Mantis and Oriole, Devoured Together!

Thinking this, the scholar raised his hand to manifest an ink-wash shield, then stepped forward cautiously, testing the waters as he closed in on Yang Lingrui.

"Oh? Is that so? I am rather curious to see how you plan to take my life."

Tap.

Tap.

He approached Yang Lingrui step by step, and the latter's expression grew increasingly rigid.

It was not until the scholar reached a distance of one zhang that Yang Lingrui could no longer maintain his feigned composure. His legs trembled as he retreated a few paces, raising his hand as if to condense a wind blade once more.

But at such close range, the scholar had no intention of giving him another chance.

Maintaining the ink-wash circular shield with one hand, he rapidly swept his brush with the other. A splatter of ink droplets instantly transformed into several pitch-black swords in midair, slashing down upon Yang Lingrui.

Having already exhausted his Vajra Talisman, Yang Lingrui could only activate a Spirit Shield Talisman and circulate a protective gale around his body, relying on his Black Iron Soft Armor to withstand the brunt of the blow.

The scholar was a late-stage Qi Gathering cultivator of the seventh layer. Taking such an attack head-on would undoubtedly leave Yang Lingrui severely injured, but that was exactly what he wanted.

Only at this distance could he be absolutely certain of trading injury for a kill!

At that exact moment, the fine-grade Mountain-Splitting Talisman was unleashed. As the talismanic light erupted, Yang Lingrui's body was sent flying backward like a kite with a broken string.

"So you had one more. But so what? No matter how many you have, I shall block them all!"

Seeing that the light still belonged to a Mountain-Splitting Talisman, the scholar braced himself with confidence. But the instant the spiritual light clashed with his circular shield, he realized he had grievously misjudged!

It was indeed a Mountain-Splitting Talisman, but it was no flawed imitation-it was a fine-grade treasure!

"Impossible!"

The ink-wash shield held for a single breath before shattering completely. The sheer power of the technique, comparable to a strike from an eighth-layer Qi Gathering cultivator, threw the scholar into utter panic.

Pfft-crack!

"Ah!"

The cutting force bit deep into his flesh, slicing diagonally from his left shoulder all the way down to his lower right abdomen.

His body was hurled backward, spinning several times in the air before crashing heavily into the dirt.

On the other side, Yang Lingrui lay on the ground. Wherever the ink swords had struck, his flesh and bone were shattered, and his Black Iron Soft Armor was virtually ruined.

Enduring the agonizing pain, he forced his head sideways to look toward the scholar, only to find him face down on the earth, writhing as blood pooled around him.

"He survived even that!"

Yang Lingrui's heart sank. In this battle, he had pushed his schemes to their absolute limit.

Unfortunately, the gap between their realms was simply too vast. Even wielding a fine-grade Mountain-Splitting Talisman at the cost of severe injury, he had still fallen short of killing the man.

"Cough... cough-ha!"

The scholar spat out a mouthful of gore. Grasping his brush, he used the last remnants of his spiritual power to painstakingly trace an ink stroke across his chest. The ink settled over the wound, barely stanching the gushing blood.

"Bastard! Die! I want you dead!"

Lying on the ground with a face twisted in monstrosity, he dragged himself forward with his limbs, crawling toward Yang Lingrui.

At this stage, both were completely spent forces. Even a mere first-layer Qi Gathering cultivator could easily end their lives.

Yang Lingrui struggled to rise, but his injuries were too severe; he could not even muster the strength to move a finger.

Dragging a long, crimson trail behind him, the scholar finally crawled within arm's reach.

"Hahahaha! Once you are dead, I will spread the word that your family possesses treasure talismans! Not only will you die, but your entire Yang clan will be wiped out down to the last soul!"

The scholar laughed like a madman, reaching out to clamp his hands around Yang Lingrui's throat.

Jingle-

Right then, a crisp chime of a bell echoed from the forest, transforming into a sound wave that pierced straight into the scholar's mind.

"Ah! No!"

The next moment, the scholar's features contorted in agony. Clutching his head, he collapsed to the ground, letting out wretched wails.

A beam of golden light suddenly shot out from the nearby woods, striking the scholar precisely in the waist.

