Volume 4: Hidden Battles – Chapter 273: Why Not Cause More Chaos?

Qin Nianran was still immersed in the joy of Chu Tianyu’s impending arrival when those three elders launched a fatal attack at this critical moment. In a hurry, she could only grit her teeth, muster all her energy, gather it in her dantian, and channel it into her palms to confront those blood-red qilins that hunted their targets.
With a loud “Boom!”, the forces of both sides collided, releasing waves of heat that turned everything in their path to ashes. The men in black and Wu Hen, who were at the forefront, were not only forced back by the immense force but also roasted by the scorching heat, their faces turning red, sweating profusely, and their skin seemingly on the verge of bursting.
At the center of the area surrounding Qin Nianran and the three elders, thick white smoke mixed with dust rose, obscuring what was happening inside and preventing those outside from seeing anything.
However, this posed no problem for the three figures approaching from afar. Ignoring the intense heat and smoke, they rushed in without hesitation. Before those outside could even identify who they were, they disappeared—leaving no clue whether they were allies or enemies.
Yet, seeing their strange way of moving and flying through the air, everyone, including Wu Hen and the men in black, silently prayed that they were on their side, as things looked very grim otherwise.
Just as everyone was filled with suspicion, four figures emitting yellow light suddenly emerged from the still-thick smoke without any sound. Vaguely, they could tell that one of these figures was Qin Nianran, the young lady who had just fought off three opponents alone…
As these four figures flew over everyone’s heads, they finally realized who their allies were. As they passed by, the sound of piercing force filled the air, and before anyone could understand what was happening, the ground erupted with sounds of flesh bursting. Along with these sounds, Wu Hen and the others were horrified to see that the men in black, who had been facing them moments earlier, now had blood holes in their chests—as if blown apart by some powerful weapon, with their hearts reduced to bloody messes…

Watching them collapse one after another, Wuhen couldn’t help but shudder. A thought arose in his mind: “Is this still the power of humans? It was really, really close. Luckily, they were friends, not enemies; otherwise…”
“Team leader, hurry! Look, over there…” As Wuhen was filled with shock and fear, the trembling voice of Xue Dao came from beside him. Only then did Wuhen snap out of his daze and follow Xue Dao’s finger. His already shocked mind was stunned once again, his expression turning pale with horror.
As the thick mist gradually dissipated, the scene where the three elders had been fighting against Qin Nianran finally became visible.
It was a wasteland, with wisps of white smoke rising and faint sparks still glowing, as if the fierce clash of heat from the two sides had ignited the very ground. It was easy to imagine the intensity and power of their final blows.
However, what caught everyone’s attention wasn’t the tragic scene on the ground, but the three charred-looking “charcoals” standing there. Those unaware of the truth might not find it strange, but for Wuhen and the others, it caused deep turmoil in their hearts.
At that moment, everyone remembered Qin Nianran’s words earlier: “As for the blood debt owed to those two brothers, I will give you a satisfactory explanation…”
Not far away, Chu Tianyu was anxiously guiding Qin Nianran’s vital energy through a full cycle before finally relaxing. Seeing Qin Nianran’s pale face, he felt heartache once again. This was already the second time he had put Qin Nianran in danger for his plan. Although there were no serious consequences now—just temporary exhaustion—Chu Tianyu still felt immense guilt.
“Hehe, I took on those three old guys all by myself. I didn’t expect the Power of Illusory Flame to be so strong. I was stunned when I saw them! To be honest, this is also my first time… so I was a bit scared, my face turned white from fear!” Qin Nianran opened his eyes and, seeing Chu Tianyu’s guilty expression and Zi Yi and Fei Fei’s worried faces, pretended to speak casually.

Obviously, what Qin Nianran didn’t say was the word “kill.” Faced with Qin Nianran’s consideration, what else could Chu Tianyu do but nod silently? Others might think Nianran had turned pale from fear, but he knew clearly that it was a sign of complete exhaustion. By the time they arrived, those three elders had already turned into piles of charcoal, and Nianran’s condition was also dire—she was in a state of complete weakness, having temporarily lost all her powers, with no ability to resist even the strength of an ordinary person.

