Xu Qingtong had exhausted nearly every trick he had, yet he still could not withstand Lin Qian's attacks. His defenses had been broken through repeatedly, nearly costing him his life. What frustrated him even more was that his Divine Sense attack had failed to achieve what he had expected.
He had thought his Divine Sense attack would briefly stun Lin Qian, allowing him to follow up with other moves and defeat him. But when he launched the attack, a white light flashed across Lin Qian's forehead and actually blocked it. Clearly, the brat had some treasure that defended against Divine Sense attacks.
Sure enough, after seeing Xu Qingtong knocked to the ground, Lin Qian laughed smugly. "Out of tricks, brat? Your soul attack made me suffer badly last time. Did you think I wouldn't take precautions? This time, I have the Soul-Calming Jade Talisman my grandfather gave me. However strong your Divine Sense is, can it surpass the Foundation Establishment Realm?"
Hearing Lin Qian's words, Xu Qingtong's heart sank. The Foundation Establishment Realm! A Soul-Calming Jade Talisman! My strongest trump card has lost its edge. How am I supposed to fight now? Apart from his talismans, none of his methods could harm Lin Qian. Besides, he had few talismans left; even using them all might not be enough to defeat him.
Xu Qingtong felt a twinge of regret. He should never have rashly entered this trial with such a low cultivation level. Once inside, he should have kept his head down and quietly built up his strength, rather than playing the hero rescuing a beauty! Now he had taken the game too far and might end up playing his own life away!
He glanced at Dongfang Hui beside him, her clothes disheveled and her appearance pitiful, then hardened his resolve. Damn it, I'm dead either way. I'll fight to the end!
Still lying on the ground, he drew on the Divine Sense of both his Primordial Spirits, once again shaping it into a flying sword and attacking Lin Qian's head.
Boom! White light flashed, blocking Xu Qingtong's attack once more. But he keenly sensed that the white light had grown considerably weaker this time.
Without hesitation, Xu Qingtong gathered all his Divine Sense again, forming an even larger flying sword as he prepared to launch his final strike.
By now, both his Divine Sense and magic power were all but exhausted. Everything rested on this one strike. If it still failed to pierce Lin Qian's defenses, he needed no imagination to know what awaited him.
Lin Qian seemed to realize this as well. How could he sit and wait for Xu Qingtong to attack? Not daring to delay, he beckoned with his hand, recalling his flying sword. He channeled his magic power into it, making its sword light blaze as it slashed straight toward Xu Qingtong.
Xu Qingtong did not dodge-he had no way to dodge. All he could do was gather every scrap of his Divine Sense into a sword. Just as Lin Qian's flying sword reached him, the Divine Sense sword finally took shape and shot toward Lin Qian's forehead.
Seeing Lin Qian's flying sword right before him, he barely managed to twist aside and keep it from striking a vital spot. With a wet puncturing sound, the sword pierced the right side of his chest. He only had time to send the thought, Xiao Qi, quick! before collapsing unconscious.
Lin Qian fared no better. After his flying sword struck Xu Qingtong, Xu Qingtong's Divine Sense sword reached his face. Having already endured two consecutive attacks, the Soul-Calming Jade Talisman his grandfather had bestowed on him shattered with a crash. Its momentum only slightly diminished, the Divine Sense sword plunged into his mind.
An agonizing pain tore through Lin Qian's mind, and he froze on the spot. Suddenly, a dark shadow burst from the woods, shooting toward him like an arrow.
Then Lin Qian's eyes flew wide open, and he fell rigidly to the ground. A small hole had appeared in the back of his head, blood bubbling out of it. A little chick stood behind him, its eyes seeming to spit fire as it stared at his motionless body.
This flurry of action, swift as a hare springing up and a falcon swooping down, took far longer to describe than the lightning flash in which it happened. Dongfang Hui stared at the sudden scene before her, so stunned that she could not recover her senses for a long while.
A short while later, Dongfang Hui finally came to her senses, still shaken. She scrambled over to Xu Qingtong and, no longer caring about propriety between men and women, cradled him in her arms. Just then, the drab gray chick rushed over, spreading its wings as though about to pounce.
Startled, Dongfang Hui hurriedly put Xu Qingtong down and moved aside. Only when she saw the chick slowly fold its wings did she regain a little composure. She fumbled about herself and produced an elixir pill. Holding it up before her, she looked at the chick, then gestured toward Xu Qingtong.
Seeing that the chick did not move, Dongfang Hui gathered her courage and edged toward Xu Qingtong. As she approached him, the chick spread its wings again. It did not pounce, however, merely circled her, its eyes fixed firmly on her.
Dongfang Hui carefully pried open Xu Qingtong's mouth and slipped the elixir pill inside, then sat beside him. She glanced at Lin Qian lying on the ground with his eyes wide open, then turned back to the boy before her, whose face still bore a trace of childishness. Countless thoughts churned through her mind as she stared into space.
After an unknown length of time, the sky gradually darkened, but Xu Qingtong still had not awakened. Dongfang Hui grew anxious, yet there was nothing she could do. She dared not act rashly with that chick beside her watching her every move!
What she did not know was that the chick was even more anxious than she was. Though it appeared to move very little, inwardly it was calling out to its master without pause.
Another tea's worth of time passed before Xu Qingtong finally stirred. He struggled to lift his eyelids, his eyes shifting slightly. Seeing Dongfang Hui sitting beside him, he let out a long breath. She had been watching him all along, and as soon as she saw his eyes open, she leaned over. "Brother Qingtong, you're finally awake!"
Xu Qingtong braced his hands against the ground and tried to sit up, but the searing pain in his right chest made him suck in a cold breath and fall back down. Dongfang Hui hurriedly supported him, letting him lean against her. A faint, delicate fragrance immediately drifted into his nose, lifting his spirits a little. With difficulty, he asked, "Sister Dongfang, where's Lin Qian? Why did he let us go?"
"Your little chick pecked him to death," Dongfang Hui said. "How are you feeling? Does the wound still hurt? I wanted to bandage it for you, but your chick wouldn't let me, so I didn't dare move."
Xu Qingtong had no choice but to summon the Double-Pupiled Bird. "Xiao Qi, Sister Dongfang isn't a bad person. She won't hurt me." Seeing Xu Qingtong awake, Xiao Qi was overjoyed, hopping and bouncing around him.
He turned back to Dongfang Hui. "Sister Dongfang, it's getting late, and neither of us has any strength left to fight. We can't stay here. Sorry for the trouble, but please pull the sword out and bandage my wound first. We need to leave as soon as possible."
Dongfang Hui nodded in agreement. Carefully gripping the sword in Xu Qingtong's chest, she drew it out little by little. Cold sweat broke out over him from the pain, and he could not help crying out. His cry startled Dongfang Hui, and in her alarm, she yanked the sword out. A stream of blood spurted out after the flying sword, splashing her face and much of her body. Xu Qingtong passed out from the pain.
Seeing this, Xiao Qi spread its wings and leaped straight up, landing beside Xu Qingtong. Had Xu Qingtong not already told it that Dongfang Hui was not a bad person, she would likely have ended up lying on the ground just like Lin Qian. Dongfang Hui was terrified as well. Ignoring the blood on her face, she hurriedly tore strips from Xu Qingtong's clothes, bandaged his wound, and stopped the bleeding.
A little later, Xu Qingtong regained consciousness and said weakly, "Sister Dongfang, put me down first and clean up this place. Don't leave any traces. Hold on to Lin Qian's Storage Bag and flying sword for now, and burn his body. We need to leave quickly. Otherwise, if someone or a demon beast finds us here, we'll be dead for certain."
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