Chapter 34: Po Jun!

The Guisuan Nuo Mask possesses highly accurate divination abilities and is one of the few taboo objects willing to communicate normally with humans.

According to his own account, he possessed consciousness a thousand years ago and witnessed many shifts in human history.

He was once revered as a sacred object, using his powerful divination to turn misfortune into blessings for villages.

He was also once treated as an evil entity and discarded into an ancient well.

Though he frequently speaks in riddles, it is undeniable

He is currently the most needed asset to the group; his divination can lead them to the Mobius Strip Map faster than anyone else.

Thus, after a brief respite, Li Yela and the others set back into motion.

Relying on the divination abilities provided and enhanced by the Guisuan Nuo Mask, Sha Li formed a Nine-Character Hand Seal, performing rapid divination while leading the group through a swift traversal.

"It's useless, you fools! This amount of time isn't enough for you to pass through the labyrinth safely!" The Nuo Mask continued to prophesy doom: "Go back! I can lead you out of the labyrinth! Do you have no will to live?"

Sha Li sneered, "Of course I know, but we never said we were going to be safe!"

With that, she pushed open the door to a containment room.

Beyond the door was not a containment room, but a long corridor. From deep within the corridor, the sounds of intense combat and cursing echoed out.

It was likely someone attempting to suppress the Hidden Scarf.

Seeing this scene, the Nuo Mask was clearly plunged into shock.

Li Yela reacted instantly.

Because this was not a safe route; this path would encounter several dangerous taboo objects!

But it was indeed the fastest route!

In pursuit of precious time, Sha Li had abandoned the safe route in favor of the shortest path directly through the activity zones of taboo objects!

Only by doing this could they barely arrive at the location of the Mobius Strip Map within the time limit.

Humans might never understand the mysterious power contained within the Guisuan Nuo Mask.

But similarly, the Guisuan Nuo Mask could never understand human courage and responsibility!

And it could never understand the Processors.

They resist calamities, suppress taboos, and watch over the populace—even going so far as to turn blades against one another to bury former teammates.

They are the most steadfast guardians of the human race, and also the sufferers struggling on the edge of life and death. They live by embracing death!

Li Yela had long known this, but seeing Sha Li's actions, he couldn't help but feel a surge of shock and admiration.

"Clerks, stay behind! The left path is the safe route. Everyone else, follow me!" Sha Li shouted, charging into the passage first.

Without hesitation, Li Yela followed closely behind Cheese into the passage.

He had his trump card, Black Shadow; how could he retreat here?

Behind them, a clerk tried to follow immediately: "We are also members of the Processing Department, don't look down on us!"

But a colleague immediately pulled them away: "You can't keep up with them, don't be a drag. Let's go!"

"Be careful, you guys!"

Simultaneously, five Processors and one Iron Guard traversed the corridor at maximum speed.

"Ahead!" Sha Li's slightly raspy voice suddenly rang out.

Li Yela looked up and saw tree trunks and branches spreading from an unknown source.

They almost completely covered the ceiling.

Perched upon them was a cluster of pitch-black, eerie birds with sharp claws and pointed beaks. Their blood-red glowing eyes were incredibly conspicuous amidst the foliage.

Human flesh and bone remains were clearly scattered among the branches; entrails had been gouged out and were being torn apart in a frantic struggle.

It was like a living hell!

They were a Grade-C taboo object, a derivative of the Fallen Spirit Tree! After losing control, they were born from the spreading branches and began hunting humans.

And they had already successfully killed many.

Looking at the torn corpses of the clerks, Li Yela felt a surge of rage rising from his chest.

At that moment, they seemed to have detected the arrival of Li Yela and the others. Countless strange birds took flight, gathering and circling, seemingly preparing for their next hunt.

"There are too many of them, don't get bogged down!" Cheese suddenly spoke up: "Xiao Ye, Beast Speech!"

Beast Speech? That's right—these birds were merely derivatives; they weren't even transcendent creatures!

Li Yela's mind raced, and he immediately cast Void Realm Beast Speech: "Disperse!"

The obscure words were uttered.

In an instant, the gathering birds immediately scattered, clearing a path for the group.

But soon, some birds struggled against the command of the Beast Speech and began to pursue them.

Li Yela could only speak again, casting Void Realm Beast Speech: "Return!"

A large number of birds landed once more, though they broke free from the command after a few seconds.

However, Li Yela and the others had successfully run a significant distance.

They could see a crossroad dozens of meters ahead.

At this moment, Sha Li, who was leading the charge, shouted, "There's something at the left corner! One person stay behind to hold it off!"