The Qilin bloodlines conjured by those three elders were far more powerful than Zhan Zifeng’s at that time. Moreover, they had mastered a coordinated combat technique, allowing their blood-colored Qilins to merge into one at the moment of release—a force that even those with higher skills could not withstand.

However, this tactic was only used as a last resort, as controlling the blood-colored Qilins outside their bodies required them to burn more of their own life essence. The aftermath of such use, which left their skills weakened by ten years, made them reluctant to resort to such extreme measures.

But Qin Nianran’s skills far exceeded their expectations. Her vital energy seemed to inherently possess the power to suppress their blood-colored Qilins, forcing them to struggle constantly. Despite having an advantage in techniques, they couldn’t turn it into a victory. In the midst of the fight, they had no better alternatives.

What ultimately led them to take this risky decision was the howling wind caused by Chu Tianyu and his group’s rapid arrival, which alerted the elders that reinforcements had arrived. If not now, then when?

Yet, to their surprise, even with all three of them combined, they still suffered a crushing defeat and death. Probably even in their final moments, they couldn’t understand how such an outcome could happen.

It wasn’t surprising they couldn’t figure it out—after all, their blood-colored Qilins were up against the legendary Flame True Vein, a celestial wonder of blazing energy. When equals clashed, of course, the stronger one won. If not for Qin Nianran’s relatively short time of absorbing the energy, her skills, compared to the pure Flame True Vein, were nothing but trash—insignificant even when compared to the Qilin bloodlines sustained by blood in those elders’ bodies. Comparing them was an insult to the Flame True Vein itself…

So against these three overconfident fools, the Illusory Flame True Pulse within Qin Nianran, faced with the challenge and as she tried her best to defend herself, acted on its own, completely exceeding her tolerance limits and delivering a devastating strike that reduced those three illusory beasts to ashes on the spot. Their hosts too had all their blood and moisture burned away in an instant, turning into piles of charred remains. Qin Nianran herself was also injured by the outbreak of the Illusory Flame True Pulse; her meridians were disrupted, her vital energy became chaotic, and she temporarily lost all her strength. She could only barely hold on with a faint remaining force. If not for the smoke and dust surrounding her, blocking the sight of those outside, the consequences if those elders’ subordinates had seen what was happening would have been unimaginable. However, this situation for Qin Nianran was only temporary. Although the energy of the Illusory Flame True Pulse was out of control and had overreacted for now, Qin Nianran was its true core—how could it allow its core to be damaged even slightly? Thus, without Qin Nianran’s control, it operated on its own, repairing her damaged meridians. This injury wasn’t a serious issue; it just took some time to recover. So when Chu Tianyu arrived, took Nianran away, and found a secluded place to treat her, he found that she was merely exhausted, with no serious harm or abnormalities. “The Zhan family again?” Ouyang Ziyi asked in a grave tone, seeing that Qin Nianran was still weak. “Mm!” Qin Nianran nodded, glancing at Chu Tianyu, who also had a gloomy expression. She then briefly explained what had happened and shared her guesses and judgments about the Zhan family’s actions. “By the way, how’s things on your end? Is the battle intense?” After saying that, Qin Nianran suddenly changed the subject, clearly not wanting to add any more burden or guilt to Chu Tianyu because of her own problems. But her efforts were in vain. Chu Tianyu slowly stood up, not answering her question, but instead gazing aimlessly into the distance with a thoughtful expression, slowly saying, “I originally wanted to stay out of it and let things take their course, but it seems someone is still keeping an eye on us. I haven’t dealt with the incident at the villa yet, yet they keep overreaching. Well, since things are already chaotic enough, why not make it even more chaotic? It’s time to add fuel to the fire for both sides!”

With Chu Tianyu’s words, which seemed like self-talk yet also as if addressed to the three women, he spoke with firmness, carrying an underlying aura of violence and bloodshed. Hearing this, the three women felt a chill in their hearts, realizing that Chu Tianyu was truly angry. As for the consequences of Zhan Yupeng’s foolish act of provoking him, and how it might affect the already chaotic situation, that was unknown…