Wings of the Fire Phoenix
Boom! A ma.s.sive explosion. Feng Nu stumbled three steps back, her silver qi turning red again. A trail of blood dripped out of the corner of her mouth; she had received no shallow wound. The Fire Dragon elder was also in not great shape. He bore gashes all over his front; blood continuously dripped out of his wounds. Although he had a fire const.i.tution the Heavenly Flame Sword and Ning Flames Qi pouring into his body definitely would not feel pleasant.
"Ah!" Jin Ni bellowed angrily. His aged body seemed to suddenly to swell with an imposing aura. A ferocious fist came crashing down on Feng Nu, silver qi condensing around it as it shot out like a bullet.
Feng Nu grimaced slightly. She could no longer force her qi to the holy qi realm. She gripped her sword with both hands; now, she could only rely on the superiority of the Heavenly Flame Sword. She mustered up her qi for another attack, but she was not certain she could block the elder.
"No one is allowed to hurt Feng Nu. Hup-" A large figure suddenly leapt out from the side. A ma.s.sive heavysword slammed into the silver bullet with a smash. A violent explosion of qi forced several of the Dragon People backwards. The one taking the attack for Feng Nu was actually Zi Qing Jian.
Right now, Zi Qing Jian"s body was showing obvious signs of changes. His disheveled hair was dyed red with blood, and his large body seemed to have grown even bigger. As he breathed in deeply, he sounded as hoa.r.s.e as an Iron-backed Land Dragon. His veins were popping all over his body. When he took the holy qi attack, his feet actually only sunk into the ground, but he was not forced back at all.
Jin Ni, who had used his most powerful qi, said in surprise. "A berserker? You are actually a berserker?"
No one answered his question. Zi Qing Jian was the only mercenary to leave the cave. His eyes had already turned blood red. In this mysterious state, he seemed to only remember certain people"s names. His giant heavysword was shining with green light that extended the sword by almost a meter. In this state, he appeared to be just as strong as Jin Ni.
Four Dragon People separated to attack Zi Qing Jian from different directions. But in his hands, the heavysword seemed to be a branch as he spun around without flourish. His green qi"s afterimages looked like a wall.
The four incoming shapes flew back faster than they came. However, this time as they were blown back blood spurted wildly. The four dragon warriors had received heavy wounds. Although with the Dragon People"s innate bodies, they did not meet death, they had lost their battle capability.
Zi Qing Jian stood there his red hair, red eyes and unstable green light emitting from his body like a demon G.o.d. Enemies on both sides stopped. For a time, he had become the center of attention.
Li De stopped his spell and gasped for breath. His pale face was evidence of his weakened state. He fell on his b.u.t.t. He dared not meditate, only fishing out several magic scrolls he had tucked away.
Nian Bing arrived by Feng Nu"s side, immediately turning his ice into water to cast a healing spell on her and repair her ruptured meridians. "What is with Big Brother Qing Jian? He seemed to not be conscious. I will go call him back."
"No," Feng Nu stopped Nian Bing. "Right now, no one cannot stop him. He has gone berserk."
"Berserk?" This was the first time Nian Bing had heard such a phrase. "What does berserk mean?"
Feng Nu said in a low voice, "It is a special const.i.tution. Ordinarily there will be one berserker out of every ten thousand. They were a supreme force, particularly in ancient times. After going berserk, warriors are called berserkers, humanity"s strongest soldier, as well as the hardest to defend against. That is because after going berserk, the warriors do indeed become the strongest of all warriors, but at the same time, they have a major defect. That is their consciousness falls into insanity just like their bodies. In that situation, they cannot distinguish enemy and foe. Their physical strength reaches its limits, their skin becomes hard as iron. If they use qi their qi will also be several times more powerful. I really did not expect that this friend of yours was actually a berserker. It seems that we may still have a chance to turn this around. It would not even be easy for a martial saint to beat him. I did not want to kill anyone, but now it seems there"s no way I can"t take action."
"Feng Nu, I know you have your misgivings. If you really do not want to kill anyone, you can just make it so those Fire Dragon People lose their battling capabilities. As long as we can leave here safely its enough."
