Chapter 262 Life or Death on the Line: Wang Qiu'er's Choice!
In the dark world, in the squares of major cities, Soul Masters watched as Wang Qiu'er suddenly appeared in the sky, and discussions erupted once again.
"Wang Qiu'er? Why is she here?" A Soul Master pointed at the screen, his face full of doubt.
"Didn't she disappear after the events at Qiankun Asking Love Valley?"
"Who knows?" The person next to him shook his head.
"But have you noticed that every time she appears, it's when Huo Yuhao is in the most danger?"
"Last time was in Sunset Forest, this time in Mingdu. It's like she's always been following him in the shadows, only appearing whenever he's in trouble."
"What a pathetic unrequited love!" another Soul Master sneered.
"Huo Yuhao has never made any promises to her. Wang Dong'er is the real girlfriend, so what is Wang Qiu'er? To put it bluntly, she's just a backup option."
"You can't say that," a female Soul Master said, frowning slightly, her tone tinged with dissatisfaction.
"How many times has Wang Qiu'er helped Huo Yuhao? In Sunset Forest, if it weren't for her, Huo Yuhao would have been dead long ago."
"She wasn't without her contributions in the Sun Moon Empire. And what was the result? After the Valley of Love and Destiny, Wang Qiu'er disappeared. Did Huo Yuhao ever look for her? Did he ever show any concern for her?"
"No. He locked himself in his room, his mind filled with thoughts of Wang Dong'er. Wang Qiu'er did so much for him, and he didn't even say thank you."
"That's the problem." An elderly Soul Master spoke slowly, his tone revealing a detached indifference that suggested he had seen through the ways of the world.
"Huo Yuhao is a man of great loyalty and righteousness. He is truly devoted to Wang Dong'er."
"But if you call him heartless and ungrateful, his attitude towards Wang Qiu'er is truly disheartening."
"He wasn't unaware that Wang Qiu'er liked him, and he did reject her before."
"But the problem is that he didn't reject her completely enough. Every time Wang Qiu'er was about to leave, he would use that ambiguous attitude to pull her back."
"This ambiguous relationship is the cruelest thing for Wang Qiu'er."
"That's right," someone nearby immediately agreed.
"If you really don't like her, just say so clearly and decisively. Don't apologize today and then ask her for help tomorrow. Wang Qiu'er isn't his servant; why should she be summoned and dismissed at will?"
"I think Wang Qiu'er has a problem too," a young Soul Master interjected. "Huo Yuhao was already like that, and she's still clinging to him. Isn't she just demeaning herself? There are plenty of good men in the world. Why is she so fixated on one?"
"What do you know?" the female Soul Master retorted. "Feelings aren't something you can just let go of so easily."
"Wang Qiu'er's feelings for Huo Yuhao are the kind that run deep in her bones. It's not that she doesn't want to leave, it's that she can't leave. Do you think she doesn't want to be cherished? She just hasn't met the person who is willing to cherish her."
The discussion in the square grew increasingly heated, with everyone having their own opinions.
Some people sympathize with Wang Qiu'er, considering her a pitiful, infatuated woman.
Some people think she's too foolish, knowing full well that there's no future, yet she still throws herself into the fire like a moth.
Some people also pointed the finger at Huo Yuhao, believing that his way of handling relationships was too indecisive.
But no matter what, there is one thing everyone agrees on—Wang Qiu'er's feelings for Huo Yuhao are truly unquestionable.
[In the scene depicting the sky.]
The fighting continues on the streets of Mingdu.
Huo Yuhao looked at Wang Qiu'er, who was standing in front of him, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes. He opened his mouth, as if to say something, but in the end only asked, "How did you get here?"
Wang Qiu'er didn't turn around. Her grip on the Golden Dragon Spear tightened slightly, and she said calmly, "Just passing by. I saw you were in trouble, so I offered to help."
"Just passing by?" Huo Yuhao clearly didn't believe this explanation. "How could you possibly just pass by here?"
Wang Qiu'er paused for a moment, then said softly, "Let's not talk about this anymore. Let's deal with the immediate problem first."
The four Holy Spirit Cult elders opposite them didn't give them much time to reminisce.
The leader of the evil spirit masters let out a piercing laugh: "Tsk tsk tsk, still talking about love even when you're about to die? Since you're so eager to die together, then I'll grant your wish!"
