### Chapter 10 Countdown 10
They could not see, could not hear, could not move, as if they were trapped in a pitch-black cage.
In the darkness, surging spirit energy fluctuations constantly stimulated their spiritual senses.
It seemed as if they caught a glimpse of the terrifying scroll depicting the birth of the world.
The primordial soup boiled, and a scorching dry wind blew from afar, battering against them, as if to completely dry their bodies, as if everything was turning to ashes amid the brutal thunder and rushing lava, countless chaotic airwaves swirling with ashes.
However, in such a terrifying environment, there were two massive beasts constantly fighting not far from them…
In a daze, they felt like a group of insects separated from their cluster, swept into a migrating herd of buffalo, where a moment of carelessness could result in being trampled into a mush of flesh.
They could d*e!
At any moment they could d*e!
The breath of d*ath was everywhere.
The aftermath of the battle at the cataclysm grade rained down on them like execution instruments, continuously bringing pain, not knowing when they would take their lives.
The adrenaline that surged at all times made their hearts race as if they would explode, the sympathetic nervous system seemed to tear apart, uncontrollable rapid breathing filled their lungs with scorching air, causing waves of sharp pain.
Nanling Yaohua glanced at the member of the Solar Eclipse Society beside him, who had wet himself several times and been dried by the hot winds lifted by Luxianbei, shaking his head in disgust.
When will this end?
At this rate, these guys are probably going to be scared to d*ath, Nanling Yaohua thought.
————
Under the night sky, the mountains and rivers boiled, and beneath the burning heavens, ashes with flickering fire fell like rain.
In the seemingly endless whiteness, Luxianbei heard the deafening thunder.
Then, she was sent flying.
Her body spun in the sky, rotating seven hundred and twenty degrees, crashing to the ground, a sticky, sweet scent spreading in her mouth.
With the soft “pitter-patter” of sounds, the thunder charged into her limbs and bones, the feeling of paralysis spread through every inch of flesh.
Luxianbei opened her eyes and looked at the figure slowly drifting down from the sky, cold sweat appearing on her forehead.
Even knowing deep down that Zhang Hainan had no intention of putting her to d*ath, the sight of that figure outlining a divine shadow, spreading vast thunder, made her heart tremble uncontrollably.
Every strand of spirit energy emanating from that figure seemed to loudly declare to everything in sight that he was the embodiment of thunder cast upon the earth, undoubtedly a manifestation of thunder.
This old man is simply a monster! Luxianbei thought.
She initially believed that since Zhang Hainan had learned from Qing Ji, his strength would likely be comparable, and after obtaining cataclysm-grade power, she should have some fighting chance.
But the truth proved that the strongest is indeed the strongest, with no hint of dilution.
Even without the assistance of the Zixiao Terrace, Zhang Hainan could easily suppress her, and it appeared he still had considerable strength left…
Previously, Qing Ji often complained about Zhang Hainan’s dullness in his youth, even saying things like “teaching a pig is easier than teaching him,” but after fighting Zhang Hainan, Luxianbei realized that he might just be a bit “wise in foolishness” compared to a genius like Qing Ji.
But wisdom wrapped in foolishness is not true foolishness.
During her battle with Qing Ji, she could feel his agile movements and even a hint of mock skill. However, fighting Zhang Hainan lacked that feeling; each move sought to achieve the most practical effect in the most straightforward manner.
Perhaps, the combination of what he learned from Qing Ji, his unique understanding, and its perfect alignment with his own skills formed the true reason behind Zhang Hainan’s slow progress in his training.
“Cut—!”
Just as Luxianbei was thinking quietly, Qing Ji nearby clapped the board in his hand, pausing the camera.
“What’s wrong with you two? Can’t you do any better in this performance?”
Walking over to Zhang Hainan and Luxianbei, Qing Ji began to criticize them.
Yes, under Luxianbei’s heartfelt pleas and logical reasoning, she had managed to explain to Qing Ji why it was inconvenient for him to participate in this “performance,” thus avoiding the fate of being double-teamed by the two old men.
Unfortunately, she and Zhang Hainan could not escape the fate of being tormented by Qing Ji.
Under Qing Ji’s successful direction, they had already fought thirty-two times…
That meant Luxianbei had faced “the might of the Black Emperor” thirty-two times directly.
Beating Luxianbei, does he need to do it himself?
As soon as the “cut” signal sounded, the Black Emperor would naturally take over!
“Do you need to do it all over again?” Luxianbei struggled to rise, looking at Qing Ji with a face full of grievances, “Ancestor, I suspect you’re taking personal revenge!”
“Bullshit!” Qing Ji rolled his eyes and looked at Zhang Hainan, saying, “You yourself said that during the seventy-first, one hundred thirty-sixth, and two hundred ninth encounters, why did you suddenly stop? I can see it; can others not see it?”
“Not even letting up at all, it really makes people anxious!”
“This…” Zhang Hainan looked troubled, pondering for a few seconds before cupping his hands to Qing Ji, “Brother’s teachings are on point.”
In his view, Qing Ji was absolutely right; he truly was not skilled at going easy during battles… After all, since entering the Dachunyang Palace and beginning his studies, every sword style, every spell formula, and every body technique he learned was meant for “exterminating demons and protecting the way”…
Therefore, while he might be excellent at killing or defeating enemies, it was indeed somewhat difficult to deal a seemingly lethal blow while simultaneously not causing substantial harm.
“Got it, let’s do it again!” Qing Ji pointed at Zhang Hainan with his chin, readied the camera once more, and called out, “Scene one, take thirty-three, prepare!”
“Yes, Brother!” Zhang Hainan replied.
