Magman's eyes darted toward the Bronze Holder as he stretched his hand forward, his sleeve fluttering as he summoned his wind artifact.
He shouted loudly,
"Blue Vortex of the Century!"
"I will steal her artifact and warn the rest of the immortals not to obstruct me!"
Before the vortex could even be summoned, Mingyin leaned in behind him.
"You should stop your attack," Mingyin said calmly. "We can still use her for a bit."
Magman's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
"How dare you order me, you regal rascal!"
Magman turned back, pointing at him furiously.
"You should know, mortal, that I am not easy to fool! I, the great Magman—"
Suddenly, Mingyin released an intense aura—black, dense killing intent that flooded the area.
Magman felt as if his heart were bleeding for several seconds.
The forming vortex instantly stopped.
He looked up fearfully.
A mortal using an artifact… this has never happened in history!
Magman's eyes never left Mingyin.
Mingyin returned his gaze with a dead stare.
"Why don't you think about how precious she is?"
Magman yelled, "She isn't even close to her level! Why bother keeping her?"
Mingyin shook his head.
"She can still be useful. Let's use her for now. If she remains useful, we can save her to prepare for the mountain."
Magman hesitated and looked at the Bronze Holder.
Several seconds passed as he bit his lip.
"…Fine. Let's do it."
Mingyin's faint smile faded away.
Magman's eyes froze.
Don't tell me… he wanted me to kill the Bronze Holder so he could steal the artifact himself? He only stopped me so he wouldn't look bad in public. No—he definitely didn't do it out of kindness.
Magman felt his admiration for Mingyin sink.
What a furious kid.
Magman flew down, followed by the rest of the crowd, and picked up the Bronze Holder.
The carp spear fish fired more water bullets, each one forming a violent torrent.
One immortal touched his skin, a shining flame appearing as he swung it downward.
The flame engulfed part of the torrent, turning it to steam and killing several jade carp fish in seconds.
But suddenly, the dead carp fish floated back up.
A deep liquid gushed from cracks in the water, flowing into a formation.
Magman frowned.
The rest of the immortals grew wary, their expressions complicated and tense.
Mingyin suddenly looked around at the carp fish.
"They're not moving toward us. They're staying in formation," he said. "That means they're either too weak to move or dodge our attacks—or they're relying entirely on strong defense."
If an immortal had heard these words, they would have looked at Mingyin in a different light. But Mingyin's wisdom level was currently low.
Though his past life experience should have helped him, for some reason he had forgotten many things.
A mortal who failed to ascend to the Nine Heavens—yet was far smarter than most immortals of the mortal world.
Mingyin never boasted about his intellect.
He felt like nobody… nothing.
But how could someone who had regressed not gain any power?
It seemed there was an error in his memories. Maybe he had once been an immortal but failed to reach the Nine Heavens.
That was all he remembered.
Mingyin spoke aloud, "Quickly. Send your attacks and draw them out."
The immortals hesitated.
Mingyin snorted coldly.
"Move and draw them out—or do you not want to retrieve the treasure core?"
No one moved.
Mingyin's eyes twisted slightly.
The crowd looked at him with hostility.
"Who are you to give us orders?"
"The Bronze Holder is wounded."
"We'll follow our own path and take the treasure core ourselves. We know who you are—a mortal.
Magman's eyes twisted.
Suddenly, the trauma he carried from childhood vanished, and his body relaxed.
He looked at Mingyin with deep hatred.
Ahahahahaha…
Magman laughed silently in his mind.
Go ahead. Try to change the outcome.
The crowd shifted their gaze toward the Bronze Holder.
"We should steal her artifact and hide her body. If others find out we took her corpse, we'll never be trusted again."
Magman wanted to join them, but Mingyin appeared in front of him.
"If you join them, they will betray you for sure."
Magman's eyes narrowed as he walked past Mingyin.
But Mingyin spoke again, stopping him.
"If you can convince the crowd to fight for me, I will personally stand against them—as a mortal."
The crowd stared at him in confusion.
"Wait… he's a mortal?"
"To think the sage artist was a mortal…"
"Is this some kind of blatant lie?"
"What fool would dare say something like this?"
Mingyin gave them a fierce stare.
Magman shook his head.
"Fool. Everyone knows you're a mortal. What benefit is there in helping you?"
Mingyin smiled faintly.
"Do you want me to tell them what happened to your Soul Realm?"
Magman's eyes twitched.
He hesitated, then bit his lip until blood flowed down.
The crowd watched in confusion.
Mingyin looked ahead.
I am no better than them, he thought. I wanted to kill the Bronze Holder for her artifact. But if I were in her place, I would want someone to help me.
It's not worth looking down on others or killing the innocent. Even the worst people were once at the bottom. Humans are no different from me.
Mingyin pointed forward.
"Now convince the crowd."
Magman could no longer hold it in.
"AHHHHHHH!"
Veins bulged on Magman's forehead as he lowered his head, his eyes filled with pure hatred.
Mingyin spoke aloud, "Wait."
Magman turned around.
If he had not been humiliated in the Soul Realm, he would have slapped Mingyin to death on the spot.
Mingyin raised one finger and placed it near his lips.
Even though I don't want to kill humans, he thought, everything that blocks my path must fall.
Even my loved ones. Even my brother. Even my sister. Perhaps… even my father.
Mingyin spoke calmly, "After they help us, we'll kill the entire crowd."
Magman's eyes froze—then relief washed over him.
It makes sense.
If they killed the crowd, no one would oppose Mingyin being a mortal.
Mingyin felt a dull ache in his heart.
This may be hypocritical, he thought, but there's a goal I cannot abandon. If I regressed only to die meaninglessly, then this life would be worthless.
Magman thought to himself, It's only natural for Mingyin to end lives.
Magman surged forward through the water.
The crowd dodged the torrent bullets as Magman appeared, summoning the Blue Vortex of the Century, which blocked the incoming streams.
He looked ahead and shouted, "If anyone dares to kill the Bronze Holder or leave without permission, I will walk away—and you'll face this alone!"
The crowd fell into frenzy.
They gritted their teeth, hesitating.
After a moment, they nodded one by one.
One young man bit his lip until it swelled.
Mingyin stepped forward, his gaze cold and sharp.
After this, he thought, I'll kill Magman with my own hands and take his artifact. It won't be an easy fight.
If a mortal heard these thoughts, they would laugh in disbelief.
But Mingyin knew an immortal's weakness.
Once their soul force was exhausted, they would revert to a mortal state—still powerful, capable of lifting trees, but no longer invincible.
And as a mortal… Mingyin could kill Magman.
Mingyin clenched his teeth.
You chose the wrong person to provoke.
He floated before the crowd, looking down at them.
"If you want the treasure core, you'd better listen to me."
The crowd stared back rudely, dodging the torrents without responding.
Meanwhile, Magman continued restraining the Bronze Holder. She struggled through her injuries, but a healer quickly treated her torn arm before swimming away.
Mingyin pointed downward.
"I'll draw the jade carp fish's attention. When I pull them out of formation, unleash your strongest attacks."
The crowd nodded.
Mingyin clenched his fist.
Magman… and all of them… will die.
He returned their gaze with a deadly stare, causing the immortals to retreat slightly, dread creeping into their hearts.
Mingyin pointed forward.
"Go."
A massive phantom of Mingyin surged forward, diving deep.
The jade carp fish released a storm of torrent bullets.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!