Chapter 368: Clove At First Shot
The power almost overwhelmed him. He could feel it bursting at the seams, ready to climb out of him and run away. Red veins started to pop in his eyes, and his face twitched as he fought for control. His jaw was tight and his upper lip lifted in a feral grimace.
Li Luo was completely different from how he usually was.
How he longed to rip! To tear! To kill! His heart howled with the need, trying to wrest control from his rationality. It would make him a puppet, a killing machine that would take down everything in his way.
The world in front of him was tinted with a faint, red sheen.
A voice whispered in his ear. “Is it really so bad to just give in? To kill?”
But eventually, Crystal Heart and the Seraph’s Pearl helped him maintain a clear portion in his mind. He desperately clung to it like a rock in the turbulent madness that crashed all around him as he drew the Lambent Hawkeye.
He had to release the power before it turned on him.
Weng!
When Li Luo released the string, all of the power rushed out of him in one draining surge, funneled into the light arrow that strained his bow like a wolf on a leash. It pulsed with charged life, trailing tail feathers of uncontainable power that spilled out from behind.
This time, the light arrow was not the shining, pure yellow from before, but instead a dark-red projectile with a menacing air about it.
The point of the arrow quivered as it tried to contain the energy within, blooming with halos of power that thrummed out in its wake.
This arrow was incredibly powerful.
Holding the bow taut was killing him. The string bit into Li Luo’s drawing finger, deep enough to expose bone to air. Blood hit the floor in a steady drip as he aimed. His entire arm was screaming from the effort, and his muscles spasmed painfully.
The attack would take everything out of him. And then some.
Lu Qing’er, Qin Zhulu, and Lin Suo were locked in battle, but all three sensed the attack coming.
“What power!” Qin Zhulu marveled, his eyes wide.
He knew that Li Luo had a trump card hidden, but this was way beyond his calculations.
This power far surpa.s.sed an Evolving Resonance Tier Third Changing!
Lu Qing’er’s eyes were also wide, but unlike Qin Zhulu, she was more worried than delighted. She had seen the redness in Li Luo’s eyes and knew that the power cost him dearly. Hopefully, he had not paid a price too heavy.
“Back!”
Lu Qing’er seized Qin Zhulu by the arm and dragged him away urgently. He cringed violently at the physical touch, and almost jerked away out of instinct. But he realized that the battle with Lin Suo had taken so much out of him, he could barely move. He let Lu Qing’er help him retreat. As for Lin Suo, he had lost all interest in Qin Zhulu and Lu Qing’er, turning to Li Luo in fright.
The dark-red arrow of light was being aimed in his direction.
“F*ck! You must be cheating!” Lin Suo swore, his face turning green. This power was way beyond his level, and he could feel his knees shaking in fear. How could Li Luo have such power?! It didn’t make sense!
What sort of secret art could be so terrifying?!
Lin Suo felt a strong surge of regret. If only he had finished off Li Luo at any of the earlier opportunities he had… If only the kid wasn’t a freaking monster!
He did not stand his ground. He was smart enough to spend all his energy trying to escape, heading immediately for the dense forest to try and defray some of the arrow’s energy.
Li Luo sighted in on his opponent and steadied himself. He let go.
“Caw!”
The shriek of a hawk, amplified until it was practically a sonic boom. The streak of red light bore down on the fleeing Lin Suo in a blur of speed.
Boom!
This time, the sound wave was far stronger than before. It vaporized all of the trees in a flash.
Even at a considerable distance, Lu Qing’er and Qin Zhulu fell to the floor, clutching their ears in agony.
As for Lin Suo, his ears were bleeding from the impact, eardrums shattered by the sound. His entire head was throbbing and his vision blacked out for a moment.
He stood still, trying to recover. He turned to face the attack—it was too fast for him to outrun.
In this life-or-death situation, he screamed in defiance and unleashed all the remaining resonant power he had, charging his Octagold Shield to create the strongest defense he could.
Weng!
A golden nimbus hummed to life, protruding from the Octagold Shield.
Swoosh!
The red arrow blasted through the layers of light like a ballista bolt through paper.
A few short moments later, it reached the metal of the shield itself.
The golden light defense had barely done anything.
As the light was snuffed out like a candle, Lin Suo’s eyes were filled with resignation. There was little more than he could do. The Octagold Shield was cracking under the power of Li Luo’s attack.
CRACK!
The shield buckled, and the relentless, red bolt flew on, burying itself deep in Lin Suo’s chest.
The head emerged from his back, and still the arrow flew on, carrying him through the air. It plowed through a tree, cleaving it in two before pinning him to a rock wall further behind.
The rock reported the impact with a loud crack and a deep fissure.
One arrow had decided the victory. Qin Zhulu and Lu Qing’er stared in wonder at the lifeless Lin Suo, pinned to the rock.
Li Luo’s arrow was amazing.
Such power as a Third Pattern… was this even humanly possible?
Li Luo slumped down from the perch in his tree. Lu Qing’er started towards him, but Qin Zhulu suddenly reached out to hold her back. “Something’s wrong with Li Luo.”
Lu Qing’er saw that Li Luo’s face was twisted in a feral grimace, a snarl that she had never seen on his features before.
He looked more like an animal at the moment.
“Was he corrupted?” Qin Zhulu wondered aloud.
Lu Qing’er turned pale, but she insistently shrugged off Qin Zhulu’s warning hand. She continued to walk towards Li Luo, whose eyes were locked on her, hungry as an animal.
She did not care, walking on until she was right in front of him. She slipped her small hand into his, using Crystal Heart again.
“Li Luo,” she said tenderly. “It’s over now.”
Li Luo fought the redness in his eyes, closing them as he took deep breaths.
Slowly, the mania faded away.
When he opened them again, he was back to normal. He ran his fingers through his hair and smiled grandly at Lu Qing’er. “Was that not the coolest shot you ever saw?”
She laughed, tears of relief br.i.m.m.i.n.g at the corners of her eyes. She reached out to hug him tightly.
Li Luo was startled by the sudden affection, quickly opening his hands to show his innocence. “That’s too forward… be careful! If Jiang Qing’e sees this, there’ll be trouble.”
Lu Qing’er pouted. “I’m not afraid of her!”
Li Luo felt like crying. “Of course you’re not afraid. The one she’ll beat up isn’t going to be you!”