The talisman master's expression darkened.
Wind whipped violently around him as he hovered midair, robes scorched but posture steady.
In one hand—
A bronze, ring-shaped spiritual tool etched with rotating runes.
In the other—
A crimson talisman radiating dense, suffocating pressure. Its edges shimmered like molten gold.
Top-tier earth grade.
He had been holding back.
Waiting.
Watching.
The fox tilted its head, tail swaying lazily despite the tension thickening the air.
"Ohhh," it drawled. "Now you've decided to go all out?"
Its eyes flicked toward the corpse of the formation master below.
"Interesting timing."
The talisman master said nothing.
Qi surged outward from him in rolling waves, the bronze ring expanding into a spinning halo of protective light around his body.
The fox's smile widened.
"You pull out your best talisman and spiritual tool only after your partner dies."
It took a slow step forward in midair.
"So what were you waiting for?"
A pause.
"Were you hoping he'd weaken me first?"
The ring spun faster.
The crimson talisman began burning at its edges.
The fox's voice turned almost conversational.
"I wonder why he didn't use his spiritual weapon earlier either. Maybe he had one. Maybe he was waiting for you to die."
Its eyes gleamed.
"Seems like neither of you trusted the other."
A faint twitch crossed the talisman master's face.
The fox laughed softly.
"That's the funny thing about people like you."
"Greed makes alliances. But greed also makes hesitation."
The crimson talisman flared suddenly—
A massive surge of condensed killing intent spread outward, forming a descending phantom blade above the fox. The air warped from the pressure alone.
At the same time, the bronze ring split into three smaller rotating shields, orbiting rapidly to guard every angle.
The talisman master's voice was cold.
"You talk too much."
The fox didn't dodge.
It didn't panic.
It only smiled.
"Oh no," it replied calmly.
"I talk exactly the right amount."
Behind the talisman master—
The ground shifted ever so slightly.
Invisible.
Silent.
Patient.
The fox's eyes glinted with something dangerous.
"Because while you were deciding when to go all out…"
"…we never stopped."
The talisman master had just finished stabilizing his spinning shields when—
A pill appeared behind him.
His pupils shrank.
Too late.
CLANG!
Something invisible slammed into his barrier from behind. The bronze ring shrieked as sparks burst outward, the shield warping but holding.
He twisted violently midair, spiritual sense flaring.
"Did you think," he growled, veins bulging along his temple, "I would let my guard down twice?!"
The bronze ring split apart and lashed backward like three spinning guillotines.
The pill was caught in their path—
Shattered.
Fragments burst apart into dust.
The fox had already leapt back, robes fluttering as it drew out another pill between two claws.
At the same time—
The black spear shot forward, tearing through the air like a streak of night.
The talisman master roared and swung the bronze ring.
CLANG!
The spear was deflected, skidding sideways in a spray of sparks.
The fox retreated further, eyes calm.
It flicked its wrist—
The new pill left its claws.
The talisman master braced—
But the pill didn't come toward him.
It arced away.
Off to the side.
His brows furrowed.
"…What?"
Behind him—
The black spear stopped midair.
For half a breath—
Nothing happened.
Then—
It began to tremble.
A low hum vibrated through the battlefield.
Cracks of white light spiderwebbed across the spear's surface.
The talisman master's face drained of color.
"No—"
The fox's smile was small.
Cold.
"Damn bastard!" the talisman master roared.
He tried to retreat—
Too late.
The black spear detonated.
BOOOOOOM—!!!
The explosion tore the night apart.
A sphere of violent black-and-white energy erupted outward, devouring air, ripping through trees, flattening earth. The bronze ring's shields shattered instantly under the shockwave.
The talisman master was swallowed whole.
The forest shook.
A shockwave blasted through the stream, splitting the water in two. Smoke and debris spiraled into the sky.
When the light faded—
A body was flung from the heart of the explosion.
It slammed into the ground with bone-crushing force.
CRASH—!
The earth caved inward, forming a massive crater.
Silence followed.
Dust slowly settled.
At the center of the crater lay the talisman master.
His robes were torn to shreds. Skin charred. Blood soaked the ground beneath him. One arm bent at an unnatural angle.
His bronze ring spiritual tool lay embedded in the earth around him, cracked and broken. The defensive light that had once rotated proudly around his body was gone—snuffed out by raw destructive force.
He coughed violently—
Blood spilled from his lips.
His entire body trembled as he forced himself onto one knee.
His talismans… ash.
His mind raced in disbelief.
It destroyed it.
It actually destroyed its own weapon…
The fox landed lightly at the edge of the crater, tail swaying.
Its fur was slightly singed.
Its breathing faintly heavier than before.
But its eyes—
Were steady.
The talisman master looked up weakly, disbelief and horror mixing in his gaze.
"You…" he rasped.
He hadn't expected that.
No cultivator willingly destroyed an earth-grade spiritual weapon mid-battle.
That was wealth.
That was foundation.
That was power.
And the fox had detonated it without hesitation.
Just to kill him.
The fox tilted its head slightly, moonlight outlining its silhouette against the drifting smoke.
Below, the talisman master twitched.
A wet cough.
He was still alive.
The fox tilted its head again.
"…You're still alive?" it asked mildly. "I thought you would've died from that explosion. It seems you're stronger than I expected."
The cultivator tried to lift himself. His arm gave out. He collapsed back into the shattered earth, blood pooling beneath him.
The fox's gaze remained steady.
"If you're wondering why I would self-detonate my own spiritual tool," it continued calmly, "the reason is simple."
Its tail swayed once behind it.
"To end things quickly."
The man's eyes flickered upward, filled with disbelief and hatred.
The fox's voice remained even—almost conversational.
"You see, going all out to kill someone ensures they die before they have time to think… to scheme… to grow desperate."
A faint breeze stirred the smoke between them.
"Someone desperate will attempt something reckless. They won't allow themselves to die so easily. Even if it means dragging you down with them… self-destructing… burning their core… tearing open something forbidden."
Its eyes gleamed faintly in the dark.
"So I don't give them that chance."
It stepped slightly closer to the crater's edge.
"In any battle, I go all out with the intent to kill quickly. I don't get dragged into messes."
The cultivator's breathing grew ragged.
The fox continued, voice smooth.
"Some might call that arrogance. Or say I've shown all my cards."
A faint smile curved its muzzle.
"But what use are cards if I can't play them to save my life?"
The forest around them was quiet now.
No more screams.
Only distant crackling embers and the soft rush of the stream.
The fox glanced briefly toward where the formation master had died earlier.
"I would've liked to say all this to the other one," it murmured. "But it is what it is."
Its gaze returned downward.
"Guess he'll just have to hear it from you when you both meet."
Behind the broken cultivator—
The air shifted.
The faintest ripple.
Water droplets along the crater's edge trembled slightly—
As something unseen closed in.
The talisman master's eyes widened.
Too late.