Narrow Victory

Two yellow flying knives struck the yellow light barrier, causing it to sway slightly.

Shen Long took out a blue pill and swallowed it; it was a Qi Recovery Pill, which allowed Qi Refining cultivators to rapidly restore their mana.

Shen Long flicked his sleeve, and a Crimson Fireball the size of a water vat flew out, smashing toward Xu Lei.

Xu Lei's advantage was having the Parent-Child Blades in hand, but the drawback was also obvious: controlling the Parent-Child Blades consumed far more divine sense than a single magical artifact. While he could restore mana by taking Qi Recovery Pills, there were no first-tier pills on the market that could restore divine sense.

The Iron Tail Scorpion had burrowed underground, waiting for an opportunity.

The parent blade in Xu Lei's hand shone with a brilliant yellow light, and one child blade returned to defend, shattering the Crimson Fireball.

Soon, another Crimson Fireball flew over, smashing toward Xu Lei.

Now it was a matter of who could outlast the other. Xu Lei had slightly more mana, but Shen Long had the Iron Tail Scorpion as a helper.

Shen Long's casting speed was very fast, and Crimson Fireballs flew out one after another, smashing toward Xu Lei. Xu Lei dared not block them head-on, fearing he would give the Iron Tail Scorpion an opening; Sun Yang was a cautionary tale.

As a result, only one child blade was attacking Shen Long, while the other two child blades were entangled with the Azure Moon Shears and the Red Flying Dart.

Xu Lei frowned deeply and hurriedly took out a Qi Recovery Pill, swallowing it.

His divine sense consumption was quite high, whereas Shen Long looked relaxed, appearing as though he could keep going for a long time.

Half a quarter of an hour later, the two had yet to decide a winner. Shen Long had taken his second Qi Recovery Pill, while Xu Lei's expression was somewhat wilted, his divine sense heavily depleted.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, the Spirit Control Token belongs to you, and everything else belongs to me. How about that?"

Xu Lei spoke up. Shen Long had cultivated four first-tier spells to Great Perfection, while he hadn't cultivated a single one. He didn't want to spend too much time practicing spells; if he needed them, he could just buy talismans, which didn't cost many spirit stones.

Shen Long acted as if he hadn't heard, continuing to release Crimson Fireballs to attack Xu Lei.

For so many years, whenever he was in the Marketplace, he would spend two hours practicing spells. It wasn't just that diligence pays off; it was one of the few ways he had to improve his strength.

Crimson Fireballs smashed toward Xu Lei, and Xu Lei could only control one child blade to shatter the incoming fireballs.

A gray-white tail stinger broke through the ground and struck a cyan light barrier, emitting a muffled thud.

Xu Lei raised his right hand, and a Fire Snake Talisman flew out, transforming into a crimson fire snake about a zhang long that crashed into the ground.

With a thunderous roar, the body of the crimson fire snake exploded, leaving a giant pit several zhang wide in the ground, with black smoke rising from within.

Having failed the strike, the Iron Tail Scorpion had already burrowed back underground, continuing to wait for an opportunity.

Xu Lei's face turned very ugly. In a war of attrition, he was definitely no match for Shen Long, and the Iron Tail Scorpion was a massive threat.

He flipped his right hand and took out a talisman flickering with red light. The surface of the talisman had a pattern of a miniature calf. He raised his right hand, and the red talisman flew out, transforming into a house-sized Crimson Calf that emitted terrifying heat as it crashed toward Shen Long.

Shen Long felt the astonishing heat emitted by the Crimson Calf and frowned. He flicked his right hand, and a white ice spike three feet long flew out, striking the Crimson Calf. The Crimson Calf instantly exploded, turning into billowing flames that engulfed Shen Long's body, causing the light of his yellow barrier to dim.

Two child blades shot over and struck the yellow light barrier, shattering it, leaving only a cyan light barrier remaining.

Shen Long's heart stirred, and a thick blue water curtain appeared around his body—the Mystic Water Shield.

The two child blades flew backward, and Xu Lei bolted toward the exit of the cave. He knew very well that if he kept fighting, he would surely die.

