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"You treacherous witch! I'll kill you!"
Lin Que thrashed inside the column of light, his strikes causing ripples to flicker across its surface. The jade bracelet trembled violently, on the brink of collapse.
Seeing this, Qiu Yueshui's face paled. She gritted her teeth and poured more of her magic power into the bracelet, stabilizing it once more. Her gaze shifted to Qi Yuan, who was channeling his strength, his pearl-white short staff glowing with formidable energy. With such force behind it, even a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator would hesitate to face it head-on.
Lin Que sensed the danger. His frantic attempts to break free intensified, forcing Qiu Yueshui to exert even more power. Sweat beaded on her jade-white neck, and her delicate features grew weary.
"Senior Brother Qi, I can't hold on much longer!" Qiu Yueshui called out.
"Now!" Qi Yuan shouted.
The pearl-white staff shot forward like a streak of lightning, spinning rapidly and glowing faintly red from the friction.
The staff pierced through the column of light, striking Lin Que directly and sending him tumbling backward.
Qi Yuan summoned his Poison Dragon Sword once more. Despite its reduced power, it was still lethal. He aimed for Lin Que's brow, the blade darting forward like a venomous serpent.
But just as it neared its target, Qiu Yueshui's jade bracelet flickered, and the magic binding Lin Que shattered. The sudden release allowed Lin Que to react, and he rolled away just in time to avoid the fatal strike.
Qiu Yueshui gasped, "I'm sorry, Senior Brother Qi... my body couldn't keep up."
Qi Yuan stepped forward, surveying Lin Que's unconscious form. "He's badly injured. If it weren't for your help, I couldn't have defeated him alone. I owe you my thanks."
Hearing this, Qiu Yueshui's face softened, her expression bashful as she followed Qi Yuan closely.
Moments later, a sudden flash of black light glinted in her hand — several poisoned darts shot forth.
The distance was close, and Qi Yuan had let his guard down. The darts seemed certain to hit their mark.
Qiu Yueshui's face twisted into a cruel smile, her previous gentle demeanor vanishing.
But instead of piercing flesh, the darts clattered harmlessly to the ground.
Qiu Yueshui's expression froze. Before she could react, a flash of snake-like sword light shot out, striking her jade bracelet and sending it spinning away.
"Junior Sister Qiu... an agent of the Demonic Path? What a shame." Qi Yuan's voice was cold.
Qiu Yueshui's eyes widened in shock.
"Haha! Qi Yuan, you really didn't see this coming."
Lin Que appeared beside her, grinning smugly as he pulled Qiu Yueshui into his arms.
Qi Yuan frowned. "The Giant Sword Sect must be in shambles if two Demonic Path spies infiltrated without anyone noticing."
"My wife is—" Lin Que began.
Before he could finish, a flurry of talismans shot toward them. Lin Que and Qiu Yueshui cursed under their breath. Qi Yuan's ruthless attack interrupted their gloating, forcing Qiu Yueshui to summon her jade bracelet to block the talismans.
As she regrouped, a glowing field of five-colored light enveloped her. Her magic power turned chaotic and unresponsive.
In the world of cultivators, losing control of magic was tantamount to death.
A streak of blood splashed. Qiu Yueshui barely registered Qi Yuan's cold expression before her vision went black.
Her lifeless body tumbled across the ground, her unblinking eyes frozen in disbelief.
Lin Que swallowed hard. Killing an early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator so easily was beyond his capabilities. Fear gripped him.
"Ma Chen! Wake up!" Lin Que shouted desperately.
To his relief, Ma Chen — presumed dead — suddenly rose. In his hands was a crimson bow. With swift precision, he fired three blood-red arrows. Each shot tore through the air, aimed directly at Qi Yuan.
But the figure they struck was only an afterimage.
"I never expected this... turns out you're all Demonic Path agents," Qi Yuan's voice came from behind Ma Chen.
Ma Chen spun and fired another arrow, but a dark sword light struck him mid-motion, severing his life in an instant.
"Lin Que, cover me!" Ma Chen's dying words were filled with panic. "Once I unlock my cultivation, I can finish him!"
Lin Que's face twisted in desperation. He forced his cultivation to stabilize at the late Foundation Establishment stage, rubbing his palms together to summon twenty black spheres brimming with deadly energy.
"Die!"
Qi Yuan reached into his robes, tossing out a cluster of defensive talismans. Walls of ice, earth, and golden light erupted around him, blocking Lin Que's deadly spheres.
Meanwhile, Ma Chen sat down cross-legged, swallowing a secret pill and performing a series of hand gestures. The ground trembled as his sealed cultivation broke free. Unlike Lin Que's unstable boost from elixirs, Ma Chen's power surged steadily and securely.
He drew a flute and began to play, summoning something from afar.
But nothing came.
"Summoning zombies from the cemetery?" Qi Yuan sneered mid-fight.
Ma Chen's face turned grim. From the distance, thunder rumbled, and lightning illuminated the sky — his prized zombie creation, struck down.
Furious, Ma Chen leapt into the air. "Qi Yuan, I'll flay you alive!"
He raised his bloodstained bow, conjuring a crimson arrow brimming with soul-devouring energy.
Qi Yuan glanced at Lin Que, who was attacking fiercely, and shook his head. Activating the Reversal of the Five Elements Field, he suppressed Lin Que's cultivation once more. The Qianshan Tower intercepted Ma Chen's arrow with ease.
Lin Que's face twisted in horror as his power dwindled once again. Before he could react, Qi Yuan unleashed a volley of Poison Dragon Swords. They struck Lin Que mercilessly, ending his life in an instant.
Seeing this, Ma Chen panicked. Blood mist erupted from his body as he attempted to flee.
"I should've never listened to Lin Que," Ma Chen muttered to himself, regretting their ill-fated plot.
His plan had been simple: lure Qi Yuan to the meeting point, then ambush him with the combined strength of their team. But Lin Que's greed and rashness had doomed them.
After what felt like hours of fleeing, Ma Chen paused, sensing no sign of pursuit. Relief washed over him.
"Fellow Daoist Ma, your Blood Escape technique is impressive. I almost couldn't keep up," Qi Yuan's voice rang out behind him.
Ma Chen's face twisted in dread. With no other option, he triggered his blood escape once more — but before he could vanish, eight snake-like sword lights tore through the mist.
His body was flung back, pinned to a distant mountainside. His soul scattered before he could even cry out.
Both body and spirit were destroyed.
(End of Chapter)