A Perfect Pair of Horses
When Shen Jingchuan saw the old man and the middle-aged man rushing forward together, a cold glint flashed in his eyes.
The trump card can no longer be hidden. In a battle of magic, the greatest danger is carelessness, a single oversight, and you're dead, just like that young man in blue robes from before. He's terrifying.
He raised his hand and patted the beast-taming pouch at his waist as a gesture, but his mind was already set on it.
Little Black flapped its wings and flew away. As soon as it left the Ring, its wings suddenly spread out, and tiny sparks of electricity crackled and danced beneath its dark feathers.
"Little Black, attack that old man!"
With a screech, Little Black transformed into a black shadow and pounced straight at the old man.
The speed was astonishing, skimming close to the ground and kicking up a trail of dust. Shen Jingchuan was stunned. How had Xian'er been training all night? How could she have grown so fast in such a short time?
The old man's eyelids started twitching as soon as he patted the beast-taming bag, and he gathered all his Spiritual Power, staring intently at it.
Suddenly, a dark shape shot out of nowhere, as fast as lightning, heading straight for his face. He had barely realized it was a winged horse—
It's too late.
The Little Black horn on Xiao Hei's forehead thudded forward, and a bolt of lightning as thick as a baby's arm struck down.
"Snap!"
Lightning exploded, and silver snakes danced wildly, engulfing both the old man and the middle-aged man who had lunged at them. The two trembled violently, their hair standing on end, and a burnt smell filled the air.
Shen Jingchuan pressed his advantage, slapping the beast-taming bag again.
Treading Snow.
This bird was entirely grayish-white, as if covered in a thin layer of frost, its wings spread out and whistling in the wind. It hovered in mid-air, tilting its head to look down, its lively spirit just like a little girl watching a commotion.
Shen Jingchuan communicated with Treading Snow: "Treading Snow, go and freeze those two young people there!"
The sound of Treading Snow entered his mind, crisp and clear, even carrying a hint of laughter.
"Don't worry, Master, I guarantee they won't be able to move a single finger."
With a flap of its wings, it pounced straight at the two young men at the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining.
The two men, still terrified by the death of their companion, were frantically trying to defend themselves against the Five Elements Heaven and Earth Ring when suddenly everything went dark, and a gray-white flying horse was already overhead.
Treading Snow pressed down the frost-white horn on her forehead.
A chilling aura surged forth.
With a few crisp "crackling" sounds, a layer of white frost instantly formed on the ground. The cold air climbed up from the legs and feet, and wherever it passed, clothes, armor plates, and hair were all covered with a layer of ice.
The two remained frozen in their defensive postures, their eyes filled with terror, unable to even move their eyeballs.
Shen Jingchuan spurred his horse to catch up, and with a wave of his hand, the Five Elements Heaven and Earth Ring spun around, grazing the necks of the two men.
The ice shell shattered, and two heads rolled to the ground. The body swayed and then collapsed with a thud.
Shen Jingchuan didn't even glance at it, and with a backhand, he activated the Heaven and Earth Ring, heading straight for the patch of charred lightning.
After freezing the people in the Treading Snow, it flapped its wings, ignoring the two corpses, chuckled, turned around and pounced on the old man again, shouting.
"Master, wait, I'm going to freeze the old man to death too... Don't run away, I'm coming!"
The old man and the middle-aged man had just been struck by lightning, their bodies charred black. They were using their internal energy to heal and resist the attack when the cold air enveloped them again.
One lightning bolt and one ice bolt tormented the two so much that they could barely stand, their bodies covered in a thin layer of ice, and they were also jerked by the electric shocks.
The old man, panting heavily, looked up at the two winged horses circling in mid-air, his face ashen.
He finally understood how those three people had died last time.
They weren't fighting alone; they had two second-tier Demon Beasts hidden behind them, using their Innate Divine Abilities —beasts comparable to those in the Foundation Establishment Realm.
In other people's eyes, he was indeed no different from an ant, despite being at the Qi Refining Great Perfection.
Those who can so easily train such spirit beasts are no ordinary people; they must be scions of some extraordinary Lineage.
The last shred of hope in the old man's heart vanished completely. He knew he wouldn't make it through this ordeal.
He no longer cared about his status and begged for mercy repeatedly, his voice trembling.
"Young master, spare my life! I was blind and ignorant, I offended you, please have mercy!"
Before the old man could finish speaking, Little Black flapped its wings in mid-air and flicked its horn again.
"Snap!"
The second bolt of lightning struck down, hitting the two men squarely. The old man and the middle-aged man didn't even have time to utter a sound before they crashed to the ground, unable to get up again.
The two were already covered in a layer of ice, and this lightning bolt pierced through the ice, even more violently than the first time. A burnt smell mixed with white steam rose up all at once.
Shen Jingchuan watched in amazement.
One is frozen ice, the other is lightning, and water conducts electricity; these two together are a perfect match.
Treading Snow hovered in the air, tilted its head to look around, and flapped its wings, laughing out loud.
"Little Black Sister, Master didn't tell you to do it again, why did you chop it again? No way, if you can heal, I have to heal too."
As she spoke, she pressed down on her horn, and another blast of cold air enveloped her.
The two people on the ground were completely still, and the ice shell on them grew thicker and thicker.
"Alright, alright!"
Shen Jingchuan quickly called out to stop him, otherwise, another blow would turn him into a dead popsicle.
"Leave one alive, I still have questions to ask. If they're all dead, who am I supposed to ask?"
The two winged horses then stopped, landed one after the other, folded their wings, and ran to stand beside Big Black, one on the left and one on the right.
Treading Snow nuzzled Shen Jingchuan with her head, as if seeking praise.
"Master, aren't I amazing?"
Little Black was displeased and snorted, a few sparks still remaining on its horn.
"Tch, with your skills, all you can do is freeze people in place. Look at me, I burned them both to a crisp in no time."
Shen Jingchuan touched this with his left hand and patted that with his right.
"They're both amazing, they're both amazing."
Big Black stood in the middle, head drooping, too lazy to even glance left or right.
It felt a tightness in its chest. It had no chance to get involved in this kind of battle. In the past, it was always the one following its master to the front lines; these two little girls never got to steal the spotlight.
Now look what's happened! They have one lightning bolt and one ice bolt, and it's just standing there watching. The more Big Black thought about it, the more depressed it became, feeling that it had lost all its prestige.
Shen Jingchuan dismounted.
He was always cautious, and even in this predicament, he still had to be on guard. With a wave of his hand, the Five Elements Heaven and Earth Ring flashed with cold light.
The old man's hands and feet were severed one after another, blood gushed out, and he rolled on the ground in agony, letting out inhuman screams.
Shen Jingchuan remained expressionless and then swung his hand at the middle-aged man beside him.
The middle-aged man remained motionless, showing no reaction whatsoever.
It seems it had already stopped breathing, and was killed by the combination of freezing and electricity.
Shen Jingchuan then made a hand seal. The Five Elements Heaven and Earth Ring transformed into a faint light and entered his Qi Sea to be nurtured.
He crouched down and began searching the old man.
He was frozen stiff, with a thick layer of ice forming on his body. He raised his hand and cast a Fireball Technique. The flames licked at the ice, sizzling and burning for quite a while before melting it.
The old man and the middle-aged man each wore a Storage Ring. Shen Jingchuan took it off and put it on his finger.
He then walked to the other three corpses and used the same method, melting the ice with a Fireball Technique and taking the Storage Rings from their hands.
He squatted down and carefully searched the corpse. Finding nothing else of value, he put the swords into his Ring.
After doing all this, he clapped his hands and slowly strolled back to the old man's side.