"Xiao Suo..."

Qiao Muyi, seeing Ren Suo remove his hood, pull off his mask, and stand barefoot upon the earth, almost subconsciously called out her special nickname for him.

If possible, she certainly would not have wanted Ren Suo to appear on the battlefield—but now Ren Suo had made his determination clear through his actions and words, so naturally, Qiao Muyi couldn't say something foolish like, "You should run away by yourself."

That would be an insult to Ren Suo.

"Young Master, let's go home together," Ren Suo said calmly.

Qiao Muyi nodded slowly, her mind suddenly recalling the words Ren Suo had once said.

From now on, we part only in death, not in life.

"Pah."

Bright spat out a tooth stained with bloody foam, still maintaining a high guard stance. He glanced at Ren Suo and suddenly asked, "You are... Ren Suo?"

"It is indeed an honor that the Watcher's End Sword User knows my name," Ren Suo said. The sleeves of his jacket had already been completely torn apart by the Fiery Flame Whirlwind, his arms now wreathed in a meatgrinder of Fiery Flames and storms. Barefoot, he trod on the crystal ice, his eyes fixed tightly on Bright.

"Anyone related to Qiao Muyi, I know them very well," Bright sighed and said earnestly, "You have been deceived by her, Ren Suo."

"Oh?" Ren Suo's expression remained unchanged as he responded coldly. He began to circle Bright, ice extending under his bare feet, allowing him to glide across the earth as if floating.

"She relies on negative emotions to enhance her Demon King abilities," Bright said, his tone grave. "And the best way to gather negative emotions is by killing, by ravaging living beings to seize their Resentment!"

"I know."

"She told you that those Demon King's Followers weren't her doing, that the Sources of Disaster stirring up the world have nothing to do with her, right?" Bright continued. "But after our Watchers' investigation, all clues point directly to Qiao Muyi. She planned all this to spread her infamy across the world by ravaging it, making all beings Fear her! If not for the joint pressure from various countries and media Suppression, she might already have become an unrivaled Great Demon King!"

"Consider all that's happened this past month. Who else but her benefits? Numerous cities have been invaded by the Source of Disaster. Many innocent people have lost their lives, their loved ones, their limbs... In this whole affair, she is the only beneficiary!"

Ren Suo suddenly chuckled, but there was no trace of a smile on his face. He said, "Not exactly, End Sword User. You also benefited."

Bright narrowed his eyes slightly, a puzzled smile on his face. But with several teeth knocked out on the left side, the smile appeared somewhat sinister. "What do you mean?"

"I've seen your records. Your path to fame started with capturing Transcendent Criminals. Ever since the Source of Disaster emerged, whenever you arrive anywhere in the Federation, you just happen to encounter a Source of Disaster and slay it, quickly gaining fame. Even when you represented the Watchers in exchanges with other countries, you conveniently encountered the Source of Disaster in the Missile Mountain Range—right there for you to kill," Ren Suo said. "Your strength has grown significantly during the suppression of these Sources of Disaster, and so has your fame."

Bright shook his head. "That's just coincidence."

"You say Qiao Muyi is the only beneficiary, but she has not grown stronger from it. Instead, it is you who, after the appearance of the Source of Disaster, have skyrocketed in power... By that definition, aren't you the true sole beneficiary?"

Bright sighed. "You're putting the cart before the horse, just arguing for the sake of it. Evil is evil, good is good. My actions are seen by the entire globe as acts of Justice, saving thousands of lives. Moreover, Qiao Muyi's abilities have been confirmed by the Watchers' Prophets to be among the world's most evil Supernatural Abilities."

"She is merely hiding her real strength to deceive you, then using sweet words to get you to help her escape... Ren Suo, wake up!" Bright shouted earnestly. "Think about your family, think about your friends! You still have a bright future ahead; you could take up a position at the Transcendent Academy. Why insist on meddling in this matter? Leave the right of judgment to the government. You're neither qualified nor do you need to bear the responsibility of judging the Demon King! The best choice is for you and me to persuade Qiao Muyi to return to the Mysterious Country to face trial! If you can't bring yourself to act against your friend, then just stand aside and don't interfere. Don't be deceived any further. In the upcoming battle, I will show you just how ugly Qiao Muyi's true nature is—"

"You're courting death!"

Qiao Muyi let out a furious roar. The earth immediately disintegrated into countless pieces, and numerous sharp spikes erupted from the ground, all drilling towards Bright's groin!

Bright, not in the least afraid, leaped lightly. His longsword swept across the earth, and his Formless Sword Gang shattered all the spikes. He even had enough leeway to send a cross-shaped slash towards Qiao Muyi—

BANG!

His coccyx was struck hard by a Flame Spiral Pile Driver, imbued with scorching heat. Bright groaned, spitting out a mouthful of blood, and heard a calm voice carried on the cold wind from behind him: "I was indeed deceived."

"I was blinded by her beauty."

