Crack, crack, crack…

The invisible Infernal Heavenly Flames kept burning, and Shao Yi was visibly struggling.

​​

Despite being protected by spiritual source, after being exposed to such scorching power of such a peculiar nature for such a long time, his body had been burned red hot all the same.

A faint steam could be seen rising, and there was the smell of burned flesh in the air.

"Judging by the time, Kong should be a long way away by now..."

Shao Yi struggled to keep himself together as he resisted the pain. He had little spiritual source left at the moment, and if he were to stay around any longer, he probably wouldn't be able to run.

"Thinking that you've bought enough time and that it's time to run, eh?"

That cold voice was heard once again, sending shivers down Shao Yi's spine.

"Is this guy really human?" he thought. "How is it possible that he always knows what I'm thinking?"

Xu Xiaoshou kept up his nonchalant façade. He turned his gaze to the seemingly endless rain, yet his Sense allowed him to observe every muscle in Shao Yi's body.

His observation had gotten so keen that he could know if Shao Yi was about to take a p*ss or a dump from the clenching of his butt muscles.

Shao Yi's spiritual source had almost run out, yet being able to stay behind to cover his partner meant that he must have something up his sleeve.

Xu Xiaoshou figured that the man either had some surreal, high-level technique for escaping or had truly thought of staying behind to fight to his death.

If it was the former, that would be entirely okay. But if his intention was the latter, Xu Xiaoshou would be in deep trouble.

As such, Xu Xiaoshou had no choice but to keep encouraging thoughts of running away in the other man through his words.

Yet, at the same time, he was also afraid that after escaping the man might find something amiss and then come back with the other one.

He'd really be done for if that happened.

As such, Xu Xiaoshou made up his mind. Though he would have liked very much for that man to just leave, he knew that the man had to stay behind.

The man had to stay behind as a dead body.

As for how to go about reducing him to a dead body…

Xu Xiaoshou saw that to be quite a problem…

…

Shao Yi was utterly terrified, yet he was unable to delay any longer. The longer he stayed, the worse his condition would become; he had to leave right away.

However, the man spoke again just when he was about to escape.

"Do you really that you're the one buying time here?

"I'm buying time as well…"

Shao Yi's body stiffened. He wondered what that man was getting at.

He wondered if the man had sustained some kind of injury when fighting Xu Xiaoshou before and was recuperating at the moment.

Seeing that Shao Yi wasn't saying anything, Xu Xiaoshou kept talking just to buy more time. "Do you really think your friend can escape?

He spouted whatever came to mind. "You're not the only one who's going to stay behind tonight. That guy won't be out there for long."

Shao Yi was terrified, and he checked his soul and aura all over, yet was unable to find a mark on him.

"Impossubu!"

"You dun even know us. How cud you leave a mark on us?"

Xu Xiaoshou was dumbfounded. First, because of the man's peculiar accent. And second, because of the mark he was talking about.

"What mark?" he thought.

"This guy really has one h*ll of an imagination!

"Whatever. Better some response than nothing at all. So long as I keep at it, I'll have no problems delaying the guy.

"The longer he burns, the less spiritual source he'll have left in him, and I bet he doesn't have any spiritual techniques like 'High Spirits.'"

"So," Xu Xiaoshou continued calmly. "You think you're combusting all on your own all of a sudden?"

"What does he mean?" he thought.

"Combusting on my own?"

Shao Yi's heart skipped a beat as he suddenly recalled that the man in white had never even touched him, yet he'd immediately ignited with those "ghostly flames."

This guy…

Was utterly terrifying!

"No, I can't stay here any longer," Shao Yi thought to himself. "If I stay around, who knows what else will hit me. If I can't run…

"Then instead of just sitting around, I should do something!"

Xu Xiaoshou, at that moment, was totally oblivious that his attempt at delaying that man had had the opposite effect, and kept droning on. "Let's play a game…"

Swoop!

A beam of black light was shot at him, immediately cutting him off mid-sentence.

