Even before the battle commenced, Xingchen and Lan Ye had sparred countless times against the virtual Xiang Tian in simulation systems, so they were no strangers to the sudden, chilling frost aura.
This was a special Battle Qi energy possessing a terrifying chilling attribute!
However, facing the genuine chilling frost aura, Xingchen finally understood what true terror meant!
Before the freezing air even made full contact, Xingchen nearly lost control of his body.
Fortunately, Xingchen reacted swiftly. In an instant of flashing thought, he forcefully channeled his strength and swept out a crescent moon shape!
Meanwhile, Yue Ying, standing beside him, simultaneously activated a crescent moon interception!
The two crescents erupted almost simultaneously, overlapping with astonishing coordination to form a massive crescent moon with an intensity reaching one hundred million!
Boom! The golden crescent instantly blocked the white frost aura surging towards them!
Yet, the white frost aura not only possessed an astonishing chilling attribute but also carried an incredibly powerful impact force. Because of the close proximity, although the interception crescents launched by Xingchen and Yue Ying managed to block the frost aura's invasion, they were still violently hurled backward by the astonishing explosive impact!
What was worse, the eighteen Dragon Shadows that Xingchen and Yue Ying had sent hurtling towards Xiang Tian collided head-on with the containment vortex Xiang Tian had swept out the moment Xingchen was thrown back!
If the eighteen Dragon Shadows were lost, the aerial combat advantage held by Xingchen and Yue Ying would vanish!
Xiang Tian saw this clearly too, so his objective was simple: lock down the Xingchen Dragon Shadows. If he allowed them to run rampant, this battle would become exceedingly difficult!
Thus, he gave up the opportunity to pursue Xingchen and Yue Ying, opting instead to ensnare the troublesome eighteen Dragon Shadows.
It had to be admitted that Xiang Tian’s tactical thinking was absolutely correct!
But just as his containment vortex was about to engulf the eighteen Dragon Shadows!
The retreating Xingchen and Yue Ying simultaneously manipulated the Dragon Shadow Spear and the eighteen Dragon Shadow Thunderbolts. Those nearly captured Dragon Shadows executed an almost divine maneuver, plunging downwards simultaneously, narrowly evading the containment vortex in a flash of lightning, and then streaked back, shadowing the figures of Xingchen and Yue Ying!
Xiang Tian’s plan to confine the Dragon Shadows had failed once again!
This exchange ended in a draw once more!
However, Xiang Tian would not allow the two of them such an easy time! As the containment vortex missed its mark, it continued to surge forward at incredible speed, following the direction of the sword swing, slamming toward the distant Xingchen, Yue Ying, and their mounts!
If he couldn't lock down their Dragon Shadows, he would lock down the people themselves!
Facing the surging containment vortex, Xingchen's expression changed drastically! At this moment, neither he nor Yue Ying had fully recovered from the previous frost aura attack!
It had to be said that this Paralysis Ring was truly potent!
Attempting to launch a crescent moon interception felt inadequate!
And the Golden Eagle mount was not faring much better.
Confronted by the approaching containment vortex, Xingchen, Yue Ying, and their mounts were, for a moment, unable to evade in time!
With no other recourse, Xingchen could only swing the Dragon Shadow Spear! The Dragon Shadows, which had been flying back along a circular arc, suddenly executed a graceful turn in mid-air, shooting out like lightning toward the oncoming containment vortex.
In this critical moment, Xingchen had to employ the tactic of sacrificing the rook to save the king!
The instant Xingchen released the Dragon Shadows, Yue Ying also launched her Dragon Shadow interception!
Clang! Rumble! A muffled, heavy roar erupted!
The eighteen Dragon Shadows, upon entering the field of the containment vortex, exploded simultaneously, just like eighteen bombs!
They finally halted the containment vortex rushing toward them!
Not only did they stop it, but they unbelievably shattered Xiang Tian’s containment vortex. Furthermore, the exploded Dragon Shadows, utilizing the shockwave generated at the moment of detonation, hurtled right to the front of Xiang Tian and his mount!
Xiang Tian, who had been safely behind his containment vortex, had not anticipated that Xingchen and Yue Ying’s Dragon Shadows would destroy his confinement in such an incredible fashion.
In fact, even Xingchen hadn't expected this self-detonation tactic to be so effective!
Xiang Tian was startled by the sudden appearance of the Dragon Shadows, but a strange flush of excitement appeared on his face!
In three thousand years, this was the first time his containment vortex had been broken in such an astonishing manner!
If one attempt fails, then prepare a second.
Almost instantaneously, Xiang Tian’s Heaven Dragon Sacred Sword drew another bizarre arc, and in the blink of an eye, a rapidly spinning containment vortex was drawn out of thin air by Xiang Tian!
