Tian Li felt humiliated. He cast a dark, sharp glance at the flower, gritting his teeth as he asked, "So, those pills weren't made by you either?"
Earlier, he had specifically investigated Song Wanníng's alchemy talent, knowing she had taken first place in the Pillmaster Competition of Wuji Sect.
He also knew she had forged the Baotu Pill.
For the past half month, he had been trying to coax out the pills Song Wanníng made, then capture her aura through the origin energy in them to bind her within his formation.
All to control her.
But now, everything was a lie. The pills themselves were faulty.
The more Tian Li thought about it, the uglier his face became. He felt like a complete fool, utterly embarrassed.
Song Wanníng only added insult to injury. "Tsk, no wonder you call yourself smart. You figured it out so quickly—truly a clever one! Not like me, so dull and easy to fool, always spinning in circles under your tricks."
"Song Wanníng!!"
Tian Li's fury boiled as he looked at her smug, aggravating face. This woman was unbearable. She even mocked him!!
He shouted again and again in rage, while the smile on Song Wanníng's face faded.
Her expression hardened, and she stared at him coldly. "What, can't handle it? And if you knew I just killed one invader, what would you do?"
Her voice dripped with contempt.
"You invaders are trash, parasites of the world. You should all be wiped out!!"
Other invaders might not have known their mission and were somewhat innocent.
But Tian Li, someone fully aware of his mission, was the embodiment of evil.
"What do you know?"
Tian Li scoffed, slightly rattled by her provocation. Ever since awakening, he'd been planning how to deal with Song Wanníng.
"Do you know what's become of our world? The world's resources are almost exhausted, monsters without consciousness roam everywhere, order has collapsed, one in ten humans survive…
We've done nothing wrong, yet we live in hell every day, hearts constantly on edge. Most importantly, resources are nearly drained. Humans face shortages of water and oil.
Earthquakes, tsunamis, typhoons… no nights, only a blazing sun hanging high…"
As he spoke, Tian Li's pupils shrank at the memory. Even after years, thinking of those hellish days still sent shivers down his spine. No wonder he'd been so ecstatic when he first crossed over.
"And what does any of that have to do with us?"
Song Wanníng's expression darkened. For the first time, she learned the truth of the Mùsù star system from an invader's mouth. No wonder the system was in such a rush. At this rate, it would collapse soon.
"The Mùsù star system reaps what it sows. Why destroy our lives?"
Tian Li was silent for a moment, then his emotionless eyes lifted. "Survival of the fittest is the natural law. Winners rule, losers fall. We did nothing wrong.
Song Wanníng, if you're willing to surrender now, I can give you a chance. Once we take over this world, you'll be hailed a great hero. Ascending to the God Realm will be effortless, no longer just a dream…"
Tian Li began painting her a tempting vision.
Song Wanníng's power was formidable. If he could turn her, the odds in the Mùsù star system would tilt in his favor.
"The invaders you've killed before, I can overlook. I'll only give you three seconds to decide.
One…"
Tian Li squinted, preparing to pressure her.
But before he could even count one, Song Wanníng attacked. All his empty words were just to learn about the Mùsù star system. Now, she didn't care anymore. A glint of ruthlessness flashed in her eyes as she struck without holding back.
Tian Li snorted coldly. His plan had failed, and now he had to go all out. Though he knew her techniques, her time-space attributes were tricky, and he couldn't be sure he could handle them.
In just a moment, her sword had already come at his face.
Tian Li let out a sharp cry, no flashy moves, and slashed vertically!
The blade tore through the air, heading straight for Song Wanníng.
Even before the blade struck, its overwhelming force shook the surrounding mountains.
The pile of excrement quivered too, and the flower on top flickered with light, activating the surrounding formation.
The formation tightly enveloped both of them.
Tian Li intended to trap Song Wanníng here. Today, this place would be her grave.
Song Wanníng's gaze was cold as ice. Facing a blade capable of splitting mountains, she simply lifted her wrist, the sword tip tracing a deceptively simple path that contained endless mysteries.
Time froze.
At her sword tip, the space before the raging blade suddenly solidified!
The blade slowed to a near halt, as if frozen!
Though only for a moment, it was enough for Song Wanníng.
She vanished silently and reappeared three meters behind Tian Li. Her sword shot forward soundlessly, space rippling violently along its tip, forming a hair-thin tear capable of slicing the void!
Directly aimed at Tian Li's back!
Tian Li seemed to sense it, snorted coldly, and didn't even turn.
His left hand deployed the "Bone-Eroding Umbrella"!
The same umbrella he'd opened outside the island before.
"Buzz—!"
The umbrella glowed, dark red runes moving like living creatures.
A protective shield instantly formed around the umbrella and Tian Li.
Song Wanníng's space-ripping sword struck the shield, but it sank as if hitting mud. The space tear was devoured by the umbrella's eroding power, stirring only violent ripples and a harsh sizzling sound.
"Hmph!"
Tian Li snorted and spun the umbrella. A vortex of black cold wind mixed with countless tiny runes erupted outward. Wherever it passed, space wailed, and even light was twisted and consumed.
Song Wanníng blurred once again, leaping away before the storm hit. Just as she landed, the ground beneath her warped violently.
A hidden formation trap activated, trying to imprison her!
Song Wanníng's silver gaze flared. With a swing of her sword, dozens of intersecting space tears slashed out!
The dense cracks shattered the warped space trap in an instant. As she broke free, her left hand clawed out, reaching toward Tian Li!
===
So, I Became a Fairy And Lived Forever In The Fairy World is already rewritten and up on my AO3 account plus I changed the webnovel version. Now it's The Cube Queen's Apocalypse Feast's turn, it'll get the same treatment, rewritten and published on AO3 and on Webnovel.
After that, I might work on The Villainess Refuses to Repent or Troublemaker's Guide to Immortality, then I'll move on to Feng Ling's novels like Stealing Luck and The Heir of Chaos. Basically, every novel I've released on Webnovel that I later post on AO3 will get the same process. I'll rewrite, expand, and smooth everything out, but I won't touch the Webnovel version. That means each story will eventually have two versions, the polished one with my current style and the original one where you can see my whole journey as a translator and how my style slowly turned into what it is now.
If you want to follow my projects, I really recommend subscribing to my AO3 profile under the name Rikhi. For the latest announcements and updates, you can also join my Discord server at discord.gg/75sprU6DdD