“Sigh, I originally just wanted to get along with you as an ordinary person, but you actually saw through me.”
Dark purple lightning flickered and danced across Lei Wei’s body as his disguise shattered inch by inch. His originally weak and unstable aura surged instantly, and his cultivation base began to climb rapidly from the early Golden Core Stage.
Golden Core — Nascent Soul — Soul Transformation!
His arrogant voice reached everyone’s ears. “Then I’ll stop pretending. I am in the Soul Transformation Stage! You’re all going to die here today!”
Although he was one minor realm lower than Xia Lingshuang, his aura actually managed to suppress hers in this world thick with Demonic Chi.
“Wu Yan, your reactions are quite good.” Lei Wei shook his somewhat numb hand, which had been struck by Wu Yan’s blade. “But you didn’t expect this, did you? Being beaten like a stray dog on the Arena was all just an act.”
With Yu Qingyao’s support, Wu Yan barely managed to stand. Fortunately, Wu Nian was made of Meteor Wind Iron, which helped her dissipate the vast majority of the force. Otherwise, she would likely be heavily injured by now.
“A mere Golden Core actually managed to block a palm strike from me and only suffer minor injuries. I truly cannot let you live.”
“Senior Sister, the situation isn’t good. Should we retreat first?” Yu Qingyao stood by Wu Yan’s side and suggested in a low whisper.
“Don’t even think about escaping~” Dark purple lightning exploded beneath Wu Yan’s feet, followed immediately by Lei Wei’s incredibly sinister words. “You didn’t really think I was stopping and starting along the way because I was afraid, did you? I’ll tell you straight: I’ve set up Soul-Bewildering Arrays all along the path. You can’t escape.”
Whether it was because the Demonic Chi had gone to his head or he was naturally unintelligent, Lei Wei revealed all his trump cards within a single moment.
“Lei Wei, your Demonic Chi was stolen,” Wu Yan countered coldly, her Wu Nian blade glowing with a green light. “The more you use, the less you have. And the Demonic Chi here isn’t that easy to digest.”
Lei Wei laughed wildly, his eyes filled with lightning and his voice carrying an electronic distortion. “But my Demonic Chi is infinite!”
“Qingyao, take Senior Brother Zhao and the others to get Junior Brother Gu and the Stone Tablet, then leave this place.”
“But Senior Sister, that guy said he set up — “
Before Yu Qingyao could finish, Wu Yan interrupted her. “I destroyed those arrays. You can get out.”
From the moment she saw Lei Wei, Wu Yan had found his appearance strange. First, the timing of his entrance was too convenient. It was exactly when Wu Yan and the others arrived at this swamp area that they heard his cry for help, and he just happened to know someone was trapped there. Second, the red marks on his hands after he emerged from the black mud were more like the marks caused by binding someone than by saving them — at least, that was how it looked from Wu Yan’s memory.
Finally, and most crucially, was the flow of the Demonic Chi in the air. Although most of the Demonic Chi in the area was surging toward the Black Mud Monster in the clearing, there was always a faint, steady stream of Demonic Chi flowing into Lei Wei’s body. This had caused Wu Yan to remain suspicious of him the entire time. Every time Lei Wei paused before moving forward, Wu Yan would check the spot where he had stopped, and sure enough, there was something strange. Unfortunately, she hadn’t had the chance to communicate with her Master before Lei Wei launched his backstab.
“Senior Sister, what about you?” Yu Qingyao asked, instinctively grabbing Wu Yan’s sleeve.
“I’m going to support Master. Qingyao, I’ll be fine.”
“Then you and Master must come back safely.”
“Yes, I will.”
Boom!
Up ahead, dozens of thick bolts of lightning smashed into the ground with a suffocating aura. The swamp was blasted apart, and the explosive gases below were ignited by the lightning, triggering a series of explosions.
“Rise!”
