Chapter 9: Death (Part 2)

Qi Wu Zhen said, “It seems you’re quite confident about reincarnation…”
Guo Shier smiled bitterly and replied, “If you’d gone through two reincarnations like me, you wouldn’t have such doubts.”
Qi Wu Zhen said, “In a bit, please help me cast a tracking rune too. I have no confidence at all.”
Guo Shier said, “No problem. I can cast it for you right now.”
Qi Wu Zhen nodded. “Good. Do it now. I plan to use a ruthless move against that guy… Hmph, even if I die, I’ll make sure he remembers me!”
Guo Shier chuckled. Qi Wu Zhen truly had a queenly temperament—she would bite back fiercely even in death. He cast the tracking rune directly into Qi Wu Zhen’s soul, of course only if she didn’t resist. With her current strength, even if Guo Shier used all his power, the rune wouldn’t enter her soul if she refused to accept it.
Guo Shier said, “It’s done. Once we find the planet you’re on, we can locate you.”
Qi Wu Zhen asked, “Can’t we find you even in space?”
Guo Shier nodded. “Yes, but we can at least determine the general direction.”
Qi Wu Zhen sighed in relief. “This world is too vast. According to you, every glowing star is a star system. Look… with so many stars in the sky, who knows which planet I’ll end up on?”
Guo Shier said, “Unless we land on a planet, otherwise… we’ll have to wait until I can fly in space to come look for you.”
Qi Wu Zhen kept her gaze fixed on that man. He and Li Ran fought from the sky to the ground, then back up into the air.
Li Ran was clearly at a disadvantage. He was severely injured and filled with resentment, forcing himself to fight to the death. He felt extreme guilt—everyone in his team had suffered because of him, and nearly the entire unit had been wiped out. How could he feel at peace? Even if he killed that man, he would still feel guilty toward everyone forever.
Guo Shier said to Qi Wu Zhen, “Let me give you a hand.” His soul trembled slightly. “Elder Shuai, can the Soul-Stabilizing Cauldron be used?”
Elder Shuai replied, “It’s fine. It can still be used once more. After that, it’s done. Remember, only one strongest attack can be launched. It should be enough to hold that guy in place!”
The Soul-Stabilizing Cauldron appeared above Guo Shier’s head. He chanted dozens of spells in a row and said, “Sister Zhen, I can only hold him in place for a moment. Your attack…”

A line of blood trickled from Qi Wu Zhen’s lips as she smiled and said, “Don’t worry, I believe… that bastard will definitely remember my kindness! Cough, cough, cough…” She coughed a few times before adding, “Guo Shier, help me up!”
Guo Shier didn’t even have the strength to stand. He gently flicked his hand, and several purple chains flew out, wrapping around Qi Wu Zhen and lifting her up. There happened to be a large piece of metal nearby, so Qi Wu Zhen leaned against it and caught her breath for a moment before saying, “I’m fine now…”
A small flame of talismans emerged from her hand—a pitch-black flame that floated gently in her pale palm. Guo Shier suddenly felt an extreme sense of danger and exclaimed in shock, “What kind of fire is this?”
Qi Wu Zhen replied, “This is my Origin Fire. I just can’t believe… that man isn’t afraid even of the Origin Fire.”
Guo Shier was extremely astonished. He had already known Qi Wu Zhen was powerful, but he never imagined she could wield such an Origin power. He longed for Origin power himself, but mastering it was incredibly difficult. He had tried several times only to give up in the end. With a bitter smile, he said, “The Origin Fire can burn heaven and destroy earth… it’s omnipotent. Heh, don’t worry, I’ll hold that man in place!”
In an instant, Guo Shier’s confidence soared. If even the Origin Power couldn’t shake that opponent, then he could only accept defeat and obediently be reborn, without any resentment. The gap between them was too vast to overcome.
Li Ran’s successive attacks failed, leaving him frustrated. That man was extremely slippery, making it hard to strike him.
The Broken Realm had been completely destroyed, but one thing had emerged—the strange creature that Guo Shier had given him. It had been sealed inside the Broken Realm. Although it had been refined by him, he didn’t know how to use it, only that it was a deadly weapon. He had been waiting for an opportunity to use that creature to attack that man.
Since Guo Shier was severely injured and without the help of the Soul-Stabilizing Cauldron, Li Ran wasn’t sure he could land a decisive blow either. So he held on desperately, hoping to find an opportunity.
The remaining part of the Broken Realm was in Li Ran’s hands. He hadn’t found a chance to deliver the final strike, and now he didn’t dare to engage head-on either. He could only chase after that man back and forth. That man sneered, “You’re almost done too. Surrender. After all, I am you, and you are me. Why fight so hard?”
Li Ran cursed loudly, “Bastard!”

The man said, “You’re cursing yourself…” Suddenly, he threw a punch, but Li Ran instantly teleported away, causing the punch to hit the ground and create a huge crater hundreds of meters in diameter and dozens of meters deep. Whenever either of them struck the ground, it left massive scars.

Neither Li Ran nor the man noticed the two skilled fighters who were still alive on the ground. Guo Shier lay there, his upper body propped against a piece of debris, with a soul-stabilizing cauldron only a foot in size hovering above his head, slowly rotating and ready to be activated by Guo Shier at any moment.

