With an endless surge of killing intent in her heart, Wanwan's right hand moved, and white ribbons appeared in both her palms. These ribbons, like snakes, darted left and right toward Xu Ziling.
These were Wanwan's weapons, the Heavenly Demon Ribbons, used in conjunction with her Heavenly Demon Force Field. Though they appeared to be two separate ribbons, they were actually one.
"Ling Shao, be careful!"
Kou Zhong, who had just escaped Wanwan's Heavenly Demon Force Field, saw Xu Ziling use his Taiji Fist to deflect one ribbon while taking the full force of the other. Xu Ziling's body trembled, and he was forced back three steps. Kou Zhong immediately stepped forward, his Well Moon Blade flashing with a cold yellow light as he slashed at Wanwan's ribbon, which was poised to follow up with another attack.
In terms of martial arts level, neither the Longevity Scripture nor the Taiji Fist was inferior to Wanwan's Heavenly Demon Art. However, Xu Ziling's internal energy was far weaker than Wanwan's, putting him at a disadvantage. This was despite the fact that both Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling had taken the Real Pill provided by Daniel Davis, which had enhanced their internal energy.
If it had been before, Xu Ziling's Taiji Force Field wouldn't have been able to shake Wanwan's Heavenly Demon Force Field. Although Wanwan was about the same age as the Twin Dragons, she had started cultivating at a very young age, while the Twin Dragons had only begun recently.
The Longevity Scripture was indeed powerful, but the Heavenly Demon Art was no slouch either. Coupled with Wanwan's natural talent and the vast resources of the Demon Sect, even with the Longevity Scripture, the Twin Dragons couldn't bridge the gap.
Even after absorbing the power of the He Shi Bi, the Twin Dragons were still far behind Wanwan. It was only after fully integrating the He Shi Bi's power that they surpassed her.
In their first encounter with Wanwan, if it hadn't been for Wanwan's carelessness and the timely appearance of Hou Xibai, the Twin Dragons might have fallen to her. Even later, when they teamed up with Ba Fenghan, the three of them were still no match for Wanwan.
"Hmm?" Wanwan, surprised by the collision between her ribbon and Kou Zhong's Well Moon Blade, glanced at Kou Zhong.
In the previous exchange, Wanwan had been caught off guard and suffered a minor setback. Although she wasn't injured, her momentum was broken by Kou Zhong's blade.
Due to her earlier encounter with Xu Ziling, Wanwan had assumed Kou Zhong's energy would also be of the fiery attribute. However, Kou Zhong's energy was not only not fiery but was instead cold and yin in nature, completely opposite to Xu Ziling's. This was the true source of Wanwan's surprise—two people practicing the same Longevity Scripture but developing completely different energy attributes.
"Ling Shao, this woman is tough. Even Feng Shihan can't compare to her." Kou Zhong, gripping his Well Moon Blade, stood beside Xu Ziling, both of them glaring at Wanwan.
Although Wanwan had been caught off guard and suffered a minor setback, Kou Zhong hadn't come out unscathed either. While Wanwan's energy was also yin in nature, Kou Zhong's was a pure, cold yin, while Wanwan's carried a hint of malevolence.
"Isn't this perfect, Zhong Shao?" Xu Ziling's eyes rarely showed such strong fighting spirit. Although Xu Ziling's personality was usually detached, this didn't mean he lacked other pursuits. Martial arts was one of them.
"Exactly. We're not the same as before. We're no longer those small-time thugs from Yangzhou. Look at the woman in front of us—the Demon Sect's Holy Maiden. In the past, we wouldn't even have been worthy to look up to her. But now, here we are, standing in her presence."
The Twin Dragons had come a long way, weathering countless trials. Their earlier petty ambitions as street ruffians had mostly faded, leaving only the faint and frivolous thought of visiting a brothel. Their aspirations had grown far beyond such trivialities.
As he spoke, Kou Zhong raised his Well Moon Blade high, and a brilliant light shone from its edge. With a loud shout, a powerful blade aura erupted from the blade, slashing toward Wanwan—A Glimpse of Cold, one of the Six Cold-Blooded Techniques.
During their time at the Flying Horse Ranch before the Four Great Bandits attacked, Daniel Davis had not only given Kou Zhong the Well Moon Blade he had obtained from Xiao Xian but also taught the Twin Dragons some other martial arts: the Three Supreme Techniques—Frost Fist, Cloud-Parting Palm, and Wind God's Leg—as well as the Six Cold-Blooded Techniques and the Holy Spirit Sword Art.
Xiao Xian had been truly unfortunate. As a descendant of the Southern Liang Dynasty, he had once led a powerful rebel army and even declared himself emperor. But after encountering Daniel Davis, not only did his plans to become emperor fail, but his entire operation was dismantled before it even began.
