In the moment before Jiang Huai drew his sword, the Snow Bear Demon King sensed something was wrong. With another roar, its mountain-like body leaped forward, pouncing towards the two. Its cavernous mouth opened, exuding a potent fishy smell. At that exact instant, Ji Qingxuan swung her sword, and Jiang Huai’s body vanished. His sword flashed with lightning, and in a flash, it pierced the Snow Bear’s mouth, directly impaling its upper jaw. A gush of blood erupted.
“My spiritual energy cannot sustain this state for long. Thirty breaths, kill it.”
Ji Qingxuan nodded lightly. There was no need for further words. She and Jiang Huai floated in the air, distracting the rampaging Snow Bear Demon King. Mu Yao, on the side, used her Star Chess pieces to strike at the Snow Bear King’s eyes, making it increasingly frenzied. The two sword-wielding figures were as fast as lightning. Even with the Snow Bear King’s Eighth Realm cultivation, it was always a step too slow. Its body, however, was continuously inflicted with sword wounds, flesh and blood torn apart. Scarlet blood melted the snow on the ground, creating vast pools of slush, and the continuous roars echoed.
Jiang Huai and Ji Qingxuan’s swords moved without hesitation or tremor, each strike aimed at the Snow Bear King’s weakest points. Ji Qingxuan had already pierced its eyes completely. As the Snow Bear King leaped in fury, smashing the ground into a massive crater, Jiang Huai’s sword followed him, piercing its head. The runes on the Yening Sword trembled, and in an instant, sword energy poured out like a waterfall, blasting a hole straight through the Snow Spirit Bear King’s head.
Exactly twenty-nine breaths. Jiang Huai’s spiritual energy was completely depleted. Ji Qingxuan had only a sliver remaining. The two sighed in relief and their bodies fell back to the ground. The Snow Bear Demon King was stone dead. Jiang Huai got up and went to retrieve the Snow Bear Demon King’s demon core.
The killing of this Snow Bear Demon King naturally utilized the Dragon Emperor Bloodline within his body. He had pushed the Dragon Emperor Bloodline to its limit, combined with the Overlord Art and the amplification of his entire body’s spiritual energy. Within thirty breaths, he possessed the combat power of the Mahayana stage. The final sword thrust into its head was his ultimate move, Water Moon. Now, his soul and body showed a slight weariness. After using his sword to cut open the Snow Bear King’s belly and retrieve the inner core, he looked at Ji Qingxuan behind him, about to discuss the distribution of the inner core, when he saw Ji Qingxuan’s eyes wide with shock and filled with vigilance.
Jiang Huai paused and followed her gaze. In the wind and snow, two figures in black robes were slowly walking towards them.
“Your Highness the Grand Princess, long time no see.”
Jiang Huai recognized the two figures in black robes as the princes from the Northern Region. Their faces now bore sinister smiles, revealing a hint of malevolence.
Ji Qingxuan’s expression instantly turned cold. “You were watching from the shadows?”
“With such a commotion, how could we not notice? We merely thought that since the Grand Princess was being pursued by this Snow Spirit Bear King, we could take advantage of her exhaustion to pick up a bargain. We never expected to gain an Eighth Realm Bear King’s demon core as well.”
A trace of murderous intent flashed in Ji Qingxuan’s eyes. However, her face was pale. Even though she was desperately absorbing the Worldly spiritual energy, what she could recover was ultimately a drop in the bucket.
She slightly raised her chin, her voice cold. “You want to kill me?”
The Second Prince, leading the way, smiled. “Wouldn’t that be too easy for the Grand Princess? A beauty and figure like the Grand Princess’s, to simply kill you would be too much of a waste. If we don’t toy with the Grand Princess until she can neither live nor die, I fear… it will be difficult to assuage the hatred in the heart of our Seventh Prince, who is now in the Yellow Springs!”
As he spoke, the Second Prince’s smile grew colder, and his voice became slightly sharp.
Ji Qingxuan snorted, “Last time in the Cang Yuan Secret Realm, he was blinded by lust and attempted to disgrace me when I was at my limit. He courted his own death. My killing him was justified. He died by my sword, and he can only blame himself.”
The Third Prince looked at Ji Qingxuan. A hint of playfulness appeared on his face. “Our Seventh Brother’s cultivation was insufficient, and he died tragically by your sword. But now the tables have turned. I wonder, does the always-strategizing Grand Princess have a way to escape this time?”
“Come forward and try, and you’ll know.” Ji Qingxuan sneered, her voice devoid of any fear. Instead, she straightened her waist, as if she still had trump cards.
Seeing her fearless demeanor, the Second Prince paused for a moment. It wasn’t the first time he had clashed with this Grand Princess of the Central Province. He knew she was cunning and never found herself in dire straits. His former brother had thought he had an opportunity to take advantage of Ji Qingxuan in the secret realm, but he ended up becoming a soul under her sword.
