Chapter 809: Chapter 808 Fire Kylin Real Person_1
The Fire Stiff, approaching two meters in height with a broad face and fang-like teeth, presented an image no less ominous than the Yellow-haired Monster, but it was even more brutal. In its pupils reflected the silhouettes of Shi Xiaole and his three companions, immediately sensing the scent of food, it fiercely pounced forward.
Hisss...
A trail of white smoke stretched out long and instantly froze into an ice sculpture, only to be extinguished immediately thereafter. At the forefront of the white smoke, the Fire Stiff reached out with a single hand towards Huang Tao, who possessed the weakest Flying Skill.
"Monster, get lost! Endless Sands!"
Huang Tao’s strength was only at twenty percent of its peak, but due to the close proximity of the Fire Stiff, it surged to forty percent. As he swung his sword carrying a trail of yellow sand, it was instantly frozen into powder by the air.
The Fire Stiff fearlessly pushed through, its large hand avoided just in time by Huang Tao, but the sheer force carried by the swipe left Huang Tao’s chest tight, nearly failing to catch his breath.
"That was close!"
Huang Tao’s face turned deadly pale with shock.
He had completely overlooked the fact that in such an environment, one could not release formidable moves, and brute force was instead most effective. But as a human martial artist, how could he dare to clash directly with the Fire Stiff?
Before he had the chance to change his course of thought, the Fire Stiff turned around and charged at Huang Tao again.
"Vanishing Sand."
Huang Tao dropped his stance and glided past the Fire Stiff’s waist, swinging his right hand in a powerful slash against the Fire Stiff’s body.
A clang sounded as the Fire Stiff’s flesh barely caved in two inches, and a surge of searing force traveled through the sword into Huang Tao’s body, wounding his internal organs. Unable to expel it in an environment where his Vigorous Air was limited, he was momentarily incapacitated.
"Roar..."
Huang Tao had clearly underestimated the Fire Stiff’s strength and reflexes. Struck with pain from a single sword blow, his legs kicked out continuously, and without the need to pause for breath or recover strength, the monster lunged at him with even more ferocity.
In the midst of his panic, Huang Tao mustered forty percent of his power and swung his sword, which shattered like tofu. At the brink of crisis, he instinctively shouted, "Young Master Shi, save me..."
Shi Xiaole, who was ahead, turned back just in time to see a flash of despair on Huang Tao’s face. Feeling a pang of sympathy, he swung his sword backward, but alas, the Sword Qi only advanced half a meter before it froze.
Bang!
Blood burst forth as Huang Tao’s body was pierced through. The Fire Stiff bit off half his head, with bits of his brain flying through the air.
Bai Ruiting watched with her pupils contracting involuntarily, squeezing out the strength from her blood and dashing forward. Su Yichen followed closely, moving like a moonlit phantom right behind her.
Shi Xiaole, having launched an attack, was half a beat slower but immediately caught up with the other two.
In two bites, the Fire Stiff had consumed Huang Tao’s head and tossed the headless corpse aside, charging like a human-shaped fireball towards the other three targets.
Five hundred meters.
Four hundred meters.
Three hundred meters.
This Fire Stiff’s vitality was extraordinarily strong, and it relied on sheer power, managing to close the distance in an instant. When they were but ten meters apart, Su Yichen’s back began to burn with heat, his heart rising to his throat.
Fortunately, as they made their way back, their strength gradually returned. Su Yichen, without a second thought, threw out a strike, which was instantly shattered by the Fire Stiff’s clapping hands.
"Sun Defect!"
Energy brimming with light and heat erupted from Bai Ruiting as if a waning sun rolled back towards the foe. Her Longevity Severing Hand was not yet perfected, and it might not be useful against the Fire Stiff, but this move was her strongest.
Thud.
The remaining sunlight seemed to only serve as a momentarily hindrance to the Fire Stiff.
"Wind Catastrophe!"
Shi Xiaole’s killer move appeared, and the taut Sword Qi pierced the chest of the Fire Stiff, leaving a half-inch deep wound, from which only a trickle of fresh blood flowed out.
It must be known that even for a Ninth Tier Earth Immortal, Shi Xiaole’s strike would have required defending with Vigorous Air, yet for this Fire Stiff, the damage was so insignificant that it could hardly be considered an inconvenience.
