450: Chapter 465 Backstab!

Without any extra movement, Lu Ming simply shifted his body slightly with composed ease, avoiding Yuan Tiangang's mountain-shattering punch by a mere hair's breadth.

The punch's Qi whistled past his robes, and the forceful wind caused the rocks behind him to explode violently, sending debris flying in all directions.

At the same time, he flicked a finger on his right hand, and a sharp bolt of Dharmic power shot out, accurately striking one of the countless afterimages!

"Poof—"

That afterimage suddenly dissipated like a bubble!

A hundred feet away, Feng Wuji's true body emerged from the Void Realm, a flash of surprise crossing his face.

"A bit interesting!"

He muttered to himself, his eyes shimmering with light.

That flick just now seemed incredibly casual, yet it had accurately captured his true location!

One had to know that his Law of Wind was best at concealment, and his afterimage Clone technique was at a level of perfection; among Cultivators of the same rank, those who could see through his true body were few and far between.

Could it be that this person's six senses and five perceptions are exceptionally keen? Or perhaps he has cultivated some Divine Ability to see through illusions?

But this thought only flashed by; Feng Wuji didn't dwell on it and attacked once more!

The three of them instantly clashed in a chaotic battle!

Lu Ming moved between the two, his figure elusive and unpredictable.

He did not use the human emperor banner, nor did he activate the Yin-Yang Dao Seed, relying only on a suite of Divine Abilities and Spells to contend with the two.

Occasionally, he used Heavenly Secret divination to predict where the opponent's attacks would land and evade them, while also timely performing 'Changing Cause to Alter Effect' to disrupt their rhythm.

One could only say that the value of a Heavenly Secret Master was still rising; this hand of deduction technique was indeed infinitely useful in a magical duel.

Often, the moment an opponent had a thought, he would have already sensed it in advance and responded calmly.

However, facing the pincer attack of the two, Lu Ming was still finding it somewhat taxing after all.

Feng Wuji's speed was too fast.

Those countless afterimages surged like a tide, even if he could accurately find the opponent's true location through divination.

But finding it was one thing; dealing with it was another.

Although those afterimages were illusory, they also contained significant offensive power; a moment of carelessness would lead to a hidden loss.

And Yuan Tiangang was so tough it was nauseating, truly giving Lu Ming a taste of what Feng Wuji had felt earlier.

With his Physical Body bolstered by the Tiangang Law, he was simply like a humanoid Vicious Beast.

As each punch's Qi boomed forth, every strike was enough to shatter mountains.

Lu Ming did not dare to take them head-on, only able to dodge using his movement techniques.

Occasionally, a few Divine Abilities landed on Yuan Tiangang, but they couldn't even scratch the opponent's skin.

One strength to break ten thousand Spells, impervious to all magic.

These concepts were vividly displayed in Yuan Tiangang.

Lu Ming sighed inwardly.

If he didn't use some of his trump cards, he simply couldn't break the opponent's defense.

But he had no intention of exposing his hidden cards now.

Mainly, he couldn't guarantee being able to keep both of them here at the same time.

If someone escaped, his secrets would likely be exposed.

The Yin-Yang Law was easy enough to explain; although it was the hallmark of Yun Chenzi, it wasn't impossible for others to Cultivate it, so such a coincidence wasn't a concern.

But the human emperor banner was different.

The meaning behind this Magic Treasure was too special.

Whether it was the Law of Life and Death born within it or the self-evolving Netherworld Space, both indicated the extraordinary nature of this top-tier Magic Treasure, which had even touched upon certain forbidden Domains.

Once exposed, it would likely incite greed in others and even make him a target for everyone.

Lu Ming wasn't afraid of others harboring ill will toward him.

His karma golden book was almost becoming a wordless scripture; he was practically wishing for someone to get on the list and become fresh consumables.

But he feared attracting the gaze of a Nascent Soul True Monarch again.

One must know that the Soul Devouring Demonic Sect was the leader of the Demonic Path among the Seven Great Grotto-Heavens.

Lu Ming did not want to attract the attention of the old Devil Heads in the Soul Devouring Demonic Sect.

It went back to the same point: he was worried that some hidden hand had been left in the soul devouring banner.

While he himself could shield Karma, as an external object, the human emperor banner could not isolate Karma.

If the opponent followed this thread of connection to find him, wouldn't he be a sitting duck?

But he couldn't just stop eating for fear of choking, abandoning the human emperor banner and never using it just because he was worried about being tracked down.

If he really did that, it would be truly stupid.

So his strategy was simple: don't use it if it's not necessary, but once it is used, he must pull up the roots and leave no hidden dangers.

But because of this, he felt somewhat constrained during the duel.

