Chapter 309: Beware What's Ahead

The figure's attacks were as ethereal as a ghost, yet pressed down with the force of a collapsing mountain or a tsunami. Wang Zhenqiu's face was grim; his hands gripped a pair of massive metal gauntlets, and his entire body radiated a dense, earthy-yellow glow. Every step he took seemed to make the earth tremble. "Hmph! Come again!" he roared, throwing a punch that caused the air to crackle with explosive sounds.

Xiao Qing's movements were agile, like a willow branch swaying in the wind. A faint green halo emerged around her body, and the short blade in her hand shimmered with a strange reflection. "This is too bizarre; what on earth is this thing?" she muttered, though her movements did not falter in the slightest. She performed a side-flip to dodge a fierce assault, then took advantage of the momentum to slash her blade; the chill brought by the edge caused the air to turn cold instantly.

Lin Xuan, however, appeared even calmer. His eyes were slightly closed, his palms gently pressed together, and the ancient Jade Pendant on his chest was continuously absorbing the energy from the surroundings. "This is not something an ordinary person could accomplish..." The corners of Lin Xuan's mouth lifted slightly, as if he had thought of something. "It seems our guess was correct; there is someone behind the scenes controlling this." As soon as he finished speaking, a powerful ripple spread from his body, and the entire space seemed to be suppressed by some invisible force; the figure's movements even appeared to stall for a moment.

"Enough! Stop stalling!" The figure's hoarse voice suddenly rang out, carrying a hint of irritability and madness. He suddenly accelerated, turning into a black streak as he charged toward Xiao Qing. The latter was shocked and, in her haste, could only barely raise her short blade to block. With a loud "Boom—", Xiao Qing retreated several steps before she could barely steady herself, beads of sweat already seeping from her forehead.

"Don't panic, let's attack together!" Wang Zhenqiu shouted, lunging directly at the figure's back. At the same time, Lin Xuan quickly raised his hands to form a seal, and after whispering a spell, a thick whip of lightning instantly condensed in the air and lashed fiercely toward the figure.

"Ah—" The figure let out an angry roar. He actually withstood the pincer attack from the two of them head-on and utilized his own bizarre speed to weave between the three, constantly creating chaos. Every clash kicked up a massive shockwave, destroying everything in the vicinity.

"This can't go on like this." Lin Xuan's brows were locked in a frown as he quickly calculated a counter-strategy in his mind. He knew that if they couldn't find this guy's weakness, even if the three of them exhausted all their strength, they would only be stuck in a passive position.

"Then what should we do? We can't just keep dragging this out, right?" Xiao Qing said, panting. Although her condition was slightly better than the others, she still couldn't hide her exhaustion.

"His speed is too fast, but no matter how fast, there is a limit." Lin Xuan's gaze was profound, as if he had captured a key point. "Xiao Qing, I need your assistance."

Xiao Qing was stunned for a moment. "What do you want me to do?"

Lin Xuan did not explain further, only whispering a few instructions to her in an extremely low voice. After listening, a flash of realization crossed Xiao Qing's eyes, and she nodded: "Understood, leave it to me."

The next moment, Xiao Qing took a deep breath, and the spiritual power within her body began to surge violently. The green halo that had originally surrounded her gradually transformed into a blinding fluorescence, like the first ray of dawn in a forest. At the same time, her figure became even more agile, moving at high speed across the field and attracting all of the figure's attention.

Sure enough, the opponent locked onto the target completely, abandoning all harassment of the other two and focusing solely on chasing and killing Xiao Qing. Seeing this, Wang Zhenqiu grinned: "Brother, a good opportunity has arrived!"

"Mm." Lin Xuan's gaze tightened; he stepped forward abruptly, holding his right hand high while pressing his left hand to the ground, and chanted the final part of the spell: "Heavenly Vault Split, Thunder Annihilation!" In an instant, dark clouds rolled and gathered, and lightning and thunder appeared. A bolt of lightning as thick as a bowl smashed down from the sky, striking straight toward the figure!

This move almost drained all of Lin Xuan's strength, but upon seeing the lightning strike, he still wore a satisfied smile.

However, what was shocking was that the figure passed through the lightning completely unscathed and continued to charge toward Xiao Qing without any pause. "Hahaha! Did you really think you could hurt me with this?" The figure laughed madly, his momentum surging like a rainbow.

Seeing the plan fail, both Lin Xuan and Wang Zhenqiu were stunned. At this moment, Xiao Qing, who had been dodging attacks, suddenly stopped, turned around, and looked at the approaching figure without fear. "You're wrong," she said faintly, then raised the short blade in her hand toward her own chest and stabbed it in without hesitation.

Fresh blood splattered everywhere.

"Xiao Qing!" Wang Zhenqiu stared blankly at this scene, unable to believe his eyes. Even Lin Xuan opened his mouth slightly, unable to utter a single word.

But at this very moment, a bizarre thing happened. With Xiao Qing as the center, the earth began to tremble, and countless green vines broke through the soil, sweeping up like a tidal wave. These green vines seemed to have a life of their own, wrapping around the figure, who could not break free no matter how much they struggled.

"Th-this, what is this thing? Impossible!" The figure finally lost their composure, their tone filled with despair.

"I told you, you shouldn't be too confident." At this moment, Xiao Qing stood straight, her wound having already healed. She walked slowly toward the figure, who was tightly wrapped in vines, her eyes filled with complex emotions. "Tell me... who sent you?"

The figure was silent for a long time, finally laughing with a cackle: "Want to know the answer? Then tear off my mask and see, hahaha!"

Once these words were spoken, the air seemed to freeze. Lin Xuan frowned and stepped forward, trying to dissuade her: "Don't be impulsive..."

"Don't worry, I can handle it." Xiao Qing shook her head, then reached out and pulled off the figure's mask.

Appearing before the three of them was, unexpectedly, a completely unfamiliar face. But strangely, when seeing this face, not only did Lin Xuan feel a palpitation, but from deep within the woods a hundred meters away, a faint sigh was heard.

"It seems... the real enemy is still hiding very deep." Lin Xuan clenched his fists and said coldly.

"Indeed," Xiao Qing discarded the mask and turned to look at Lin Xuan, her expression becoming exceptionally serious, "but we will find him eventually."

Just as the three of them let their guard down, a sudden change occurred. The figure's remaining aura exploded abruptly, turning into a wisp of black smoke that dissipated between heaven and earth. At the same time, from the darkness in the distance, that familiar low voice came again—

The black smoke twisted and condensed in mid-air, quickly transforming into a massive beast. Its size was several times taller than an ordinary person, and its body was wrapped in intense baleful energy and scorching killing intent, a pair of blood-red eyes staring straight at Lin Xuan and the others.

"What on earth is this thing?" Xiao Qing retreated a step nervously, her fingers gripping the short sword in her hand, her slightly trembling voice carrying a hint of disbelief. "This is just too terrifying!"