My starting summon is a small skeleton
Chapter 434: Treasury 431

Chapter 434: Treasury 431

3rd District, Holy Sect Alliance.

Outside that dark golden Thunder Energy Ball Domain.

Elder Zhao, Zhang Mingrui, Mu Laogui, and Old Huo, these four elders had successively arrived. The quickest to the scene was Mu Laogui, who had maintained contact with Fei Yinghao; he arrived a minute before the others successively did.

The Elder Council, save for leaving two guardians behind at Elder Mountain, had mobilized all those who could be deployed, including Epic 3 stars like Elder Zhao and Zhang Mingrui. This highlighted their sheer determination to eliminate Lu Wu.

But upon reaching their destination, their murderous intent dissipated.

Because it was gone.

Lu Wu was gone!

To be exact, it was Lu Wu’s Doppelganger that was missing.

It seemed deliberate; right under their watchful eyes, it faded away bit by bit.

Watching Lu Wu’s Doppelganger disappear, not only did the four heavyweights lose their urge to kill, their whole demeanor fell apart.

After all this rush, they realized they had come all this way just for one of Lu Wu’s Doppelgangers—who wouldn’t be upset?

However, compared to Fei Yinghao, they were still in better shape.

They had merely expended effort, while on Fei Yinghao’s side, it was his Life Force that had been consumed.

And more severe than the draining of Life Force was the mental and emotional torment he suffered.

By now, Fei Yinghao had fully realized that Lu Wu had left that Doppelganger behind specifically to calculate against him.

Once again, he’d been played and manipulated by Lu Wu.

Lu Wu had correctly guessed his deep-seated hatred and fear of Lu Wu’s rapid advancement, knowing that Fei Yinghao would not let him go, even if it meant paying with his life to stop him.

It was a struggle between life and death, a fight to the bitter end.

Having anticipated this, Lu Wu took control of the situation, easily trading his Doppelganger for ninety-nine percent of Fei Yinghao’s Life Force.

Fei Yinghao was indeed foolishly deceived, such that now he had fallen into an indescribably dire state.

Although Fei Yinghao was still alive, he felt worse than dead.

His family was all deceased, a large portion by his own hand.

He’d exhausted all efforts to seek vengeance, but in the end, he became a joke.

A joke with barely any strength left, and who could only watch as he steadily edged closer to his demise.

One could only imagine what Fei Yinghao’s current state of mind was.

The term “utter despair” was enough to describe it!

As Lu Wu vanished, Fei Yinghao, too, lost any desire to control the Domain.

With Fei Yinghao letting go, the dark golden Energy Ball vanished, and he fell from the sky, not even attempting to move as if ready to embrace death and put an end to his suffering.

Watching him like this, even the elders who normally clashed with him could not help but sigh and shiver with dread!

“Killing the man and the spirit, such a ruthless tactic!” they lamented.

As the elders, like Zhang Mingrui, softly sighed, Mu Laogui reached out and caught Fei Yinghao, who was about to fall, preventing a fatal crash.

Yet, despite Mu Laogui saving him, Fei Yinghao showed no gratitude, not even lifting his eyelids.

Whether it was empathy for a comrade’s anguish or something else, Mu Laogui, who did not usually get along with Fei Yinghao, spoke up to comfort him.

“Old Fei, don’t be like this. You need to pull yourself together!”

Fei Yinghao ignored him.

There’s nothing worse than a broken heart.

With a heart thoroughly dead, how could Fei Yinghao respond?

But Mu Laogui didn’t intend to give up.

“Old Fei, you haven’t lost yet, you still have a chance!”

That statement made Fei Yinghao react.

“Chance?”

From Fei Yinghao’s hoarse throat, a voice of profound misery emerged: “What chance do I have?

With this body of mine, I can’t live for half a year even lying still, and I won’t survive to see tomorrow’s sun if I move a bit. What chance could there be?

Even if I were in my prime, so what?

Could I fight against him?”

At the mention of Lu Wu, Fei Yinghao’s expression became extremely complex.

There was boundless hatred, but deeper than that, fear.

He was frightened, truly terrified. Now, even if he were in perfect condition, he might not have the courage to face Lu Wu.

“Mu Laogui, Old Huo, Old Zhao, Old Zhang, we’ve had a century’s worth of friendship. Please help me, give me a quick end.”

“You can die at any time, but Old Fei, are you really content to give up like this?

Think of your family, think of how he treated you.

Don’t you truly want vengeance…”

“Enough, shut up. I’m done for, how can I seek vengeance!

