Chapter 41

"Running pretty fast, aren't you? That scared of dying?" The God of Glory's voice echoed from below like a vengeful spirit. "Too bad you messed with me. I never let my enemies live through the night."

"Is that so? What a coincidence." Lin Yu stood on the altar, leaning slightly against the mud-caked statue. "Neither do I."

She glanced behind The God of Glory; the barrier outside was sealing shut. Lin Yu curled her lips. Now that The God of Glory was trapped inside the temple, he couldn't escape.

Lin Yu's arrogance sparked a vicious glint in The God of Glory's eyes. He strode into the temple and poured mana into his alchemy hammer, swinging it at her!

The hammer spun midair, growing larger. Just as it was about to strike, Lin Yu leapt off the altar and ducked under the offering table.

She pressed her shoulder against the base of the statue and shoved it outward. The hammer, bloated with too much mana to change course, slammed into the muddy statue!

In an instant, the statue shattered!

The solid-gold statue was hollow inside; its outer shell burst into pieces and scattered. At the same time, a ring of greenish magical light spread through the temple.

The God of Glory retracted his hammer, frowning. In the dry, cold air, he caught a familiar scent of vitality.

Suddenly, realization struck. His eyes flew wide. This was... the Rain Goddess's statue!

This was the Rain Goddess Temple, burned beyond recognition!

The God of Glory recalled the blood feud between him and the Rain Goddess twenty years ago. His gaze swept over the scattered fragments.

The coating on the statue wasn't mud—it was the ashes of her rainbow robes, mixed with water and adhered to the gold.

He had thought it was just a mud statue.

Seeing The God of Glory's disbelief and the magical light swirling everywhere, Lin Yu was fairly certain she'd guessed right.

The Rain Goddess had awakened from this statue, and she'd been stabbed to death in front of it. All her mana and merit had been gathered within it.

Ever since Lu Yao revealed the truth, Lin Yu had found it strange. Even if Lu Yao hadn't betrayed her and had followed the Rain Goddess's words, how could she have gotten close enough to The God of Glory to kill him?

Even with the God-Slaying Spike, she couldn't have. The God of Glory could have killed her with a flick of his wrist, let alone been slain by her.

The Rain Goddess wouldn't send Lu Yao to kill The God of Glory without preparation. Which meant the temple held some other prohibition the Rain Goddess had laid down—one that could restrain The God of Glory.

Lin Yu rose slowly from behind the offering table. "Does this scene look familiar?"

For the first time, a killing intent as cold as bone surfaced on The God of Glory's face. He realized Lin Yu knew how the Rain Goddess died. Throwing caution to the wind, he hefted his hammer and lunged at her!

"You know too much! You must die!"

Lin Yu dodged quickly, exchanged two blows, and they fought inside the temple. In seconds, the already-ruined temple lost even its walls.

But then Lin Yu realized something was wrong—the wind and snow were coming strangely, and the Rain Goddess's magical light was fading!

The prohibition was dissolving, and The God of Glory's power was recovering at terrifying speed!

Fu Ming and Yu Jia's barrier trapped The God of Glory but couldn't block the wind and snow.

After a few more exchanges, Lin Yu was losing again!

The God of Glory charged at her, but just as he was about to land a killing blow, his body slammed to the ground!

Zhang Yulin had shoved several candlesticks to his feet. He'd been so focused on Lin Yu that he'd forgotten there were others!

That distraction gave Lin Yu a moment to breathe. She quickly summoned a barrier over the broken walls to block the wind.

The God of Glory pushed himself up from the ground, then suddenly changed targets. He condensed mana in his palm and hurled it at Zhang Yulin in the shadows!

The attack caught everyone off guard. Zhang Yulin was blasted into the wall, coughing up blood!

The God of Glory strode toward Zhang Yulin gasping in the corner. Lin Yu sidestepped and quickly put herself in front of her, shielding her. The temple's prohibition had been mostly carried away by the wind and snow, and The God of Glory was clearly gaining the upper hand.

The God of Glory sneered, "Since that's the case, let's send you both to hell."

He made a grabbing motion with one hand, and Zhou Yu, who was behind him, was suddenly hoisted into the air, thrashing and choking.

"Thought you could ambush me? Pathetic."

With a flick of his wrist, The God of Glory hurled Zhou Yu across the room!

"Now, your turn."

The God of Glory put away his hammer. Using the same trick, he waved his hand in the air, and Lin Yu was yanked upward!

Lin Yu grabbed The God of Glory's wrist with one hand, struggling violently.

His left hand clamped around her neck, while his right hand formed a dagger of cold wind and drove it into her!

The dagger of chilling wind pierced her chest, lodging in her heart. Blood sprayed out!

Lin Yu gripped the blade with her free hand, trying to stop it from going deeper. The edge cut into her palm and scraped her heart. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, her vision blurring until the figure before her dissolved into white.

Seeing Lin Yu at her limit, The God of Glory tossed her aside like trash. Lin Yu spat out a mouthful of blood, trembling uncontrollably, yet she still glared at The God of Glory with fierce hatred.

The more the ant struggled, the more entertaining it was—especially one that refused to yield. The God of Glory crouched down in front of her, looking down from above.

He pinched her chin, his tone mocking. "A bunch of useless trash."

"This is your retribution for daring to touch Yaoniang. And not just you—I'll make the whole world pay with its blood for her."

Lin Yu's body was drained of strength. She said in a breathy whisper, "She... she's still alive..."

Suddenly, The God of Glory's fingers tightened on her chin. He was agitated. "What did you say? Say it again!"

Lin Yu didn't answer. She blinked quietly, like a dying animal.

