Directly facing an enemy far stronger than herself was truly not a wise choice.
After exchanging a dozen moves, Shiqi found herself suppressed by the burly man wielding the Great Axe.
All she could do was swing her sword desperately, fending off the man’s powerful, heavy blows.
Yet she didn’t think there was anything wrong with this. At this moment, only one thought filled her mind: to go down together with this bastard.
The mist in the forest thickened, and as the two fought for their lives, neither noticed the occasional cries of terror echoing through the woods.
It was as if some invisible beast roamed the shadowed forest, devouring all who dwelled beneath the night.
“Ha!” The burly man unleashed another powerful chop, sending Shiqi flying.
This time, Shiqi suffered a solid internal injury.
Her face turned deathly pale, a trickle of crimson appeared at the corner of her lips, and the aura surrounding her body weakened dramatically.
If this continued, she would lose.
“A traitor’s descendant is just a useless wretch, hahaha!”
“Shut up!”
If she lost, then so be it. Even if she were to lose, she’d drag this bastard down with her!
Clutching her sword tightly, Shiqi was just about to rush the burly man again when a rustling sound suddenly came from behind her.
Before she could turn to look, several thin Vines stretched out from the Magic Mist, wrapping around her neck, arms, waist, and abdomen.
With a sharp pull, they dragged her deep into the mist, now so dense that it distorted sight itself.
After she was taken, a white-haired girl emerged from the mist, taking her place.
Through all of this, the burly man with the Great Axe remained unaware.
The fog was too thick; all he could make out was a vague figure. The swap had been so quick that he still believed the person in the mist was Shiqi.
He knew his last move had injured her—this was the perfect moment to press the attack and finish her off.
“Go die!” Swinging his Great Axe, he cleaved through the mist and charged at the dim silhouette.
As he drew closer, the figure finally came into focus.
Then, his vision filled with dazzling lightning.
Rumble!
Bolts of lightning as thick as buckets struck his weapon, bringing his charge to an abrupt halt.
Linglong seized the opportunity, sword in hand, and pounced straight at him. The two quickly became locked in a fierce battle.
The more he fought, the more the burly man was alarmed—this opponent was far stronger than Shiqi.
Not only could he not match her skill, even the strength he so prided himself on was inferior to that of this white-haired girl.
After only a few direct clashes, his arms went numb, and he found it increasingly difficult to grip his axe.
“Who the hell are you?!”
“Just a Nameless Small Fry,” Linglong replied, unwilling to answer honestly.
“Damn…”
Pa! Pa!
“Are you awake yet?”
After Hua Jian slapped Shiqi’s face twice, her gaze finally cleared.
She finally realized that her state just now had been wrong. Normally, she would never make such a reckless decision.
This wasn’t normal, and that abnormality must have something to do with this young lady standing before her.
“Just who are you…”
She was about to ask who Hua Jian was and what she wanted, when Hua Jian flicked her fingers and popped a small pill straight into Shiqi’s mouth.
Shiqi immediately clutched her throat and began to cough, trying to spit the pill out.
But as soon as it entered her mouth, it dissolved into energy, flooding her body—there was no way to get it out.
“What did you make me swallow?!”
“It’s poison, you know. It’s a seed. It’ll slowly absorb your life force, take root and sprout inside you, and finally turn you into a beautiful potted plant.” Hua Jian giggled.
Shiqi’s face went white at first, but soon she realized Hua Jian was just trying to scare her.
She didn’t know exactly what Hua Jian had given her, but judging by how she felt after swallowing it, it definitely wasn’t anything bad.
The internal injuries she had suffered from the burly man’s attack had already lessened thanks to the pill.
“Stop joking!”
“How boring—it’s an Antidote Pill, so you can move freely in my Magic Mist.” Seeing that Shiqi had figured it out, Hua Jian shook her head in mock regret, then released the Vines entwined around Shiqi.
