CHAPTER 271: CHAPTER271-THE SITUATION REVERSED

"There’s nothing we can do now; there are only two paths left to choose from," Tristan, who was usually full of bravado, sighed, devoid of energy.

"One path is to send another person to explore that entrance," Tristan paused, his gaze inadvertently flickering towards Norma as he slowly added, "The other is to survive in this place until we can find the mechanism one day."

"Brother..."

Seeing her usually spirited brother reduced to such a state, Perini’s heart couldn’t help but ache, especially since they had to live alongside Tristan, the cause of all their misfortunes.

Perini silently sighed.

Why had their luck been so terrible?

First, they encountered Norma, then they entered the Endless Contraption, rumored to have a survival rate of nearly zero, and now they were dealing with Tristan.

"It’s possible, but we also can’t give up hope."

To the surprise of Yashum and the others, Tristan actually uttered such earnest words.

"What do you mean by that?"

Yashum looked up, only to meet Tristan’s gaze directed towards him and Perini beside him.

"Prince Tristan?"

Yashum, taking a few steps back with Perini, displayed a wary expression as arcanergy began to gather around him.

"Restrain those two," Tristan said, a sly smirk playing on his lips.

Since escape seemed impossible, he naturally planned to make the most of the situation.

Upon hearing Tristan’s command, the three men beside him burst forth with arcanergy, charging towards Yashum.

Yashum positioned Perini behind him and faced the assailants alone, fury burning in his eyes.

"You cowards!"

Not only had Tristan caused the death of Owen and Anderson, but now he was turning his sights on his sister.

If he didn’t react now, he wouldn’t deserve to be called a man.

In just a single exchange, Yashum was completely overwhelmed by the three, sent flying with a trail of blood mist.

"Brother!"

Perini, seeing her brother easily defeated, panicked.

She rushed to Yashum’s side, quickly using her arcanergy to heal his injuries.

Yashum, with unresolved internal injuries, coughed up another mouthful of blood, his gaze dimming.

He gently tousled Perini’s hair, speaking weakly, "Perini, your brother isn’t strong enough, and it’s brought you down with me..."

"Brother, it’s not your fault; it’s me who’s too weak. If I were stronger, you wouldn’t have gotten hurt because of me."

Tears slowly rolled down Perini’s cheeks.

Since she had entered the world, her brother had always prepared resources for her, even spending years of savings on auctioned medicinal herbs to enhance her constitution.

Yet, even so, her strength had improved at a painfully slow rate.

If those resources had been given to Yashum, he would have been stronger...

"Ha!"

Tristan sneered, slowly approaching Yashum and Perini, "Such a close relationship between siblings. Then let both of you explore together."

"Will you go on your own, or do I have to assist you?"

Standing before Yashum and Perini, Tristan revealed a sinister smile, relishing the pleasure he hadn’t felt in so long.

"Prince Tristan..."

Norma, casting a seductive glance, approached Tristan, intentionally revealing a hint of skin at her chest.

Swallowing hard, Tristan, who hadn’t touched a woman in months, couldn’t resist Norma’s allure and immediately pulled her close, his hands beginning to roam over her body.

A cold glint flashed in Norma’s eyes but was quickly concealed.

She was starting to regret her actions; if she hadn’t driven Owen and Anderson away, Tristan wouldn’t have dared to be so bold with their combined strength.

Now, she could only rely on her charms to win favor and survive.

"Let’s head over there," Tristan’s eyes had turned bloodshot, his hunger surprising even himself.

After speaking, he glanced back at his three companions, "Keep an eye on them. Don’t come over until we’re done."

With that, he walked towards a corner, pulling Norma along.

"Hurry up, no dawdling!"

One of them kicked Yashum, speaking coldly.

"You!"

Perini, seeing the man kicking them while they were down, was filled with rage, but Yashum quickly held her back.

"Perini, let’s go."

He then led Perini quickly towards the entrance, knowing full well that heading there was tantamount to suicide, but it was infinitely better than dying at Tristan and his men’s hands.

"Wait a second."

What sunk Yashum’s heart was the man actually calling out to him.

He turned back, "Weren’t you the one telling us to hurry..."

Before he could finish, he was slapped across the face and sent flying, landing far away and continuously coughing up blood.

