Feng Xian was startled to see Yun Ming suddenly appear before him; the arrival had been far too fast.
Although Feng Xian's reaction was a beat slow, his two subordinates standing nearby responded quite quickly.
A short, stocky man to Feng Xian's right held a Giant Axe, using the axe head as a shield to block in front of Feng Xian, attempting to intercept Yun Ming's Atlas Spear.
The other subordinate, dressed in green robes with a slender build, looked like a refined, middle-aged scholar if one ignored the Bone Sword in his hand. The scholar thrust his sword out in a straight line, fast as lightning, aiming directly for Yun Ming's neck.
Watching the Bone Sword that sought to end him, Yun Ming flicked the Atlas Spear in his hand. The long spear moved like a swimming dragon, shifting direction toward the Green-Clad Swordsman, also aiming straight for the swordsman's neck.
One inch longer, one inch stronger; one inch shorter, one inch riskier.
If the Atlas Spear and the Bone Sword continued along their current trajectories, the Atlas Spear would inevitably strike first, opening a gash on the Green-Clad Swordsman's neck. Seeing that the situation was unfavorable, the Green-Clad Swordsman hurriedly changed his move, shifting from a thrust to a slash, attempting to sever the hand Yun Ming used to grip the spear.
Sword and spear collided, and the Bone Sword slid along the Atlas Spear toward Yun Ming's hand, emitting a harsh, shrill screech of friction.
"Clang!"
Seeing this, Yun Ming's expression remained unchanged. Soul Power surged through the Atlas Spear, simulating the "Zhen" soul skill of the Soul Breaking Spear, directly vibrating the Bone Sword away from his weapon. Leveraging the force of the rebound, Yun Ming spun around, gathered momentum with the Atlas Spear, and swung it with full force at the Green-Clad Swordsman, who was struggling to maintain his grip.
The Green-Clad Swordsman had just steadied his sword, but it was too late to dodge; he could only hold the sword in front of his chest to block head-on.
Seeing this, Yun Ming's First Soul Ring appeared beneath his feet and lit up.
Yun Ming's First Soul Skill, "Source of Void," activated.
"Voidification."
Then, before the incredulous gaze of the Green-Clad Swordsman, the Atlas Spear passed right through the Bone Sword, carrying a crushing, overwhelming force, and slammed directly into the Green-Clad Swordsman's chest.
The collision between the Atlas Spear and flesh and blood produced a dull, heavy thud.
"Boom!"
The struck Green-Clad Swordsman was sent flying instantly. His vision went black, and he nearly choked on his own breath, almost being sent to the afterlife by Yun Ming. Even though he wasn't killed, he vomited a mouthful of old blood, his chest racked with intense pain, his circulation disrupted, and his combat effectiveness severely compromised.
Seeing the Green-Clad Swordsman, a Soul Emperor, get injured after only a few exchanges with Yun Ming, Feng Xian and the other strongman were deeply shaken, staring at Yun Ming with faces full of terror.
At that moment, they were using different brains to ponder the same question: "What is up with this kid? As a Soul Elder, isn't he a bit too overpowered?"
One could tell from the Green-Clad Swordsman's Martial Soul that he was no stranger to trouble; killing was a daily routine for him. Yet, he had been handled in a few moves by Yun Ming, a boy who looked only eleven or twelve years old. They truly felt that this continent had gone mad!
However, in the heat of battle, Yun Ming had no time to care about what they were thinking.
After knocking the Green-Clad Swordsman away, adhering to the combat principle of "strike while the iron is hot," silver light flashed on Yun Ming again. He arrived before the Green-Clad Swordsman and thrust his spear once more.
Seeing this, Feng Xian hurriedly called out a warning.
"Brother Li, watch out!"
At the same time, a heart-shaped crystal Martial Soul appeared in his hand, and the first yellow soul ring at his feet lit up. A red light descended directly onto the Green-Clad Swordsman.
Feng Xian's First Soul Skill, "Mind Invigoration," activated.
If classified by standard Soul Master categories, Feng Xian would likely be considered a support type, as aside from his "Mind Contract" and the soul skill that caused the Wind Death Disease, his other three soul skills were all supportive.
The Axe-Wielding Strongman also threw his Giant Axe at Yun Ming. Judging by the sharp edge of the spinning axe and the sound it made while flying, if Yun Ming didn't dodge, he would likely be knocked away—though it would only be a knock-back, nothing more.
Supported by "Mind Invigoration," the Green-Clad Swordsman's spirit surged, allowing him to suppress his churning blood. Seeing the Atlas Spear inches away, he hurriedly rolled on the ground, narrowly avoiding the thrust. Furthermore, the flying axe was already upon Yun Ming, leaving him no time to pursue. He had to sidestep to avoid the axe first.
The flying axe passed in front of Yun Ming, turning from solid to ethereal, and was recalled by the strongman.
Taking advantage of the brief moment Yun Ming was obstructed, the Green-Clad Swordsman rose and activated his Second Soul Skill, "Bone Sword: Charge," a burst-movement skill that allowed him to quickly distance himself from Yun Ming and reach Feng Xian's side. Looking at his companion, the Green-Clad Swordsman finally let out a small sigh of relief.
The Green-Clad Swordsman slapped his own chest, spitting out a mouthful of stagnant blood; he finally felt his circulation return to normal.
