Hui’s hands flickered as Tang Fei closed in. Wall after wall materialized between them, the barriers so thick their transparent walls began to blur Hui behind them. Shouting ferociously, Tang Fei smashed one wall after another, as animal projections raced out ahead of her fists.

The last barrier broke to splinters. Tang Fei rushed past and slammed another punch down onto Hui. “Take that! Who’s uncute now?”

Hui popped. He exploded into a thousand tiny bits of skin, blowing out in all directions. Not a single bit of blood or gore flew out.

Tang Fei’s eyes widened. “Weiheng Hui!”

“Right here,” Hui said, standing to her left.

She whirled and jumped at him.

A cold hand curled around her ankle. Jin Xian looked up at her, licked her lips, then threw her down toward the ground far below. Hui flicked his eyes at Jin Xian, and she darted off in a bolt of black light.

In midair, Tang Fei got her sword under her and swooped back up, negating the power of the throw. “You! Two on one, how rude. Fight me on even ground, man to man!”

Hui bowed. “Respectfully, Elder Sister, only idiots and Li Xiang fight fair. I’m not going to refuse to use my advantages against you, and neither are you going to hold back your fists!”

Tang Fei grit her teeth. “Two fourth stage cultivators against one? How is that fair?”

“I just said it wasn’t,” Hui said, gesturing at something behind her. The air swirled, and a cold aura emanated from behind Tang Fei.

Skin prickling, Tang Fei whirled to find Jin Xian following along mere centimeters behind her. Jin Xian stared at her blankly, drool running down her chin. Their eyes met, and Jin Xian smiled, licking her lips hungrily.

Tang Fei scowled. She leaped back, striking a fighting pose, eyes narrowed at Jin Xian. “This monster—how can you call yourself righteous, Xiao Hui? You—”

Hui sighed, looking at her ruined back, and threw his hand out. “Never turn your back to the enemy.”

Even as she turned to face him again, a paper talisman pasted itself to Tang Fei’s back. She reached over her shoulders, wide-eyed, and then a blast of fire slammed into the rotting wound Jin Xian had opened on her back earlier. Tang Fei screamed in pain and staggered, barely able to stand upright.

“You cheat! You, you, you… coward! You—” Tang Fei steamed, her face bright red, teeth bared.

“Drop out of the fight. I no longer have any need to kill you,” Hui declared.

“You killed Shang Chaya—”

“The whip girl? I had no option. She immediately went for the kill with all her strength. But you’ve been holding back,” Hui said, shrugging. He looked her over. “Tang Fei, you don’t want to kill me, do you?”

“I—I, you—everyone in Starbound Sect must be eradicated!” Tang Fei shouted, her face twisted in disgust, but her voice hesitated, and some of the disgust seemed to be aimed inward.

“I injured your arm. I… might be the only one who can fix it. Even putting aside your feelings toward Starbound Sect, you don’t want me dead, do you?”

“Seizing my weakness? How demonic of you,” Tang Fei spat.

Hui spread his hands. Since when has scheming been demonic? Elder Sister, don’t call everything you don’t understand demonic. “It’s not a matter of righteous or demonic, but simply strategy.”

Gritting her teeth, Tang Fei backed away. “I suppose you want me to stop killing Starbound Sect disciples, too?”

Wide-eyed, Hui stared at Tang Fei. “Eh? I could ask for that?”

She blinked back. “You… have me in a bad position. Why…”

Hui took a breath and stood up straight, gripping his robes and lifting his chin like a peerless expert. “I mean… naturally, Elder Sister.”

Ah! That’s my natural humility at play. I never even thought to ask so much of Tang Fei! But if I can, why not? If I force a powerful enemy to retire in this way, isn’t it the same as defeating her?

If only I could find a way to defeat all of All-Heavens Sect like this…

He stared over the chaotic battlefield and frowned. It’s too late now. But maybe, in the future…

Tang Fei looked at him, then sighed. She sank down in the air and stood slightly ahead of him, powering down her cultivation base. “Fine. I’m your hostage. But immediately after this, you fix my arm!”

