A Formidable Pair

Qiong Sicheng watched in disbelief as the tiny figure charged at him, flames swirling around her in mid-air. She looked like a firework rather than a weapon, her energy colorful and lacking any apparent killing intent. He thought she seemed more like an innocent child than a warrior.

“No, this is the spirit bone level. There are no innocent children here!” he chided himself, shaking his head violently. He reached out to grasp the little girl, but as he made contact, a tremendous force jolted his arm, making him tremble.

Qiong Sicheng’s pupils constricted as he struggled to maintain his grip, intending to crush the small intruder. But a strange light enveloped the girl, making her immovable regardless of how much strength he exerted. A faint aura seemed to radiate from within her, disrupting his actions.

Suddenly, a pair of indifferent eyes met his. Before he could react, an arm came swinging down towards him. He recognized Qin Huai, the man who had just delivered a punch to his head.

Qiong Sicheng retaliated by launching two balls of green and white light from under his arms. “Spirit-gathering ball!” he yelled triumphantly, a sinister smile playing on his lips. “Kid, you’ve fallen for it!”

He had already experienced Qin Huai’s physical strength, so he knew better than to engage him in a contest of power.

Boom!

With a resounding explosion, the spirit-gathering balls burst, sending sharp wind blades flying in all directions. The blades slashed through countless trees and plants, transforming the immediate surroundings into chaos.

A golden scar briefly flashed across Qin Huai’s arm, followed by a single drop of blood. That was the extent of his injury. Despite the blast, his fist only paused momentarily before smashing into Qiong Sicheng’s arm. The bone-cracking sound echoed ominously, and in the next moment, he exploded into a cloud of blood mist.

Qin Huai advanced, his footstep causing the ground to shatter. Spiderweb-like cracks spread outward as dust and debris flew. Without missing a beat, he threw another punch, causing an explosion in the air that rustled the leaves in the surrounding forest.

Qiong Sicheng, having been thrown dozens of meters away, landed heavily. He held the little girl tightly, sweat dripping down his forehead. “That was too close!” he thought. A split-second slower, and he would’ve been dead.

“Kid, which family are you from?” Qiong Sicheng demanded, clutching the little girl tighter, his eyes never leaving Qin Huai. “Do you know that invading the spirit world is tantamount to declaring war on my Qiong family? If you leave now, I can pretend that this never happened. How about it?”

But his words fell on deaf ears. Qin Huai ignored him and charged again.

“The consequences of your actions are beyond what you can handle, kid!” Qiong Sicheng warned Qin Huai, who showed no signs of slowing his advance. Holding the little girl in front of him, he threatened, “If you don’t stop, your companion will die!”

A ball of green-white spiritual energy formed before his chest, aimed at the girl’s throat.

“Don’t look down on me! Do you think a mere spirit-gathering ball of the Qiong Qi clan can claim my life?!” the girl retorted, her voice cold despite her head being firmly grasped in Qiong Sicheng’s hand. Her defiance remained unbroken.

“As you wish. If you are set on your path to demise, I won’t be courteous,” Qiong Sicheng stated, his forehead veins bulging. He hurled the spirit-gathering ball directly at the girl’s face.

Boom!

With a thunderous sound, the force erupted, enveloping her head. Green smoke wafted from Qiong Sicheng’s hand, but his face lacked any hint of triumph.

His left hand was still solid, proving the girl was right: his spirit-gathering ball had no effect on her!

Qiong Sicheng’s pupils constricted as he saw Qin Huai suddenly appear before him. He remembered the unstoppable momentum and the shocking strength.

Instead of resisting, he fixed his gaze on Qin Huai’s face, intending to etch it into his memory. “You won’t find a place to hide in the spirit world anymore. Your reign will end now!”

Bang!

A heavy punch landed on Qiong Sicheng’s abdomen, causing his upper body to slump powerlessly. Even the towering figure of Qiong Sicheng now appeared shorter than Qin Huai.

“Savor your last moments in the spirit world!” Qiong Sicheng sneered, finding solace in the fact that this was not true death. He would soon return.

Bang!

But before he could savor the thought, Qin Huai’s second punch landed without hesitation, sending Qiong Sicheng out of the spirit world.

Blood trickled from Qin Huai’s hands. The sensory experiences in the spirit world perfectly mirrored the real world, even the smell of blood.

“We sure make a formidable pair,” the little girl remarked, her hands on her hips and her face radiating pride. “We’ve successfully won the first battle against the Qiong Qi clan!”

“How large is their entrance’s range?” Qin Huai asked, surveying the terrain. Amidst the dense forest, only this spot hosted a flat grassland approximately a hundred meters wide.

“Should be within a hundred meters,” the girl replied.

“This suggests that the six clans and three sects have attained terrifying proficiency in array formations,” Qin Huai mused. The extent was similar to his expectations.

“They’re quite advanced, yes. Over the years, the experts of the eight royal clans have focused on reaching the pure-blood realm, neglecting their array skills. Only the Long family, even the current imperial family, has deep expertise in array formations. Most of the locating formations of the six clans and three Sects involve the participation of the princes of the imperial family,” the girl responded knowledgeably. She knew these secrets like the back of her hand.

“You certainly know a lot,” Qin Huai remarked, impressed by her understanding of the world they were navigating.