To further boost the Twin Dragons' strength, Daniel Davis had given them the Real Pill. It wasn't that he was unwilling to give them the Immortal Gathering Pill or the Blood Bodhi, but for others, he wouldn't be so generous. However, for the Twin Dragons, he didn't hold back. The issue was that absorbing such powerful drugs took time.
While giving the Twin Dragons the Immortal Gathering Pill or Blood Bodhi directly wouldn't have been a problem, it wouldn't have been beneficial for their future development. Due to their late start in martial arts, the Twin Dragons needed to build a solid foundation. Although the Real Pill wasn't as potent as the Immortal Gathering Pill, its effects—clearing the body's meridians, strengthening yin and yang energies, and unlocking various physical potentials—were still highly beneficial for the Twin Dragons.
"Hmph." Facing Kou Zhong's attack, Wanwan snorted coldly. The two ribbons in her hands merged into one, transforming into an incredibly agile snake that instantly wrapped around the blade aura Kou Zhong had unleashed. With a sharp tug, the massive blade aura disintegrated.
After dispelling Kou Zhong's blade aura, Wanwan didn't give the Twin Dragons a chance to counterattack. Her ribbon danced in front of her, forcing Xu Ziling, who had been preparing to strike, to retreat.
The three of them immediately engaged in a fierce battle. Although Wanwan's martial arts were superior to the Twin Dragons', her need to avoid injury, coupled with the Longevity Scripture's rapid recovery capabilities, made the fight seem evenly matched for the time being.
The Heavenly Demon Art's energy was inherently cold and malevolent. For others, if their strength was inferior to Wanwan's, the malevolent energy invading their bodies would inevitably weaken them. However, the Twin Dragons didn't have this problem.
Boom! Boom!
While the Twin Dragons were battling Wanwan, Zhu Yuyan and Lu Miaozi were engaged in a brutal fight nearby. The two old enemies were locked in a life-and-death struggle.
Under the immense energy unleashed by the two, the surrounding buildings were reduced to rubble. Although Zhu Yuyan's Heavenly Demon Force Field was far more powerful than Wanwan's, Lu Miaozi was also a top-tier grandmaster and wasn't easily affected by it.
Nearby, Shang Xiuxun was deeply concerned about Lu Miaozi, but her own opponent was formidable, leaving her no opportunity to assist him.
The Demon Sect's cooperation with Li Mi seemed to be taken very seriously. Not only had Zhu Yuyan and Wanwan, her disciple, come, but many other Demon Sect elders had also joined the fray.
For example, the Silver-Haired Demoness Dan Mei, Wen Caiting, Bian Bufu, and other Demon Sect elders, along with their elite disciples, had all arrived. From the number of people mobilized, it was clear that Zhu Yuyan was determined to take the Flying Horse Ranch.
However, the Flying Horse Ranch was no pushover. Shang Xiuxun had two grandmaster-level stewards under her command. Originally, there had been four stewards, but two had been executed for betrayal.
In addition to them, there was the chief steward, Shang Zhen, and two elder-level experts, Shang Peng and Shang He. In the original story, these two had died unjustly at Wanwan's hands due to a moment of carelessness, not because they were weak.
If they had known about the Heavenly Demon Art's characteristics in advance, even Wanwan would have had a hard time defeating them quickly. Now, it was three against three: Shang Xiuxun, along with the two elders, faced Bian Bufu, Wen Caiting, and Dan Mei.
Originally, with Shang Xiuxun's enhanced strength and the assistance of the two elders, they should have been stronger than Bian Bufu and the others. When Daniel Davis had given the Twin Dragons the Real Pill, Shang Xiuxun and Lu Miaozi had also taken the Immortal Gathering Pill.
However, Bian Bufu's vulgar insults had enraged Shang Xiuxun, causing her to lose her composure and underperform. As the owner of the Flying Horse Ranch, Shang Xiuxun held a high position and had considerable strength, but her combat experience paled in comparison to the Demon Sect's.
Fortunately, the two elders were highly experienced, and Dan Mei's strength was somewhat lacking, allowing the battle to remain evenly matched.
"It seems that even with the Immortal Gathering Pill, Lu Miaozi is still slightly behind Zhu Yuyan."
This time, the Demon Sect's Yin Kuai Sect had almost fully mobilized. For Daniel Davis, this was a great opportunity. He had initially planned to take action and subdue the Demon Sect in one fell swoop, but Lu Miaozi had made a request: he wanted to settle things with Zhu Yuyan once and for all.
After so many years, although Lu Miaozi regretted his past feelings for Zhu Yuyan, she had once been someone he loved. Even though his feelings had faded, he had no intention of killing her, as Lu Miaozi wasn't a member of the Demon Sect.
Considering that both sides would be working under him in the future, Daniel Davis agreed to Lu Miaozi's request. After all, with him watching, there was no chance of anything going wrong.
"It's a pity Li Mi didn't come personally. Otherwise, we could have taken the opportunity to eliminate him."
