Li Nanzhu immediately sensed trouble and swept out her divine sense. A cultivator wearing the robes of the Wuji Sect emerged from the thick mist on her flank. He had clearly noticed the commotion and come to investigate. The moment he saw the flag gripped in Li Nanzhu's hand, greed flared in his eyes.
An enemy, not a friend!
Without a word, he dove into the fray, his sword light pointing straight at Li Nanzhu. "Hand over the flag!"
"Trouble never comes alone," Li Nanzhu cursed under her breath.
First wolves, then tigers, and now an interloper from the Wuji Sect had barged in! She hastily dodged to the side while barking a command to Suisui. The skeleton spun its frame, stepping in front of the Wuji Sect disciple and lashing out with its bone claws, successfully stalling his assault.
But that momentary delay allowed the two Mingguang Sect monks behind her to catch up. Suddenly, she was surrounded by all three!
"Amitabha." Huijue pressed his palms together, his tone brooking no argument. "Fellow Daoist of the Wuji Sect, we were the ones pursuing this woman first. Please step aside and do not interfere."
The Wuji Sect disciple sneered. "A bald donkey from the Mingguang Sect? This flag is worth ten points. Since I've seen it, I deserve a share. Why should I hand it over to you?"
Seeing this, a glint of cunning flashed in Li Nanzhu's eyes. She immediately spoke up to sow discord.
"Since you all want this flag," she said, "why don't you decide among yourselves who gets it first? I wouldn't want to hand it over only for you all to start fighting. It would be quite a joke for anyone watching."
As she spoke, she deliberately waved the flag, its sapphire-blue fabric looking exceptionally vibrant amidst the mist.
However, her attempt to play them against each other failed. The Wuji Sect disciple and the monks exchanged a glance and reached an immediate understanding!
"Fellow Daoist," Huijue said in a low voice, "how about we join forces to take her down first? We can discuss who gets the flag once it's in our hands. Better that than the snipe and the clam grappling only for the fisherman to profit."
"Suits me!" the Wuji Sect disciple replied instantly. "Take her down first!"
The two parties formed a temporary alliance. Their spiritual auras locked onto Li Nanzhu as their attacks grew even more ferocious!
Li Nanzhu cursed silently. These guys were shrewder than she thought! She knew none of them wanted a civil war that might let their prey escape.
The two Mingguang Sect monks were at the late-stage of Foundation Establishment and worked together flawlessly. The Wuji Sect disciple was also at the late-stage of Foundation Establishment. Their combined strength was not to be underestimated; she had zero chance of winning in a direct confrontation. She had to use her wits.
Li Nanzhu used her movement techniques and the mist to maneuver while frantically checking her Heart-Sound Bell—her eldest senior brother and fifth senior sister were still too far away. Reinforcements wouldn't arrive in time.
While she and Suisui could theoretically wear them down and eliminate them one by one, the protection period hadn't ended yet. She couldn't knock them out of the competition via the elimination circle just yet. If she stayed here too long and attracted more enemies, she would be in real danger.
She had to find another way!
At that moment, the Wuji Sect disciple, seemingly eager to claim the glory, suddenly activated a spirit-traveling acceleration talisman. His speed surged, instantly overtaking the two monks and lunging forward, his sword tip aimed right at Li Nanzhu!
An opportunity!
Cold light flashed in Li Nanzhu's eyes. Her body jerked to a stop as if she were trying to break out in a different direction, but her hand secretly withdrew several talismans.
Just as the Wuji Sect disciple thought she was changing direction and hesitated for a fraction of a second—
"Burst!" Li Nanzhu shouted, and the talismans ignited!
The already thick mist seemed to come alive, swirling and compressing frantically. Visibility dropped to less than a yard! Following Li Nanzhu's modifications, the mist was now mixed with a pungent odor that severely interfered with divine sense.
Simultaneously, she hurled several attack talismans in three directions. Though not powerful enough to cause serious injury, they were more than enough to create chaos.
"Damn it! A strong mist talisman!"
"Watch out! She has more tricks!"
"My divine sense is being blocked!"
Three cries rang out in the fog. The pursuers' footsteps grew erratic. In that fleeting moment of confusion, Li Nanzhu's mind raced as she sent a command to Suisui!
Suisui reacted instantly, plucking a rib from its body and tossing it to Li Nanzhu. She, in turn, ripped a small strip of sapphire-blue fabric from her clothes—a color nearly identical to the Five Elements Dao Sect flag!
She quickly tied the fabric to the bone, creating a makeshift fake flag.
Once finished, she shouted with a voice full of urgency and resentment: "Fine! Since I can't keep it, then no one gets to have it!"
With an exaggerated, desperate motion, she hurled the bone wrapped in blue cloth deep into the fog behind the Wuji Sect disciple!
The sound echoed through the mist, instantly grabbing the attention of all three.
The Wuji Sect disciple was in the lead, but his vision and divine sense were heavily impaired. He saw a blue object flying out in a panic, its shape and color a dead ringer for the flag!
Assuming she had been forced to discard the flag to save her life, his heart leaped with joy. Without a second thought, he spun around and dove toward where the object had landed!
The two Mingguang Sect monks were also stunned by the sudden turn of events. Huijue vaguely felt the spiritual fluctuations from the thrown object were a bit off, but with his vision blocked and the Wuji Sect disciple already pouncing, doubt crept in—what if it was real?
"Huiming! Go 'help' our friend from the Wuji Sect secure the flag. Watch for traps!" Huijue commanded decisively. "I'll keep chasing Li Nanzhu! She might still have points on her. We can't let her escape!"
Huiming immediately responded, spinning around to charge toward where the flag had fallen. Though he had a trace of doubt, his senior's order and the prospect of the flag drove him to act.
Huijue maintained his speed, keeping his lock on Li Nanzhu's aura as he plunged deeper into the fog. He feared this might be a bait-and-switch—that the real flag was still on her, or that she was simply using the distraction to flee.
This was exactly what Li Nanzhu wanted!
Sensing that only Huijue was still on her tail, she felt a wave of relief.
Meanwhile, back in the mist, the Wuji Sect disciple and Huiming were already fighting over the bone tied with blue cloth.
"Bald donkey! I saw this flag first!"
"Amitabha, Fellow Daoist. My senior brother spotted it first; it should be handled by the Mingguang Sect."
"Bullshit! Since I saw it, I get a share!"
"Do not be so stubborn, Fellow Daoist..."
Their shouting and the sounds of spiritual energy clashing drifted through the fog.
Hearing the commotion behind her, the corners of Li Nanzhu's lips curled into a cunning smile.
It worked! She had temporarily ditched one and a half pursuers.
While Huijue was still hot on her heels, in this mist, she had more than enough confidence to deal with him one-on-one—or even eliminate him entirely!
Rate on N.U.
