A loud crash, flames and electric sparks splattering everywhere.
Wu Tie let out a muffled groan as he was sent flying several dozen meters by Shi Lingqing, crashing down in front of the steps of the grand hall.
Shi Lingqing, in the form of a fiery electric light, soared into the sky after a brief hover, resembling a huge rotating drill, hurtling towards Wu Tie at a lightning speed.
Still disoriented from the previous collision, Wu Tie was struck again by Shi Lingqing as she dove from the sky, crashing into him once more.
The ground trembled violently, and soil shot up several dozen meters high. Wu Tie groaned in pain as his insides churned, even though he wore armor. He spat out a mouthful of blood.
A large pit with a diameter of several dozen meters was created as the earth was shattered. The pond in front of the grand hall was affected, with sparkling water splashing into the air. Fragments of lotus leaves and petals were shattered, scattering far and wide.
Wu Tie lay sprawled in the deep pit, his head tilted as he gazed at Shi Lingqing.
After snatching a portion of Hong Laohu's life essence and stealing Shi Dian's awakened supernatural abilities with her sinister techniques, Shi Lingqing's strength had skyrocketed in a short period of time, far surpassing Wu Tie, who had just broken through to the first stage of the Foundation Building Stage.
Watching her maneuver in the air effortlessly, it was impossible for Wu Tie to determine how powerful she had become.
"What comes after the Foundation Building Stage?" Wu Tie's head buzzed, unable to focus.
Having been beaten senseless by Shi Lingqing for so long, his head had suffered severe vibrations, and he saw countless stars dancing before his eyes, making him feel nauseous.
"Your tight-fitting armor is quite good," Shi Lingqing said after a heavy blow, rising tens of meters into the air using the rebound force. She descended slowly on a faint fire cloud, overlooking Wu Tie condescendingly.
"I think it should belong to me," Shi Lingqing said, her tone flirtatious. "Your armor is mine, your spear is mine, the ancient treasures in this grand hall are mine, and this relic of an ancient saint should also be mine."
"Hehe, if you're willing, you can be mine too," Shi Lingqing gazed at Wu Tie with a playful smile. "Luck, Dignified, and Nail are already dead. Originally, I planned to treat them as my close confidants... I won't mention Shi Dian; a slave who coveted his master's possessions deserves to die..."
"But you're different. You've obtained ancient treasures and legacies, and you're lucky. I like people with luck."
"You're also quite handsome, even though you're a bit younger. But I don't mind..." Shi Lingqing asked with a smile, "Are you willing to be mine?"
Shi Lingqing smiled at Wu Tie.
Wu Tie staggered to his feet, gazing at Shi Lingqing with a tilted head. He seriously recalled everything that had happened since Shi Lingqing and Luo Lin entered this hidden realm.
Each incident flashed quickly through his mind as he sighed.
"You people are too terrifying; your affairs are too complicated." Wu Tie tightly gripped his spear, pointing it at Shi Lingqing. "I'm afraid I'll end up like Shi Dian someday, suddenly being killed by you from behind."
"I want to live a simpler life..." Wu Tie recalled the comfortable life he once had in the Wu Family Stone Castle, and said in a deep voice, "Once I have the power for revenge, once I avenge my father and brothers, I will return to my family's stone castle..."
Wu Tie thought of Wu Zhan repeatedly telling him about his expectations for his brothers. He smiled and said, "I will find one or a few virtuous women and bear children with them, continue the bloodline... Sorry, you are not virtuous at all."
Wu Tie had no idea how powerful his words were for a proud young girl.
Especially since he was a few years younger than Shi Lingqing.
He said that Shi Lingqing was not a virtuous woman.
The so-called 'children speak without restraint,' Wu Tie's words came straight from the heart and were extremely damaging.
Shi Lingqing's face turned pale as she let out an angry roar, rushing towards a cluster of crystal clusters over a meter thick. She repeatedly struck them with her palms.
Despite her frantic efforts, the crystal clusters remained undamaged. Wu Tie looked dazedly at Shi Lingqing's desperate actions and laughed, "Do you want to break one off and use it to smash me? Hehe, it seems like you're wasting your effort. Aren't there easier things to get around here?"
Wu Tie laughed and turned to look at the grand hall behind him.
Shi Lingqing let out a long howl, slightly embarrassed leaving the cluster of crystals. She suddenly rushed to the entrance of the grand hall, both hands clasping a thick stone pillar under the eaves of the grand hall. She shook it vigorously.
The pillar, which was over ten meters long, snapped, and Shi Lingqing lifted it up, scolding as she viciously swung it at Wu Tie.
With a loud crash, the pillar shattered, and Wu Tie was sent flying hundreds of meters, crashing into a cluster of crystals. His body rebounded back dozens of meters before twitching and falling motionless.
Lying on the ground, Old Tie raised his head slightly and sighed softly, "Not bad for my carefully trained disciple... His mouth is truly venomous... Ha, he's really a sharp-tongued one!"
Wu Tie lay on the ground for a long time, unable to move. The shimmering light flowed on his fitting armor in extremely thin rays, and with a faint "chi chi" sound, the armor turned into flowing metallic liquid, slowly falling off his body.
A thud was heard as the fitting armor turned into a gloomy white metal ball the size of a head, gently landing on the ground.
Wu Tie was stunned.
Shi Lingqing looked at the gloomy white metal ball in astonishment and excitement. "Ha? Without this armor, can you escape my grasp?"
Wu Tie looked at Old Tie beside her, lying on the ground motionless. Old Tie was as still as scrap iron on the ground.
Wu Tie did not know that his words had such a powerful impact on a proud young girl.
Especially since he was a few years younger than Shi Lingqing.
