Nan Jia stared blankly at the figure that had soar gracefully upwards to engage in battle, rooted to the spot.
Hey, wait a minute. What was this about taking a desperate gamble? What she meant was to hold out for a while! Defend, do you understand?
However, it was already too late. Zhao Zhao had already exchanged several blows with the Taoist priest, brandishing her Duan Hun sword.
Alas, well, it was done. Nan Jia had no choice but to join the fray. She could only hope that the boss would arrive soon. This old man was no easy opponent.
The Taoist priest caught Zhao Zhao's sword with his bare hands. A hint of admiration flickered in his usually cold eyes.
"Are you that little girl from the Song family who was just found not long ago? As a human, why are you hanging out with demons? Does Song Changyang even approve of this?"
Zhao Zhao didn't expect that he actually knew about the Song family. She was just about to say something, like trying to strike up a connection and stop the fight. Maybe there was some misunderstanding between them and this Taoist priest.
But before she could say a word, the Taoist priest suddenly let out a strange chuckle and launched a palm strike at Zhao Zhao.
Zhao Zhao reacted quickly and blocked the strike with the back of her Duan Hun sword. The strike was surprisingly powerful, sending her flying backward. She landed gently on the ground.
"Are you okay?" Nan Jia helped Zhao Zhao up, her brows knitted with worry.
"I'm fine." Zhao Zhao shook her head. She really was okay. Although the strike was powerful, it was far from enough to hurt her.
The young girl's expression was calm, and her grip on the sword was firm. The sword glowed faintly, indicating her powerful spiritual energy.
"Interesting." The Taoist priest landed on the ground, narrowing his eyes as he sized up the Duan Hun sword in Zhao Zhao's hand. He said with a hint of admiration, "I didn't expect that the current Xuanmen would produce a young talent like you. Come, let the old man see just how capable you are."
It seemed that he had been piqued. He conjured a whisk in his palm, and his figure blurred. In an instant, dozens of identical figures appeared around them.
Clone Technique? Zhao Zhao frowned as she looked at the clones that had surrounded her and Nan Jia. Of course, she knew about the Clone Technique, but this was the first time she had seen someone create so many clones at once and use them in a fight.
Nan Jia was right. This guy really was a tough nut to crack.
"Zhao Zhao, be careful not to let his whisk touch you. That whisk is very strange. If it touches you, your spiritual energy will be absorbed." Nan Jia's expression was solemn. All nine of her tails as a nine - tailed fox were now fully revealed, in a ready - to - attack stance.
The Duan Hun sword in Zhao Zhao's hand transformed into a cyan - blue whip.
Zhao Zhao whipped the long whip and calmly replied to Nan Jia, "Okay, I'll remember."
In an instant, the clones charged towards them. Zhao Zhao and Nan Jia turned their backs to each other and engaged in battle.
There were too many clones, and the Taoist priest's real body was mixed among them. Every time they defeated one, a new one would quickly take its place. It was like they were endless.
"Hahaha, this is exhilarating!" The Taoist priest's bold laughter echoed in the air. "I didn't expect you, little girl, to have some skills. But I see that you're on the offensive, and every move is a killing blow. This isn't the way of the Xuanmen. Who is your master?"
"Stop talking so much nonsense. Come down and take a sword from me, and I'll tell you." The long whip wrapped around the throat of a clone, and she quickly dispatched it. Then she shouted at the old man in annoyance.
She was really fed up with these endless clones. Did this Taoist priest think he could tire them out this way?
He was hiding and didn't even dare to show his real body during the fight. And he still had the audacity to try and steal things... Zhao Zhao scoffed at him.
Nan Jia was also exhausted. She wondered why the boss, who usually had such a fast response time, was taking so long to arrive this time.
Did he even know that his wife was here? Damn it, he was dropping the ball at a crucial moment. He couldn't even seize the opportunity to play the hero and save the beauty.