There had always been discord between the Central Province and the Northern Region, with frequent skirmishes. The younger generation was irreconcilable, and drawing swords against each other was common, but moments that truly ended lives were rare. Yet, years ago, Ji Qingxuan had broken this unspoken rule and personally ended the life of the Seventh Prince of the Northern Region.
At that time, not a single inch of her body had been touched by the Seventh Prince. Before he could even employ any tricks, she had sneakily attacked him with her sword, ending his life. Afterwards, during negotiations between the two regions, Ji Qingxuan’s explanation was that she had only had the strength for that one strike. If she hadn’t killed the Seventh Prince then, she would have been disgraced by him, and he might have gone all out, jeopardizing her life. Thus, she had attacked and killed him. The Emperor of the Central Province naturally protected her. No matter how much the Northern Region seethed with irritation, their hands could not reach the Central Province.
Now, it was truly a case of enemies meeting on a narrow road.
Ji Qingxuan sneered, “You know that I wouldn’t take such risks so easily. Do you think the two of you, at the Fusion Seventh Realm, can kill me? Attack me, and I’ll have a reason to kill you!”
Jiang Huai, who had just understood the situation, glanced at Ji Qingxuan. Her face was now stern and cold, a little different from the aloof and obedient Ji Qingxuan he had seen before. Indeed, women were multifaceted.
Her words made the Second Prince unable to resist probing further. But he clearly sensed that Ji Qingxuan had no spiritual energy left. Even the Absolute Level spirit sword in her hand was dim, its spiritual energy clearly exhausted. She was merely bluffing.
Out of respect for Ji Qingxuan, the Second Prince formed a sword seal and instantly unleashed a strike towards her. Even though Ji Qingxuan had been anticipating it and tried to dodge, her spiritual energy was too weak. She was a step too slow, and her cheek was cut by the sword, a streak of blood appearing. A few strands of hair scattered in the wind.
Instantly, the Second Prince’s eyes brightened, and he burst into laughter.
“The Grand Princess almost fooled me… I am curious, what other tricks does the Grand Princess have?”
With that, he prepared to form another sword seal, but Jiang Huai slightly turned and stood in front of her, frowning slightly. “Sirs, Ji Qingxuan is my friend.”
The Second Prince was genuinely taken aback. He glanced at Jiang Huai. “Who are you?”
“From the Eastern Region, Jiang Huai of the Tian Xuan Sect.”
A moment later, the Second Prince breathed a sigh of relief and said dismissively, “What stray dog from the roadside, scram!”
With that, he formed a sword seal, and black sword light instantly appeared before Jiang Huai. Jiang Huai circulated the last of his Overlord Qi, and with an outstretched hand, he crushed the sword light. However, in an instant, his entire palm was covered in sword wounds, blood gushing out.
He had used up his Experience Scrolls, and the Qi Replenishing Pill was also consumed. Jiang Huai was always steady; this was a rare predicament.
“Stop!” Mu Yao instantly appeared beside the two. Her disposable protective spirit treasure had already been used and was now deactivated. Her petite figure stood in front of Jiang Huai. The Second Prince paused slightly, recognizing her as the Sixth Miss of the Mu Family. After a moment, he spoke, “Miss Mu, as your family invited us to explore this secret realm, we are willing to give the Mu Family some face. Miss Mu of the Mu Family, take your friend and leave. This is our feud with this Grand Princess of the Central Province.”
Mu Yao glanced at Jiang Huai, who frowned and shook his head slightly.
He and Ji Qingxuan did not have a deep friendship. He was indeed out of spiritual energy, and his Overlord Qi was depleted. The Water Moon technique had also consumed his soul power, and he didn’t even have the spiritual energy to activate his Dragon Blood and Fox Bloodline. Facing two at the Fusion Seventh Realm, without a clever plan, he would likely face certain death.
Logically, this was a dispute between the Central Province and the Northern Region. No matter from which standpoint one stood, it was justifiable. Jiang Huai did not understand the truth of the matter. He generally did not want to meddle in affairs where good and evil were unclear.
However, Ji Qingxuan was being pursued by the Snow Spirit Bear King to gather the Ice Crystal Snow Soul Flower for him. She had also exhausted her spiritual energy fighting the Snow Spirit Bear King alongside him. If he were to stand by and watch Ji Qingxuan be humiliated by these two princes of the Northern Region, it would be his fault.
If he were to abandon her now, Jiang Huai understood that his future cultivation would be plagued by unending unrest.
Ji Qingxuan’s gaze was calm as she looked at the two princes before her. “Before I left, Father gave me an Absolute Level spirit treasure. If I use it, everyone present will die with me. If you want to try, you can come forward and test it.”