It could almost be certain that this Fire Stiff had reached the peak level of the Divine Barrier Realm in terms of vitality and strength, although that was all.
Back in the Yundai region, Shi Xiaole had once encountered a Fire Stiff that practiced flame-based martial arts, a truly terrifying creature. Fortunately, this one did not possess such abilities, otherwise what chance would they have had for survival?
Even with this momentary delay, the three were able to rush out of the passage successfully, but the infuriated Fire Stiff followed in hot pursuit. As soon as it appeared, the intense heat it emitted made it seem as though the void itself was made of rolling waves, constantly distorting.
Sun Wei, Xu Fang, and the other five who were waiting in the great hall were taken aback by the sight of this monster, their minds reeling in shock.
It was the axe-wielding elder who was well-versed in Array Systems who reacted quickest, exclaiming in horror, "A Fire Stiff, run for your lives!" No sooner had his words fallen than he had darted into the black mist, wishing he had an extra pair of legs.
After all, they were Terrestrial Immortals; their reactions were not much slower. Seeing even Shi Xiaole was intent on escaping, they all dashed out without a thought for their own lives.
At this time, the difference in abilities became apparent. Shi Xiaole and his two companions, despite starting later, entered the black mist a step earlier, whereas when Sun Wei and the other five entered, the Fire Stiff was only twenty meters away from them.
"We must join forces, or we all die."
Shi Xiaole’s voice, focused like a thread, quickly reached everyone’s ears, and he was the first to draw the Tiger Abyss Sword and unleash another Wind Catastrophe.
"Moonfall Tempus!"
"Daybreak!"
"Severing Axe Head!"
The others, well aware of the gravity of the situation, unleashed their killer moves one after another. The accumulated Vigorous Air torrents harshly pounded on the Fire Stiff, causing it to let out a roar and be hurled backwards ten meters, while blood streamed out continuously.
In this manner, while the group continued to attack, they also fled. Although their pace slowed, they managed to effectively keep the Fire Stiff at bay. As long as they maintained their efforts, escaping the palace seemed likely.
As for killing the Fire Stiff, despite such continuous and heavy bombardment, it remained as resilient as ever. No one wished for a direct confrontation unless absolutely necessary.
"Why is there a stone door here?"
Seeing a stone door blocking their path ahead, Bai Ruiting suddenly screamed, and with a rush, tried to strike it with a ruler, but couldn’t budge the door.
Shi Xiaole’s expression turned ugly; he had no memory of such an obstacle, and the only explanation was that the original path had changed.
Was it the work of an Array System, or was it man-made?
Next to the stone door was a passage. Without time to think further, the group rushed in. Under Shi Xiaole’s command, their moves focused on specific parts of the Fire Stiff.
However, this Fire Stiff seemed to possess some intelligence, always managing to dodge the attacks and maintain a proper distance from the group. It was clear that it planned to wait until they were drained before delivering the final blow!
"Young Hero Shi, what do we do?"
Sun Wei was so anxious that beads of sweat formed on his forehead.
But what could Shi Xiaole do?
Just as everyone was gritting their teeth and holding on, the sound of a collision came from around the corner of the passage. Seven martial artists, all Terrestrial Immortals, rushed out.
The old leader’s aura was not inferior to Shi Xiaole’s, and in fact, seemed to be slightly stronger.
"Heaven, is there another Fire Stiff here?"
Among the seven Earth Immortals, one cried out in despair.
No sooner had the words left his mouth than another Fire Stiff charged out from behind them, flanking Shi Xiaole and the others with another Fire Stiff to the left, completely blocking the passage.
The two groups of people looked at each other and quickly formed up their ranks.
"Everyone, we must join forces to attack the Fire Stiff on the right, which is more seriously injured!"
The Fire Kylin Real Person, namely the old man with the strongest aura, shouted to Shi Xiaole and the others.
At times like this, chaos was to be avoided at all costs. Shi Xiaole nodded, and together, the fifteen people immediately launched an assault on the Fire Stiff that was pursuing them.
Boom!
The Fire Stiff only managed to avoid part of the attacks and was sent flying.
The aftermath of their collision seemed to have accidentally triggered a mechanism, as the wall split open to reveal another hidden passage that could accommodate five people.
"Go!"
The Fire Kylin Real Person’s old eyes lit up, and he was the first to act.
