C7 Kill Chen Quan

Zhao Lin entered the cave, and Chen Quan, after a moment's hesitation, followed suit. He was confident that his late-stage Nascent Soul cultivation was more than enough to handle a newcomer to the sect. Chen Quan's steps were light, but he overlooked the fact that Zhao Lin was a hunter by trade, accustomed to detecting even the slither of a python, much less the sound of footsteps.

A smile spread across Zhao Lin's face as he clutched the box and positioned himself behind the large bow. "Senior Brother Chen, this is the serendipitous find I've come across. If you want it, come and get it!" Chen Quan was never one to let his guard down. The darkness of the cave and the obstructing foliage meant he hadn't yet seen the large bow at the entrance. "Odd, why do I feel so uneasy?" Chen Quan was exceedingly cautious, and at the first hint of his intuition, he halted.

Zhao Lin was on the verge of exploding with frustration. The coward! Even though Chen Quan was within bow range, he was cowering behind an iron tree. Zhao Lin struggled to maintain his composure. "Zhao Lin, why don't you bring it here? That cave of yours is pitch-black; it hardly seems safe!" Chen Quan began to wage psychological warfare.

An idea struck Zhao Lin, and he let out a blood-curdling scream, hurling the box out of the cave. It landed neatly in a small clearing. "Senior Brother Chen, come save me!" he cried out in agony before falling silent. Chen Quan's heart skipped a beat. Had he taken his own words too seriously? Time and again, he thought about leaving, but his gaze was locked on the box in the clearing, torn with indecision.

Taking a few tentative steps forward, he sensed no danger. But Chen Quan was not one to be complacent; his rise to the position of slave leader proved he had some wits about him. After a brief wait, with nothing but a faint scent of blood emanating from the cave, he called out, "Zhao Lin, Zhao Lin, can you hear me?" There was no reply.

"Hehe, Zhao Lin, I had intended to deal with you myself, but since you've eluded my grasp, consider yourself fortunate!" Chen Quan chuckled darkly, then leaped towards the box on the ground. Just then, the air was pierced by the sound of projectiles. The moment Chen Quan's arm touched the box, a sharp pain shot through it, and he was flung backward by the momentum. Amidst his screams, wooden arrows struck his thigh and arms.

"Who the hell is out there? Show yourself!" Chen Quan, having slammed into a metal tree, was cursing up a storm. Sweat dripped from his forehead as his once cold eyes now darted around in panic. "Chen Quan, it's your bad luck that you didn't catch me, but it seems luck has abandoned you tonight!" Inside the cave, Zhao Lin, dagger in hand, approached with a mocking sneer.

"It's you! You dare to use traps against me? Zhao Lin, you're a dead man. I'll report you to the sect, and you'll pay with your life!" Chen Quan's face was dark with rage, his fury nearly palpable. Anyone would be livid to be bested by someone they considered insignificant. With a venomous parting shot, Chen Quan turned and fled. Zhao Lin let out a cold laugh; after all his preparations, he wasn't about to let Chen Quan escape alive.

He tossed the box into the cave and chased after him. Chen Quan, wounded by an arrow in his leg, was slowed down. Though not life-threatening, the injury hampered his escape. "I must kill this wretched brat!" Chen Quan still hadn't realized that no ordinary arrow could have caused him such injury. He was a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, impervious to common blades and arrows.

"This guy is incredibly fast!" Chen Quan thought, blood streaming down his legs and arms. With Zhao Lin closing in, Chen Quan's expression hardened. He dove into a pile of leaves to hide. Zhao Lin arrived swiftly, his dagger glinting ominously in the moonlight.

Zhao Lin reached the spot where Chen Quan had vanished, spinning around to locate him. "Die!" came a sudden shout from behind. Zhao Lin instinctively rolled away, narrowly avoiding the ambush. "Die!" Chen Quan, brandishing his flying sword, lunged at Zhao Lin. With a fierce look, Zhao Lin charged with his dagger at the ready.

There was a sharp crack as the flying sword met the dagger and, unbelievably, the sword snapped in two. Both men stared in shock at Zhao Lin's dagger, which could slice through iron as if it were mud. "Chen Quan, tonight marks your end!" Zhao Lin, emboldened, leaped forward like a tiger pouncing on its prey, aiming straight for Chen Quan.

"You think a mere dagger can win you the fight? In your dreams!" Chen Quan scoffed with disdain. He slapped the pouch at his waist, and a black banner materialized. With a flick of his finger, the banner swiftly expanded. Zhao Lin, who had lunged at him, was suddenly wrapped up in the black banner, struggling to move.

"Haha, consider it an honor to perish under this magical artifact!" With Zhao Lin under the banner's control, Chen Quan was sure of his victory. Zhao Lin's face paled as the banner constricted him tighter than the two giant pythons he had encountered before. He could feel a corrosive force from the banner eating away at his flesh and blood.

"Zhao Lin, your end is certain. That box is mine. You insignificant insect, what makes you think you deserve such luck? And to think you even dared to wound me. I'll relish watching you dissolve into a pool of blood!" Chen Quan's face twisted with madness, suggesting he had seen many meet their end at his hands. Zhao Lin's expression darkened as he desperately searched for a way out. He had assumed the banner was merely restraining him, but it was clear now that it was an instrument of death.

Zhao Lin's only hope was his dagger, but his arms were immobilized. Chen Quan's smugness grew as Zhao Lin's agony intensified. Then, in a burst of rage, Zhao Lin let out a roar and concentrated all his strength into his arms, pushing outward. The banner actually budged. A sound of dislocating joints echoed as the wrist clutching the dagger twisted in an unnatural way. Releasing his grip, the propped-up banner swiftly collapsed.

As soon as the banner touched the dagger, it was as if it met the blades of scissors, pathetically fragile. A look of elation spread across Zhao Lin's face. With a sudden lift of his arm and a ripping sound, the entwined banner split into two. Chen Quan, who had been so confident, now stared at Zhao Lin in horror and disbelief. Zhao Lin shook his arm, and his dislocated wrist clicked back into place.

"Go to hell!" In a swift motion, as Chen Quan stumbled backward, the dagger plunged deeply into his chest. A horrific scream escaped as Zhao Lin pinned Chen Quan to the ground. The chilling sound of the knife slicing through flesh followed, and amidst his fear and regret, Chen Quan's breath slowly faded away.

"Phew!" Having killed Chen Quan, Zhao Lin collapsed on the ground, gasping for air in great heaves. Living as a hunter, he had never taken a human life before, and the shock of it was immense. "No, if I hadn't killed him, he would have killed me!" Gradually, Zhao Lin's frayed nerves began to settle. Gazing at Chen Quan's lifeless body, he felt no remorse. Given the chance, he would make the same choice to end Chen Quan's life.

Surveying the blood that stained him, Zhao Lin dragged the corpse deeper into the mountains. He disposed of Chen Quan's body over a cliff and meticulously washed the blood from his own body before making his way back to the cave.