Volume 3, Chapter 219 – Who Dares Call Themselves a Genius Before Me? (Part 5)

As these words fell, not only Cheng Hongling, but nearly everyone present looked at Qi Huang as if she were an idiot.

“Did I hear that right? The two of us aren’t enough for you? You want more? Just how big is your appetite?”

“Little girl, do you even know the difference in our strengths? At our level, even the slightest gap in cultivation is like heaven and earth! Out of respect for our shared sect, I’ll give you a chance—take back what you just said.”

Wang Kai and An Kang burst into mocking laughter.

“No need. When I speak, my word is law. Bring as many as you have—I’ll take them all at once!”

Qi Huang reaffirmed, her tone unshakable.

“Hah! You think this is some bedroom competition? If it were, I’d believe you could take on ten—no, a hundred men at once!”

From the crowd of malevolent spirits, a reckless little skeleton jeered with vulgar words.

“General Li, am I not your Crown Prince’s consort? Now that your subordinate has insulted me like this, what punishment do you think he deserves?”

Qi Huang sneered, deliberately sowing discord.

Li Hua’s expression darkened. Without even looking, he swung his spear backward—the massive weapon shot forth like a black dragon surging from the sea, piercing straight through the little skeleton’s mouth and out the back of its skull.

The skeleton’s body instantly disintegrated under the overwhelming surge of yin energy, reduced to dust that scattered in the wind.

The surrounding ghosts and demons trembled in terror, their yin energy leaking uncontrollably—as if they had wet themselves.

“Let me make this clear. You may kill the Crown Prince’s consort if you wish, but you will not insult her. This is your warning.”

Li Hua’s voice was icy.

None of the evil spirits dared protest, all nodding fearfully.

“Qi Huang, we’re used to your bragging, but must you take it this far?”

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At that moment, Xu Mei cautiously whispered a reminder to Qi Huang.

“Did their flattery go to your head? I’ve just stepped into the Incarnation Realm—taking on two is already my limit. And you want to pile on more pressure?”

Cheng Hongling’s voice transmitted directly into Qi Huang’s mind, sharp with accusation.

“If you can’t win, why fight? You’re a fairy—don’t be so brutish. Just bluff like me and scare them off!”

Qi Huang responded with a cheeky grin.

“Scare them off? Hah! Do you think they’re three-year-old children? What if they actually rush us all at once?”

Cheng Hongling shot back.

“Then we fight. I believe in you—you can take them.”

Qi Huang cheered her on.

“Heh… thanks for the vote of confidence.”

Cheng Hongling gritted her teeth.

“Enough. Out of respect for our shared sect, we elders have no desire to bully the weak with numbers. Besides, we came to reclaim the title of the Honghua Sect’s top genius—there’s no honor in ganging up. I’ll pretend I didn’t hear your earlier words. Now, let me test your strength.”

Wang Kai slowly drew the sword from his back. Yin energy surged violently from his body, cloaking him in what appeared to be black flames.

“Zombies have no souls, so they can’t wield divine sense, correct?”

Cheng Hongling snorted coldly, immediately unleashing her divine sense to suppress Wang Kai.

“True, zombies lack souls and thus cannot use divine sense. But after being nourished by yin energy, our physical bodies surpass even martial artists. Did you think mere divine sense could defeat me? Wishful thinking.”

Wang Kai remained unfazed. With a single step, he vanished from his original position, a trail of raging yin energy streaking behind him like a meteor—his speed terrifying, completely unaffected by the divine sense suppression.

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“Hmph!”

Cheng Hongling took a light step forward, her figure flickering like a ghost, appearing and disappearing in the blink of an eye. Though her Dancing Butterfly Movement Technique lacked the enhancement of Profound Ice, her speed was still astonishingly fast.

Clang—!

The two swords collided, the metallic screech echoing like a lament.

Wang Kai was no slouch—relying purely on instinct, he managed to block Cheng Hongling’s strike with precision.

But it was a futile effort.

Crack!

The next instant, his sword shattered like tofu under the force of her blade.

Cheng Hongling’s momentum didn’t waver. Her sword traced a crescent-shaped arc of sword qi, slicing cleanly across Wang Kai’s neck.

