Chapter 278: Opportunity

Within the chaotic stronghold, battles were erupting everywhere. That Smiling-Face Demon had used this special method to activate some hidden seeds of malice, attempting to break through the stronghold from within.

It had to be said, the degree of treachery and cunning of this Smiling-Face Demon exceeded everyone's expectations.

And although these corrupted students were the minority, the Smiling-Face Demon had clearly used some special method to grant these corrupted ones a powerful amplification, causing their strength to surge dramatically.

So even though the normal students held the advantage in numbers, for the time being they were unable to swiftly extinguish this chaos.

In an alley of the stronghold, two squads led by Li Luo and Beside Yi Yi Lisha were also going all out to encircle and suppress the corrupted Ye Ye Qiuding.

However, although they held an absolute advantage in numbers, in this encirclement it was instead Ye Ye Qiuding who held the absolute upper hand.

The strength of the Transformation Phase plus the amplification of malice power, along with his current special state of being controlled, made Ye Ye Qiuding fearlessly reckless. During the entangled fighting, it was instead the members of Li Luo's and Beside Yi Yi Lisha's two squads who were repeatedly forced back, and some injuries even appeared.

"Clang!"

On Li Luo's twin blades, water radiance flowed at high speed. The phase power within his body erupted with full force as he viciously and ruthlessly slashed toward Ye Ye Qiuding, who was currently entangled by Beside Yi Yi Lisha.

At the same time, wood phase power surged out from beneath his feet, transforming into phase-power vines that burrowed into the ground, then emerged beneath Ye Ye Qiuding's feet to bind his legs.

However, this binding was quickly corroded by the malice power flowing out from within Ye Ye Qiuding's body.

But this momentary binding still caused Ye Ye Qiuding's body to sway slightly.

Li Luo and Beside Yi Yi Lisha were both outstanding among their peers, and they almost simultaneously seized this fleeting opening. Thus, blade light and fist radiance directly attacked from front and back, viciously slamming into Ye Ye Qiuding's body.

Bang!

A low, muffled sound rang out.

But Li Luo's and Beside Yi Yi Lisha's expressions both changed abruptly at this moment, because at the instant of impact, they both felt a bizarre, violent malice power carrying strange whispers suddenly sweep toward them.

The air seemed to be blasted apart.

Both Li Luo and Beside Yi Yi Lisha were blasted backward by the shock. Li Luo was fine, after all his strength was greater, but Beside Yi Yi Lisha crashed directly into a crumbling stone wall, let out a muffled groan, and a trace of blood appeared at the corner of his mouth.

After a joint attack, the result was one retreating and one injured.

One could see how vast the gap in strength between the two sides was at this moment.

The other members of the two squads also stepped in one after another, rescuing their two captains back, while staring with solemn expressions at Ye Ye Qiuding, whose entire body was emitting black smoke.

"Captain Li Luo, something's not right. This guy's strength seems to be getting stronger and stronger!" Beside Yi Yi Lisha wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and said in a low voice.

Li Luo nodded. He had sensed the same thing. After all, at the very beginning, with their numbers, they could still hold Ye Ye Qiuding back for a bit, but as time went on, this advantage grew smaller and smaller.

It wasn't because they had grown weaker, but because the amplification on Ye Ye Qiuding was gradually intensifying.

If this continued, their two squads wouldn't even need to talk about defeating the opponent; just staying alive might become a problem.

When that time came, they could only call for other reinforcements.

But the stronghold was in utter chaos right now, and reinforcements might not arrive in time.

Because although he had Ye Ye Qiuding pinned here, Li Luo was still paying as much attention as possible to other parts of the stronghold. The chaos in those places had never subsided, and was instead gradually intensifying as time went on.

Clearly, similar continuous amplifications like Ye Ye Qiuding's had appeared in other places as well.

"Is this the ability of that Smiling-Face Demon?"

