Ling Xiao was genuinely disappointed. He saw through it now—cooperating with these people was worse than going ahead with Dai Yuling, Leng Hao, and Shangguan Lei. That way, he might ensure his group’s survival.
Honestly, aside from the stage guardian, he didn’t care about the other monsters at all.
“Sister Bai, what if we tweak the strategy a bit?” Ling Xiao suddenly suggested.
“Tweak? How so?” Bai Feifei asked.
“Simple. Everyone except me holds off the guardian. You can manage that, right?” Ling Xiao said with a smile.
“And you? What about the other monsters?” Bai Feifei asked, puzzled.
As long as she didn’t have to face the guardian alone, she wasn’t afraid, but she couldn’t grasp Ling Xiao’s plan.
“Easy. I’ll handle all the other monsters myself!” Ling Xiao replied, his face calm, as if it were a trivial matter.
“Junior Brother Ling, that’s a big joke!” Tantai Lingzi shook her head with a bitter smile. “Even Sister Bai and I wouldn’t dare claim that. How could you possibly do it?”
“Exactly. Boasting is one thing, but pick the right moment. Let’s work together to break through and hope we don’t alert the Five-Faced Monster!” Bai Feifei didn’t believe Ling Xiao either.
Ling Xiao gave a faint smile, saying nothing more.
He secretly transmitted a message to Dai Yuling, Leng Hao, and Shangguan Lei, telling them to follow his signal and stay close.
That way, even if the Five-Faced Monster appeared and he couldn’t win, he was confident they could escape.
Soon after, Bai Feifei and Tantai Lingzi took the lead, and the eleven of them entered the final monster lair of the second stage.
Wang Nan trailed at the back, head lowered, lost in thought.
Ling Xiao’s eyes flickered with confusion and wariness, but he didn’t ask.
Perhaps the answer would come soon.
With eleven people charging forward, battles were easy as long as they didn’t encounter king-level monsters.
After all, Bai Feifei, Tantai Lingzi, Ling Xiao, Wu Yang, and Qin Wu were all above Mortal Realm Seventh Layer, far stronger than the toughest ordinary monsters.
Even the weakest, Wang Nan, was at Mortal Realm Third Layer.
Yet he never fought, staying at the back, looking relaxed.
“Speed up! At this rate, we can definitely escape before alerting the Five-Faced Monster!” Bai Feifei charged faster, caught up in the thrill of battle.
She seemed to have given up on the second stage’s ultimate reward, content with just passing.
Ling Xiao thought she was too cowardly.
If he had Half-Step Heavenly Sovereign strength, even at just 10% accumulation, he’d take on the guardian.
Tantai Lingzi glanced back at Ling Xiao in surprise.
Everything they encountered matched Ling Xiao’s predictions exactly—five types of monsters, appearing together, with strengths precisely as he described.
This Ling Xiao was uncanny!
As they pressed forward, the number of monsters grew, sometimes with thousands appearing at once.
But their overwhelming strength made them fearless.
Shangguan Lei, Leng Hao, and Dai Yuling seized the chance to hone their skills.
Ling Xiao didn’t even act, merely activating his Heavenly Dragon Scale Armor. Its reflective damage meant any monster that attacked him suffered.
Suddenly, a golden figure appeared.
“It’s the Golden Inch Snake King, an Eighth-Level beast!” Ling Xiao warned.
“Die!”
Bai Feifei didn’t use any technique, just thrust her sword casually. Strange musical notes flew from her blade, easily piercing the Golden Inch Snake.
But as a king-level monster, though weaker than Bai Feifei, it was cunning, dodging a fatal blow and fleeing.
Bai Feifei was skilled against beasts. As a Half-Step Heavenly Sovereign, she could heavily injure an Eighth-Level beast with a casual strike.
Impressive!
If she survived, she’d likely become one of the top ten core disciples, perhaps even a “Young Sect Master.”
Of course, the current top-ranked Ren Xingtian was no pushover either.
The Golden Inch Snake, facing a strong foe, turned to flee.
“Think you can escape?”
Ling Xiao sneered, his qi sword shooting out, transforming into a rope of light that yanked the snake back.
An Eighth-Level beast’s core was valuable, and its meat was highly nourishing.
He casually tossed the snake’s corpse into the Mountain River World, too busy to deal with it now.
Bai Feifei glanced at Ling Xiao, her eyes flashing with shock.
Though Ling Xiao’s move wasn’t necessarily powerful, it was perfectly executed. She’d never seen anyone wield sword qi like that.
With the Golden Inch Snake killed, the venomous snake swarm grew wary and began retreating.
“Everyone, kill the king-level monsters quickly. That’ll stop the ordinary ones from attacking,” Tantai Lingzi shouted.
The others had noticed this too.
“Ling Xiao, don’t steal my monsters!” Bai Feifei, aware of the Golden Inch Snake’s value, was annoyed at Ling Xiao’s intervention.
“No problem. But if you can’t kill one, I won’t let it escape,” Ling Xiao said with a faint smile.
“Impossible! A monster I can’t kill, you can? Laughable!” Bai Feifei scoffed, unconvinced.
Moments later, another king-level monster appeared—a Vampire Bat King!
Its massive body swooped in, unleashing a piercing sonic attack.
The sonic attack had little effect on Bai Feifei, Tantai Lingzi, and Ling Xiao, but the others clutched their heads in pain.
Bai Feifei thrust her sword again.
But this time, it missed.
Unlike the Golden Inch Snake King, the Vampire Bat King could turn its body into a blood shadow, unharmed even if struck.
Despite Bai Feifei’s strength, she couldn’t land a hit after much effort, while the bat injured Liu Lie and Situ Jun.
“Getting anywhere, Sister Bai? Do you want to wait until the Five-Faced Monster shows up?” Ling Xiao said coldly.
“Sister Bai, let him try,” Tantai Lingzi urged.
“Damn it, I don’t believe you can do better. Go ahead!” Though reluctant, Bai Feifei felt like a fool being toyed with by the bat.
She’d rather let Ling Xiao try, certain he’d embarrass himself too.
“Nine-Vein Qi Sword · Cage!”
Nine qi swords shot out, instantly transforming into hundreds of fine threads, forming a cage that trapped the Vampire Bat King.