"Damn it!" Nan Jia swept her fox tails, but the gap that had just been created by the dissipation of a clone was instantly filled by a new one. "Does this old man ever run out of spiritual energy? So many clones for so long..."
She was furious and on the verge of exhaustion.
Zhao Zhao knew that this couldn't go on. An idea flashed through her mind. She suddenly put away the Duan Hun sword and sat cross - legged on the ground.
She formed hand seals with both hands and muttered, "Under the nine heavens and within the six realms, the forms of all things are within my perception. Heavenly Eye, open!"
A white light appeared between her eyebrows and on her forehead. Zhao Zhao had summoned the Heavenly Eye.
The Heavenly Eye on her forehead scanned across the clones. When her gaze landed on one of them, she hooked her lips into a faint smile. "I've found you, you sneaky guy."
The long whip in her hand instantly transformed back into a spiritual sword and stabbed straight at the figure.
"Ah—!"
All the clones around them instantly turned into powder and drifted away with the wind. The Taoist priest was stabbed in the left shoulder by the Duan Hun sword. His mask fell off, revealing the face of a handsome young man, far from the "old man" he had claimed to be.
"Good, good..." The Taoist priest shook off the Duan Hun sword and sneered while covering his bleeding left shoulder. "The old man underestimated you. But since you dared to hurt me, let the Xuanmen lose another prodigy!"
He suddenly drew out the blood from his left shoulder and took out a vermilion feather.
The blood dripped onto the feather, and a pure white flame appeared in his hand.
Nan Jia looked at the fire and didn't even have time to be shocked by Zhao Zhao's ability to open the Heavenly Eye. Damn it, this old man had still used this thing.
The Nanming Lihuo, a divine fire from the ancient prehistoric era, the companion fire of the ancient divine beast, the Vermilion Bird. It could burn anything.
If Zhao Zhao was touched by this fire, she would probably turn to ashes on the spot.
Seeing the fire charging straight at Zhao Zhao, Nan Jia's body reacted before her mind. Without thinking, she stepped in front of Zhao Zhao. Her nine tails protected Zhao Zhao tightly, not caring at all that she might turn to ashes.
"Sister Nan Jia!" Zhao Zhao was held tightly by Nan Jia. She tried to push Nan Jia away. She could feel the power of the fire even from a distance. How could she use her body to block it!
"Don't move! Don't be afraid. Sister will protect you!" Nan Jia was terrified herself, but she still firmly protected the little girl in her arms, not retreating an inch.
...
"Eh? Wait, there's no reaction?" A dozen seconds passed, and Nan Jia felt nothing on her body. She hesitated and slowly let go of Zhao Zhao, then turned around to look.
A man with outstretched wings was standing in front of them. The Taoist priest stared at the suddenly - appeared man in disbelief, then suddenly disappeared using his magic.
The man folded his wings and walked towards Zhao Zhao step by step. With a wave of his hand, he lifted Zhao Zhao up from the ground.
Zhao Zhao looked at her master, who had suddenly appeared and changed his appearance. She felt like a child who had been bullied and was now seeing her parents. Her eyes welled up with tears, and she felt a bit aggrieved.
She still remembered Nan Jia was there, so she just silently called "Master" in her heart and didn't dare to shout it out.
However, Chong Ming's expression was extremely calm. With a slight turn of his hand, the cauldron that Zhao Zhao had hidden in the mustard seed space appeared in his hand.
Now that he had the cauldron, he turned around and was about to leave, but Nan Jia blocked his way.
"What do you mean by this, sir?"
Zhao Zhao also grabbed the hem of her master's clothes. "No, you can't take this away!"
Chong Ming's eyes flickered slightly. The air around him gathered, and he shook her off.
Zhao Zhao didn't fall to the ground but landed in a warm embrace.
Su Yuan held Zhao Zhao in his arms, his eyes cold enough to kill. "Either leave the Bu Ye Cauldron here, or leave your life and the cauldron together."