Sixteen shards flew out simultaneously, but not a single one was aimed at Xie Yue and Hu Liena — at least, that was how it appeared to them.
Xie Yue laughed. "So this is what you call a self-created soul skill?"
Tang San laughed too, but he didn't say a word. Instead, he thudded heavily to the ground and passed out cold. Even so, the smile on his face hadn't changed in the slightest.
Tang San was laughing at Xie Yue — laughing at someone who dared to mock Bat Wing Reincarnation, one of the top ten hidden weapon techniques of the Tang Sect.
Bat Wing Reincarnation ranked tenth among the Tang Sect's hidden weapon techniques. It could be executed with any hidden weapon, and the maximum number of projectiles launched simultaneously was thirty-six. Given Tang San's current strength and control, the most he could manage was eighteen. The sixteen shards he had just unleashed represented the absolute limit of what he could achieve before losing consciousness.
Not a single shard traveled in a straight line. They all dispersed in graceful arcs.
The instant Tang San collapsed, Xie Yue's expression changed. He simultaneously felt two sharp gusts of wind converging on him from both sides.
Without a moment's hesitation, he raised his twin crescent blades and knocked the two shards away.
Two crisp clinks rang out as the shards went flying. Hu Liena was just as startled — far more shards had been sent her way, a full four of them. However, she was a Soul King after all, and even though her soul power was nearly depleted, with the support of her team's auxiliary Soul Master, she still managed to flick all four shards away with her fingernails.
Just as the two of them exhaled in relief, they both felt a numb tingle on their bodies at almost the same time. Staring at each other in disbelief, they reached up and touched the shards that had landed on their shoulders.
What they hadn't seen was that the six shards attacking them — the ones they had just deflected — had simultaneously redirected toward each other in midair, again traveling along arcing trajectories. The curves were subtle enough that the whistling sound of their flight was virtually inaudible.
If Bat Wing Reincarnation were that easy to counter, it wouldn't deserve its place among the Tang Sect's top ten techniques. Though Tang San had been nearly drained of soul power when he launched the attack, the effect he wanted had already been achieved.
Not a single shard had missed its mark on Xie Yue's and Hu Liena's shoulders. Xie Yue had taken the four shards originally aimed at Hu Liena, while Hu Liena had received the two meant for him. All six shards found their targets without exception.
The force behind the shards was rather feeble — they had only managed to slice through their clothing and graze a thin layer of skin.
If Xie Yue and Hu Liena had been at full strength, they could have fully unleashed their soul power to block Tang San's Bat Wing Reincarnation technique. But right now, they simply didn't have that capability. And all of this — every last detail — had been calculated by Tang San before he lost consciousness.
A thin cut on the skin was all he needed. One mustn't forget that the Eight Spider Lances carried a terrifying toxin so potent that even the Poison Douluo would have found it an extreme headache to deal with.
Almost in the span of a single heartbeat, Xie Yue and Hu Liena realized that their shoulders had gone completely numb. Panic seized them both, but by the time they considered severing the affected limbs, it was already too late — the numbness had already spread to their chests.
Without the slightest hesitation, the brother and sister immediately sat cross-legged on the ground, desperately channeling what little soul power they had left to resist the spreading poison. It was the only thing they could do.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud. Four bodies hit the ground in near-saveme. Besides Yan, the other four members of the Spirit Hall Academy team collapsed almost simultaneously with Xie Yue and Hu Liena. The weakest among them — an auxiliary-type Soul Master — had already passed out cold entirely.
Of the sixteen shards Tang San had launched with his Bat Wing Reincarnation technique, six had been directed at the Xie Yue siblings. The remaining ten were split among the other five opponents.
In the instant the shards left his hands, Tang San's brain had been working at a frantic pace in pursuit of accuracy. Through the judgment granted by his Purple Extreme Demon Eye, he had even predicted the movements of the other five targets over the next several seconds. It was precisely this mental overexertion in his weakened state that had caused him to collapse.
The remaining ten shards were remarkably difficult to deal with — not only did they travel along arcing paths, but they skimmed just above the ground. Although some of the opponents who reacted in time managed to deflect the shards aimed at them, the deflected projectiles simply changed course and found new targets.
Only Yan, who had been the most vigilant, had fully unleashed his soul power and repeatedly blocked the spent shards of the Eight Spider Lances. Every other member of the team was hit.
For anyone watching, the scene on the field had taken a dramatic turn. The side that had been completely dominant just moments ago now had six members down, leaving only Yan standing alone.