The Wind Rises and Clouds Swirl: Successful Control

The clawing, grasping worms, along with the corpses littering the ground, were completely buried by the collapsing roof. Now's our chance, charge!

Si Nan Ying and I bolted towards the entrance. Along the way, we encountered a few surviving worms. I didn't dare engage them, merely swinging my Blood Whip to clear a path.

Faster, faster!

The Si Nan Family must have sent people to meet us. They're skilled at detection, so they'll definitely know where we are. As long as we get outside, we're bound to run into them!

Unless... the people coming to meet us also ran into Demonic Beasts.

Thinking of this, I suddenly had a bad feeling... I must be overthinking it.

Shaking my head to dismiss the ominous thought, the priority is to get out first—

"Xiao Ye!" "Huh?"

Suddenly hearing Si Nan Ying's scream, I didn't have time to react before the ground shook beneath me. Immediately after, an immense force grabbed my leg and yanked me directly into the air!

A feeling of extreme weight pressed down on my entire body. The constantly spinning vision made me want to vomit. Something had grabbed me and was flinging me around like a toy!

No... I need to protect myself—

Before I could even deploy my Blood Shield, I felt immense pressure on the left side of my body, followed by excruciating pain that made me scream!

That bastard, it slammed me into the wall!

My brain, rocked by the impact, immediately went into a daze. Instinct for self-preservation compelled me to condense a Blood Blade and slash downwards. But just as the Blood Blade was about to strike, a sharp pain shot up from my ankle. It felt like a thick thorn had pierced my body. A strange numbness immediately spread from my ankle throughout my entire body. I felt a sudden wave of weakness, as if all my strength had drained away, and even my vision began to blur.

Poison! My numb brain finally reacted. I quickly urged my blood throughout my body to expel the poison that had been injected. My blurry vision gradually cleared, and only then did I see what had grabbed me.

It was clearly a fellow drilling worm, but its aura clearly indicated its extraordinary nature. This worm was nearly two meters in diameter, its body covered in a shiny purple shell. The antennae on its head were shaped like a crown, and two long, thorny tentacles extended from the front of its body. One of these was what had seized me.

Is this guy... their king?

Even if it's the king of worms, it's still far inferior to a Desolate Beast. If it were any other time, I wouldn't fear it. But now...

I'm pouring all my energy into expelling the poison, leaving no room for defense. Right now, I can only be at its mercy!

Si Nan Ying was going frantic!

She watched helplessly as her companion was tossed around like a toy and suffered no small injuries, yet she couldn't do anything!

Using her bubbles would be useless against the worm king, only further enraging it. But using a super high-powered bubble would vaporize Xiao Ye along with it. What could she do?

Fortunately, when the worm king appeared, the other worms stopped moving, all of them lying on the ground as if in deference. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been safe either!

Staying here, she couldn't help at all and would only put herself in danger. If she fled, at least one of them might survive. Rationally speaking, abandoning her companion and escaping was the wise choice.

But the thought vanished from Si Nan Ying's mind in less than a second. She would never abandon her companion! Rather than leave Xiao Ye and run, she'd do her meager best and fight to the death!

But the primary objective now was—to save Xiao Ye!

Her face grew paler and paler. Her originally exquisite features were contorted in pain, her limbs dangled limply, her clothes were disheveled—was there any trace of her usual elegance?

Damn that bug, daring to treat my Xiao Ye like this... Unforgivable!

But how should she do it?

No, it's not a question of how. The only way now is for her to act herself, to eliminate the worm king without harming Xiao Ye. And for such a massive opponent, she couldn't use "internal explosion." There was only one method, the question was whether she could execute it.

Si Nan Ying concentrated, beginning to create bubbles, controlling their range... a killing blow...

If bubble power was divided into ten levels, a single blow to kill it would require about level four or five. This was a level she had never succeeded at before. If she failed again this time...

The scene of the mountain collapsing suddenly flashed in her mind. Si Nan Ying froze as if time had stopped, her gaze becoming lost and helpless. That's right... she couldn't control her Supernatural Ability at all. Acting rashly wouldn't help in the slightest; it would only accelerate Xiao Ye's death!

Damn it... If only I were more capable! If the efforts I made in the past had yielded even a little result, I wouldn't be this helpless now!

But no matter how much she regretted it, what she couldn't do, she couldn't do.

Deeply aware of her powerlessness, despair and regret filled Si Nan Ying's heart...

"Xiao... Xiao Ying..."

Just then, her weak companion's voice suddenly sounded. Si Nan Ying looked up as if electrocuted.

"Quick... hurry and act...

There's still a chance of success if you try.

If you give up, there's truly no hope.

Hurry...

If death is inevitable anyway...

Then bet it all on my life!"

Bet it all?

At this moment, Si Nan Ying finally cast aside all her confusion. No longer hesitating, no longer wavering, only one thought remained in her mind—save her.

Feel the Supernatural Ability, become one with it.

Elder Hong's past teachings echoed in her ears again. Si Nan Ying closed her eyes, her heart as still as water, carefully sensing the wild power of her ability. In the past, she only wanted to control this runaway horse with brute force. But now it was different; the important thing was gentle guidance, not savage control...

Try to imagine it...

If I can succeed... If I can save her... If we can escape!

Si Nan Ying's eyes snapped open, the confusion gone. She gathered Spiritual Energy, concentrated it in her hands, adjusted the power, and released!

A deep blue bubble drifted out. It lacked the dangerous fluctuations of the previous bubble, nor did it possess the feebleness of a low-power one. The bubble glided through the void, leaving a deep blue trail as it struck the connection point between the Worm King's body and the ground.

Ding!!!

The bubble let out a piercing explosion. The shockwave swept out, and the spot where the Worm King was hit instantly contorted, shattered, and vanished into smoke! The blast radius rapidly expanded, and just as it was about to reach Xiao Ye, it abruptly stopped, not even a millimeter off!

Power level four to five, diameter three meters!

This was Si Nan Ying's most successful control since awakening her Supernatural Ability!

Explosions sounded from below, and the Worm King let out a piercing shriek. The tentacles wrapped around me immediately loosened, and I flew out like a kite with a broken string, landing heavily.

"Xiao Ye!"

Someone ran to my side and picked me up. This voice... Si Nan Ying? She actually succeeded?

"Haa... Congratulations, you succeeded,"

"Mmm..." Whether from joy or emotion, Si Nan Ying was already in tears.

"Well then," I said, shakily standing up. The Worm King was dead, the greatest threat eliminated. There was nothing left to fear. Now, I just needed to get out and wait obediently to be picked up...

But, I was simply too naive.

A rumbling sound came from afar, mixed with the roars of beasts.

The main force of the Beast Tide had arrived.