When she met those bright violet eyes, the earnest look in his made Xiao Xiao's face flush again. She lowered her head slightly and murmured an assent, then let Su Qing lead her toward the battle.
Only after hearing the others' Soul Skills did Su Qing stop. At this distance, his spiritual power could fully sense what was happening in the fight...
"First Senior Sister, hurry and leave! Don't worry about us!"
Zhou Qing clutched the wounds where the Hundred-Thousand-Year Flame Demon Lizard had torn into his legs. The pain had nearly sent his whole body into convulsions. He stared in despair at Zhang Lexuan, who was fighting desperately against the Soul Beast to protect them, and shouted with a tremor in his voice.
Meanwhile, several of the Soul King-level students who had come with them had already died. Some of their bodies had even been smashed apart. Zhang Lexuan's heart twisted with grief, but she couldn't afford to lose focus against a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast that had grown even more savage after being wounded.
Nearly all the other surviving members of their group had lost the ability to move. The Soul Beast was cunning, directing its attacks almost exclusively at the legs and spine—places where an injury would leave a person unable to move. Its goal was simple: just like the classic tactic in that five-character game, surround the corpse and attack the reinforcements!
Whenever the battle brought it near the incapacitated team members, it would attack the wounded lying on the ground from time to time, forcing Zhang Lexuan to use her Soul Skills to shield them. Then it would seize the chance to ambush her. By now, Zhang Lexuan had used every one of her seven Soul Skills, and she had suffered serious injuries herself. She was simply squeezing every last bit of potential from her body.
"Fifth Soul Skill, Moonlight Clarity!"
To better deal with the Flame Demon Lizard's attacks, she first cast a buff on herself. This Soul Skill could raise all her attributes by 170 percent for a short time. The first time she had used it, the increase had been 300 percent, but she hadn't found an opening to attack while protecting the students, so she had wasted the entire boost. In her current state, 170 percent was already the limit her body could handle.
The Flame Demon Lizard could clearly feel Zhang Lexuan growing weaker, and its attacks became even more ferocious. It had begun a full-on battle of trading injury for injury. Its limbs, claws, tail, and the Demon Flame burning across its body were all weapons. When the Demon Flame struck someone, it immediately began to eat away at the victim, and every moment brought piercing pain from the wound.
Chen Yao, lying near Zhou Qing, had been struck in the back by the Demon Flame. At first, she had only felt pain, but she had gritted her teeth and used her Soul Power to attack the Flame Demon Lizard over and over. Only when the corruption reached her spine and left her unable to move did she realize how serious the problem was. But by then, it was too late. Like Zhou Qing, she had become a weakness Zhang Lexuan could be forced to defend.
In the original story, none of Zhang Lexuan's teammates survived when she killed the Soul Beast. In other words, they still had to fight for a while longer. That made this the perfect moment for Su Qing. Of course, he wouldn't join the fight. With his current strength, going in would mean certain death. But he could provide help in other ways.
"Fourth Soul Skill, Moon Shadow Soul-Fixing!"
With all her attributes enhanced, Zhang Lexuan immediately launched an attack. Her fourth Soul Ring lit up beneath her feet, and a golden crescent moon, shaped like a sickle, suddenly dropped from the sky in the direction of her finger. It came down like an executioner's blade, slashing toward the Flame Demon Lizard. The Soul Beast's expression changed drastically. It spat out a torrent of Demon Flame, hoping to stop the attack, but the golden crescent spun in midair and instantly dodged the flames. It sliced into the Flame Demon Lizard's foreleg from the side, leaving a wound deep enough to expose bone and severely restricting its movement.
"Roar—!!!"
Pain surged through its leg and sent it into a rage. Its gaze immediately shifted to Zhou Qing, the nearest target, and Demon Flame began to gather in its mouth once more.
"Bastard!"
Zhang Lexuan's eyes nearly split with fury. The Flame Demon Lizard had chosen to attack a wounded person just to take revenge. She instinctively tried to use a Soul Skill to shield him, but it was already too late. The Demon Flame in its mouth condensed in an instant, then formed a purple-black beam of fire that blasted toward Zhou Qing.
Certain he was about to lose his life, Zhou Qing had already prepared himself to die. But just as the Demon Flame was about to touch him, a pair of transparent wings sprouted from his back and whisked him out of the battlefield.
"?"
The Flame Demon Lizard's eyes widened. The human had lost the use of his legs, so how had he suddenly moved over there? They had fought for so long—how had it not known that someone on the other side had a Soul Skill that allowed instant teleportation? But the battle-hardened beast quickly realized that a new Soul Master had joined the fight. It immediately grew wary, sniffing frantically in an attempt to catch the newcomer's scent. But after pulling Zhou Qing out of the battle, Su Qing immediately drew Xiao Xiao into his arms and switched to his Second Martial Soul. The two were within the protection of the Soul Jade, so the Soul Beast couldn't smell them at all.
"Sorry, but my concealment still can't cover a very large area."
Su Qing looked at Xiao Xiao apologetically. Before, he had only concealed himself, so he hadn't realized how small the range was. But now that he was holding Xiao Xiao, it was undeniably a little awkward.
"N-no, it's fine."
Xiao Xiao's face had gone completely red. She didn't mind being drawn into his arms. The Soul Beast's shrieks rang in her ears from nearby, and she knew he was protecting her. Besides, a faint, pleasant fragrance drifted from Su Qing. If she could, she even wanted to stay in his embrace a little longer.
"Phew. Looks like you're out of luck. Die, Flame Demon Lizard!"
Seeing Zhou Qing survive, Zhang Lexuan breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't have time to think about who had come to their aid. Her mind was filled with only one thought: kill the beast.
"Seventh Soul Skill, Silver Moon True Form! Sixth Soul Skill, Moon Eclipse Domain!"
As Zhang Lexuan's voice rang out, she and the Full Moon behind her rose into the air together, merging into a single blood-red moon. At the same time, the Sixth Soul Ring encircling the moon lit up. Countless blood-red beams burst from the moon and shot toward the Flame Demon Lizard. The instant they met its incredibly hard scales, they pierced straight through. The Flame Demon Lizard let out a series of pained howls. Knowing the tide had turned, it gave up resisting entirely.
As it died, a deep resentment welled up within it.
"Damn it! If that guy who suddenly joined the fight hadn't interfered, my tactics would have been flawless. I could have tortured these people to death! It's all that inexplicable human who came to help them. Absolutely despicable! I'll never forgive you, even in death!"
As it died, a blood-red Soul Ring appeared above its corpse. At the same time, a wisp of black vapor invisible to the naked eye flew into the sky, then vanished without a trace.
"Finally... it's over!"