Rising Tensions

As a seller, it was only natural to do everything possible to maximize the value of his goods and, in turn, his profits. Su Jiu had merely been stating the facts.

What Zhuo Shi had done was no different from blocking his path to wealth!

As the saying went, blocking someone's wealth was like killing their parents or ruining their future!

And Yun Ming had done nothing to stop it. Clearly, he had tacitly approved of Zhuo Shi's actions.

They had their rules, but Su Jiu had his own bottom line.

Then you'd better leave something behind!

Ripples spread through the void. The handles of two Sharp Bee Hunting blades slowly emerged, accompanied by a teeth-grating sound of tearing.

Su Jiu's face lost every trace of warmth. He gently brushed his right hand over the blades' sharply angled, icy handles.

"Pavilion Master Yun, it seems you're a very busy man, with no interest in disciplining your lackeys. Then I, Leng Wuduan, will teach them a thing or two on your behalf today!"

As he spoke, a cold glint flashed in Su Jiu's eyes. He flexed his wrist and swiftly drew one Sharp Bee Claw Blade.

A layer of crystalline violet void energy curled around the blade. Its light rippled and swirled, radiating murderous intent.

"Slap!"

"Outrageous! Watch your tone, junior!"

Zhuo Shi had always been hot-tempered. How could he hold back after being openly humiliated by a junior in front of everyone?

He slammed the table, glared, pointed at Su Jiu, and roared.

Su Jiu wasn't about to indulge him. The short blade pierced into the void, aiming straight for Zhuo Shi's two fingers.

"Leng Wuduan, how dare you!"

Yun Ming immediately realized that his opponent was serious. He didn't believe Zhuo Shi could evade the strike.

The Sky-Propping Spear flew from his hand and shot without hesitation toward the space directly in front of Zhuo Shi, where the cold edge of a Sharp Bee Hunting blade had just appeared.

With a sharp tearing screech, the spearhead and blade collided. The piercing sound of metal ripping through the air exploded across the auction hall, sparks scattering everywhere.

The force behind the spear was terrifying. With one strike, it sent the claw blade in Su Jiu's hand flying.

But all of it had been nothing more than a smokescreen Su Jiu had deliberately laid.

When Yun Ming raised his eyes to look at Su Jiu, his composure and confidence vanished in an instant. A flicker of shock crossed his face.

There was only one reason: the second Sharp Bee Hunting blade, which had been hanging motionless in midair, was now in Su Jiu's hand—and its blade had disappeared.

By the time Yun Ming tried to swing the Sky-Propping Spear again, it was too late.

Two bloodied fingers flew across his field of vision, then dropped to the ground and lay there in silence.

Zhuo Shi was a tough man. They said pain in the fingers struck straight to the heart, and the piercing agony of losing them swept through him in an instant. His face flushed scarlet and the veins on his forehead bulged, yet he clenched his teeth and held back every groan, enduring the pain in silence.

"Finally, some peace and quiet. Come on, let's continue the auct—"

Before Su Jiu could finish, Yun Ming cut him off again, souring his mood once more.

"Leng Wuduan, you dared to injure someone from Shrek Academy. Even with the Spirit Pagoda and the Leng Family at your back, you can't expect this to end here!"

Yun Ming glanced at Qiangu Dongfeng. Qiangu Dongfeng grinned, making no move to intervene. Clearly, because of Leng Yaozhu, he disliked Su Jiu too.

In his eyes, Su Jiu would be better off dead!

As for the War God Temple's War Gods, they collectively chose to remain silent. They all believed that it was Leng Yaozhu who had saved them last time, not Leng Wuduan, who was only at level 96.

What's more, because of his beloved wife, Long Yeyue, War God Temple's master Chen Xinjie had little regard for Leng Wuduan. This only pushed the War Gods further toward taking sides.

Those who followed him would have everything go their way; those who opposed him would see every road barred!

Leng Yaozhu wanted to step in and help, but Su Jiu's controlled Needle-Bee Sentry avatar stopped her. A breathtaking smile immediately appeared on her face.

That was right. Su Jiu had grown up. He was no longer the little tagalong who used to follow her around. He had to face some storms on his own.

