Free Web NovelChapter 331: Chapter 135: The Corruptor’s Bewitchment
Suddenly, countless inmates from the prison cells surged forth, infuriating the Warden.
It positioned itself in front of the judge, trying to create an opportunity for the judge to blow his whistle,
Colt’s firepower was absolutely terrifying. He didn’t have to worry about his Gatling-like arms overheating, nor did he have to concern himself with running out of bullets, and he didn’t even need to aim deliberately. The bullets seemed to be conscious, flying directly towards the enemy’s head.
The relentless bullets kept shooting at the Warden, with impressive power and an unending offensive that forced the Warden to protect his head with his hands at all times.
With only his own strength, Colt was actually suppressing the Warden!
He kept speaking words that others couldn’t understand, appearing to be rather pleased with himself.
Lu Yan translated just in time:
"He says let’s see whether your fists are faster, or my guns!"
And then the second mouth added:
"Beyond seven steps, the gun is faster. Within seven steps—the gun is both accurate and fast!"
The raging Gatling guns seemed to have activated cheat codes, continually spinning as gunfire exploded on the Warden’s arms, the powerful force causing the Warden to retreat, step by step.
Bai Wu marveled at Colt’s terrifying suppression ability; this seemed like an attack, but it was in fact a strong control.
"If Colt were made into a game boss, he would certainly be the kind that would get players complaining about being disgusting," he thought.
Yan Zizai’s aura had already locked on the doctor, judge, and Warden.
But Bai Wu didn’t let him act rashly because the Bipolar Transposition also had certain drawbacks—exchange of aura.
Whether it was in Zao Lake District or later in Mechanical City, Bai Wu found that Yan Zizai’s Bipolar Transposition, if merely a positional exchange, was fine, but if other attributes were exchanged, he would be infected with some of the opponents’ aura afterward.
If he dealt with an extremely evil creature, it was very likely to plunge Yan Zizai into a state of severe negative emotion.
Although the Lake God, Jing Wu, were extreme examples, Yan Zizai could withstand the drawbacks of Bipolar Transposition in dealing with most Evil Fallen. But now, with the situation firmly in their control, Bai Wu didn’t need Yan Zizai to take the risk.
The Warden was suppressed by Colt’s firepower, the doctor was restrained by Lin Rui’s strength, and the judge was ready to activate Wandering Spirits Leading and Death Worship. There were many souls gathered here, and though there were many inmates, the judge had even more Wandering Spirits at his command.
The entire battlefield seemed to be covered with a layer of dark blue filter in an instant.
The decomposing bodies of those who had once died in prison were slowly gathering together.
Bai Wu didn’t rush; the judge hadn’t had a chance to blow his whistle when Lin Rui was facing three opponents alone. Now he had even less of an opportunity.
Enveloped by golden lightning, the golden lion leapt over the Warden, annoyed by that obnoxious whistle sound.
Yuan Ye, with a tiger-toothed grin, sneered,
"Your whistle playing, lacks spirit."
As his words fell, Yuan Ye howled to the sky, the terrible roar of the angry lion engulfing all sound,
Cracks appeared on the walls of the prison cells, stones on the ground of the outer courtyard kept trembling, and the air in the field of vision seemed to distort like ripples on water.
The terrifying sound waves seemed non-discriminatory, but all the inmates only felt a slight pain in their ears, without any other discomfort.
Only the judge, the doctor, and the Warden were in exceptional pain.
The leader of the Pure Goodness Sect demonstrated a show of firepower suppression, and Yuan Ye, as the queen of the prison, naturally wouldn’t fall behind.
The horrific lion’s roar directly overwhelmed the domain built by the judge’s whistle with its powerful sound waves.
The judge finally realized that the situation was completely out of control.
The Masked Strange Person’s time-space shift gave others time to rescue the inmates, and while the priest should have been able to fight, with the combined efforts of Yan Zizai and Bai Wu, few among the Evil Fallen or human experts could resist.
Even if they faced an expert of equal level, Bai Wu and Yan Zizai together could possibly achieve an instant kill.
As the Warden’s lethal punch missed and the two Masked Strange Persons converged again, the judge had already confirmed that this prison break and suppression were doomed to fail.
