Critical: Ages Below Critical Chapter 3.2

Chapter 3: Tactic Understanding (Part 2)

 

 

The wind blows at the thunderclouds, they move quickly across the sky. The moonlight s.h.i.+nes from the gap in between the clouds, illuminating the entirety of a narrow pathway.

The clear and carefree sound of jewels knocking against each other can be heard in the darkness.

Golden imprints appear continuously on Guishan Lianquan’s body, the light brightening and dimming in the dark like breathing. A ma.s.sive amount of soul power is gaining momentum in her body. Under the solid marble-paved path, dull crashes can be heard, as if a gargantuan being is slowly being awakened beneath the surface of the earth.

Shen Yin lifts a hand to the corner of her mouth and smiled coquettishly before lifting her eyes that are as moving as a large lake, looking at Lianquan, saying: “Hey, let me tell you, don’t try anything, if not you’ll die even faster.”

“I’m asking you, why are you trying to kill me?” Guishan Lianquan’s face is shrouded in a layer of unstable aggression.

“Aiya, of course a disciple listens to her lord, whoever the ma.s.sacre lord tasks me to kill, I’ll kill. You also know him, when did you ever see him give a reason before he killed? Aside from him and the Silver Priests, no one else knows.” Shen Yin replies, her hands playing with her hair.

“Okay……” Lianquan’s irises tighten into a line, “Then let me ask you, are the two of you after just me, or are you two after my older brother 5th Lord Guishan Fenghun as well?”

“That I don’t know,” Shen Yin twists her wrist, countless thunderclouds roll in, “But when I was leaving, our bloodthirsty lord also left in a hurry, his expression tense, oh no, his expression was one of elation, looking as if he’s going to kill some big shot.” Shen Yin speaks until here before lowering her head, as if deep in thought, “But isn’t that quite entertaining? It’s been so many years, aside from the unrest four years ago, it’s been a very long time since a lord fighting against a lord has been seen, it’s really something to antic.i.p.ate.”

“Isn’t a disciple against a disciple worth antic.i.p.ating as well?” Guishan Lianquan says coldly.

“It is, that’s why you have to give it your all, if not, getting killed by me in two or three blows will be super boring.” On Shen Yin’s imp-like face

A gurgling sound can be heard.

As if something is easing itself out from the body, the sound of flesh pulling apart, the sound of slimy liquid moving against each other.

Shen Yin looks at the ash-faced Guishan Lianquan and smiled, saying: “Aiya, you finally reveal your soul weapon. How exciting.”

Guishan Lianquan reaches behind her and grabs the handle of the sword that protrudes out from the flesh on her back, and then pulls the large sword out from her body with force, her whole back is sliced open into a large blood wound, she flicks her hand down, the blood staining the sword slaps to the ground. The open wound on her back heals slowly, covering up the bones on her back that had been exposed before.

Lianquan holds the long sword in her right hand, the body of the sword points straight to the ground, the surrounding air is filled with countless ice crystals formed from water droplets, these ice crystals moving swiftly to form an airflow, like gust after gust of half-transparent silk, they blow towards the body of the sword, the moonlight from the sky gathering together like flowing water into a beam of light, injecting into the double-edged sword, the body of the sword emitting the ivory of the moonlight, in the surrounding air is the sound of the sword moaning the same frequency as breathing.

“What an impressive soul weapon, since it’s like that, then,” Shen Yin places her hand at the back of her hand lightly, as if taking a pin out from her hair elegantly, she pulls out a thin handle from her spine at her neck, “I’ll humour you.” After saying that, as if pulling her own soft and white bone marrow out from her nape, she tugs out a silver-white rope like object as thick as a finger slowly from behind her back. With her eyes half closed and her expression vivid and attractive, as if a princess pulling a hair ornament from her hair.

She winds the silver-white rope around her hand lightly, and then she raises her hand to rub at her name, the b.l.o.o.d.y hope heals almost immediately, leaving behind a patch of smooth skin as white as snow, no marks left behind at all.
 

“Then let’s get started.” The smile on Shen Yin’s face disappears in an instant, the frost-like paleness shrouds her face in a layer of fog, she whips the thin white rope towards the ground with force, the sharp end of the rope breaks apart the rocks beneath her feet with a loud sound.

Guishan Lianquan suddenly feels a gust of soul powers piercing through the rocks beneath her feet at lightning speed, “It’s here!” she points the tip of the large sword to the ground beneath her feet and pierces, with a loud bang, the rocks break apart violently, an eerie wail can be heard coming from deep within the ground, as if something has been pierced through. And suddenly everything blurs, before Guishan Lianquan could react, a mouthful of blood sprays from her mouth, in that instant where her vision falters, the white whip has appeared from the ground beside the sword like an agile white snake, tearing into her shoulder, the tip of the whip raptures through her scapula before breaking into five like a man-eating flower and digging tightly into the blood and meat of Lianquan’s shoulders, holding itself tightly in her flesh, on the tips of the whip are white slime resembling the venom on a snake’s fangs. In the distance, Shen Yin reveals her similarly eerie white teeth, her smile strange and terrifying, “Come on.” Shen Yin pulls her hand back with force; Guishan Lianquan crashes down, her whole person hitting the surface of the rocks heavily, up flies countless cracks and rock pieces, an explosion of dust particles appears in the air.