If he couldn't get the Spirit Control Token, having other wealth would be enough.

A wise man knows when to retreat; as long as he escaped, he would definitely spread the news, and Shen Long would certainly be hunted down by the Li Clan, the Han Clan, and the Chen Clan.

Just as he reached the vicinity of the cave entrance, a thick cyan vine burst through the ground and wrapped around Xu Lei's right foot.

The parent blade in his hand shone with brilliant yellow light, and a child blade shot out, shattering the cyan vine, just as a Crimson Fireball flew over and struck the cyan light barrier.

With a thunderous roar, billowing flames engulfed the cyan light barrier.

Even through three layers of defense, Xu Lei could feel the astonishing heat.

"Today is your death day, Xu Lei. Eat my Fire Thunder Bead."

Shen Long's voice rang out.

The power of a Fire Thunder Bead was far greater than a Lightning Attraction Talisman; it was a one-time treasure comparable to a full-strength strike from a ninth-level Qi Refining cultivator.

Xu Lei was startled. Shen Long was very close with Sun Huowang, so it was entirely possible he could have gotten his hands on such a lethal weapon.

He hurriedly patted the Yellow Jade Pendant on his chest. The Yellow Jade Pendant instantly shone with brilliant yellow light, and a thick yellow light barrier emerged, forming a fourth layer of protection.

A fist-sized stone flew over and smashed against the cyan light barrier, but the barrier didn't budge.

"Damn it, I've been tricked."

Xu Lei was furious. A giant fireball the size of a house descended from the sky, smashing against the cyan light barrier.

With a thunderous roar, the giant fireball exploded, engulfing Xu Lei's figure. The heat waves rolled, and the ground even showed signs of melting.

Shen Long drew in the void with both hands, and a house-sized Crimson Fireball appeared, emitting terrifying heat as it smashed toward the opposite side.

The Crimson Fireball plunged into the sea of fire, causing the flames to surge.

He released giant fireballs one after another to attack Xu Lei, while at the same time, the Azure Moon Shears and the Red Flying Dart shone with brilliant light and plunged into the sea of fire, emitting a series of muffled "bang-bang" sounds.

Four child blades flew out from the sea of fire; two child blades met the Azure Moon Shears and the Red Flying Dart, while the other two attacked Shen Long, only to be blocked by the cyan light barrier.

Shen Long remained unmoved, continuing to release Crimson Fireballs to smash toward the opposite side.

A blinding yellow light flared, and as the flames dissipated, Xu Lei's figure was revealed. He was covered by a yellow light barrier, his face pale, his divine sense severely depleted.

He had an Earth Escape Talisman on him, but with the Iron Tail Scorpion right there underground, how could he dare to use it to escape? Wouldn't that just be throwing himself into a trap?

A thick Cyan Vine drilled out from the ground and coiled around Xu Lei's right leg, while at the same time, a grayish-white tail barb burst from the soil and struck the yellow light barrier, producing a muffled thud.

Xu Lei was startled and hurriedly recalled a sub-blade to attack the Iron Tail Scorpion, but the Iron Tail Scorpion quickly dove back into the ground and hid itself.

A house-sized Crimson Fireball descended from the sky and smashed into the yellow light barrier, the rolling flames once again engulfing Xu Lei's figure.

Before the flames had even dissipated, another giant fireball flew over and slammed into the yellow light barrier.

The spiritual light of the yellow light barrier dimmed, looking as if it could collapse at any moment.

"Shen Long! Spare me, I'll give you all my wealth."

Xu Lei opened his mouth to beg for mercy.

Shen Long remained unmoved and released another giant fireball, smashing it toward Xu Lei.

Xu Lei had no more offensive talismans in his hands and could only watch helplessly as giant fireballs rained down; the yellow light barrier grew increasingly dim, and several tiny cracks appeared on the surface of the Yellow Jade Pendant.

A grayish-white tail barb burst from the soil and struck the yellow light barrier, acting like the final straw that broke the camel's back; the yellow light barrier shattered, and the tail barb pierced through Xu Lei's head.