Chapter 5: The Black-Clad Flood Dragon is Fortunate to Obtain the Red

"Hey! Come out! Stop skulking around!"

This tail had been following Lingxiang for a long time; she had sensed it back during those days at the Taishang Sect, but she hadn't expected it to still be following her now that she had left.

"How long do you intend to follow me? If you have something to say, come out and make it clear. What is the point of hiding and sneaking about?"

After a pause, seeing no response, she casually picked up a pebble and flicked it toward the bushes behind her.

Only to hear an "Ouch!" as a youth in cyan cloth jumped out from the thicket, clutching his head and saying to Lingxiang, "You woman, why are you so fierce! This is a head! If you break it, will you pay for it?"

The youth's hair was tied casually, his bangs were flamboyant, his sword-like brows and starry eyes held a hint of anger, and he had a high nose, delicate mouth, red lips, and white teeth.

He was born with a good appearance, truly quite handsome.

"You've been sneaking after me for a long time without a word, and when I repeatedly asked you to come out, you didn't respond, yet now you blame me? Is there any logic in that?" This one sentence left the youth speechless.

"Speak! What are you trying to do, skulking about?!"

"I am a man of seven feet; if you tell me to speak, I speak—wouldn't that be very embarrassing for me?!"

"Then is it not embarrassing for you to sneak behind others?"

"You!" The youth was choked with anger for a moment.

Lingxiang raised an eyebrow, turned around, and walked off on her own. The youth stamped his foot and hurriedly followed.

Lingxiang said nothing and let him follow. After a while, the youth finally could not bear it anymore.

"Hey! Why aren't you asking me anymore?"

"Ask you what?"

"Ask me why I'm following you."

"The road is wide and open; even if we are traveling the same path, how would I know you are following me?"

"You!..." The youth was choked with anger again.

What is this woman thinking in her head? What if she were following a bad person? I really don't understand how she can be so carefree!

"Where did you get that Life-Prolonging Pill?"

"Shouldn't one introduce themselves before asking others about their affairs? Why are the youngsters of today so rude?"

"You!" The youth was even more frustrated. "This young master is already seventeen; who are you calling a youngster, you yellow-haired little girl!"

"I see you only know some martial arts and happen to know about the Life-Prolonging Pill, so you clearly have the intention to cultivate. At the very least, I am at the Foundation Establishment stage; compared to you, am I not your senior? In terms of Dao, what is wrong with calling you a youngster?" Lingxiang stopped, looked at the youth, and raised an eyebrow.

This woman is truly sharp-tongued; she has taken all the advantage in this verbal sparring. Forget it, forget it; a good man does not fight with a wicked woman.

"My name is Long Qi. What is yours?"

"Lingxiang."

Hmph, no wonder her tongue is sharp; it turns out she is a sharp leaf.

"Then where did you get the Life-Prolonging Pill?" Long Qi asked again.

"I refined it myself," Lingxiang said indifferently, as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.

"How is that possible! You are only at Foundation Establishment; how could you refine such a Pill! There must be a limit to jokes!" Long Qi looked incredulous.

"The Great Dao is vast and has many wonders; why couldn't it be refined by me? If it were hard to come by, would I casually take it out to save someone I had never met before?"

Upon hearing this, Long Qi felt it seemed to make sense.

In truth, this Supreme Grade Life-Prolonging Pill was not so easy to come by; Lingxiang had refined several batches and spent nearly two years to obtain two Supreme Grade ones.

No, wait—I've been led by the nose by this woman the whole time.

Just as Long Qi was about to speak again, Lingxiang suddenly stopped him.

They saw a person in black clothes and a mask ahead, holding twin blades, looking at them with eyes full of murderous intent.

"If you want to live, hand over the Pills you have on you!" the man in black threatened.

"You villain, robbing a young girl—do you have no sense of chivalry?" Lingxiang was surprised that Long Qi would speak up to help her.

