Two voices rang out almost simultaneously, one beside his ear and the other deep in his heart.
Had it only been Tai Pei'er, Jiang Yang might still have hesitated, but even Bai Tang had shown a rare surge of emotion. Almost without thinking, he grabbed both women and turned to flee.
There was no time to ride the wind. Jiang Yang sprang forward, employing his movement technique to race ahead.
The four or five cultivators nearby still did not understand. Delighted or expectant, they crowded around the cultivator holding the Sun Essence, hoping to claim a share of the spoils.
Yet the cultivator at their center no longer wore an ecstatic expression. The Sun Essence was like a dazzling furnace, radiating boundless light and heat every moment since it had entered his grasp.
Under such light and heat, even a flawless body whose energies circulated without leakage could not hold back his sweat. Beads as large as beans seeped from his forehead, only to evaporate the instant they fell.
Most terrifying of all, distorted creaks were coming from his right hand. Even his magic power was being scorched by the Sun Essence's light and heat.
This Spirit Treasure was like a scalding yam in his hands: he could neither hold on to it nor bear to throw it away. He had to protect it while fending off malicious attacks from every direction, and he was plainly struggling to cope.
What no one noticed was that blazing light churned within this precious Sun Essence. Unable to remain contained, it had quietly expanded, and this concentrated, warping transformation was still continuing.
But the cultivators present cared only about fighting over it. Not one truly noticed.
Whoosh!
A green jade disc traced a sinister arc through the air and sliced through the cultivator's