Zhao Wuji's massive hands had grown exceptionally heavy, like a pair of oversized palm-leaf fans.
Just as Tang San had said, Zhao Wuji hadn't been using his Soul Power before. In fact, before Zhu Zhuqing found the moment when his strength was at its weakest to strike, he hadn't even considered activating Martial Soul Possession.
For a Soul Saint of the seventy-sixth rank, a few Great Soul Masters at twenty-something were simply too weak. He'd only wanted to play around with these kids, stretch his body a little.
But carelessness always came at a price. It was precisely because of his underestimate of their strength, combined with the fact that Tang San and the other two had all been boosted above level thirty by Ning Rongrong's Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, along with their flawless coordination achieved without any practice, that this Immovable Bright King immediately took a hit.
Zhao Wuji slapped the dust off his head and said irritably, "Well, I'll be damned — the eighty-year-old grandmother got outwitted by her own grandchild. Looks like I can't go easy on you kids anymore. Mubai, what are you laughing at? Come find me tomorrow for a practical combat lesson."
"Uh…" Dai Mubai had been watching from the sidelines, silently snickering at Zhao Wuji's bedraggled appearance. But the moment he heard Zhao Wuji's words, the smile died on his face.
"Children, come on. Let's continue." Zhao Wuji took long strides directly toward Tang San and Xiao Wu. Their seamless coordination earlier had left him with a rather deep "impression."
"Xiao Wu — Meteor Human Hammer!" Tang San shouted in a low voice.
Xiao Wu's toes tapped off Tang San's shoulder, and she launched herself forward once more. Only this time, instead of leading with her hands, she led with her feet, driving straight toward Zhao Wuji's head.
At the same time, dozens of strands of Blue Silver Grass erupted simultaneously from around Tang San's body, lashing toward Zhao Wuji from every direction.
Zhao Wuji raised his palm to smack Xiao Wu away, but before her body even reached him, she suddenly changed direction, and his strike hit nothing but air. Xiao Wu swept past from the side and planted a kick squarely on Zhao Wuji's shoulder.
It turned out that the so-called "Meteor Human Hammer" was simply a variation of the Hidden Weapon known as the meteor hammer. By using the Blue Silver Grass to bind and manipulate her, Tang San controlled Xiao Wu's body through agile mid-air maneuvers to launch attacks. Unfortunately, Zhao Wuji's defensive power was simply too formidable. While his dodging ability was nothing special, breaking through his defenses was no easy task.
Ordinary Hidden Weapons were divided into four broad categories: hand-thrown, mechanically-launched, cord-linked, and powder-sprayed. Items like meteor hammers, lassos, and flying claws all fell under the cord-linked category. Though they lacked the subtlety and mystery of the other types, their offensive power and special effects were something no other category could match.
Zhao Wuji was momentarily stunned by the kick. A hint of seriousness finally surfaced in his brownish-yellow eyes. These children would all become his students. If he let them continue performing like this, he'd lose every last shred of his face. How could he teach them after that?
Zhu Zhuqing hadn't been idle. Seeing Zhao Wuji charge toward Tang San and Xiao Wu, the two yellow Soul Rings attached to her body lit up simultaneously. Her blue and green eyes contracted sharply into vertical slits. She accelerated forward in silence, her body leaping into the air, coiling up within the envelope of her Soul Power, and spinning rapidly toward Zhao Wuji.
Within that coiling silhouette, shadowy claw strikes flickered in rapid succession — this was her second Soul Ring skill, Nether Hundred Claws. By combining her body's rapid spinning with the sharp, penetrating power of her cat claws, she could unleash over a hundred attacks in an extremely short time, all striking the same spot. The power was nothing short of terrifying.
The moment Zhao Wuji was kicked by Xiao Wu was also the moment Zhu Zhuqing's Nether Hundred Claws crashed into his back. The Nether Hundred Claws were like a rapidly spinning serrated gear, frantically sawing into Zhao Wuji's back.
"Roar—" A furious roar erupted. Cold light blazed in Zhao Wuji's eyes as both fists clenched tight. The first of his seven Soul Rings — a yellow one — flared to life in an instant.
A blinding golden light detonated in a single heartbeat. Zhu Zhuqing, who had been executing Nether Hundred Claws, was sent flying backward, letting out a sharp cry of pain in midair.
Dai Mubai appeared with astonishing speed at the spot where she was falling and caught her in his arms. But he found that Zhu Zhuqing had already been knocked unconscious by the impact, and both her arms had been dislocated.
Xiao Wu suffered at the same time. She had just kicked Zhao Wuji, and her body was being pulled back by Tang San's Blue Silver Grass when Zhao Wuji's counterattack triggered. The Blue Silver Grass that Tang San had sent out happened to be wrapping around Zhao Wuji's body at that very moment.
In that torrent of golden light, all of it became futile effort. Though Xiao Wu hadn't made contact at such close range as Zhu Zhuqing, she too was blasted away. Every strand of Blue Silver Grass within three meters of Zhao Wuji's body — whether it had made contact or not — was repelled, and those that had made contact were shattered strand by strand.
Three muffled groans sounded almost simultaneously. Zhu Zhuqing had taken the worst of it, followed by Xiao Wu.
The violent concussive force caused Xiao Wu to spit out a mouthful of blood while still in midair. Her entire body went numb and tingling, and the Blue Silver Grass carried her directly into Tang San's arms.
Though Tang San had suffered the least injury — merely a burning sensation inside his body from the Blue Silver Grass absorbing the shock — Xiao Wu's wounds made it impossible for him to stay calm.
What Zhao Wuji had unleashed was his first Soul Ring skill: Immovable Bright King Body. Though it was only a Hundred-Year Soul Ring, the same skill, when powered by different levels of Soul Power, produced vastly different results. With his seventy-sixth-rank Soul Power, this Hundred-Year Soul Ring's ability had more than proven its effectiveness. Offense and defense in one — it had broken through the coordinated assault of Tang San and the other two in a single move.
This was the true power of a Soul Saint.
Ning Rongrong was growing anxious as well. The incense stick had only burned slightly past the halfway point, but her Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda provided various supportive enhancements — healing was not among them. She only had two Soul Rings, and the effects they granted were limited. No matter how worried she was, there was nothing more she could do.
(End of Chapter)