What Sword to Shoot, Isn't It an Arrow!

"Squeak!"

A sharp shriek!

The Ice-Spine Hedgehog, having broken free from the ice crystals, suddenly arched its back, aiming the ten ice spines on its spine directly at Xue Mingqing.

The sharp ice spines lit up, with frigid soul power surging upon them...

The next second, a cold light flashed from the ice spines!

The spines snapped off in unison, and like arrows of death, they shot toward Xue Mingqing with a piercing, shrill whistle!

Ten ice prisms tore through the air, yet Xue Mingqing showed no fear.

With a sudden burst of power from his waist, legs, and hips, he lunged forward like an explosion.

Gripping the three-foot Snow Sword wreathed in a gentle breeze, he did not retreat but advanced, charging straight toward the incoming ice spines!

Soul power surged through his wrist, guiding the blade as the Snow Sword flashed repeatedly in the air!

A series of crisp clangs erupted as metal struck metal!

The incoming ice prisms were actually deflected by him on the spot!

The few that slipped through were dodged by Xue Mingqing with extremely agile footwork, narrowly brushing past his body!

Clutching his longsword tightly, a cold glint flashed in his eyes!

He poured his soul power frantically into the blade, causing the Snow Sword's cold light to flare—a strike carrying an unrivaled, piercing chill.

Accompanied by the whistling sound of the breeze cutting through the air, he slashed horizontally toward the neck of the Ice-Spine Hedgehog!

Seeing this, Xue Ningxian, who was watching from the side with her arms crossed, raised a delicate eyebrow and nodded to herself.

She approved of Xue Mingqing's physical techniques, reaction speed, and combat awareness—he was truly a peerless talent at his level.

However...

Watching Xue Mingqing's strike toward the Ice-Spine Hedgehog, the corners of Xue Ningxian's lips curled slightly.

This thousand-year soul beast would not be so easily slain...

Sure enough, a second before the lethal Snow Sword reached it, a flash of human-like cruelty flickered in the Ice-Spine Hedgehog's scarlet eyes!

Catching this, Xue Mingqing's pupils constricted, and his heart gave a sudden warning!

But it was already too late!

"Squeak!"

Another shriek.

The Ice-Spine Hedgehog slammed its claws into the ground, injecting icy blue soul power frantically into the earth.

The next moment!

Ice cones, each over half a person's height with tips gleaming in sharp, cold light, erupted from the ground!

They spread out in a circle from the beast, heading straight for Xue Mingqing!

Seeing the ice cones about to impale him, Xue Mingqing frowned and brought his Snow Sword down in a fierce chop!

Clang—!

A section of an ice cone snapped on impact!

Using the recoil, Xue Mingqing forced his forward momentum to a halt, then tapped his toes to retreat.

Seeing him try to pull back, how could the Ice-Spine Hedgehog let him off so easily?

Since this detestable human wanted to kill it for its ring, he had to be prepared to die!

A fierce light flashed in the beast's eyes; cold light surged once more upon its claws as it poured frigid soul power into the ground.

In an instant, crack, crack, crack—

A chilling sound of freezing filled the air!

The already sharp ice cones grew rapidly, their tips hiding no more malice, and struck toward Xue Mingqing's chest with a scent of death!

Seeing this, Xue Ningxian, watching from the side, narrowed her beautiful eyes.

Her long, graceful body tensed instinctively, ready to intervene and rescue Xue Mingqing at any moment.

She did not believe Xue Mingqing could dodge this strike at such close range.

In fact, Xue Mingqing could not dodge it, but—he had no intention of dodging anyway!

The moment before the ice cone struck, he held his sword horizontally to protect his chest!

As the breeze swirled amidst the churning Snowflake, the incomparably sharp Snow Sword transformed in the blink of an eye into a thick, solid Snow Shield!

The moment the Snow Shield took form, the murderous ice cone slammed into it—

Boom—!

With a dull, explosive roar, Xue Mingqing, bracing the Snow Shield, had blocked the fierce assault of the ice cone, but his expression was grim.

Tumbling through the air, Xue Mingqing glanced at the Snow Shield.

It had already been dented by an ice spike, leaving a fist-sized depression.

Narrowing his eyes, Xue Mingqing, having grasped the Ice-Spine Hedgehog's patterns, gave a casual flick of his wrist.

