On the other side, Shirley faced difficulties too. Her Mock Perception did not require Martial Energy, but that simply put her on the same playing field as the other Perception Realms. Without properly mastering Martial Energy, she could not contend against her opponents who could! At the beginning of the battle, she could still cope, but her body's condition declined sharply following Reverent Monk's beating. There was no way she could maintain Mock Perception anymore. Someone casually evaded her wild swings and slashed at her torso. She instinctively shifted out of the way, while she gritted her teeth through the pain of her injuries. The attack sliced through her armor and cut deep into her flesh. It would have disemboweled her had she mistimed it! Her opponent did not let up as they prepared to finish her off. The follow-up was too quick, causing Shirley to pale. She could not react in time! It was a certain fatal strike!
Right at that moment, Princess Xiuying stepped in and hacked down with her saber. As a Half-Perception Realm, the divide between her and her opponent was crossable, especially when she faced an inexperienced Perception Realm. She could forcibly transcend ranks too! Sensing the attack, her opponent had no choice but redirect their follow-up attack from Shirley to parry Xiuying's strike. The transition between actions was extremely smooth, almost like they had expected it from the beginning. That was the frightening thing about Perception Realms. Using their heightened senses, it was like they had eyes on the back of their heads! Xiuying expected it, so she made a feint. She suddenly reversed her grip, changed her angle, and accelerated her saber. Her actions were also incredibly smooth, hinting at her extraordinary proficiency. She was a Half-Perception Realm at her age for a reason! Furthermore, her strikes were fully backed by the intent to kill. There was not the slightest sign of a naïve princess!
But try as she might, a Perception Realm was not that easy to fool. They quickly adjusted and blocked the surprise attack, and the sheer ease at which they did so ticked Princess Xiuying off. It felt like she was being mocked! Although she was a Half-Perception Realm, on this battlefield where Perception Realms were as common as grass, she was weaker than everyone else! Even Elizabeth and her friends had surpassed her! If she was stronger, then maybe Protector Tai… Those bottled-up feelings poured out like a flood, almost turning her eyes blood red in rage, but she bit her lip and held those feelings back. Losing control now would be disastrous!
Instead, she channeled her anger into her saber, pushing her swordsmanship to another level. Xiuying's saber danced majestically through the air as she rained down attacks mercilessly on her opponent. Her saber art emphasized whittling down her opponent's defenses with an unrelenting storm of attacks! To that end, she could seamlessly transition from technique to technique, resembling a beautiful whirlwind of death. Countless exchanges were made in the blink of an eye! This was the strongest she had ever been! In the face of this murderous flurry of blows, her opponent was losing ground. They could still block or dodge every attack, but without the same leisure as before. It was clear that they started taking this more seriously. An opening appeared for the slightest moment, but Xiuying saw it with her Half-Perception Realm senses. She immediately struck at lightning speed through the gap! Her opponent realized that it was too late to defend, so they decided to fight offense with offense. The two attacked each other simultaneously!
Bang! The strike drove through Xiuying's armor and right into her chest, prompting her to stagger backwards and cough up blood. Her opponent held back since she was an important target for the Imperial Council, but that did not mean they treated her kindly either. Her opponent did not hesitate to break her ribs and internally injure her with the blunt side of their weapon. The impact was enough for the girl's vision to darken. She glanced at where she struck as she hoped to take out her opponent too. Unlike her opponent that held back, she delivered a lethal blow on a lethal spot. Her saber pierced through the soldier's armor and into flesh! It should have skewered her opponent through, but she felt a powerful resistance repelling her blade, as if their skin had turned to steel. Xiuying was dumbfounded. Even while she was passing out, she continued to wonder exactly what went wrong. Her opponent was about to capture her before abruptly distancing themselves. A meteor just crashed down. It was Shirley!
Shirley was originally not planning to help Princess Xiuying. Considering all her terrible and traumatic experiences with the Xingyuu Empire, rather than of helping, she would have loved to fan the flames and pushed them to kill each other instead! Whenever the empire came up, she would inevitably turn cruel and sadistic. That was the darkness she kept in her heart. However, Shirley was not that narrow-minded to ignore their slim chance of survival for the sake of her emotions. For better or for worse, Princess Xiuying was temporarily their ally, and at a time when they needed every helping hand they could get, Xiuying's assistance was essential. The princess had even saved her and Benedict's life! Shirley's hesitation lasted for a moment, but that time was enough for Xiuying and her opponent to exchange countless blows. By the time she made up her mind, Xiuying was about to be captured. That was when she struck with fearsome momentum! Bang! Shirley landed between the two combatants, forcing their opponent away.
The surprising entrance brought Xiuying back to her senses. The two exchanged a simple but meaningful glance and instantly knew what it meant. They would cooperate! Shirley had to laugh inwardly. She never would have imagined, even in her wildest dreams, that there would come a day that she would stand alongside an Imperial Princess and fight with her. Since the Featherwind Sect attacked, less than half an hour passed, but so much had already happened. Even the impossible became reality! Princess Xiuying felt the same way. She had no impression of Shirley prior to this fight. In fact, she could barely remember any of their names at all because their interactions were virtually negligible. She only thought of them as 'Elizabeth's friends' and nothing more. But this fight had finally opened her eyes. Benedict, Shirley, and Freon… Their shocking performance was enough to stun anyone silly. They were easily monsters in the making! Xiuying felt reassured that Shirley would fight alongside her! Both Xiuying and Shirley pushed these distracting thoughts away and focused on the task at hand.
Shirley rushed up as the vanguard, while Xiuying searched for openings from behind. This arrangement fully utilized their strengths to their greatest advantage. Shirley had excellent battle experience and instincts, so while her form and technique may be lacking, she could forcefully close the gap with her adaptability. Her fighting ability was monstrous! Xiuying was a Half-Perception Realm and skimmed the boundary of Perception Realm. Her senses had already transcended past the realm of mortals and with them, she could sense any openings and act on them. This unexpected combination exerted extreme pressure on their opponent as the three engaged in a fierce, high-speed battle. At the beginning, Shirley and Xiuying were mostly on the defensive, but as their coordination grew, they gradually moved to offensive. They were gaining the initiative!
That was not all. Both Shirley and Xiuying were showing outstanding improvement throughout the battle. It was like the battle was a melding pot, stirring the two, pushing their strengths and weaknesses together, and mixing them into a harmonized state. Shirley's senses were growing stronger, as she noted when, where, and how Xiuying would step in. Like stealing the answers from a test, she began to grasp exactly what a Half-Perception Realm embodied. With that final piece of the puzzle, Shirley was rapidly approaching Half-Perception Realm too! And Xiuying was not one to fall behind either. She was already an exceptionally gifted person, having managed to reach her level of strength, despite juggling her royal duties. Shirley's performance clued her in on where she was deficient and supplemented her shallow battle experience. This, in turn, improved her own understanding of her body. She was preparing to charge into Perception Realm herself!