Then Kill

"It seemed you had expected us to join forces."

As Qiu Qianhai spoke, his gaze casually swept over Crouching Tortoise Island behind Lousy Liu.

By now, he was also convinced of Ji Yuan's guess.

Lousy Liu had known Ji Yuan and Qiu Qianhai would join hands, yet he had still dared to sit here openly and wait. He most likely had something to rely on.

He had called for help too.

"If you truly intended to make a move against Ji Yuan, why bring him here for me to deal with? A mere Early Qi Refining cultivator—you could have taken care of him on the way."

"Since you dared bring him openly to Crouching Tortoise Island, you were most likely here to kill me, weren't you?"

The moment Lousy Liu finished speaking, three water spheres shot out from behind Qiu Qianhai.

"Ha—"

They were already close, and Ji Yuan had launched a sneak attack. Lousy Liu had no time to cast a spell and could only crush a Talisman.

A watery blue turtle shell appeared before him.

The water spheres slammed into the turtle shell.

With a bang, the three water spheres burst apart, scattering droplets everywhere.

Qiu Qianhai hurriedly steered the Spirit Vessel back a short distance. It looked as though he feared Lousy Liu's counterattack, but he was actually avoiding the splashing droplets.

Lousy Liu also used the recoil to retreat some distance. Wiping the water from his face, he glared furiously at Ji Yuan.

"You sinister dog thief!"

"What skill is there in launching sneak attacks from the shadows?"

Only then did Ji Yuan rise from the Spirit Vessel. He ignored Lousy Liu and merely said to Qiu Qianhai, "Press forward. Two against one—kill him first."

Who cared whether Lousy Liu had called someone? Since no one was in sight, then he had not called anyone!

Kill him first.

"Alright!"

Qiu Qianhai was just as decisive. He immediately drove the Spirit Vessel forward, and in the blink of an eye, the two had reached the shore.

Lousy Liu retreated frantically while shouting, "You bastard, don't tell me you intend to kill me too?!"

Only then did a middle-aged man in a straw rain cape emerge from the Reed Marsh on Crouching Tortoise Island. Slightly hunched, he held a bamboo pole and said with a grin:

"How could that be? If I killed you, the Qin Household would not let me off."

The instant he appeared, Qiu Qianhai's expression changed.

"Wu Laochuan. A seasoned veteran among Fourth Layer of Qi Refining cultivators. Leave him to me—you kill Lousy Liu."

Wu Laochuan... Ji Yuan had naturally heard of him. Among the rogue cultivators of Zengtou City, Wu Laochuan had always been known for his ruthlessness.

He did not fish, and he rarely even went ashore. He spent all year drifting through Cloud-Rain Marsh.

So long as he encountered a lone Early Qi Refining cultivator or a Fourth Layer of Qi Refining cultivator, he would strike without hesitation.

It was not as if no one had tried to kill him, but he knew Cloud-Rain Marsh too well and had escaped every time.

Judging by strength alone, he was indeed far stronger than the injured Lousy Liu.

"Kill me?"

Hearing this, Lousy Liu did not relax his guard. Instead, he gave Ji Yuan an exceedingly solemn look. "Middle Qi Refining Stage?!"

"Well, well. It seems killing you really was the right choice."

Otherwise, once Ji Yuan's cultivation rose, he would likely come seeking revenge... As Lousy Liu spoke, he beckoned with his right hand. A short Blackgold Blade flew from his waist, expanded against the wind, and shot toward Ji Yuan in the blink of an eye.

Having just reached shore, Ji Yuan instinctively wanted to use the Golden Body Talisman, but he ultimately held back.

With a thought, spiritual energy circulated through his dantian.

Lousy Liu naturally thought Ji Yuan had been frightened stupid. Yet just as the magic artifact reached his face... Ji Yuan raised his hand and sent out two flashes of spiritual light.

They struck the incoming Blackgold Blade.

One finger knocked it aside, and the other sent it crashing to the ground.

"What?"

Lousy Liu was stunned. It was his first time seeing such a spell with such terrifying attack power. If it struck his body, would it not leave a hole with every jab?

Lousy Liu had naturally heard of the famed Water Drop Finger.