And the nine Dragon Shadows rushing toward them were finally captured by Xiang Tian’s containment vortex!
Inside Xiang Tian’s containment vortex, they struggled left and right but could no longer break free! The force of the previous explosion had completely depleted the Battle Qi energy adhering to the Dragon Shadows, leaving the currently trapped shadows unable to stir up any trouble!
“Damn! That works too!” He actually managed to lock them down!
Xingchen couldn't help but be slightly stunned! But as Xiang Tian was drawing the second containment vortex, Xingchen’s eyes also lit up!
"Damn it! If you can summon a containment vortex, I can create Dragon Shadows too!"
From the dense patterns left by the first generation of Dragon Shadows, Xingchen had long since mastered the Dragon Innate Heart Technique! At this thought, he quickly brushed his left hand lightly over the Dragon Shadow Sword body!
And Yue Ying beside him followed suit, a quick brush of her left hand!
Vigorous Battle Qi energy instantly poured into their weapons.
In the blink of an eye, nine lifelike little dragons appeared on both weapons! However, these nine little dragons were different from the crystalline azure Dragon Shadows seen before; they were an intoxicating, mesmerizing blood-red! Identical to Yue Ying’s Dragon Shadows!
The entire Dragon Shadow Sword instantly burst forth with a dazzling red light!
“Ah! What is this!” The sudden turn of events startled Xingchen considerably, but he had no time to dawdle!
With a casual sword wave—swoosh!—accompanied by a sharp, ear-piercing whistle, nine Dragon Shadows flew off the sword, circling beside Xingchen!
At the same moment, Yue Ying beside Xingchen also released her Dragon Shadows, forming a circle around the area!
"What is happening? How are there eighteen again?" Xiang Tian couldn't help but have his expression change slightly. These things were endless!
"Kid, how many of these strange and peculiar things do you have?" Xiang Tian couldn't suppress his curiosity. "And what kind of sword technique is this?"
Indeed, the Dragon Shadows of Xingchen and Yue Ying were too incredible to fathom! Even the widely knowledgeable Xiang Tian couldn't help but ask.
"A secret technique of my sect, no comment," Xingchen replied: (Read novels on this website, PC site.) "But since you ask how many, I can tell you, these things are not valuable; I have as many as I want."
"As many as I want," Xiang Tian stared at the eighteen bizarre, scarlet little dragons hovering fifty meters away, feeling an inexplicable sense of irritation and unease.
If these little things were truly endless, this fight would become quite difficult!
Seeing Xiang Tian looking troubled, Xingchen secretly chuckled! But thinking back on his former self, he realized how foolish he had been; the manufacturing cost of these Dragon Shadows wasn't high, yet he had treasured them all. Now that he understood this, he didn't need to worry about being cornered by Xiang Tian locking down his Dragon Shadows!
This meant that Xiang Tian's containment vortex posed no real threat to him and Yue Ying!
"In that case!" Xiang Tian took a deep breath. "Let's solve the problem at its root!" Clearly, Xiang Tian's patience was nearly worn thin!
However, Xingchen and Yue Ying were not going to let him have his way easily!
The two simultaneously swung their weapons!
A series of sharp whistles suddenly rang out! The eighteen scarlet Dragon Shadows surged towards Xiang Tian like a bolt of lightning!
"Troublesome things!" Although such a bizarre fighting style was unprecedented in Xiang Tian’s long three-thousand-year existence, he still had to patiently deal with it cautiously!
The rapidly swirling containment vortex resembled a massive steel wall, quickly colliding with the charging Crimson Blood Demon Sword!
Clang! Rumble! Another head-on clash, lacking any pretense of finesse! Almost identical to the previous encounter! The exploding Dragon Shadows easily shattered Xiang Tian’s containment vortex!
They lunged toward the vital points surrounding Xiang Tian and his mount!
This time, the maneuver was intentional on the part of Xingchen and Yue Ying, and the speed was a fraction faster than the last time they broke the containment vortex!
And Xiang Tian simply didn't have time to conjure a second containment vortex!
Just as they were about to collide directly!
At that precise moment! Xiang Tian roared, and his left fist shot out violently!
The white chilling frost aura erupted like scattered shot! Forming a massive crescent moon shape, it slammed into the charging Dragon Shadows!
At the critical juncture, Xiang Tian once again activated the chilling frost aura from the Paralysis Ring! And the incredibly intense chilling frost aura shockingly formed a thick, enormous ice wall in mid-air, freezing the eighteen little dragons in place!
"Caught again, are you?" Xingchen felt a pang of alarm. While the Dragon Shadows could be manufactured infinitely, it required a certain amount of time, and in this split-second combat, Xiang Tian would never give him that opportunity!
