Chapter Thirty-Six: Is Hiding All You Can Do?

"Are you sure you want to say so much?" Ling Xiao tilted his head, retorting.

Wu Xier was startled, a faint trace of disappointment flickered in her eyes as she gazed at Ling Xiao. "Yes, this is you, this is the real you!"

"Words are useless. Will you fight?" Ling Xiao's voice was icy to the bone, but if one listened carefully, there was a slight tremor in his tone.

Wu Xier pressed her lips together, her expression indifferent. "As you wish, then let us begin!"

Ling Xiao rushed forward, surging with spiritual energy, and threw a punch. Facing Wu Xier, he employed his spiritual power!

That punch contained so much.

"Wu Senior Sister!"

Seeing Ling Xiao charging right up to her and Wu Xier remaining unresponsive, the four of Fuping called out anxiously.

Wu Xier's body trembled, her eyes cleared, and she looked at the fist so close before her. Slowly, she closed her eyes.

A long time passed, yet Ling Xiao's fist never struck. When she opened her eyes, the fist remained suspended in front of her, dominating her vision. Just another inch and it would land on her face.

"You still can't do it," Wu Xier laughed, blooming like a lofty mountain flower—beautiful. She spoke in a voice only the two of them could hear.

Ling Xiao was silent. His trembling hand betrayed the turmoil in his heart. Indeed, he couldn't strike her; facing that face, that person, he simply couldn't bring himself to do it.

"If you remain as you are now, someday I'll kill you!"

Ling Xiao's pupils contracted and he swiftly pulled back, distancing himself from her.

Sure enough, Wu Xier's right hand was already raised, spiritual energy gathering in her palm. Had Ling Xiao hesitated for a moment, he would have been caught.

The spot Wu Xier targeted was Ling Xiao's abdomen. If she succeeded, Ling Xiao would be crippled once again.

Shock, confusion, and heartbreak all surged in Ling Xiao's eyes as he looked at Wu Xier, as if asking, "Why are you doing this?"

Wu Xier briefly dodged Ling Xiao's gaze, then regained her composure and met his eyes directly.

"You've lost," Wu Xier said calmly. "If you persist in blocking me, there'll be no next chance for you to react."

Ling Xiao clenched his teeth, his unyielding stance saying everything.

"Enough."

Just as Wu Xier was about to move, Shen Qingyun suddenly spoke and walked up beside Ling Xiao. "It's enough. Leave the rest to me."

Ling Xiao turned to look at him, his gaze complex. "Brother Shen..."

Shen Qingyun met his eyes, smiling. "You've shown me enough. Leave it to me from here."

Ling Xiao, once towering like a pillar, now seemed diminished, returning to his usual self. He smiled easily at Shen Qingyun. "Brother Shen, thank you."

Shen Qingyun smiled, then turned to face Wu Xier.

Wu Xier's expression was impassive. "I thought you'd wait until I'd utterly crippled him before stepping in."

"Though I don't care much for him, I can't just stand by and watch him become a cripple before my eyes," Shen Qingyun narrowed his eyes, his tone slightly cold. "Or perhaps, I can't bear to see someone like you lay hands on my senior brother."

"Someone like me?"

Wu Xier sneered. "Then I really want to ask you, what kind of person am I?"

Shen Qingyun shook his head. "I won't say in front of you what kind of person you are. To me, you are one way; to others, another. So, what kind of person you are, you know best in your heart."

"I'm finding myself more and more intrigued by you."

"You shouldn't be saying that to me."

With that, a fiery red whip appeared in Wu Xier's hand, flames flickering faintly along its length.

Shen Qingyun raised his brows. "A spiritual weapon? Planning to welcome me with this from the start? You do hold me in high regard."

"Facing someone who could single-handedly defeat fourteen Foundation Establishment cultivators, I think this preparation is far from enough."

Shen Qingyun was taken aback, not expecting the usually cold Wu Xier to have a humorous side.

After speaking, Wu Xier swung her whip, which whistled through the air as it lashed toward Shen Qingyun.

Shen Qingyun could feel the heat emanating from the whip; if he were struck, the temperature alone would burn him.

As the whip neared, Shen Qingyun showed no fear. With a sidestep, he dodged it easily.

One never intended to fight seriously; the other had no desire to fight at all.

The whip struck the ground with a sharp crack, leaving a scorched mark. The smell of burning filled the air.

"Wu Senior Sister, your aim seems a little off," Shen Qingyun said with a cheerful smile.

"Oh?"

Wu Xier was surrounded by spiritual energy, the elemental aura causing the temperature in the area to rise sharply.

"It won't be off next time," Wu Xier said coldly. Seeing herself underestimated, the urge to simply give Shen Qingyun one lash and let it end evaporated. Instead, she resolved to teach him a proper lesson.

"Is that so? I'm looking forward to it." Shen Qingyun smiled slightly, stepped forward, and vanished from his spot.

"He's gone?!"

Everyone present was stunned; this was the first time they had witnessed such a sight. Their hearts trembled—could a Qi Cultivator really achieve this? They thought, even at their fastest, they'd leave a shadow along their path.

Shen Qingyun, however, had simply disappeared!

Then it dawned on them—perhaps this was how Shen Qingyun had defeated fourteen Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Wu Xier was equally astonished, but quickly reminded herself she was in a battle and couldn't afford distraction.

She immediately channeled her spiritual power, and behind her appeared a phantom serpent, several yards long, coiling tightly around her.

Seeing this, those who had been worried about Wu Xier instantly relaxed. Their admiration grew; while they struggled at the early stages of Foundation Establishment, Wu Xier had already far surpassed them, stepping into its later stage.

That phantom, fiery-red giant serpent was proof.

The fire serpent seemed alive, its emerald eyes rolling as if searching for something.

Suddenly, it locked onto a target and launched a swift attack, carrying terrifying heat toward a direction.

Just as everyone thought the fire serpent had found Shen Qingyun, it coiled up again, adopting a defensive posture, then shot off in another direction.

Again and again, the clearing before the pond became scorched earth, the air thick with a pungent smell.

"Does Brother Shen only know how to dodge?"

The fire serpent failed again and again to catch Shen Qingyun's whereabouts, and Wu Xier, usually composed, couldn't help but speak, her words full of mockery.

"Heh, does Wu Senior Sister resort only to such words when at a loss?"

Shen Qingyun's voice came from all sides, seeming to blend into the space itself—everywhere and nowhere.