 

[West of Aslan Empire – Forest outside Town of Fauser]

In the dream-scape is the wind howling in the air, endless wind scattering every cloud.

The perfectly round moon hangs high above ones head, scattering the harsh and cold white light across the whole mainland. The forest is in deep slumber, drowning in the water-like moonlight in dead silence. Suddenly, from the dark abyss of the horizon, a dull sound is heard, like a thud from a heavy drop, and then the drumbeat increases in frequency, becoming as concentrated as a thunderstorm. Dongdongdongdong, the dull and urgent beat rolls in darkly from the horizon.

Qi Ling is startled awake like this by the beat of the drums.

He opens his eyes, just as he became used to the snow-white moonlight, a dark shadow presses down on him instantly. Just as Qi Ling was about to exclaim, his mouth was covered. He opens his eyes wide in horror, after realizing that the person pressing onto him is Yin Chen, he lets out a sigh of relief. Almost immediately, his face flushes red, the body temperature of his whole person rises.

“You……what do you want?” Yin Chen covered Qi Ling’s mouth tightly, his voice m.u.f.fled. Yin Chen’s eyes are just a few inches away from the tips of his nose, they seem as stormy as the dark ocean.

“You…… what do you want?!” When Qi Ling realizes that somehow Yin Chen’s icy and long fingers has slid themselves into his clothes without him realizing, Qi Ling struggles to rise like a roasted prawn, but Yin Chen presses him down forcefully so that he cannot move.

“Don’t make a sound……” Yin Chen’s expression is as cold as the snow acc.u.mulated on the peak of a glacier.

“……You? What the h.e.l.l!” Yin Chen’s hand has wrapped around Qi Ling’s waist, moving into his pants from his back……

“Are you nuts! ……Where the f.u.c.k do you think you’re touching!” Just as Qi Ling roars out with a flushed face, a bone-chilling painful coldness appears from his tailbone, driving into his body like lightning, in a flash he blacks out, losing consciousness.
 

Yin Chen carries the frozen Qi Ling to the back of a large boulder and sets him down. He looks at Qi Ling who resembles an ice sculpture before sitting down with his back against the boulder.

In the distance, the beat of the drums is getting stronger. Among the sound is the crunching of trees being bent.

Yin Chen suppresses the wild fear in his heart and the soul powers cras.h.i.+ng violently in his blood stream from the sound of the drum beat, he closes his eyes, getting rid of all the soul powers in his body, all the golden inscriptions disappear gradually from his body, “Hide away the soul power…… don’t get caught……if not……”
 

Beside his ears are the concentrated drumbeats akin to explosions, as if a large iron hammer is pounding on his chest, countless sky-reaching large trees fall along the path, in the sky are fitful strange screeches like that from insects, sounding like metal sc.r.a.ping across metal, yet it seems to have the power to destroy everything. Every time the sound appears, transparent ripples are found in the air. Yin Chen leans against the boulder, his vision scattered, scarlet blood constantly dripping out from the corner of his lips, dying the chest of his robes, his body convulses, “Screech—screech” his handsome features are horrifyingly distorted…… every inch of his skin, every blood vessel in his blood stream, they are all boiling like hot water from the eerie calling, the soul powers hidden deep in his body, seem to find it hard to resist the allure of the sound, wanting to break out from his body, like an active volcano being suppressed……

Yin Chen turns his neck stiffly, looking over to see Qi Ling sleeping peacefully in the crystal, he lists his head again, using the last of his clear vision to look at the colossus being crawling slowly above his head…… the dark and humongous silhouette, the colossal body that stretches as far as the eye can see……countless large legs resembling sharp stone pillars are cross-crossing while they move, every single time the large legs impact the ground, the sound is thunderous……

“Why…… Ragnarok…… why is it here……it can’t be……” Yin Chen’s vision finally loses its glow in the pale moonlight, dimming.

The white collar of his robes are dyed a brilliant red from the fresh blood that gushed from his mouth.

In the distant sky, the moonlight is pale, no clouds covering the sky, looking down, amidst the primitive forest, a large black centipede as large as a mountain is currently moving forward slowly, trees lay in ruble in the places it had been, looking like a trail a large python left behind after slithering through a gra.s.s field…… dirt and scattered pieces of rock spraying everywhere along the path it had taken, tens of thousands of legs cras.h.i.+ng towards the ground, the cracks in the ground are extending, just like cracks on the surface of ice.
 

