Chapter 300 - Living

A gruff voice echoed in the now silent chamber, "So utterly disappointing...."

The Jadeblood Scorpion King hovered above a small hill made of corpses as he surveyed the surroundings.

All around him were the hundreds of remaining Mei and Jia Cultivators.

Outside, the viewers were watching on with clenched fists and teary eyes, not wanting to believe what they had just witnessed.

More than 600 cultivators had died in a span of a few minutes while the fate of the remaining survivors was all but written in stone.

**

The fight had begun with the intensity of a raging tornado and came to an abrupt halt much like a small child running into a wall at full force.

The Mei Cultivators launched their attack and everything was going according to plan until Hashim and Kreim tried to approach the golden chest.

They had essentially become invisible and even when a person was looking right at them it would look like they were staring at shadows. Yet the Scorpion king's beastly eyes never left them even once.

He played along with their plans until a few minutes into the fight. The humans thought they had the upper hand as they shot one attack after another towards this king of beasts, trying to get his attention.

When it looked like the assassin brothers had almost reached the chest, the Jia soldiers finally couldn't take it anymore and launched their attack as well, well all but one of them.

Jia Tu still didn't make a move and stood at the periphery of the cavern and watched on.

Jia's 100 Guardian's were strong enough to block everything the Mei cultivators could throw at them. Although they couldn't do much damage in return, they were still literal tanks whose only purpose was to reduce and even completely block any and all damage.

These measly 100 Guardians managed to push back almost 450 Mei cultivators while the 14 Jia leaders took the opportunity to attack whenever possible.

Now the fight was between the Jia and the Mei cultivators instead of them and the Scorpion King.

Still, he did not take it personally and watched on curiously.

The two groups fought for several minutes until the assassin brothers reached the chest. And as they tried to take it, the Scorpion King had finally had enough.

With a single swipe of his tail, they were cut into hundreds of pieces. No one even saw what happened. He then proceeded to start a massacre.

The two arched outgrowths on his back slowly lit up with a green light that got brighter and brighter.

It was then that everyone remembered that their opponent was a beast at the Profound realm. Someone that had managed to connect its inner world to the world outside and borrow its unlimited power.

The growths accumulated energy for a minute before unleashing a powerful attack like a laser beam. Everywhere it passed, everything it touched, all of it was burnt to a crisp in a matter of seconds.

Just that single attack took the lives of more than 400 people.

The rest snapped back to reality and realized who their real enemy was, but it was already too late.

Like a wolf in a chicken coop, the Scorpion King went into the heart of the mobs and started killing.

His claws seemed to be embedded with a strange power as wherever they passed, everything was corroded. Be it weapons, armor, Qi, or flesh, all of it dissolved and vaporized.

The Guardians the Jia Kingdom was so proud of could barely take a single attack before crumbling into a panicked mob and running for their lives. More than half the leaders from Mei and Jia were killed in that single conflict.

Jia Tu's expression hardened upon seeing the havoc being caused right in front of his eyes. If he hadn't listened to his advice, he would have ended much the same way as his comrades if not worse.

Fan Xinya's knees buckled and he powerlessly fell down to the ground.

There was a massive tear on the side of his abdomen from which most of his internal organs could be seen.

No matter how much Qi he tried to circulate towards the area, no matter how many medicines and elixirs he tried to consume, none of them could close the wound. The corrosive energy that was wriggling around the wound dissolved everything that came anywhere near it.

His face was pale white and he could barely see straight due to excessive blood loss.

All he could do was slightly raise his head and watch the emerald beast as the life from his body slowly dripped out.

It was the same for almost everyone else as well.

Those that survived had one or more wounds that would not close. Wails, whimpers, and painful cries echoed in the cavern where the only one still on two feet was the Scorpion King.

After looking at his handy work he fixed his eyes on the only person still fine.

As he glanced towards his direction, Jia Tu felt a cold chill go down his spine.