"Prepare to leave," said the judge, a sentence clearly uttered by the doctor. Given the current circumstances, the judge had given up the prison.
Here, there were many Wandering Spirits for it to command and many test subjects for the doctor to study. The two had been cooperating for a long time, and with the term "Nether River Ferry" modified by the Mutation Fusion Technique, the judge and doctor had an escape method that was nearly impossible to intercept.
He planned to take the doctor and leave. But the Warden couldn’t go.
Even with the Nether River Ferry, it was not feasible to do the same as the forces of Black Gold Island, which could allow a guardian of a faction to leave.
Because of the Doomsday Fragment "Manjushage," the Warden had already been bound to the prison.
Realizing this as well, the Warden probably guessed its own fate.
Ignoring Colt’s bullets that blurred its head with blood and flesh, it forcibly pushed Yuan Ye back with terrifying punches.
Yuan Ye didn’t retreat; with her Lion Territory fully open, she shouted loudly and faced the Warden’s fists head-on!
Watching this scene, Lin Rui exclaimed in admiration. He could take the Warden’s punches too, but not the way Yuan Ye did, limply receiving them.
The clash of fists between the evil spirit and the lion may have ended in Yuan Ye’s defeat, his feet sinking into the ground, but Yuan Ye clearly still had the strength to fight on.
Colt’s gunfire was too ferocious, forcing the Warden to find a way to block it with one hand.
Furious, the Warden abandoned the fight with Yuan Ye and charged directly at Colt!
Colt showed no fear, because Yuan Ye had the ability to contend with the Warden in close combat strength, and also because Lu Yan began a verbal assault akin to a Tang Monk’s incantation.
To describe Lu Yan as ’ten sprays per second’ was by no means an exaggeration. To verbally assault someone is to unleash a torrent of creativity, to evoke a fierce wind of words, to make one feel as if they are in a different era.
In this area, Bai Wu believed that in the High Tower, only one person could compete with Lu Yan, and Lu Yan had catchphrases!
Verbal assaults are not just about igniting someone’s rage; when emotions are disturbed by words, the body’s defensive power can drop significantly!
This was a true fight with words as weapons.
In the face of these verbal attacks, the Warden’s terrifying armor was utterly ineffective.
Yuan Ye seized the opportunity to tear open the Warden’s back with a lion’s claw, and Colt’s suppressive firepower became even more tumultuous as the opponent’s defenses fell.
In this moment, the tide of battle had become irreversible!
...
While the prison powerhouses were fighting the Warden, Yan Zizai, Bai Wu, and Lin Rui were keeping close watch on the Judge.
The Warden’s desperate struggle was to create an opportunity for the Judge to leave.
As the most evil person in the prison, the Warden, of course, had no sense of camaraderie. It understood that if it died there, the Judge could resurrect it on Huangquan Island!
So it had to protect the Judge at all costs.
The Judge’s expression was indifferent, showing no pity for the Warden who was being slaughtered by the prison powerhouses.
"We won’t be able to keep him, senior. He has a special power, just like me," said Bai Wu.
"Special power?"
With eyes narrowed, Bai Wu understood that due to the Mutation Fusion Technique, the Judge and Warden could have powers beyond the known descriptions. This was not strange.
But at this moment, as the Judge’s figure gradually dimmed, the remarks that popped out seemed to have foreshadowed the scene to come—
[As a branch of the six forces that has already declined, they have always believed that as long as they fully control a certain power, they can leap to the most magnificent biological level. Now you see this power, but don’t panic. The second-generation mask beside you also possesses a power that is in no way inferior to it. You can’t keep him now, but as the saying goes, ’the green hills will not change and the green waters will always flow,’ you will meet again.]
This statement gave Bai Wu some clues in his mind.
Lin Rui didn’t say anything more, as golden light sealed the Judge.
But the surrounding dark blue color became denser, as if in an instant, they had shifted from the world of the living to the realm of the dead.
The Judge looked at Lin Rui and said,
"Seven hundred years ago, you were unimaginably powerful to us, even capable of contending with the highest beings. But it seems that after seven hundred years, your power has weakened a lot. With time’s passage, do you think you are the only one who can control those rules?"