Yet she still couldn't suppress the worry in her heart. She clenched her fists unconsciously and silently prayed for him: May victory be with you in this battle.

And Na'er?

All she cared about was the delicious food. She had no idea what was happening outside, happily popping one little cake after another into her mouth...

"Pavilion Master Yun, I've been wanting to witness the bearing of the strongest person on the continent. I hope you won't disappoint me!"

After leaving those words behind, Su Jiu stepped into the void and appeared in the sky ten thousand meters above. A Needle-Bee Sentry appeared above the other Sharp Bee Hunting blade, flashed with violet light, and made the claw blade disappear on the spot.

The wind howled high above. Wearing the Phantom Night Wanderer, "Su Jiu" brushed one hand over the Back Accessory: Phantom Night Wanderer Blade floating beside him.

The next moment, Yun Ming arrived.

"Junior of the Leng Family, I admire your courage, and I appreciate your talent as well."

"If you kneel at the entrance to Shrek Academy today and kowtow three times in front of everyone, then give the Dark Hummingbird to Shrek for free, I can make the decision to let this matter pass with a laugh!"

The voice from beneath the mask laughed at Yun Ming's words, then asked:

"Yun Ming, if you were in my place, would you do it?"

Yun Ming fell silent. A man of unbending pride, he clearly valued his dignity above all else—even his life.

One Sharp Bee Hunting blade slid into the upper slot of the Phantom Night Wanderer Blade, and the other into the lower slot.

Several sharp mechanical clicks rang out in succession as the metal components meshed precisely and snapped together.

In an instant, a Phantom Night Horizontal Blade, about two feet and eight inches long, settled firmly into "Su Jiu's" palm.

The blade gleamed with a cold, dark light. Its edge was frosty and deadly as it pointed at Yun Ming, poised to strike.

Yun Ming was taken aback. For the first time, he questioned the nature of Leng Wuduan's weapon Martial Soul.

A pair of claw blades? A bizarre mechanical life-form? A long blade he'd never seen before? A dark brown sniper rifle?

So many forms—unheard of!

He shook his head. Why waste time thinking about it? This man was as good as crippled.

Besides, he didn't like anyone standing higher than he did!

It was more fitting for his opponent to look up at him from the ground!

Domain: Air Prohibition!

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

"Su Jiu" still stood there, unaffected by the Air Prohibition Domain. He didn't lose the ability to fly or fall from the sky.

Once again, this was beyond Yun Ming's expectations. His domain, which had never failed him before, had actually been rendered useless?!

In truth, "Su Jiu" wasn't flying. He was walking through the void. Beneath his feet was the void itself, not space!

Seeing that Yun Ming still wasn't attacking, Su Jiu immediately activated his Second Soul Skill.

He once again granted A-Qi control of the eight Void Needle-Bee Sentries, helping it fight in the air!

Seventh Soul Skill: Sharp Bee Hunting True Body!

A-Qi's computing power increased by 1,000%. Su Jiu's attributes increased by 500%.

Combined with the passive effects of his other eight Soul Rings, A-Qi's computing power had now stacked to 1,800%.

Even with Yun Ming's God Origin Realm spiritual power locking onto him completely, A-Qi's error rate while simultaneously controlling eight sentries was practically zero!

A human brain versus an AI at predicting the future—purely in terms of computing power?

Don't make me laugh. This was a so-called cheat-enabled FPS immortal-war game, and these things were official cheat products that left free-to-play players helpless against whales!

Yun Ming looked at the eight bizarre mechanical constructs surrounding him like satellites. His Air Prohibition Domain had failed too!

The instant the first beam of void light shot out, Yun Ming twirled his spear and thrust out his spear intent!

The beam vanished, but the spear intent remained. The sentry tilted to one side, easily evading the fierce spear intent.

In the next instant, all eight sentries fired beams from different directions at once, targeting eight tricky, vital points: the space between the brows, the back of the head, the heart, the dantian, the throat, the rear, the crotch, and the Soul Core in the chest!

Yun Ming realized that even at his fastest spear speed, he couldn't evade every beam. He had still underestimated Leng Wuduan.

With no other choice, Yun Ming donned his Four-Word Battle Armor, forced to use his full strength.

And at that moment, it was time for "Su Jiu" to strike!