His first life-and-death crisis

Shui Bing'er could dismiss her Martial Soul Possession to reduce her Soul Power consumption, but Xiao Yao did not dare withdraw the Sea Heart Flame into his body.

The Wolf Bandits possessed the bloodline of Gale Demon Wolves, and their speed was astonishing.

If he waited until they launched a surprise attack before summoning the Sea Heart Flame to control the lake water, a blade might already have pierced his body, leaving him no chance to turn things around.

Fortunately, Xiao Yao's Soul Power was of very high quality and could sustain him for a long time.

"No, we can't let them keep wearing us down like this. Senior sister, here's what we'll do." Xiao Yao brought his lips close to Shui Bing'er's ear and spoke softly.

The warm breath against her ear made Shui Bing'er feel a little ticklish, but she endured it and listened carefully.

Roughly thirty Wolf Bandits surrounded the little lake. With their speed, even if Xiao Yao and Shui Bing'er wanted to escape, breaking through their encirclement would be impossible.

They were also fully focused, watching the two in the middle of the lake without giving them any chance to escape.

Suddenly, Soul Power surged violently over the lake. Xiao Yao held both hands up, and a fireball several times larger than himself condensed above them.

The fireball smashed into the lake, instantly sending countless spears of water flying high before shooting straight at the surrounding Wolf Bandits.

The Wolf Bandits reacted very quickly, but they still failed to escape the spears' range.

After that barrage swept the ground, nearly all thirty-odd Wolf Bandits had lost the ability to fight. The mere handful remaining were covered in wounds, their eyes filled with terror as they looked at Xiao Yao and Shui Bing'er.

"Awooo!"

A wolf's howl came from the distance.

The three remaining Wolf Bandits shuddered. Even with fear coursing through their entire bodies, they still moved stiffly toward the lake.

This time, they did not leap like wolves, but stepped into the water and slowly swam toward the pair.

Resistance and fear were evident throughout their bodies, but the command from behind forced them to keep advancing.

Fortunately, the godlike woman in their eyes seemed to have exhausted all her strength in that attack that had carried the might of heaven and earth. Her face was pale, and she was drenched in sweat.

At the thought of soon pinning such a goddess beneath them and defiling her, they seemed to regain their strength, swimming thirty percent faster.

Just then, Shui Bing'er, whom they had overlooked, struck again.

Martial Soul Possession, Frost Impact.

Caught completely off guard, the three Wolf Bandits were frozen into blocks of ice and sank to the lakebed. Given their injuries, there was essentially no chance of them getting back up.

Xiao Yao and Shui Bing'er both breathed sighs of relief. They had finally resolved the crisis before them.

Just then, that distant, imposing wolf howl rang out again.

Wolf Bandits appeared all over the surrounding hills at the same time, while the one letting out the howl was a two-headed Wolf Bandit with gray and brown fur.

"A Gale Twin-Headed Wolf?"

Fuck, even Wolf Bandits could mutate these days?

Under the two-headed Wolf Bandit's command, another group of Wolf Bandits waded into the lake.

This time, they had already figured out their opponents' capabilities. Although the girl who could freeze them instantly still had her full fighting strength, the water-controlling girl they truly feared had completely lost the ability to fight after unleashing that astonishing blow. In fact, without the blue-haired girl supporting her, she would have sunk to the lakebed.

Of course, that was only what they thought.

Blue flames blazed around Xiao Yao once more, though he had been deathly pale and drenched in sweat just moments earlier. Caught off guard, the Wolf Bandits that had just entered the water were dragged straight to the lakebed by giant hands of water.

Everything earlier had, of course, been an act by Xiao Yao. Having mastered the Incomplete Chapter of the Seventy-Two Transformations, he could even transform into other people. What was so difficult about pretending to look utterly bedraggled?

His Soul Power was also far from exhausted. Although that Water Spear Ground Sweep had been astonishing in both grandeur and power, the Sea Heart Flame's properties meant it had not consumed as much as one might imagine. He still had roughly half left.

He and Shui Bing'er had staged that performance to draw out the Wolf Bandits' entire force.

But he had not expected their leader to be a mutated two-headed Wolf Bandit. Judging by Feng Xiaotian's performance in the original story, mutated Soul Beasts like this were exceptionally powerful, even rivaling a Titan Giant Ape.

Xiao Yao shielded Shui Bing'er behind him. "Careful. They're about to lash out in humiliation."

Yet Shui Bing'er pushed him behind her instead. "I'm your senior sister. How can I always hide behind you?"

"Second Soul Skill, Ice Ring Armor."

Shui Bing'er's yellow Second Soul Ring flashed, and both she and Xiao Yao were clad in armor of ice.

Warmth filled Xiao Yao's heart. "All right, then we'll face them together."

Sure enough, upon discovering it had been deceived, the two-headed Wolf Bandit flew into a humiliated rage. Its two heads howled in succession, calling on its subordinates to capture Xiao Yao and Shui Bing'er in the lake and torture them slowly.

The Wolf Bandits swarmed forward. Fortunately, the lake's surface was not large enough, and only twenty-odd Wolf Bandits could enter at a time.

Xiao Yao and Shui Bing'er followed the same pattern, tracing the gourd from its outline.

First, Shui Bing'er used Ice Seal on them, sinking them to the lakebed.

However, the Wolf Bandits would soon break free, and then they would certainly struggle to swim to the surface.

At that point, the Sea Heart Flame would control the lake water and increase the pressure at the bottom.

To rise, the Wolf Bandits not only had to contend with the water pressure pressing in from all sides, but also their bodies' internal demands for oxygen, pressure, and more.

These Wolf Bandits were as good as dead.

However, following a series of cries from the two-headed Wolf Bandit, the Wolf Bandits came up with a better, crueler method.

It took some time for a Wolf Bandit to sink after being frozen, and the Wolf Bandit behind him could use the block of ice as a foothold.

While kicking the ice deeper, he could also close a considerable distance toward Xiao Yao and Shui Bing'er.

This tactic left Xiao Yao and Shui Bing'er scrambling for quite a while. Although they eventually found their rhythm, the Wolf Bandits had still advanced the battle line and were continuing to push steadily forward.

Damn it, why hasn't that woman Qiu Wanxi made a move yet? Xiao Yao cursed inwardly.

The Fallen Heart Flame was not much use in this situation, and he had already squeezed the Sea Heart Flame's potential to its limit.

If this continued, his only choice would be to use the Incomplete Chapter of the Seventy-Two Transformations and flee with Shui Bing'er.

But then, everything he had plotted might fall apart, and the Intimacy he had worked so hard to build with Shui Bing'er might drop drastically.

This was the first life-and-death crisis he had encountered since arriving on the Douluo Continent.

As the Wolf Bandits drew closer and closer, leaving him less and less time to react, Xiao Yao remained ready to return to his original form at any moment, then use his transformation technique to take Shui Bing'er away.

Just then, Qiu Wanxi, whom he had been yearning for, finally appeared.

She wore a water-blue shawl, and the close-fitting combat outfit beneath it snapped in the wind.

She leaped into the air as the dark clouds were blown apart. She seemed one with the moonlight, like a goddess from the moon itself.

But the icy killing intent in her stern words was nothing like a goddess.

"Sixth Soul Skill, Lingering Ice Curse Seal: Kill."