GAMMT - Chapter 65
Chapter 65: The Leap
His voice was so gentle.
Within its coolness was a hint of seductive charm.
If every sound is a divine proclamation, why not caress and kiss the neck.
It was a truly beautiful voice, one that seemed to possess a pair of hands, making you imagine someone drawing near your ear, stroking your neck, kissing your cheek…
His voice was the embodiment of your desires.
But Fu Chuan was not like other women; she held no natural fantasies about this person or his voice. She felt only one thing—cold.
A little cold.
Swish!
An afterimage scattered like snow. As she flipped and dodged into the air, a hand shot out from behind with pinpoint accuracy… and seized the back collar of her clothes.
Rip… The outer robe tore like silk, the sound crisp and clear. As the tattered garment fluttered away, Fu Chuan, suspended in mid-air, saw Xie Qingyan's body on the jutting rock below suddenly transform. His robes morphed, clinging to his form as a cold mist spread out. He had used Mimicry to become a frenzied ice python… exhaling frost.
Fu Chuan felt the surrounding air turn frigid in an instant. She was immediately afflicted with a frost status that slowed her down. The moment her body was ensnared, the python, its entire form as white as an ice sculpture, shot into the air and coiled around her, trapping her completely.
Bang!
After hitting the ground, Fu Chuan was bound by the ice python, coil after coil. The immense constricting force threatened to snap her bones. This seemingly intimate embrace was, in reality, incomparably cold—a prelude to death.
Xie Qingyan was far stronger than anyone had anticipated.
Lan Xuanyu? He might not even be a match for him.
How terrifying. Was this Mimicry or a gene talent?
At that moment.
The red-robed figures in the air and on the ground watched with cold eyes, making no move to intervene. The one in front simply raised a foot and stomped on Xie An's head.
Would they kill Xie An, or would Xie Qingyan kill her?
Perhaps in a single instant, two lives would meet their separate ends.
But even as she felt blood rising in her throat, Fu Chuan managed to speak.
"Before I came, I combined your gene report, Eldest Brother, with our father's into a new public announcement. I set it on a timer. If I don't enter the password within a certain period, it will automatically be sent to all media platforms, declaring to the world that the eldest son of the Xie Clan is not, in fact, of the Xie bloodline."
"Either the Xie Clan is wiped out entirely, or we leave a new clan head to serve a worthy master with dog-like devotion. After all, our Xie Clan's young leader election requires votes from the branch families and their heads. Even the weakest branch has the right to one vote, correct?"
"Father is about to die. One of us, you or I, will become the clan head. Aren't you happy, Eldest Brother?"
For a split second, the constricting force of the ice python faltered, but it immediately intensified, aiming to deliver a fatal blow.
If he killed her, even if the news got out, that person would protect him for the sake of that single vote.
If he didn't kill this Xie Keli, he would likely be abandoned.
Unfortunately for him, a golden light suddenly enveloped Fu Chuan's body, shielding her from the terrifying pressure.
It was the red-robed man who had acted. He raised his hand, a speck of golden light at his fingertip, and saved Fu Chuan's life.
"Stop. Wait."
He was a man of few words, and Xie Qingyan did not press the attack. Instead, his body transformed… back to his original form.
That man was indeed authoritative, and Xie Qingyan had always been restrained, never daring to overstep.
She had won her bet.
Lying on the ground, Fu Chuan tried to get up, but Xie Qingyan abruptly grabbed her wrist and pinned her back down.
She had never been controlled by a man like this in her life. Feeling extremely uncomfortable, she couldn't help but frown.
"Don't move, my dear Keli."
"Eldest Brother is not very happy right now."
Who would have thought that the cool, elegant, and gentlemanly Eldest Young Master Xie possessed the cold, wicked nature of a venomous snake? Even though his tone was as gentle and proper as ever, his killing intent was glacial.
