# Chapter 166: Death Aura
*Whoosh, whoosh.*
A sound like a bellows being pumped suddenly erupted from Lian Que's body.
He shot forward like a spark erupting from a furnace, hurtling straight toward Zhao Fangyuan.
His right hand was raised high, spinning in midair until it turned crimson red, veins bulging and muscles taut, like a giant swinging a hammer.
The temperature in the hall spiked violently.
"Lian Que, you truly are suspicious!" the female cultivator in the northeast corner shouted angrily, yet she retreated a step, having no intention of confronting Lian Que's sudden outburst directly.
Zhao Fangyuan, facing the attack head-on, twisted aside to avoid the hammer blow. His feet shifted rapidly, and he had already retreated to the hall's entrance, leaving behind a trail of afterimages.
He shouted at the same time, "Everyone, kill Lian Que first! If we don't kill this man, how can we have any peace of mind competing for the opportunity?"
Jiang Wang's hand rested on his sword hilt, but instead of advancing, he retreated toward the side entrance.
Something was wrong.
Even if Lian Que truly was the murderer, seeing that he was about to be exposed and surrounded, his first choice should have been to flee. Was he confident enough to kill every cultivator present single-handedly?
It couldn't be that simple. Those who had entered the Heavenly Treasury Secret Realm to compete for the opportunity were no weaklings.
Moreover, even if he possessed both the resolve and the confidence to kill everyone, his first target should have been the closest threat—Ji Xiu, who was still examining the corpse.
And Ji Xiu had not been on his guard, whereas Zhao Fangyuan, having revealed his hostility, had remained alert throughout.
When fighting against multiple opponents, why would anyone bypass the easy target and strike at the hard one first?
Jiang Wang decided to observe for a while, just as the female cultivator had done—preserving himself first.
Only the cloaked cultivator who concealed his face moved forward, seemingly intending to intervene in the fight and kill Lian Que.
But halfway there, he suddenly froze, his entire body motionless.
At that moment, something even stranger occurred.
Zhao Fangyuan, who had been retreating the entire time, suddenly countercharged and collided with Lian Que head-on.
Both unleashed their secret arts in a devastating clash, meeting and separating in an instant.
Zhao Fangyuan spat blood and fell back—he had clearly taken the worse end of the exchange. But he paid no heed, charging once more at Lian Que.
This was completely out of character for Zhao Fangyuan. He was not the type to engage in direct brute-force confrontations.
He had always displayed considerable intelligence. Why would he now attack his enemy's strength with his own weakness?
But from this angle, Jiang Wang had gotten a clear look at Zhao Fangyuan's face. He noticed that the man's eyes were shot through with blood vessels, the redness still spreading, his killing intent dense and rampant.
This was not normal.
Something was wrong with this hall.
Jiang Wang's blood and vital energy surged within him, repeatedly washing through his meridians. The Star-Coiling Spirit Serpent glided through the Heaven-Access Palace, probing for any anomalies.
His gaze, sharp as lightning, swept across the hall's corners.
Where was the problem?
"Everyone, be careful!" Ji Xiu, still crouched beside Tian Yong's corpse, abandoned his examination and stood to warn them. "You must suppress your killing intent. If we all attack Lian Que, we'll have fallen into a trap. Someone has tampered with this place. Once killing intent reaches a certain threshold, you will suffer kill-urge corrosion."
Kill-urge corrosion?
Looking again at Lian Que and Zhao Fangyuan, they indeed did not appear to be in their right minds.
The two clashed head-on with devastating force. Though both displayed formidable power and their combat instincts followed a certain pattern, there was no thought or strategy behind their actions.
It was as though killing the opponent was their only objective.
Lian Que hated Zhao Fangyuan to the bone, and Zhao Fangyuan had earlier revealed killing intent. The two perfectly fit the conditions for kill-urge corrosion.
The female cultivator in the northeast corner immediately held her breath and composed herself, suppressing her killing intent.
So, whose scheme was this?
The gazes of those present darted between each other, every person wary of the others.
Meanwhile, Lian Que and Zhao Fangyuan continued their frenzied battle, both sustaining serious injuries.
"Regardless, we must stop them first and prevent any deaths," Jiang Wang said decisively, forming a hand seal.
"Whoever set this trap wants us to slaughter each other. We absolutely cannot let them succeed. Otherwise, there will likely be further developments, and that will only harm us!"
Dense tangles of vine serpents burst from the ground, intertwining and forming a barrier directly between Lian Que and Zhao Fangyuan.
Vine-Serpent Barrier!
This was a defensive Dao art, but Jiang Wang used it to separate the two combatants.
*Boom!*
Under the onslaught of their wild attacks, the Vine-Serpent Barrier collapsed instantly.
