Smack! Smack!
Crisp cracks rang out in succession as several thick dark blue silver grass vines lashed Lin Kong's back like long whips.
With that powerful push, his already astonishing speed surged again. The increase was only a hair's breadth, but it was enough to turn heaven and earth upside down.
Just before the Snake Blade sprang fully open, Lin Kong shot out his hand like lightning, caught the shaft of the Serpent Cane with unerring precision, and jerked it upward!
The coldly gleaming Snake Blade swept past his shoulder, tearing through his clothes with a ripping sound without cutting his skin. He had avoided that lethal strike by the narrowest of margins.
Before Meng Yiran could react, Lin Kong abruptly clenched his left hand into a fist and drove it toward her eye socket with a rush of wind. Meng Yiran reacted extremely quickly, opening her right hand to block.
Seeing this, Lin Kong swiftly turned his wrist, changing his fist into a knife-hand and striking her palm hard!
Smack!
Their palms collided, force surging between them, and they actually locked each other in place, neither willing to let go.
At that moment, the battle fell into a strange stalemate.
Each held the Serpent Cane with one hand while bracing their other hands against each other. They were both fighting for control of the weapon and directly competing in strength. For the fight to reach the point of close-quarters grappling and a deadlock of strength was truly outrageous.
"Let go!" Meng Yiran gritted her teeth, her pretty face flushed scarlet, her voice full of exasperation.
"No way!" Lin Kong refused to yield an inch, his gaze sharp as a blade.
"Let go now!"
"Not happening!"
Their contest of strength reached a fever pitch.
Under normal circumstances, the rank-thirty Meng Yiran should have held an overwhelming advantage in strength. But countless dark blue silver grass vines had already quietly spread out behind Lin Kong. Like sturdy tentacles, they firmly supported his waist and back, supplying strength without pause. It was precisely this external support that allowed him to withstand Meng Yiran's burst of strength without being sent flying.
"Just you wait!"
Seeing that she could not overpower him, a trace of determination flashed through Meng Yiran's eyes. She abruptly exerted force through her arm and sharply twisted her wrist, attempting to break his hold with deft leverage-with that, the support behind Lin Kong's back would become useless, and he would certainly be unable to hold on!
Sure enough, as she moved, Lin Kong's hands were forced to turn with hers, and his face paled slightly. He was clearly a spent arrow at the end of its flight. If this stalemate continued, sooner or later he would lose his grip on the Serpent Cane, much less hold her palm in place. His defeat seemed a foregone conclusion.
"Lin Kong, admit defeat!" Meng Yiran's voice held a measure of triumph.
"Is that so?" The corners of Lin Kong's lips curled, his tone teasing.
"Isn't it?"
"Of course."
They were so close that their noses nearly touched. Their eyes met, both brimming with fighting spirit, neither willing to show weakness.
Suddenly, Lin Kong gave a slight wink with his left eye-there was something indescribably teasing about it. He really was "sending sparks"!
Meng Yiran's head buzzed, and a blush crept over her cheeks without warning. Her grip on the Serpent Cane involuntarily weakened a little. That instant of blankness nearly made her forget that she was still locked in a contest of strength.
"Bye-bye!"
As those casually spoken words fell, Meng Yiran felt the pressure on her wrist ease.
The next second, countless blades of dark blue silver grass grew upward from beneath her feet, wrapping her tightly. One hand remained exposed, gripping the Serpent Cane desperately, but Lin Kong held the other end firmly and pulled it out of her palm little by little.
With dark blue silver grass wound around her so tightly that not even air could pass through, she could not retract her Serpent Cane Martial Soul at all. In this situation, she could neither exert her strength nor snatch the Serpent Cane back.
Without the Serpent Cane, seventy or eighty percent of the fighting strength Meng Yiran took such pride in was gone. No matter how she struggled, she had absolutely no chance of escaping that impenetrable, ink-black cage.
The outcome was decided!
"She lost!" Chao Tianxiang shook her head helplessly, her voice carrying a hint of regret. With a casual wave, a surge of pure Soul Power burst forth, shaking apart the dark blue silver grass wrapped around Meng Yiran. Lin Kong tactfully withdrew his Soul Power as well, letting the dark blue silver grass rapidly retreat into the ground and reveal Meng Yiran within.
