Subjugation

Beneath the Binuoxiu sisters, a massive protective barrier held back the dense barrage of attacks. Under the barrier, a mage raised his staff and struggled to maintain its operation while three burly men beside him channeled their power into it.

Even so, the entire barrier looked ready to collapse at any moment. Behind them, Li Hanyi sat on the ground, gasping for breath. The two Succubi originally bound by her contract had already fainted.

As their master, Li Hanyi no longer had the strength to return them to the demon space.

"No, the flames and frost contain mental attacks. Even if we block most of the damage, those mental attacks can penetrate the barrier. Miss can barely hold on any longer!"

The burly mage gritted his teeth, cold sweat pouring down his forehead. His face had already turned pale.

As someone who specialized in defensive magic, he naturally understood their current situation.

"We were careless. We should have brought another mage specializing in mental magic today!"

They had originally believed that no monsters capable of mental attacks would appear in the Dark Forest. Besides, with an average level of sixteen, they should have been able to move freely through the outskirts.

Yet they had barely entered the place and spent only half a night grinding monsters before encountering the king-class monsters of the Dark Forest.

Although the Binuoxiu sisters were only level eighteen, even a Silver-ranked team would have to think twice before taking them on.

Much less a team like theirs.

That was because the sisters' magic was instant-cast!

Those were skills that normally cost Platinum-level prices. Who knew how these two Bronze-ranked monsters had learned them?

Dungeon monsters respawned. Whenever someone killed them, they would respawn again a few days later. But the Binuoxiu sisters generally did not appear in this area.

They were simply unlucky enough to run into such a low-probability event.

"Now isn't the time to talk about that. The most important thing is getting Miss out safely."

"Second Brother, take out the Beast Potion. We'll cover them. Third and Fourth, take Miss and run!"

The lead guard glanced at Li Hanyi. If this continued, even if they could keep resisting, Miss would likely be shaken into an idiot by the mental attacks!

There was no other way. If they wanted to cover Li Hanyi's escape, someone had to make a sacrifice.

Beast Potion: A stimulant suitable for warriors. After drinking it, it could unleash all of the body's potential for ten minutes, theoretically increasing one's abilities by nearly four levels. However, once the side effects set in, the user would not only suffer severe internal injuries but also lose 10 levels afterward!

This was a warrior's trump card, practically a move of mutual destruction.

"No, you can't, Uncle Li! You can't do this!" Li Hanyi's face had already turned pale, yet she still gritted her teeth and held on. Though cold by nature, she was exceptionally kind. If they sacrificed themselves to save her, she would never be able to forgive herself.

Hearing Li Hanyi say this, Uncle Li smiled in relief. He had watched Miss grow up. Now that such a thing had happened, how could he possibly retreat?

"Miss, don't worry. Second Brother and I won't die that easily!"

"That's right! We're still waiting to drink at Miss's graduation banquet!" the burly man beside him shouted in agreement.

With that, he casually tossed a bottle of red potion to Uncle Li. Neither of them hesitated as they drained it in one gulp!

The moment the potion slid down their throats, their eyes glowed red. They withdrew their hands from the energy transfer, pulled out the greatswords on their backs, and stomped down hard with their right feet. Their bodies shot into the air as they charged toward the Binuoxiu sisters!

"Die, monsters!"

The burly men gathered all their strength into their greatswords. The two blades shone with dazzling red light, and the explosive force of their descent tore even the air apart, creating a small vacuum zone!

The Binuoxiu sisters watched the two figures hurtling toward them, and cruel smiles appeared on their lips. They swung their staffs at the same time, forming a fifty-foot-tall fire tornado and an ice tornado that surged toward Uncle Li!

Boom!

With a tremendous explosion, the tornadoes completely swallowed the two men. Before long, a burning mass and a lump of ice were spat out from the vortex and crashed heavily onto the ground!

"Uncle Li!"

Free from the mental attack, Li Hanyi gasped desperately for breath. At the sight before her, grief overwhelmed her, and even her scream was hoarse.

"Miss, we have to go!"

A pair of strong hands gripped hers. The man's voice trembled. He understood all too well that the flaming mass and ice block were his brothers!

They had used their lives to cover Miss's escape. No matter how heartbroken he was, he had to complete the mission first!

Just as they prepared to use their last bit of strength to flee with Miss—

Nine black shadows suddenly appeared behind the Binuoxiu sisters. Though the sisters reacted quickly and blocked six of the shadows with their staffs, two still bit into their shoulders.

As fangs pierced their skin, black energy flowed through their blood. In an instant, their entire bodies took on a faint dark hue.

"Ahhh!"

The intense pain made the sisters scream. After violently flinging away the nine Flying Head Gu with their staffs, their vision blurred, and they swayed in midair as though they could no longer remain standing!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ground seemed to tremble. Amid the rumbling, some terrifying monster appeared to be rushing toward them through the dense forest!

Whoosh!

A giant toad leaped out of the forest and charged straight at the Binuoxiu sisters. Looking closely, one would discover that someone was standing atop the toad!

Cao Xiaochun watched as the Abyss Toad instantly leaped before the sisters. In a flash of lightning, he sliced open his palm and flung the two Gu insects in his hand forward, stained with blood.

The two bloodstained Slave Gu were instantly thrown into the Binuoxiu sisters' mouths.

At that moment, the Abyss Toad's forelimbs had already clamped around the sisters and slammed them heavily into the ground!

Boom!

Another tremendous bang rang out as a pit nearly thirty centimeters deep was smashed into the ground. The two formerly invincible overlords of the Dark Forest had their clothes utterly shredded and were pinned beneath the Abyss Toad, already unconscious!

Faint red threads spread out from their hearts. After coursing through their bodies, they converged in the sisters' minds.

Cao Xiaochun knew that the Slave Gu had taken effect.

Before long, Cao Xiaochun sensed two faint fluctuations within his heart and understood that his plan had succeeded.

With a casual motion, he summoned the White Jade Gourd. With a light flick, a stalk of purple Vitality Grass appeared in his hand. Cao Xiaochun gently tore it apart, and two leaves slowly fell onto the sisters' foreheads.

After neutralizing their poison, he stored them, along with Xiao Qiang, inside the White Jade Gourd. They had now become Gu, and with the gourd nourishing them, the sisters would surely recover soon.

Seeing the sudden expert who had effortlessly dealt with the Binuoxiu sisters, everyone was deeply shocked. Li Hanyi, especially, cried out in astonishment after seeing the newcomer's face.

"Are you Cao Xiaochun?"