After exchanging dozens of moves, Lu Ming gradually began to fall into a disadvantage.

"Hmph!"

After another punch, Yuan Tiangang forced Lu Ming back and sneered.

"I thought you were something special, but you're just so-so!"

His eyes were full of contempt as he looked down at Lu Ming.

"With only this much skill, you dare to speak so arrogantly?"

Lu Ming steadied himself, not flying into a rage because of Yuan Tiangang's mockery.

But he also sighed inwardly: he was still not strong enough. Relying solely on Divine Abilities and Spells, he really couldn't do much against the two opponents.

Just as he was hesitating whether to sacrifice the human emperor banner and go all out against them?

A sharp glint suddenly flickered in his eyes, and then a strange smile appeared on his face.

...

On the battlefield, Feng Wuji's figure was elusive.

While attacking, he secretly observed the situation.

The exchange just now had given him a new assessment of Lu Ming's strength.

This person had many methods and was quite eerie, but in terms of combat power... he was indeed somewhat lacking.

At least, he wasn't so tough it made one want to vomit blood like Yuan Tiangang, against whom one was completely helpless.

Overall, this person posed no threat to him.

Even without the two of them joining forces, even if he fought alone, he was confident he could use the Law of Wind to slowly wear the other party down to death.

On the contrary...

He glanced at Yuan Tiangang beside him.

This brute was starting to play mind games too!

He could feel that Yuan Tiangang wasn't giving his all, at least being much more restrained than when they had fought earlier.

Each punch thrown seemed fierce, but in reality, he was holding back thirty percent of his strength, clearly being on guard—as for against whom, don't ask.

"Hmph, old geezer!"

Feng Wuji cursed inwardly.

Although he was also holding back, he didn't want his teammate to be so selfish and dishonorable!

This was a blatant betrayal of their fragile Alliance!

Well, one could say he was quite the double-standard hypocrite.

But one couldn't blame Feng Wuji. He had actually foreseen this scene long ago.

The moment the two of them finished off this fellow who didn't know the height of the heavens, Yuan Tiangang would probably immediately turn around to deal with him.

In that case...

Rather than waiting for Yuan Tiangang to act, why not make the first move himself?

A sharp light flashed in his eyes, his Divine Thought surged quietly, and a voice transmission was carried by the wind, silently entering Lu Ming's ear.

...

"Oh? Looking to team up with me?"

The moment Lu Ming received the transmission, he felt quite surprised.

He glanced at Feng Wuji and saw a meaningful light flash in the other's eyes.

Immediately, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly, forming a playful arc.

Infighting already?

However, Lu Ming knew even better that Feng Wuji probably saw him as a soft target.

This person likely felt he could handle him, so it was better to unite with him to first surround and kill Yuan Tiangang.

When the time came to deal with him, it would be much more composed.

Lu Ming sneered inwardly.

However, he did not refuse.

Did he really think he only had this much skill?

Not going all out before was just to test the strength of the two.

Once he sensed he was no match, he could withdraw at any time.

Now that someone was willing to team up, he was happy to take it easy.

But when the time came, who would be the prey and who would be the hunter—that was uncertain.

Having thought this through, Lu Ming nodded slightly, giving his response.

Seeing this, a flash of joy appeared in Feng Wuji's eyes, which he quickly concealed.

...

The following exchange remained intense on the surface.

But in reality, undercurrents were surging.

Feng Wuji's movement was still elusive and his afterimages were still numerous, but every time he attacked, the position of his strike shifted slightly.

The attacks that should have landed on Lu Ming were unconsciously becoming more and more off-target; hitting once in ten tries was already good.

At first, Yuan Tiangang didn't notice.

After all, Feng Wuji's fighting style had always been like this—slippery and elusive.

But gradually, he also felt something was wrong.

Why was Feng Wuji slipping behind him more and more?

Yuan Tiangang felt a bit wary, but before he could spare a strand of Divine Sense to watch Feng Wuji.

On the main battlefield, Lu Ming's offensive suddenly intensified!

Divine Abilities poured down like a torrential storm, each strike with full effort, as if he were ready to risk everything!

Finally, he even began to burn his blood essence, and the soaring blood Qi dyed half the sky a crimson red.

Under that crimson sky, Lu Ming's expression became extremely eerie, and blood-colored runes began to rapidly converge in front of him.

"Is he going to risk his life?"

Seeing Lu Ming looking like he was charging up a powerful move, Yuan Tiangang's heart tightened, and he temporarily suppressed his unease, focusing all his attention on Lu Ming.

The most terrifying time for a Cultivator was when they were fighting for their life.

Although he somewhat looked down on this person, he also feared failing in an easy task.

So he braced himself, his Tiangang Law operating at full capacity, intending to fully face Lu Ming's killing move!