Lin Rui was utterly confused.
The doctor had a method tucked away that could unlock a certain monster’s seal, so he had always been very concerned about the doctor.
And seven hundred years ago, the First Generation Masked Strange Person hadn’t informed Lin Rui of anything else.
After all, from the First Generation’s perspective, as long as the doctor was stopped, that monster, which had not easily died, would not come back to life.
But it seemed that the Judge was also a role of considerable importance.
Bai Wu had grasped an understanding. He had been to Huangquan Island; black robes represented the Judge, white robes the Tomb Guardian.
And the Tomb Guardian had now turned to gray robes. When the Tomb Guardian becomes completely black-robed, it would probably be like when the Lantern Bearer encountered Jiang Yimi; they would fade away and become a part of Jiang Yimi.
The Judge was a Semi-Evil Fallen. In the words of the Masked Strange Person, it was the most perfect existence between humans and Evil Fallen.
Bai Wu pondered. Lin Rui’s power was of time-space, originating from the First Generation Masked Strange Person. What about the Judge? What power was it that the Judge possessed that Lin Rui couldn’t detain him?
On Huangquan Island, Bai Wu recalled that the Tomb Guardian once said the mask’s master had a power stronger than the Judge. Did this imply that the power the Judge now held might not originally belong to the Judge?
"When I truly acquire that power, we will meet again," said the Judge, and then a flute sound emerged.
The doctor’s body seemed to become a shadow, and both Bai Wu and Lin Rui noticed that the doctor passed through those golden spears as if he was in another world altogether.
The Nether River tore through the void, a ferryman in a conical hat with rotting, mud-like skin on a wooden boat swiftly approached.
This scene was too eerie. The dark blue river sloped down from the sky, and as it left, the doctor glared maliciously at Bai Wu and Lin Rui.
"Don’t think that taking a prison from us will stop our plans. Don’t think that without that human’s Sequence, we can’t move on to the next step. You were supposed to die from the fusion disease; at least that would have been more comfortable than dying by our hands."
Lin Rui pursed his lips; he didn’t care about the harsh words, but was dissatisfied that he couldn’t detain the opponent.
In Yuan Ye’s eyes emerged a dual vision, one side was reality, the destroyed prison amidst the great battle.
The other side was the realm of You Ming, under a cold blue tint, the messengers of the Underworld carrying the doctor and the Judge away. Her attack... could not penetrate into the other world.
Yan Zizai attempted to lock on to the judge, but all he sensed was a decaying aura:
"I can’t find the other party, it’s like... a dead person."
Of course, a living person cannot transpose with a dead one, and Yan Zizai’s Bipolar Transposition could only be used on the living.
Similarly, Lin Rui’s Time-Space Power could not penetrate to the Underworld. They could only watch helplessly as the wooden boat moved upstream against the Nether River, ferrying along with the boatman into the void.
"It’s the Power of Life and Death."
Bai Wu watched the distant judge and doctor, faintly sensing a possibility.
"What is this?" Lin Rui looked at Bai Wu, puzzled.
"If your power is the Time-Space Power, then what the judge possesses should be the Power of Life and Death.
This power has nothing to do with the judge’s entry, but is a force like your own, not belonging to any Sequence or entry. I guess this kind of power can only be borne by Semi-Evil Fallen or some other advanced life form, so the judge acquired this power."
Bai Wu combined what the judge had said before with the clues he had gathered on Huangquan Island, as well as the notes from Prayle’s Eye, and he came to some conclusions:
"The judge must, like you, have inherited a certain power. None of these powers are complete. Your Time-Space Power is not as potent as the Masked Strange Person from seven hundred years ago; there’s much to be explored, while the judge’s Power of Life and Death seems to be confined to escaping into the Underworld."
The Underworld naturally doesn’t truly exist. Although this world is preposterous enough to allow the consciousness of the dead to exist in some form, it does not possess an Underworld.
At least there are no Grim Reapers or Yamas or any such fanciful concepts.
Bai Wu speculated that perhaps a certain special power had created a vast domain, far more complex than the lake that nurtured the Lake God.
