Stranger Danger

Su Xiu watched Dream Master with eyes that resembled the downcast reflections of the sun and the moon. Space shattered, and countless butterflies disappeared without a sound.

For the first time, Dream Master lost his composure. His body shook, and his complexion turned a little paler than usual. Then, a gigantic butterfly appeared in front of him.

The butterfly looked as big as a mountain and had a pair of wings that looked like they were hanging from the topmost point of sky. Unnaturally colorful and dreamlike, it enveloped the entire area in light and gave it some sort of ephemeral, dreamlike quality.

The butterfly flapped its wings so gently that it did not conjure any wind whatsoever. However, the colorful light it emitted conjured ripples of light that looked like countless dancing butterflies. It looked as if the entire world was a massive, ever-expanding dream.

Su Xiu let out a cold chuckle and commanded his Yin God forward. In response, the Yin God let out a heaven-shattering roar and surged toward Dream Master on a river of black water.

At first glance, it looked like the two warriors were only fifty or so meters away from each other. In reality, the butterfly’s light seemed to stretch the space between them until infinity.

It didn’t matter though. Every time the Yin God took a step forward, the light would wink out, the ripples would disintegrate, and the butterflies would disappear. The Magia that kept the five demon gods from approaching Dream Master earlier could not stop Su Xiu’s Yin God in the slightest.

During the first breath, the Yin God crossed what looked like an infinite distance, shattered the illusion, and appeared in front of Dream Master.

During the second breath, the Yin God grabbed the wings of the gigantic butterfly, roared, and ripped the butterfly in half.

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM

The ground shook like crazy, and everything and anything was destroyed. At the center of the impact, Dream Master scattered into countless butterflies in an attempt to dodge the powerful attack. However, they were destroyed by the falling meteors and the deadly shockwaves one after another.

When the dust clouds faded to reveal a bottomless chasm and a scorched wasteland, not a speck of Dream Master could be found anywhere.

Su Xiu barked out in laughter when he scanned his surroundings and found no traces of Dream Master. “Hahaha! So what if you’re one of the Eight Legions of Devas and Nagas? You’re still nothing before me!”

“Most impressive, first senior brother.”

Greenlake Bai paid him a compliment before looking at Dancer’s direction all of a sudden. The woman was currently running away at top speed. She said in a hurry, “Not good! If she manages to escape, then first senior brother will be in deep trouble! You must catch her, third senior sister!”

When Ah Su heard this, she immediately took off with a bang and gave chase. Su Xiu blanched and shouted, “Ah Su! Come back!”

Unfortunately, he sensed his voice being blocked by some sort of invisible power. As a result, Ah Su did not hear his shout.

“Hehehe… don’t waste your breath, first senior brother. Third senior sister can’t hear you.”

A gentle voice rang right next to his right ear, followed by a gust of fragrant wind.

Greenlake Bai appeared behind his back before he could react. Holding his shoulders with both hands and bending a little, she pressed her face against Su Xiu’s back firmly.

The gesture seemed affectionate, but of course there was nothing affectionate about her intentions.

“What do you think you’re doing, junior sister?”

“Taking care of you, of course.” Greenlake Bai beamed at him. “You just used ‘Devour Demon’, and your mind is damaged and weaker than it has ever been. I bet you’re so exhausted you can barely move, can you? Since third senior sister is chasing after that woman, it falls upon me to take care of you, don’t you agree?”

“How kind of you,” Su Xiu said with a gentle smile that didn’t reach the eyes.

“It’s only right. After all, I owe you much during our time together.” Greenlake Bai continued to smile brightly as she toyed with Su Xiu’s hair. “In fact, I owe you so much that I’m not sure how I can ever repay you. The only way I can think of is—”

“This is the part where you offer your hand in marriage, isn’t it?” Su Xiu asked.

Greenlake Bai giggled. “Hahaha… your idea is sound, but I already have a husband. It is unethical for a woman to marry more than two husbands at the same time, and even if it isn’t, I don’t want to break third senior sister’s heart. That is why I’ve come up with a better idea.”

“Oh yeah? What is it?” Su Xiu asked smilingly.

