218: An Shigeng, the Evil Man of Ice and Fire

Suddenly, Lu Jiuyuan's finger, which had been tapping the table, paused slightly. Without lifting his gaze, he said faintly, "They're here."

Almost as soon as he finished speaking, a hundred paces from the villa's main gate, pairs of lifeless, dull, yet malevolent eyes lit up.

Like a tide, dozens of figures appeared silently. They shambled but moved quickly, their bodies stiff yet possessing immense strength. They were the medicinal puppets meticulously refined by An Shijing!

These medicinal puppets had grayish-green skin and emitted guttural roars of unknown meaning.

They instantly breached the simple outer defenses and swarmed towards the main villa building.

"Shangguan Haitang has been waiting for you!"

Shangguan Haitang shouted clearly, leaping out of the hall simultaneously with Jian Jingfeng.

Jian Jingfeng's long sword flashed from its sheath, its light like a bolt of silk, instantly bisecting the two medicinal puppets at the very front!

However, the two severed torsos still crawled on the ground, leaving disgusting trails, until they were crushed by the subsequent medicinal puppets.

Shangguan Haitang waved her folding fan, and hidden weapons rained down, precisely targeting the medicinal puppets' weak points like joints and eye sockets, attempting to restrict their movements.

But these medicinal puppets were fearless, their assault unwavering unless their central core was completely destroyed or they were dismembered!

"Brother Lu, there are too many medicinal puppets, their defenses are extremely strong, they feel no pain, and they are incredibly troublesome! Moreover, they don't have needles in their heads!"

Shangguan Haitang said while fending them off.

Lu Jiuyuan slowly rose and walked to the hall entrance, his gaze sweeping over the dense, dark wave of medicinal puppets outside: "Then break their neck bones. I refuse to believe they can still Move once their heads are cut off!"

Before he finished speaking, his figure shot out like the wind, directly plunging into the densest concentration of medicinal puppets.

He didn't even draw his sword, merely pointed his fingers like a sword, casually striking out. Wherever his fingertips reached, Sword Qi erupted, and within seven feet, every Move targeted a neck.

Wherever he passed, heads flew continuously, creating a vacuum zone out of sheer force!

However, the medicinal puppets seemed endless, and some individuals with noticeably stronger auras began to mix in. They moved more swiftly and could even display intricate fist, foot, and weapon techniques, clearly the "elites" among the medicinal puppets.

But for Jian Jingfeng and Shangguan Haitang, it was merely a bit of pressure!

Lu Jiuyuan didn't even need to act again; the two of them had already blocked all the remaining medicinal puppets.

"An Shijing, is this all you're capable of? Do you only dare to send these walking corpses to their deaths?"

"Hehehe... Hahaha..."

A bout of maniacal laughter echoed from the darkness, growing closer, like the cry of a night owl.

On the distant eaves, a red figure silently appeared.

An Shijing, clad in a large red brocade robe, appeared particularly dazzling and eerie under the bright moonlight.

He wore an exaggerated smile on his face, but his eyes were cold as a snake, staring fixedly at Lu Jiuyuan.

"Lu Jiuyuan! You killed my Huahua, today I demand a blood debt from you!"

Before An Shijing's laughter faded, his figure transformed into a red blur, pouncing down from the eaves!

He shook his arms; his left hand condensed ice, frost Qi permeated the air, and his right hand ignited fire, hot waves churning. Ice and fire intertwined, accompanied by an eerie shriek, heading straight for Lu Jiuyuan!

"Good timing!"

A sharp glint flashed in Lu Jiuyuan's eyes. He didn't dodge, his True Qi surged around him, and Three-Part Yuan Qi was instantly pushed to eighty percent of its power as he pushed his palms out flat.

Fire from his left hand, ice from his right.

Ice met ice, and fire met fire.

They looked similar, but in reality, they were utterly different. One encompassed the myriad changes of Yin and Yang, ice and fire, supported by thick earth; the other was based on extraordinary arts and techniques, integrating Western science.

Boom!

As their palms met, the power of ice and fire collided fiercely with the Three-Part Yuan Qi!

There was no earth-shattering roar, only a dull, thunderous bang. The air within three zhang of the two men violently twisted and collapsed, then transformed into a visible circular Qi wave that spread out with a roar!