Huangquan Island was very likely the entrance to that domain. Bai Wu still remembered that the Tomb Guardian had told him that the judge’s task was to bring back the coffins from the flight to Huangquan Island.
To bring the people inside the coffins back to life, and it seemed that the doctor also had a certain ability that was one of the important conditions for this resurrection.
"This person might be on board that flight," Bai Wu suddenly spoke up.
"Flight? What flight?" Lin Rui said.
Bai Wu did not respond to Lin Rui; instead, he looked at Yan Zizai and said:
"You must have heard of the flight’s story, right? It was the starting point of the Yan Family’s generational tragedy. Your ancestor is trapped on that flight, imprisoned in Reincarnation in the guise of the Evil Fallen. Due to her curse, each generation of your Yan Family is only allowed one male and one female, and among the male or female, there is always one with an emotional deficiency, never able to feel the presence of joy."
Yan Zizai had not expected the conversation to suddenly turn to him. Of course, he had indeed heard about the Yan Family’s past.
Certainly, he had once believed what Yan Zhao had said—I have betrayed a woman for the future of mankind.
Now, Yan Zizai naturally does not think Yan Zhao feels any remorse in his heart.
The tragedy of the Yan Family, Yan Jiu’s emotional deficiency, were both connected to this woman.
However, Yan Zizai did not expect Bai Wu to have actually found this woman. freёwebnoѵel.com
In the distance, the Warden was engaged in a fierce battle with the prison’s most powerful, the disadvantage becoming evermore apparent. Bai Wu did not join the fight; the destruction of this prison and obtaining the Doomsday Fragment that would drop from the Warden’s body was just a matter of time.
He thought of some things he would inevitably face once he returned to the High Tower, so he shared a secret with Yan Zizai:
"After certain matters at High Tower are concluded, we must return to that flight. I do not know if the curse can be lifted, but I believe that upon seeing a certain person’s head, your ancestor will definitely be gratified."
Yan Zizai looked at Bai Wu in shock, and Bai Wu calmly met his gaze:
"After this journey through the prison, you must have learned a lot."
"Yes," Yan Zizai did not deny.
At that moment, Colt’s bullets destroyed half of the Warden’s head, Yuan Ye’s lion claws pierced the Warden’s heart.
Despite being fatally wounded, the Warden continued to fight desperately, showing an astonishing combat strength.
Bai Wu was unconcerned, for this massive prison break was bound to end with the Warden’s death.
"Do you plan to go back?" Bai Wu asked.
Yan Zizai did not shake his head or nod, merely hung his head and said:
"I don’t know."
"If you go back just like that and continue to be the Yan Family’s Guardian, I will choose to kill you here and then tell Yan Jiu that her uncle has died."
Yan Zizai understood Bai Wu’s meaning.
If he was willing to go back and continue to be the Yan Family’s Guardian, it would mean choosing to aid tyranny and not being able to distinguish loyalty from righteousness.
It would be better to die here and at least retain a reputation of integrity.
He looked lost:
"It seems there is no place for me in the High Tower anymore. Did you mention a refuge?"
Bai Wu was not at all confused; he had already thought about how to arrange Yan Zizai’s fate:
"The refuge is reserved for the Evil Fallen, our final destination as humans. Indeed, I mentioned the refuge, but Yan Zizai, don’t you think that the person you are now is unsuitable for that place?"
Yan Zizai looked perplexed at Bai Wu.
As Bai Wu watched the Warden being gradually forced into a desperate situation, he smiled and patted Yan Zizai on the shoulder:
"Let me tell you, it’s not yet time for you to head to the refuge. There will come a day when the existence of the refuge will alarm several powerful forces outside the tower, including those who cooperate with your rulers. When that time comes, the refuge will need your help."
He shifted the topic and continued:
"But now is not the time, troubles will always keep coming, and it’s not that if you avoid it today, it will never find you.
If you choose to flee, does that mean Destiny’s persecution of us will stop? As proud a person as you are, I would look down on you if you chose to escape from High Tower."
Yan Zizai faintly understood some of Bai Wu’s thoughts, and he looked at Bai Wu in surprise.
At this moment, Yan Zizai felt that Bai Wu was somewhat mysterious.
The judge’s breath vanished completely, and the dark blue world began to slowly fade, the daylight glimmering on Bai Wu’s face.
