"The King's Sword was brought here by the ancestors of the thirteen families. After it passed the Gatekeeper's trial, they placed it in the Netherworld. They hoped that ti would erase the curse, allowing them to one day reclaim the Legendary King's power."
"It was our Fei Niao Family's ancestors who sent the King's Sword into the Netherworld."
"If you obtained the King's Sword, you should have also seen a belt. It's from the Legendary King's Armor and has the ability to store treasures. My ancestors placed the Legendary King's Crystal Bone Warhorse and his other artifacts inside as burial offerings."
"Heh." Fang Zhen let out a noncommittal chuckle.
'The Fei Niao Family's ancestors were certainly a conflicted bunch.'
'They killed the man, and only then did they feel regret? They put the King's Sword in the Netherworld and even added burial offerings.'
'Was it a crisis of conscience, or just crocodile tears?'
'There was no way to know for sure.'
But Fang Zhen had confird it: the mysterious belt did indeed contain the new vehicle he was looking for.
He had a good idea of what the Legendary King's Crystal Bone Warhorse would be like.
'It couldn't be too bad.'
Plus, since it was a Crystal Bone Warhorse, it would be extrely convenient to carry. He could just construct it with energy when he needed it, which perfectly suited his needs.
As for whether he could use Bone Energy, he wasn't particularly worried.
The Source Power he'd obtained earlier was now showing its advantage.
Source Power could be converted into any type of energy from any world; it was just a matter of conversion efficiency.
In other words, he could definitely use Bone Energy. He just needed to find the right conversion thod.
With that, Fang Zhen's curiosity was satisfied, and his needs were t.
It was about ti to bring matters in this dungeon to a close.
Avera suddenly spoke up. "Fang Zhen, I've told you everything you wanted to know. Does your promise still stand?"
"You'll let
live?"
Fang Zhen nodded. "I don't go back on my promises."
"I won't kill you."
Avera's expression finally eased.
This had been an incredibly unlucky day for Avera; she'd finally heard a piece of good news in the midst of her misfortune.
"What about ? I said I was willing to surrender," Connor Hai Chao asked, his face filled with the hope of an affirmative answer. "Since you're planning to let Avera go, you won't kill
either, right?"
It wasn't just Connor; la Night Shadow also showed a flicker of hope.
"Heh. I don't plan on killing you," Fang Zhen said with a smile.
But before Connor could rejoice, Fang Zhen added, "...but I never said I'd let you go, either."
Instantly, the color drained from Avera, Connor, and la's faces.
"What do you an? Are you going back on your word?" Avera's voice grew shrill as she demanded, "You just promised not to kill !"
"I'm not going back on my word." Fang Zhen shook his head.
He looked away from Avera, his gaze falling upon Batuma.
"Hey, you from the Black Garden. You're Batuma, right?" Fang Zhen asked. "How about a trade?"
Batuma seed carefree and boisterous, but she had actually been maintaining a defensive combat stance the whole ti.
'This woman's carefree attitude is just a front,' Fang Zhen noted. 'She's actually very perceptive.'
"What kind of trade?" Batuma asked, completely baffled.
"I'll cripple the guy from the Sea Tide Family for you, and I'll hand Avera over to you as a captive. Soone from the Fei Niao Family knows a lot of secrets, so you won't be getting the short end of the stick," Fang Zhen said. "Just offer
sothing of real value, sothing I'll find tempting, and we have a deal. How about it?"
"Huh?" Batuma never expected such a proposal.
But Batuma reacted quickly. "Deal!"
"I'll offer a spare set of Crystal Bones. Also, it seems you don't know how to use Bone Energy. I have a secret thod that allows even ordinary people to accumulate it. After a qualitative transformation, it might even produce Crystal Bones. It's extrely valuable. How about that in exchange for the Fei Niao Family woman and the one from the Sea Tide Family?"
"Done," Fang Zhen agreed.
"What are you doing? What is the aning of this?" Connor yelled at Fang Zhen, veins bulging on his temples from agitation.
"You're breaking your promise?" Avera shrieked, her face deathly pale.
"Breaking my promise? How have I broken it?" Fang Zhen shot back.
For a mont, Avera and Connor were both stunned.
'That's right. Fang Zhen had promised not to kill Avera and Connor if they told him the truth.'
'And had he killed them?'
'No.'
'Had he spared their lives?'
'Yes.'
