Upon closer inspection, the Underworld Devil Lord had not vanished at all. He had merely flipped his body sideways, clamped his legs around the horse's belly, and spun to its flank.
The instant he slid beneath the horse's side, his spear stabbed upward at an angle, driving precisely toward Li Qing's chest.
The thrust came too fast and too fiercely, like a venomous serpent lunging from the shadows without the slightest pause.
A cold smile appeared on Li Qing's face beneath his armor. The Underworld Devil Lord had stepped into the trap as well.
The Sky-Piercing Halberd he had swung in his hand silently left his grasp, his five fingers releasing it almost at the exact moment the Underworld Devil Lord slid beneath the horse's belly.
Like a javelin, the Sky-Piercing Halberd swept through the area where the Underworld Devil Lord had just been, pointing toward his back.
At the same time, a silvery-white gleam had appeared in Li Qing's left hand at some unknown moment.
It was a silver Tang saber, chopping straight toward the spear tip stabbing down at an angle.
Blade and spearhead collided, and blazing sparks burst forth in an instant.
The Underworld Devil Lord suddenly sensed that something was wrong. His strike seemed to have long been accounted for by his opponent.
"How is that possible?"
He abruptly realized that he seemed to have made a grave error.
With a twist of his legs, he instantly returned to the saddle. Spear blossoms flickered in his hand as they swept toward Li Qing.
But another Tang saber had appeared in Li Qing's right hand at some unknown moment. His twin blades whirled, blocking every shadow of the spear.
At the same time.
The Lord of Myriad Buddhas and Teachings was facing utter annihilation.
The Sky-Piercing Halberd