Lan Minghua brought the index and middle fingers of his right hand together and lightly tapped Zhu Zhuqing on the neck.
A wave of dizziness washed over her, and Zhu Zhuqing reluctantly closed her eyes.
Tang San paid her no attention at all, devoting himself completely to catching Xiao Wu as she flew backward.
Lan Minghua had expected Tang San to make that choice, but it would prove to be their downfall.
He took one step and appeared in front of Ning Rongrong almost as if he had teleported.
Ning Rongrong, already on guard, shouted, "Tang San, Xiao Wu, help!"
Unfortunately, Tang San and Xiao Wu were still wrapped up in each other and hadn't noticed Lan Minghua's movements at all.
"That makes two!"
Lan Minghua curled his finger and flicked Ning Rongrong hard on the forehead.
One hit was enough to knock her unconscious.
"Zhuqing, Rongrong!"
Xiao Wu cried out. Talk about shutting the stable door after the horse had bolted.
When she'd been all lovey-dovey with Tang San just now, why hadn't she thought of Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong?
"What useless trash!"
Tang San cursed under his breath, feeling that Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong had held him back.
If they couldn't even get into Shrek, wouldn't he be letting Yu Xiaogang down?
"Xiao Wu, let's fight together. Even without their help, we can hold out for the time it takes an incense stick to burn."
"Okay, Xiao San! Let's attack together!"
Xiao Wu nodded firmly and charged again, darting around Lan Minghua with an unpredictable, flickering figure.
Suddenly, she stopped in front of Lan Minghua, her eyes gleaming with seductive light.
"Second Soul Skill, Bewitchment!"
But the Ghostly movement technique she prided herself on couldn't fool Lan Minghua in the slightest.
He attacked even faster, thrusting his index and middle fingers toward Xiao Wu's eyes with blinding speed.
Xiao Wu's body trembled, and she hurriedly raised both hands to shield her eyes.
Lan Minghua stopped his fingers short and kicked her in the abdomen. She cried out and flew backward once more.
"Xiao Wu!!!"
Tang San's eyes blazed with fury. He had thought Xiao Wu could buy him some time to find Lan Minghua's weakness.
He hadn't expected her to lose after just one exchange.
Lan Minghua had controlled his strength perfectly. One strike was enough to knock Xiao Wu unconscious.
Tang San held Xiao Wu and glared at Lan Minghua, his expression dark.
How dare you hurt Xiao Wu? You've earned your death!
He made no effort to conceal his murderous intent. Was he really not afraid of anyone knowing what he was thinking?
Suddenly, Lan Minghua sensed an aura locking onto him.
"Talk about being overprotective. I didn't even use lethal force. Why are those father and son so furious?"
He grumbled inwardly, having seen just how petty the Tang family men could be.
The scene fell silent, as if time itself had frozen.
Zhao Wuji looked grave. He hadn't expected Lan Minghua to beat the four of them so badly without using a Soul Skill.
He admitted he couldn't have done the same, and was glad he'd learned to handle things tactfully and hadn't fought Lan Minghua yesterday.
Dai Mubai clenched his fists tightly. He wanted revenge on Lan Minghua, but realized that the gap in their strength was enormous.
Ignoring Tang San's murderous glare, Lan Minghua said calmly, "There's half an incense stick left. Are you ready, kid?"
At that, Tang San seemed to ignite with fury, and his aura abruptly changed.
"Mubai, help me look after Xiao Wu."
Before his words had even faded, he flashed away, his feet tracing Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track as he circled Lan Minghua like a gust of wind.
His steps were strange, making it hard to guess where he would land.
Zhao Wuji sensed that something was wrong. He hurried forward and carried the unconscious Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong away so they wouldn't get caught in the crossfire.
Tang San spotted openings all over Lan Minghua and ran his hands across Twenty-Four Bridges Moonlight Night.
In an instant, countless Hidden Weapons flew at Lan Minghua from every direction like a rain of bullets.