The Snow Shield spun, and amidst the swirling, reforming breeze, it transformed—morphing into a long bow of pure snow!

He raised the Snow Bow, and with three sharp whistles, three Snow Arrows streaked toward the Ice-Spine Hedgehog in unison!

Seeing the triple-shot, the Ice-Spine Hedgehog's pupils constricted violently!

Lacking high intelligence, it could not comprehend why Xue Mingqing's martial soul was so versatile, but that did not hinder its vigilance.

Almost the moment the Snow Arrows arrived, the Ice-Spine Hedgehog's body contracted!

It relied on its hedgehog instinct—curling into a ball to present its tough outer shell to the threat.

And those three Snow Arrows?

Three points of cold light flashed, striking the creature's body one after another, yet they only left three tiny, barely visible nicks on its shell.

Then, unable to penetrate any further, they instantly shattered into scattered snowflakes, failing to inflict any substantial damage on the Ice-Spine Hedgehog.

Seeing this, Xue Mingqing furrowed his brows.

Clearly, the damage from a single Snow Arrow was limited and could not deal a fatal blow to the Ice-Spine Hedgehog.

And the Ice-Spine Hedgehog?

Seemingly realizing this as well, it uncurled its body, its scarlet eyes filled with smugness and cold mockery.

It seemed to be sneering at Xue Mingqing's weakness, mocking him for failing to even break its defense.

Then, ignoring Xue Mingqing entirely, it actually began to condense icy-blue soul power right before his eyes to regenerate the ice spines on its back.

It didn't take Xue Mingqing seriously at all!

Realizing this, Xue Mingqing tightened his grip on the Snow Bow, feeling momentarily at a loss.

But just then.

Xue Ningxian's indifferent, composed voice rang out.

"Why not give up?"

"While your Snow Sword can pose a fatal threat, you cannot get close enough to use it, and while the Snow Bow can strike from a distance, its single-target damage is insufficient."

"Your talent is immense; absorbing an 800-year soul ring is more than enough. Why waste time on this creature?"

Having watched from the sidelines for a while, Xue Ningxian had gained a clear understanding of his strength.

She dared not be so bold as to claim Xue Mingqing could definitely absorb a thousand-year first soul ring.

However, a weaker eight-hundred-year soul ring was well within his reach.

Although the potential boost might not be as great as a thousand-year ring, in terms of natural talent, an eight-hundred-year first ring was enough for Xue Mingqing to look down upon his peers.

At the very least, Xue Ningxian's own first soul ring was a standard four-hundred-year one.

And Xue Mingqing?

Hearing Xue Ningxian's words, a glimmer of light flashed in the depths of his eyes.

Seeing this, Xue Ningxian assumed Xue Mingqing had finally come to his senses and would stop obsessing over the Ice-Spine Hedgehog.

But the next second, Xue Mingqing's voice rang out.

"Mother, what was it you just said?"

Raising an eyebrow, Xue Ningxian crossed her arms.

"Your talent is immense, eight hundred years is more than enough..."

"Not that sentence, the one before it."

Frowning, Xue Ningxian narrowed her beautiful eyes.

"Your Snow Sword can deal damage but cannot get close, and the Snow Arrow can reach it, but cannot deal damage?"

Hearing this, Xue Mingqing's eyes lit up, and he snapped his fingers happily.

"That's it!"

Raising the Snow Bow once more, Xue Mingqing poured all of his level-ten soul power into it, causing the entire bow to emit a faint, frigid mist...

He gripped the bowstring and slowly drew it back...

Seeing this, the Ice-Spine Hedgehog, currently busy regenerating its back spines, flashed a look of disdain in its eyes.

It repeated its old trick, curling its body into a ball once more, attempting to evade Xue Mingqing's attack.

Seeing the Ice-Spine Hedgehog's actions, Xue Mingqing was not annoyed this time.

A playful curve tugged at the corner of his mouth as he forced every ounce of his soul power into the Snow Bow.

Finally, when the Snow Bow was pulled to its limit, transforming into a full moon of snow, Xue Mingqing released the string!

Hum—!

Accompanied by a lingering, resonant twang, a Snow Sword, condensed to the absolute limit...

Slashed through the air with a frigid, piercing light, shooting straight toward the Ice-Spine Hedgehog!

"Who said a sword can't be an arrow! A Snow Sword is an arrow too!"