Li Ran was still fighting the man, but he felt increasingly desperate, unable to believe that the main soul was so powerful. He had been sure earlier that the main soul wasn’t this strong—perhaps even Wang Dayang could match him. It seemed he had been careless. His heart burned with frustration; he truly refused to accept defeat. If consumed by the main soul, everything he had would vanish.

Guo Shier’s soul suddenly fluctuated violently. “Act now! It’s time!”

The man was momentarily stunned. He could sense the fluctuations in the soul but didn’t understand their meaning. Suddenly, a wave of energy swept through his body. He cursed inwardly as his entire body stiffened mid-air, unable to move.

Li Ran had been waiting for an opportunity. Overjoyed, he shouted, “Die!” A dark beam flashed and struck straight at the man.

Qi Wuzhen suddenly exhaled forcefully, firing out the Origin Flame from her hand. The Origin Flame turned into a thin thread in the air and gently wrapped around the man.

As soon as the Origin Flame was released, Qi Wuzhen’s face withered instantly. She covered her face with her sleeve and laughed bitterly, “Shier, Sister Zhen will go first!”

Then, with a soft command, “Explose!” She turned into dust like piled sand, vanishing in an instant. A red glow flashed, and her soul was nowhere to be seen.

The man’s expression changed drastically as he felt a life-threatening danger for the first time. He struggled desperately, but the shockwaves emitted by Guo Shier were too powerful; he couldn’t escape. Although he wasn’t immobilized for long—just over two seconds—it was enough to determine his fate.

The Origin Flame sent by Qi Wuzhen tried to wrap around him, but it was blocked by an invisible force. Li Ran’s dark beam exploded suddenly, breaking through the man’s defense. At that moment, Qi Wuzhen’s Origin Flame erupted.

The Origin Flame was extremely fierce. The moment it exploded, Guo Shier covered his eyes with his hands.

The man let out a deafening scream before turning into a pile of ashes that drifted down from the sky.

Li Ran and Guo Shier didn’t even have time to breathe a sigh of relief before they witnessed a despicable scene. A figure gradually emerged from thin air and said, “You’ve managed to destroy two of my avatars. You’re quite strong indeed…” Guo Shier spat out blood and secretly said to the old man, “This guy can’t be killed… Sigh, we can’t beat him. We’d better reincarnate.” He could feel his body gradually collapsing. Although he kept swallowing talismans in large quantities, this power was extremely strange—talismans could only sustain his life, not heal him. Li Ran was also utterly desperate. The figure flew in front of Li Ran and said, “If you surrender, I’ll spare the people below.” He was referring to Guo Shier. Li Ran looked down and realized that Guo Shier was beyond saving. With a bitter smile, he said, “I was careless. I didn’t expect you to be this strong.” The figure laughed triumphantly, “You’re the strongest avatar I’ve ever encountered. You even managed to kill two of my avatars. Do you know? Those two avatars possessed 80% of my strength. And now you’re facing… the body of my main soul. Do you think you have a chance to win? Haha, you must have revealed all your cards, right? Hahaha! Interesting! I’m so lucky! Coming here brought such amazing rewards, hahaha!” Li Ran said calmly, “Do you really think you can win?” The figure laughed proudly, “Of course. I believe… you’re already at your wits’ end. Hahaha, hahaha! That’s because you gave me time, hahaha!” Li Ran said, “Come at me!” The figure paused slightly, his laughter stopping. “Oh, you really admit defeat?” Covered in blood, Li Ran still stood upright, hovering in front of the figure. With a calm smile, he said, “I won’t admit defeat until the very last moment, unless I die completely.” Suddenly, countless tentacles stretched out from the figure’s body and instantly wrapped around Li Ran. He laughed, “So delicious! Haha, how can you resist anymore?” Li Ran’s soul was forcibly pulled into the figure’s body. Below, Guo Shier clearly saw Li Ran’s soul being dragged away. The soulless body fell from the sky, and he felt utterly heartbroken and chilled to the bone. The figure laughed triumphantly, “Haha, hahaha! Ohhahaha… uh… ah? Ah!” His body suddenly twisted violently.

Guo Shier thought for a moment before bursting into joy. He laughed and said, “Haha, competing with the Soul Grandmaster in soul devouring? Haha, I get it now, I understand… Haha… Uuuu…” His loud laughter suddenly turned into sobs. He was filled with sorrow; if he had known earlier, none of them would have died in such a tragic way.

The old man comforted him, “Kid, it’s okay… If death is inevitable, I’ll be with you.”

Guo Shier replied, “It’s not that I’m afraid of death, but dying this time is truly worthless… The whole squad has been wiped out. It’ll take who knows how long to find them again.”

The old man said, “Well, that’s not a problem. You’ll have something to do in the future.”

Guo Shier refused to give up, waiting for Li Ran’s victory.

The man struggled frantically in the air, screaming nonstop, “Impossible, impossible… This can’t be… Your soul… why is it so strong… Ahh, ahh… I… Ah!”

Suddenly, the man said, “I never thought… My soul is stronger than yours, purer than yours, better than others’… I might lose, but compared to your soul… even if you had three clones, they wouldn’t be a match!”

Then the man roared again, “No! No… Don’t, I don’t want to die! Aahhh, you… No, no, no…”

Guo Shier sneered and said, “I’m really looking forward to competing with Brother Li Ran in soul battles!”