Realizing he was being held in mid-air by Ren Suo for leverage, Bright immediately raised his elbow, narrowly blocking Ren Suo's Explosive Ice Cold Leg!

But as a result, Bright was kicked to the ground by Ren Suo. Qiao Muyi, seizing the opportunity, raised several vicious, sharp stone spikes from the ground!

Bright, suspended in mid-air with nowhere to leverage his strength, slammed straight to the ground!

"ARGH!"

With a cry of pain, Bright smashed the stone spikes to shreds upon impact. His Formless Battle Armor finally activated—the stone spikes had no Armor Break effect.

Even so, Bright still absorbed a significant impact. His coccyx, already struck by Ren Suo's pile-driving attack, suffered a secondary, severe blow, throbbing with fiery pain!

At that moment, Bright saw a figure swooping down from above and immediately performed a donkey roll to dodge!

BOOM—

The Flame Spiral Pile Driver smashed a huge hole in the ground. Bright, having dodged the strike, swiftly propped himself up and leaped forward, raising his sword to strike at Ren Suo.

But Ren Suo was faster. His fist, still embedded in the ground, served as a pivot as he swung his leg toward Bright!

Just as Bright jumped, Ren Suo's frost-covered Explosive Ice Cold Leg smeared across his face, ice shards even bursting directly from the soles of Ren Suo's feet!

Bright was kicked far away, only managing to stabilize himself with his longsword at a considerable distance. He covered his blood-spattered face with his hand, panting heavily, his body beginning to tremble.

Ren Suo touched the bottom of his foot; the wounds sustained from the exploding ice shards healed instantly. His expression calm, he signaled Qiao Muyi not to worry and beckoned at Bright with a hooked finger.

"Heh... hahaha." Bright wiped the blood from his face, revealing a fierce smile. "Why do I always end up meeting people who dislike me lately..."

"So what if you help Qiao Muyi defeat me here, Ren Suo?" Bright shouted loudly, trying to shake Ren Suo's resolve. "She is still the enemy of the entire world! Your aiding her isn't helping her, you're harming her!"

"But this is all your fault," Ren Suo said calmly, lowering his leg.

"It was not my doing. And no matter who did it, fighting me is meaningless!" Bright said. "Taking her back for trial is the best solution!"

"We will go back, after we kill you," Ren Suo stated evenly.

Bright shook his head helplessly, his face still showing compassion despite the scars. "Why must you insist on seeing me as the enemy?"

"Because the first time I saw you online, I really disliked you," Ren Suo said, crouching slightly. His hands transformed into Flame Spiral Pile Drivers, and the ground beneath him gradually turned to ice. "I've wanted to step on your face for a long time."

"I don't know how the world will treat us after we leave this place, but I know that if I don't beat you to death tonight, she definitely won't let me hold her when we go to sleep."

Even with Bright's great composure, he couldn't help but let out a cold laugh upon hearing this. Fighting and cursing while flaunting your love!? Fine, since I can't trick you into going back, I'll just have to finish you here.

"Since you insist on seeing me as the enemy, then don't blame my sword for being cold and merciless."

Bright dual-wielded his longswords, spat out a mouthful of dirty blood, and assumed an upper stance. His Microcosm (as the Federation calls a Qi Cyclone) began to spin wildly, erupting with a terrifying aura that intimidated all!

Bright, a C-rank Transcendent, known by the hero name 'End Sword User', has slain 32 Sources of Disaster, and defeated 51 F-rank Transcendents, 12 E-rank Transcendents, and 8 C-rank Transcendents!

Among his peers, excluding You Jiu and Kadell who might contend with him, the rest were utterly inferior!

He had merely underestimated these scoundrels, which was why they had taken him by surprise, costing him a few teeth and injuring his tailbone.

However, Bright quickly assessed the current situation: Ren Suo could injure him, but only in close combat. Qiao Muyi, though capable of ranged attacks, could be easily blocked. Both their weaknesses were too apparent. If he just got a little more serious and fully unleashed the strength of a C-rank Transcendent, these scoundrels wouldn't be able to touch a hair on him!

BOOM!

Bright used his longsword to block Ren Suo's Flame Spiral Pile Driver. The numbing shock forced him to retreat repeatedly, right into a fresh, searingly hot mudflow of Fiery Flame, which instantly covered him in scorching mud!

With a furious roar, a brilliant Radiance like a Dawn Morning Star burst from the mud. Bright emerged from the earth, his white trench coat torn and ragged, his high-tech Nano Combat Suit significantly damaged, his pants completely burned away.

Yet, a Radiance now glowed from his body. A suit of Bright Armor, like something from a fantasy game, materialized around him—as if by an instant wardrobe change from a game—transforming Bright from a dirt-covered beggar into an elegantly attired Knight.

Bright used his left hand to adjust his slightly singed golden hair by his ear, accidentally touching his bruised face. The pain made him wince, yet his smile grew even more radiant.

"Well fought."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.