Zhen Huan's blade crackled with fury as he surged through the air, his Wind Steps slicing the distance between him and the fleeing cultivator like a stormwind.
"You're not going anywhere!" he roared.
But before his strike could land, two powerful figures flickered into view like phantoms. The fourth and third cultivators intercepted him mid-air. Their weapons gleamed with dense spiritual energy—one a curved glaive burning with crimson flames, the other a double-bladed spear covered in icy mist.
CLANG!
His sword collided with both weapons simultaneously. The impact sent a shockwave pulsing outward, rattling trees and kicking up dust.
Zhen Huan grunted, forced back by the force of their combined strike. He skidded across the forest floor, slicing his blade into the earth to slow his momentum.
Yun Sha appeared beside him in a blur of motion, her eyes sharp and glowing with frost.
"They're good," she said, her voice low and dangerous. "And that one with the girl—he's getting away."
"I know," Zhen Huan growled, straightening. "But we take these four down first. No more running."
The two remaining attackers—first and second, more cautious now—stepped in to form a square formation around Zhen Huan and Yun Sha.
The one with the crimson glaive smirked. "I don't know how you saw through our concealment technique… but you'll die all the same."
Zhen Huan answered with silence. His gaze burned as he lifted his sword once more.
And then the battle began.
---
They clashed like thunder and lightning.
Zhen Huan engaged the glaive-wielder and the ice-spear user with relentless aggression, his strikes laced with Inferno Slash – Second Form, sending waves of fire roaring through the trees. Each swing cracked the air, tearing gouges into the earth.
Yun Sha moved with fluid grace—dodging, weaving, and countering with piercing frost. Her saber shimmered with ice qi, leaving white streaks in the air as she battled the remaining two cultivators.
Despite their coordination, the enemy's strength and experience showed. The four Void Refinement cultivators fought like seasoned killers, each movement precise and deadly. Their formation left no openings.
Zhen Huan blocked a swing aimed at Yun Sha and shouted, "Back-to-back!"
Without hesitation, Yun Sha spun and locked into position behind him, covering his blind spots. Their spiritual energy aligned, their teamwork seamless.
He grinned despite the pressure. "Let's show them."
---
Minutes passed.
The battle raged on. Explosions of fire and ice lit the woods like a tempest. The terrain around them was shattered—trees turned to ash, stones split in two, and the air thick with spiritual smoke.
Zhen Huan bled from a cut across his shoulder. Yun Sha's left sleeve was torn, her breathing heavy.
But their opponents fared no better.
Zhen Huan suddenly feinted to the right, drawing the glaive wielder into a step forward—then spun left with Rebound Slash.
The red glaive cultivator's strike rebounded with force and slammed into his own ally's ribs, sending him flying into a tree with a gasp of pain.
Yun Sha took the moment. She thrust her blade forward, piercing cleanly through the staggered cultivator's heart.
"One down!" she called out.
Zhen Huan didn't celebrate.
He moved faster.
Now only three.
He charged straight into the fray, releasing his Wind Defense skill. A barrier of wind swirled around him, blunting every strike that came his way.
The third attacker slammed his icy spear down—only for Zhen Huan to catch it mid-air and snap it with sheer strength, courtesy of his Immortal Wood Body Art.
"Too slow," Zhen Huan growled.
He drove his blade through the man's chest in one clean motion.
Two down.
Ding!
You killed Soul Transformation - 7th Layer. XP Gained: 20000
Current XP: 231200
---
The remaining two cultivators, realizing their numbers were dwindling, attempted to retreat into the forest.
But Zhen Huan raised his sword and invoked Inferno Slash – Third Form.
A massive arc of flame erupted from his blade, swallowing the trees in its path and blocking their escape.
"You're not leaving," he said coldly.
Yun Sha dashed forward and trapped them within an Ice Cage—a dome of spiritual frost formed from her saber energy.
Surrounded, weakened, and separated, the two remaining enemies fell in rapid succession.
The final blow came from Zhen Huan's sword, which pierced the last attacker's heart in a blinding strike, his eyes calm and steady.
Ding!
You killed two Soul Transformation - 8th Layer. XP Gained: 60000
Current XP: 291200
---
Silence returned to the forest.
The flames died down.
The bodies of four elite Void Refinement cultivators now lay motionless on the ground. Zhen Huan's chest rose and fell with exertion. Yun Sha wiped blood from her cheek.
She looked at him with both awe and warmth. "We really did it…"
Zhen Huan nodded. "Yeah. But there's no time to rest."
He turned his head toward the path the fifth cultivator had taken.
"He has Meng Ruo. And I won't let him get away."
Yun Sha's voice sharpened. "Then let's go. He can't have gotten far."
The two of them, battered yet unbroken, raced into the forest once more, their figures vanishing into the shadows.
The scent of ash and steel lingered behind them.