Not even the gods can grant me my vengeance!”

“The gods may not grant you revenge, but the Gate can!” With these words, Mu Laogui made the delirious Fei Yinghao freeze in his tracks.

Right, the Gate could indeed grant him the power to avenge himself upon Lu Wu.

That Pang Duddu, a nobody with just a Fragment, had wiped out half of the Elder Council. If he, Fei Yinghao, could master the power of the Gate, then perhaps he could gain the power for revenge.

Of course, Fei Yinghao knew the power of the Gate was not easily mastered.

If not thoroughly researched, even just entry-level mastery was extremely dangerous, and the slightest carelessness could be fatal.

This was the reason why, despite the Elder Council and the Holy Sect Alliance having Gate Fragments, no one had mastered their power.

It wasn’t that they didn’t want to—it was too difficult, too risky, and they dared not.

Fei Yinghao had previously dared not as well, but now he felt he could take the risk.

“Fine, I’ll gamble with my life!”

Watching Fei Yinghao nod, Mu Laogui showed a relieved smile, yet behind that smile lurked a meaningful agenda.

Mu Laogui’s reassurance to Fei Yinghao wasn’t simply for Fei Yinghao’s sake, but also to create a test subject for themselves.

In fact, since the Dudu incident at Elder Mountain, a dark cloud had loomed in the hearts of the elders there.

For the first time, they came to realize how fragile their lives and authority were, that a mere Pang Duddu could decimate half of their Elder Council.

Then, Lu Wu’s rise further fueled their fear.

They began trying to change the status quo, and the best way to do that was through the Fragments.

If they could master the power of a Fragment, they could change the status quo.

But mastering a Fragment’s power was not easy, especially for high-level fighters like themselves; it was even more difficult. They needed a test subject to gather experience, and currently, Fei Yinghao was the perfect candidate.

Fei Yinghao was aware of this as well.

But he didn’t care; he was a dying man, so why would he mind being used by others?

On the contrary, as someone on the brink of death still being used, it at least showed he still had hope, still had value.

So at this moment, the atmosphere between the two sides was still quite harmonious, until Zhang Mingrui sighed, “I never expected that in just two short days, Lu Wu would set up such a grand chess game.”

This statement made everyone pause.

They glanced at Fei Yinghao, who was expressionless, and seeing that he had no extreme reaction, they started discussing the topic.

“Indeed, starting from Beijing, he calculated against the Holy Sect Alliance, then against Old Fei. His game of chess is truly vast.

What do you think his next move will be?”

“Hard to say,” Zhang Mingrui shook his head, fell silent for a moment, then added, “If I were him, I might take advantage of our departure and strike directly at Elder Mountain!”

As soon as these words came out, the complexions of the five people stiffened once more.

“Well, that’s Old Zhang’s thought. Lu Wu probably wouldn’t do that, right?”

“Yeah, Lu Wu has already used two avatars in succession. It takes a huge toll to condense avatars of Epic level, suffering the agony of mental tearing. How long has he been at the Epic level?

Having two avatars should be his limit, right? Losing two avatars in succession, the cost isn’t small either?

He should be out of strength to make another move!”

Although they said this, the elders were still somewhat panicked.

After all, no one knew whether Lu Wu really had run out of strength or not.

“Ask about their situation over there!”

They contacted Elder Mountain immediately to check on the situation, and the reply they received was that everything was normal.

Zhao Xue’en and the others had just let out a sigh of relief at this answer when the face of an elder over there suddenly changed.

“Something’s not right, it seems someone has infiltrated!”

Upon hearing this, the faces of Zhao Xue’en and the others changed!

“Let’s go back! We’ll talk after we get back!”

Despite their confidence in Elder Mountain’s defenses, feeling that Lu Wu should not be capable of breaking through…

Better safe than sorry!

Moreover, the unexpected moves from Lu Wu were not few and far between.

Who could have imagined that Lu Wu, who just two days ago was a down-and-out fugitive, would suddenly make a move today? Not only did he directly annihilate the Fei Family, but he also crossed regions to wipe out the Holy Sect Alliance, and in the process, he reduced Fei Yinghao, one of the twelve elders and one of the most top-tier figures among them, to his current state.

Every move he made was beyond the predictions of the Elder Council.

If they returned to Elder Mountain too late, it wasn’t absolutely impossible for Lu Wu to take down Elder Mountain directly.

Carrying this concern, the people from Elder Mountain rushed back to Elder Mountain with all their might.