The things Bai Wu had done kept surfacing in Yan Zizai’s mind.
At first, he was surprised that this man’s strength was mediocre, thinking that if Liu Hu got tough during their initial meeting, Bai Wu would surely leave in an embarrassing state.
But it was after going to Zao Lake District and collaborating with Bai Wu for the first time that he discovered what was special about Bai Wu.
The lady in the black dress who could confront the Lake God directly had an unusually good attitude towards Bai Wu.
In Mechanical City, Yan Zizai only knew that he had come across a creature of unprecedented strength, which even Bipolar Transposition couldn’t stop.
But in the end... Bai Wu and Zero repelled the mighty foe, and Bai Wu’s status in Mechanical City became one below ten thousand above.
When he was trapped in prison without hope or help, the one who came to the prison was also Bai Wu.
Not long ago, he also learned of the existence of a refuge. That rousing speech made Yan Zizai curious—what exactly was this place called the refuge?
While people in High Tower were still leaving the tower to survive, someone had done something that no one had done in seven hundred years—establishing a stronghold outside the tower.
Proud as Yan Zizai was, he now couldn’t help but respect Bai Wu. He just wasn’t willing to admit it out loud.
The Warden finally fell.
In this prison where good and evil were inverted and right and wrong confused, the most evil presence died. Yuan Ye wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, Colt was gasping for air, Lu Yan found his mouth and throat dry, yet he felt an indescribable relief.
Qian Yixin didn’t really lift a finger, even though he said he would take jobs without payment, but he had realized early on there was no need for him to act.
The few people in the prison were genuine hard cases. Each had the strength to stand alone, so he was happy to say cool lines and then slack off.
After the Warden’s death, Bai Wu was the first to search the body. He quickly found what he had been looking for.
"[It’s somewhat similar to the scientific achievements of Denglin City, it can forcefully create a weakness on the opponent. Take good care of it, it’s a treasure, and since it’s also a fragment, it may attract the attention of a certain unscrupulous merchant.]"
The unscrupulous merchant, of course, referred to "Sacrifice."
"Manjushage" did not manifest a human figure in Bai Wu’s consciousness like "Sacrifice" did.
This was a purely beneficial fragment, the ability to forcibly create a weakness was also very important in Bai Wu’s eyes.
"What is this?"
Yuan Ye noticed that Bai Wu took away a fragment:
"A little something for helping everyone escape from here, not excessive, and besides, if you took this thing, you’d have to become the guardian of this place."
Yuan Ye lost interest.
Under the leadership of several prisoner leaders, a group of prisoners began to ransack the material wealth of the prison, according to what Bai Wu had said before—they had to wait here for someone to come, and then they could gradually move to the refuge.
This was undoubtedly a major undertaking. The number of Evil Fallen that a Traveler could carry was limited, so after defeating the guardian of the prison, there was still a lot to arrange.
But these matters, Bai Wu planned to leave to Lin Rui to handle.
He now needed to return to High Tower with Yan Zizai.
When opening the Return Roulette, Yan Zizai said:
"What did you mean by that earlier?"
Bai Wu looked at the bustling Evil Fallen in the prison and said:
"These Evil Fallen can’t enter High Tower, but they also have desires that must be fulfilled. Perhaps they don’t wish to become human again, as their transient lives won’t allow them to complete their obsessions. Therefore, the refuge, is most suitable for them."
Bai Wu’s smile contained a hint of beguilement, but in fact, he was very sincere this time. However, Yan Zizai still had the feeling as if a demon were tempting him:
"So everyone has their place, the ruler of the Zhong Family is dead, there will be a new one, many years ago, among the seventy-two rulers, nobody knew who would survive. Is aristocratic birth more important than capability?"
Originally, Yan Zizai had only vaguely considered this possibility, but now Bai Wu’s words could be seen as confirming his thoughts. He looked at Bai Wu, shocked.
Bai Wu, however, was very calm, as if he were simply speaking out a common thought he had when he arrived at the prison. Yet it struck Yan Zizai’s heart like a thunderbolt:
"Yan Zizai, since there always has to be a ruler, why can’t that person be you?"
