Stranger Danger

Chapter 571: Cutting A Paper Doll

The second Xiong Kuohai took off, the crisp, melodious sound of a bird resounded throughout the area. The ground crumbled like it was a volcanic eruption, and massive pillars of flames shot into the air.

Flying amidst the seemingly endless flames was a vermillion bird with long tail feathers, a fiery form, and a magnificent crown. For a time, everyone and everything was dyed orange red.

Xiong Kuohai wasn’t slow, but he wasn’t faster than the vermillion bird either. It appeared in front of the Grandmaster in just the blink of an eye and spat out a jet of flames.

The flame was pure white and completely devoid of impurities. It looked like the purest, cleanest, and flawless object in the world. But as soon as it appeared, the space around it began warping and breaking into the void, and the sea of flames surrounding the vermillion bird dimmed until it was near unnoticeable. It was as if the jet of pure white flame was the only true object in the world.

Even before the pure white flame got close, Xiong Kuohai could already feel his skin drying up and cracking in earnest, his blood boiling—no, burning in his veins, and his mind shaking and warping and burning under its all-consuming power.

His face looked as white as a sheet. He might not know what the white flame was, but he had no doubt that he would die if he made contact with it. And no, he wasn’t just imagining this. Just now, he was severely injured by Ji Donglei’s ultimate attack, and the old man’s sword qi was spread out across his whole body. Until he expelled the sword qi, he would not be able to muster even a-tenth of his usual strength.

Worse still, he could tell that the pure white flame was at least as powerful as Ji Donglei’s “Opening A Blue Sky”. There was no chance he would survive if he was hit.

Xiong Kuohai didn’t want to die, so he mustn’t allow the flame to hit him no matter what. So, he did something no one expected: he cried for help.

“Save me, Sakyamuni!”

A patch of shadow behind Xiong Kuohai’s back abruptly stood up after he said this. It looked like black, insoluble ink.

“Useless.”

The shadow let out a cold, unfeeling hmph. It seemed to be incredibly displeased with Xiong Kuohai’s performance. The next moment, a hand reached out of the shadows and grabbed the pure white flame.

Sizzle sizzle sizzle!

After the hand caught the pure white flame, the shadow began boiling and bubbling violently like boiled water.

“The Nan Ming Li Fire?!” the shadow exclaimed with surprise and a bit of severity.

Xiong Kuohai was just as surprised as the shadow was. He had no idea that the pure white flame would be the legendary Nan Ming Li Fire.

The Vermillion Bird was one of the Four Spirits of the South, and the Nan Ming Li Fire was its personal divine flame. Specifically, it was the fire surrounding the Vermillion Bird after it reached its peak intensity. Sitting on the deep end of the yang spectrum and unbelievably potent, it boasted the power to burn anything and everything to dust. It was easily one of the scariest flames in the world.

Once, Xiong Kuohai heard that those who cultivated the “Vermillion Bird Heaven Burning Art” to perfection could generate the Vermillion Bird’s personal divine flame, the Nan Ming Li Fire. However, he had never seen nor heard of a member of the Earthfire Palace of Demons who managed to cultivate the “Vermillion Bird Heaven Burning Art” to the adept level.

Today, he learned that the rumors were true after all. Not only that, he had been a hair’s breadth away from being burned into ash by the legendary Nan Ming Li Fire. Should he count himself lucky or unlucky?

Meanwhile, the shadow was still fighting against the Nan Ming Li Fire. The shadow was boiling and warping under the pure white flame’s extreme heat, but the Nan Ming Li Fire was also shrinking constantly under its pressure.

The clash was so terrifying that Xiong Kuohai felt his scalp numbing with fear and subconsciously took a few steps backward. He knew just how strong the man hiding in his shadow was, but even so, he wasn’t able to suppress the Nan Ming Li Fire immediately. It showed just how powerful the flame was.