Under normal circumstances, he would have brushed off a low-level technique like this with ease, but in his current state, it became the final straw.

As the golden light entered his body, he was thrown a short distance, twitching upon the ground until he quickly fell still.

Seeing his spiritual arts strike true, Zhao Qi rushed out from the trees. He immediately poured a drop of Spirit Liquid into Yang Lingrui's mouth and helped him swallow a medicinal pill.

"Senior Brother, rest for a moment. I will handle him!"

Zhao Qi hurried forward, stopping a few paces short of the scholar's body.

Though the man appeared lifeless, Zhao Qi took no chances. He condensed his spiritual energy once more, delivering follow-up strikes to the man's head, heart, abdomen, and several vital points along his Qi channels.

Only when he was entirely certain that no counterattack was possible did he cautiously step closer to search the body.

Zhao Qi retrieved the brush and discovered two Storage Bags. Ensuring nothing was missed, he slapped a Fire Talisman onto the corpse.

He watched intently as the flames erupted, slowly reducing the body to charcoal and finally into a pile of ashes. Only then did he let out a long breath.

"Before leaving, Senior Sister Lingqing specifically warned me that high-realm cultivators are exceptionally resilient. This should mean he is dead, right?"

Still harboring a trace of uncertainty, Zhao Qi stepped forward and used his foot to grind the remaining ashes into fine powder.

"Mm. He certainly won't be coming back to life after this."

Having thoroughly disposed of the remains, he quickly jogged back to Yang Lingrui's side.

Having digested the potency of the Spirit Liquid and the pill, Yang Lingrui was now able to circulate his spiritual energy on a minor scale. He propped himself up against a fallen tree trunk.

"Senior Brother, the man is definitely dead. These are the spoils from his body."

"Keep them for now. In my state, I lack the strength to even open a Storage Bag."

Zhao Qi nodded, stowing away the scholar's belongings before hoisting Yang Lingrui onto his back.

He first carried Yang Lingrui over to look at the site of the scholar's remains-or rather, the scattered ashes.

"Senior Brother, he is truly dead, right? He won't come back to seek vengeance on us later, will he?"

Looking at the pile of dust, Yang Lingrui felt his brow twitch. "Junior Brother, if a man reduced to this can still come knocking on our door, our family will just have to accept our fate."

Zhao Qi did not dare linger in this perilous place. Securely carrying Yang Lingrui, he hurried back toward the Yang family estate.

"Junior Brother, how did you happen to be in this area, and how did you locate me?" Yang Lingrui inquired.

"It was Senior Sister Lingqing. Three days ago, she told me you would encounter danger here and ordered me to reinforce you immediately."

Zhao Qi explained, "Senior Sister Lingqing cast a secret technique on me, leaving a mark within my Sea of Consciousness. Relying on that mark, I could perceive your approximate location, which guided me here."

Yang Lingrui nodded in understanding.

Three days ago-that would be precisely when he met with Su Lingyun. The Immortal Venerable must have sensed the anomaly and transmitted a thought to Yang Lingqing, just as he had done when Yang Linghu faced a crisis at the spirit mine.

The secret technique Zhao Qi spoke of was undoubtedly the handiwork of the Immortal Venerable, merely attributed to Yang Lingqing to keep up appearances.

"Saved by the Immortal Venerable once again... sigh..."

Yang Lingrui sighed inwardly.

It was always thus. He felt deeply ashamed that his own meager cultivation consistently forced the Immortal Venerable to expend effort and concern on his behalf.

The Immortal Venerable had truly sacrificed too much for the Yang family. Had it not been for the meticulous preparations provided for this excursion, Yang Lingrui would never have survived until Zhao Qi's arrival; he would have been flayed alive and slain by that scholar.

He also owed his survival to these numerous contingencies, as well as Gao Hui's vital Wind-Assisting Pearl.

In this battle, he had exhausted every resource and given his absolute all to finally seize a sliver of life.

Those three cultivators had believed they held the advantage of numbers, seeking to play the mantis stalking the cicada.

The scholar had prided himself on his superior realm, seeking to be the oriole lurking behind.

Yet what a pity, what a profound pity.

In the end, all their efforts merely served as wedding garments for another, allowing the Yang family to devour both the mantis and the oriole together.

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