But by then, Ji Xiu and the female cultivator had also reacted, each deploying their own techniques. What Jiang Wang had said was, after all, entirely correct.
Whoever was pulling strings from the shadows—denying them success was all that mattered.
A colossal wall of water rose between Zhao Fangyuan and Lian Que, surging all the way to the vaulted ceiling.
Under the influence of kill-urge corrosion, they had eyes only for each other. Now, suddenly losing their target, both experienced a moment of confusion.
From Ji Xiu's hands, two streaks of white light shot out, tapping once on Zhao Fangyuan and Lian Que respectively before returning.
The white light instantly turned blood-red, and only when it returned to Ji Xiu's hands did Jiang Wang see clearly—they were two small snakes.
They should have been snow-white, but now their entire bodies were crimson red.
Lian Que and Zhao Fangyuan both paused, their eyes returning to clarity.
"Stay calm. Suppress your killing intent!"
As Ji Xiu spoke, he let the small snakes slither into his sleeves, then commanded, "You were both caught in the trap. I've temporarily absorbed your killing intent. But you must not give in to it again!"
The water wall dissipated. Zhao Fangyuan and Lian Que exchanged a glance—though hatred still lingered in their eyes, both showed the pallor of someone who had narrowly escaped a terrible fate.
Zhao Fangyuan in particular, having fought in a manner ill-suited to his strengths, had already been beaten into serious injury by Lian Que. Had it continued, he would likely have been beaten to death.
"Then whose scheme was it, trying to get us all to kill each other?" The female cultivator withdrew the water wall, but her gaze turned toward the cloaked man. "We were all trying to stop the fighting, all searching for the source of the anomaly. Why did you remain motionless just now?"
The cloaked cultivator seemed to finally snap back to awareness. He rolled his shoulders, then said in a cold, sinister tone, "My killing intent is very difficult to suppress. It took considerable effort."
Though this explanation was somewhat alarming, it was not unreasonable.
"Difficult to suppress?" The female cultivator sneered. "Who do you want to kill so badly that you can barely contain yourself?"
"Don't you?" The cloaked figure swept his gaze around the hall. "Everyone here—who among you wouldn't want to kill all the other competitors and claim the divine-power opportunity alone?"
The woman's words caught in her throat.
"Enough." Ji Xiu of Eastern King Valley intervened. "Until we've identified whoever is behind this, let us avoid further conflict. We mustn't let ourselves be caught in the crossfire."
"That venomous hag, always fanning the flames, always hoping someone else dies first. I'd say she's highly suspicious!" Lian Que was hostile toward the Dragon Palace's sole female cultivator.
It was precisely this woman who had joined forces with Zhao Fangyuan and nearly driven him out of the competition from the very start.
"If I hadn't intervened, you might well be dead by now. And yet here you are, so eager to point the finger at me. Could this all be some elaborate ploy of yours?" The female cultivator immediately counterattacked with her words.
Zhao Fangyuan, meanwhile, tended to his wounds while remaining carefully vigilant against everyone else. He was now the most seriously injured—the most likely target to be dealt with first.
These people within the Dragon Palace had come to compete for the opportunity. In a place like the Heavenly Treasury Secret Realm, where no rules applied, there was absolutely no trust between them.
Mutual suspicion and hostility meant genuine cooperation was impossible.
Perhaps this was precisely why the hidden manipulator had chosen to strike through killing intent.
A true master of understanding and manipulating human nature.
Jiang Wang hesitated, uncertain how to handle the situation.
If only Ling He were here—matters would be far simpler, for even his enemies could trust him. If Ling He investigated one by one, everyone who knew him would have no objections.
If Zhao Rucheng were here, he would probably have figured out who was responsible in the first instant.
And if Du Yehu were present, it would be even more straightforward. He wouldn't consider anything—whoever tried to kill him, he would kill. Simple, brutal, effective.
But here, Jiang Wang was alone. He could not simply ignore the problem the way Du Yehu would, yet he also could not think of a good solution for the moment.
However, he could not afford to delay—there was no guarantee that the hidden manipulator did not have further measures in place.
Moreover, once the opportunity appeared, the situation would spiral out of control immediately.
Leaving this hidden danger unresolved now could become a death sentence when the time came.
Jiang Wang's expression betrayed nothing, but his thoughts raced.
Then, suddenly, he sensed movement within the Heaven-Access Palace—the Nether Candle stirred.
He turned his attention inward and saw that from the void, several strands of grey mist were being drawn out, revealing their traces.
The grey mist, thin as threads, was entirely absorbed by the Nether Candle.
Jiang Wang recognized it—this was death aura!
Why would death aura attempt to erode the Heaven-Access Palace? And whose scheme was this?