Kill

"Good!" After hiding Yunyouzi inside the mountain cave, Qin Sang stepped out and glanced back. Luo Xingnan made no attempt to conceal his approach, brazenly giving chase. His spiritual power exhaustion had been a feint. Driving the spirit bamboo flying boat this far was merely to pull ahead of Luo Xingnan and buy time; of course he would not wait until his spiritual power was completely spent before stopping. However, because he had relied on spirit pills and spirit stones too frequently, the twisting agony throbbing in his dantian was very real. Qin Sang's face was faintly pale. Pressing a hand over his dantian, he ignored the pain radiating from it, sneered coldly, and flickered, vanishing from the spot. Whoosh! Luo Xingnan hurtled forward, and just as he approached the mountains, a sudden flash of azure light burst from within the range. Guiding the jade ruyi, Qin Sang surged into the sky like a flood dragon breaching the water. From the moment the jade ruyi appeared to when it closed in before Luo Xingnan took barely an instant. Had it been anyone else suffering an unexpected ambush from a talisman treasure, failing to react in time would have sealed their doom, leaving them dead beneath its might. Facing the ferocious momentum of the jade ruyi, Luo Xingnan showed not the slightest panic. Instead, wearing a cold sneer, he flung his hand upward, and a small silver-white knife flew out from his palm. The small knife was shaped somewhat peculiarly, resembling a dagger with a slightly upturned tip. Its hilt was wrapped in a jade ribbon, radiating dazzling silver light. With a wave of Luo Xingnan's hand, the silver knife's hilt swayed like a swimming fish. Shifting from stillness to motion in a flash, it shot out and collided squarely with the jade ruyi. "Did you truly think you were the only one with a talisman treasure? If you had fled alone, I might have spared you to avoid the trouble," Luo Xingnan said disdainfully, his tone dripping with mockery. "To think you could ambush me with a mere talisman treasure—what a pipe dream!" Bang! The two talisman treasures collided. Azure and white light clashed against each other before bursting outward in all directions, blindingly brilliant. The immense shockwave swept outward, slicing clean through a nearby peak. Rumble... Boulders tumbled down, the deafening roar shaking heaven and earth. In midair, azure and white vied for supremacy without yielding an inch. It appeared to be an evenly matched deadlock, but before long, the azure light on the jade ruyi began to dim. The difference lay in the two people controlling the talisman treasures. Qin Sang's cultivation was a full level lower than Luo Xingnan's. As he drove the talisman treasure, the spiritual power within him drained like rushing water, and he cursed inwardly. For Luo Xingnan, though the drain was also heavy, it was far more manageable than for Qin Sang. Luo Xingnan's expression lit up with delight; this was entirely within his expectations. With the advantage in cultivation base, he could grind Qin Sang to death through sheer attrition alone. Moreover, back in the cave dwelling, he had witnessed with his own eyes Qin Sang deploying the talisman treasure to fend off the human-faced owl. He knew its power was nearly exhausted, meaning Qin Sang would last even less time. Right now, this was nothing more than the desperate struggle of a trapped beast! Even so, Luo Xingnan did not let down his guard. He had yet to see Shangguan Lifeng or Yunyouzi, especially the latter. The sight of the Flawless Pearl wounding the human-faced owl still sent shivers down Luo Xingnan's spine when he recalled it. He could not help feeling fortunate that he had avoided a direct clash with that old Taoist; otherwise, he would have been on the receiving end of that strike. Although Yunyouzi appeared extremely weak, there was no guarantee he lacked the strength to unleash another blow. Who knew if it wasn't a trap deliberately staged for his eyes? While maintaining the talisman treasure with all his might, Luo Xingnan stayed vigilant throughout, his Yin-Yang Compass primed and ready. However, when the anticipated ambush failed to materialize, Luo Xingnan refocused most of his attention onto Qin Sang. The silver knife let out a long