"Then what kind of benefit do you want?" The young woman seemed somewhat displeased that Yang Kai would try to negotiate terms with her at a time like this.
Before Yang Kai could respond, Kong Wendong had already denied him the chance. How could he sit idly by and watch Yang Kai be won over by the young woman? His expression turned fierce, and he shouted harshly: "Kid, Kong here already gave you a chance. You're the one seeking your own death, so don't blame anyone else. A mere Return to Void first layer cultivator—when I, Kong, want to kill you, who can stop me?"
As he spoke, his Sacred Energy surged into motion, scorching heat radiating from within his body, causing the temperature in the surroundings to rise dramatically.
He looked as though he was about to go on a killing spree, but in truth, he was merely putting on an act, hoping to scare Yang Kai away. Having already offended Yang Kai with his words, he naturally didn't want him to stick around—but not knowing Yang Kai's true strength, he didn't actually want to escalate to a real fight either.
The plan was sound and the thinking was clear, but the palace-robed young woman was no fool. How could she watch idly as Yang Kai, a wildcard, left the scene? Before Kong Wendong's words had even faded, she let out a sharp cry: "If you've got the guts, then try it!"
The chill emanating from her delicate body intensified, and she stared Kong Wendong down without flinching.
Yang Kai furrowed his brow, his gaze turning somewhat dark as he regarded the beautiful woman.
On the surface, what she'd said sounded perfectly fine—even somewhat protective, as though she were standing up for him. But if Yang Kai's guess was correct, she was far from being that kind-hearted.
She seemed to be practically begging for Kong Wendong to attack him.
This was understandable. If the bald man really did strike at him, it would inevitably push him to the side of the three women, forcing him to become their ally! At that point, whether he wanted to or not, if he wanted to survive, he'd have no choice but to join forces with them!
This woman... was nothing like the pure, ice-cold image she projected on the surface. In fact, she was deeply calculating. This caused Yang Kai's impression of her to drop considerably.
The key question now was whether Kong Wendong would fall for her provocation! At this thought, Yang Kai looked toward the bald man again, and after just one glance, let out a faint sigh.
The man was a warrior of the Fire Radiance Sect. His cultivation technique was undoubtedly fire-attributed, and warriors who cultivated such techniques mostly shared one common flaw—they had fiery tempers and aggressive dispositions. This had nothing to do with their personal character; it was entirely a product of their cultivation technique.
The young woman's words had already put Kong Wendong in a position where he couldn't back down, and given that he wasn't exactly a mild-tempered person to begin with, why would he hesitate any further? Besides, a mere Return to Void first layer cultivator—he genuinely didn't consider him a threat. Otherwise, he wouldn't have so rudely tried to drive Yang Kai away when he first arrived.
With a vicious grin, Kong Wendong said: "Kid, don't blame me when you reach the underworld. If you want to blame someone, blame that wretched wench—she's the one who forced my hand!"
As he spoke, he spread his hand wide in a phantom grabbing gesture and slammed it down toward Yang Kai.
The fire-attributed spiritual energy between heaven and earth surged together in an instant. Gathering above Yang Kai's head, it wasn't long before flames shot skyward and a massive palm of fire took shape, blazing fiercely as it ruthlessly crashed down upon him.
At the sight of this, the women on the young woman's side all narrowed their eyes, their faces filled with shock. Though they regularly clashed with warriors from the Fire Radiance Sect, this was the first time they had witnessed an attack of such magnitude. Kong Wendong had already pushed fire-attributed attacks to their absolute limit!
Shock was shock, but the leading young woman wasn't about to let this rare opportunity slip by!
The very instant Kong Wendong attacked Yang Kai and nearly everyone's attention was drawn away, her hands suddenly began to dance like butterflies flitting among flowers. A bone-piercing chill radiated from her body, and a pure white ice lance materialized before her. With a sharp cry, the lance trembled slightly in the air and shot toward the weakest warrior on the opposing side like an arrow loosed from a bow.
That warrior's cultivation was at the same level as Yang Kai's—both at the first layer of the Return to Void Realm, the weakest among the seven.
Better to sever one finger than to injure all ten. The young woman was fair of face, but her strikes were merciless and without a shred of restraint.
A scream pierced the air immediately as a jet of blood sprayed from the body of the warrior she had targeted. Though he had instinctively shifted his body in the critical moment before the attack struck, the ice lance had still pierced clean through his abdomen, leaving him drenched in blood in an instant—gravely wounded!
After all, this was a sneak attack from a warrior two minor realms above him. That he had survived at all was nothing short of miraculous. Even so, he had lost the majority of his combat strength. If a full-scale battle broke out from here on, he would be of little use.
Having scored her hit, a satisfied smile surfaced on the young woman's lovely face.
But after a brief moment of stunned silence, Kong Wendong's face contorted into a vicious snarl, and he said through gritted teeth: "Wretched wench, so that was your plan all along!"
He had underestimated the young woman's cunning. He had assumed that once he attacked Yang Kai, she would rush to rescue him, curry favor with him, and then recruit this fresh combatant to create a four-on-four standoff.
Little did he know that she hadn't cared about Yang Kai's fate at all, harboring no intention of rescuing the boy. Instead, she had seized the opportunity to severely wound one of his own. Trading the life of an unknown boy for one of her opponent's fighters—this was a deal from which Ice Heart Valley had come out way ahead!