“Disgusting.” Terrestrial Horse furrowed her brows and spat out the words, then raised the ice ball above her head and hurled it fiercely toward Qiao Jiajin.
Qiao Jiajin employed the same strategy as before, roughly predicting the landing point of the ice ball based on Terrestrial Horse’s movements, and swung his bat to meet it head-on.
“Qiao ge...” Bai Nine blinked, watching the scene unfold, her heart pounding with unease.
This time, Qiao Jiajin not only stepped forward three paces but also swung the bat earlier than before.
Was he...still honing himself?
Could he really adapt to an attack from a {Terrestrial-grade}?
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{Clang}!!
A sharp, resounding snap rang out. Qiao Jiajin’s bat struck the ice ball perfectly. This time, the ice ball did not scatter chaotically; it shattered into countless white fragments along the bat.
What should have been a cause for cheer was instead met with concern, as Qiao Jiajin’s hands trembled slightly while holding the bat.
Qi Xia felt the shift in the air and knew things had turned grave. He began to move toward Qiao Jiajin, then stopped short as he recalled Terrestrial Horse’s previous warning; they were forbidden to {step into the game perimeter}.
‘Not good...’ His expression tightened. ‘I have to come up with a solution, and fast...’
Zhou Six glanced at Qi Xia, whose expression was fraught with worry. Before she could say anything, Qiao Jiajin swayed unsteadily and fell to his knees.
His hands were bleeding, his forearms were bleeding, and his naked upper body was pouring blood as if pierced by countless sharp needles.
‘With the ice erupting into shards at such proximity...’ Qi Xia grit his teeth. ‘How does one even...’
Qiao Jiajin propped himself on the ground with his bat, paused for several seconds, and then slowly stood up. He swung the bat and rested it across his shoulder.
“What a headache...” Qiao Jiajin remarked with a wry smile. “To swing... or not to swing...Seriously...what am I supposed to—”
Before he could finish, Qiao Jiajin coughed lightly twice.
He felt as if the shattered ice shards had pierced his body like tiny bullets. By now, he had no idea where he had been hit. He only knew it hurt; his entire upper body throbbed with stabbing pain.
“Hey!” Suddenly, someone shouted from afar.
Qiao Jiajin strained to turn his head and saw it was Luo Eleven, the lanky youth he had previously beaten to near death.
“Are you serious?” Luo Eleven shrugged. “An ice ball is basically just a ball of water. A slight soaking dropped you to your knees? How could a bit of water possibly hurt?”
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Qiao Jiajin looked at Luo Eleven in puzzlement and muttered, “Aren’t you that lad who {doesn’t feel pain}? If you’re so capable, why don’t you give it a try—”
Before he could finish speaking, Qiao Jiajin suddenly felt the pain in his body vanish completely, and his grip on the bat grew even firmer.
“What {doesn’t feel pain}?” Luo Eleven frowned. “Laozi’s {Affliction Dismissal} Luo Eleven! I’m still unconvinced from that last battle, {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} but you can prove yourself this time. With laozi’s {conviction}, smash everything she throws out into smithereens.”
“Ha, {Affliction Dismissal}.” Qiao Jiajin nodded. “I will remember you.”
Terrestrial Horse watched in bewilderment as the severely injured Qiao Jiajin suddenly regained his vigor.
What on earthwas happening? How many {Reverberatees} were exactly present?
Had their mastery of {Reverberation} advanced to the point that they could deploy it remotely through words alone, without physical contact?
Qiao Jiajin swung his bat several times with great force, feeling superbly conditioned. He no longer felt pain, nor did he feel the cold.
However, after several vigorous swings, the bleeding from his body noticeably increased.
“Let’s finish this quickly.” Qiao Jiajin said, beckoning to the few behind him, prompting them to push the wheelbarrow forward several more meters.
Simultaneously, Qiao Jiajin took three more strides, closing the gap to Terrestrial Horse, and could almost make out every lock of her mane.
What was strange was that Terrestrial Horse made no attempt to retrieve another ball.She simply waited in place, letting the seconds tick by.
Qiao Jiajin turned to look at the countdown on the wall and frowned. “Puk-gaai... are you stalling for time?”
From the beginning, the rules of the game stipulated {everyone must complete a full lap of the track within fifteen minutes}. If Terrestrial Horse remained motionless, did everyone have to wait with her?
In that instant, Qi Xia discerned what was happening and instructed the group, “Continue onward, the first wave of assault is over.”
“Over?”
The others nodded and pushed the wheelbarrow step by step closer to Terrestrial Horse. As Qi Xia had anticipated, she remained inert until they reached the endpoint.
Only when the wheelbarrow began the return trip did Terrestrial Horse finally draw another ball of indiscernible material from the bamboo tube. But it was not a single ball; two were linked together by a string.
Since the others were extremely close to Terrestrial Horse, Qiao Jiajin simply stood directly in front of her, tilting his head up to stare directly into her eyes.
“So your attacks come in stages as well?” Qiao Jiajin said. “What cruel trick are you planning this time?”
“This time huh?...” Terrestrial Horse smiled but her expression was cold, fixing her gaze on Qiao Jiajin. “What do you think?”
“I sincerely apologize, but I could never guess such underhanded methods.” Qiao Jiajin’s tone was calm, but he remained fully focused on every movement of Terrestrial Horse. If she were to throw the balls at the {Wooden Ox and Flowing Horse} now, all their efforts would be in vain.
“Since it eludes your guess...how unfortunate.” Terrestrial Horse tossed the black balls a few times in her hand, and only then did Qiao Jiajin roughly discern their material.
The two black balls were perfectly smooth, unlike coal or iron, and both were slightly larger in size than the other balls.
Once the group had completely turned the wheelbarrow, Terrestrial Horse shifted her stance, testing the weight of the black balls in her hands.
After witnessing the scene, the two men attempted to begin pushing the wheelbarrow toward the starting point, but Qiao Jiajin’s gut told him something was amiss. Thankfully, Bai Nine prevented the two men from advancing.
“Stop!” Qiao Jiajin called over his shoulder. “Too fast, I won’t be able to protect the person on the wheelbarrow!”
Judging from the length of the bamboo tube, Terrestrial Horse had at least one more ball beyond the two in her hands. She controlled three balls and had two chances to attack.
Given the speed at which she threw them, anyone on the wheelbarrow would inevitably be struck before naturally reaching the endpoint.
Terrestrial Horse grasped the string linking the two balls and slowly raised them above her head. Qiao Jiajin hurriedly readied his bat.
Yet Terrestrial Horse’s angle was unusually devious, compelling Qiao Jiajin to recalibrate his stance repeatedly in the span of a second.
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