The moment the Clear Sky Hammer entered Tang San's hand, his entire bearing changed.
The little black hammer looked unremarkable in his palm, but every dark pattern on its head carried a sense of immense weight. The Divine Slaughter's Domain spread outward along its handle. The corridor's temperature plunged, and a thin layer of frost formed over several palace lanterns.
The admiration in Qian Renxue's eyes deepened.
"Control with the Blue Silver Emperor, Power Attack with the Clear Sky Hammer. You truly are worth recruiting in person."
"You talk a bit too much," Bai Jin reminded her from the side. "The praise works better after you win."
Qian Renxue tilted the sword in her hand. A streak of golden light skimmed past Bai Jin's ear.
It failed to touch him. Instead, it pierced the stone pillar behind him, leaving a thumb-thick hole.
"Shut up."
"Your temper's gotten worse, too."
Tang San did not let their exchange distract him.
He spread the fingers of his left hand, and the Blue Silver Emperor silently slipped into the cracks in the walls and floor tiles. His experience in Slaughter City had taught him to conceal his first move. Every vine the enemy saw might be nothing more than bait.
The Purple Demon Eye swept over Qian Renxue, and Tang San swiftly noted the range of her six wings as they opened and closed. Her frontal assault had almost no openings, but when she turned, her right wing lagged behind her left by the finest sliver. To an ordinary Soul Master, that gap might as well not exist. To a user of Hidden Weapons, it was enough to set up an attack.
His thumb pressed the mechanism inside his sleeve, and he quietly shifted his stance by half a step.
Qian Renxue moved.
Her