"What are you saying? If he had a sense of chivalry, why would he be robbing me?" Lingxiang smiled and said to the newcomer: "Does your Excellency mean that if I give you the Pill, I can live? But I consider myself a businessperson, and I don't do deals where I lose out."

The man in black didn't waste words; he gathered his Qi and power and slashed at them. Lingxiang dodged to the side, only to turn back and see Long Qi engaging him in combat.

He wielded his twin blades cleanly and neatly, without a hint of hesitation, clearly intending to take a life directly.

Long Qi was also agile and nimble, constantly dodging the man in black's attacks, but it was a pity he was empty-handed and unable to counterattack. Before long, his clothes were slashed in several places.

This fight was quite magnificent and spectacular.

"You woman! I helped you out of kindness and suffered this unprovoked disaster, yet you just sit and watch!" Long Qi barely dodged a blade and roared at Lingxiang.

"Ah! Then this young woman is truly overwhelmed with gratitude. Great hero, your righteousness is deep; thank you!" Lingxiang sat on a rock nearby, propping up her face and answering leisurely.

"It is not that I do not wish to fight alongside you, but although I have cultivation, my martial prowess is low. Compared to you, I might be inferior. If I were to rush up rashly, wouldn't I just be holding you back?"

Long Qi heard this and was left speechless.

"Furthermore, below the Golden Core, there is no high or low; you, great hero, can surely continue to fight him."

"Bullshit! This young master is empty-handed!" Long Qi barely dodged another strike.

This was not entirely a lie; in terms of pure martial force, those below the Golden Core were indeed evenly matched, but when it came to internal energy and Dao techniques, the differences were quite obvious.

The man in black leaped up, gathered his Qi, and chanted a mantra. In an instant, flying sand and stones blinded them, and his speed was more than twice as fast as before. He instantly swept his leg into Long Qi's ribs.

Long Qi was struck, felt intense pain in his internal organs, and flew a long distance away.

Seeing him subdued, the man in black pinched a mantra with his hand and struck directly at Lingxiang.

"He is actually in the Jiedan Realm!"

Lingxiang formed the Bolan Buqing Jue to defend. The two spells collided, shaking her chest with pain.

After confronting each other for a moment, Lingxiang was clearly losing; the shield of the Bolan Jue actually cracked!

Seeing this, the man in black raised his right blade high. The blade glowed with a cyan light and slashed along the crack in the shield.

A blast of energy struck Lingxiang directly, sending her flying a long distance away.

When she steadied herself, she was momentarily unable to support her body; she spat out a mouthful of blood and knelt on the ground, supporting herself with her hands.

The man in black did not give Lingxiang a chance to catch her breath; he raised his blade and moved forward, about to strike.

Long Qi wanted to step forward to intervene, but he was suffering from internal injuries and could not move, watching as the blade was about to strike Lingxiang!

In a flash of lightning, a "clang" was heard, and the man in black immediately felt his hand go numb; the blade had been forcefully deflected!

"What kind of thief are you, to be so ruthless!"

As he spoke, a Daoist in a yellow robe descended; it was none other than Chiyanzi!

"Senior, be careful, that person is already in the Jiedan Realm."

"Little friend, do not panic; just rest and regulate your breathing on the side while I exchange a few moves with him!" Saying this, he recited a true incantation, swept his horsetail whisk, and soared into the air to attack the man in black.

The man in black mobilized his True Qi and hurriedly raised his twin blades to parry.

The two were locked in a stalemate for a moment before Chiyanzi pinched an incantation with his left hand and attacked the opponent's face with the "Drunken Branch Entanglement" technique.

The man in black had barely been holding his own before, and now, if he did not dodge, he would surely suffer heavy injuries.

As the True Qi descended, he hurriedly withdrew his strength and dodged to the side; without waiting for Chiyanzi to strike again, he used the "Soaring Wild Goose" technique and fled to parts unknown.

"Hmph! Cunning rat!" Chiyanzi spat on the ground.