanged glances and then walked side by side, heading straight for the top floor of the Tenshu.

In less than a minute, they arrived at the top floor pavilion.

They saw... the empty pavilion was spacious and empty, with only a stone coffin covered with incantations standing in the center. The coffin was chained with heavy iron chains, and the coffin door was tightly closed. Waves of purple-black, fierce, demonic energy were constantly emanating from the coffin, making people shudder.

"This thing... is the seal that Orochi uses to draw in space-time..." Gen Musashi observed and pondered.

"It's probably it..." Kuroko continued, "This kind of demonic power is extraordinary. If there is anything in this city that can exert the effect of the seal, it can only be this stone coffin."

"Then... what should we do now?" Gen Musashi looked at the two people beside him.

His question was also the question of Windtrace and Kuroko.

Even if they could be sure that this was the seal, what should they do with it? Now that Keiji was dead, the method of destroying the seal was also unknown. What if the three of them operated improperly, not only failing to return the various space-times to their original places, but also dragging other space-times in? Wouldn't that be a joke?

"Open the coffin..." Windtrace thought for a moment and said coldly, "... and then we'll talk."

"Hmm... that makes sense." As Kuroko spoke, he also picked up his twin flags, "It's always right to open it and take a look first."

Gen Musashi had no objection to this suggestion, so the three of them each took action and broke the chains on the stone coffin.

Suddenly, demonic energy spewed out from the coffin, black wind swept around, and the door of the stone coffin slowly opened.

A few seconds later, the object in the coffin appeared before the three of them.

At this moment, Gen Musashi, Windtrace, and Kuroko simultaneously revealed shocked expressions and said the same three words in unison: "Orochi?"