The girl's face was so red it seemed about to drip blood. She bit her lower lip tightly, her chest heaving with extreme anger as she stared hard into Lin Kong's eyes, the humiliation and fury in her gaze almost taking solid form.
Faced with such a direct, burning gaze, even the usually composed Lin Kong found it rather hard to withstand. He hurriedly tilted his head aside, not daring to meet her eyes at all.
"Lin Kong!" Meng Yiran gritted her teeth and forced his name through them.
"Uh..." Lin Kong guiltily took a step back, released the Serpent Cane he was still holding, then retreated another step to put some distance between them.
"Lin Kong!!" Meng Yiran's voice rose further, her eyes reddening slightly.
"It was just a duel! I only sent sparks your way to win, not because I'm interested in you!" Eager to explain himself, Lin Kong blurted it out.
"Lin Kong!!!"
Those words were simply oil on the fire!
Meng Yiran flew into a complete rage!
He would have been better off saying nothing!
She would rather Lin Kong had actually been interested in her than hear such a blunt attempt to "disassociate himself"!
She raised the Serpent Cane wildly, looking utterly crazed, as though she was about to charge at Lin Kong and fight him to the death without a care for anything else.
"Yiran!" Chao Tianxiang was utterly speechless. She hurried forward, reached out to gather her agitated granddaughter into her arms, and gently patted her back to soothe her.
"Grandma, he cheated!" Meng Yiran's voice was thick with tears. She felt so wronged that her eyes reddened, tears swirling within them, about to spill.
"Yiran." Chao Tianxiang sighed, her voice softening somewhat. "You had actually already lost the moment he caught the Serpent Cane."
Meng Yiran's beautiful eyes flickered, and she soon understood the key to it all. But understanding was one thing; swallowing her anger was another-Lin Kong, he... he had actually sent sparks her way!
The more she thought about it, the more embarrassment and anger flooded her pretty face. She stamped her foot fiercely, shot Lin Kong one last vicious glare, then turned and ran deeper into the forest. Her retreating figure looked a little as though she were fleeing in disarray. Who knew whether she felt more anger or more shyness?
Lin Kong turned around with a breezy expression and looked at the Shrek group behind him, lifting his chin. "All right, I won. Oscar, why don't you go absorb the Soul Ring?"
Yet everything around him was silent. Not a single person answered. They all stared at him in unison with strange looks, their eyes full of "you know what we mean."
Lin Kong: "..."
Under so many stares, he felt uncomfortable all over, goosebumps threatening to rise on his skin.
Just then, Ma Hongjun suddenly popped out of the crowd, waggling his eyebrows and speaking in an odd voice as he imitated Lin Kong's earlier tone. "Am I that kind of person?"
Lin Kong's eyelids twitched violently several times, and a drop of cold sweat slid down his temple.
Earlier, Ma Hongjun had suggested that he send sparks Meng Yiran's way during their duel, and he had refused with righteous conviction. Yet in the end... he had actually used it!
Still not satisfied, Ma Hongjun moved two steps closer, pinched his voice high, and imitated Ning Rongrong's shrill tone. "Exactly! Brother Lin isn't that kind of person!"
Ning Rongrong's eyelids also twitched violently several times. She looked at Ma Hongjun, then at Lin Kong, and her face instantly flushed scarlet and hot. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, she crouched down and covered her face.
How humiliating!
Ma Hongjun grew even more pleased with himself. He let out an obnoxious sigh of feeling, then began his performance.
He hopped to the left and shouted in a gruff voice, "Am I that kind of person?" Then he hopped to the right and cried in a pinched voice, "Exactly! Brother Lin isn't that kind of person!"
"Hahahaha!"
An earth-shaking burst of laughter erupted in the silent forest. Even Zhao Wuji could not help turning his face away, his shoulders shaking slightly.
"Fatty, I'll kill you!" Lin Kong could no longer keep his composure. With a roar, he launched a flying kick at Ma Hongjun.