Xiong Kuohai’s chest sagged a little with relief. If he hadn’t made the right call and cried for help immediately, he would be dust in the wind right now. After taking a moment to recollect himself, he then directed his gaze at the unconscious Huo Ruyu—the ultimate attack must have taken everything she had to unleash—and the shaking Ji Donglei clinging to his sword for support with indescribable anger and bloodthirst.

Oh, and he mustn’t forget Mistress Ruyi. If it wasn’t for him, he would have come so close to losing everything even though victory was right in his grasp. At this point, it was clear that this was a setup from the beginning. The Five Qi Auspicious Cloud Altar was the bait to lure him toward their trap. The Five Lifetimes Calamitous Qi was to knock him out for a brief moment and give Ji Donglei and Huo Ruyu the chance to execute their ultimate attacks.

He had to admit that the plan was sublime. Each and every step was planned out and executed perfectly. He would definitely be dead if he did not have a backup.

Unfortunately for them, a failure was a failure. Strength and luck were both on his side. Since they had failed to kill him with their ultimate counterattack, it was their turn to perish.

The time for games was over. It was time to repay the blood debt with a blood debt, and the sooner this was over, the sooner he could rest easy.

Why was he in such a hurry to end this even though it looked like his enemies had lost their last chance to turn this around?

It was because the bad premonition that had been gripping him since a while ago hadn’t faded even now. He wondered why.

Hmm? Did I forget someone?

Right before Xiong Kuohai was about to kill Ji Donglei and Huo Ruyu, he suddenly felt like something was amiss. To be specific, he felt like someone was missing.

Who was it?

Wait. Where’s Joy Bodhisattva?!

Xiong Kuohai shivered when he finally realized the reason behind his discomfort. Joy Bodhisattva had not taken part in the counterattack even though both Ji Donglei and Huo Ruyu had acted. Knowing that shrewd woman, there was no way she would let go of such a perfect opportunity.

Joy Bodhisattva was grievously injured, sure, but that didn’t mean she had lost the ability to muster one last counterattack. So why didn’t she?

Where is she?

Did she escape?

Or is she plotting something?

The bit of color Xiong Kuohai regained drained away from his face once more.

The entire Blissful Mountain was currently locked down by the Taiping Heaven Sealing Banner, so there was no way she could escape from here. Therefore, the woman could only be plotting something.

Snip!

As if on cue, Xiong Kuohai heard a snipping sound. It reminded him of a pair of scissors. The sound was so loud, clear and crisp that it was impossible for Xiong Kuohai to miss it, but for some reason, he was unable to find the origin of the noise at all. It was almost as if the sound had come from inside his head.

Snip!

The sound appeared again, and this time, he saw an image inside his head. He saw Joy Bodhisattva holding up a rusted, chipped pair of scissors that was covered in some sort of reddish brown crust. It looked a lot like dried blood. The scissors were oozing ominousness and inauspiciousness.

In her left hand was a perfectly ordinary paper doll. His name and birth date were written on it. Right now, Joy Bodhisattva was slowly cutting the mouth of the paper doll.

Strangely, strands of blood dripped down the corner of the paper doll’s mouth after the scissors cut through it. It was almost as if it was cutting a real person, not a paper doll!

Indescribable fear and panic exploded inside Xiong Kuohai’s heart then. It was because he could tell that the paper doll was himself.

Xiong Kuohai tried to say something, but he abruptly realized that he was incapable of saying anything. He could only watch as Joy Bodhisattva proceeded to cut the paper doll’s eyes, ears, nose, mouth and tongue.

Every time she cut off an organ, it felt as if a thread of karma was severed. His eyes suddenly turned blind, his ears went deaf, his nose could not smell anything, his tongue tasted perfectly bland, his body lost all sense of touch, and even his spirit could no longer perceive beyond itself.

At that moment, he lost all sensation of the outside world. He couldn’t even control his own body. It was as if someone had cut off all of his senses and control.

Paradoxically, he could still see Joy Bodhisattva inside his head. In fact, her image was growing clearer and clearer. It was as if the woman was living inside his head.

Finally, Joy Bodhisattva moved her scissors to the paper doll’s neck and squeezed.