Before the words were even finished, the four evil spirit masters attacked simultaneously.
Dark purple soul power surged in like a tide, carrying an aura of corrosiveness, enveloping the entire street.
Huo Yuhao's eyes lit up instantly; his Spirit Eye activated, and his mental detection covered the entire area.
He quickly analyzed the four people's attack trajectories and shouted to Wang Qiu'er, "I'll handle the one on the left. You take care of the two on the right. The one in the middle is for the rest of our Tang Clan."
"Alright." Wang Qiu'er didn't waste any words. The Golden Dragon Spear drew a golden arc in the air, heading straight for the two evil soul masters on the right.
The battle erupted instantly.
Huo Yuhao unleashed his full power, using his self-created soul skill, the Three Absolute Techniques of Hao Dong.
However, evil soul masters are, after all, titled Douluo-level beings. Even though Huo Yuhao now possesses his own created soul skill, there is still a huge gap in their total soul power.
In just a few breaths, the evil soul master broke through Huo Yuhao's attack and struck Huo Yuhao's chest with a backhand palm strike.
With a loud bang, Huo Yuhao was sent flying backward, crashing heavily into a wall on the side of the street. The wall shattered, rubble fell, and dust flew everywhere.
"Yuhao!" Wang Qiu'er's eyes narrowed upon seeing this. She tried to rush over, but the other two evil soul masters had already engaged her, giving her no chance to escape.
"Your opponents are us," a malevolent spirit master said with a sinister smile, his bone staff unleashing clusters of eerie green flames that blocked all of Wang Qiu'er's escape routes.
[Another evil spirit master launched an attack from the side, dark red blood mist condensing into a giant ghostly claw in the air, aiming to grab Wang Qiu'er's back.]
Wang Qiu'er gritted her teeth, sweeping her golden dragon spear horizontally, the golden dragon flames shattering the ghostly claws. But in that instant, the evil spirit master who had unleashed the ghostly fire had already circled behind her, his bone staff slamming down.
Wang Qiu'er let out a muffled groan, staggered forward a few steps, and a trickle of blood escaped from the corner of her mouth.
The situation in the battle took a sharp turn for the worse.
The other members of the Tang Sect were also fighting fiercely against their respective opponents, but the level difference between them and four Title Douluo-level evil soul masters was simply too great. Bei Bei was knocked away, Xu Sanshi's heavy shield was shattered, and everyone was injured.
Huo Yuhao crawled out of the ruins, new cracks appearing on his battle armor. He looked at Wang Qiu'er, then at Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi in the distance, his heart filled with a sense of powerlessness.
"No... If this continues, we'll all die here." Huo Yuhao gritted his teeth, trying to mobilize his soul power, only to find that the previous attack had already damaged his meridians.
The opposing evil spirit master clearly wasn't going to give them any chance to breathe.
The leading evil spirit master raised his bone staff, a dark purple light gathering at its tip, growing larger and brighter. The fluctuation of that power caused the surrounding air to distort.
"It's over, Huo Yuhao." The evil soul master sneered. "This strike will send you all on your way."
Wang Qiu'er glanced at the dark purple sphere of light that was gathering, then at Huo Yuhao beside her, who was too exhausted to fight any longer. A resolute glint flashed in her eyes.
She turned around to face Huo Yuhao.
"Yuhao," Wang Qiu'er's voice was soft, yet exceptionally clear, "You still owe me a life, remember?"
Huo Yuhao was stunned for a moment. Looking into Wang Qiu'er's golden eyes, he suddenly felt a sudden, inexplicable panic: "What are you going to do?"
Wang Qiu'er didn't answer. She raised her hand, her fingertips gently touching Huo Yuhao's cheek. The movement was so light, as if she were caressing a fragile piece of porcelain.
"I don't blame you," Wang Qiu'er said softly. "I used to always think, 'If only you would look at me more.' But now I understand that some things can't be forced."
"Wang Qiu'er, what are you saying?" Huo Yuhao tried to grab her hand, but found himself unable to move. A gentle yet irresistible force held him rooted to the spot.
"Live on." Wang Qiu'er withdrew her hand, turned around, and faced the four evil soul masters.
Her body began to glow.
It was a golden light, pure to the extreme.
(End of chapter)