Instantly... BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Beneath the great tree, Chang Yuan and Shen Ji clashed, their True Qi erupting in constant explosions.
Meanwhile, Chi Yuan and Chi Ting merely watched with cold detachment.
Chi Yuan spoke coolly, "What a waste. A respectable Peak Sixth Layer cultivator, and he was nearly assassinated."
Chi Ting, however, looked up at Cheng Yunsu in the tree...
He then glanced at the seven Red Sword Guards and issued a cold command, "Keep Lu Chao occupied. I’m going to take his woman."
With that, Chi Ting’s face twisted into a vicious expression as he flashed toward the great tree where Cheng Yunsu was perched...
At the same time... Kill!
Receiving their orders, the seven Red Sword Guards immediately moved to surround and kill Lu Chao.
If Lu Chao were to be surrounded, Cheng Yunsu would be completely powerless against Chi Ting.
Falling into Chi Ting’s hands meant it would all be over.
And one must not forget, Chang Yuan’s son was there with Cheng Yunsu.
But how could Lu Chao possibly let Chi Ting succeed? At the very moment the seven Red Sword Guards closed in for the kill...
Lu Chao gave a low shout, "Thousand Illusions, Cloud-Stepping Leg."
He instantly executed one of Great Wu’s top ten Martial Techniques and Body Techniques, launching himself into the air.
But the Red Sword Guard captain had already shouted, "Trying to escape our siege with Body and Footwork Techniques like that? Are you dreaming?"
As he spoke, he too executed a bizarre body technique, instantly blocking Lu Chao’s path.
A cold glint flashed in Lu Chao’s eyes as he yelled, "Soldier-Breaking Fist!"
He threw a punch directly at the Red Sword Guard captain, his True Qi once again solidifying into an incomparably hard, sharp cone that shot forward.
The Red Sword Guard captain met it with a punch of his own.
Instantly, it was fist against fist!
"You’re only at the True Fate Eighth Layer. I may not match your Martial Techniques or combat instincts, but what makes you think you can compete with my True Qi?"
The Red Sword Guard captain sneered.
To this, Lu Chao replied with a deadpan expression, "Are seven Star Divine Bones, plus one Moon Profound Bone, enough?"
The moment he finished speaking, the Slaughter Sword Bone, Dragon General Bone, Violent Bone, Double Fire Roaring, and Water Chant Bone all erupted at once. True Qi of various attributes flooded into the Soldier-Breaking Fist’s cone, then slammed viciously into the Red Sword Guard captain’s Fist Force.
In an instant... PTAH!
The sneer on the Red Sword Guard captain’s face vanished instantly.
He could only feel his True Qi fall into disarray, completely stunned by the sudden onslaught of different elemental powers.
In that moment of shock, Lu Chao’s Soldier-Breaking Fist cone smashed into his opponent’s fist...
CRACK!
The sound of breaking bones came from within the fist. The Red Sword Guard captain let out a bloodcurdling scream and was sent flying backward.
It all happened in a flash. By the time the Red Sword Guard captain was sent flying, the six regular Red Sword Guards behind him hadn’t even caught up, and Chi Ting had only just reached Cheng Yunsu.
Without a second glance at the captain, Lu Chao stepped on empty air and flashed in pursuit of Chi Ting...
Below, Chi Yuan saw this and yelled, "Chi Ting, watch out!"
As he shouted the warning...
...Chi Yuan had already unleashed the ripples of his Moon Mortal Bone, sending them to suppress Lu Chao. But Chi Ting’s Moon Mortal Bone had been useless before, and now that Lu Chao had absorbed the Moon Profound Breaking Soldier Bone, he naturally ignored the Moon Mortal Bone’s suppression completely.
’His Destiny Bone is of a lower rank than mine, so what’s he going to suppress?’
Alerted by Chi Yuan’s warning, Chi Ting whipped his head around, his eyes widening as he shrieked, "Red Bee Needle..."
Streams of Flying Needles formed from True Qi shot toward the approaching Lu Chao...
But Lu Chao just said coldly, "Soldier-Breaking Shield!"
A cone-shaped True Qi Shield materialized before Lu Chao, deflecting all the sharp needles without slowing him in the slightest. In an instant, he was right in front of Chi Ting.