However, he waited for dozens of breaths.

In the end, he saw Lu Ming holding back a big move for a long time, only for it to be all talk and no action; finally, with a 'poof', the runes in front of him instantly collapsed.

By this time, Yuan Tiangang had already realized something was wrong!

Magical duels between Cultivators were inherently dangerous, and victory or defeat often depended on mere seconds.

Leaving aside the fact that no one could fail to produce a single thing after more than ten breaths.

Even if it really took that long, they would have been chopped into mincemeat by others long ago.

If he hadn't been bluffed by Lu Ming's desperate stance, he would have attacked long ago.

But realizing it now was already too late!

Boom!!!

A violent wind blade struck his back without any warning!

That wind blade had been prepared by Feng Wuji for a long time, concentrating almost eighty percent of his power!

The green wind blade tore through the void, carrying a destructive aura as it slashed hard against Yuan Tiangang's back!

Yuan Tiangang was caught off guard, his whole body blasted forward, stumbling!

"Pfft—!"

A mouthful of blood sprayed out!

His Tiangang protection was indeed powerful, but no matter how strong the defense, one had to be prepared for it to exert its maximum power.

This strike came too suddenly; all his attention was on Lu Ming, and he had no defense for his back, so he just took Feng Wuji's nearly full-power strike head-on!

"You—!"

He turned around abruptly, his eyes wide, staring fixedly at Feng Wuji!

That look was like a Vicious Beast ready to devour someone!

"Feng Wuji!!!"

He roared, his voice full of anger and killing intent!

"You dare to violate our agreement!"

However, facing his roar, Feng Wuji just curled his lip, looking completely indifferent.

"Agreement?"

He chuckled.

"It was just a verbal agreement, you actually believed it?"

He looked Yuan Tiangang up and down, his eyes full of mockery.

"Should I say you're stupid, or should I say you're too naive?"

Leaving aside that it was just a verbal agreement and they hadn't even sworn a Great Dao oath.

Besides, even if they had, so what? It's not like there aren't Cultivators who violate Great Dao oaths after swearing them.

As long as the benefit is large enough, what agreement can't be broken? What consequence can't be borne?

He shook his head, his tone carrying a bit of pity.

"I don't know where all those years of immortality cultivation went."

He paused, and finally delivered a heart-piercing blow:

"Truly a brainless brute."

"You—!"

Yuan Tiangang was furious!

He forcefully suppressed his surging blood Qi, his Tiangang Law operating at full capacity to suppress his internal injuries! Then he stepped forward and threw a punch at Feng Wuji!

This punch contained endless fury!

The void cracked under this punch!

But Feng Wuji's sneak attack had already taken effect. This punch was far less sharp than before.

Feng Wuji just swayed his body and easily avoided it.

However, there wasn't much joy on his face.

He looked at Lu Ming with a face full of gloom, his tone carrying some dissatisfaction: "Your Excellency, why haven't you acted yet!?"

Just now when he sneak-attacked Yuan Tiangang, the other party could have clearly cooperated with him to directly severely injure or even kill Yuan Tiangang, but this person hadn't followed up.

Feng Wuji knew this was intentional; the other party wanted to completely cut off his path of regret.

Otherwise, if Feng Wuji used the excuse of missing the shot, Yuan Tiangang might have temporarily set aside his grudge with Feng Wuji for the sake of the overall situation.

But now, he had no way back.

Backstabbing Yuan Tiangang was a done deal, and the grudge was already established.

Even if he talked about teaming up with Yuan Tiangang again, the other party probably wouldn't believe him anymore.

He felt a faint regret; he hadn't expected that after playing Yuan Tiangang, he, who usually tricked others, would actually be outmaneuvered by this person.

However, he didn't panic too much.

He looked at Lu Ming, suppressed the dissatisfaction in his heart, and continued.

"You and I will team up to first deal with this brute, and then we'll split that nine-leaf green lotus equally, how about it?"

Cultivators were, after all, egoists.

He intended to first make a grand promise and use profit to lure him, solving Yuan Tiangang first, and finally deal with this person.

Lu Ming looked at Feng Wuji, whose expressions were changing like a mask-changer, and just smiled slightly.

"Sure."

A flash of triumph appeared in Feng Wuji's eyes.

As expected, this person was just that greedy.

And Yuan Tiangang, looking at these two loudly plotting, had a face of iron blue, his heart full of gravity.

With the two of them teaming up, he was already at a disadvantage. Now that he was severely injured, his situation was even more dire!

Could it be today...

He would meet his end here?

No!

Impossible!

Absolutely impossible!

How could he fall here!

"Want me dead?"

He raised his head, his eyes full of madness.

"You two aren't qualified enough!"