"Guyi, it's dangerous! With your cultivation, you're no match for them after that commotion!"
A figure enveloped in golden-yellow light flapped their wings, propelling themselves forward a great distance, leaving a conspicuous trail in the night sky.
"Sister Cheng'er, since you told me I was born to fight evil soul masters, how can we stand by when they're committing atrocities right outside the capital?"
The figure leading the way was also a young girl, wielding a long sword. Golden radiance seemed to emanate from her body. In the blink of an eye, she surged forward again, already able to vaguely make out the situation on the ground.
The woman behind her, called "Sister Cheng'er," had a slight change in expression. Looking at the golden light ahead, she sighed helplessly and turned to the others beside her. "Get ready. This might be a tough fight."
"We—" Lin Xiao's words were cut short as he suddenly sensed something and looked toward the horizon. The next moment, a golden longsword descended from the sky.
The sword radiated a dazzling light, and the Higanbana blooming around melted silently under its glow, like snow under a blazing sun.
Behind Lin Xiao, the Wu Yun and Wu Yu sisters let out involuntary groans.
Holy Angel, Ye Guyi.
Beneath his mask, Lin Xiao narrowed his eyes. The blinding light made it hard to discern the figure's appearance, but he could just make out the three soul rings around her.
Lin Xiao already knew who stood before him.
Ye Guyi didn't say a word. Hovering in the air, she thrust her longsword forward, using the momentum of her descent to aim at Lin Xiao's head.
Under the radiance of the Holy Angel, Lin Xiao could feel his soul power sluggish slightly.
This was merely a three-ring Soul Elder. He had no doubt that if Ye Guyi had the same cultivation as him, the effect would be even more pronounced.
Was this the nemesis of evil soul masters?
Stepping back half a pace, Lin Xiao dodged the thrust of Ye Guyi's sword and raised a hand to strike at the blade.
Though Ye Guyi wasn't very old, she clearly had considerable combat experience. Lin Xiao's strike allowed her to pivot her longsword in a half-circle, turning the thrust into a slash aimed at him once more.
As for Lin Xiao, the brief contact sent a searing pain through his hand. His movements slowed for a fraction of a second, forcing him to retreat another step.
Nearby, Wu Yun and Wu Yu also launched their attacks, but the mental assault that could affect even a Soul Saint only caused Ye Guyi to waver slightly, barely impacted.
Was this martial soul a bit too overpowered?
Lin Xiao glanced at Ye Guyi again.
He wasn't sure if she was part of Nightmare Douluo's plan or simply passing by. Or perhaps, as the bearer of the Holy Angel martial soul, she had been tracking evil soul masters all along.
Lin Xiao suddenly recalled Shangguan Qing's words and began to suspect who had been destroying evil soul master hideouts.
To act so boldly with such cultivation, she indeed had some skill. Ordinary evil soul masters, unable to fully utilize their strength against her, might actually fall to her.
Unfortunately, the gap in cultivation wasn't easily bridged, and Lin Xiao was no ordinary soul master.
Since she seemed highly resistant to mental attacks, he would approach from the outside.
With a tap and lift of his foot, the corpse of the bandit leader flew toward Ye Guyi.
Seeing Lin Xiao dodge her attack, Ye Guyi prepared to strike again but noticed the corpse hurtling toward her. Its back was tattered, as if it had endured a violent explosion, covered in mangled flesh and blood.
Having dealt with evil soul masters often, Ye Guyi was unfazed. Instead, her eyes burned with greater anger. With a raise of her hand, her longsword cleaved the corpse in two.
Her wings flapped, and she charged through the split corpse toward Lin Xiao.
Then she saw Lin Xiao standing still, clenching his right hand as his third soul ring lit up.
Third soul skill, Bloom.
The Higanbana Seeds bloomed instantly, and when they took root in an opponent's flesh, they would "bloom" along with it.
Lin Xiao held nothing back. The two halves of the corpse exploded right in front of Ye Guyi.
"Guyi!"
A sharp cry rang out, and an orange light descended from the sky, enveloping Ye Guyi. When the blood mist cleared, Ye Guyi was half-kneeling on the ground, surrounded by an orange shield. Clearly, she had been affected by the explosion before the shield protected her.
"Sister Cheng'er, I'm fine."
Lin Xiao's attention had already shifted from Ye Guyi to the "Cheng'er" before him.
Even if Ye Guyi's Holy Angel martial soul countered him, the cultivation gap was too vast. But Cheng'er was different, and he could sense that she and the others who arrived with her had considerable cultivation.
Moreover, with Cheng'er's appearance, he caught a faint scent of phoenix tree wood.
He had only encountered that scent in one place: Qiwu Garden, where Shangguan Wei'er had invited him to a banquet.
The Common Alliance. Was Ye Guyi already part of the Common Alliance at this point?
Lin Xiao's eyes flickered slightly.
This suggested that the earlier incidents were the Common Alliance aiding Ye Guyi's training. There had been no mention of the Holy Angel martial soul before, but ever since the Holy Spirit Cult and the Common Alliance made contact, such news had emerged.
It seemed the Common Alliance's discovery of Ye Guyi wasn't mere luck but driven by other motives.
Cheng'er, looking at the soul rings around Lin Xiao, had an equally grim expression.
Such unusual soul rings led her to guess that the person before her was from the Holy Spirit Cult.
She didn't care whether the recent incidents were truly the work of the Holy Spirit Cult. Her concern was only for Ye Guyi.
After all, no evil soul master would want to see a Holy Angel martial soul appear. Tonight's encounter was unlikely to end peacefully.
With that thought, Cheng'er glanced at Ye Guyi again.
They hadn't told Ye Guyi what kind of organization the Common Alliance truly was, only that it also opposed evil soul masters. Otherwise, with the nature of the Holy Angel martial soul, Ye Guyi would never stay with the Common Alliance.
This had its advantages and disadvantages. In a situation like tonight's, if Cheng'er revealed her identity, given the current relationship between the Common Alliance and the Holy Spirit Cult, they might have been able to resolve things.
Even if the Holy Angel provoked the Holy Spirit Cult's displeasure, it wasn't something that needed to be settled tonight.
But now, in front of Ye Guyi, Cheng'er absolutely couldn't show that they were acquainted with evil soul masters.
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