Fu Chuan stared at Xie Qingyan, who was pressing down on her, and smiled. "Then take a look at our father over there. He's so moved he's crying now that he knows we're dear brothers from different parents. Looking at it that way, aren't you a little happier, Eldest Brother?"
Xie Qingyan turned his head. Xie An was not deaf. Though weakened, he was still clinging to life. Upon hearing the truth, his eyes seemed to bulge with blood, filled with disbelief and boundless fury. But because his injuries were so severe, blood trickled from his eyelids.
It really did look as if he were crying.
"Indeed… Father, don't just cry. Is there nothing you wish to say?"
Xie An's mouth wasn't gagged. At this moment, he was filled with resentment. "You little bastard! Your mother betrayed me! I never thought she would dare…"
Before he could curse any further, Xie Qingyan chuckled. "She did say that my biological father was just a lowly guard, but he was handsome, brave, and kind. She never compared him to you, because how could she bear to compare the man she loved to a dog?"
"You!" Xie An was so enraged he vomited blood.
Fu Chuan silently added, "No wonder I always thought Eldest Brother and I didn't look alike. I really got the short end of the stick."
Xie An coughed up more blood.
The perfect duet between these two "brothers" was enough to anger Xie An to death. But the man was deeply calculating and quickly composed himself. "Don't you two forget, there are people behind me. I was forced into it back then. Tell Siyi…"
He couldn't finish his sentence. The red-robed man who had gone to relay the message returned. He raised his hand, and a sharp fork instantly pierced Xie An's face, entering his left cheek and exiting his right, impaling his tongue.
It was a cruel and bloody sight.
Fu Chuan's heart trembled, and she averted her gaze. Xie Qingyan, however, watched impassively, his eyes fixed on the powerful red-robed figure.
The latter held a communicator, saying nothing, but his gaze fell upon them.
Yes, he was looking at both of them.
But his hand slowly began to rise.
In that instant, Fu Chuan's palms began to sweat, while Xie Qingyan narrowed his eyes… then suddenly smiled. He pinched Fu Chuan's cheek. "Good little brother. Eldest Brother will find you later to reminisce. I will be sure to repay today's kindness."
Then, he swiftly dodged and tunneled into the ground.
He had escaped.
The red-robed man said calmly, "Pursue."
Two red-robed figures transformed into streaks of red light and tunneled into the earth, giving chase.
Freed from restraint, Fu Chuan didn't get up immediately. She lay there, catching her breath, and saw the leader of the red-robed figures walk over.
He looked down at her.
"Still not leaving? Waiting to miss the exam?"
Fu Chuan immediately scrambled to her feet and ran without looking back.
As for Xie An, who was calling out to her from behind, she didn't spare him a single glance. Soon after, an airship took off from the forest, accelerating toward the city at maximum speed.
Xie An watched as his most useful son at the moment fled without a second thought… For the first time, he felt pain.
Not the pain of his rift with his son, nor regret for having wronged him, but the agony of knowing that he should have tortured and killed that pair of wretched mothers and sons long ago, flaying them alive!
But there was no "should have," and there was no future.
The red-robed figures surrounded him. One spoke softly, "Master misses you very much, brother."
Xie An's body stiffened, terror reaching the depths of his soul. Steeling himself, he tried to self-destruct, but… a light descended, and he was completely immobilized.
The gates of purgatory were opening for him.
On the airship, Fu Chuan's hands were still trembling, and cold sweat beaded on her forehead, not yet dry.
She had gambled correctly.
Since Xie Siyi, after learning the truth, had the power to take revenge but chose not to act openly, instead luring Xie An and the others into a dungeon trap, it meant she never intended to publicize the Xie Clan's internal conspiracy.
But why?
The life of her own brother, the lives of her entire lineage, leaving her as the sole survivor—such a blood feud could only be avenged by making the conspirator's reputation infamous, by letting the entire world see his ugly face. That was the only way to heal the wounds in her heart.
But Xie Siyi didn't do that.