Shuang Hua pointed toward the sky. Flying snow drifted from the tip of the sword, and the snowfall grew heavier until it turned into a freezing Ice Tornado, charging toward the exploding sea of lightning. There was no world-shaking explosion, only a tooth-aching *sizzling* sound. The frigid tornado attempted to freeze the violent lightning, while the active lightning continuously ignited the swamp gas, weakening the Ice Tornado’s offensive.
Purple and white shadows intertwined, making the space look even more grotesque. Whenever the lightning showed signs of weakening, Lei Wei would spread his arms, allowing the Demonic Chi in the air to surge into his body. In contrast, every time the Ice Tornado weakened, it consumed the Spirit Chi stored within Xia Lingshuang’s body. As one side waxed and the other waned, the lightning gained the upper hand and advanced toward the group.
On the other side, atop the monster’s head.
“Get back!” Lin Xiao roared. The muscles in his arms surged as he forcibly blocked a stray arc of lightning. His Protective Astral Qi sparked upon impact, but he did not take a single step back, firmly protecting Yu Qingyao and Su Qianqian behind him.
“Senior Brother Zhao, fill the gap!”
The longsword in Zhao Wuji’s hand danced, weaving several streaks of Sword Chi into a net to protect the group.
Yu Qingyao had already reached Gu Jian. Those four iron chains were not just restricting his freedom; they were continuously draining his life force. Gu Jian’s face had turned from flushed to a deathly gray, his breath as weak as a thread.
“I must cut the chains!”
Clang! A sword strike hit the iron chain, sending sparks flying. The chain was completely undamaged, and the recoil made Yu Qingyao’s wrist go numb.
Su Qianqian shouted, “Senior Sister Yu, if that doesn’t work, let me try if my talismans can break these chains!”
“No need.” No wonder her Senior Sister had told her to save Gu Jian; she must have anticipated this step. Yu Qingyao tossed aside the longsword and grabbed the bone-chilling iron chain with both hands. The Spiritual Power in her body was converted into Nirvana Fire without reservation and poured into the chain. Flames rose over the iron, incinerating the restrictions. The chains binding Gu Jian melted into molten iron and flowed away.
“Elder Xia, you’re getting weaker!” Lei Wei sneered, his right hand suddenly making a grasping motion. The clouds were torn apart as rolling lightning transformed into a giant hand, crushing the white storm.
Ice shards flew everywhere. Xia Lingshuang gave a muffled groan and retreated several meters. The lightning followed closely, bombarding the hard ice. The ice layer cracked inch by inch, the fissures spreading all the way to Xia Lingshuang’s feet.
‘Something’s wrong.’ Feeling the state of the protective spiritual energy on her body, doubt rose in Xia Lingshuang’s heart. ‘I was clearly hit by his attack, so why is my Protective Astral Qi still in such good condition? Could it be…’
“His realm was achieved through artificial means.” At some point, Wu Yan had quietly arrived at Xia Lingshuang’s side and helped steady her.
Xia Lingshuang turned her head and met Wu Yan’s ink-black eyes. “You also think his strength is only temporary?”
“Yes, Master.” Wu Yan channeled her own Spirit Chi into Xia Lingshuang’s body. However, as the energy passed through Xia Lingshuang’s meridians, Wu Yan’s expression became a bit strange. “His actual strength is likely in the Nascent Soul Stage. He probably used some special technique to absorb a massive amount of Demonic Chi to temporarily reach the Soul Transformation Stage. Judging by the flow of the Demonic Chi… the backlash is about to arrive.”
As soon as Wu Yan finished speaking, Lei Wei’s skin suddenly became withered. Dark purple veins crawled across his body like earthworms. Then, a massive amount of Demonic Chi entered his seven orifices, making his withered skin swell again, but blood began to seep from his ears, eyes, nose, and mouth.
Despite this, it would be impossible to defeat him in this environment with Xia Lingshuang alone.
“Master.”
“Yes?”
“We need to fight side by side to have a chance of defeating him.”