Xiao Yao inwardly started, which further confirmed to him that Nie Kong had not obtained the "Blood-Scale Phoenix Tree" long ago; otherwise, those Spirit Beasts would have swarmed here much sooner, instead of waiting until now?
But how could the "Blood-Scale Phoenix Tree" suddenly appear within the Illusionary Space?
Something completely impossible had actually materialized before his eyes, real and without any deception, deepening the look of bewilderment on Xiao Yao’s face!
“Roar!”
Another fierce cry echoed, the sound drawing ever closer to their position.
“Where is he?”
Xiao Yao suddenly snapped back to his senses, only to find Nie Kong had vanished from his sight. Looking up again, he saw his figure twenty meters further away. Following the direction Nie Kong was sprinting, it was exactly toward the source of the Spirit Beasts’ roar! Junior Brother Nie Kong, do you think running over there will spare you from disaster?
“Foolish!”
A mocking smile touched the corner of Xiao Yao’s lips. A flash of white shot out, swift as a gentle breeze, sweeping rapidly toward Nie Kong’s retreating back…
Lingxiao Terrace.
“Eh?”
In the ancient, quiet little room, Bai Yuqing, who had been observing the Illusionary Space below, suddenly let out a soft exclamation, a hint of confusion entering her cold, beautiful eyes.
The little loli, who had been unable to sit still next to the old man, instantly picked up the signal and sprang up like a tightly wound spring: “Sister Yuqing, what is it? What’s happening?”
She quickly followed Bai Yuqing’s gaze and, after a moment, the loli’s round, dark eyes snapped wide open, and she gasped, her small mouth agape: “Oh my goodness, Sister Yuqing, this is truly strange! Why are all the Spirit Beasts around them suddenly converging on those two?”
“Oh.” Bai Yuqing nodded slightly, her elegant eyebrows furrowed, clearly baffled beyond measure.
The location they were observing was in the middle section of the Illusionary Space.
Right at that spot, an incredibly perplexing anomaly was unfolding!
In a relatively flat stretch of forest, the two green dots representing the disciples of Lingyu City were constantly moving in pursuit. Surrounding them, dozens of Spirit Beasts were closing in frantically, and even further out, more Spirit Beasts were slowly drifting toward the pair’s location.
Calculating by the scale of the Illusionary Space, the actual distance between those two green dots was only about ten meters. The nearest Spirit Beasts were estimated to be some two hundred meters away, while the farthest might be several miles out! Even Spirit Beasts situated that far away were drawing closer to them?
Soon, an even more unbelievable scene appeared…
Several miles from the pair, within a mountain valley, two clusters of red and green dots fiercely entangled suddenly separated. The Spirit Beast, abandoning the target it was currently attacking, swiftly charged toward the location of the two Lingyu City disciples, its movements utterly frenzied!
One cluster of red dots, already besieged by three green dots, had its light dim considerably, flickering slower and slower—clearly the Spirit Beast was severely wounded, its life force rapidly draining. Yet, at this moment, the red dot suddenly exploded with brilliant light, breaking free from its entrapment with a desperate push and dash, heading toward the two Lingyu City disciples ten miles away!
Simultaneously, a green dot moving slowly forward suddenly detected a red cluster charging toward it and quickly dodged aside. However, the red cluster, which previously would have attacked any green dot it encountered with full aggression, paused not at all, instead shooting past the green dot in a blur, already tens of meters beyond it in the blink of an eye…
Similar scenes repeated themselves endlessly, as if something at the location of those two Lingyu City disciples was so compelling that it drove the Spirit Beasts toward them, heedless of all else. Countless Grand Tournaments of the Six Halls had been held in the Illusionary Space, but never had such a strange occurrence transpired!
“How can this be?”
The little loli stared blankly, glancing between Bai Yuqing and the old man seated cross-legged on the meditation cushion, noting that both wore expressions of deep thought.
The scene in the middle section of the Illusionary Space drew more and more gazes. Amidst their confusion, the spectators couldn't help but worry for the two Lingyu City disciples.
“…”
“Everyone, look! The four nearest Spirit Beasts are probably only fifty or sixty meters away from them!”
“That’s right! If those two get pinned down by those four, they’ll soon be surrounded by more. That will be truly dangerous.”
“Let’s hope they can activate the ‘Cuiwen Jade Butterfly’ in time to escape.”
“They might not be in danger. Didn't everyone just see it? Those beasts didn't even attack the ones right next to them. Would they really travel all this way to attack those two?”
“That’s true. I wonder what is at that location that is attracting them so intensely that they are all running over there like mad!”
“Closer, closer! Those two and the four Spirit Beasts have encountered each other!”
“…”
For a moment, many hearts hung suspended in tension…
“Still running? Still running? Let’s see where you run to this time?”
Seeing the four frenzied Spirit Beasts closing in, a faint smile touched Xiao Yao’s face. In this brief period, Nie Kong had exerted himself to the utmost in his sprint. Although the distance between Xiao Yao and him was constantly shrinking, catching up immediately was not an easy feat.
Fortunately, the four closest Spirit Beasts had finally arrived!
Xiao Yao slowed his pace, intending to wait until Nie Kong was engaged with those four creatures before making his move.