"Keep Yashum restrained for me; I’ll be quick."

The man told his companions and started undressing as he approached Perini.

His two companions frowned but said nothing, immediately moving towards Yashum to restrain him.

Perini saw the greedy glances of the two men and felt her clothes being gradually removed, knowing all too well what they intended.

She immediately tried to rush towards the entrance, preferring a gruesome death over letting these men defile her body.

"Ha!"

The man scoffed disdainfully, knocking Perini to the ground with a palm strike.

"Don’t come any closer... if you do this to me, I won’t let you off even as a ghost!"

Perini’s expression turned frenzied as she desperately tried to flee, but the man’s strength far surpassed hers.

"Perini!"

Yashum’s eyes filled with bloodshot veins as he frantically tried to mobilize his arcanergy to rush over and kill the man, but he was immobilized.

The man burst into laughter, his expression gradually turning fiendish as his hand slowly reached out towards Perini.

"Struggle all you want; the more fiercely you resist, the happier I get!"

Perini’s eyes were filled with despair and helplessness, tears streaming down her cheeks.

As she watched the demon-like hand approach, she closed her eyes...

A squelching sound of flesh breaking echoed.

Yashum, his eyes red and veins on his forehead bulging from the effort of resistance, stopped struggling and looked on ecstatically at the scene before him.

The two men restraining him looked towards the front in horror, as if they had seen a ghost.

Perini, feeling the hand had not fallen after a long moment, along with the sound of flesh tearing, slowly opened her eyes.

Instead of the demonic hand, she saw a face of unmatched clarity, though its expression was cold.

"Owen?"

Perini asked somewhat dazedly, then instinctively looked down to see a lump of mangled flesh at her feet, which made her start vomiting.

"Anderson, these two are yours," Owen said, his tone cold.

Had they not arrived just in time, who knows what would have become of Yashum and Perini – to die peacefully would have been a luxury...

Anderson nodded and walked towards the two men restraining Yashum, his expression grim.

Although he and Yashum were not closely related, they shared a bond of similar dispositions.

Seeing what had almost happened, how could he not be angry?

Owen found Tristan and Norma huddled together, his eyes brimming with extreme disdain.

Without wasting any words, Owen struck towards Norma with a palm.

Tristan, shocked to see Owen, was taken aback but then saw Owen aiming directly at Norma beneath him.

He frowned and countered with a slap of his own.

In a mere instant, Tristan was sent flying at a speed invisible to the naked eye by Owen’s palm.

Had Owen not pulled his punch at the last moment, that hit would have killed Tristan, who was merely at nirvana-tier grade 1.

"What do you prefer for your end?"

Owen’s icy gaze shifted towards Norma.

"You...weren’t you already dead?"

Seeing Owen effortlessly sending Tristan flying, Norma instantly realized Owen’s strength far surpassed hers; she definitely couldn’t send Tristan flying with a single palm.

Fear also began to creep into her heart, recalling how she had looked down on Owen and constantly sought to trouble him.

She now felt she might have gone too far.

"How about my body?"

As she spoke, Norma manipulated her unclothed body, even biting her lip and gazing at Owen with implied affection.

Smack!

Norma touched her cheek in disbelief, her expression incredulous as she looked at Owen, her tone edging towards madness, "You hit me, you actually hit me!"

Norma’s body began to tremble.

Since her birth, when had she ever been slapped? Sacrificing her body was one thing; it wasn’t the first time, after all.

But to be slapped by Owen – could it be that her body wasn’t enticing enough? Norma looked at Owen with endless resentment, "I want... you dead!"

As she spoke, Norma unleashed all her strength in an attempt to kill Owen.

"I intended to grant you a swift end, but seeing as you’re so spirited, I suppose I can indulge you in this little game," Owen casually extinguished the arcanergy Norma had mustered, a cold smile playing on his lips.

Smack!

Owen left another palm print on Norma’s other cheek, causing her sanity to evaporate in that instant.

She began to burn her life force in a frenzied attack on Owen, no longer caring for her own survival.

Even in death, she wanted Owen to realize the consequences of slapping her.

Smack!

However, Norma’s madness turned into a mere jest under Owen’s casual palm, deepening the imprint on her other cheek.

With bloodshot eyes, Norma could only watch herself being helplessly slapped by Owen, offering no resistance.