Eighteen years. A genius who could endure for eighteen years as an ordinary person must have an extraordinary disposition. People like that are either fiercely resolute, seeking to clear their name in a single, world-shaking event, or they plan meticulously, aiming for a much larger goal.
The position of Young Clan Head?
It was more than that.
From the beginning, Fu Chuan felt that Xie An couldn't have pulled off such a major event on his own. Furthermore, as a minor figure from a branch family who entered the dungeon with Xie Yao, he must have received significant resources and important tasks due to Xie Yao's protection and favor. Yet, in the end, Xie Yao died, and he came out alive.
Normally, after such a severe loss, the Xie Clan would have launched a thorough investigation. Even if Xie An had hidden his tracks and destroyed the evidence, a mere disciple from an eighteenth-rate branch family would have been scapegoated, even if not found guilty. Forget being assigned to a city as a branch leader and living a comfortable life; he would have been lucky to survive at all.
After all, with Xie Yao dead, there was no one left to protect him back then.
The one who protected him must have been a beneficiary of the conspiracy, a partner in crime.
Therefore, Fu Chuan speculated that the plot that led to Xie Yao's death must have involved others from the Beluke Xie Clan. He had threatened someone's bid for Young Clan Head, so he had to die.
In that case, killing Xie An and wiping out the Jingyang Xie Clan was not true revenge, but merely the first stage of her plan. To deal with the real mastermind, she needed a higher status.
To usurp from below was an unconventional strategy. The normal method was to use a higher position to crush one's opponent.
Once she became the Young Clan Head, no one in the entire Xie Clan could stand in her way.
Conversely, why would the high-and-mighty mastermind spare Xie An's life instead of killing him? Silencing witnesses was the most common tactic of those in power. Was he worthy of being kept around as a potential liability?
Of course he was, because his lineage could be kept for their vote.
Thinking of this, Fu Chuan had looked up the information and discovered that the Xie Clan indeed had a rule for voting in the Young Clan Head election, passed down through generations. In fact, it wasn't just the Xie Clan; many ancient and noble families had similar rules.
One main lineage, a hundred connected branches. Through these voting rights, they powerfully intertwined the interests of the main and branch families, forming a massive power structure.
Since Xie An had value, his position couldn't be left vacant after his death. Someone had to be pushed up to control it.
Xie Qingyan was Xie Siyi's previous choice.
If Fu Chuan wanted to live, she had to intercept that choice and take his place. It was perfect; she now held leverage over Xie Qingyan.
She had to take the risk.
Otherwise, even if she abandoned everything and fled now, it probably wouldn't work. Wasn't Xie An afraid? Even he couldn't bring himself to make a desperate escape, which meant he had assessed the survival rate of fleeing and concluded it was almost certainly fatal.
If he was doomed, she would be too.
In the end, Fu Chuan made this life-or-death gamble…
The little locust suddenly crawled out of her body and said, "So, sister, you didn't have me merge with you to hide. Instead, you disguised yourself alone to let that handsome snake-man see through you and track you… you were actually luring him out?"
Fu Chuan sighed. "It's a pity. I thought they would kill him quickly, but he escaped."
She didn't think Xie Siyi would spare Xie Qingyan's life now that he was a liability who could lose her the vote.
A powerful figure who had lost her entire family and grew up alone wouldn't care about the life of a pawn.
She even felt that person probably harbored extreme disgust for Xie An and anyone associated with him. It was only because she was calm and wise enough to prioritize her interests that she suppressed that disgust for now.
Once they were no longer useful…
Whether it was her or Xie Qingyan, they were practically dead men walking.
In any case, Xie Qingyan was definitely a major threat. Hopefully, the red-robed figures would catch and kill him.
Fu Chuan frowned in thought.
Three hours later, Fu Chuan returned to the vicinity of the city's education center. After entering invisibly, she made a point to observe the viewing stands outside.
Qin Yu was gone.
She had probably gone to deal with Xie An.
