I'm in a Hurry, Take Me on All at Once

"This is the Kingdom of Heaven in Dreams." Weixi made a casual slash across the ground with her halberd. Within a breath, the scar restored itself to its original state. "Across the lower four layers of the Void Realm, there aren't many special zones capable of providing such a vast enclosed venue—and one completely impervious to destruction, at that. The only one is the Kingdom of Heaven in Dreams." As the last master of the Kingdom of Heaven in Dreams, Weixi's assessment was unquestionably authoritative. Igola furrowed his brows. "If this is the Kingdom of Heaven in Dreams, why would an organized Gryphon Company appear here? They don't look like Sanctuary sorcerers either." Sorcerers teaming up in the Void Realm was exceedingly rare to begin with. More importantly, the Kingdom of Heaven in Dreams was definitely situated in the Distant Sky Realm, whereas the Gryphon Company was a military formation primarily composed of Two-Wing sorcerers. It was impossible that Yaxiu and his companions had just happened to run into a team formed by Gryphon Sanctuary commanders, wasn't it? "They shouted the word 'demon' very distinctly," Yaxiu analyzed. "Demons are unique beings native to the Country of All Stars. Ordinary sorcerers have no way of obtaining information regarding them; even I only learned about demons from you... So even if the Gryphon Company didn't know the full details, they must have received orders from the Divine Lord of Stars." "As for why Two-Wing sorcerers can enter the Kingdom of Heaven in Dreams, the Divine Lord of Stars probably opened a back door for them. There's likely a special zone in the Starry Country that overlaps with both the Distant Sky Realm and the Country of All Stars..." Saying this, Yaxiu unconsciously glanced at Niya. Niya froze slightly, then immediately realized what Yaxiu was thinking. Her face turned pale at once, her shoulders trembling with anger. Yet she threw no tantrum, merely biting her lower lip gently and ducking her head behind Feili, like a prickly little hedgehog—both furious and wronged. "Since Two-Wing sorcerers from the Starry Country can enter the Kingdom of Heaven in Dreams, legendary sorcerers naturally can as well," Weixi remarked leisurely. "Does that mean I can finally meet the mistresses?" "Better that we don't," Yaxiu sighed softly. "If not for contracting the Hell secret poison, our lives as sorcerers would have been strangled by the mysterious chains long ago. If they haven't discovered the chains, the last thing I want is to see their wings broken on my account..." "Aha! You'd ache over the Sword Princess and the Witch losing so much as a single feather, but you dragged us into danger without a second thought? Such favoritism!" Weixi crossed her arms over her chest, speaking in a sarcastic, mocking tone. "Though that's only natural. Who told us not to be the ones you want to spend the rest of your life with? On this train ride of life, you've made up your mind that only the Sword Princess and the Witch will accompany you to the final stop, while everyone else is just a dispensable passerby not worth caring about. Of course you'd play favorites—" Weixi knew full well she was making a fuss out of nothing. She had expected Yaxiu to angrily berate her, but Yaxiu only looked at her with surprise, and even a hint of delight in his eyes. "Weixi, are you sticking up for others?" he chuckled. She was momentarily taken aback, then gave a cold snort. "Of course not. I'm just driving a wedge between you, Igola, and Harvey—hey, Yaxiu is playing favorites so blatantly, don't you two have anything to say?" "No objections," Igola said. "I'll gladly yield the opportunity of spending a lifetime with him to the rest of you. If you're still not satisfied, I can even kowtow and beg you not to let him loose—or at least keep him on a leash." "Eh? But I object," Harvey blinked. "I reserved Yaxiu's corpse the very first day we met. I don't care about his living years, but his corpse after death is mine. So theoretically, the final usage rights to Yaxiu belong to me, Archibald Harvey—unless you wish to apply for joint exploitation of the corpse, in which case we could negotiate how to divide him into parts." Yaxiu's expression grew immensely complicated. "It really takes talent for the two of you to steer every conversation toward something either perverted or sickening." "Spare the praise, or we might actually feel embarrassed," Igola retorted, while Harvey nodded repeatedly. Ignoring the two oddballs, Yaxiu reached out and patted Weixi's fair shoulder, smiling. "Even though your words crossed the line of a joke just now, Weixi, seeing as you were actually showing concern for others, I won't hold it against you." "That's sexual harassment, you know," Weixi said, slapping his paw away. "Fine, fine, fine." Yaxiu conceded readily and turned his head. "Niya, I know what you're worried about, and I can't promise it won't happen again. But I swear, if a situation like last time occurs again, neither the Sword Princess nor I will do anything you dislike." "And once the necessary communication is done, I will wake you up as quickly as possible. What you fear most will absolutely never come to pass." None of the others understood Yaxiu's words, for he had told no one that Sonia had possessed Niya's body. After a brief silence, Niya poked her little head out from behind Feili. "Really?" "Really." "You aren't lying to me?" "I'm not lying to you." Under her bangs, Niya's bright crimson pupils