Really Marinated to Perfection

A hundred miles beyond the Silent Bone Forest.

Due to the previous clash between Li Xingtian and Donggua, the dense woods surrounding the Silent Bone Forest had been utterly devastated. Thus, to prepare for an ambush, their forces had to be stationed much farther away.

After all, these were cultivators. Though they wouldn’t constantly scan the area with their spiritual senses, their eyes were always open. Staying farther back also reduced the chances of being spotted by patrolling underlings.

Even if they were discovered, it wouldn’t matter much—crushing a few lowly minions wouldn’t make a sound. But it was always better to avoid unnecessary trouble. Who knew if the blood-cultivators had planted some hidden trick among their patrols?

Behind Donggua stood dozens of cultivators in silence.

Cui Hao and Lin Luoyu stood at Donggua’s side.

The strategy had been laid out long before their departure. All that remained was for Donggua to give the order, after which they would act according to their assigned roles.

Announcing the plan at the last moment was unwise—not only could unexpected disruptions arise, but if even a couple of subordinates failed to grasp the situation without repeated explanations, the entire mission could collapse.

Cui Hao’s gaze swept over the group, but he didn’t spot any unfamiliar faces. Unable to hold back, he asked,

"Did you actually call for reinforcements?"

"Yeah," Donggua replied casually.

"So… you didn’t get any?"

"I did."

"Then where are they? I don’t see a single one. Did you assign them elsewhere?"

"No idea where they are. They have their own arrangements."

"That’s acceptable? We’re about to move out—what if they’re still sleeping back home? How reliable is this?"

Donggua shot him a sidelong glance. "If it’s unreliable, should I rely on you instead?"

"Honestly, I’d be more dependable," Cui Hao said with a disdainful expression.

"Whatever. You’re the one charging into battle while I’ll be commanding from the rear. If you’re willing to gamble with your life, that’s your choice. But if your reinforcements don’t show, don’t blame me for abandoning you."

"Suit yourself," Donggua replied, utterly indifferent.

If she died, did Cui Hao really think he’d survive?

Now that the arrow was already nocked, whether or not their superiors had actually sent reinforcements, Donggua had no choice but to press forward.

Half a Watermelon, sensing the lingering traces of blood qi in the distance, suddenly felt the phantom pain in his half-ruined body flare up again.

That day—the mocking gaze of the Unity Realm cultivator, the casually swung blade that carried devastating force—it all seemed to replay before his eyes once more.

Ignoring the discomfort in both body and mind, he turned to Donggua, whose expression was ice-cold, and said,

"I’ll take my men to the other side and prepare. I’ll follow the plan and direct the operation."

Donggua gave a slight nod. "Stick to the plan. Wait for my signal."

Half a Watermelon nodded back before leading his group away.

With only Half a Watermelon left among those she truly trusted, Donggua had chosen to split their forces—assigning him command over more than half their fighters to act according to her true strategy.

Not the one she had discussed with Cui Hao.

Only the leaders she trusted had received the real plan. Those she distrusted had been placed in positions meant for cannon fodder.

Cui Hao said nothing more. Instead, he glanced at the branch leader standing behind Donggua, raising his brows in silent inquiry.

The branch leader lowered his gaze slightly in response—everything was under control. They were all on the same side.

Reassured, Cui Hao quietly pulled his senior sister Lin Luoyu back, edging closer to their own people.

Donggua noticed his odd movements but dismissed them as mere cowardice, paying them no further mind.

She steadied her emotions and waited.

The sun crawled across the sky.

Noon arrived.

Donggua waited a little longer, but still, no reinforcements from above came to coordinate with her—not even a glimpse of them.

A flicker of unease stirred in her heart, but hesitation was no longer an option.

"Move out!" Donggua barked.

With that, she took the lead, dashing toward the Silent Bone Forest.

Dozens of cultivators immediately followed, their figures streaking through the air like shooting stars.

Cui Hao watched the spectacle with a calm expression.

"Tsk. Quite the spectacle," he remarked.

