Yueying, wearing a silver mask, nimbly maneuvered through the forest, using the trees to propel herself deeper into the woods. The blue-robed man behind her maintained a calm expression but kept pace closely.
"With my strength at the fourth level of the Earth Realm, you won't escape me," the blue-robed man called out coldly.
Hearing this, Yueying felt a mix of bitterness and relief. She hadn't expected a seventh-level Earth Realm warrior to be protecting Qin Hao, but she was grateful her clan members hadn't joined her in the attack. Given the guard's strength, few of her accompanying clan members would have escaped if they had participated.
Normally, Qin Hao wouldn't have such a powerful protector, but due to Dong Fang Mu's presence, the Qin family had sent a seventh-level Earth Realm guard.
Pushing these thoughts aside, Yueying channeled all her energy into trying to shake off her pursuer.
"Come down!" the blue-robed man suddenly unleashed a powerful aura, his footstep creating a small crater in the ground. He instantly appeared behind Yueying, showing no mercy as he threw a punch towards her anticipated position.
The air hissed from the force of his punch.
Yueying, about to change direction, sensed the powerful attack behind her. Her expression changed as she forcefully twisted her body to the side.
But the blue-robed man gave her no chance. After his first punch missed, he launched another, even more ferocious than before.
Left with no choice, Yueying turned to block, a layer of energy covering her palm as she struck out against the incoming fist.
Boom! The impact sent Yueying flying backward, crashing to the ground. Blood spurted from her mouth. The difference in their strength was too great; she was no match for him.
Yet even outmatched, she refused to surrender. Using her sword for support, she slowly stood up, her body once again emanating fighting spirit.
Instant Kill! As she rose, she channeled her internal energy. Her entire being merged with her sword, becoming a moon-like afterimage. As the afterimage appeared, sword light flashed, thrusting directly at the blue-robed man's throat.
"Against absolute strength, these tricks are useless," the blue-robed man sneered. His body erupted with energy, forming a powerful barrier around him. Yueying's Instant Kill sword energy was deflected upon contact with this barrier.
"Come with me," the blue-robed man reached out to grab Yueying's neck. He preferred to capture her alive, hoping to uncover who was behind the assassination attempt.
Yueying's face turned pale, her sword hand unsteady from the recent recoil. But she knew she couldn't allow herself to be captured. Gripping her sword tightly, she unleashed a cold light from the blade, aiming for the blue-robed man's eyes.
Momentarily blinded by the sudden flash, the man quickly withdrew his outstretched arm. His hands instantly became enveloped in energy as he moved to grab the thrusting sword.
"Swish! Swish!" The sword and his hands clashed, producing a hissing sound.
Having blocked the sword thrust, the blue-robed man's face twisted with anger. His body lunged forward like a cheetah pouncing on its prey, his movements swift and brutal.
He had lost his patience and was now intent on severely injuring Yueying before taking her back.
Meanwhile, Su Hao was rushing to the scene, but being only at the Human Realm, he was far outclassed in speed. "I've focused too much on raw power, thinking I could overwhelm everyone. Now I see I need to learn some movement techniques. How can I hope to chase anyone down like this? But why is Yueying trying to assassinate Qin Hao?" Su Hao pondered as he ran.
Hearing the sounds of battle ahead, he quickened his pace. As he arrived, he saw the vicious blue-robed man lunging at Yueying.
"Just in time!" Su Hao immediately placed his hand on the ground, causing his demon vines to leave his body and enter the earth. He then quickly found a hiding spot.
The demon vines had grown stronger after devouring a fifth-level Earth Realm warrior previously.
After Yueying's sword thrust, her internal energy seemed to vanish, leaving her defenseless as the blue-robed man closed in. Her face turned ashen. She wasn't afraid of death, but she couldn't die yet—her revenge remained unfulfilled.
The blue-robed man sensed the change in Yueying's body but didn't alter his attack.
Suddenly, several blood-red vines emerged from the nearby trees, shooting towards him.
Instinctively, the blue-robed man halted his advance, his hands forming blades as he struck at the incoming vines.
Clang! Clang! His palms met the vines with a metallic sound.
The blue-robed man was shocked that his strike hadn't shattered the vines. But he had no time to ponder this as more vines appeared, increasing in number and speed.
He quickly summoned his internal energy, forming blade-like projections on his hands to slash at the attacking vines.
Clang! To his surprise, his energy blades failed to cut through the vines.
"This is bad!" The blue-robed man realized he was in trouble and turned to flee.
But he found that vines had already emerged from the ground, quickly wrapping around his legs.
"Break!" He released a burst of energy from his legs, trying to shatter the blood-colored vines, but discovered that his energy was being absorbed by them instead.
"What are these things?" he thought in alarm.
Drawing on his battle experience, he freed one hand to grab at the vines on his legs, intending to uproot them.
As he reached down, a thorny vine suddenly shot out from a large tree behind him.
This vine, appearing like a bolt of lightning, pierced straight towards the distracted blue-robed man.
The blue-robed man sensed a gust of wind and turned to look.
Crack! The thorny vine instantly penetrated his skull.
The light faded from the blue-robed man's eyes as his body began to collapse. But before he hit the ground, the vines swiftly enveloped him.
Then the vines disappeared, leaving behind only scattered bone fragments on the ground.