'From any angle you looked at it, he hadn't broken his promise.'
As for being prisoners of war... in an era like this, prisoners could be ransod or even traded. Exchanging Avera and Connor to Batuma for valuable items seed to be perfectly in line with the rules of the ti.
Strictly speaking, Fang Zhen hadn't broken his promise at all, neither in letter nor in spirit.
"Damn you!" Connor roared, his face flushing red with rage. He felt like he'd been played for a fool.
Avera, for her part, was utterly drained of color.
Suddenly, la, who had been silent the whole ti, transford into a shadow and dashed toward the main passage to the forbidden area—the sa one Connor and Aiden had used to enter.
la's departure was swift and decisive. She didn't even consider attacking Fang Zhen, abandoning the last remaining Assassin from the Night Shadow Family without a backward glance or a mont's hesitation.
la had understood perfectly.
Fang Zhen had specified he would trade Avera and Connor to Batuma as prisoners of war, but he hadn't ntioned her or Aiden.
The implication was clear: he didn't intend to spare her life or Aiden's.
la was already sowhat cowed by Fang Zhen. All her Assassination Techniques had been useless, and even her Step and Body Technique—the legacy of an heir to a family of assassins—was inferior to his.
She couldn't beat him and was slated to die. Naturally, she had to flee.
la moved quickly, fleeing for her life.
Fang Zhen, unhurried, pulled down one of the lenses of his Night Vision Goggles, positioning it over his left eye.
la's figure was laid bare in the Night Vision Goggles.
Fang Zhen drew his Desert Viper Handgun with his left hand and fired three quick shots at la's retreating figure.
"BANG! BANG! BANG!"
Three gunshots rang out.
A figure flickered, its stealth broken, then stumbled a few steps before collapsing to the ground.
It was la.
la had taken three shots to the back. Based on their location, two bullets had hit her spine and one had struck her left shoulder blade.
With bullets in the spine, a person was as good as crippled.
A wave of desperate fury washed over Connor. He roared, preparing to use his Energy Tide palm technique once more.
But gathering the Energy Tide took ti—ti Connor didn't have.
Fang Zhen turned, his Desert Viper spitting a rapid volley.
Five shots rang out. Two bullets struck each of Connor's shoulder blades, and another tore through his thigh.
Instantly, Connor could no longer lift his arms.
"Argh!" Connor cried out. He staggered backward a few steps but managed to stay on his feet. With blood pouring from his arms, he could no longer use the palm technique to summon the Energy Tide.
Fang Zhen didn't stop shooting. With a single, casual shot, he killed the Night Shadow Family's other Assassin.
He turned, and fired twice more.
Aiden was shot in the forehead, la in the back of the head. Both collapsed.
With a bullet to the head, their souls were bound for the Netherworld.
Fang Zhen's swift and ruthless efficiency made Batuma's heart clench, and she tensed up.
"Heh... heh... You're not going to turn on
too, are you?" Batuma asked, her laughter sounding a bit strained.
"Not planning on it," Fang Zhen said, shaking his head and holstering his pistol.
'Theoretically, he was now the strongest one here. Robbing or even killing Batuma would be no problem.'
'But Fang Zhen didn't want to do that.'
'He'd killed Aiden and la because they were still a threat.'
'If Aiden's lightning abilities recovered, he could threaten Fang Zhen. la was a trained killer; there was no way Fang Zhen could remain flawless on his entire journey back to the Light Gate. If she managed to stalk him, it would be a huge pain.'
'Batuma hadn't opposed him from the start. She'd behaved herself, they hadn't clashed, and she had objectively taken so of the pressure off him.'
'Although robbing and killing Batuma would theoretically maximize his gains, Fang Zhen didn't want to do it.'
'A man has to have so principles. Whether you're a gentleman or not, you have to be able to look at yourself in the mirror.'
'There's no bottom to the slide once a person starts to fall, and Fang Zhen had no desire to beco soone he would despise.'
'Besides, he had sworn an oath not to commit evil when he received the Curse Sealer's inheritance.'
'Co to think of it, the Curse Sealer's inheritance oath was seemingly just a single sentence, but the fates of those who violated it were never good.'
'Maticvia was one. So was Tos.'
'It was better to stay true to his principles.'
Seeing that Fang Zhen truly had no intention of making a move, Batuma finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Batuma took a small, drawstring leather pouch from her person and walked toward Fang Zhen.
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