But just then, as the little dragons frozen within the ice wall were immobilized!
The first batch of little dragons previously confined by Xiang Tian’s containment vortex were freed due to the vortex's disintegration! They scattered! Xingchen’s consciousness instantly registered their movements!
Truly, heaven never seals all paths! Xingchen’s Dragon Shadow Spear gently curved remotely, and the first batch of scattered Dragon Shadows immediately returned to Xingchen’s control. Then, with a slight pull, they whistled and slammed into the ice wall suspended in mid-air.
Yue Ying followed the same procedure, reclaiming control of the liberated Dragon Shadows!
Suddenly, all eighteen Dragon Shadows slammed into the ice wall protecting Xiang Tian! And almost simultaneously as the ice wall shattered, Xingchen’s consciousness registered the traction of another nine Dragon Shadows!
Could these nine also be under my control? Xingchen subconsciously gave a slight tug with the Dragon Shadow Spear! Sure enough, the nine little dragons responded to the summons simultaneously!
"Damn! This works too!" Xingchen was momentarily dumbfounded, but secretly elated! Two sets of Dragon Shadows, a total of eighteen! They pierced through the fragments of the ice wall in an instant, fearlessly diving toward Xiang Tian! The speed was simply unbelievable!
Even more astonishing to Xingchen was that Yue Ying’s Dragon Shadows struck alongside his at the same moment, numbering nineteen, the same as his! This meant Yue Ying could also control nineteen Dragon Shadows!
Four sets of Dragon Shadows, totaling thirty-six! They charged toward Xiang Tian’s mount! Striking the rider before the horse has always been the infallible strategy in mounted combat!
However, Xiang Tian's reaction was also incredibly fast!
Almost the moment the ice wall was shattered, he sensed danger. The Heaven Dragon Sacred Sword swiftly swept back, and another enormous containment vortex was suddenly unleashed!
This strike was astonishingly fast; even Xingchen and Yue Ying’s little dragons couldn't evade in time!
Clang! Rumble! Another head-on collision between Dragon Shadows and the containment vortex, but this time the containment vortex also failed to ensnare the Dragon Shadows!
However, having learned from the previous two attempts, Xiang Tian had deliberately intensified the Battle Qi strength of the containment vortex! Upon impact, although the containment vortex was shattered, the powerful explosive force also sent Xingchen and Yue Ying’s Dragon Shadows flying far away!
"I don't believe I can't wear you down," Xingchen and Yue Ying urged their mounts forward, maintaining astonishing speed, while simultaneously controlling the thrown Dragon Shadows to disperse! They circled around Xiang Tian’s top, bottom, front, back, and sides, forming a three-dimensional, all-encompassing encirclement—they were actually attempting to surround Xiang Tian like dumplings!
But looking at the deployment, it seemed too scattered!
"Damn it, if eighteen aren't enough, I'll add another nine! This time, I'll use a maximum troop deployment strategy. After all, I have an eighty-million Battle Qi intensity backing me up; that’s enough to squander!"
I wonder what Master Jian Li would think if he knew I was using his secret technique this way!
Having made up his mind, Xingchen circulated his Battle Qi and used the Dragon Innate Heart Technique to lightly brush the Dragon Shadow Sword again! Another nine little dragons flew out, plunging directly into the battlefield!
Yue Ying beside him followed suit, and in a blink of an eye, she also created nine Dragon Shadows to join the fray!
But what puzzled Xingchen was that he controlled a full twenty-seven Dragon Shadows without feeling any strain! (Read novels on this website, PC site.) How was this possible? When did his mental control become so formidable!
Could it be because of Lan Ye’s presence!
That’s right! Lan Ye was fundamentally a super-high-power computer. With her assistance, both his calculation and reaction speeds had greatly improved!
It could be said that Lan Ye was him, and he was Lan Ye; they were completely inseparable!
No wonder he felt controlling so many Dragon Shadows was child's play!
Understanding this, a rather reckless idea suddenly struck Xingchen’s mind!
Since that was the case, why not completely hand over the control of the Dragon Shadows to Lan Ye? Was that feasible!
"Lan Ye, can you control the Dragon Shadows like I do?" Xingchen asked nervously.
"When you control the Dragon Shadows, you emit a peculiar brainwave. I can perfectly simulate the frequency of this wave. Theoretically, it’s possible; Yue Ying controls her Dragon Shadows using this exact method," Lan Ye’s reply almost made Xingchen faint with joy!
"Then you can control Yue Ying's Dragon Shadows too!" Xingchen thought suddenly.
"Yes," Lan Ye confirmed. "Not only can I control them, but theoretically, Lan Ye’s wave emission power exceeds the activation power of the biological computer within the Moon God’s body, so Lan Ye's control range for the Dragon Shadows is longer and farther than the Moon God's."