drone, its white light blazing brighter as the azure glow was forced to retract, falling into a disadvantage. The trembling hum of the jade ruyi sounded like a mournful wail. Growing impatient, Luo Xingnan barked harshly, "Surrender now, and I might spare your life! Persist in your obstinacy, and I will tear you into ten thousand pieces!" Qin Sang turned a deaf ear. Right at that moment, he let out a muffled grunt, channeling his spiritual power furiously into the talisman treasure. Instantly, the jade ruyi flared with brilliant radiance, pushing the silver knife back in an explosive burst! "A dying flash of brilliance?" Far from alarmed, Luo Xingnan was overjoyed. Sneering inwardly, he channeled more spiritual power to counter it. To his surprise, the jade ruyi's radiance grew brighter and brighter without any sign of slowing down. At the final moment, it abruptly exploded with a loud bang! With little spiritual power left and unable to prolong the drain, Qin Sang chose to detonate all of the talisman treasure's remaining power before spinning around to flee. Turbulent currents blasted outward in all directions. Taking the brunt of the talisman treasure's blast, the silver knife suffered no severe damage, but the shockwave violently rocked it. Luo Xingnan roared, forcibly steadying the silver knife, and instantly drove it forward in hot pursuit. At the same time, Luo Xingnan drew back a portion of his spiritual power and flipped his palm, aiming the Yin-Yang Compass at Qin Sang's back as a beam of white light abruptly shot forth. A two-pronged strike—Qin Sang was dead without question. In this dire moment of extreme peril, a flash of sword light suddenly shot back from Qin Sang's body, its sword qi bursting outward to forcibly disperse the suction of the Yin-Yang Compass. But immediately following was a crisp crack as the silver knife struck the ebony sword dead center. The sword tumbled high into the air, spinning erratically like a headless fly before falling powerlessly. Qin Sang seemed solely focused on running for his life, lacking any energy left to control his magic tool. The silver knife paused for a fraction of a second, then resumed the chase. Seeing Qin Sang exhaust all his tricks with no hope of escape, Luo Xingnan was ecstatic. His figure flashed as he gave immediate chase—yet the moment he moved, a sudden transformation occurred! Whoosh! An intensely frigid black gale swept up from below. Six massive banners swelled with the wind, forming a gigantic demonic array of ghost banners that instantly engulfed the area, leaving Luo Xingnan right at its center. Qin Sang had laid the Ten Directions Yanluo Array in secret long before, keeping it concealed under the blinding glare of the jade ruyi while using his own body to lure the talisman treasure away, activating it only at this precise moment. Ghostly shrieks pierced the ears. Startled, Luo Xingnan immediately channeled the Yin-Yang Compass to protect himself. Though on guard, he had never imagined Qin Sang held such a terrifying measure in reserve. At this juncture, he had two choices: hastily recall the talisman treasure to protect himself, or press on to kill Qin Sang, for once Qin Sang died, the crisis would resolve itself. Exceptionally calm, Luo Xingnan made his decision in an instant. Yet to his shock, the power of the Ten Directions Yanluo Array far exceeded his imagination. Potent evil ghosts lurked within the dense, eerie ghost qi, easily hammering crack after crack into the protective light of the Yin-Yang Compass. Immediately after, pervasive threads of Yin soul silk surged madly toward Luo Xingnan, submerging him in an instant. As the Yin soul silk seared his origin soul, an agonizing pain struck, driving him near madness. Luo Xingnan screamed. In an instant, his spiritual power and spiritual sense fluctuated wildly, turning erratic. Giving Luo Xingnan no chance to recover, Shangguan Lifeng, who had been lurking in the shadows all along, finally struck. From within the mountains, a dazzling arc of saber qi cleaved the void. Gripping his long saber, Shangguan Lifeng charged into the grand array with unstoppable momentum! Shining in concert with the saber qi was none other than the ebony sword that had supposedly "lost control" moments before!