However, because their speed dropped after entering Zone 1, it took them slightly longer to return, about 15 minutes or so.

Fortunately, when they returned to Elder Mountain, there were no accidents.

The two elders who were the guardians of Elder Mountain also figured out what the previous commotion was about.

“It seems to be Lin Jianying. It was as if he deliberately made his presence known!”

Upon hearing this, the expressions on the faces of Zhao Xue’en and Zhang Mingrui changed.

“We’ve been tricked!”

With their intelligence, they saw at a glance that Lin Jianying’s appearance was clearly designed by Lu Wu.

The purpose was to attract their attention and draw them back from the Holy Sect Alliance.

“It seems that when we returned, that kid should still have been at the Holy Sect Alliance.”

“Right, at least he was nearby, or he left behind information that could expose him, which is why he used this tactic to draw us back!”

“If we go back now…”

“Is it still possible at this point? If we go back now, there will be nothing left!”

Realizing they had been outmaneuvered by Lu Wu again, Zhao Xue’en and the others looked terrible, but they were helpless.

After a silence, Mu Laogui was the first to break the silence.

“Forget it. If he’s escaped, let him escape. Dealing with Old Fei’s matter is more urgent!”

This diverted everyone’s attention back to Fei Yinghao, including Zhao Xue’en and Zhang Mingrui.

“Old Fei, are you really willing to take this gamble?”

Zhang Mingrui stepped forward and put a hand on Fei Yinghao’s shoulder, his tone complex but sincere. Fei Yinghao did not buy it at all.

“Enough with the pretense. Isn’t this what you wanted to see?

I am not going to live anyway, might as well do you this favor!”

Perhaps struck hard by Lu Wu, or perhaps facing death, Fei Yinghao was particularly unrestrained at this moment.

Zhang Mingrui didn’t care about Fei Yinghao’s attitude. After all, he was a pragmatist; as long as it benefited him, Fei Yinghao’s attitude was irrelevant.

“Since Old Fei has decided, then open the treasury for him to choose a Gate Fragment, and also select a set of Refinement…”

“No need to choose, just give me the largest fragment!

As for the Refinement plan, use the most dangerous one.

Either it will work, or I’ll go mad with rage!”

In the midst of Fei Yinghao’s hysterical voice, Zhao Xue’en and the others fell into a brief silence, seemingly with some concerns.

Fei Yinghao frowned at this, his voice cold, “What, I’m throwing away my life to pave the way for you?

And you can’t even part with one fragment?”

“Old Fei, you misunderstand us; that’s not what we mean, we are…”

Zhang Mingrui’s face changed, and he started to mediate, but before he could finish, he was interrupted by Zhao Xue’en.

“Fine, let’s do as you wish!”

“Old Zhao, you…” Zhang Mingrui was startled, exchanged looks with Zhao Xue’en, hesitated for a moment, and finally nodded, “Alright, we’ll do it this way!”

In the absence of the Chairman, Elder Mountain was ruled by Zhao Xue’en and Zhang Mingrui, the two Epic 3 stars, along with Fei Yinghao, who was very close to 3 stars.

Now that Fei Yinghao was done for, these two big shots nodded, and the rest of the elders naturally had no reason to refuse and could only agree by nodding their heads in unity.

“Since everyone agrees, then let’s open the treasury!”

Zhao Xue’en spoke, stretching out his hand to produce a seal, and the other significant figures took out their seals promptly as well, although Mu Laogui was a bit delayed.

Nobody minded that.

After all, it was quite normal for him to be slower as he was supporting Fei Yinghao and fumbling for things at the same time.

Soon, the seals of the elders were ready, and even the seals of those elders killed by Pang Duddu were taken out.

Elder Mountain’s treasury was different from the usual treasuries.

The usual treasury contained equipment, buildings, and props, but the Elder Mountain’s treasury was a Secret Realm.

Opening this Secret Realm required gathering the seals of at least ten elders simultaneously, and that was just the prerequisite. Once the seals were gathered, various procedures were required, and the elders needed to perform numerous operations, so it was quite complicated.

Due to several elders having trouble with the operations, especially with Fei Yinghao needing Mu Laogui to handle things, the group of elders finally managed to open the treasury.

However, opening this treasury was just the first step. It wasn’t as simple as being able to go right in once the treasury was opened. After opening it, they needed to communicate with the creatures guarding the treasury, and it was quite troublesome to obtain what they wanted.

Following this series of tasks, Mu Laogui’s complexion looked somewhat unwell.