Chapter 196: Secret Technique Humanoid Shield Art

This remark was directed at Lei Shuangxing, but Ye Xiaotian, standing in front, seemed to have suffered from splash damage—and not just any, but the kind that overflowed and stacked up.

He had been the first one to turn his head just now.

Didn't that scolding include him too?

But he couldn't say a word about it, because this was indeed an effective way to provoke Lei Shuangxing, even if it meant disgusting others and incidentally dragging in his own allies.

"A yang mou... hmm, he probably didn't mean it on purpose..."

Ye Xiaotian thought to himself and quietly swallowed the words of praise he had been about to voice.

On the other side, Lei Shuangxing was on the verge of exploding.

He felt that in just one day, he had exhausted all the emotions he'd built up over the past few years—and all of them were intensely heightened.

"Xu Xiaoshou, you're challenging my bottom line!"

Lei Shuangxing's eyes bulged with rage, nearly forcing open his tightly shut eyelids.

Xu Xiaoshou peeked out:

"Oh? You're going to crush the jade stone?"

"You think I wouldn't dare?"

"No, I know you dare, so better not crush it!"

Lei Shuangxing nearly choked on his own breath, but how could he, who usually guarded his words like treasure, hold his own against Xu Xiaoshou?

After taking two deep breaths, he felt he could no longer contain the Honghuang zhi li surging within him.

Calculating the time, the leader's task should be nearly complete, so maybe he didn't need to keep stalling.

Xu Xiaoshou noticed his silence and secretly glanced at the remaining three in the void, sensing it was tricky but deciding to speak anyway.

"That... I heard your jian qi can lock onto targets?"

Lei Shuangxing snorted coldly and said nothing more; he realized the best way to deal with this kid was to stay silent.

As he fondled the jade stone in his hand, he subtly signaled to Luo Leilei in the void nearby; he was preparing to strike.

The target was, of course, that infuriating guy!

Xu Xiaoshou "perceived" it all; he tilted his head:

"Why are you cracking your fingers? Is that a signal?"

Lei Shuangxing:

"..."

Luo Leilei:

"..."

Such a subtle move, and you spotted it?

Are your eyes on our backs?

"Received curse, passive value, 2."

Lei Shuangxing was completely thrown off; without another word, he suddenly raised the jade stone in his hand, about to crush it!

At that exact moment, Xu Xiaoshou's figure blurred, vanishing from behind Ye Xiaotian and reappearing behind Luo Leilei.

Secret technique: Humanoid Shield Technique!

"Offended."

In Luo Leilei's shocked expression, he tried to scoop her up around the waist.

But Ye Xiaotian had bound the void, so unless he lifted the person along with that entire space, he couldn't budge the girl at all.

Xu Xiaoshou:

"..."

Embarrassing!

Utterly embarrassing!

He gently grabbed her shoulders and then, acting as if nothing had happened, poked his head out:

"Come on, attack me. Can your jian qi bend around corners, or strike from behind?"

Lei Shuangxing's composure shattered again; he quickly eased his grip on the jade stone he was about to crush.

"This..."

This was just too shameless!

For the first time, when he wanted to unleash a torrent of abuse on someone, he felt a severe vocabulary shortage—because he was a civilized person.

"Xu Xiaoshou, what exactly do you want?"

Lei Shuangxing thrust his cane into the ground.

"Nothing, you want to buy time, I want to save people, that's all."

Xu Xiaoshou smiled lightly:

"So, let's make a deal..."

"Impossible!"

Lei Shuangxing rejected it instantly; he had already foreseen the outcome of dealing with this guy.

Xu Xiaoshou still smiled:

"Think about it again."

With that, he joined his five fingers into a palm blade, gathering "feng li zhi guang," and directly sliced Luo Leilei's jade neck, drawing blood.

Luo Leilei:

???

Why am I the one getting hurt in your standoff?

Lei Shuangxing's face showed no ripple; he said calmly:

"Do you think this can threaten me?"

"Can't it?"

Xu Xiaoshou wore an expression of someone who could see right through hearts:

"On the surface, it looks like you're just stalling for time to give others more chances, but isn't saving people one of your main goals for this trip?"

"To be honest, it should be a top priority, right? Miss Luo probably can't die now?"

He exerted a little force, severing Luo Leilei's major artery and causing even more bleeding, which made Ye Xiaotian's eyelids twitch wildly.

"Is this guy just messing around?"

In his mind, Luo Leilei was likely just an expendable pawn for the "Sheng Nu"—someone they might save if convenient or abandon otherwise.

That was one reason he hadn't dared to exchange hostages with Lei Shuangxing.

In his view, any of the five people they had previously captured was more important than Luo Leilei.

But...

Watching Lei Shuangxing's face subtly change after Xu Xiaoshou's forceful move, Ye Xiaotian realized he'd been fooled.

How does Xu Xiaoshou know all this?

"Received suspicion, passive value, 2."

"Received suspicion, passive value, 1."

The information bar scrolled rapidly; clearly, the inner thoughts of everyone present were churning. Xu Xiaoshou waited calmly.

He didn't press harder, because if he did, Luo Leilei might not survive.

She wasn't a Zongshi-level expert, after all.

As for why he knew Luo Leilei was important, it was clear from her bold invitation at Tianxuanmen and her confidence that someone would rescue her once she stepped out.

Luo Leilei was no ordinary figure in "Sheng Nu"—her identity was undoubtedly significant!

"You want to exchange hostages?"

Lei Shuangxing finally spoke up.

Xu Xiaoshou's lips curled into a smile; he'd hit the mark again!

"No, you have three people, I have only one; that's not fair. Send two over first!"

"You..."

Lei Shuangxing was so furious he nearly burst a lung; this guy was pushing his luck!

"Luo Leilei is important, or the three you have are—think about it. Honestly, if I weren't a decent person, I wouldn't even bother saving these three."

"After all, I hardly know them..."

Ye Xiaotian glared at him, and Xu Xiaoshou's voice trailed off.

Lei Shuangxing hesitated; he knew that if he truly abandoned the two, Luo Leilei's critical role would be exposed.

But even without seeing it, the scent of blood in the air told him exactly what Xu Xiaoshou was doing.

Snap! Snap!

Jian qi erupted, and two blood-soaked figures dropped to the ground.

"Here you go."

He returned them, but their breaths were barely detectable.

Xu Xiaoshou's face darkened:

"You're playing games!"

"An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth."

The air fell silent for a second.

With a sharp sound, Xu Xiaoshou's palm blade pierced straight through Luo Leilei's back and out her chest, blood pouring out.

"Sorry, I didn't want to, but your friend forced me."

Xu Xiaoshou hesitated a moment, then whispered:

"Don't worry, I have experience this time; I avoided the vital points."

Luo Leilei turned pale; she could have held back the blood, but after hearing that, it spilled from her lips.

This stab left everyone stunned; they stopped talking and dove straight into action.

This was turning into an all-out fight!

Ye Xiaotian realized the situation was spiraling out of control; he didn't call it off, since he'd chosen to trust Xu Xiaoshou, he had to back him all the way.

In an instant, infinite jian qi burst from Lei Shuangxing's body, weaving together and condensing into tens of thousands of white small swords suspended in the void.

The council hall, the old locust tree, and the vast forest behind—all seemed to transform into massive swords embedded in the ground, poised to strike.

Zongshi sword intent, at full throttle!

The world was filled with a chilling, oppressive aura!