[West of Aslan Empire – Port City of Rennes]

The moon glows eerily, as if also dyed by blood, casting a layer of crimson light.

On the tall palace wall located on the right of the path, a row of medusa torsos stretches in one line. Under the moonlight, every single empty gaze seems to be glowing dimly.

The blood resembling thick red liquid is sprayed over all the ground and walls in the surrounding area. On the rock paved path are multiple crevices varying in depth, as if carved out, on the walls are indents left behind by the sword and whip, dust and debris exploding in the air.

Guishan Lianquan is kneeling on the ground, a third of the large sword digs into the surface of the ground; she is supporting her weight with it. She does her best to control her body, to not let herself crash to the ground; her vital energy and blood are cras.h.i.+ng through her body, surging across like water in a dam, her conscious is murky, the heavy fear has caused her sanity to snap.

“She is……a complete monster……” Lianquan lifts her gaze that has been blurred by blood, looking at the spotless Shen Yin standing at the other end of the path. Under the moonlight, Shen Yin’s clothes are as clean as first snow, flowing like mist in the darkness of the night. Yet at this moment, Guishan Lianquan herself is covered fresh blood, two wounds so deep on her back that her bones can be seen; at this moment she does not have extra soul powers that can be channeled for healing, the gust after gust of sharp pain is like the claws of a large bird, digging deeply into her spine.

Yet the one, who is truly in fear, is Shen Yin whose expression is still peaceful, but her shock is stronger than Lianquan. As the ‘Second Disciple’, her powers should have overwhelmed the fifth disciple. Everyone knew that among the lords and disciples, there is a distinct divide between the third and the fourth; any lord of the first three-degree has the ability to challenge the latter four lord even if they work together. Yet now, although she has channeled her soul power to such a large extent to kill, Guishan Lianquan still looks full of life. Unless she really has to unleash her soul beast to kill her…… that will be an insult to herself……

Shen Yin looks at the Lianquan who is kneeling on the ground, she asks lightly: “Hey, I’m asking you, are you going to die yet? If you can still fight, then I really have to be serious…… so annoying, actually making me use my energy……” Under the moonlight, Shen Yin looks annoyed, talking about Lianquan’s life as if conversing about eating or drinking. Lianquan stares at the beautiful monstrosity before her, walking slowly, nearing her step by step, and looking like a smiling white devil.

Lianquan stands up abruptly, pulling the large sword from the stone path, slamming it against the wall at the side, the buzzing of the sword tearing the air apart, countless lights roll and explode from the body of the sword, with a loud bang, a gigantic white menacing avian appears behind Lianquan, its sharp and loud callings resounding in the air. Shen Yin’s shaken by the calls, her chest feeling tight. The snow-white large hawk expands exponentially, as if it grows the moment there is wind, in an instant its body fills up the small lane, on the sides of its temples, four sharp thorns as sharp as metal grows, reflecting light like the helmet of an armour. Guishan Lianquan leans against the feet of An Chi; An Chi’s sharp talons are larger than the sword in her hands. She looks at Shen Yin’s horrified expression; on her face is an eerie and pale smile, “Hehe……heheha……Even if I can’t walk out of this alive today, I will drag you to h.e.l.l alongside me……”

Over their heads is a concentration of drumbeats, dongdongdongdong, as if there is someone from a distant land beating on the drum to signify the start of war. Shen Yin looks up at the narrow strip of sky, her expression changes slightly, she s.h.i.+fts a few steps back before withdrawing the fear from her face, her calm, beautiful smile can be seen on her face again. She takes the beaded sea-blue bracelet off her wrist gently, her nails picking at them, sixteen jewels land on her hand. She picks them up with her fingers, tossing them down lightly, “One, two, three……” As if playing a game, she scatters the jewels mindlessly onto the ground, “Fifteen, sixteen,” She Yin’s expression hardens, a layer of frost enveloping her face, her eyes s.h.i.+ning, “I have no more time to play with you, let’s get down to business!”

The sixteen jewels on the ground suddenly start to move up and down with a “dingdong’ sound, and then they start to twist, morphing into a plant in the smoke……the air surrounding them is filled with strange cries of that of babies or ghouls, piercing painfully into the ears of the person listening……

“This is impossible……this……monster……what sort of monster are you……” Guishan Lianquan’s throat locks up gradually, fear seizing her heart like a monster from the deep seas.
 

On the ground of the long path, the twisting vines cross-cross into each other, building a skeletal system, pus.h.i.+ng out flesh,……under the moonlight, seventeen Shen Yins stand daintily on the group, as if seventeen clouds shrouded in mist, scattered on the long path.

Seventeen identical faces revealing their eerie and menacing smile under the moonlight.