“Agreed, Elder Sister!” Hui said, bowing. “Ah, but… this small disciple isn’t stupid, so…”

He made an incantation gesture toward her dantian, fingers sweeping to shape the form of a talisman. A moment later, a black talisman pasted itself onto Tang Fei’s dantian, emanating an aura of death qi, though not yet activated.

Tang Fei grit her teeth and allowed him to act, though reluctantly.

“If you attack me, I’ll instantly activate that talisman,” Hui threatened. It’s the same one that seals the lotus beast’s seed. If I use it on a living human… I don’t know what will happen, but at worst, her dantian will be sealed. In the best case… well, I don’t like to kill, but she did try to kill Li Xiang, even if she was controlled at the time!

“I understand,” Tang Fei muttered, scowling in a very un-cute way. She crossed her arms and turned her head away, pouting, and suddenly her cuteness reasserted itself.

Hui beamed. All is right with the heavens. Tang Fei is acting cute again. That means she probably won’t attack me! Not unless she’s controlled, but… Surely Gui Delun doesn’t want to lose such a cute disciple?

Overhead, Li Xiang clashed with an All-Heavens disciple. In the time it takes for a spark to fly off a flint, the two exchanged a dozen blows, clearly evenly matched. Li Xiang fell back slightly, and the other disciple pressed in, his eyes burning with hatred.

“Li Xiang!” I have to keep my eye on her! I look away for a second and she’s already dueling a powerful Senior! Hui threw his arm out. Black ducks flew out with his gesture, charging into the crowd, surging toward the duel overhead. They avoided the Starbound Sect cultivators, but anywhere they found All-Heavens cultivators, they slammed into them, exuding death qi. The first All-Heavens cultivators ignored them, only for whatever limb the ducks slammed into to turn black and begin to rot as death qi ate its way into them. Horrified screams rang out over the battle. Some used life qi to nullify the death qi, but others who chose a different path and didn’t cultivate All-Heavens’ life qi techniques could only cut their own flesh. Those who failed the decisiveness to cut off the infected pieces, or who didn’t have a technique to stop the flow of death qi… died!

As bodies plummeted from the sky, Hui frowned, raising a hand to his chin. Eh? Have I… actually been very powerful this whole time? Why didn’t anyone tell this small cultivator?

He thought back through his battles. Hmm, I avoided Tang Fei… I fought the puppeteer, but he had techniques to fight back against death qi… I played dead… that time, I avoided it… played dead again… the lotus beast… but I was weaker, and it had life qi…

Wait, could it be? I didn’t realize my own strength… because I refuse to battle?

Hui hung there for a few seconds, dangling from his sword, then shrugged to himself. Ah, it’s fine. I don’t seek a bloodsoaked path. Looking back and seeing my own peacefulness, I only feel pride! Actually… He cast a nervous glance at the cultivators falling from the sky, marred with black blotches where the death qi had eaten into them. I really hope none of them have Elder Brothers or Sisters who remember me from this fight…

I can’t not kill. I have to defend our sect, and more importantly, Li Xiang, Xixing, and Sis Mei! But… I don’t like to kill, I— even now, if I had known my own strength, I would have… to avoid unnecessary vengeance, I…

Hui’s eyes lit up. He ran a hand over his face, activating the snakeskin technique, and became a generic Starbound Sect cultivator. His face looked a bit like Lan Taijian’s, but otherwise, he barely stood out from the crowd.

There. Now, even if I kill, they won’t come after me!

An All-Heavens cultivator with a blazing streak of white down the center of his head jabbed his finger at Hui. “Right there! There’s the one who attacked us. Kill him!”

Ah… dammit. I guess it won’t do anything to stop people from attacking me in the moment.

Hui gritted his teeth and stared upward, gesturing again. The ducks whirled and charged at the man attacking Li Xiang. The man dodged, only to find himself in a storm of flapping wings and biting beaks. Li Xiang’s eyes glinted coldly. She struck out, and the man’s head flew.

“I believe in justice and a fair fight… but there is no justice in using overwhelming might to crush the weak. Nor can a fight so unbalanced be called fair,” she said, staring at the seemingly unending wave of All-Heavens disciples.

