A Ruthless Slaying!

"Da Niu!!" "Damn it!!" Disbelief flashed across both Wen Mei's and the child's eyes. The woman cried out involuntarily at the scene that had just unfolded. With a wave of the shadowy figure's hand, ferocious origin power erupted. Countless shattered fragments of the broadsword floated in midair, then shot toward the pair like hidden weapons! At the same time, Li Guanqi cleaved his sword backhanded into the vine whip. The flexible, resilient magic treasure whip was sheared in two with laughable ease! Wen Mei's body hurtled backward as she brandished what remained of her whip to bat away all the incoming fragments. Turning toward her companion, she barked anxiously, "Yu Heng, watch out!!" The dwarf known as Yu Heng flourished the daggers in both hands, their blades weaving up and down to smash every single flying shard to pieces! When Ye Feng saw the dark silhouette standing before him, wild joy flashed in his eyes, immediately followed by a pang of guilt. As Ye Feng plummeted from the air, Li Guanqi kicked him over a dozen zhang away, sending him flying until he hung suspended from a treetop. The apology Ye Feng had just prepared stuck in his throat. That heavy, forceful kick sent his vision black, nearly knocking him out cold. His face veiled behind black gauze that concealed his features, Li Guanqi drifted down slowly from the sky. Wen Mei and Yu Heng flanked him in a pincer formation, positioning themselves ahead to his left and right. Yu Heng gripped his daggers, one held forward and the other in reverse. Origin power surged around the dwarf as he narrowed his eyes at Li Guanqi, speaking in a slow, childish voice. "I knew my senses hadn't deceived me! There really were two of you traveling together… "Still… your breath-concealing technique is remarkable. To be so close without me noticing a thing!" Li Guanqi sneered. "Dragging things out so long without killing him—wasn't that just to draw me out? "You certainly don't hesitate to pay a steep price, either. A partner at the early Core Formation stage, and you threw his life away without a second thought. "I doubt he realized even in death that you pushed him forward just for me to kill him, did he?" At those words, Yu Heng visibly froze. The woman behind him could hardly believe her ears. Yet when she caught the faint, subtle smirk on Yu Heng's face, she understood. Everything the man before them said was true. Looking like a mere child, Yu Heng eyed Li Guanqi with keen interest. Twirling the daggers deftly in his hands, he unexpectedly extended an invitation. "Fellow Daoist, how about considering joining us? "With your strength, my direction, and Mei'er's support from the sidelines… "Making a fortune would be child's play!" Beneath the black gauze, a derisive smile curled across Li Guanqi's face. He had not anticipated that under such circumstances, the other party would think of inviting him into their gang. Even so, Li Guanqi had no intention of dragging this out. The sword in his hand flashed with a crimson gleam, and cold murderous intent filled his pure-white eyes. "Those on different paths cannot make plans together. "Had you not courted death by shoving yourselves into my path, nothing would have happened to you. "But… since you insist on delivering yourselves up to die, I shall grant your wish." Before his voice had even faded, Li Guanqi's figure turned into a streak of light, lunging instantly toward the two of them!! Yu Heng's expression turned savage, and with murderous intent glittering in his eyes, he snorted coldly. "Hmph! Arrogant fool! "Mei'er! Kill him!!" Boom!! As he spoke, an immensely powerful pressure erupted from Yu Heng's body—the aura of a cultivator at the peak of the early Core Formation stage came bearing down on Li Guanqi! The woman named Wen Mei channeled her origin power as well, her body shimmering with a faint emerald glow. The severed whip in her hand instantly restored itself to its original state! Gripping his daggers tightly, Yu Heng didn't retreat. Instead, he advanced, closing the distance aggressively!! Li Guanqi had anticipated this. Anyone who wielded daggers was bound to excel at close-quarters combat! A shrill howling of wind rang in his ears. Li Guanqi smiled coldly, and with a tremor from his sea of consciousness, his divine sense poured out like an overwhelming tide!! The immense power of his spiritual consciousness engulfed a radius of thirty zhang!! In an instant, Li Guanqi moved like a darting fish, slipping continuously through the flurry of whip shadows. No matter how the woman shifted her stance or increased the speed of her strikes, Li Guanqi met every attack with effortless poise. Whip shadows filled the air, yet every single lash barely grazed past his body, unable to land even a solitary blow! Seeing this, Wen Mei felt waves of shock crash through her heart! Yu Heng grew equally wary at the sight. With a flick of his wrist, he slapped two spirit talismans onto himself. In a breath, his speed surged once more!! His body became a blurry shadow as he struck at Li Guanqi. Li Guanqi sneered, slashing outward with the sword in his left hand!! Clang! Clang! Clang!! Clang! Clang!! Sparks burst continuously between the two!! The cold-glinting daggers were no ordinary weapons either; they managed to clash against the Red Lotus sword for dozens of exchanges without shattering! Li Guanqi was somewhat surprised. He was already using sixty percent of his strength, yet his opponent could still keep up with his sword speed. A dual-wielding foe was indeed somewhat troublesome. "Is that all?" Yet the moment Yu Heng felt the sword light, his expression changed drastically!! In just those dozens of clashes, the skin between his thumbs and forefingers had already split open!! The other man's sword was the fastest and most vicious he had encountered in all his years! Thoughts of retreat were already sprouting in his mind. He realized that the two of them alone had no hope of killing this adversary! Yet just as he sent a voice transmission to Wen Mei, the speed of the incoming sword accelerated yet again!! Panic seized Yu Heng. In mere breaths, several wounds so deep that bone showed were carved into his flesh. Li Guanqi clearly sensed that the woman behind him had begun lashing her whip even faster! With killing intent rising within his chest, Li Guanqi formed an incantation gesture with one hand and flashed toward the woman. Rumble!! Dark clouds converged across the sky, and in an instant, lightning flashed and thunder roared. Yu Heng raised his head toward the heavens, his face turning thoroughly ghastly. His throat bobbed with difficulty as he muttered under his breath: "A spirit incantation… lightning art!!" Boom! Boom!! Two lightning-wreathed spears, each a zhang long, shot abruptly down from the clouds!! Yu Heng pushed his origin power to the absolute limit, shifting sideways several zhang in a flash!! Yet the final Thunder Spear still impaled his body, pinning him firmly to the earth! Boom!! Bang!! A terrifying detonation rang out. Having pierced right through Yu Heng, the Thunder Spear erupted with explosive violence! Meanwhile, Li Guanqi deployed his movement technique to weave through the whip shadows, his sword suddenly blazing with a scarlet sheen! Amid the storm of lashes, the sword turned into countless beams of sword light that shredded the whip into pieces, plunging straight through the woman's chest. Blood gushed in torrents from her mouth. Her eyes stared in disbelief at the youth who had pulled off his black veil. "Great Xia… Sword Sect… Li… Guanqi…" Thud! Her breath ceased, and her limp body collapsed to the ground. Several dozen zhang away, once the dust lingering in the air dispersed, only a corpse with half its torso blasted to pieces remained upon the ground.