Feng Xian looked at the calm and composed Yun Ming, his vigilance rising to its peak. If he didn't take this seriously, he might actually die. Feng Xian instructed his subordinates.
"Brother Zhuang, take the lead. Brother Li, provide support. While looking for an opening, stay alert for that kid's elusive spear!"
The two nodded. The Giant Axe reappeared in the strongman's hand, and he looked at Yun Ming, saying in a booming voice.
"Kid, you're quite strong, but in the face of an absolute advantage in cultivation, everything is in vain!"
The strongman charged at Yun Ming with the Giant Axe. As he lunged, his First Soul Ring lit up. Yellow light condensed on the axe blade. With a light swing, a soul power slash flew from the axe, heading straight for Yun Ming.
This axe strike was slightly off-target and wouldn't hurt Yun Ming; its purpose was to seal off Yun Ming's retreat route. If Yun Ming used Teleportation, it wouldn't be able to seal him, but given Yun Ming's current total Soul Power, he couldn't afford such extravagance.
Would Yun Ming retreat? Of course not! This strongman wasn't qualified to make him do so.
Raising the Atlas Spear, Yun Ming unleashed his Soul Power and charged at the strongman. The two closed the distance rapidly. Seeing the strongman enter his attack range, Yun Ming thrust his long spear with lightning speed, delivering five consecutive strikes, each aimed directly at a vital point.
Seeing Yun Ming's fast, accurate, and ruthless five-strike combo, which flowed like moving clouds and flowing water, the strongman gained a clearer understanding of Yun Ming's spear mastery. He couldn't compete in technique; he could only use his cultivation to suppress him.
The strongman's Fourth Soul Skill, "Thick Earth True Qi," activated.
A layer of deep yellow protective soul light appeared on his body, allowing him to tank Yun Ming's thrusts while continuing to advance and swing his axe at Yun Ming.
The Atlas Spear collided with the "Thick Earth True Qi," emitting several light clangs. Although the edge of the Atlas Spear successfully pierced the True Qi, the force of the thrust was exhausted by the time it broke the defense, failing to cause any damage to the strongman.
The thrusts had failed, and the Giant Axe was closing in. For Yun Ming, this was manageable—it was easy enough to break the move—but he was no longer facing just the Axe-Wielding Strongman; the Green-Clad Swordsman was there too.
When the strongman had initiated his attack on Yun Ming, the Green-Clad Swordsman had already moved, constantly searching for an opening around them. Now, seeing that the time was right, his first and second soul rings lit up in succession. He stepped forward, swinging his sword to seal off Yun Ming's retreat, forcing him to either parry or use Teleportation. The precision of this timing and the decisiveness of the execution made even Yun Ming's eyes light up.
In recognition of their coordinated effort, Yun Ming used Teleportation to appear behind Feng Xian, dodging the attack while thrusting his spear out.
Of these three, Feng Xian was the only one Yun Ming needed to kill. Now that his bodyguard wasn't by his side, wasn't this the perfect time to kill him? Thus, Yun Ming acted decisively.
But just as his spear was halfway through the thrust, he felt a sharp slash coming from behind him. It was the Green-Clad Swordsman's First Soul Skill.
Yun Ming frowned slightly, retracting his spear and dodging the slash; if he had continued his thrust, he would have struck Feng Xian, but he would have been struck in return, and even Voidification would not have been enough to save him.
Watching the gray slash fly past him, Yun Ming felt a surge of suspicion.
It wasn't that the Green-Clad Swordsman couldn't react or predict Yun Ming's target, but rather that his reaction speed was abnormally fast. The two-meter radius around Feng Xian was filled with potential positions where Yun Ming might appear; finding Yun Ming's location and launching a slash so quickly and precisely without harming Feng Xian was no easy feat. Moreover, Feng Xian seemed to trust the Green-Clad Swordsman implicitly, not even blinking as the sword light passed so close to him.
Not giving Yun Ming another chance to strike at Feng Xian, the Green-Clad Swordsman followed right behind his sword energy to reach Feng Xian's side and launch a second assault on Yun Ming. The Axe-Wielding Strongman also charged over, joining the fray.
"Ding ding ding ding."
In the few short minutes that followed, Yun Ming used his spear techniques to parry and counter the sword-and-axe duo for hundreds of moves; every time Yun Ming found an opening to heavily injure one of them, the other would timely interrupt his movements. However, Yun Ming was not discouraged, because through these few minutes of combat, he had already identified the root of the problem.
Conversely, the sword-and-axe duo fighting him were beginning to feel a sense of dread; Yun Ming, who was supposed to be fighting two people, had forced the battle into a stalemate where it felt like one point five against one point five, and despite their full cooperation, they still hadn't gained the upper hand.
The heartbroken Axe-Wielding Strongman had been reduced to a mere tool in this battle; his Giant Axe had barely landed a solid hit on Yun Ming, and every time it did, it was only because Yun Ming wanted to borrow his momentum to retreat. Watching Yun Ming parry his axe with fancy footwork to slip away, the Axe-Wielding Strongman's "fragile" heart and mind suffered immense trauma.
Having found the problem, Yun Ming no longer wanted to drag out the fight, and a pitch-black Spirit Ring appeared beneath his feet, blooming with a dark, somber radiance.
ps: Seeking monthly tickets and recommendations.
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Translated by: randomtranslator.com
Proofread by: DaoistReader