Luxianbei, “…”
I feel like these two old geezers are teaming up to mess with me, but I have no evidence!
————
【Countdown to “d*ath by Calamity”: 80H24M50S】
In the small courtyard of the Lu Family Manor in Beijing, under the lush pomegranate tree.
Several people sat on small wicker chairs, gathered in front of an old box television, watching the screen displaying “fully-loaded” special effects, as if they were in a scene from an old film of the eighties and nineties, the atmosphere unusually harmonious.
As the scene of the girl in green clothes losing appeared on the television, a pair of wrinkled hands quietly pressed the pause button, freezing the image at that moment.
Starring the Black Emperor and Calamity, directed and filmed by Qing Ji, with support from Xuan Ying Luo Fu, the final version of the “blockbuster” expected to be released to major spirit energy organizations, comes to a close.
“How was it? Was it okay?”
Zhang Hainan turned around to glance at Luxianbei, then shifted his gaze to Qing Ji, who was holding Wang Ying, his expression eager, speaking with a hint of humility as if he were a child desperate for approval from respected elders after achieving some results.
“Amazing! Super amazing!” Wang Ying clapped her little hands, her baby voice shouting.
The footage of the two cataclysm-grade beings clashing made her dormant powers stir with anticipation, eager to replicate.
With her mentality, she could not yet understand what this impulse meant.
She only knew that what the body needed was good, was powerful, just like… candies, milk tea, and strawberry ice cream.
Qing Ji looked down, teasing Wang Ying, then glanced at Zhang Hainan with a sidelong glance and scoffed, “It’s passable…”
Upon hearing this, Zhang Hainan’s eyes slightly drooped, his chin lifted, and he raised a hand to stroke his beard, his old face unable to hide his pride.
No one understood Qing Ji’s character better than Zhang Hainan, except perhaps for the now deceased Luxue Bo.
Simply put, he was sharp-tongued but soft-hearted.
“Passable” could almost be said to be Qing Ji’s highest praise.
Seeing Zhang Hainan looking like his tail was about to wag into the sky, Qing Ji rolled his eyes, then uttered one of the most annoying phrases in the Chinese language.
“But…”
“Still feels like something is missing?”
“Old East… Ancestor! You already nodded earlier, you can’t backtrack now!” Luxianbei, who had been tormented for over fifty times, immediately jumped up from her seat, voicing her objection.
As the “violator,” Zhang Hainan merely cupped his hands and said, “I hope Brother points out any shortcomings.”
Although Qing Ji’s “negative feedback” left him slightly disappointed, he had lived over a hundred years, seen many grand occasions, and was not about to let this minor disappointment affect his emotions.
Not to mention redoing it once!
“I thought about it; it’s too meandering!” Qing Ji mused, “Since it’s for others to view, it should be clean and swift, a few moves… no, it’s best to end it with a single blow!”
“Oh?” Zhang Hainan seemed to have thought of something, raising an eyebrow.
“I understand the Ancestor’s meaning!”
Before Zhang Hainan could fully grasp Qing Ji’s provided thought process and organize his language, Luxianbei piped up.
Though her education taught her to respect the elderly and love the young, she could not hold back.
“The Ancestor means that as long as it’s acting, the realism won’t reach one hundred percent, so exaggeration is completely fine…”
“Right, Ancestor?”
Seeing Qing Ji nodding, Luxianbei looked at Zhang Hainan, “Senior, I remember you telling me that preparing for this scene is key to influencing their cognition through visual data or other information channels… Since that’s the case, why not maximize the benefits?”
Upon hearing this, Zhang Hainan pondered for a few seconds, trying, “As long as they see the image of Calamity being killed, even if it’s somewhat exaggerated, the vast majority will be influenced by the hidden complexity of the spell formula and believe Calamity has been hunted… Is that how it is?”
“Exactly, since we’re affecting their cognition, we might as well give them more shocking material.” Qing Ji affirmed.
“For example, the Black Emperor killed Calamity with a single blow?” Zhang Hainan’s eyes lit up, suddenly feeling as if he had cleared a mental block, gaining newfound clarity.
This indeed counts as adding shock value.
It’s like adding condensed milk to beef soup.
“Correct!” Luxianbei nodded, “Being able to take down an opponent with a single blow at cataclysm grade would elevate the intimidation factor of the Black Emperor in that guy’s mind.”
As things stood, no major spirit energy organization dared to test how strong Zhang Hainan truly was; they could only guess.
Under this premise, who could ensure that the Black Emperor couldn’t take out Calamity in a single blow?
As long as there was a possibility, someone would believe it. Thus, spreading this information would be immensely profitable.
After all, this is a world where “I think you might have nuclear weapons, and you just might!”
Seeing Luxianbei and Zhang Hainan sing in harmony, expressing their thoughts, Qing Ji showed a pleased smile, “Very good!”
Thus, the three seasoned old silver coins swiftly finalized the ultimate plan for 【The d*ath of Calamity】!
But the moment the final plan was set, seeing Qing Ji and Zhang Hainan exchange satisfied smiles as if they had succeeded in a conspiracy, her face suddenly darkened.
She suddenly realized that the previous fifty-plus tortures and this last one, where she actively suggested a “reshoot,” were likely a scheme plotted by Qing Ji and Zhang Hainan!
“…”
The old man doesn’t seem to be as slow in reaction as the Ancestor said…
What seemed to be me guiding him, was actually him guiding me? So I’ve been kept in the dark all along?
Hmph, it’s not that the old man has turned bad, it’s that the bad man has grown old; this saying is utterly true! Luxianbei thought fiercely.