The Iron Guard immediately raised his thermal gun and responded, "I'll do it!"

Yes, this was the most reliable method.

Leaving one person to stall the taboo object allowed the others to pass through quickly.

But the risk of facing a taboo object alone was self-evident.

This meant using one's own life to pave a safe road for comrades—a road that could save more people!

But... it wasn't time for that yet!

Li Yela's heart pounded violently as he spoke quickly, "You all go! I have a trump card! Don't look back!"

"Don't do anything reckless!" Cheese hissed.

"Trust me, keep charging, close your eyes!" Li Yela roared. At the same time, he increased his speed, rushing to the intersection first and lunging toward the left.

Behind him, his teammates gritted their teeth and closed their eyes as they rushed through the intersection; in the end, they chose to trust Li Yela.

As Li Yela burst around the corner, he saw a black statue as tall as a person, carved entirely from black stone. It possessed wings and sharp fangs—a demon statue.

At this moment, the statue was drenched in blood, moving freely as if it were alive, flying toward the intersection at extreme speed.

It was like a demon hunting humans.

A Grade-C taboo object: the Black Gargoyle.

Its effect was that every so often, it would produce a piece of black stone, which served as a material for psionic weaponry.

After losing control, it would become a living entity that hunted humans.

Even if its body was shattered, it could rapidly reconstruct itself.

Its strength was roughly equivalent to a third-awakening psionicist.

To suppress it, one had to shatter its head and prevent its body from approaching for a certain period of time.

With this ability, even if Li Yela summoned the Dual-Blade Knight, a two-on-one fight wouldn't be enough to hold it; they would likely be killed in a counterattack very quickly.

But now, Li Yela was not afraid of it.

Or rather, it should be the one afraid!

Looking at the approaching Gargoyle, Li Yela took a strand of hair from the cloth bag in his bosom; the hair still carried the gentle scent of a young girl.

Yet, this single strand of hair made the Black Gargoyle act as if it had seen a ghost, falling from mid-air in terror and struggle.

After crashing heavily onto the ground, it scrambled on all fours in a frantic attempt to flee backward.

It was as if it were no longer facing prey, but a natural predator!

This was the trump card the Doll had left for Li Yela—hair containing a portion of her curse.

This was also one of Li Yela's trump cards, and one that only he could use.

Only he could use such a method without fear.

Now, using this to stall the taboo object was the best possible option.

Li Yela left the strand of hair on the spot and accelerated to catch up with his companions.

Before the curse on the hair vanished, neither the Gargoyle nor the birds would be able to cross the intersection!

"What is that?" a Processor shouted, noticing Li Yela catching up.

"The Doll's hair!" Li Yela responded quickly. "My curse resistance is high, I'm not afraid of this. But the taboo object is!"

"That's impressive!" The Processor was somewhat stunned, but had no time for gossip.

Cheese, however, glanced back quickly at Li Yela but said nothing.

"Almost there, almost there, hang on!" Sha Li shouted. "Just a few more corners and we're there!"

As they passed the first corner, the group saw a group of Processors and Iron Guards in the distance, also rushing toward them.

The others were clearly also pursuing traces of the Mobius Strip Map.

At this moment, it wasn't just Li Yela's group making an effort. Many teams had found the location of the Mobius Strip Map through taboo objects or special abilities, and all were rushing there with everything they had.

But unfortunately, they were being delayed.

They were simultaneously being besieged by the Hidden Scarf and a large group of Prairie Cavalry.

Or rather, that group of Prairie Cavalry was besieging both the Scarf and the humans.

A three-way chaotic battle was raging intensely.

The Iron Guard's thick power armor was riddled with arrow holes and blade marks, and the Processors were all wounded.

They fought while retreating, steadily approaching the Mobius Strip Map.

When they saw Li Yela and the others, their eyes filled with joy. Among them, someone spoke immediately, but it wasn't a plea for help.

"We'll hold them here! Go, quickly! Hurry!"

The speaker was a young man, and as he spoke, an arrow pierced his shoulder.

But he showed no fear, as if he felt no pain, breaking the arrow with his left hand.

With his right hand, he grabbed a long spear, knocking both a charging cavalryman and his horse flying with a single thrust.

The rest of that squad also abandoned their journey.

They immediately turned around, throwing themselves into a melee with the endless stream of Prairie Cavalry and the Hidden Scarf, which resembled a giant python.

Upon discovering teammates ahead of them, they decisively abandoned their advance to cover the rear.