Seventeen tinkering voices, gentle yet bone-chillingly cold, they speak together: “Come, what are you so afraid of……”
 

The intense howling of the wind; the callings rising and falling in the air.

Silver feathers dust the skies, seventeen shadows as fast as meteors moving across the scene, the sharp bird calls, the sound of the whip breaking the silence of the night, the soul powers are turbulent in the on the path, the feeling of being crushed to pieces by a large hand. The sound of explosions and of stones splaying apart is so loud that the walls of the palaces beside the path shake.

Guishan Lianquan lies on her back on the ground, her face full of blood, An Chi shelters her under its wings, at the same time moving his wings up and down, using the features as sharp as knives to face the seventeen white figures attacking them at the speed of lighting with effort.

An Chi’s tall stature is wounded heavily, blood is gurgling out of the huge gash on its chest, tears fall rapidly from Lianquan’s eyes, but she has no more energy to move…… she watches Shen Yin’s whip biting into An Chi’s hard feathers with her eyes wide open, the flesh tearing on its body. Sorrowful birdcalls sounding in the air resembles a heroic song.

A desperate bird call rips into the night. An Chi’s entire body is trapped by the silver whip, as if being twined by a thin python. The seventeen Shen Yins finally become one again, when the last two bodies fold together, a satisfied smile appears on her face, she holds the handle of the whip lightly in her hands as she looks at Lianquan on the ground and the large immobile An Chi.

“See, I can not summon my soul beast and still end your life. Looks like a disciple of the lower level will always be low.” After saying that, she raises her arm and moves it slightly, from the handle of the whip, rows and rows of sharp thorns appear, all the way to where An Chi is entwined, with that comes the dull sound of flesh being torn, in An Chi’s eyes are unbearable pain, but all it does is to groan softly from its throat.

“You dumb beast……” Tears fall from Guishan Lianquan’s face to the ground. Her fingers exerted too much force – they have sunken deep into the rock surface.

The snake-like silver whip loosens itself from An Chi’s body slowly, letting go of the large soul beast that is no longer moving.

Shen Yin walks towards Lianquan, flicking her wrist slightly, the whip hits Lianquan’s leg with a loud sound, a b.l.o.o.d.y gash opens on her leg, as if enjoying the game from a high position, Shen Yin’s expression is one of elegance and perfection.
 

Lianquan flips over and becomes unmoving on the ground, after a while, a low and eerie laughter emits from her mouth, “hehe……hehe……” her fingers dig deeply into the rocks; they are covered with blood.

“What are you laughing at?” Interested, Shen Yin looks down at her.

Guishan Lianquan says nothing, just as Shen Yin is about to ask more, she suddenly felt the ground move, in the distant surrounding waters, a loud howl shakes and echoes between the heavens and earth, the thundering sound seems to be nearing. “What……what……” When Shen Yin feels a strong gush of soul powers spewing from the ground, countless beams of light emits from her body and throws her backwards, along the ground, loud booms can be heard, countless large icicles rise form the ground, piercing towards the sky, if Shen Yin backed away slightly slower, her body would have been pierced by these pillars of ice.

“……This is your first soul beast Hai Yin? Impossible……how can it come here from the ocean……”

At the moment where Shen Yin loses focus, Guishan Lianquan unleashes the last of her soul powers, rus.h.i.+ng towards An Chi, she slaps the large sword onto the ground, in the loud buzz of the sword, An Chi extends its wings and dissipates into smoke before entering the sword, and in the next instant, Lianquan rushes towards the seventeenth statue on the wall, she loses all her energy the moment her hands touch the statue.

This is her only escape.

Shen Yin stares at Lianquan who disappeared before her, her angry expression morphs into one of confusion, “Impossible……she already has her own soul weapon, how can she enter the Grave of the Souls again through the Chess Piece?”

She stands her ground with countless ice pillars surrounding her. She narrows her eyes before flicking the whip, all the icicles exploded into shards in an instant, scattering violently. Countless small ice particles float in the air, reflecting bits and pieces of light, illuminating Shen Yin’s murderous expression.
 

[West of Aslan Empire – Surrounding Waters of Rennes – Grave of the Souls]

Brightly-coloured lights fill the surroundings, the large and deep cavern reflected into multi-colours.

With her body covered in blood, she falls onto a rock, her large sword abandoned at the side.

On the rocks of the four surrounding cliffs are tens of thousands of densely packed glowing soul weapons.

Countless powerful soul weapons are seeking each other out, the fierce resonance they give out are like sharp claws, ripping at the last of Guishan Lianquan’s consciousness.

In her slacking vision is the face of the person who emits justice and perseverance in the wind and snow, under his sharp brows are deep blue eyes, his gaze always resembling a lonely and silent field in a blizzard.

“Fenghun……”