“Think you can escape?”
Three or four li away, Ling Xiao finally caught up to the blue-eyed clan boss, cutting him off mid-flight.
This place was still deep in the desolate mountains, far from prying eyes.
Ling Xiao could finally fight without holding back.
In the earlier battle, he’d been cautious, wary of revealing his trump cards to others.
But now, facing the blue-eyed clan boss alone and needing to end it quickly, he had to go all out.
“Little beast, you really think you can stop me by yourself?”
The blue-eyed clan boss spoke boldly, but inside, he was gripped by terror.
What was this kid’s deal? His speed rivaled that of an early or even mid-seventh-level Martial Vein warrior.
And those attacks—varied, unpredictable, and downright terrifying.
Especially that finger strike earlier—it had nearly shattered his consciousness.
“Whether I can stop you, we’ll find out.”
Ling Xiao gave a faint smile, Ice Glass Sword in hand, pointing it at the blue-eyed clan boss.
“Shadow Duplication Sword Technique—One Sword, Four Shadows!”
Ling Xiao knew full well that while the blue-eyed clan boss was on his last legs, a centipede dies but never falls limp.
He feared a desperate final strike, so he used the Shadow Duplication Sword Technique to wear down the boss’s will and drain his true essence—the smartest move.
Right now, he didn’t have a way to kill the man in one blow.
His earlier success with Terrifying Finger had relied entirely on Ling Yixue’s Snake Woman remnant.
Repeating that trick wouldn’t be so easy.
As the Shadow Duplication Sword Technique activated, one figure split into four, surrounding and attacking the blue-eyed clan boss.
This kind of assault was the boss’s worst nightmare. Unable to pinpoint the real body, he couldn’t focus his true essence and was forced into frantic defense.
He swung his Thunder Hammer wildly, knocking back Ling Xiao’s four shadows.
But they kept coming back.
Over and over, the blue-eyed clan boss’s escape speed slowed drastically.
In all this time, he’d only moved forward less than ten zhang.
“I can’t keep wasting time—I need to end this!”
The blue-eyed clan boss saw through Ling Xiao’s strategy and could sense someone else closing in from behind.
If he delayed any longer, he might really die here at the hands of a sixth-level Martial Vein warrior.
That would be too pathetic a way to go.
“Thunderstorm Barrage!”
With a sudden roar, the blue-eyed clan boss burned his true essence furiously, slamming his Thunder Hammer straight ahead.
Boom!
A deafening blast—two of the figures directly in front were obliterated.
Seizing the momentum, the blue-eyed clan boss shot forward at a speed barely perceptible to the naked eye.
“So this is your desperate strike? Impressive!”
Ling Xiao wasn’t fazed by the attack. He’d used the Shadow Duplication Sword Technique precisely to force out this move.
The blue-eyed clan boss, burning true essence like mad, had reached peak speed.
But like a fleeting bloom or a dying flare, it wouldn’t last long.
This was the moment Ling Xiao had been waiting for.
A ghostly ship phantom appeared beneath his feet.
Paired with Soaring Cloud Steps, his speed nearly doubled.
Though still not as fast as the blue-eyed clan boss, he wouldn’t be left too far behind.
As soon as the boss’s momentum faltered, catching up would be easy.
In truth, this Ghost Ship remnant helped more with speed than offense.
Legends said that in ancient times, human warriors often used their martial souls for travel.
Dragons and tigers aside, souls like Ghost Ships or Immortal Palaces were perfect for getting around.
Of course, while pursuing, Ling Xiao didn’t let up on weakening the blue-eyed clan boss.
Whoosh—
A sword light shot from behind him, tracing a bizarre path to catch up with the boss, piercing through his protective true essence.
Right now, the boss was using almost no true essence for defense, pouring it all into his movement. That made the powerful sword-control technique an easy success.
“Ah!”
Midair, the blue-eyed clan boss’s thigh was skewered by the sword light, his swift pace stuttering to a halt.
Worse still, the flying sword carried soul power—not as devastating as Terrifying Finger, but still a massive burden on his soul.
In a critical moment, the boss bit through his own tongue. The sharp pain jolted him back to clarity.
“You damnable little beast, I won’t let you off! I won’t!”
The blue-eyed clan boss clung to one thought.
Escape!
If he could get away this time, he’d make Ling Xiao pay a thousandfold for the pain and humiliation.
Perhaps too focused on each other, neither Ling Xiao nor the blue-eyed clan boss noticed a figure moving parallel to them through the woods, matching their blistering pace.
“Using self-harm to tap into your body’s potential? Let’s see how long you can hold out!”
Standing atop the Ghost Ship, Ling Xiao streaked through the trees, a spectral blur.
To the blue-eyed clan boss, it felt like a ghost was haunting him, inescapable.
Finally, the boss’s speed began to drop.
Despair flickered in his eyes.
But in an instant, that despair turned to ruthless cunning.
He pulled something from his storage ring.
Among the myriad clans, the blue-eyed clan was famed for its mechanical arts.
Most of their warriors were skilled with gadgets and puppets.
The object in the blue-eyed clan boss’s hand was a mysterious device called the “Void Strike.”
It looked like a simple tube, unremarkable from the outside.
But those familiar with it knew its inner workings were intricate, powered by spirit stones for devastating attacks.
The more spirit stones loaded, the greater the instantaneous power.
Of course, its strength was capped by its quality.
The Void Strike in the boss’s hand was equivalent to a fine-grade treasure, maxing out at a hundred low-grade spirit stones.
Its attack power could rival a peak seventh-level Martial Vein warrior’s full strike.
He’d held off using it because spirit stones were so precious—he only had less than two hundred low-grade ones total, enough for one shot.
But now, knowing escape was hopeless, what was the point of holding back? He pulled it out without hesitation.
He loaded spirit stones while fleeing.
When all hundred low-grade stones were in place, the ornate tube glowed with rune-like patterns.
He thought Ling Xiao couldn’t see any of this.
But he didn’t know Ling Xiao, still in his soul-entered state, caught every little move.
Though Ling Xiao didn’t recognize the tube or its purpose, his gut told him something was off.
“Better strike first!”
Ling Xiao had no intention of dodging. If he could kill the blue-eyed clan boss before he used that tube, whatever it was wouldn’t matter.
