Chapter 172: Escape from Death

Wu Qingsong had braced for a fierce battle, but to his surprise, the invading will in his body initially failed to respond promptly to his counterattacks. It was only when he began to tear at and devour the spiritual power attached to this formidable will using his method of consuming soul fragments that it seemed to awaken from a dream and started to retaliate.

The ensuing struggle on the mental plane was smokeless but far more frantic and intense.

The invader’s power was formidable, and Wu Qingsong’s feeble spiritual force seemed no more than an ant before a lion. Yet, this ant, lacking the strength to defeat the lion, held on tenaciously and bit fiercely at every opportunity.

The fragments he tore from the opponent’s soul were much more potent than those he had previously absorbed from the spiderpeople, bringing with them a backlash hundreds, perhaps thousands, of times more intense. 

Enduring immense pain, Wu Qingsong integrated this power into himself and was surprised to find his strength increased once more.

At the start of their conflict, if his power compared to his adversary was like an ant challenging a lion, after their prolonged engagement, he had evolved into something more akin to a praying mantis.

While this difference still represented a vast chasm relative to their powers, it instilled Wu Qingsong with renewed confidence.

As long as he persisted, victory was inevitable.

But at that moment, he heard the True Red Demon Lord roar in anger, “Damn it! This isn’t over! Being from another realm, I will find you and seize your…”

Suddenly, the pain rapidly faded, and the sensation of the foreign entity invading his body dissipated. Soon, his senses, lost for an indeterminate time, gradually returned. The first sounds he heard were a massive explosion and the angry roars of houndmen.

Struggling to open his eyes, Wu Qingsong found himself wrapped in spider silk, hanging near the red crystal, which was now being struck by tangible white sword energies, causing it to crack.

The familiar red ripple had dimmed significantly and flickered one last time before the crystal completely disintegrated into numerous fragments.

“I will find you…” he seemed to hear the True Red Demon Lord’s voice echoing.

“Lord! Lord!” another anxious voice called out. 

Someone grasped the cocoon enveloping him, and then presumably someone cut the spider silk suspending him from the ceiling, and he finally fell.

People frantically cut away the spider silk encasing him. 

“Lord? Lord!” he heard Angus’s voice.

“I’m okay, go find Ling and Liuli,” Wu Qingsong instructed.

The houndmen acted swiftly, and it was only then that Wu Qingsong noticed Marquis Osaga standing solemnly before the heap of shattered red crystals, seemingly deep in thought.

“We’ve found them!” the houndmen shouted excitedly. “My Lord, we’ve found them!”

Struggling to stand, Wu Qingsong fell due to his body’s stiffness and the lingering effects of the soul battle. Angus quickly came to his aid. Wu Qingsong stumbled toward Ling and Liuli, who lay unconscious, unresponsive to any call.

“They’ve been injected with a venom,” Marquis Osaga’s voice came from behind. “It’s not the kind that dissolves the insides but rather one that keeps them asleep. You’re lucky, otherwise, they might have ended up like those others.”

Instinctively, Wu Qingsong turned his gaze to the other cocoons. The houndmen screamed in horror as the bodies inside burst upon being unwrapped, releasing a vile slime and collapsing rapidly.

Marquis Osaga’s judgment was likely correct, and Wu Qingsong finally allowed himself a moment of relief. 

“Thank you, Marquis, for your rescue!” he expressed sincerely.

Now that his senses were fully restored, he could see the situation around him.

Angus and the other houndmen were gathered nearby, with many more houndmen in the distance.

The ground was covered with the corpses of spiderpeople, making it clear that while the True Red Demon Lord was controlling him and attempting to seize control of his body, the reinforcements led by Marquis Osaga had stormed the area. They had killed the spiderpeople and destroyed the red crystal that the True Red Demon Lord was using as a host.

He might have been fine, possibly even gradually growing stronger enough to overcome the True Red Demon Lord eventually. However, such a victory could have taken a long time. Time during which he might have survived, but Ling and Liuli surely would not have.

“What have you learned?” Marquis Osaga asked directly.

Wu Qingsong hesitated briefly before answering, “Those wolfkin…” 

He had meant to point to the shattered bodies, but then he realized they were no longer there.

“The people from the Norwei Wolf Clan apparently used this crystal to summon a being called the True Red Demon Lord. The previous insectoid swarm was also their work, meant to test the Empire’s response speed and strength. After Lord Marquis eliminated those ants at the Eryk Mine, they hid here and began plotting to introduce the True Red Demon Lord’s power into this world,” Wu Qingsong explained. “That’s what they told me before I lost consciousness. I don’t know anything beyond that.”

“The True Red Demon Lord?” Marquis Osaga furrowed his brows deeply, his piercing gaze fixed on Wu Qingsong as if he were trying to extract the truth from him. But as for the monster, Wu Qingsong had shared all he knew.

He couldn’t explain why he had survived. Fortunately, it was unlikely that Marquis Osaga would inexplicably strike him with a sword to discover his secret of invulnerability, and being encased in a cocoon might also dispel any suspicions about him.

“Search this place thoroughly,” commanded Marquis Osaga to the hound people. “Leave no suspicious object unchecked.”

“Lord Marquis…” Wu Qingsong, still plagued by a severe headache, began to speak.

“Go outside and rest,” Marquis Osaga instructed. “Wait for my commands.”

“Thank you, my lord,” Wu Qingsong responded, and then slowly made his way outside with the support of the hound people.

The houndmen carefully lifted Ling and Liuli and carried them out as well.

The sun was shining brightly. It must have been noon.

“What day is it since we left?” Wu Qingsong asked.

“Sir, it’s been five days since you departed!” Angus replied, somewhat apprehensively.

“Five days?” Wu Qingsong exclaimed, startled. “Find a place to camp, get some water, and quickly figure out how to wake Ling and Liuli!”

He might survive without food or water for five days, but Ling and Liuli certainly could not.

Outside the cave, the ground was littered with the corpses of spiderpeople. The houndmen were busy clearing the battlefield, placing the bodies of fallen comrades on the ground.

The insect moss on the ground had been severely damaged, with grooves everywhere from cuts. Small meat worms were crawling at the fissures, sending a chill down Wu Qingsong’s spine for some reason.

“Let’s get out of this damned place,” he declared loudly. “Quickly!”