“Speaking of which, it seems my Vines just touched something rather odd.”
With a strange look, Hua Jian’s gaze swept across Shiqi’s chest.
In a voice full of meaning, she said, “Even if this girl offers herself to you, young hero, you probably wouldn’t get to enjoy it.”
Shiqi’s face went pale once more. She understood the meaning behind Hua Jian’s words—it was a blatant hint that Hua Jian had seen through her identity.
And the reason she saw through it, unexpectedly, was because… huh.
“So this Magic Mist is your handiwork? I lost control of my emotions just now because of it?” Shiqi feigned calm and glossed over the previous topic.
As long as she didn’t admit it, her identity wasn’t exposed.
She could still fool herself, at least.
“Of course. Did you really think I was just a useless young lady who’d do nothing but drag you down?” Hua Jian covered her mouth and laughed softly.
At this moment, she really did seem a bit like a mischievous, devilish young miss.
Other noble ladies might be dignified and graceful, but she was completely different—like a demon who found joy in toying with others’ hearts.
Shiqi watched Hua Jian, who was laughing lightly, momentarily at a loss for words.
She really had thought of Hua Jian as nothing but a burden. Now she saw that this whole act was just a disguise.
“Even if you hadn’t stepped in earlier, I’d have been fine, right?”
“That’s right. Still, I appreciate you saving me, young hero Shiqi—consider this me repaying the favor.” Hua Jian nodded, then gave a little wave behind her.
Not far away, a mound of Gang Wolf Legion cultivators lay in a heap.
Their bodies sprawled every which way, without a single visible wound.
Shiqi finally understood how she’d been able to face the burly man alone for so long.
It wasn’t that the burly man wanted a duel—his reinforcements had all been cut off.
For Hua Jian to take out so many Gang Wolf Legion cultivators without a sound… this young lady was truly terrifying.
Beneath her frail and pitiful appearance was something this dangerous?
“We’ve been talking a while. That fight over there should be about finished.”
“What?”
Before the words had even left her mouth, a dark shape flew out from the depths of the mist and crashed heavily to the ground.
Shiqi looked closely—it was the same burly man who’d just injured her.
No, he couldn’t really be called the burly man with the Great Axe anymore.
His signature axe was now just a broken stump.
His body was covered in bruises and scorched marks—it was obvious he’d suffered terribly in battle.
They’d barely exchanged a couple of sentences—how had he been beaten so badly, so quickly?
Shiqi stared, dumbfounded, at the gasping burly man, then turned to look at Hua Jian.
Was your guard’s combat power a bit too much?
“A guard stronger than me is normal, right?” Hua Jian replied with an innocent look.
A noble lady can’t be stronger than her bodyguard, after all.
Everywhere else, it’s the campus beauty with a powerful bodyguard.
Here, it’s become the bodyguard with a powerful campus beauty. Doesn’t that feel weird to you?
Hua Jian’s explanation was actually quite persuasive. Shiqi thought it over and found herself at a loss for words.
A guard really should be stronger than the young lady—but wasn’t this one a little too strong?
The burly man was already the strongest of the Four Heavenly Kings in the Gang Wolf Legion, yet he hadn’t lasted even a few rounds against Linglong.
Just what level of strength did Linglong possess?
Could she be a Ling King?
“Who the hell are you people!” The burly man also noticed Hua Jian standing with Shiqi. There was no doubt that Hua Jian was allied with that white-haired brat.
“You’re not worthy of knowing this young lady’s identity.” Hua Jian had no intention of answering like some brainless villain.
Besides, even if she did reveal her name, there was no way he’d know her.
Hua Jian was confident in her lack of notoriety—right now, she was just a Nameless Small Fry.
Even if she gave Linglong’s name, he probably wouldn’t recognize it.
The Saintess of the Sacred Sect was simply too distant from the likes of these lower-ranking cultivators.
They might know of the Jade Pool, and that the Jade Pool had a Saintess, but as for her name? Unlikely.