blinked. She slowly nodded. "...Alright." Yaxiu breathed a sigh of relief. It was good that Niya's mood had been soothed. In truth, within their group, Niya was the most volatile variable. The stubborn urge for destruction in her heart made her barely care about her own survival, let alone stay level-headed in battle. Last time in the ruins of the building, she had thrown a tantrum—naturally, she had every right to be furious, but Yaxiu hoped she would only vent once they were safe. Even if she beat him up afterward, he wouldn't mind. Still, this past month together had not been in vain. Yaxiu could clearly sense that his backward glance had infuriated Niya just now; it wouldn't have been unusual if she had drawn her sword to hack at him on the spot. Yet she had held back, quietly hiding to the side to digest—or rather, brew—her feelings. For that alone, Yaxiu was already well satisfied. "Since the mysterious chains remain in effect, we actually hold an overwhelming advantage," Igola said. "Leaving aside the sorcery granted by demons, the mere fact that Yaxiu can utilize sorcery spirits allows him to crush any opponent. Our only true adversaries are the other demon teams." "No wonder the Divine Lord of Stars sent the Gryphon Company inside," Yaxiu realized. "Without access to sorcery spirits, the gap between the Two-Wing and Three-Wing realms isn't actually that vast. An organized legion of sorcerers is more than enough to crush any scattered Sanctuary combatants!" While they discussed, Feili quietly tugged at Weixi's sleeve, giggling. "Thank you, Sister Weixi." "I just wanted to make him uncomfortable," Weixi curled her lip. "Besides, who doesn't know he plays favorites?" "He's not playing favorites. If our places were swapped with the Sword Princess and the Witch, he wouldn't want us in danger either." Weixi promptly flicked Feili's forehead. "If the apocalypse were delayed a few more years, he'd definitely trick you into bearing several of his children." "Even if he plays favorites, it's only natural," Feili said softly. "Why would he favor us instead?" "Can't you learn to use a double standard? Treating others well is favoritism; treating me well is only natural!" Weixi punctuated each sentence with another flick. "With that personality of yours, when will you ever get to be the one who's favored?" Feili covered her forehead from the flicks. "Do you want to be favored too, Sister Weixi?" "Of course!" Weixi paused. "I'd love nothing more than to push the Sword Princess and the Witch aside and emotionally enslave him completely, showing him what true chains of the soul are, so that every time he goes outside, he has to be walked on a leash!" Looking at the huffing Weixi, Feili couldn't help hugging the maid, her eyes curving with laughter. Apart from Yaxiu, she was the one happiest to see Weixi changing, though she couldn't avoid a faint tinge of disappointment. She was happy because Weixi stood up for them, but disappointed because she sensed that Weixi wasn't merely standing up for them alone. "We have to leave," Igola said, eyeing the spatial rift expanding continuously through the void. After Yaxiu took the Holy Grail Fragment, a spatial fissure had emerged in the center of the arena, growing larger and larger. If left unattended, it would eventually swallow the entire enclosed area. It was evidently the portal leading to the next competition. As things stood, Yaxiu and his companions sat at the very top of the food chain in this Angel Hunt. So long as Feili remained with them, they could smash straight through even rival demon teams—Yaxiu's Observer Mode might not excel at anything else, but in PvP, it was completely invincible. Yaxiu even suggested, "Feili, next time you take the lead. It's a good chance for you to practice with your sorcery spirits." Feili grew slightly nervous. "Are we going to kill people?" "Don't worry. When a sorcerer dies in the Void Realm, their soul only suffers severe trauma; they don't actually die," Yaxiu smiled reassuringly. "Take me, for example—I've died three or four times in the Void Realm. Aside from dying feeling rather unpleasant each time, it doesn't even interfere with daily activities." Feili looked up at him, her lips pursed tight, the light in her eyes shimmering. "You've suffered so much, Yaxiu..." Her gaze made Yaxiu feel somewhat bashful instead. He didn't actually think his life had been that miserable. Sure, he started out as a death row convict, broke out of prison only to become Annan's slave, and was summoned to Senluo just as he was about to cling to the coattails of Lisi and Diya—only to immediately run into the Silver Lantern and get entangled in an apocalyptic catastrophe. And just as he was about to find marital bliss with the Sword Princess, he was yanked into the Cage of Stars... But looking back carefully, it hadn't really been that miserable! "Let's go." Yaxiu took the lead into the spatial fissure. With an odd sensation reminiscent of being squeezed through a running pipe, he arrived at the arena for the second battle in an instant. Unlike the first round, the terrain here was unmistakably the city streets of Blood Moon City, and the map was far larger, virtually encompassing the entire city. As for why he recognized it as Blood Moon City at a glance, it was naturally due to the moon candy specialty shop beside him and the tea café plastered with character illustrations of the waitstaff. However, the streets were completely devoid of pedestrians—resembling a dream bubble stripped of its