Feng Nu nodded. "As Zi Qing Jian attacks you must go all out. Only he or I can deal with that elder, so we still may have a chance."
"Kill!" roared Zi Qing Jian in fury. In his eyes, the most important enemy was naturally Jin Ni. Subconsciously, the most important people to him were no doubt his little sister and Feng Nu. Just now, Jin Ni was going to harm Feng Nu. Now, Zi Qing Jian suddenly exploded. Naturally, Jin Ni was his first target.
He raised his heavysword. Although Zi Qing Jian was immersed in his berserker state, he had not forgotten about any of his abilities. Instead, he used his skills a lot more smoothly. The skill Zi Meng had used against Feng Nu appeared now, as Zi Qing Jian formed countless silhouettes as he charged at the martial saint ranked Jin Ni.
Feng Nu was about to move when she suddenly caught sight of a black light descending from the sky. No light was there to counter it as it headed straight for Long Ling who was curing the mercenaries. She didn"t bother to find out where it was coming from and flashed forward to Long Ling"s side. She raised her Heavenly Flame Sword to the sky and batted away the black light.
With a ding! It was actually a black needle. A faint stench filled the air; obviously this needle was poisoned.
"Ah! Why did you save me?" Long Ling had now come to her senses, unable to stop herself from staring at Feng Nu.
Feng Nu"s sharp gaze looked to the direction where the black needle came from, the lush forest nearby, but she could not feel any energy ripples. This definitely was not the attack of the Fire Dragon People. As proud descendents of a dragon bloodline, they definitely would not use poison. While searching for the hidden enemy, she answered, "It"s Nian Bing who wanted me to protect you. You do not need to thank me; if you insist, thank him. You must be careful, there seems to be another enemy here."
"Thank you, I will be more careful." Long Ling"s voice was calm, no change from the danger to her life. She continued healing the injured.
Ka Luo had heard what Feng Nu and Nian Bing said earlier. While Zi Qing Jian attacked, he immediately led the mercenaries in a counterattack against the Dragon People. He knew that if could fight back normally, although the enemy were many, there would be a chance for them to fight back.
Zi Qing Jian in berserker mode was just as Feng Nu described. He completely ignited his potential into explosive strength. Even someone of Jin Ni"s caliber felt like he could not beat him for a moment. Currently, he could not dodge Zi Qing Jian, otherwise a calamity would befall his clansmen in his place. Though the Dragon People possessed an innately high defense, a full frontal attack of berserk qi was enough to claim their lives.
The battlefield in completely disarray. Feng Nu finally jumped into the fray, her Heavenly Flame Divine Sword transforming into countless sword images. Every sword image was like a poisonous snake randomly striking. With consecutive flashes, one by one the Fire Dragon People warriors were stabbed. In just a moment, tens of Fire Dragon people warriors had lost their battle capability.
The pressure suddenly subsided. The mercenaries moved under orders, pushing their qi to its limits, following Ka Luo, Jia Te Lin, and Hua Rui in an a.s.sault.
Suddenly, countless red lights poured down from the air. They had only one target: Feng Nu. The red lights acted in perfect concert, sealing off Feng Nu"s forward pa.s.sage and forcing her to stop. She used the Heavenly Flame Sword to ward off the arrows imbued in fire qi. The Fire Dragon People took the opportunity to regroup and charge, forcing the mercenaries back into the cave. Now, Feng Nu and Zi Qing Jian were both separated from their surroundings.
Nian Bing sent out several spells to stabilize the situation, pulling Zi Qing Meng back next to Long Ling. At this time, there was a change outside. Jin Ni"s whole body swelled with qi and his fist sent Zi Qing Jian barreling backwards. He shouted, "Fire Dragon Soaring Cloud Formation!"
All of the attacking Fire Dragon People immediately treated, and the hundreds of people actually gathered in a strange configuration. An elite troop of 18 Fire Dragon Warriors separated to attack Feng Nu. A long-legged beauty led the attack. Another 18 gathered around Zi Qing Jian. They darted in to attack him from the sides, but did not face him frontal. Obviously it was to drain his strength.