Only her faint breathing could be heard in the air. Gritting her teeth through the pain, Lin Yu slowly reached out to The God of Glory. Her icy fingers touched the back of his head and gently pulled him closer.

The God of Glory leaned in, following her pull. The dagger was lodged in her heart, so she didn't have long to live. He let his guard down and didn't notice anything in her hand.

Lin Yu swallowed the blood in her mouth, forcing it not to come up. Her voice was muffled. "She's not dead..."

A flicker of delight crossed The God of Glory's eyes. He was about to ask where Lu Yao was when Lin Yu spoke again.

Her voice remained muffled but was now noticeably stronger. "But you're about to die."

Before The God of Glory could react, a flash of golden light—a sharp object suddenly pierced his throat!

His expression twisted grotesquely. It felt like his throat was blocked, preventing speech. In the darkness, his pupils shimmered with crystalline glints, as if veiled in mist.

Lin Yu coughed out a mouthful of blood and pushed herself up with both hands.

As The God of Glory collapsed, the dagger made of his breath dissipated, but the damage it had caused remained. Blood streamed from Lin Yu's chest like a spring.

With one hand pressed to her heart and the other holding The God of Glory down, Lin Yu shoved the God-Slaying Spike into his throat. She used the last of her strength to push The God of Glory over!

In an instant, the tables turned.

Lin Yu pulled out the spike, her hand slick with blood—the Divine Maiden's heart blood.

The blood ran down the spiral grooves of the spike's handle and gathered at its tip. Lin Yu curled her lips at The God of Glory on the ground, whose eyes were full of shock.

The God of Glory gritted his teeth. He sealed his blood vessels to stem the bleeding and tried to flee, blowing up a cloud of dust with his mana!

But Lin Yu didn't rush after him. He had no way out—the Rain Goddess Temple was sealed by two barriers. He couldn't leave...

As expected, The God of Glory was stopped at the barrier's edge, blocked by an invisible wall.

He thumped against it weakly, one futile blow after another. After being stabbed by the God-Slaying Spike, he was nearing his last breath.

Lin Yu caught up and smirked. "Die."

"Wait! Wait!"

Suddenly, someone burst through the two magical barriers into the temple. The newcomer was covered in snow, black hair streaked white with it. He slid in and crashed onto The God of Glory, shielding him.

The God of Glory had passed out, but the heavy impact made his eyelids flutter and brought him back to consciousness.

Lin Yu's guard went up instantly. "Who are you?"

Yu Jia landed behind him from above. Lin Yu shot him a stern look, and Yu Jia felt an invisible pressure.

Yu Jia stuttered, "He... our barrier was meant to stop The God of Glory from running, so it only works on those with cultivation. He's just a mortal, and while we weren't paying attention, he crept in from the side..."

He tested, "Are you... all right?"

Lin Yu didn't answer. She waved Yu Jia off, cast a healing spell on herself, and went to help Zhang Yulin and Zhou Yu, who were collapsed to the side.

Lin Yu confirmed the newcomer had no cultivation at all, so she asked the figure still clutching The God of Glory, "Who are you?"

The person finally looked up. "I am the Snow God from the heavens."

The moment he finished, Lin Yu quickly drew her Verdant String Sword and pressed it against his neck. "So you're the one who caused this snow?"

The Snow God flailed his hands. "No, no, it wasn't me! He knocked me out and stole my Snow Mirror..."

Lin Yu's expression was hard to read, and the Snow God was a bit afraid of her. He hung his head and said, "You can't kill him yet—I need my Snow Mirror back... If I don't get it back, I won't be able to make it snow elsewhere, or stop the snow in Jiangnan. I barely have any cultivation anyway, only the Snow Mirror. If I lose it, I'll be a truly useless god."

"The old geezers in the Nine Heavens already look down on me, and if I even lose my divine artifact..."

He kept babbling on, and Lin Yu couldn't take it anymore. "Stop. Where is it?"

"Huh?" The Snow God blinked. "Oh... I don't know where he hid it..."

Lin Yu: ...

Lin Yu kicked The God of Glory's shoulder. "Hand it over. Don't play dead."

The God of Glory's lashes trembled, but he stayed silent, clearly planning to stall as long as he could.

By then, the wound in Lin Yu's heart had healed enough to stop hurting, and her strength was slowly returning. Seeing The God of Glory like this only fueled her anger, and she stomped on his stomach!

"You!"

The God of Glory's body jolted from the kick. The Snow God quickly helped him sit up.

The God of Glory could neither lie back down and faint, nor sit up and answer properly. Finally, he opened his eyes and looked at Lin Yu.

Lin Yu twirled the God-Slaying Spike with a wicked grin. "Still not talking?"

Hatred was plain on The God of Glory's face as he stared at the spike. Then, out of nowhere, his eyes flicked upward. From that angle, he could just see a sliver of Fu Ming's back.

The God of Glory didn't want to return the Snow Mirror. Lin Yu had the Rain Goddess's God-Slaying Spike, and he knew he was probably done for. If Lu Yao hadn't betrayed him, The God of Glory should have died the day they met. He'd lived this long already, and he didn't regret it.

He'd lost to the Rain Goddess, and he accepted that. But he didn't want this snow to stop.

The God of Glory spoke, his voice hoarse. "Let me go, and I'll tell you a secret about him, how about it?"

Lin Yu shot a glance upward, too lazy to argue. She refused outright. "No."

Having been rejected so bluntly, The God of Glory laughed eerily, as if he'd given up all pretense. "Haven't you ever thought that man is strange? Everyone cultivates the immortal path. But him—he cultivates the demonic path!"