The moment Lei Yun saw Sanbao, her courage seemed to shrink a little more. It took all she had to flush red and say, "I want a fair match with you. Do you dare accept?"
"Not interested. If I beat you, I'll have trouble coming out of my ears. If I lose, I get nothing out of it. No deal, no deal..." Sanbao wore the air of a lofty sage beyond worldly concerns, making Lei Yun grit her teeth in frustration.
"Fine. I'll bet you a hundred gold coins. Do you dare take me up on it?"
"Do you think a Guest Elder of the Lei Mansion like me is short of a little money?" Sanbao looked utterly calm, but inside, he was over the moon. This was the fish I'd been waiting for.
"Then what do you want to bet?" Lei Yun only wanted to win back some face against Sanbao now. Nothing else mattered.
"Two Spirit Replenishment Pills per match. We can play as many rounds as you like. How does that sound?" Sanbao finally revealed his true aim. The Lei Family was a family of alchemists. They might not have much of anything else, but they definitely had no shortage of Spirit Replenishment Pills. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to hire so many Guest Elders.
If he won three or five matches in a row, that would be a Spirit Weapon! Just thinking of how many lives Lin Hai had sacrificed to get his hands on one made Sanbao even more delighted. He couldn't afford to pass up this "deal."
Sure enough, Lei Yun didn't hesitate in the slightest. She immediately called out,
"Fine! I'll take that bet!"
Lei Yun was clever, too. How could she not recognize Sanbao's taunt for what it was? But the anger lodged in her chest was making her miserable. Besides, a few Spirit Replenishment Pills were no big deal to her. If she really lost, she could just wheedle a few out of Grandpa.
Of course, the most important thing was that she had come prepared.
"Then let's go."
Sanbao "reluctantly" agreed, secretly gloating.
The two went to an open space in front of a pavilion. Sanbao held his hands like blades, guarding his chest. Lei Yun was arrogant by nature, but her strength was truly not to be underestimated. Even an ordinary four- or five-star Spirit General might not have been able to beat her.
If the Nine-Turn Golden Body hadn't given him a clear edge in speed, Sanbao wouldn't have dared to take the bet.
"Take this!"
Lei Yun had been waiting for this moment. She had already put on her Black Silk Gauntlets. Without using a Spirit Weapon, she didn't stand a chance—not even if she did use one, if Sanbao decided to run. She wouldn't have been able to stop him at all. But this was a fair match, so Sanbao naturally couldn't run away.
And when the two faced off head-on, the gap in their levels would naturally become apparent. That was where Lei Yun's confidence lay.
Several streaks of green light swept past. Sanbao slid his foot and barely dodged them, then struck back with a palm. Lei Yun sneered, lunged forward, and kicked at him.
Thud.
The two broke apart at once, only to clash again moments later.
"Take my palm!"
Sanbao seized an opening and slammed his palm into Lei Yun's back. You're still wet behind the ears if you think you can take me on!
Just as Sanbao thought Lei Yun couldn't bear the pain and was about to be sent flying several meters away, she suddenly spun around and whipped out a roundhouse kick.
Thud!
Sanbao was kicked several meters back. A sharp pain flared in his chest, and after a few coughs, a streak of crimson came up.
"What a vicious girl. I fell for it."
In an instant, Sanbao understood. Lei Yun must be wearing special armor—most likely a Spirit Armor. That was how she'd emerged unscathed from his palm strike, while he'd taken a nasty hit because he hadn't been careful.
"How was that? I haven't even used my full strength yet!"
Having landed a successful blow, Lei Yun was triumphant. Grandpa really knows best. He lent me a Spirit Armor and told me to defend first, then attack, focusing on his legs. It worked like a charm.
Most Spirit Weapons were made for offense. Like storage-type Spirit Weapons, armor-type ones were extremely rare. After all, crafting Spirit Armor was even harder than making weapons.
A piece of armor was worth at least as much as ten weapons of the same rank. That showed just how precious it was.
As the saying went, an inch longer meant an inch stronger. Lei Yun's style of attacking cautiously, never risking a hit just to land one, left Sanbao in a difficult position. She was, after all, a two-star Spirit General. Her spiritual power was deeper than his, and she could keep fighting longer. His only advantage was speed.
But with her Spirit Armor protecting her, there was no chance of snatching victory through a lucky trick. Only now did Sanbao understand where Lei Yun's confidence came from.
To the Lei Family's senior members, Sanbao and Lei Yun's feud was no more than children playing house. It wouldn't do for them to get involved directly, but they could support Lei Yun in other ways.
There was no way Lei Yun could own such precious Spirit Armor herself. It had to belong to some important figure in the Lei Family.
"Again."
Sanbao was a stubborn man who only grew bolder against a strong opponent. Seeing Lei Yun's strength increase only made him more eager to fight.
Whoosh, whoosh.