“Ending your life,” Greenlake Bai replied with a smile that did not fit her words at all. “If you’re dead, then I won’t ever need to repay you, am I right?”

“I see!”

Su Xiu did not get angry though. In fact, he seemed unusually calm for some reason. “Before that, I have a question for you, junior sister. Do you think I’m foolish?”

“Not at all. You are wise and farsighted.”

“Do you think I’m stupid?”

“Not at all. You’re one of the smartest people I’ve ever met.”

“Since I’m neither foolish nor stupid, what makes you think I would give you the opportunity to kill me?” Su Xiu stared at Greenlake Bai scornfully and ridiculingly despite his pallid complexion.

“Oh my, I’m so scared!” Greenlake Bai patted her chest with feigned terror while giggling like a bell. “Third senior sister isn’t coming back anytime soon, and you are exhausted right now. What could you possibly do to hurt me, first senior brother?”

“You’ve always been a smart girl, junior sister. Why don’t you check out the back of your neck yet?” Su Xiu asked calmly.

Greenlake Bai instinctively touched the back of her neck and immediately felt a small bump. It almost felt like an insect bite, but insect bites rarely stung, itched, chilled, warmed and numbed the flesh all at the same time.

“The Needle of Suffering…”

“You do remember it.” Su Xiu nodded in satisfaction.

He knew better than most that Greenlake Bai was a cunning fox. That was why he had planted the Needle of Suffering in her since the very beginning. It was his insurance in case Greenlake Bai decided to make her escape.

“Out of everyone in our abode, you are the last person I expected to learn our master’s Needle of Suffering, first senior brother,” Greenlake Bai said sarcastically.

The Needle of Suffering was invented by their master, a.k.a the abode head of the Nethercall Abode. In many cases, needles were a tool of healing and recovery. But in the hands of the abode head, it was a torture device.

When he was still alive, there was nothing the abode head of the Nethercall Abode enjoyed more than torturing others. He had invented so many torture methods in pursuit of his sick pleasure that some of the worst methods he invented were given a title: “One Needle, Three Punishments, Five Severances, and Eight Annihilations”.

To elaborate, the One Needle inflicted suffering beyond mortal endurance, the Three Punishments made the victim wish they were dead, the Five Severances tortured the victim to the point where they permanently lost an aspect of their humanity, and the Eight Annihilations terrified even the ghosts and gods.

The One Needle referred to the Needle of Suffering. It was also the cruelest out of the seventeen torture methods.

As its name implied, the Needle of Suffering inflicted tremendous suffering upon its victim. Just inserting the needle into one’s body was enough to inflict suffering beyond mortal comprehension. It could inflict every pain and suffering there was to inflict in the world and make the victim beg for the sweet release of death.

That wasn’t the worst of it, however. The pain and suffering inflicted by the Needle of Suffering only grew as time passed. It would continuously get worse until the victim broke down, or the needle was removed.

Back when he was still alive, the abode head loved nothing more than to torment Su Xiu and Ah Su with the Needle of Suffering. Moreover, he never tortured them at the same time. He only tortured one of them and forced the other person to watch.

Even crueler, the abode head would occasionally make them torture each other using the Needle of Suffering. It was a kind of cruelty worse than death itself.

The Needle of Suffering was easily the reason he loathed the abode head to the bone. He was also beyond terrified of it. Despite this, Su Xiu always chose the Needle of Suffering every time the abode head asked him to pick a torture method. It was clear he was obsessed with it despite it being the thing that terrified him more than anything.

This wasn’t important though. What was important was that the Needle of Suffering was invented by the abode head and thus could not be cured by anyone except him. Attempting to remove it would only worsen the pain and suffering.

“Why are you surprised? Besides each other, this is the one memory that we will never forget in our lives. Why wouldn’t I learn it?”

Su Xiu’s smile was gentle, but his voice was distorted by madness and anger. “Not only did I learn it, I toiled endlessly to perfect my mastery. Only then can I repay everyone for all the misery they had inflicted upon me and Ah Su. Only then can I torture those who harbor malice toward us until they wish they were dead. Don’t you agree, junior sister? Hahahaha!”

Suddenly, Su Xiu noticed something. “Hmm? You don’t seem afraid, junior sister.”