Li Luo felt somewhat heavy-hearted. He didn't know how long this amplification could last. If it really could continue without stopping, then the chaos inside the stronghold might not be suppressable.

If they really destroyed the central tower by then, their final barrier would also break along with it.

Great Calamity aberrations were truly terrifying.

"No matter what, we must hold him here and wait for the others to free their hands to support us." Li Luo took a deep breath and said in a low voice.

The situation elsewhere wasn't good either. If Ye Ye Qiuding was allowed to run free, he would surely head straight for the central tower, and might cause a chain reaction, the consequences of which would be extremely severe.

Hearing this, everyone nodded with solemn expressions. Then phase power surged, they formed a battle array, and once again shot rapidly toward Ye Ye Qiuding.

As battles were erupting everywhere inside the stronghold, Jiang Jiang Qinge still stood atop the high wall, taking in every battle with her eyes.

She too had noticed that the strength of those corrupted ones was continuously receiving amplifications.

Jiang Jiang Qinge's golden eyes looked toward the Smiling-Face Demon in the distance of the stronghold. At this moment, the latter was sitting cross-legged on the ground, and beside him were those mud platforms.

Jiang Jiang Qinge's gaze flickered slightly. She suddenly formed a seal with one hand, then drew her fingertip across her smooth brow: "Bright Light Eye!"

A faint golden light line appeared and disappeared between her brows, like an eye. And with the appearance of this light line, everything between heaven and earth seemed to become clearer, and she could even pierce through the black fog and discover the countless aberrations within roaring and writhing.

However, Jiang Jiang Qinge's gaze lingered more on the Smiling-Face Demon.

Only now did she notice that some black light lines were emanating from the surface of the Smiling-Face Demon's body, connecting to those mud platforms and the mud figures upon them.

"Its own strength has weakened."

"It's using the mud figures as a medium to transmit its own power across space to the corrupted ones, so the corrupted ones' strength keeps receiving amplification..."

Jiang Jiang Qinge understood the Smiling-Face Demon's intent. It was weakening its own power to strengthen the corrupted ones, giving them enough strength to destroy the stronghold's defenses from within.

The light line between Jiang Jiang Qinge's brows gradually faded, and her slender jade hand slowly gripped the hilt of her heavy sword.

Her expression became calm, but the light around her seemed somewhat dazzling.

Behind her, inside the stronghold, the chaos continued unabated. Fierce battles erupted, and from time to time screams would ring out.

As those corrupted ones' strength continued to grow, the chaos would only intensify further.

But Jiang Jiang Qinge turned a deaf ear, standing quietly atop the high wall. No matter where calls for reinforcements came from, she did not make a single move.

Because she too was waiting for an opportunity.

The Smiling-Face Demon weakening itself to strengthen the corrupted ones did indeed cause tremendous chaos within the stronghold, but likewise, this would also give Jiang Jiang Qinge a perfect opportunity.

An opportunity for a decapitation strike.

Black fog blanketed heaven and earth, and countless bizarre and inexplicable whispers kept coming, attempting to shake people's hearts. Yet Jiang Jiang Qinge's gaze lowered slightly, her golden eyes filled with cold indifference, unshaken.

At a certain moment.

The sounds of chaos within the stronghold suddenly intensified. Many students cried out in terror, because the corrupted ones had received amplification once again!

Some corrupted ones had even approached the central tower.

And it was at this very moment that Jiang Jiang Qinge atop the high wall finally moved.

It was as if a blazing sun had bloomed atop the high wall, its radiance shining for a hundred li.

Amid the resplendent light, everyone saw that slender figure grip the heavy sword, her form like a thread of fine light, suddenly sweeping down from the high wall.

She shot straight through the purification light barrier, and in a single step seemed to appear right before the Smiling Face Demon. Without the slightest hesitation, she brought the sword down.

That sword strike was dazzling beyond description.

Jiang Jiang Qinge's beheading had begun.