But as she spoke, the Second Prince merely sneered dismissively. “Let’s not even talk about whether it’s true or not. Do you think only the Central Province has such magic tools and treasures? Does our Northern Region not have them?!”
The Second Prince took a step forward, looking at Jiang Huai and Mu Yao. His voice grew colder. “Miss Mu, leave quickly and don’t get involved further!”
Mu Yao’s face was filled with hesitation. She looked up at Jiang Huai, who lowered his head and whispered, “Ji Qingxuan is gathering the Ice Crystal Snow Soul Flower for me, which is why she is in danger. I cannot leave. You go back to the cave first. I will find you later.”
Mu Yao’s eyes instantly welled up with tears. She had always been pampered, and she had never seen such a scene before. Her calves were trembling, but her eyes were filled with stubbornness. “No… If you don’t leave, I won’t leave either! I’ll just block them here. I want to see if they dare to make a move… If they want to kill, kill me too! If I die… Grandpa won’t let you go! Neither will Father!”
The Second Prince on the side seemed impatient. He raised his hand, and instantly a phantom black spiritual energy appeared, like a giant hand, completely enveloping Mu Yao’s body and moving her aside a short distance. He said indifferently, “Miss Mu, this is not something you should interfere with.”
Mu Yao’s cultivation was only at the Sixth Realm. After he acted, she was completely unable to move.
Ji Qingxuan glanced at Jiang Huai. After a moment, she sighed lightly. “You should leave.”
She took out the Ice Crystal Snow Soul Flower and stuffed it into Jiang Huai’s hand, saying indifferently, “This is my business. I will resolve it. You don’t need to help.”
Jiang Huai looked into her eyes and instantly transmitted a message to her. “Tell me the truth, do you have any trump cards left to defeat the enemy?”
Ji Qingxuan shook her head slightly.
She had always been steady. For the past few days, she had been searching for that Ice Crystal Snow Soul Flower in the secret realm, thus repaying Jiang Huai’s kindness. Sensing that Jiang Huai must have some extremely precious and important secret, she also wanted to befriend him more. Therefore, when she saw the Ice Crystal Snow Soul Flower today, she had put herself in danger.
Her original plan was that if she couldn’t escape, she would find a way to lure the Snow Spirit Bear King towards the gathering place of rogue cultivators she had seen the previous night, then conceal herself and wait for an opportunity. However, upon hearing Jiang Huai suggest they cooperate to kill the bear, she instinctively believed him. Now that the bear king was dead, all her trump cards were indeed exhausted. These two princes of the Central Province had been lurking in the shadows for a long time. Now that she could no longer escape, all that remained was a final desperate struggle.
Even though she knew her struggle was meaningless, her eyes still showed no fear, remaining calm and proud, gazing disdainfully at the two princes before her.
“I have one more trump card that can kill both of them. But within an hour after using it, if I don’t dual cultivate with an Eighth Realm female cultivator, I will die,” Jiang Huai muttered hesitantly and softly.
Ji Qingxuan paused slightly. After a moment, she slowly said, “I am only at Half-step Eighth Realm.”
“After dual cultivating with me once, you will break through to the Eighth Realm. It’s not that I’m using this favor to strong-arm you. It’s just that after using this trump card, if I don’t dual cultivate with an Eighth Realm female cultivator, I will truly die. But even if the Grand Princess refuses, I will still stay here and fight until my spiritual energy is exhausted and I die. If the two of us work together, we should be able to exchange one life for another.”
“If possible, I would prefer to see them both dead and us alive,” Ji Qingxuan said calmly after a moment of silence.
“So…?”
“I am not afraid to dual cultivate with you. The demons of the Northern Region control many Daoist magic methods. If I fall into their hands, I won’t even have the chance to take my own life. They hate me to the bone. At that time, they will probably humiliate me like the lowest of prostitutes. Weighing all options, choosing you is a more worthwhile transaction.”
Jiang Huai let out a long breath, and all the pressure he had felt earlier vanished. Even if the situation he would face next might be more awkward, at least… these two demon princes before him were already as good as dead.
Jiang Huai turned back, looking at the Second Prince who was now approaching with a sinister smile, and said earnestly and politely, “You can still run away now. Otherwise, you will die a brutal death today. I guarantee it.”
“Oh?” The Second Prince was filled with suspicion. However, even though Jiang Huai’s aura seemed to project confidence, his weak and exhausted appearance made him unable to feel any fear.
Seeing him take another step forward, Jiang Huai sighed. “Then I’ll have to send you on your way.”
With that, he took out the Dragon Emperor’s Dragon Heart, which he had obtained from the dragon tribe, at the fastest speed and took… a small bite.
Jiang Huai didn’t dare to take too big a bite. Any more, and he would be playing with his life.
