Chapter 93: Feng Yan's Countermeasure

"As expected, does the appearance of the World Tree make you think you can win?" A voice echoed from the sky, and as the dwarves rushed out to the palace gates, there was a loud thud and the gates slammed shut.

The dwarves realized they had fallen into a trick by the king of Li State; they grabbed their weapons and went on alert, while their leader looked for an opportunity.

"Still trying to break through? How naïve. From the moment you entered this palace, you've become prey!" The king appeared on the palace walls; beside him, soldiers had their bows drawn tight, the metal arrowheads glinting in the sunlight.

The arrowheads were aimed at the dwarves; the metal tips emitted a cold gleam. The dwarves knew their regret was useless now—they should have listened to the adventurer's advice earlier. But it was too late; the enemy's bows were fully drawn, just a release away.

"Fire!"

At the command, a volley of arrows rained down like rain. The dwarves stared at the scene, eyes shut in despair. The leader who advocated attack closed his eyes, hearing his companions' screams, collapsed on the ground, writhing in pain, yet forced himself to stand tall, preparing to face death.

Watching his fallen comrades, his heart pounded; he felt the mental and physical pressure weighing on his mind, yet he stepped forward one foot at a time, gripping his great sword, eyes fixed ahead. The soldiers were intimidated by his presence and halted their attack.

Although the dwarf leader hadn't suffered multiple wounds, it was far from painless—an arrow had struck his left arm, his thigh bore various injuries, blood still flowing, yet he kept moving step by step toward the palace gates.

"Sorry, adventurer sir, I shouldn't have acted on my own; I should have listened to you. But what would you do in this situation?" The dwarf commander walked on, feeling the arrow shaft in his left arm with his right hand, he snapped it off, then bent down and yanked the arrow from his thigh.

The dwarf commander glanced back; his companions' bodies lay scattered outside the palace hall—some bristling with arrows, others half‑dead and screaming, while those with lighter wounds knelt, begging for survival, even offering to become slaves in Li State.

The dwarf commander scoffed at him, then looked at the gate ahead—just one step away.

Before him lay hope of life, a perfect chance to apologize to them, and his sole opportunity to escape.

Suddenly the door opened, brightening his eyes with the promise of life—but the next second, it was as silent as death.

"Isn't that surprising?" the red‑clad devil laughed, then stepped toward the dwarf commander.

"You are—" Before the dwarf commander could finish, the red‑clad devil plunged a dagger into his chest. Blood poured out as he stared in disbelief at the devil and asked, "Why? You would—"

"Nothing much—I just need some of your bodies. Coincidentally, I hold the seed of the World Tree. When insects were devouring the World Tree, I secretly picked up a seed from the soil beneath it. But this tree isn't yours, is it? You must have noticed that the golden phoenix trees have all withered, their branches dry, the lakes instantly evaporated. So let me tell you the answer: this World Tree is mine!" The devil interrupted the dwarf commander, then drove his knife deeper into him, his hand slick with blood.

Blood spattered his face, but the devil didn't care. He rose, walked to where the dwarves had fallen, dipped his right index finger in a dwarf's blood, and traced a hexagram across the exterior of the hall. After completing the sigil, he slowly approached the dwarf commander, who still had a breath left, knowing he was about to die, yet the devil etched a strange symbol onto his body.

"A magical rune—you should be familiar with it. Don't worry, you'll die filled with pain." The devil gazed at the half‑dead dwarf commander, smirked, and silently watched his body change.

The dwarf commander's body began to emit white smoke, which grew thicker and slowly caught fire.

The dwarf commander could no longer feel the pain in his body; his vision blurred, but just as he was about to close his eyes, his wounds miraculously healed.

"I thought, if I just let you die like this, it would be boring—why not let you taste the flame?" The devil laughed.

"You gave them hope of life, only to realize that living is hell." The devil stared at the dwarf commander, his face twisting into a grimace, and whispered.