Wang Kai felt only a cold sensation. When he reached up to touch his throat, his fingers sank into a gaping wound. Staring at the broken sword in his hand, he asked in shock, “What kind of sword is this?”

“It’s called Blue Scale.”

Cheng Hongling lifted her blade, a tender expression crossing her delicate face.

“Blue Scale Sword? Forged from Blue Scale Stone, no doubt. A fine weapon—but I am an immortal zombie! What does it matter if you cut me ten times?”

Wang Kai spoke dismissively, highlighting the most fearsome trait of zombies—their near-immunity to physical attacks.

“Oh?”

Cheng Hongling smirked.

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Wang Kai’s expression shifted slightly. Ice crystals began forming at the edges of his neck wound, rapidly spreading across his body until he was completely encased in frost.

“This is… Profound Ice True Qi?”

He frowned slightly before scoffing. “If I were an ordinary cultivator, I might fear this. But have you forgotten? I am a yin-energy-wielding zombie. Yin energy is not suppressed by Profound Ice!”

Unfazed, Wang Kai willed his yin energy to surge from his pores, corroding the ice encasing him.

“Really? Then how about this?”

A mocking glint flashed in Cheng Hongling’s eyes. She bit her delicate finger, swiftly inscribing a blood sigil along her sword’s blade. As the incantation took form, the already darkened sky grew even more oppressive, thick storm clouds gathering like the bottom of a scorched pot.

Her divine sense surged outward, guiding the thunderclouds to collide. With each deafening peal of thunder, dense clusters of violet lightning writhed within the storm.

“Heavenly Thunder Sword!”

Wang Kai’s face twisted in horror. He redoubled his efforts to erode the Profound Ice—if his movements remained restricted, he wouldn’t evade the next strike.

Qi Huang recognized this ultimate technique all too well. Back at the Evergreen Conference, Cheng Hongling’s main body had used this very move to single-handedly eliminate four disciples of the Haizhi Sect.

“She’s pulling out her trump card—she wants to end this in one strike.”

Qi Huang’s heart raced with excitement, already resolving to master this technique herself once this was over.

“Is this the Heavenly Thunder Sword, the strongest sword art of water-attribute cultivators? The pressure alone is terrifying—the thunder is shaking my soul apart!”

“It must be. To think she’s mastered such a lethal technique! This woman is monstrous!”

“The Heavenly Thunder Sword harnesses the power of lightning—the natural bane of ghosts and demons. If Wang Kai gets hit, he’ll be reduced to ashes!”

Fear rippled through the crowd of evil spirits.

“The Heavenly Thunder Sword is formidable, but it has to hit its target first. Without a powerful movement technique to support it, it’s just an empty threat.”

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Wang Kai forced a composed tone even as he struggled to disperse the ice.

“Movement technique? How about this one?”

Cheng Hongling took another step. Surging waves of Profound Ice True Qi swept forward, freezing the ground in their wake. Simultaneously, her figure vanished like a specter, reappearing instantly before Wang Kai as if she had teleported.

“S-Such speed!”

True panic flashed across Wang Kai’s face. He desperately activated his own movement technique to evade, but with half his body still encased in ice, his speed was halved.

Cheng Hongling flashed past him, her Blue Scale Sword carving another wound—this time across his arm.

“Damn it!”

No longer calm, Wang Kai stabbed his broken sword into the ground. A geyser of earth and stone erupted as the impact cratered the terrain. Without hesitation, he dove into the pit, burrowing underground like a pangolin—clearly hoping the earth would disperse the lightning’s force.

“Did you forget? I’m a water-attribute cultivator.”

A faint smile played on Cheng Hongling’s lips as the Profound Ice melted into clear water, flooding the crater.

At the same moment, the lightning above finally struck—directly into the water-filled pit. The electricity conducted through the liquid, chasing Wang Kai deep underground.

“Ah—!”

A brief, agonized scream echoed before silence reclaimed the battlefield.

The onlookers stood frozen, some too terrified to even look at Cheng Hongling.

“Alright. Now it’s your turn.”

She turned, her sword pointing at An Kang.