Chapter 99: Defying Heaven, Altering Fate (IV)

The blood corpse was wreathed in a thin veil of crimson mist; through the haze, its human silhouette was barely discernible—its face extensively decayed, eyes collapsed, nose vanished, nails sharp and elongated, leg bones twisted and crooked.

Sensing the opponent’s power, You Anjian kept his hand on his sword, face solemn, standing sideways in the center of the corridor, his right hand lightly swirling the blade to angle the heavy, dignified ridge sword diagonally toward the ground.

His left hand lifted slightly, donning a pair of gloves retrieved from his backpack slot—crafted from interlocked metal rings.

Ready, You Anjian’s cold eyes beneath his round black glasses locked onto the front, his hand gave a slight wave to his companion, voice grave but composed: “Take Xiao Feng’s family out of the villa.”

Given the blood corpse’s condition, whether it retained any conscious awareness was highly doubtful, let alone recognizing its former “relatives” with its shriveled eyeballs.

Even if it could recognize them, You Anjian wouldn’t gamble—no one knew what abilities the “Supreme Grotto Altering Destiny Scripture” might grant a revenant corpse; it might even be “gains strength with each blood relative consumed.”

“What a pair of invisible hands.”

Wudang Sword Thirteen Postures, preparatory stance.

Earlier, Bai Zhi had already moved Xiao Feng’s family to the lawn outside the first floor; now seeing Li Cheng and You Anjian escape, she unhesitatingly pulled out her grenade launcher and fired grenades into the villa’s second-floor windows.

Sensing the target’s escape, the blood corpse dropped the nanny’s head, leaned forward, and surged toward them in a whirlwind of speed—so fast it blurred into a fleeting afterimage.

The metal gloves first released repulsion, propelling the sword through the blood corpse’s body, then switched to attraction, causing the blade to drift with the hand’s motion, slicing open the corpse’s chest in a near-decapitating wound.

The blood corpse’s nails were harder than steel; the violent shock from the impact traveled up the sword’s length to You Anjian’s palm, stinging his tiger’s mouth.

As the dust settled slightly, the blood corpse flashed past the broken window—it seemed scarcely wounded, its cloudy gaze fixed on the three players, brimming with bestial malice.

Worse still, the blood corpse’s right arm had merged into the wall, crossed a distance, and suddenly emerged behind You Anjian, reaching for his spine just as it had killed Wang Beipo.

He sheathed his straight blade, grabbed You Anjian’s nape with his left hand, flipped out his bat hook gun, aimed at the windowsill at the corridor’s end, and pulled the trigger, firing the hook.

Li Cheng casually pulled out wound-sealing gel and sprayed it on You Anjian’s shoulder. Then, faintly realizing something, he glanced around and spotted the villa’s nanny—long dead, her entire body dissolved—in the courtyard’s corner.

The sharp blade, infused with sword qi, pierced the tendons exposed in the air, half the tip vanishing into the blood corpse. You Anjian twisted his wrist, shredding the corpse’s internal organs—but the corpse showed no reaction, swiping its claw at the glasses-wearing youth.

【Defense: Weak】

TING—

This strike was sudden and swift; You Anjian barely leaned back, parried with his sword, avoiding having his skull split open. The cost: the blade was shoved forward by the blood corpse’s left arm, slicing backward into You Anjian’s own shoulder.

PUFF!

Standing sideways, You Anjian’s heart lurched; he tapped his right toe against the ground, stepped back to create distance, buying reaction time, while gripping the hilt and upward-sweeping the blade—its edge gleaming with frost—as he slashed at the blood corpse’s outstretched claw.

The mission objective was to 【find Feng Youyun and uncover the truth of the residence】. After obtaining the yellow paper fragment, the players had already uncovered the truth; now they only needed to find Old Feng.

The only problem: the villa wasn’t large nor small—where could Old Feng be hiding?

【Name: Lai Ju Qu Liu Gloves】

“Can’t this thing be killed?!”

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM—

With life and death hanging in the balance, no hesitation was allowed. He remained calm, stepped half a pace left-forward, lowered his center of gravity, used the rebound to pull back his sword, braced the blood corpse’s right arm to block its claws, then angled the blade downward into its ribs.

In the critical moment, You Anjian decisively released his grip on the sword, dodging the sweeping claw, and activated the metal gloves’ special effect.

“Aaaah—”

SHHH!

The blood corpse’s left arm merged directly into the wall, crossed several meters, and erupted from the ceiling above You Anjian’s head, slamming down toward his crown.

Bai Zhi also realized this, pulling the dazed Xiao Feng and his wife and child toward the back of the corridor.

【Quality: Rare】

CHING!

The heavy halberd, heavier than a man, descended like a guillotine along the wall. Li Cheng struck suddenly, first wielding the 170 Straight Blade dropped by the Triangular Head, severing the blood corpse’s right arm as it emerged from the wall.

The victim’s pre-death image was also in the backyard—he had been diligently hanging laundry, when suddenly an invisible hand tore off his head.

You Anjian, gripping his shoulder wound, gritted his teeth: “Do you have any gasoline bottles? If all else fails, burn down this villa—then, while the smoke lingers, find Old Feng and rescue him before he suffocates or burns to death. We’re running out of time.”

【Cooldown: 2 seconds】

In fiction, hook guns could pull tanks and armored vehicles—how much more so two living humans whose weights weren’t excessive? Under the electric winch’s drive, the bat gun’s steel cable whipped taut, yanking Li Cheng and You Anjian through the window and landing them outside the villa’s main structure.

The grenades exploded in a chain, roaring with fire and light, echoing the distant thunder over Wudun Town and the nearby infant Xiao Feng’s cries.

Severely wounded, the revenant staggered against the left wall, as if losing forward momentum. But You Anjian’s mind screamed a warning—his neck hairs stood on end with dread; he did not press forward, instead using the gloves’ effect to retract the sword.

【Effect: Attraction/Repulsion. After binding a personal equipment item, the gloves can release repulsion/attraction to push/pull that item. Strength and range depend on Qi consumption. Currently bound: Jin Lin Sword】

【Equipment Requirement: Wearer must possess a biological hand structure】

【Note: “Magnets repel when near, attract when away. Life is like this, you and I are like this—why care so much?” “Is this why you put magnets under the market scale? Die, you bastard!”】

【Cost: At least 20 Qi points】

【Type: Armor】

Li Cheng took a deep breath; his Mind Palace assembled all clues into a coherent chain of events. He stepped forward, walking toward the villa’s front door, past the stunned, bewildered gazes of everyone, to the pile of corpses where Zhao Xinglang had first fallen.

“Should anyone suffer unjust harm and calamity strike, seek a relative or friend with profound fortune and an exceedingly rare destiny, and alter their fate to extend life.”

Li Cheng stared at the lifeless bones on the ground, squinting: “A perfect plan—except for one flaw, correct?”

Mr. Feng Youyun.

(End of Chapter)