"Why don't you come inside, human?" the King spoke with his rough voice, with a hint of curiosity. it sounded like someone was rubbing two sheets of metal together whenever he spoke.

Jia Tu looked down at his feet and let out a breath of relief. He was just a few inches outside the boundary of the cavern.

'So that was true as well. He can't leave this place...' Jia Tu remembered the message he got informing him of the dangers of this place. That was why he didn't go inside and told the others not to do so either.

He looked up and met the Scorpion King's gaze.

"I'm not allowed to, I'm sorry," he said apologetically.

Scorpion King tilted his head sideways in confusion, "Why not?"

"Because he wants to fight you himself. No, he wants YOU. So unless he says so, I cannot," Jia Tu shook his head helplessly.

The Scorpion King was even more confused now, but before he could ask another question, sounds of footsteps came from behind Jia Tu.

*Tap*Tap*Tap*

Everyone watching from outside perked their ears and straightened their backs to see who these footsteps belonged to. The same went for all the survivors in the cavern. Everyone that had the strength to, turned around to see what was happening.

Jia Tu didn't need to though because he knew who it was.

He silently moved to the side and waved his hand. In his palms appeared a pair of black and golden gauntlets and a pair of steel-toed boots that were glowing with an undulating yellow light.

Wu Chin and Cia Kang who were laying helplessly on the other side of the cavern covered in their own blood suddenly had a change of expressions.

These two along with Jia Tu were working directly for the Jia Royal Clan. The four armor pieces currently in his hands were the rewards they had gotten from clearing three of the hardest dungeons other than this.

They were pieces of living armors, much like living weapons. The only difference was that basically no one in a grade-1 kingdom or lower could afford to make living armors.

They were stupendously expensive and only true experts were capable of crafting them. Those armor pieces were a gift for their crown prince, Jia Heng.

The reason Jia Tu was holding onto them was because he was the only direct member of Jia royal clan here, so naturally, it fell to him to carry them.

A large silhouette, the same size as Jia Tu passed by him and entered the cavern.

Then two more silhouettes that were slightly shorter entered, followed by a black swordsman.

All of their faces were covered with different masks.

The last one to arrive was a masked young man. He had long hair that were coming down to his waist but it didn't make him look feminine. Because of his muscular physique and broad shoulders he looked even more manly.

He walked up to Jia Tu and patted his shoulder. Jia Tu got down on one knee and raised his hands.

Silence. It was complete silence. Whether it was the Scorpion King or survivors, or even the ones watching from home, everyone was left speechless.

The masked young man took the four armor pieces and examined them like they were his own property. His nonchalant attitude stumped the Scorpion King.

"Human, yo-"

"Shhh," just as the Scorpion King had begun to speak, the masked man turned towards him and hushed him into silence.

He then proceeded to casually bite his finger. Several drops of bright red blood flowed out which he proceeded to drop on the armor pieces.

"MAD SAINT! STOP! Those are for the crown prince!" Wu Chin and Cia Kang shouted in unison but Hao Xuan ignored them and finished bonding with the armor pieces.

"JIA TU! YOU GODDAMN TRAITOR!" Cia Kang yelled at Jia Tu but was ignored once again. He didn't even register his existence.

Under the eyes of billions of people, Hao Xuan proceeded to place the gauntlets on his skin and their shape and size changed to fit his proportions. The same went for the shoes.

They melded with his skin and then completely disappeared, becoming a part of him. He closed his eyes and could feel them, their existence inside of him.

A smile bloomed on his face as he once again opened his eyes and stared at the Scorpion King.

"Now little scorpion, we can fight!" he stretched his body and all of his clothes exploded, revealing a full-body black and gold armor underneath.

The living armor pieces he had just absorbed resurfaced and with a few loud clangs connected with the other pieces he was already wearing.

Gauntlets, shoes, chest, the only thing that was missing now was a helmet to go with this marvelous armor.

****

Authors Notes:

Armor kind of looks like this but darker: https://urlzs.com/ZpFnM