Don't pay too much attention to a small pawn like me. I'm not worthy, Great Lord Xie.
This was good. Fu Chuan breathed a sigh of relief and chose to re-enter the dungeon.
After entering, Fu Chuan glanced at the rankings and found that she had been pushed down past thirtieth place.
Twelve hours was enough for these candidates, who were growing more accustomed to the dungeon, to hit their stride and rack up a lot of points.
However, Xu Yi and the Lin siblings were not at the top; they had been pushed back to the forties and fifties.
Huh? Were they still unconscious?
The top spots were now occupied by some who were previously in the middle ranks, like Zhang Fulan.
It was quite possible that this group had benefited the most from the third stage, suppressing the previously top-performing candidates and coming from behind.
No wonder when she had just returned, many people were still cursing her for luring the big goose, which had then swept through Jian Feilan's group. Otherwise, how could they have been trapped until now, unable to earn a single point?
Fu Chuan had a vague feeling that something was wrong, but she couldn't put her finger on it.
She got up from the bed, pulled back the curtain, and looked outside. It was still raining, a steady drizzle.
There were nine hours left until the end of the exam.
Fu Chuan sent the little locust out, intending for it to continue gathering Vitality Element Essence Beads.
"If you encounter scattered individuals gathering beads like you, ignore the ones you can't beat and just give me their coordinates. The ones you can beat, knock them out and hide them."
After giving her instructions to the little locust, Fu Chuan gathered some things and prepared to leave.
The little locust asked, "Sister, are you going to deal with those monsters?"
Fu Chuan replied, "No, I'm going to find a big goose."
She just feared that there were quite a few others looking for the same goose.
The morgue looked particularly terrifying in the rain, and the area between it and the mass grave was exceptionally gloomy and desolate. There were no graves here, no scarecrows, and seemingly no dangerous mobs of any kind. There was nothing but overgrown weeds taller than a person, but this emptiness made it even more frightening.
It was as if anyone who entered this area would be swallowed whole.
"Be careful. Our points are basically the highest right now, so that big goose will definitely target us. Once it pecks us, not only will we lose our armor, but our points will drop too."
"The worst part would be getting entangled by the gnomes here while we're injured…"
"I remember that among the gnome types, the ones that disguise themselves as Coffin Carriers should be High Wood Gnomes. The ones we just encountered bursting from the ground were Cave Gnomes. Both are Dark Gnomes—ferocious, bloodthirsty, and cunning. They love to eat the flesh of living creatures, but they'll eat carrion too. Their sense of smell is excellent; they can pinpoint scents from a kilometer away."
"We must maintain the scent-blocking Arcane without interruption. Don't forget."
Zhang Fulan, Chen He, and Yun Cangcang were a team of four. They cooperated well, and although their rise to the top was partly due to luck (thanks to a certain someone), they wouldn't have gotten this far without skill.
They moved cautiously, stealthily approaching the morgue through the overgrown field.
But… suddenly, the weeds ahead rustled, followed by a flash of white…
Not good!
The four acted decisively, turning to flee, but the big goose had already burst out. Its four clones flickered, pecking viciously at them.
Blood splattered.
The four rolled on the ground, intending to continue their escape despite their injuries. They didn't dare to fight the overwhelmingly powerful goose head-on.
Honk, honk, honk! The goose flapped its wings, about to give chase.
At that moment, the fleeing four had yet to realize that the scent-blocking Arcane on them had been broken. The ground beneath their feet stirred, and several incredibly ugly gnomes burst out, grabbing their ankles and trying to drag them underground.
"Fuck!"
"Quick, attack…"
The four hurriedly attacked the gnomes, only to see the goose closing in.
Heavens, it's over!
Just then, five figures flashed out. It was Jian Feilan and his group. They were among the top performers, and with the exception of Xu Yi, everyone was present. They unleashed a large, combined Arcane net, directly ensnaring the big goose.
The net was of the lightning element. The moment it trapped the goose, it crackled with electricity, paralyzing the bird on the spot.