Unless they were like Hua Jian, fond of reading all sorts of gossip, and had seen the Xiānzǐ Ranking.
While the two exchanged words, Linglong, sword in hand, calmly walked out of the mist.
There was not a trace of battle on her body. If not for the sorry state of her opponent, one might have thought the two had only shared a brief conversation behind the mist.
The gap in strength was simply too wide. When the burly man fought Shiqi, at least Shiqi could fight back—maybe a seventy-thirty split.
But against Linglong, it was ninety-one. He had almost no chance to retaliate.
If not for his ample combat experience and steady foundation, Linglong would have already severely injured him.
“Are you determined to become enemies of our Gang Wolf Legion?” The burly man’s eyes showed a trace of retreat.
Linglong alone was more than he could handle.
If Shiqi joined the attack, he would lose, he would die.
He had no choice now but to invoke the Gang Wolf Legion’s name as a threat.
But such a defeated dog’s whine would do nothing at all.
“If you die, no one will know who killed you. Your Gang Wolf Legion might be powerful, but you’re not strong enough to track us down.” Hua Jian shook her head.
“Besides, even if we spared you, you’d never stop coming after us. It’s best not to let the tiger return to the mountain.”
“Our Commander is a Ling King-level expert!”
“But he’s not here. Once we deal with you, he won’t be able to find us.”
“My Life Token is in the Commander’s hands. If I die, the Commander will know what happened here. You won’t escape!”
Life Token? Hua Jian’s expression turned a bit helpless. This was troublesome.
Who would have thought even a small Ling King faction would possess Life Tokens?
“Is he telling the truth?” Hua Jian turned to Shiqi. This girl had deep enmity with the Gang Wolf Legion and was surely familiar with their ways.
Whether the burly man spoke truth or not would be clear with a single question.
“It’s true. But the Life Token only shows if his soul still exists. If he dies, all the Commander will know is that he’s dead.” Shiqi confirmed that it was true, but not entirely as serious as it sounded.
Life Tokens sounded impressive, but really they were just tools to confirm life or death.
Kill this man, and the Gang Wolf Legion’s Commander would simply know one of the Heavenly Kings had perished.
Useful? Yes, as it allowed them to react swiftly to emergencies.
But also not so useful—it merely confirmed death.
“Got it. So as long as he’s left worse than dead, that’s fine, right?” Hua Jian understood instantly and came up with a plan.
She didn’t want the Gang Wolf Legion Commander to become too suspicious.
If two Heavenly Kings died in a row, that would be a big event, and might prompt the Commander to send people to investigate.
After all, Linglong’s planned route passed through two more Gang Wolf Legion resource areas. If things blew up here, they’d be swarmed in no time.
Should they encounter the other party on the road, things would be quite awkward.
So Hua Jian had to ensure that the burly man couldn’t run off and report, nor could he send a message by dying.
Sounded difficult, right?
But don’t forget the new ability Hua Jian had recently obtained by chance—the Soul Sealing Technique she’d used to keep Chai Xianyun under control for days.
“Linglong, can you make him unable to resist?” Hua Jian shot Linglong a meaningful glance.
Linglong nodded. “No problem.”
With that, she charged the burly man. The two started fighting again with crackling fury.
About five or six minutes later, Linglong landed a whip kick on his chest, sending the now-helpless burly man flying and breaking several trees.
That single blow made him cough up blood, losing all ability to fight.
At that moment, Vines controlled by Hua Jian grew up from the ground and bound him tightly.
Ordinary Vines might be fragile against a cultivator at full strength, but against someone who’d already lost all will to fight, they were more than enough.
Using the Vines, Hua Jian dragged the burly man before her, then summoned her spiritual power to activate the Illusory Dream Flower’s ability, wrapping him up.
As the sound of someone collapsing echoed in her ears, Hua Jian knew her ability had taken effect… Huh?
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