With a WHOOSH, Lu Chao spoke again, "Soldier-Breaking Claw!"
He shot out his hand, his five fingers solidifying into five sharp cones like a claw. They pierced through Chi Ting’s Protective True Qi in one go, clamping directly onto his neck.
Lu Chao glanced back and barked, "One more step and I’ll kill Chi Ting."
Behind him, the six pursuing Red Sword Guards heard his words and froze in place, stopping on the tree branches.
The situation had now become...
Beneath the great tree, Chang Yuan and Shen Ji were still locked in a frenzied battle. Despite having a weaker cultivation realm, Chang Yuan fought like a demon, tearing madly at his opponent. He was a starving wolf, determined to... bite, bite, bite.
Up in the tree, Cheng Yunsu still held her bow, her expression cool and unflinching.
On a branch beside her lay the semi-conscious form of Chang Yuan’s son, Chang Duan. And on a branch a short distance away, Lu Chao held Chi Ting by the neck with his claw-hand, facing down the six Red Sword Guards.
In the next instant, with two WHOOSHES...
...Chi Yuan and the Red Sword Guard captain who had just been sent flying both landed on the branches, staring intently at Lu Chao and Chi Ting.
Meanwhile, Chi Ting’s True Qi was still flaring...
He struggled frantically to break free from Lu Chao’s Soldier-Breaking Claw, but to no avail. He managed to force out the words, "Your True Qi... it’s still at the True Fate Eighth Layer. Why is it so much stronger than before?"
Chi Ting could now clearly feel that Lu Chao’s True Qi was far more powerful and solidified than it had been at the Beast Flame Academy.
Of course, Lu Chao had no intention of explaining that it was because he had absorbed a Star Moon Profound Bone. He simply swept his gaze across the scene and asked Chi Yuan, "Do you want Chi Ting to live or not?"
Chi Yuan stared at Lu Chao. The seven Red Sword Guards stared at Lu Chao...
Suddenly... heh heh heh heh!
Chi Yuan let out a low laugh and retorted sharply, "Impressive. But you have a hostage, and you think I don’t?"
As he said this... VMM!
Chi Yuan abruptly unleashed the aura of his Moon Mortal Bone, sending ripples directly toward Chang Yuan, who was fighting below the tree. Chi Yuan then said coldly, "Destiny Bone suppression for me... this man named Chang is my hostage."
Under the Destiny Bone suppression, Chang Yuan would be unable to move, making him the perfect hostage.
And indeed, the True Qi in Chang Yuan’s body, who had been fighting like a mad wolf, instantly froze. He could barely move.
Seeing this, Chi Yuan gave another soft command, "Shen Ji, stop for now."
He immediately halted Shen Ji, who had been preparing to execute Chang Yuan.
Shen Ji had been in a crazed state, but after seeing Chi Ting in Lu Chao’s grasp, he hesitated and stopped. He slowly pulled Chang Yuan’s sword from his own shoulder and took a grim step toward Chang Yuan...
Seeing that Shen Ji was no longer acting erratically, Chi Yuan turned to Lu Chao and smiled...
"You spoke of willpower before. Your so-called willpower might be able to break your own Destiny Bone suppression, but can it break someone else’s?"
"Now, throw Chi Ting over to me, and I’ll give you Chang Yuan back."
"I believe what Shen Ji said now. You care a great deal for Chang Yuan and his family, so you certainly wouldn’t just stand by and watch them die, right?"
Because of Chang Yuan’s appearance, Chi Yuan had begun to believe Shen Ji’s earlier words.
At the same time, Chi Ting also forced out, "Lu Chao, let me go now."
As he spoke, he and Chi Yuan exchanged a look from across the distance...
A cold, sinister understanding was written in both their eyes. As soon as Lu Chao exchanged hostages, they would immediately use Destiny Bone suppression on his woman, and of course, continue to suppress Chang Yuan. Dealing with Lu Chao would be much simpler then.
Faced with Chi Yuan and Chi Ting’s wishful thinking, Lu Chao suddenly laughed. He replied indifferently, "A quarter of an hour ago, I couldn’t break another’s Destiny Bone suppression. But now... Break!"
The single word "Break" boomed from Lu Chao’s mouth, directed at Chang Yuan.