"There's no such thing as an absolutely powerful BOSS. It must have a weakness."
What was the goose's weakness?
"Dragon Armor Stripping is a pet gene talent skill. The books say it's a vitality attribute, which means it's either weak to fire or countered by lightning. We've seen that it's not afraid of fire, so it must be weak to lightning."
And they were right. The electric net had it pinned.
So, studying does pay off.
At least many of the parents in the audience were in an uproar, surprised that any candidate would be cunning enough to take on the big goose.
"Impressive."
"With the goose on their side, who can stand against them?"
"As expected of the top ranker in our Jingyang joint exam. Truly amazing."
A crowd of parents sang their praises, but Zhang Ruo simply raised an eyebrow and smiled, counting silently in her head… 1, 2, 3…
Zhang Fulan and her group were stunned but remained wary. While thanking Jian Feilan's team, they prepared to escape. However, with a single look from Jian Feilan, swish!
Several lightning-based Arcane spells rained down, knocking Zhang Fulan's group unconscious in moments.
"Honestly, what first or second place? If it weren't for that damned Xie Keli, would they even be in the running for those ranks?"
Jian Feilan and his group were arrogant. They believed that strength was strength. If someone got ahead by luck, they would eventually be pulled back down.
They could accept people like the Lin siblings or Lan Chenshuang, or even someone like Xie Keli, reaching the top. It was better than letting Zhang Fulan and her ilk repeatedly get lucky and climb the ranks.
Being surpassed by people far weaker than themselves was a great humiliation!
"Leave them as bait for the scarecrows. The morgue is too dangerous right now. Let's not go over there yet. We'll go in the last three hours. Once we've farmed enough points, even if we can't beat the powerhouses from the other two cities in the end, we won't lose too badly."
Jian Feilan shuddered at the memory of the slaughter he had witnessed at the morgue not long ago and urged the others to hurry up and secure the goose.
"In terms of raw power, we in Jingyang are no match for those ruthless groups from Dong Chen and Gao Yang. We can only rely on this goose."
"Good thing we found its weakness."
The five moved quickly, when suddenly!
A golden light erupted from the goose's body.
Startled, the five knew something had gone wrong and decisively tried to flee. But the goose tore through the electric net and charged straight at them!
Damn it! Was the electric net useless?
It was like thinking you had the right answer, only to find out you were only half right.
The five didn't even have time to escape before the clones pecked them all. They collapsed, clutching their wounds. The goose was furious and about to peck them a second time when suddenly… it felt something wrap around its ankle.
It tripped and fell face-first into the dirt. Before it could react, a dark figure flashed out, clamped its beak shut, and poured something down its throat.
Honk, honk, honk, mmmph, mmmph!!
The goose struggled with all its might. Boom!
The immense force sent the dark figure flying. They did a backflip and landed smoothly. Jian Feilan looked and cursed.
"Lin Chengxiu, it's you!"
"Goose, quick, peck him, peck him, peck him!" Jian Feilan shouted frantically, clutching his wound.
Lin Chengxiu said nothing, but the goose gagged twice. It couldn't vomit up the liquid it had swallowed. Instead, it staggered, its honks becoming garbled… then, with a thud, it collapsed, foaming at the beak.
Jian Feilan and the others were stunned. They looked at the black gas emanating from the goose's body.
Wasn't this…
"It's the poison mist! The poison mist from those scarecrows! You actually collected their poison mist and turned it into a liquid?!!"
Fu Chuan had been doing just that on her way from the mass grave to the village. The reason she had to enter the village was to use some of the villagers' tools to boil and liquefy the collected poison gas, making it easier to compress and force-feed to the goose.
She knew it was weak to lightning, but she wasn't proficient in that Arcane, so she hadn't considered it. However, her earlier analysis had revealed that the goose was also afraid of poison, which gave her an opening.
She had been gone for twelve hours, and the poison gas she had left to liquefy in the old couple's home was long since ready. Naturally, it was time to catch the goose.
