Even a Celestial Realm powerhouse lacked the ability to see through the chaos.
Thus, including the Master of the Tower of Desperation, no one could discern Ling Xiao’s condition.
Many even believed Ling Xiao had been killed.
“Ling Xiao~~”
Dai Yuling let out a anguished cry and fainted in Lan Yuer’s arms.
Lan Yuer’s face turned ashen.
She handed Dai Yuling to Yang Danlin and slowly walked toward the Tower of Desperation.
Even if it meant offending the Master of the Tower, she would save Ling Xiao today.
She had trusted Ling Xiao completely, but the moment the explosion roared and his aura vanished entirely, her composure shattered, replaced by panic and rage.
“Lan, you’re mad! Ling Xiao’s fine.”
Yang Danlin stopped her.
In truth, he didn’t know the situation either; Yuan Zun had told him this.
As the dust gradually settled, Ling Xiao’s figure was nowhere to be seen.
No trace of his aura remained on the Tower of Desperation.
Gongyang Nu let out a gloating laugh, “Hahaha, dead just like that? What a weakling.”
“Something’s off!”
Jin Ming shot to his feet, his pupils contracting sharply.
Ling Xiao’s figure slowly emerged, while Yang Cheng collapsed with a thud, his eyes wide open.
His head had been severed from his body.
“How did he do it?”
Gongyang Nu sucked in a cold breath. He hadn’t even seen how Ling Xiao killed Yang Cheng.
“The moment Yang Cheng’s attack landed, Ling Xiao’s aura vanished—likely due to his martial soul’s effect. Then he counterattacked, killing Yang Cheng in one move. It’s that simple,” Jin Ming said.
He hadn’t seen the full process either, but based on the scene, that was the likely explanation.
“No way. Yang Cheng was so much stronger than before, and Ling Xiao killed him in one move?”
Gongyang Nu couldn’t believe this deduction.
“Yang Cheng improved, but so did Ling Xiao.”
Jin Ming said this, but in truth, he had no idea what had happened on the Tower of Desperation.
No one did.
In reality, the instant Ling Xiao killed Yang Cheng, he had used the power of a 10% Half-Step Master. For just a fleeting moment, amidst the chaos and with many Half-Step Masters present, it went unnoticed.
It wasn’t necessary, but to resolve things quickly, Ling Xiao didn’t bother with high-cost techniques.
The move that killed Yang Cheng was just a basic hand chop—no martial technique was even used.
“First death challenge, victor—Ling Xiao!”
The Master of the Tower of Desperation announced flatly, then waved a hand, sending Yang Cheng’s corpse flying. “Next, the second match: Ling Xiao challenges Gongyang Nu.”
“Senior, may I request a change?”
Ling Xiao looked at the Master of the Tower.
“What do you want to change? It’s too late to alter the date now,” the Master replied coldly.
“Senior, I mean, could I challenge two at once? One at a time is too troublesome,” Ling Xiao said with a slight smile.
What!
Was Ling Xiao truly insane? Challenging one at a time was already perilous, and now he wanted to take on two? Was he purely seeking death?
Many thought Ling Xiao’s victory had gone to his head.
But Gongyang Nu and Tuoba Shan exchanged a glance, both seeing the glee in each other’s eyes.
Truth be told, after witnessing Ling Xiao kill Yang Cheng in one move, neither felt confident facing him alone and were already considering backing out.
But Ling Xiao’s words reignited their confidence.
One against one was risky, but two against one? No problem at all.
One excelled in close combat, the other in ranged attacks. They had coordinated countless times. Ling Xiao’s proposal to fight them both was like serving them a feast.
“This change is permissible, as long as you’re willing and your opponents agree.”
“We agree!”
Gongyang Nu and Tuoba Shan, fearing Ling Xiao might reconsider, hurriedly stood and declared their consent.
Once they agreed, Ling Xiao had no chance to back out.
“Then it’s settled. Ling Xiao will challenge outer sect rank six, Gongyang Nu, and rank five, Tuoba Shan!”
The Master of the Tower seemed indifferent, happy to watch the spectacle unfold.
Dai Yuling, who had just woken up, turned pale again at Ling Xiao’s reckless decision.
Lan Yuer gave a helpless, bitter smile.
Yang Danlin cursed repeatedly, “That little brat, he’s really got a death wish.”
Only Yuan Zun squinted, lost in thought.
Sometimes, even he found his disciple hard to read.
Gongyang Nu and Tuoba Shan entered the Tower of Desperation’s range together.
One stood in front, the other behind.
Behind Gongyang Nu loomed the shadow of a long saber, a common weapon-type martial soul—Long Saber Martial Soul.
Behind Tuoba Shan was the shadow of a bow, another common weapon-type martial soul—Archery Martial Soul.
The former specialized in close combat.
The latter wielded terrifying bow-and-arrow attacks.
Ling Xiao choosing to fight both simultaneously seemed reckless and suicidal to many.
After seeing him kill Yang Cheng in one move, some had started to believe in him.
But this move shattered their confidence entirely.
Then again, Ling Xiao didn’t care what others thought or whether they believed in him.
His own confidence was enough.
“You’ll pay for your foolishness and arrogance,” Gongyang Nu sneered, swinging his long saber in a slash toward Ling Xiao.
In terms of attack power, Gongyang Nu was no less formidable than Yang Cheng. This slash seemed capable of cleaving the ruin in two, the saber and martial soul working in perfect harmony.
Desperate Saber Technique—One Slash, Two Halves!
As Gongyang Nu unleashed his saber technique, he closed in on Ling Xiao. His goal was clear: to entangle Ling Xiao and create an opening for Tuoba Shan.
Tuoba Shan had a killing move that required a long time to charge true essence. In a one-on-one fight, he rarely used it.
But in a two-on-one, he had the chance.
It was his strongest technique.
Clang—
Ling Xiao flickered, effortlessly dodging Gongyang Nu’s attack. On the Tower of Desperation, a steel beam as thick as a bowl was sliced clean in half.
Not only that, the saber’s energy pierced the ruin, carving a massive fissure.
The spectators were stunned. The outer sect’s sixth-ranked expert’s attack power was indeed terrifying.
Ling Xiao thought so too.
But he also believed that an attack that couldn’t hit its target was meaningless.
No matter how powerful, what was the point?
“Do you know why I’m determined to kill you all?”
Ling Xiao suddenly asked.
His voice was loud, audible to everyone in and around the Tower of Desperation.
That was the effect he wanted.
He needed everyone present to know why he had issued this death challenge, or it wouldn’t achieve his intended purpose.