"This is too awesome," Xingchen felt blissful enough to pass out. "Then I hand over control of both my and Yue Ying's Dragon Shadows to you!" Xingchen exclaimed joyfully. "Just smash him with everything you've got!"
"Yes."
Xingchen immediately relinquished control over the Dragon Shadows!
Yue Ying did the same!
And Lan Ye took over the fifty-four little dragons controlled by Xingchen in an instant!
The newly joined nine little dragons immediately gave the somewhat thin formation a more substantial look!
The fifty-four little dragons shot out almost simultaneously, ferociously charging toward Xiang Tian and his mount!
"Damn it, there are another eighteen!" Xiang Tian was so frustrated he nearly spat blood!
Each of these fifty-four little dragons, composed of two sets of twenty-seven, possessed an attack power no less than two million Battle Qi intensity! It was as if fifty-four Phoenix Sky Knights had suddenly surrounded him and launched a fierce assault!
Although their attack power was only around two million, their assaults were incredibly ferocious, completely disregarding any notion of defense!
Up to this point, Xiang Tian still hadn't figured out what material these little dragons were made of. They looked like solidified Battle Qi with astonishing intensity, but if it were just Battle Qi, his own Battle Qi intensity should be enough to disperse them.
This suggested there was a deeper mystery involved!
Therefore, Xiang Tian dared not be careless. With astonishing speed, he executed the Eight Directions Night Battle technique, sweeping out eight massive crescent moons in all directions in an instant!
These eight massive crescents perfectly protected his surroundings, acting like a Battle Qi shield magnified countless times! It was an all-around defensive ultimate move!
The result: without exception, the attack hit home!
However, at the moment of impact, the fifty-four little dragons were lightly bounced away, immediately regrouping! The attack was clearly more refined and skillfully executed than when Xingchen controlled them himself. Xingchen didn't even need the habitual sword-waving and guiding motions!
This feeling was just incredibly satisfying!
"I ask you, are you ever going to stop?" Xiang Tian was seething with anger from the endless Dragon Shadow attacks. This time, seizing a rare chance to catch his breath, he couldn't help but curse loudly. "Do you really think you can defeat me with just these little things?"
"What, you think I can't?" Xingchen glared. "If fifty-four aren't enough, I'll add another fifty-four! I'll grind you down through sheer attrition, even if it takes forever!"
As he spoke, Xingchen brushed his left hand again, and another nine little dragons flew out to join the battle!
Yue Ying followed suit, with a quick brush, and nine little dragons flew out from her pristine blade to join the fray!
The total number of Dragon Shadows this time reached an astonishing seventy-two!
"Vile fellow," Xiang Tian knew that if he allowed Xingchen to continue this way, he would truly be ground down to exhaustion.
This must not continue! He had to defeat him quickly!
Having made up his mind, Xiang Tian pushed his protective Battle Qi to its absolute strongest state.
And the Golden Eagle, sharing his will, suddenly spread its wings and charged toward Xingchen and his mount—it intended to forcibly break through the interception of the seventy-two little dragons and capture Xingchen directly!
"Damn! A head-on charge!"
Xingchen felt no tension, because even his mount was being controlled by Lan Ye.
Attempting to sneak attack a consciousness with computational power no less than a main computer—Lan Ye—was simply delusional thinking!
Almost the moment Xiang Tian launched his assault, the Golden Eagle suddenly flapped its wings, lightly drifting several dozen meters away!
Simultaneously, the seventy-two little dragons, accompanied by a sharp whistling sound that tore through the air, furiously pounced on Xiang Tian!
A trace of disdain flashed across Xiang Tian's lips. An attack that scattered his Battle Qi energy like this posed no threat to him.
Now he was too lazy to even launch an intercepting crescent moon, directly summoning his Martial Force Shield! This massive Battle Qi shield instantly enveloped Xiang Tian and his mount completely!
Almost the moment the Martial Force Shield was erected, the seventy-two little dragons slammed into the radiant Battle Qi shield's barrier light wall, but even against a shield with a defensive intensity reaching one hundred million, they were all unavoidably repelled!
"His shell is too hard; I can't pierce it!" Xingchen muttered to himself!
"You handle the harassment, and Yue Ying and I will focus on a frontal assault!" Xingchen stated.
"Yes," Lan Ye replied.
In truth, Xingchen really wanted to use a sly method to grind Xiang Tian down, but he also knew that with Xiang Tian's defensive power, the Dragon Shadows' attacks truly couldn't do him much harm!
However, if his own efforts were added, the result would be vastly different, and since he no longer needed to use his sword to control the Dragon Shadows, he could attack as he pleased!
As long as the Dragon Shadows cooperated well, defeating Xiang Tian would not be difficult.