"Putting aside hyperbolic drama aside, what do you mean I'm the only one who can save Qin Ying right now?" I tried not to roll my eyes. "I understand she's attacked by a demonic cultivator, but even if I wasn't around, shouldn't you call the authorities? I'm not the only cultivator in Hua Xia…in fact, I'm not the only cultivator in Xia Hai! Why didn't you consult the professors?!"
"Um, because the demonic cultivator who has held her hostage is an Earth ranked one. And not many cops are Earth ranked. And since she's demanding for you and hasn't actually killed Qin Ying yet, the police are placing her on the low priority list. You've heard of more frequent dungeon outbreaks, haven't you?"
"Dungeon outbreaks?" I repeated incredulously, staring hard at Tong Xue. "What the hell are you talking about?"
I mean, I knew about dungeons. I owned one, after all. But the dungeons should all be in the Celestial Labyrinth, deep beneath the earth. I had never heard of dungeon outbreaks, or anything from the Celestial Labyrinths emerging to the surface in mass, nor was I aware of humans in the surface learning about the existence of dungeons.
"He means spirit beast waves," Hao Ren said, smacking Tong Xue's head. "You know, the usual interdimensional rifts that open up and pours out a bunch of spirit beasts from the other dimension? They are occurring in increasing frequency. The cultivators in Hua Xia are hard-pressed to keep them under control, and there's a lack of manpower."
"No wonder they called dad back to the office this morning even though he's supposed to be entitled to a break," I muttered under my breath.
"She gave an ultimatum," Tong Xue elaborated, rubbing his head and glaring at Hao Ren. "Three days. We have three days to bring you to her, otherwise she'll kill Qin Ying. That's why the cops and other cultivators placed this on the backburner and chose to deal with the other threats. As long as they can get back to her within three days, then they should be able to save Qin Ying. Conversely, it means that the demonic cultivator will not kill her in the next three days."
That was…super naïve. Speaking of which, I wondered what the hell was going on.
"Wait, you said this demonic cultivator is looking for me specifically? That's why she held Qin Ying hostage?"
"That's right."
"Who…?"
"Murderous Crow," Hao Ren replied. My blood ran cold when I heard the name, and I scowled. Pushing my glasses up my nose, I took a deep breath and nodded.
"Oh. Bring me to her."
She certainly was a person I hadn't heard from for a while. Even though I was worried about Qin Ying, I did want a rematch now that I had also reached Earth rank. Not that I would be a match for her because I was only at beginner Earth rank, and she should be intermediate at the very least, but it should be less one sided than the previous fight.
"You have to be careful," Hao Ren warned. "She's beyond any demonic cultivator we've met. I believe you've fought against her before and survived, but you weren't able to defeat her the last time, right?"
He was tactful enough to avoid mentioning that I had pretty much lost to her. But I wasn't the same person I was when I last dueled against her.
"I know. She's vicious and cunning. But if I don't do anything, she'll kill Qin Ying."
"Yeah, we have to save her!" Tong Xue was throwing his hands up in despair. "That crazy bitch is a real psycho. There's no telling what she will do if we don't play along! Qin Ying might be in danger even now! We can't wait all three days!"
"When did the three days start?" I asked, feeling uneasy. Tong Xue and Hao Ren exchanged a glance.
"Two days ago."
"…wow. We're on a tight schedule then. Let's hurry."
For some reason, Tong Xue and Hao Ren took me toward a forest on the edge of Xia Hai. When I gave them a wary look, they shook their hands frantically.
"Yeah, I know it's a trap, but…she really is here!"
"You have to trust us!"
"It's not that I don't trust you, but this doesn't seem right."
"Well, to be honest…" Hao Ren hesitated. "Qin Ying chose to train here. That's how she got attacked and then taken hostage by Murderous Crow. We told her that it's too dangerous, but she insisted. She said she had to become as strong as possible in the quickest time, and that the wood qi in the forest here is the densest, which is conducive to her training."