Fire Dragon People were in a flurry of activity. The warriors who had lost their ability to battle were pulled to the side by their kinsmen. Jin Ni shot silver light from his body, his kinsmen crowding around him as he progressed to the caves. "Bow." One of his clansmen tossed him a bow. The other fire dragon warriors formed lines of eighteen, slowly approaching the cave.
Although no one was currently attacking them and the pressure had reduced significantly, the mercenaries were more serious then ever. None of them thought they would be killed like this.
Right now, Feng Nu could not use her holy qi. She was fast and powerful, but the team attacking her were in such a bizarre formation. No matter how she would attack, she would be faced with nine enemies. She would dash left and right, but could not break through their lines.
Jin Ni did not lead his kinsmen in a direct attack. Holding the longbow, his sharp gaze focused on Nian Bing. He had found out earlier that the youth relentlessly casting spells was the source of support for all of the mercenaries. As long as he could destroy the mages, their advantage would be much clearer.
Jin Ni"s eyes shone. With his hands on the bow, he had pulled back the bowstring in an incent. Silver holy qi covered the entire longbow, and a strange scene appeared. The silver qi began to transform around his hand, actually turning into a pointed arrow. "Dragon! Guiding! Arrow!" The silver light suddenly burst forth. Nian Bing could only feel something constrict his chest. The arrow had not quite reached him and he already was having such a violent reaction. Without any hesitation Nian Bing used his strongest Twin Ice Globes to directly receive the arrows. The mercenaries also were not idle. Ka Luo, Jia Te Lin, and Hua Rui took action,wanting to stop the arrow, but because the holy qi had transformed into an arrow in the air, it took a beautiful arc, simply flying over all of their attacks. Its target was still Nian Bing.
Could the Twin Ice Globes block the holy qi arrow? The answer is no of course not. With a giant explosion, the Twin Ice Globes exploded, filling the air with ice powder. The silver arrow went on through, coming within ten meters of Nain Bing. "Careful!" Zi Qing Meng slid forward blazing with green qi. She was prepared to stop Nian Bing"s arrow. The biggest advantage of the Condensed Jade Screen knife technique was its speed. A green screen formed in front of Nian Bing, but it was still not enough. With a ding! The Condensed Jade Screen disappeared. Zi Qing Meng and her short knife were sent flying, just by cutting the side of the arrow. Blood trailed out the corner of her mouth, as despair filled her beautiful eyes.
"No!" Long Ling threw herself in front of Nian Bing, her eyes filled with panic, not because she was faced with a holy qi arrow, but because Nian Bing was in danger. Her whole body shook and Long Ling suddenly felt she was turned around. Next thing you know, a sharp pain was coming from her back. She stumbled forward before righting herself.
Nian Bing faced Long Ling. A b.l.o.o.d.y hole gaped in his right shoulder. The arrow had gone all the way through. Fortunately because of the several roadblocks in front of it, the Dragon Guiding Arrow had lots its explosive nature, and the Dense Jade Screen slightly altered its direction. This let Nian Bing avoid a fatal wound. But despite this, the arrow had enough force to shoot clean through his body. Blood poured out. Nian Bing slapped a healing spell onto his shoulders and the bleeding stopped slightly.
"No, this can"t be." Long Ling"s voice was trembling. The pain in her back had disappeared, as now she realized what had happened. She was standing in front of Nian Bing, but Nian Bing embraced her and turned her to the side. The Dragon Guiding Arrow ran through Nian Bing"s shoulder blade and hit against her back. Now there was only a bit of pain left in her, but no outward wound.
Nian Bing smiled bitterly. "This had to happen. Ling"er, come, your healing is better than mine. Help me stop the blood. This time, it might be hard for us to escape."
Long Ling hurried over to Nain Bing"s side. She applied a healing spell to Nian Bing"s cup-sized wound, then roughly bandaged his wound with coa.r.s.ely torn strips of cloth. "The vest, the vest? Yesterday I gave you the vest, why aren"t you wearing it?" Long Ling"s voice was hysterical. "Could it be that you hate even the stuff I give you?"