Lin Luoyu sighed softly but said nothing more.

Donggua made no effort to conceal her presence, channeling both spiritual energy and faith power.

The lack of concealment wasn’t to alert Li Xingtian—it was to ensure that any reinforcements sent by their superiors would sense her participation.

This was her sincerity. Her stance.

Naturally, this approach had its drawbacks.

Before she had even crossed half the distance, a surge of blood qi erupted into the sky, then surged straight for Donggua.

"Annihilate them!" Donggua drew her Flexible Bone Sword, meeting the violent tide of blood qi head-on, carving a path for the cultivators behind her.

Her gaze locked ahead as waves of blood-cultivators—subordinates recruited by Li Xingtian—poured out from their hiding spots, attempting to block her forces.

But these blood-cultivators were nothing more than rabble.

The clash lasted mere moments before they crumbled, suffering heavy losses.

Donggua couldn’t help but marvel—this was the first time her subordinates had fought so fiercely and effectively.

But the enemy’s weakness was almost suspicious.

Still, these minions were just an appetizer. The real battle had yet to begin.

At the very least, Li Xingtian himself had yet to appear.

Only when the blood-cultivators had been thoroughly routed, their morale shattered and their resistance broken, did that familiar blood qi finally emerge.

A vast tide of crimson energy surged into the sky, stretching endlessly.

Donggua looked up.

Li Xingtian stood in the air, a spiritual treasure saber in hand, his gaze icy and his tone dripping with mockery.

"You barely escaped with your life last time. Have you come to your senses today, or are you here to die?"

Donggua narrowed her eyes, pointing her Flexible Bone Sword straight at him as she snapped,

"Who dies today remains to be seen. Hand over what you stole, and I might spare you."

Li Xingtian scoffed. In the next instant, his spiritual treasure saber transformed into a streak of bloody light, hurtling toward Donggua.

Donggua swiftly drew upon her origin power, her Flexible Bone Sword turning pitch-black. Her spiritual and faith energies darkened as well, thickening into a murky, sludge-like substance.

She swung her sword with all her might against the bloody radiance.

But her injuries had yet to fully heal.

Li Xingtian’s overwhelming strike smashed her into the ground, carving out a massive crater.

Donggua lay at the bottom, protected by her viscous origin power—but a gruesome wound on her abdomen continued to be gnawed at by the lingering blood qi.

Without a word, Li Xingtian descended toward her, his right hand raised.

A colossal blade of blood materialized in the sky, splitting the heavens as its terrifying pressure bore down.

His expression was merciless, his aura that of a blood-soaked sovereign as he coldly lowered his hand.

The bloody blade descended with devastating speed.

Donggua gritted her teeth, her eyes burning crimson as she tightened her grip on the Flexible Bone Sword. Fighting through the disorientation, she mustered every ounce of her origin power.

If she didn’t, she might not survive this strike.

She refused to stake her life entirely on the hope of outside help.

But another force—equally murky and ink-black—intervened first, briefly halting the bloody blade’s descent before a half-ruined figure appeared before it.

Half a Watermelon stood in its path, scythe raised to block the strike.

The clash lasted only moments before the remnants of his arm were nearly stripped to the bone by the corrosive blood qi.

There was no way he could withstand this strike.

"What touching camaraderie," Li Xingtian said coldly, his expression unreadable. "Then die together."

As his words fell, the bloodied blade's aura intensified.

Yet in the next moment, a terrifying force erupted from the west, shattering the blade's energy into dissipating wisps of blood mist.

Li Xingtian's gaze shifted toward the source.

There, perched on a tree branch, stood a figure unnaturally tall and gaunt, their face entirely concealed by a grotesque, featureless mask—save for the pitch-black eyes peering through.

The figure tilted its head slightly, its voice a rasping, indistinct whisper:

"You look... delicious. So fragrant."

Li Xingtian frowned, recalling his spiritual treasure blade to his hand.

Had his master really marinated him in donggua flavor without him noticing? Was that why he couldn’t smell it himself?