"We warned her!" Tong Xue wailed. "But she refused to listen! You know how Qin Ying has always been so stubborn!"
"No point whining about it now," I cut him off impatiently. "I'm not trying to blame anybody. I was just surprised."
That shock died away when I caught sight of Qin Ying. As Tong Xue and Hao Ren said, she had been taken hostage by Murderous Crow, who was hovering nearby, with her arms folded. She cackled loudly when she caught sight of us wandering straight into the edge of the forest, with a murder of crows surrounding her. They cawed in synch with their mistress, their glowing red eyes fixed onto us in a predatory manner. I felt a chill run down my spine, and I readied my summoning of my Round Owlets, Arrow Owls and Grim Owls to face them.
What stunned me, though, was Qin Ying herself. She was embedded in a tree, bound by vines and snake-like branches that coiled around her legs and torso, tying her up. However, she had created a barrier with her spiritual qi, forming a glowing pink dome around herself. Judging from the scars and damage to the tree outside her protection and the surroundings, I could tell that Murderous Crow didn't bother to wait for all three days and had attempted to attack, only to fail because Qin Ying had conjured that barrier.
Apparently, Qin Ying had realized that she was no match for Murderous Crow in a conventional fight. Instead, she had gathered all of her qi and focused entirely on defense. By giving up on speed and offense, she had erected a powerful defense that even the merciless Murderous Crow couldn't penetrate. I was impressed. Qin Ying had improved tremendously since the last time I had seen her. In fact, I could see her spirit sword floating in front of her, a thin, elegant and exquisite pink sword that was attuned to nature. Sakura petals floated along the length of the beautiful blade, and flowers had bloomed along the otherwise ravaged tree Qin Ying was currently imprisoned in, having been nourished by her barrier.
Her qi was depleting fast, though. If I had gotten here even a few hours slower, she would have run out of energy and her forcefield would have collapsed, leaving her vulnerable to the patiently waiting Murderous Crow. My hatred for that psychotic bitch increased further.
"Finally." Murderous Crow grinned at me. "I was getting tired of waiting for you. You sure took your own sweet time."
"If you were aiming for me, then just come at me," I snapped. "There is no need for you to target anyone else."
"Oh, but I beg to differ." Murderous Crow chuckled, her ominous gaze weighing down on me from above. She always loved to look down on people. That aspect hadn't changed since the last time I had encountered her. "This little girl proved to be quite the enjoyable distraction. I didn't think she would put up such a fierce fight. It's a pity she'll die eventually, along with you, but she did provide me a lot of fun."
Her eyes narrowed.
"Furthermore, wouldn't having a hostage give me an advantage?" She cackled once more. "So long as I win, the ends justify the means. Surely you haven't forgotten such an important lesson?"
"Despicable!" Tong Xue spat. "You really are pure evil!"
"Dude, stop it with those cheesy lines. You're embarrassing us." I sighed and shook my head, then dropped my voice to a whisper. "Besides, you're not just going to stand around and watch, are you? While I'm fighting her and occupying her attention, you and Hao Ren should go free Qin Ying and bring her to safety. Can I count on you guys for that?"
"Yeah, definitely," Hao Ren promised without any hesitation. He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth in frustration. "If only we can help you in battle too…"
"We'll only drag you down if we join you in combat," Tong Xue said bitterly. "If only we were stronger. We don't even have to be Earth ranked like you. If we can at least do the same thing as Qin Ying and hold out against her…"
"No use bemoaning what could have been. Concentrate instead on what you actually can do in the present." I stepped forward, summoning Azure Frost in response to Murderous Crow already manifesting her Annihilator. The huge sword looked as I had remembered it, thick like a butcher's knife and capable of cleaving through trees.
I could still see the deep gouges and furrows in the earth and the titanic trunk of the tree that Qin Ying was restrained in. Those must have bene caused by Annihilator. As usual, Murderous Crow didn't hold back.
"How long will you be able to last this time, kid?"