This time, the person leading Li Mi's forces was his general, Zu Junyan, who had brought a thousand elite soldiers, mixed in with the Four Great Bandits' army, planning to strike from within at a critical moment and take the Flying Horse Ranch in one fell swoop.
It had to be said that Li Mi's actions were somewhat baffling. Despite having the more capable Shen Luoyan here, he hadn't put her in charge of the operation at the Flying Horse Ranch.
Even if he didn't trust Shen Luoyan, there was still Xu Shiji, who seemed to have also fallen out of favor with Li Mi. In the Li Clan's ranks, Xu Shiji's status was far lower than that of Zu Junyan and Wang Bodang.
"Alright, they've entered the trap. It's time to act."
After sensing the position of Li Mi's army with his Observation Haki, Daniel Davis immediately instructed Shang Zhen, the chief steward of the Flying Horse Ranch.
"Yes." Shang Zhen nodded in acknowledgment.
Daniel Davis was well aware of his limitations—he was no military strategist. However, his Observation Haki was essentially cheating. It was like playing a strategy game with a full map hack, combined with the traps and mechanisms Lu Miaozi had set up around the Flying Horse Ranch.
This was a guaranteed victory.
Lu Miaozi had been hiding at the Flying Horse Ranch for nearly thirty years, and during that time, he hadn't been idle. On the contrary, he had been researching mechanical arts. Beneath his pavilion was a vast underground space filled with traps and mechanisms, originally intended as his final resting place.
This underground space also contained the treasures Lu Miaozi had collected over the years, as well as his life's work. Xu Ziling and Kou Zhong had only learned a fraction of his knowledge.
In later generations, during Wu Zetian's reign, one of Shang Xiuxun's descendants had attempted to find this treasure trove but ultimately gave up due to the complexity of the mechanisms.
The battle ended quickly. After all, the Flying Horse Ranch had been well-prepared, and with the crossbows they had hastily manufactured, a few volleys of arrows caused heavy casualties among Zu Junyan's forces, shattering their morale.
Lu Miaozi had a deep understanding of military strategy, especially in the realm of war machinery, both on land and water. For example, the Flying Wheel Warship, which had allowed Kou Zhong to dominate on water in the original story, was one of Lu Miaozi's creations.
Of course, this ship technology couldn't compare to what Daniel Davis possessed, not even to the ships in the One Piece world. After all, one was designed for inland rivers, while the other was meant for the open sea.
But compared to the technology of this era, it was undoubtedly advanced. Lu Miaozi's research, originally a hobby, had now been turned into reality.
However, this battle didn't result in Zu Junyan's capture. After ordering his men to cover his retreat, Zu Junyan escaped Shang Zhen's grasp at the cost of losing his right arm.
"Military Advisor Shen, you're the only one left now. Li Mi is jealous of talent and ability. Why not abandon the darkness and join the light? The Li Clan will always welcome you. By the way, we've recently contacted Mr. Xu, and he seems quite disappointed with Li Mi."
Meanwhile, on another part of the battlefield, Li Tianfan and his men had all fallen. Only Shen Luoyan remained standing, largely due to Li Xiuning's mercy.
It had to be said that Li Mi's plan was quite clever, but it was also somewhat naive. The plan to kidnap Li Xiuning was a good one, but he made a fatal mistake: he underestimated his son's character. Li Tianfan was a spoiled playboy, lustful and reckless, even harboring inappropriate thoughts toward Shen Luoyan. Upon seeing Li Xiuning, a beauty of the highest caliber and the daughter of the Li Clan, his lustful desires were further inflamed.
This lustful behavior tipped off Li Xiuning to Li Tianfan's true intentions, allowing her to turn the tables and severely injure Li Tianfan. With their leader incapacitated, Li Tianfan's forces fell into disarray, resulting in a complete rout, with only Shen Luoyan remaining.
"So that's why you showed mercy—it was because of him." Li Xiuning's words brought a self-deprecating smile to Shen Luoyan's face.
Initially, Shen Luoyan had thought the Li Clan valued her abilities. However, it turned out that their mercy was due to Xu Shiji. Although Shen Luoyan would have been fine even without Li Xiuning's mercy, thanks to the talismans Daniel Davis had given her, being treated as an appendage left a bitter taste in her mouth.
In fact, even within the Wagang Army, some people viewed Shen Luoyan in this way—as someone protected by Xu Shiji.
Shen Luoyan's self-deprecating words caused Li Xiuning's expression to shift slightly. Li Xiuning was intelligent and immediately understood the implication behind Shen Luoyan's words.
Like Shen Luoyan, Li Xiuning sometimes resented being born a woman. No matter how talented she was, her gender limited her opportunities to showcase her abilities.
"It seems you're also discontent with your lot in life." Li Xiuning's expression didn't escape Shen Luoyan's notice.
(End of Chapter)
[Get +20 Extra Chapters On — P@tr3on "Mutter"]
[Every 50 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter Drop]
[Thanks for Reading!]