But he had never seen anyone use it. It was said that every use required enduring immense pain, yet Ji Yuan had actually withstood it.

"Good, good, good."

Lousy Liu once more raised the short blade, but before he could act, Ji Yuan had already pointed a finger at his head.

The Water Drop Finger flew with astonishing speed, but Lousy Liu was also a veteran who had weathered countless brushes with death. With a wave of his hand, he summoned four or five Water Shields in front of himself.

The water drop pierced through the shields.

Ji Yuan raised his hand again and pointed at the short blade in midair.

The water drop struck it and sent it flying away.

Their exchange had lasted only a few moments, yet Ji Yuan was already suppressing Lousy Liu.

Lousy Liu naturally noticed it as well. Even as his face began to itch, he grew increasingly cautious... Today, he absolutely had to kill this brat Ji Yuan.

Otherwise, someone capable of enduring the backlash of the Water Drop Finger was bound to become a great force!

With a wave of his hand, he no longer controlled his magic artifact. Instead, he took three Water Arrow Talismans from his Storage Bag and crushed them at once. Three water arrows appeared around him.

"Hm?"

Ji Yuan held a technique in each hand and instantly formed two water arrows as well.

But compared to Lousy Liu's, they were still somewhat lacking.

"Go!"

Lousy Liu waved his hand, sending out the three water arrows, while another three water arrows had already appeared around him... He suddenly could not help scratching his face. It itched terribly.

That alone would have been one thing, but just as Ji Yuan used water arrows to break water arrows, he suddenly discovered that the sandy ground beneath his feet had become exceptionally muddy. The moment he lifted a foot, he was tripped and thrown to the ground.

Across from him, the three water arrows summoned by Lousy Liu turned downward and shot straight at him.

"Not good!"

Panic rose in Ji Yuan's heart, and he used his only Middle-Grade defensive Talisman—the Golden Body Talisman.

Golden light appeared and enveloped his entire body. The three water arrows could not be avoided and struck him, but the golden body blocked them all.

Yet the tremendous impact still sent him flying several meters. Pain tore through his organs, and blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

Fuck, good thing I'd practiced Body Refining. Otherwise, even with the Golden Body Talisman, that blow would have severely wounded me... Ji Yuan wiped away the blood from his lips. Seeing the short blade flying toward him, he hurriedly rolled aside and fired two more Water Drop Fingers, knocking away the troublesome blade.

Though it was a magic artifact, Ji Yuan's Water Drop Finger happened to be exceptionally effective at restraining such things.

If he had not known this technique, Ji Yuan feared he would have met his downfall here.

Across from him, Lousy Liu found the itching on his face unbearable. Otherwise, he believed that strike just now would have given him a chance to use his magic artifact to break Ji Yuan's Golden Body Talisman.

He was cursing inwardly as well. Where had this bastard gotten so many Spirit Stones that he could afford a Middle-Grade Talisman?

He summoned the short blade again, but the itching on his face had reached a point he could no longer endure. At last, he was certain.

Something was wrong. Not just a little wrong—nine parts out of ten, something was very wrong.

He thought of Ji Yuan's treacherous sneak attack at the beginning, then of the droplets that had splashed onto his face... It had to have been then. Ji Yuan had poisoned him!

"You sneak-attacking wretch, you devil-path thief!"

Lousy Liu cursed loudly as he took a Detoxification Pill from his Storage Bag and swallowed it. At the same time, both hands kept clawing at his cheeks... Even his hands had begun to itch.

Crack—

In his daze, he suddenly heard a clap of thunder above his head.

His heart cried out in alarm. In his haste, he had no time to dodge before a bolt of violet lightning crashed onto his head and sent him flying more than ten meters.

He lay flat on his back in the sand, motionless and silent.

Qiu Qianhai and Wu Laochuan, who were fighting in the distance, could not help turning their heads at the same time. They saw only a mud-covered youth slowly rising to his feet.

Dim golden light still shrouded his body. He raised both hands, and two water arrows appeared.

Their arrowheads pointed at Wu Laochuan, who held a green bamboo pole. Ji Yuan said in a low voice:

"Surrender or die. The choice is yours."