Xu Xiaoshou's Sense never stopped. When Shao Yi shot the short sword in his sleeve like a bolt of lightning at him, he simply flicked his finger condescendingly, acting like some really, really powerful warrior.

Clang!

The work of Recoil coupled with Sharpness deflected the blade, which was tens of meters away, right then and there, and it flew into the wall, getting lodged there.

He was completely baffled the next second. Two of his fingers seemed to have gotten plastered together midair, and he couldn't pull them back.

"Sh**!" he thought.

"D*mn. What have I done? Why did I flick the blade away with my fingers?

"Why couldn't I have just doged it instead?

"Help!"

Shao Yi was also dumbfounded. He'd initially thought of throwing the short sword, finding an opening, and running.

Yet, after seeing what happened, both of his legs felt like molten lead had been poured into them, preventing him from moving.

His eyes were filled with disbelief, and even his voice became shaky as he said, "I-Innate Level physique?"

"No…" Xu Xiaoshou took a deep breath. "That's incorrect."

"Huh?"

"That was actually '10 Sections of the Finger Sword.'"

"Huh!?"

Shao Yi was feeling as if the world were falling down around him, and he was no longer able to think at all.

"This guy is Xu Xiaoshou!" he thought.

Yet, how could he be Xu Xiaoshou??

But that Innate Level physique...

None of the 33 in the Inner Yard had something like that!

This was definitely Xu Xiaoshou!

Shao Yi felt like his eyes were about to pop out of his sockets and like his brain were about to explode, as he found the revelation utterly unacceptable.

If this man were indeed Xu Xiaoshou, then his level of powers were simply that of someone who had just made a breakthrough into Spiritual Cultivation Level Nine, which would make him little more than an insect in Shao Yi's eyes.

"Both of us actually got played like that for so d*mn long?" he thought.

"And he actually scared Kong so much that he bolted?"

Doubted, Passive Points +1.

Doubted, Passive Points +1.

"…"

The lines kept popping up on the Information Bar in his mind. Xu Xiaoshou knew that he wouldn't be able to keep that under wraps for long.

He was exasperated that all the effort he'd put into pretending to be bigger than he actually was had all been for naught because of that one flick of the finger. No one would think that he was really just doing such a thing out of habit.

One's habits could really bring about one's doom.

"Sorry for lying. I'm Xu Xiaoshou.

"You're a good person…"

Shao Yi was fuming. He was so enraged that he was about to suffer internal hemorrhaging.

He siphoned his spiritual source and was about to attack, when he found that he had little to spare by then.

"You have no spiritual source left, which means that you won't be able to beat me."

Xu Xiaoshou knew that man's condition like the back of his own hand and advised, "Leave now and I'll pretend that you were never here, and I'll just go back to sleep?"

"You'll be sleeping in a coffin, because I'm going to make sure you're dead!" Shao Yi rushed at him with a short sword in his hand.

It was frustrating enough being duped and seeing one's beliefs crumble before one's eyes, and worse still, Xu Xiaoshou had taunted him like he was all high and mighty, and that was something Shao Yi wasn't going to take lying down.

Berated, Passive Points +1.

Nice!

Xu Xiaoshou leapt and quickly retreated.

He'd been afraid that the man before him would actually cool down and run away just to call his friend.

He totally didn't expect the man to lose his cool so much that he'd choose to fight instead.

"Even though a Spiritual Cultivator at the peak of Origin Court level is very powerful, do you seriously think you can fight when you've no spiritual source left?

"You really think that that frail body of yours will be of any use?"

Despite his thoughts, Xu Xiaoshou was still running as fast as he could.

Although it was fun jeering at his enemy, if that man had somehow retained even a bit of spiritual source, it would be enough to take him out.

"I can't afford to give him any chances," he thought.

"I need to make sure that all of his spiritual source is burned away before I can make a move."

Pursued, Passive Points +1.

"Huh?" he thought.

"What the h*ll?"