The weapons gleamed coldly in the sunlight, and a green sheen on their edges showed that they'd been poisoned.
Lan Minghua merely smiled. As the Hidden Weapons struck him, his body blazed with golden light.
A golden ancient bell appeared and enveloped him. It was the Golden Bell Shield.
"Clang, clang, clang!"
A dense flurry of impacts rang out, like a rousing metallic symphony.
The whole point of Hidden Weapons was to catch the opponent off guard. Against Lan Minghua's Golden Bell Shield, they were completely useless.
Tang San continued using Ghost Hidden Maze as he unleashed one Hidden Weapon after another, trying to break through the defense.
But Lan Minghua's Golden Bell Shield was nothing like Zhao Wuji's Immovable Ming King Body. It was virtually flawless.
Since Lan Minghua had taken the Hair Crystal ahead of time, Tang San hadn't obtained the Dragon Beard Needle, and had no way to pierce such a powerful defense.
His other powerful Hidden Weapons hadn't been made yet, either.
Lan Minghua's expression was calm, but Tang San took it as contempt.
It made Tang San feel that Lan Minghua was looking down on him. With his strong pride, how could he stand for that?
"Damn it! I refuse to believe you can withstand the full force of a five-hundred-jin Clear Sky Hammer!"
But Lan Minghua saw through his little scheme and had been waiting for him to bring out the Clear Sky Hammer.
Tang San suddenly appeared in front of Lan Minghua. Blue light glimmered in his left hand, and the Clear Sky Hammer appeared in his grasp.
He swung his arm and slammed the hammer down at Lan Minghua.
"Break!"
But before the Clear Sky Hammer could hit the Golden Bell Shield, the shield vanished on its own.
Then a finger pressed against the Clear Sky Hammer, effortlessly blocking Tang San's full-force strike.
Lan Minghua raised his voice, feigning surprise. "Oh? Twin Martial Souls!"
"What? Twin Martial Souls?"
Zhao Wuji and Dai Mubai cried out in shock, staring wide-eyed at the Clear Sky Hammer in Tang San's hand.
Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong, who had just been knocked unconscious, woke at the cries.
Still groggy, they heard the words "Twin Martial Souls" and opened their eyes to look at Tang San.
In the shadows, Tang Hao clenched his fists, murderous intent surging through him.
"Damn it! I didn't think Xiao San's secret about his Twin Martial Souls would be discovered! What do I do? Should I kill everyone here?!"
Tang San hadn't grown up yet. If the people from Spirit Hall found out, it could bring disaster upon him.
But he quickly dismissed the thought. Destroying an academy guarded by several Soul Saints without any reason would only make Spirit Hall discover his whereabouts sooner.
If he couldn't do any of that...
That left only using force to threaten the people of Shrek and make sure they didn't reveal Tang San's Twin Martial Souls.
But the murderous intent in his eyes toward Lan Minghua had nearly taken physical form.
Lan Minghua keenly sensed Tang Hao's killing intent, and the corner of his mouth lifted in a smile no one noticed.
Tang San's face was dark as a storm cloud, so gloomy it looked ready to rain.
You exposed my Twin Martial Souls. You've earned your death!
He'd meant to use the Clear Sky Hammer's full-force strike to break Lan Minghua's defense, then continue fighting with Hidden Weapons.
He hadn't expected Lan Minghua to drop his defense outright and block the Clear Sky Hammer with his hand.
Hearing the others cry out behind him, Tang San knew that his Twin Martial Souls had been exposed. He hurriedly put the Clear Sky Hammer away.
His gaze sharpened. A poisoned blade emerged from his shoe, and without hesitation, he kicked at Lan Minghua's neck, clearly aiming to kill.
A cold smile appeared on Lan Minghua's lips. He'd expected Tang San to lash out in shame and anger.
He turned slightly to dodge Tang San's kick, then countered with a kick of his own.
Tang San's Purple Demon Eye narrowed, and a disdainful smile touched his lips. He used Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track to retreat a step and dodge the kick.
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