The goose couldn't handle such a highly concentrated vial of poison. It foamed at the beak and passed out. Fu Chuan activated her pupils to assess its internal condition and estimate how long it would be unconscious. Just as she was about to grab it and toss it into her coffin, her pupil technique happened to spot a mark on Jian Feilan.
A spiral mark.
Was that… an Arcane Tracking Ghost Eye?
Not good. These country bumpkins were being tracked.
Startled, Fu Chuan reacted instantly… but a dark figure swiftly appeared in the air to her left.
Blue Tier Arcane: Heavy Metal Strike!
Clang!!
The violent shockwave from the metal impact, combined with a sonic attack, pulverized all the weeds within a five-meter radius. Jian Feilan and the others felt their heads buzzing as the shockwave sent them rolling several times, their eardrums throbbing as they coughed up blood.
Meanwhile, Fu Chuan's weakest area was defense, but she was fast. She leaped into the air to evade the shockwave below. But in the next second, the dark figure flicked his wrist, and a large, dark-gold scythe shot up from below, spinning like a crescent moon.
It was too fast.
Fu Chuan narrowed her eyes. The moment her spider silk shot out, she activated Steel Transformation + Light Stream.
A dozen light streams formed a crisscrossing defense… As she curled her fingers, she controlled the golden threads like a puppet master, entangling the weapon.
The scythe's handle was ensnared. Fu Chuan forcefully pulled on the golden threads.
Whoosh!
The scythe was thrown off its cutting trajectory, flying past her and into the sky.
As she landed, the dark figure was already charging, the impact ferocious. A shockwave in the shape of a red bull formed around his body…
Green Tier Advanced Speed + Power Amplification Composite Arcane: Barbaric Charge!
Anyone with less than fifty thousand defense points would be instantly killed by this.
Fu Chuan could almost see herself being one-shotted.
Bang!!
The shockwave reached the spot just in front of Fu Chuan.
The ground cracked.
But the black-clad figure, shrouded in the red bull shockwave, swiftly twisted his wrist. A scythe swung around, slashing with unparalleled sharpness toward Fu Chuan's throat as she moved with terrifying speed after landing.
At that moment.
A green light flashed within her pupils, enhancing her insight into Arcane Truths.
The high-speed scythe seemed to slow down for an instant.
She took a step back with her left leg, her body rotating slightly by thirty degrees. As she retreated, a series of afterimages flickered. A longbow appeared in her hands, the string drawn taut. Twang!!!
At the same time, a Primary Attack Arcane Truth erupted!
Jian Feilan and the others only saw a red light explode from Fu Chuan, just as it seemed her neck was about to be sliced by the scythe.
Violent and tyrannical.
Primary Attack Arcane Truth: Critical Hit!
The scythe was a melee critical hit; the longbow was a ranged precision strike.
One had already dodged, the other had not…
The dark figure crossed his arms, blocking with two scythes.
Blocking?
No, he threw both scythes at the same time.
Two crisscrossing projectiles… Clang!! They collided with the arrow.
The red-light arrow shattered, and the scythes were chipped, but because their attack power was greater, they continued flying toward Fu Chuan…
Unfortunately for him, Fu Chuan had already dodged, landing ten meters away.
He tilted his head slightly as the broken half of the arrowhead shot past him.
A draw?
No, she was at a slight disadvantage.
Her attack and defense were insufficient, but her agility and perception were far superior to his.
If they were to fight it out, it would be a battle of attrition, draining time and mental power.
He stared at her, trying to gauge the level of her mental power…
Fu Chuan remained silent, knowing that if he really wanted to continue, she would have to recall the little locust and merge with it. Otherwise, she couldn't win. Her mental power was too weak.
How strange. Who was this powerhouse?
Was it that guy from Dong Chen with the surname Liu?
Or another dark horse from Gao Yang?
He was so strong that she found him troublesome.
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