NPCs. Yet not only were there no mirror walls here, but the moment Yaxiu arrived, he heard the sounds of battle echoing from afar—he had actually joined the match midway! Looking toward the noise, a sphere of swirling polychromatic light floated above a distant rooftop—plainly the reward for clearing this round, a Holy Grail Fragment! The terrain could change? In open areas, gun sorcerers would hold a guaranteed advantage, but in such an intricate urban environment, taijutsu sorcerers stood a fighting chance. Still, now that Feili and I have entered the match, none of you stand any chance of winning— Thud! Yaxiu felt as though he had been abruptly flattened by a heavy sledgehammer. Intense vertigo nearly made him collapse—the backlash of a forced cancellation of sorcery spirit transformation! If a demon and a sorcerer grew too far apart, sorcery spirit transformation would be forcibly canceled. The demon would emerge unscathed, but the sorcerer's soul would suffer grievous trauma—more severe than having imaginary wings snapped! He forced his head to turn and looked around. The area was empty. He alone had arrived at this scene! The Angel Hunt had never stated that they could always operate as a team... They had been separated! In a flash, Yaxiu suddenly recalled the Gryphon Company's intense focus on the demons, and comprehension struck him at once. The Divine Lord of Stars might have many objectives, but clearing out the other demons was certainly one of them. Apart from Feili, all other demons were dispatched by different divine lords to contend for the Source Angel's legacy; eliminating one meant one fewer competitor! The primary objective of the Gryphon Company was undoubtedly the extermination of demons! The Source Angel's goal remained unknown, but it was happy to oblige by scattering all the sorcerers and demons across the board! And with this separation, Igola and Harvey were in the worst predicament—neither of them was even a taijutsu sorcerer. Under the suppression of the mysterious chains, they had been suited only for cheerleading! When sorcerers died, their souls returned to reality. But what about them? If they returned to reality, the Hell secret poison would claim their lives; if they couldn't return... they would truly perish inside the Cage of Stars! Igola, Harvey, Niya, Feili, and Weixi... Just then, gunfire rang out nearby. Yaxiu managed a roll, but a shot still tore into his thigh. Opening his eyes, he saw a gun sorcerer taking aim at him. "I'll be taking your Holy Grail Fragment," the gun sorcerer said, eyes gleaming with greed as he spotted the light glowing from Yaxiu's pocket. He squeezed the trigger once more— Clang! A flash of sword light swept across his throat. The gun sorcerer stared blankly as the silver imaginary wings behind Yaxiu were snapped by the mysterious chains. He definitely wouldn't be able to sleep after waking up back in reality. After all, a Holy Grail Fragment was indeed a supreme opportunity, but snapping your own imaginary wings so decisively?! "Three strikes left." Holding his twin swords in a reverse grip, Yaxiu used the "Joy Sword" to suppress the agony in his soul. Sprinting at full tilt and leaping off walls, he rounded a corner to find three taijutsu sorcerers locked in a brawl near the orb of fragment light. Without a second thought, he shattered a railing beneath his foot and surged forward like a meteor on the recoil! The three taijutsu sorcerers naturally noticed this uninvited guest. Seeing that he dared to fly straight at them through the air, they formed an instant unspoken pact to slay this arrogant fool first! Clash! Clash! In an instant of ringing steel, Yaxiu spun like a whirlwind top, slicing across the throats of all three in a flash! Yet the last one, a greatsword sorcerer, remarkably possessed a self-healing miracle, preserving his life without triggering the mysterious chains. What was more, as they clashed, the edge of his greatsword suddenly gleamed with light, cutting flawlessly into the vulnerability of Yaxiu's paired swords—if Yaxiu did not drop his weapons, his hands would be severed! "Sword Flash?" Yaxiu raised an eyebrow. Decisively tossing his twin swords into the air, he brushed both hands like flowing water along the greatsword's blade. The indomitable momentum of the strike was deflected off course, whereupon Yaxiu leaped up, landing lightly on the spine of the blade and using the weapon's own momentum to slam it viciously into the ground! The greatsword sorcerer was flabbergasted. "Fist Flash?!" Deflecting his attack barehanded could only be done with the Fist Flash of the Fist and Claw school! But wasn't this guy a Sword Sanctuary? How was he also a Fist and Claw Sanctuary?! "Sorry, I'm in a rush. Let's chat next time." Catching the falling twin swords he had tossed into the air, Yaxiu vaulted past the greatsword sorcerer. By the time his feet hit the ground, the man's head had already soared into the air. At that moment, more sorcerers converged on the site of the fragment orb. Watching this pack of ill-intentioned peers arrive, Yaxiu exhaled a breath of stale air and waved them over: "I'm in a hurry. All of you, take me on at once." This past month, aside from training Niya and Feili, Yaxiu had undergone Weixi's training as well. If relying solely on swordsmanship, Yaxiu truly couldn't beat Weixi yet. But if he unleashed everything—Fist and Claw, swordsmanship, and all the martial techniques Tamashi had taught him... He alone could take on Weixi, Niya, and Feili all at once.