The bluestone slabs on the ground cracked inch by inch, debris flew, and several nearby medicinal puppets were struck as if by an invisible giant hammer, instantly flying backward, their bones shattering.

The maniacal smile on An Shijing's face froze, and for the first time, a look of alarm appeared in his eyes.

He felt as if his usually unstoppable ice and fire extraordinary technique had crashed into an incredibly thick, yet endlessly circulating, wall of bronze and iron.

The ice force was like a clay ox entering the sea, quietly dissolved by a force of extreme Yin and softness; while the fire malevolence was like a raging wave crashing against a reef, repelled by a force of extreme Yang and rigidity!

The balance of intertwined ice and fire was instantly disintegrated by his opponent in such an inconceivable manner!

"What kind of martial art is this?" An Shijing shrieked, using the force of the palm clash to rapidly spin his body. He drifted back several zhang like a red cloud, his footsteps slightly unsteady as he landed, his internal Qi and blood churning.

He stared fixedly at Lu Jiuyuan, his eyes filled with suspicion and uncertainty.

Lu Jiuyuan's figure was as stable as a rock, his robes fluttering. He slowly retracted his palms, a red grain of sand folder held between his fingertips.

"This is... red phosphorus? So that's it. Your flames, though ignited by Internal Energy, merely rely on external Materials.

I thought I had encountered a master who could harmonize Yin and Yang and subdue the Dragon and Tiger, but it turns out to be a cheap trickster."

His tone of evaluation was calm, yet it was like needles pricking An Shijing's heart.

"Nonsense!" An Shijing flared up in anger. He hated nothing more than being underestimated: "This is called science! The Daoist Palm Thunder also uses gunpowder, this is science!!"

His red robe billowed around him, and his aura suddenly became deep and eerie.

The remaining medicinal puppets around them seemed to receive a command, simultaneously letting out hoarse roars. They no longer paid attention to Shangguan Haitang and Jian Jingfeng, instead, they frantically and recklessly lunged at Lu Jiuyuan like mad demons!

An Shijing himself flickered, transforming into several red blurs, difficult to distinguish between real and fake, attacking Lu Jiuyuan from different angles. Ice shards and flames flickered between his palms and fingers, his Moves were vicious and tricky, their power even greater than before!

He intended to use the medicinal puppets as a distraction while he fought with all his might!

"Brother Lu, be careful!" Shangguan Haitang exclaimed, and she and Jian Jingfeng tried to intercept the medicinal puppets, but they were tightly entangled by even more fearless medicinal puppets.

Facing attacks from all directions, Lu Jiuyuan finally moved.

He made a grasping motion with his right hand, and the Guhong Sword, which had been hanging at his waist, let out a clear, long Sword Cry, suddenly unsheathing!

The sword light was not dazzling, but it was as clear and cold as autumn water. The moment it cut through the night, the temperature of the entire courtyard seemed to plummet.

He didn't use any flashy sword Moves, just a simple, straightforward horizontal slash.

A linear, condensed Sword Qi was unleashed, silent and imperceptible, yet so fast it surpassed the limits of visual capture!

Puff, puff, puff, puff...!

Wherever the Sword Qi passed, the seven or eight medicinal puppets at the very front froze in unison.

The next moment, their upper bodies slowly slid down along a smooth diagonal line. The severed edges were as smooth as a mirror, with not a drop of blood spurting out, having been instantly sealed by the extremely sharp Sword Qi and extreme cold!

The power of a single sword strike had cleared out nearly half of the courtyard!

This left Jian Jingfeng stunned. This was his ultimate Move, his trump card, the ultimate Move he had spent half his life creating. When had he learned it?

At the same time, Lu Jiuyuan spread the five fingers of his left hand, palm inward, and a powerful suction force suddenly emerged.

Three-Part Yuan Qi!

It enveloped the several red blurs that An Shijing had conjured.

"Hmm?" An Shijing felt his body stiffen, his illusions shattering one after another, and his true body was pulled forward, stumbling, by that strange suction.

He was horrified and hurriedly pushed his power to its full ten percent to stabilize his lower body.

A True Qi sphere, entangled with ice and fire, was directly pushed towards him.

Any True Qi released from the body is an absolute, trump card ultimate Move.