Several golden streaks flashed past, tearing away a large section of Lei Yun's clothes across the chest. Beneath them, just as expected, was a pitch-black suit of soft armor.
But some things couldn't be protected by soft armor. With her outer clothes gone, Lei Yun's chest was already "surging like waves." Sanbao's face burned as his gaze lingered, and he thought, Good heavens, she's developed so well. Is she trying to make me want to attack her?
Lei Yun glanced at the torn clothes across her chest, then at the flicker of heat in Sanbao's eyes, and silently thanked her luck. Good thing I have Spirit Armor to protect me. Otherwise, this brute would have thoroughly humiliated me today.
"Take my palm!"
Sanbao let his attention wander for a moment, and five parallel red welts appeared across his chest, like five crimson rainbows. They made him look even more fired up.
The two traded blows, and each took some damage. But Lei Yun lost clothing and the "weapon" on her chest, while Sanbao lost real flesh and blood.
Time passed. The Nine-Turn Golden Body consumed spiritual power at an alarming rate. As Sanbao's reserves rapidly dwindled, he gradually weakened. His speed slowed, and Lei Yun's advantage became even more pronounced.
"Take another kick!"
Lei Yun kicked Sanbao and sent him sprawling face-first into the dirt. With a shout, she lunged at him, hoping to finish the fight in one rush.
After all, Sanbao was clearly at the end of his rope. His spiritual power was spent, and his movements had grown sloppy.
But just then, something unexpected happened. Sanbao, who had fallen forward, rolled through the air and suddenly struck back with lightning speed.
A flash of gold. A large hand clamped around Lei Yun's throat. She froze upright on the spot, her body rigid as her attacks slowly ceased.
"You—you—you shameless scoundrel! You did that on purpose..." With Sanbao holding her by the throat, Lei Yun was furious.
"Heh heh. Are you surrendering?"
Sanbao had landed his move and only then let out a quiet sigh of relief. The longer the fight went on, the worse his position had become. Luckily, Lei Yun lacked experience. One little trick from him, and the tables had turned in the blink of an eye.
"I won't surrender! You cheated!" Lei Yun huffed angrily.
"Then I'll have to pluck this flower by force!" Sanbao threatened viciously, tightening his grip a little.
Lei Yun felt as though an iron hoop were squeezing her neck. She could barely breathe. If she didn't surrender, she might lose her life. With no other choice, she said, "I—I surrender."
"You liar! You shameless scoundrel! I'm telling Grandpa!" Sanbao loosened his grip, and Lei Yun fled in tears.
"Don't forget the Spirit Replenishment Pills," Sanbao called after her. He dusted off his hands and prepared to return to the pavilion.
"Little brother, wait."
Just then, a short, plump old man with graying whiskers suddenly emerged from beside a large tree, smiling as he called out.
Sanbao had been so engrossed in fighting Lei Yun that he hadn't noticed when the old man arrived.
Sanbao stopped and looked him over.
The old man was short and stout, with an unremarkable face and tiny eyes that narrowed into a thin line when he smiled. He was easy to overlook.
Still, anyone who could appear in the Elder Pavilion of the Lei Mansion was no ordinary person. Chances were, he was one of the Lei Mansion's Guest Elders.
The old man hadn't revealed much of his aura, but Sanbao could still vaguely sense the powerful spiritual fluctuations around him—a Spirit King.
"May I ask what you want, senior?" Sanbao didn't dare be careless. He bowed slightly in greeting.
"Heh heh, you're too kind. I'm Miao Tian, another Guest Elder of the Lei Mansion. I live in the pavilion next door. I just saw you fighting Second Miss Lei. It was truly an eye-opener!" Without waiting for Sanbao to invite him, Miao Tian found a place and sat down.
Sanbao had no choice but to sit beside him. His companion was a Spirit King, and Sanbao didn't dare offend him.
But Sanbao paid little attention to the old man's praise. In front of a Spirit King, two little Spirit Generals fighting was no more impressive than toddlers playing in the mud in front of an adult. What was there to marvel at?
"Elder Miao, you flatter me. In your eyes, our meager tricks are hardly worth mentioning," Sanbao replied politely.
"Not at all, not at all. Your combat experience may be lacking, but both of your movement techniques are first-rate. Yours in particular is downright uncanny. I dare say that even when I was a Spirit Commander, I might not have been able to handle you!" The old man quickly shook his head and explained, praising Sanbao's movement technique enthusiastically.
Only then did Sanbao understand. When it came to movement techniques, his Nine-Turn Golden Body was no joke. Even ordinary Earth-grade Spirit Skills couldn't compare. Combined with his family's bloodline, it was like adding wings to a tiger.
"Elder Miao, you flatter me. I've been light on my feet since childhood. It's simply a gift." Sanbao didn't dare reveal too much, so he chalked it up to natural talent.
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