Laughing hysterically, Murderous Crow descended upon me. Her crows flapped their wings, cawing ravenously as they swooped down on us. I saw that they were intent on raking their claws and stabbing their beaks into the hastily moving Tong Xue and Hao Ren, but my Round Owlets, Arrow Owls and Grim Owls intercepted them.
Sharp feathers struck the crows with impunity, piercing through their bodies and knocking them out of the sky. Murderous Crow looked up in dismay as her swarm of crows were murdered by ghostly and feathery projectiles.
"Seems like you've added a few new spirit beasts to your arsenal?" She sneered as she swung her Annihilator down on me. I parried her blade with Azure Frost, my knees buckling from the sheer violence. She was as physically strong as I recalled her to be, and even though I had improved my own strength over the last few months, she still overpowered me. Such a gap couldn't be closed so soon.
Not to mention, she had more experience than me.
Twisting around in midair, Murderous Crow kicked me, but I ducked under her leg. I tried to chop off her foot, but she plunged Annihilator down, forcing me to deflect it with my Azure Frost instead. She withdrew her heavy sword, hissing when she saw that her arms were now encased in ice, and she shattered the frost with a violent flex of qi.
"Oh? This is new."
My response was to counter with a riposte that she dodged by shifting her head out of the way. Blood dripped from her cheek, but she simply laughed and licked it off her face with an unusually long tongue. Cackling gleefully, she swung her Annihilator with such force that I was hurled back.
Flipping my body about, I landed on my feet and skidded to a clumsy stop, only for Murderous Crow to press her advantage with another powerful blow. This time, I decided not to directly block her strike and instead dove to the side, wincing as her heavy weapon gouged a crater out of the earth. Spinning around, I slashed at her, but she parried my sword, only for more ice to expand over her hands. She broke them with an annoyed expression before pulverizing the ground with her big blade and sending me stumbling away.
"Every time we exchange blows, I feel a shot of chill penetrating my body. It's making my movements more sluggish and it clogs up my qi circulation. What is this new esoteric technique?"
She began laughing once more, looking amused.
"Good! Very good! It seems like I can enjoy this battle further!"
Her next barrage of blows almost took me by surprise, but even though I weathered the storm, I didn't emerge unscathed. Despite my best efforts to parry, deflect and evade, I felt blood trickling down my arms and body, with numerous cuts opened up by her sharp, swift slashes.
"Come on! Don't just defend! You can attack too, can't you?"
I swallowed and knocked aside her next thrust, casting a concerned look at my friends. To my relief, it appeared that Qin Ying had lowered the barrier, thus allowing Tong Xue and Hao Ren to cut her free from the tree and rescue her. The trio were escaping even as I engaged Murderous Crow, and I resolved to buy them the time I needed.
Also, I was ready to unleash my trump card. The look on Murderous Crow's face when I suddenly summoned a bunch of Earth ranked spirit beasts…I couldn't wait to see it. That would certainly knock her down a few pegs!
"Hey! Don't get distracted!" Murderous Crow crowed as she slammed me to the side, almost swatting me away. I countered with a riposte, my blade actually punching through her chest. My eyes widened when she disappeared, and I realized that she had just used a demonic illusion technique.
Instead, she appeared behind me, her real sword swinging down to cleave me in half. I barely managed to turn around in time to parry her blow, but before she could land a hit, something whistled past me and struck my opponent with enough force to send her staggering.
"What!? Who was that?!"
I had half expected my friends to have come to my aid, but when I turned around, I saw that the assistance hadn't come from my equally astonished friends. Tong Xue and Hao Ren were too busily supporting an exhausted Qin Ying and bringing her away from the site.
No, instead, it was someone I least expected. Someone I never thought would be in Hua Xia.
"Hey, Jun Wen. It's been a while, hasn't it?" Ardena held up her sword, Dainsleif, and pointed the glowing blade at a stunned Murderous Crow. The elven Sword Saint smiled coldly. "If you don't mind, I would like to be the one fighting that lady over there."