Chapter 44: Stalling with All Her Might

“Don’t get too cocky. Once I’ve dealt with these guys, I’ll tie you up again.”

“My lady, you’re awfully confident. Who knows, maybe next it’ll be me tying you up instead.”

As they spoke, Lin Huanhuan quickly undid Dong Yun’er’s restraints.

Dong Yuner didn’t hesitate for a second; she drew her light sword in a flash and held it out in front of Lin Huanhuan, putting on a scene of complete trust and closeness, as if their lives were in each other’s hands.

This display left the people across from them staring in disbelief once again.

They’d thought Lin Huanhuan had already tied Dong Yuner up and the two had fallen out—maybe they’d even get a bargain from it. Who would have guessed that Lin Huanhuan would let her out, and they’d continue working together as before?

The Iron Masked Man was utterly shocked, curiosity churning through him like a tide and making him itch with impatience:

‘What exactly is the relationship between these two? They’re certainly not just master and servant—even real sisters don’t act like this. Could it be that the maid has some deadly leverage over her? But if that were the case, how could she dare to betray her?’

‘So curious. So, so curious.’

He clenched his teeth, barely managing to suppress his urge to ask outright. If he wasn’t worried Lin Huanhuan would mock or insult him again, he’d have lost his composure already.

Unlike him, though, his subordinates had no such restraint. “Whoa, what the heck are they doing? Tie her up, let her go, can’t they just fight among themselves and let us finish them off? Why resist!”

“You idiot, you just don’t get it, do you? This is a new way to play. People from the sects always have fancy tricks up their sleeves.”

“Kill! Kill! Use their blood to wash away our shame!”

Lin Huanhuan’s eyes sharpened. She glanced sideways at Dong Yuner, only to find Dong Yuner looking back at her at the same moment. A new idea flashed through her mind.

She curved her lips into a faint smile and said lightly, “Are you all curious why we’re doing this?”

“Yeah, yeah, hurry up and tell us honestly, satisfy our curiosity, then you can just obediently go die!”

“The truth is—go to hell!”

The group opposite had been listening intently, not wanting to miss a single detail; even the Iron Masked Man perked up his ears. But just as Lin Huanhuan reached the halfway point of her sentence, she abruptly flung out several wind blades, slashing mercilessly toward them.

“Despicable! Shameless! Using our curiosity to launch a sneak attack!”

“I’ll tear you all limb from limb!”

The Iron Masked Man’s subordinates were furious, but still instinctively maneuvered their flying artifacts to dodge. The only problem was, there were two or three people riding each artifact—trying to steer together, one pulling left, one pulling right—how could they possibly control it properly?

Sure enough, thanks to this “brilliant” teamwork, the artifacts instantly flipped over. They tumbled from the sky like dumplings into a pot, barely any of them able to stay upright.

Even Lin Huanhuan was stunned for a second. ‘The fighting ability of these guys is downright trash.’

But she didn’t waste the chance—she immediately sent out more wind blades, and Dong Yuner’s sword light flashed out, both of them attacking the rest to try to knock them all down.

However, as their attacks drew near, the Iron Masked Man dissolved them with a single word: “Break!”

His face was grim as water. “You two little brats are getting far too arrogant!”

“Since you like knocking my people out of the sky with sneak attacks, I’ll return the favor—let’s see how you handle this!”

“Anti-Flight!”

As the words “Anti-Flight” echoed out, they rippled in all directions.

The flying artifacts beneath Lin Huanhuan and Dong Yuner shook violently. Though they struggled desperately, they couldn’t withstand the power of this move. Their artifacts lost their ability to float, and the two of them plummeted straight down.

“Damn, this fall is going to kill us!” Lin Huanhuan’s heart jumped in alarm.

They were falling from a hundred meters up—it didn’t seem that high, but it was equal to a thirty-story building. Even with their strong bodies as peak Qi Refining cultivators, they’d definitely be badly injured by the impact. And the Iron Masked Man’s group would never let such an opportunity slip by—then they’d be done for.

As she saw the ground rushing up to meet them, Lin Huanhuan squeezed her eyes shut in terror. Below, a bunch of the bloodthirsty rabble, themselves battered from their own falls, got excited at the sight.

A second passed. Then another. The expected pain never arrived.

Puzzled, Lin Huanhuan opened her eyes—and saw Dong Yuner smiling at her.

“My lady, it seems in close combat, I’m still a little better than you. Now, if I wanted to grab you, you wouldn’t be able to resist at all.”

Lin Huanhuan didn’t have the heart to joke back. “Are you alright? You caught me even after that fall. Did you get hurt?”

Dong Yuner set her down, shaking her head with a smile. “It’s nothing. I used a little trick just now. I’m fine, just a bit sore.”

The rabble, denied the bloody show they wanted, clicked their tongues in disappointment. “Pah, so this is what we get? What kind of trashy romance drama is this?”

“Who wants to see this? We want to see rivers of blood!”

As it turned out, during the fall, Dong Yuner had sensed Lin Huanhuan’s fear, and swiftly pulled out a protective talisman from her Qiankun pouch. She used it and grabbed Lin Huanhuan, taking the brunt of the damage herself. While it hurt, she was otherwise fine.

“Damn you, die!” the Iron Masked Man roared in fury, diving down from the sky. Waves of sound attack crashed toward them.

Lin Huanhuan and Dong Yuner hastily defended themselves, throwing out every trick they had as they fought with the Iron Masked Man. Though he was still suffering from cold poison and not at full strength, after their last battle he was familiar with Lin Huanhuan and Dong Yuner’s techniques.

This time, he was prepared, and his subordinates supported him from the flanks. In just moments, Lin Huanhuan and Dong Yuner were forced on the defensive. If Lin Huanhuan didn’t occasionally pull out a hidden trump card or throw a few Thunder Bomb Beads at the lesser foes, forcing the Iron Masked Man to split his attention, they’d probably have been killed already.

“Damn it, I need to think of something—the power of a Foundation Establishment cultivator is just too overwhelming.”

Lin Huanhuan swept out another wind blade, pushing back two more enemies, then quickly hopped over to Dong Yuner’s side, standing back to back with her as they faced their foes.

“That Iron Masked Man is too strong. We have to find a way to get rid of him.”

“Does my lady have a plan? I’m afraid I won’t be much help. Not to mention, my strongest killing move can’t instantly take him out, and it needs time to charge up. He’s very wary of me now.” Dong Yuner panted, her words coming fast.

Lin Huanhuan gritted her teeth. “Buy me ten breaths. I have a way.”

Dong Yuner drew a deep breath. “Alright. I’ll do everything I can to stall him.”

With that, she pulled out a Paper Courtyard Talisman and activated it. A small courtyard appeared out of thin air, shielding them both. While this was a talisman usually used for daily life, it was expensive and its defense was formidable—enough to withstand the full force of a peak Qi Refining cultivator for a whole quarter of an hour.

The enemy was Foundation Establishment stage, so it would still be a strain for him to break through. It would buy them at least a little time. Even if it was a waste, there was no time to worry about that now.