Dueling Magic

"Crash~~"

The teacup shattered on the floor, and both Gu Xuanwu and Li Yueya stared at Wu Xin in astonishment.

"Neither the waiter nor the shopkeeper is alive. They aren’t breathing."

Wu Xin spoke as his bloodstained dagger swept across the waiter holding the dishes. It passed straight through without spraying any blood. Instead, several Paper Dolls scattered into the air.

After a ripple passed through the scene, the waiter, the shopkeeper, and the surrounding pedestrians all vanished. The place had become a Broken Temple. Paper Dolls circled through the air, glaring at them with murderous intent.

"Wu Xin! Gu Xuanwu!"

A clear, childish voice filled with strange emotion rang out as Yue Qiluo, dressed like Little Red Riding Hood, appeared in the Broken Temple.

"Yue Qiluo! So you’re behind this! I knew you were no good. Zhang Xianzong was bewitched by you, wasn’t he?"

Gu Xuanwu drew his Heirloom Saber and shouted at Yue Qiluo menacingly. It had to be said that Gu Xuanwu had some ability. Once he worked up his courage, he possessed the imposing air of someone who could kill even gods if they stood in his way. He was especially intimidating to Ghost Fiends, which was one of the reasons Wu Xin valued him.

"Zhang Xianzong? You still dare mention him? He treated you as his brother, but what did you do? You shot your own brother!"

Yue Qiluo’s childish voice brimmed with indignation. She was furious over Gu Xuanwu’s actions. During this period, Gu Sheng had used all kinds of methods to wear down her resistance, and she had barely interacted with the Wu Xin who had originally interested her. Now, aside from herself, the most important person in her heart was Gu Sheng.

So when she learned that Gu Xuanwu had nearly shot Gu Sheng, she flew into a rage and broke her original oath to come after him.

"Hmph~ After my brother met you, that’s when he became like this."

Gu Xuanwu held a gun in his left hand and a saber in his right, looking rather imposing. "Why did I shoot him? He was the one who wronged me first. He wanted to establish his own faction, secretly became a Brigade Commander behind my back, and even worked with the Japanese. After all that, tell me—how was I the one who wronged him?"

"That has nothing to do with me. I only know that you deserve to die!"

Yue Qiluo gave a furious shout. Her repeatedly modified Paper Doll Technique activated, and the Paper Dolls merged into three enormous figures that lunged straight at Gu Xuanwu, Wu Xin, and Li Yueya.

"Ah~"

A Paper Doll struck the hand Wu Xin was holding Li Yueya with. Separated from Wu Xin, Li Yueya clutched the chicken basket as fear made her cry out.

"Wu Xin~ Find a source of fire!"

At the critical moment, Big White Chicken in Yueya’s hands suddenly rippled. A hazy phantom appeared, sending out two beams of white light that shielded Li Yueya. Each beam blocked one Paper Doll.

"Okay~ Bai Liuli, hold them off for a while~"

Wu Xin shouted toward Bai Liuli, then encouraged Gu Xuanwu, "Lord Gu, hold on by yourself for a bit. We’ll come help you soon."

"Bang~"

Gu Xuanwu was tackled to the ground by the giant Paper Doll and was pinned down, unable to rise. One small Paper Doll after another flew onto him, entangling and attacking him, tearing holes into his clothes.

"Wu Xin, hurry up! I, Old Gu, can’t hold out much longer!"

Gu Xuanwu struggled to swing his saber and scatter the Paper Dolls. While they regrouped, he began playing hide-and-seek with them.

"Yueya, the fire starter!"

Wu Xin fumbled around and hastily made a torch. Then he ran to Yueya, who was protected behind Bai Liuli, took the fire starter from her, and blew hard.

"Whoosh~~"

The fire starter flared to life, igniting the torch that had been coated with a little wax.

"Yueya, go help Bai Liuli. I’ll help Lord Gu."

Wu Xin hurriedly carried a torch over to Gu Xuanwu while ordering Yueya to take one to Bai Liuli.

"Catch fire!"

When Yueya’s torch reached him, Bai Liuli formed a hand seal. The flames on the torch suddenly shot upward and grew larger, and blazing fire surged toward the two Paper Dolls.

"How can this be useless?"

After the fire burned through them, the Paper Dolls opposite them had only acquired a slight layer of char and were otherwise unchanged. The scene Bai Liuli had imagined, where they would ignite at a touch, never occurred.

"Bai Liuli, the torches are useless!"

Wu Xin shouted as well. The Paper Dolls before him had been struck by the torch repeatedly without suffering the slightest harm, aside from becoming somewhat charred. If he hadn’t realized something was wrong and used his bloodstained dagger to stab several Paper Dolls out of existence, Gu Xuanwu might already have been finished.

"I know. There’s something wrong with this Paper Doll Technique. It’s different from the original."

Bai Liuli shouted back. He had been the one to discover and destroy the Paper Doll Yue Qiluo had previously used to monitor Gu Xuanwu. As a great Sorcerer of his generation, he understood the intricacies of the Paper Doll’s transformations even better than Wu Xin.

"Hehe~~ Did you really think my Paper Dolls would be so easy to deal with?"

Yue Qiluo laughed. "The paper I used before was ordinary paper, so it was naturally easy for you to counter. But these Paper Dolls are made from Fireproof Paper that he specifically found for me. After I cast my spell on them, they’re impervious to water and fire. I won’t make the same mistake again. Prepare to die!"

"So you were the one who harmed my Paper Dolls last time? You barely count as an undying soul, but it’s a pity you refuse to reincarnate. You dared oppose me, so you’re courting death!"

Yue Qiluo’s first target was not Wu Xin or Gu Xuanwu, but Bai Liuli, who had only his soul remaining. Of the "three people," he was actually the only one with magic power and the ability to break through the predicament, so naturally she had to find a way to eliminate him first.

"Bai Liuli, watch out!"

Wu Xin shouted urgently. Ignoring the danger, he charged across the mass of Paper Dolls to support Bai Liuli. His bloodstained dagger stabbed wildly, knocking down every Paper Doll it struck. His blood was truly devastating. If Yue Qiluo’s Paper Dolls couldn’t gather and disperse at will, and if there hadn’t been so many of them, Wu Xin’s blood would probably already have left them in ruins.

"What strange magic~"

Bai Liuli’s expression changed. He pressed his palms together and released a surge of magic power. A white beam pierced through one Paper Doll, then pushed another toward Yue Qiluo.

"If you were still alive, you might be able to contend with me. But you’re already dead. What you’re doing now is nothing more than an ant trying to stop a chariot. You don’t know your own limits!"

Yue Qiluo gave a soft laugh. Floating in midair, she repeatedly flicked her fingers and chanted. As red radiance flashed, the giant Paper Doll locked in combat with Bai Liuli’s white beam began to glow red in the eyes. After a burst of crimson light, it forced the white beam backward and pressed hard against Bai Liuli.

"Wu Xin, now!"

Bai Liuli suddenly shouted. His entire body erupted with silvery-white radiance as he charged back toward Yue Qiluo’s Paper Doll. With a sweep of his long sleeve, his whole body transformed into a silver point of light and darted into White Chicken.

"Pfft~~~"

Wu Xin instantly took Bai Liuli’s place. He pulled open his chest and faced Yue Qiluo directly. His dagger stabbed violently into his chest, then he yanked it sideways. With a "Pfft!" countless streams of blood sprayed outward. Small Paper Dolls fluttered to the ground wherever it passed, while even the giant Paper Dolls were left on the verge of collapse.