"Ah!" the dwarf commander screamed in agony, rolling on the ground trying to smother the flames, but the fire kept burning slowly across his body until he could no longer resist, lying helplessly, wishing the pain would end soon.

Smiling, the devil watched the dwarf's torment until he could no longer fight back, then, seeing his despair, said: "Is this what you've become? Bereft of divine protection, you're nothing but useless wretches who only survive because the gods shield you."

The dwarf commander's consciousness faded, and he reluctantly closed his eyes. The devil seized his corpse and flung it onto the pile of dwarves' bodies.

The devil surveyed the dwarves' corpses; after confirming the commander's death, the soldiers gathered all the bodies and placed them within the hexagram, awaiting the devil's order.

Seeing the dwarves' bodies stacked like a small hill, the devil ordered soldiers to bring torches and others to fetch petrol, which they poured over the corpses.

Flames engulfed the dwarves' bodies, releasing a foul stench; black smoke rose high as soldiers swept away the bloodstains on the ground.

"Cleaning the floor?" Yang Xin watched the soldiers scrubbing the hall's exterior with buckets of water, reminding him of a line from a movie.

"Police, come mop the floor!"

Although it was just a game, Yang Xin couldn't bear to look directly at the horror; he turned his head away, trying not to see the scene.

The devil observed Yang Xin's reaction, approached him, and asked: "As an adventurer, are you also afraid of just this scene? This was your suggestion, your plan—indeed, all of this is your masterpiece!"

Yang Xin said nothing, lowered his head, and walked away slowly.

Yang Xin didn't realize that his single plan had caused such carnage; he couldn't believe that merely offering a suggestion had led to this horror.

Yang Xin went to Wang Tingwan, looked at her, and said nothing.

Wang Tingwan nodded, then turned and went back inside.

She had learned from the guards that Yang Xin's plan had been a great success—just as when she first became his girlfriend, the last time he hurt a friend's heart, this time victory came only at the cost of blood.

Wang Tingwan looked at Feng Yan's black coat lying on the bed, a pure‑black garment he had bought at Li State's clothing store.

"Feng Yan, do I now understand the pain in your heart?" Wang Tingwan gazed at his black attire and asked the clothing itself.

However, clothes cannot speak; perhaps a wounded heart might heal.

The golden phoenix forest had turned into a desert; after a day, the land was nothing but sand, no longer fit for anyone to live.

Feng Yan cupped a handful of sand, tossed it into the air; the wind blew the yellow sand, creating a yellow haze that gradually faded and settled back to the ground.

"This place has completely become a desert; if this continues, we will fail," Chen Hao said anxiously.

"There's nothing we can do; those guys thought they could manage, so let them go—look, they're dead inside the palace, the black smoke from burning corpses visible even here." Feng Yan replied, then grabbed a handful of yellow sand.

Wang You remained silent, just listening to their conversation, then followed them to the dwarves; the remaining dwarves had lost all fighting spirit, their morale utterly low.

The dwarves could no longer mount an effective battle; the chieftain stood before Feng Yan and his companion, head bowed, silent.

"Do you think the appearance of the World Tree means your gods have returned? I tell you now: your gods have taken the lives of your companions!" Feng Yan shouted at the despondent crowd, but met only silence; after his voice faded, only deathly quiet remained.

"Come on, Chen Hao—we can't lead the dwarves in rebellion; we can't command them. Let them fend for themselves; it's over, everything's ruined." Feng Yan lowered his voice as much as possible and led Chen Hao and Wang You away.

Lin Xiyan watched Feng Yan's dejected back, wishing she could do something, but she knew she had no weapon to oppose Yang Xin; she stepped outside and approached the dwarves, saying, "You'd better think about what you're capable of."

Having spoken, she also went after Feng Yan's retreating figure.

Feng Yan and Chen Hao walked on, talking as they went.

Chen Hao asked Feng Yan, "Are we just going to leave them like this?"

"They have no fighting capability at all, unless…" Feng Yan trailed off deliberately, waiting for Chen Hao to fill in the blank.

"Bounty hunters!"