The pale golden Guardian Sword Barrier flickered violently under Yan Feng's "Sky-Burning Sea-Boiling" and Shui Wu Hen's continuous water dao bombardment. The ripples on its surface were like boiling water. Xiaoqi's figure swayed slightly at the center of the barrier, his face seemingly a shade paler, his breathing becoming somewhat rapid.
His left hand's sword-fingers held that terrifying aura attempting to fuse Crimson Flame and Guardian sword intent, flickering uncertainly at his fingertip. It seemed that due to insufficient spiritual power, he couldn't fully condense it, appearing to have run out of strength.
"He can't hold on much longer!" Yan Feng saw this and a flash of wild delight crossed his eyes as he shouted sternly, "Put more effort in! Break his turtle shell!"
He poured spiritual power even more frantically into the sea of fire, raising the flames' temperature further. Tongues of fire frantically licked at the sword barrier, making sizzling sounds. Shui Wu Hen was also invigorated, waving his jade fan even more rapidly, making the barrage of emerald water arrows and water dragons even denser.
Stone Yue, who had been maintaining the earth wall defense, saw that Xiaoqi seemed to be losing strength. That attempt at a counterattack had withered away, and his vigilance relaxed somewhat, feeling victory was within grasp.
And Liu Xu, lurking in the shadows like a venomous snake waiting for the right moment, precisely captured this instant! In her view, Xiaoqi was fully maintaining the sword barrier while forcibly trying to condense a counterattack but failing—this was the perfect moment when old power had just faded and new power had yet to arise, when his mind would also show subtle fluctuations!
Now was the time!
Liu Xu's figure merged into the wind like a wisp of blue smoke, silently circling to a blind spot at Xiaoqi's rear flank. The dark light at her fingertip, accumulated for some time and capable of piercing through metal and stone, annihilating divine souls—the "Soul-Piercing Strike"—carried a cold smile, stabbing straight at the back of Xiaoqi's head! This strike was fast, accurate, ruthless, without any warning. She was confident that even a peak Foundation Establishment cultivator, in such an internally and externally besieged state, would be absolutely unable to dodge!
However, just as that dark light was about to touch Xiaoqi's hair—
Xiaoqi's eyes, which had appeared "withered," suddenly became as sharp as a hawk's! The corner of his mouth even curved into an extremely faint arc of a successful scheme.
He had been waiting all along! Waiting for this hidden killer to think she had seized the opportunity and reveal herself!
The Guardian Sword Barrier, which had been flickering violently and appearing to be on the verge of collapse, not only didn't shatter at this moment, but its light instantly contracted inward, becoming incomparably solid, and with incredible speed, suddenly thrust backward! It blocked precisely in front of that "Soul-Piercing Strike" dark light!
"Ding—!"
An extremely sharp, soul-piercing collision sound rang out!
Liu Xu's sure-hit strike slammed viciously against the suddenly reinforced sword barrier! The dark light collided intensely with the sword barrier, energy annihilating, producing a teeth-grating sound. Liu Xu felt a powerful recoil force transmitted to her, her arm going numb, her heart filled with shock: "He was prepared?!"
But this was only the beginning!
Almost at the same instant the sword barrier blocked Liu Xu's sneak attack, Xiaoqi's right hand, which had been hanging at his side, moved! That pitch-black frying pan, which he had been casually holding all along as if it were just a prop, now seemed to be infused with life!
He didn't turn to look at Liu Xu, didn't even concern himself with the still-surging sea of fire and water dragons in front of him. His body, using the slight force from the collision between the sword barrier and "Soul-Piercing Strike," slid half a step sideways like a fish. At the same time, he twisted his waist, channeling his entire body's strength, including part of the force guided from the sea of fire's impact, instantly into his right arm!
"Whoom—!"
The frying pan traced a simple, violent, completely unadorned arc, producing a low, terrifying sound of splitting the air! The target was not Liu Xu who had snuck up from behind, nor Yan Feng and Shui Wu Hen in front, but—Stone Yue, who had been standing on the flank, slightly relaxed because of Xiaoqi's "weakness," and was fully maintaining the earth wall light barrier trying to completely trap Xiaoqi!
This "pot strike" had timing, angle, and force all perfectly executed! So fast it exceeded everyone's reaction!
Stone Yue's attention was mostly on maintaining the earth wall and observing the frontal battle. How could he have expected that Xiaoqi, while resisting Yan Feng and Shui Wu Hen's wild attacks and Liu Xu's deadly sneak attack, could still spare his attention and burst forth with such a rapid and bizarre lateral attack?
By the time he sensed the fierce wind approaching and saw the black pot rapidly enlarging in his pupils, it was already too late!
He only had time to subconsciously move the giant shield from his back to the front.
"DONG!!!!!"
A massive sound like a great bell rang out, making everyone's eardrums buzz!
The frying pan solidly struck that thick metal giant shield! The expected scene of the shield successfully blocking did not appear. That giant shield, along with Stone Yue's burly body behind it, was as if hit by a meteor falling from the sky!
"Crack..." First the shield let out a groan of being unable to bear the load, its spiritual light instantly dimming, even showing fine cracks!
Immediately following, an indescribable, majestic force, mixed with a strange fluctuation that penetrated directly to the organs and shook the divine soul, passed through the shield and savagely slammed into Stone Yue's body!
"Pu—!"
Stone Yue's eyes bulged as he sprayed a mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of his internal organs! He felt as if his insides had all been displaced by this pot strike, and his sea of consciousness was like being hit by a heavy hammer. His vision went black, and all he could hear was endless ringing in his ears!
His tower-like body, along with that giant shield, was directly sent flying backward, like a rag doll being thrown, tracing a parabolic arc before crashing with a "boom" onto the ground in the distance, tumbling several times before stopping, directly falling unconscious, completely insensible!
The earth-yellow light wall instantly dispersed along with Stone Yue's unconsciousness.
Silence!
Dead silence!
The roaring of the sea of fire, the bellowing of the water dragons, all seemed to stop at this moment.
The wild joy and sinister smiles on Yan Feng and Shui Wu Hen's faces completely froze, like ice sculptures. They watched in disbelief at the unconscious Stone Yue, then turned to look at Xiaoqi, who stood with pot in hand, his breath steady, his eyes clear—where was there any sign of "weakness"? A chill rushed from the soles of their feet straight to the crowns of their heads!
Feigning weakness, luring the enemy deep! Making noise in the east while attacking in the west, a surprise attack to break the deadlock!
He had been acting all along! His target from the beginning was not them in front, nor the sneaking Liu Xu, but Stone Yue—who had the strongest defense and seemed most stable, but once broken could instantly upset the balance!
Liu Xu stood frozen in place, the dark light at her fingertip not yet fully dissipated, but her face had no color left, only endless fear and dread. If that pot strike had been aimed at her...
Li Mo and Wang Zhong's jaws dropped, wide enough to fit an egg, their brains completely blank. They watched helplessly as the encirclement of the four talented cultivators was shattered to pieces by Xiaoqi's single pot strike!
The balance had been thoroughly broken.
Xiaoqi held the frying pan, his gaze calmly sweeping across the remaining three people, finally landing on Yan Feng, whose face was ashen with shock and rage intermingled.
"Now," he spoke indifferently, "it's my turn."