“Had we met under different circumstances, we could have had a fine duel.” Li Xiang bowed once. Even as the man’s body fell down, she charged into battle once more, the rest of the Starbound Sect disciples chasing after her.

As Li Xiang flew forth, the disciples charged toward Hui. He drew his hand toward him, recalling the ducks, but these cultivators had survived the first charge, and had techniques to fend off death qi. The one with the white streak in his hair who led the charge blasted gold life qi into the center of the ducks, and dozens of them dissolved into motes of black light.

No! Dammit, leave my ducks alone! Hui gestured again, pulling the ducks away from the disciples so no more of them would get destroyed. At the same time, his other hand flickered, summoning talismans from his storage ring and throwing them directly into the center of the disciples. Bursts of fire, ice, and wind blasted into them.

“This pathetic third stage magic… what do you think it can do?” the leader snapped.

Hui’s hands slammed together. The fire, ice, and wind all merged, creating a vicious, steamy windstorm that swallowed up the All-Heavens disciples.

Hui sighed, shaking his head. “Not all magic needs to directly attack, you know.”

He unsealed the ghoul-storing pouch and sent the ghouls flying into the windstorm, along with Jin Xian, who smiled a brutal, bloody smile before she vanished. Black strands attached to their backs, with the exception of Jin Xian. Hui manipulated them through the windstorm. Under his control, the ghouls attacked the All-Heavens disciples, then instantly leaped away, guiding one disciple toward another. Eyes glittering, he sent the ducks into the windstorm as well.

The sound of fierce battle emanated from the windstorm, the disciples instantly thrown into chaos.

“I’ve found him! He’s here!”

“Over here! These vicious ducks… I’ll kill him!”

“Elder Brother, that’s me—ahhhh!”

“I have him! Wait… you aren’t…”

A blast of wind flew out of the windstorm, disrupting it. For a moment, the battlefield was revealed. All-Heavens disciples attacked one another, while the ghouls darted about, occasionally darting in to land a blow. Only Jin Xian attacked whole-heartedly. She ripped into the neck of a cultivator with her fangs even as the steam parted, and chewed happily, quickly devouring the man.

Hui’s eyes went misty. He gazed up at the heavens. Ah, Jin Xian… is it too late to claim you’re simply some random ghoul who wandered onto the battlefield? My righteousness…

The cultivator with the white streak in his hair shoved away the disciple who’d been attacking him and jabbed a finger at Hui. “There he is! Attack him, not me!”

“Forgive me, Elder Brother Lu Zudong!” the disciple who’d been attacking the white-streak disciple shouted.

Lu Zudong reached a clawed hand toward the disciple who’d been attacking him. The disciple’s neck flew backward and hit his palm. He looked at the disciple with disgust, then threw him bodily toward Hui. “Clear your eyes and fight the enemy!”

“Elder Brother, we don’t have to be enemies,” Hui tried, giving Lu Zudong his most earnest look. He gestured at Tang Fei. “We can be friends instead!”

“He’s taken a hostage? Martial Sister Tang Fei… just wait! I’ll rescue you!” Lu Zudong shouted.

Once more, negotiations have broken down. Hui sighed and pulled out his talismans.

Tang Fei shot him a look from the corner of her eyes. “Why are you sighing? Did you seriously think that would work?”

“Allow this small cultivator to have some faith in the world,” Hui replied, throwing a talisman at the incoming disciple. A thick, wall-like barrier sprang up in front of him. The incoming disciple tried to stop himself, but under the force of Lu Zudong’s throw, couldn’t control his own body. He struck the barrier and smashed against it, then plummeted into the forest below, bones broken, leaking blood.

“Faith in the…” Tang Fei shook her head, barely resisting the urge to sigh herself. Faith in the world? After he attacked them with ghouls? After that one ghoul of his ate our disciples in broad daylight? After he took a hostage and killed countless disciples with a wave of his hand? After all that, he has the gall to call trusting him ‘faith in the world?’ This Weiheng Hui… he clearly has a hole in his brain!