As he charged in, he was startled to find a flash of green beside him—it was the young man in green from the opposite group. The Fire Kylin Real Person had already recognized the young man’s formidable aura but had not anticipated that his Flying Skill would be no less impressive than his own.
The group started to flee once again, this time with both Fire Stiffs in pursuit.
A quarter of an hour.
Half a quarter of an hour.
A full half 2-hour period passed, and the fifteen Earth Immortals had exhausted much of their strength, yet they had still not managed to kill either of the Fire Stiffs. This was mainly because the two Fire Stiffs were cooperating with each other, making it much more difficult than facing just one.
"This won’t do, if we keep this up, everyone will die."
The Fire Kylin Real Person’s eyes flickered as he glanced at Shi Xiaole beside him and transmitted his voice: "Young Hero Shi, I have a plan."
"What’s the plan?"
"The plan is..."
Whoosh!
A fierce blade light suddenly struck towards Shi Xiaole, who seemed ready to listen, and the Fire Kylin Real Person let out a cruel laugh.
Although he was unaware of Shi Xiaole’s exact strength, the fact that the others followed his command showed he was truly skilled. If he could hold off the Fire Stiff at the rear, it would be enough for him to escape.
Kid, don’t blame me, blame this damned palace that doesn’t leave any way out!
Clang!
As the blade light neared, Shi Xiaole didn’t even blink; the Tiger Abyss sword flicked upwards, severing the blade’s light: "Old man, you’d best not entertain any crooked ideas."
Although Shi Xiaole was unable for the moment to exert his mental power, what person was he? Even the slightest change in the opponent’s demeanor would not escape his eyes.
"Heavenly Fire Tri-Mystical Transform!"
Not willing to give up after meeting such quick resistance from Shi Xiaole, the Fire Kylin Real Person grasped his dao with both hands and vigorously slashed to the side, bringing up a sweep of deep red, scorching blade light.
"Wind Catastrophe!"
With the Tiger Abyss Sword in hand, Shi Xiaole’s strike was so fast it seemed to break free from the constraints of time and space.
With one thrust, there were three sounds of ’pu pu pu’, and the searing blade light exploded three times in succession. A burst of Sword Qi shot out immediately, slicing off a chunk of the Fire Kylin Real Person’s hair.
"Bastard!"
Taken aback by the minor setback, the Fire Kylin Real Person looked at the Tiger Abyss Sword with a mix of shock and envy.
Remembering the previous fleeing, where his opponent had saved his companions several times, a cunning light flashed in the eyes of the Fire Kylin Real Person. His hand waved the dao nine times, and nine blade lights chaotically surged forth.
Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang.
Shi Xiaole immediately severed six of the blade lights.
But the remaining three charged toward Sun Wei, Xu Fang, and Dong Yiyi. With their levels of strength, coupled with the proximity to the two Fire Stiffs, they couldn’t afford to defend and turned deathly pale.
"Crescent Moon!"
Three flashes of light surged out, blocking the three blade lights. The person who took action was none other than Bai Ruiting.
The Fire Kylin Real Person’s old face twitched.
Could this team be from the same sect? But that didn’t make sense; even if they obtained the Septangular Palace Lanterns at the same time, they should have been scattered.
"Brother Shi, I acted on your behalf."
On the other side, Bai Ruiting transmitted her voice with a smile.
The actions of the Fire Kylin Real Person were like opening a door, prompting both sides to start scheming against each other and become mutually guarded. As a result, the two Fire Stiffs drew even closer.
Bang, bang.
An Earth Immortal from the Fire Kylin Real Person’s team had his head crushed.
Before everyone’s shock subsided, a series of crossbow bolts suddenly shot out from the front, their force no weaker than that of a low-ranking Earth Immortal of the Divine Barrier Realm.
"Fire Light Escape!"
The Fire Kylin Real Person started laughing wildly for no apparent reason. His body ignited in flames, moving smoothly amidst countless crossbow bolts, seemingly even more agile than Shi Xiaole.
"Get behind me, all of you!"
Fire Light Escape was specially suited for countering a barrage of attacks and was a technique the Fire Kylin Real Person had acquired in an ancient relic. As his confidence surged, he swung his dao repeatedly, making even more crossbow bolts target Shi Xiaole while he executed the Heavenly Fire Tri-Mystical Transform.
Bang, bang!
Shi Xiaole indeed was hindered, and as a result, the others managed to overtake him, moving ahead with ease.