However, what met his eyes left him stunned: the four Spirit Beasts stopped when they spotted Nie Kong. After letting out a few low, hesitant growls, they actually bypassed him and lunged toward Xiao Yao instead.
“How can this be?”
Xiao Yao’s expression froze; his thoughts momentarily couldn't keep up.
He genuinely could not comprehend how such a thing could happen. The Blood-Scale Phoenix Tree was in Nie Kong’s hand; the Spirit Beasts should have attacked him! Even setting aside the tree, the medicinal scent clinging to Nie Kong’s body was far stronger than his own. The first attacks should have targeted him!
Why would the four Spirit Beasts abandon Nie Kong, the very source of the trouble, and turn their aggression toward him? Seeing the four beasts bearing down on him with bared, menacing fangs, Xiao Yao had no time to dwell on the mystery. He suppressed the confusion in his heart, and a layer of purplish aura permeated from his palm…
“Bi…”
Nie Kong let out a long sigh of relief, immediately sitting down cross-legged and plunging the "Blood-Scale Phoenix Tree" directly into the ground before him. Wiping the sweat that had beaded on his forehead from the rapid flight, Nie Kong, at this moment, felt no urgency to recover his spiritual energy. He chuckled and watched the Xiao Yao opposite him.
“Boom!”
“Boom!”
“…”
Xiao Yao’s strength was formidable. Despite being beset by four third-grade Spirit Beasts, he handled the assault with relative ease, his movements weaving like a swift serpent. His palms, vibrant with purple light, struck out intermittently, landing on the beasts’ bodies with resounding cracks. Regrettably, the creatures possessed thick hides, and their power was amplified by the unique environment of the Illusionary Space; even a strike to the head couldn't instantly kill them. As soon as Xiao Yao knocked one beast back, the other three immediately pounced again.
Several times, Xiao Yao tried to break through toward Nie Kong but was blocked back by the four Spirit Beasts. His form remained elegantly fluid, but the two strokes of his eyebrows furrowed tighter and tighter.
“Senior Brother Xiao Yao, how do you find the taste of these four appetizers?” Nie Kong called out tauntingly.
“Not bad!”
A smile played on Xiao Yao’s lips. “I didn't expect these Spirit Beasts to abandon you and focus their attack on me. No wonder you were so fearless just now! Junior Brother Nie Kong, I am growing more and more impressed by you. How exactly did you manage this? Could you enlighten me?”
“I cannot!”
Nie Kong retorted playfully, laughing heartily, “Senior Brother Xiao Yao, I have also prepared a lavish feast for you. I just don’t know how long you can enjoy it. If you can hold out until the end, perhaps I might be in a good mood and offer you some pointers to broaden your horizons.”
“Boom!”
Xiao Yao laughed robustly, “Offer me pointers? Junior Brother Nie Kong, you are the second person to say that to me. Do you know what happened to the first person who said that?”
As he spoke, the purple light exploded from his palm, blasting the ugly head lunging before him into pieces. Xiao Yao spun his body lightly, skillfully avoiding the splashing gore, and sighed lightly, “Alas, I have killed again!”
“Nothing more than being thoroughly schooled by you!”
Nie Kong responded with a strange chuckle. “Also, Senior Brother Xiao, don’t be sad. The feast I prepared for you is being served again. Please enjoy!”
“Awoo!”
As Nie Kong’s voice fell, a streak of black light shot forward like lightning. It paused briefly as it flashed past him before landing in front of Xiao Yao, letting out a deafening roar. By its appearance, it was another third-grade beast—an “Shadow Streamer Beast!” “Roar!”
“Screech!”
Immediately following, a beast whose body was blood-red, along with a massive eagle, dove toward Xiao Yao from above and below! Lingxiao Terrace.
“What is happening?”
Observing the changes unfolding in the middle section of the Illusionary Space, the crowd found it utterly incomprehensible.
After the four red clusters and two green clusters collided, they had been worried that a battle would erupt between the Spirit Beasts and the two Lingyu City disciples. Indeed, a fight broke out, but what astonished them was that the four Spirit Beasts completely ignored the disciple in the front and instead rushed to surround the one behind. During the engagement, the former offered no aid, choosing instead to watch the spectacle from the sidelines.
Not long after, more Spirit Beasts arrived one after another, joining the siege against that one Lingyu City disciple. At this point, Spirit Beasts from within a radius of several miles were still converging on the area.
It was predictable that upon arrival, they would follow the pattern of the previous beasts—provided that the targeted disciple could survive long enough for them to reach the location. This seemed unlikely; by now, the Spirit Beasts attacking him had already exceeded ten, and the danger was apparent.
Perhaps in the next second, that Lingyu City disciple would be overwhelmed and activate his ‘Cuiwen Jade Butterfly’ to withdraw.
“This is truly bizarre!”
“Why are those Spirit Beasts only attacking him?”
“Is there something wrong with the Illusionary Space?”
“…”
Lingxiao Terrace instantly erupted into an uproar. Such a bizarre and rare sight left everyone thoroughly confused. Did that Lingyu City disciple truly carry something that could incite such crazed interest from these Spirit Beasts?