They placed their hopes in their comrades.

Li Yela watched helplessly as a Processor's arm was severed, the flames in his heart burning even more fiercely.

He didn't know if it was the influence of the Slaughter Heart.

Li Yela wanted to go support them, to cut through these cavalrymen.

"We..." Li Yela reached for the cloth bag in his bosom; there was about half of the hair left. It should be enough to drive those riders away!

"Don't go, there's no time, keep moving! Fast!" Sha Li's eyes were bloodshot, yet she dared not stop for a second, continuing to lead the team forward!

The further they advanced, the more combat they witnessed.

They even saw the corpses of several Processors. When the heavily wounded Processors saw them, their eyes gleamed with a light—the light of seeing hope.

Thus, they fought desperately to block the taboo objects, buying time for Li Yela and the others.

Li Yela saw Bai Yang, the one who had previously wanted to become sworn brothers with him, among the Nightless!

At this moment, Bai Yang was engaged in a bloody battle with a Void Realm creature.

It was a taboo object, a bounty hunter from the Crimson Wanted List!

It was a Void Realm creature not inferior to a fourth-awakening, possessing two types of eerie psionic weaponry simultaneously!

Even the elite Nightless could not easily take him down.

The great blade in Bai Yang's hand continuously unleashed flashes of light, even severing a metal gate with a single strike, yet he could not cut through the Void Realm creature's dagger.

Upon seeing Li Yela and the others, Bai Yang let out a manic laugh, his great blade becoming even more ferocious!

"Don't look back, don't look back!" he roared, laughing wildly.

He abandoned all defense, attacking the Void Realm creature frantically, preventing it from gaining any ground.

"Almost there, almost there, the last intersection is just ahead, only three hundred meters, AAAAAHHH!!!"

Sha Li's eyes were red and her voice was hoarse; she had seen the corpses of several of her friends.

She had also seen several colleagues in need of support.

But she couldn't stop; she could only leave her colleagues behind and continue moving forward!

However, just beyond that last corner, hundreds of Prairie Cavalry were charging toward them.

They—they were also pursuing the Mobius Strip Map and had encountered the last human team!

At this moment, despair rose in the hearts of everyone in the group.

It was too late; setting aside whether they could withstand the impact of so many cavalrymen, at their current speed, they certainly wouldn't reach the corner in time.

Yet, in the next second, the charging cavalrymen suddenly collapsed to the ground. The horses behind them could not stop in time and trampled the riders.

Following that, more cavalry and horses fell into panic, causing the entire cavalry charge to be forcibly halted.

It was Li Yela!

Positioned at the very end of the group, he had taken out all the remaining hair from the cloth bag.

The Doll's fear curse caused the oncoming cavalry to instantly fall into a state of panic.

This brought the final hope to the group, allowing them to reach the corner ahead of the cavalry.

"Good! It's just ahead, only two hundred meters! Damn it, there's one more taboo object ahead, the last one! Block it! I'll go break the Mobius Strip Map!" Sha Li shouted, both crying and laughing like a madwoman as she looked at a beast-shaped taboo object emerging ahead.

"It's just one, we just need to stall it!" another Processor shouted excitedly. "Great job, Night General! Thank you, Doll! Thank you, Night General! You are all heroes!"

But they did not hear a response from Li Yela.

Cheese's heart skipped a beat as she prepared for battle; she turned her head sharply to look back.

But she did not find the figure that had been following closely behind her.

What she saw was the Prairie Cavalry gradually gathering at the corner.

And a solitary figure holding a blade, standing before the army.

Had the Doll's curse failed?

In that instant, Cheese felt a crack open in her heart.

"You bastard, why are you playing the hero!" Cheese roared. She turned, grabbed a handful of saccharin, and swallowed it, then looked toward the last taboo object blocking the way.

*Wait, I'm coming to save you right now!*

A light flared in Cheese's eyes: "[Word Spirit: Exploding Flame]..."

On the other side, Li Yela stood with his blade, watching the approaching cavalry. He set down the now-ineffective hair and took out the summoning bell, shaking it slightly.

The Dual-Blade Knight materialized beside him.

Playing the hero? No, he didn't consider himself a hero.

Unlike other Processors, the reason he dared to take risks was entirely because Mr. Shadow could cover the cost and take the blame.

What kind of hero was that?

How could he even compare himself to them? He was merely a despicable imitator.

But... at least now, he could...

Avenge those heroes!

Thus, his terrifying double pupils looked down upon the legion, and the Slaughter Heart beat wildly!

Today, break the army!