He said that Shi Lingqing was not a virtuous woman.
The so-called 'children speak without restraint,' Wu Tie's words came straight from the heart and had an extremely devastating effect.
Shi Lingqing's face turned iron-grey as she let out an angry roar, rushing towards a cluster of crystal clusters over a meter thick. She struck them fiercely, palms flying.
In a loud noise, the crystal clusters burst into dazzling light. No matter how hard Shi Lingqing tried, the clusters remained intact, without a trace of damage.
Wu Tie was dumbfounded as he watched Shi Lingqing's hysterical actions. He chuckled, "Do you want to break off one and use it to smash me? Heh, it looks like you're wasting your efforts. Isn't there something easier here to obtain?"
Wu Tie chuckled as he turned around to look at the grand hall behind him.
Shi Lingqing let out a long howl, somewhat embarrassed as she left the cluster of crystals and suddenly rushed to the entrance of the grand hall. She clasped a thick stone pillar under the eaves of the grand hall and shook it vigorously.
The pillar, which was over ten meters long, broke, and Shi Lingqing lifted it up, scolding as she fiercely swung it at Wu Tie.
With a loud crash, the pillar shattered, and Wu Tie was sent flying hundreds of meters, crashing into a cluster of crystals. His body rebounded back dozens of meters, twitching and unable to move for a long time.
Lying on the ground, Old Tie raised his head slightly and muttered softly, "He truly is the disciples I painstakingly trained... He is three parts as good at sharp-tongued attacks... Heh, what a sharp tongue he has!"
Wu Tie lay on the ground, unable to move. Thin rays of light flowed on his fitting armor, and with a faint "chi chi" sound, the armor turned into flowing metallic liquid and slowly fell off his body.
With a thud, the fitting armor turned into a pale white metal ball the size of a human head, gently landing on the ground.
Wu Tie was dumbstruck.
Shi Lingqing looked at the pale white metal ball in excitement and joy. "Ha? Without this armor, can you still escape my clutches?"
Wu Tie looked at Old Tie lying motionless beside her. Old Tie lay still, like a pile of scrap metal on the ground.
Wu Tie, lying on the ground, unable to move, could only lift his head to watch Shi Lingqing's next move as she cautiously walked to the golden lotus flower.
Shi Lingqing squatted down beside the golden lotus flower, excitedly observing the small bone fragment. "What a strange ancient treasure, although I don't understand what it is exactly, it must be... very valuable."
Shi Lingqing gently said, "The ancient saint outside, the cave, the incredibly hard crystal stones inside the cave, and these golden skeletons in the grand hall... if I'm not mistaken, they all exist for it."
"So, what are you exactly?" Shi Lingqing stared at the bone fragment, cautiously reaching out her hand.
"What can you give me?" Shi Lingqing trembled with excitement. "It's good that I didn't touch it carelessly."
"Wow, little beauty, you're mine. Just you wait." Extending her hand, Shi Lingqing clenched her fist in the air, lightly seizing it as if she were catching the gigantic body of a bull hero.
Shi Lingqing laughed softly as she pinched Wu Tie's neck and dragged him, unable to move or utter a sound, into the grand hall.
On the mat, only one remaining golden skeleton sat cross-legged. Faint strands of dim light and mist sprayed out from the cracks on its body, gradually dissolving into the air.
Dim golden mist clung tightly to the fragments on the broken golden lotus flower.
The thumb-sized bone fragment spun slowly, seeming like a well-fed bird in a cage, unfazed by its imprisonment in the golden lotus.
Wu Tie struggled to widen his eyes, watching the bone fragment suspended above the golden lotus.
This strangely elusive fragment had absorbed his blood like a leech.
The shameless thing had even sucked him dry before running away.
Shi Lingqing tossed Wu Tie onto the ground, lifting her foot and mercilessly stomping on his knee. Wu Tie's body convulsed in pain, and he emitted a wretched shriek.
Shi Lingqing violently crushed his knee, his shoulders broken, leaving him unable to move. Now, he lay on the ground, able only to weakly raise his head and watch Shi Lingqing's next move.
Shi Lingqing carefully walked to the golden lotus, squatting down and eagerly looking at the bone fragment.
"Such strange ancient treasures, especially untouched ones, have unpredictable risks," Shi Lingqing said with a smile, turning her head to nod at Wu Tie. "My Longevity Sect once surveyed three ancient ruins in the Cang Yan Territory and obtained four ancient treasures, with over a thousand loyal disciples dying and injured."
"I don't want to die here," Shi Lingqing said with a beaming smile. "I still have a good life yet to be enjoyed... but if you die, it won't be a loss to me... Of course, I will shed two tears for you, after all, little master, you're so handsome."
Shi Lingqing roughly grabbed Wu Tie's neck, her sharp nails easily slicing open his throat as she brought his neck wound closer to the bone fragment.
The bone fragment struggled for a moment, emitting a faint cracking sound as it tore open a large portion of the light mist that trapped it in the golden lotus. It suddenly clung to Wu Tie's wound, and blood rushed out of his body, frantically pouring into the fragment.
"Ah, bloodsucker," Shi Lingqing's body trembled violently, her excitement evident in her laughter. "Thank goodness, I didn't touch it randomly."
"Oh, little lord, your blood vessels are withering. Your blood is about to be drained, right? Hey, you must hold on until this treasure is satisfied. You must not have any issues before then!"
Shi Lingqing laughed as she looked at Wu Tie, her eyes shimmering, filled with a water-like radiance.
Wu Tie's body convulsed as blood was continuously drained from him. His vision suddenly turned black, and he fainted completely.
The blood remnants within him had already exceeded the danger line and had reached a life-threatening level.
(End of this chapter)