Defeated in a Single Move, Wushuang Awakens

With the "Primordial Opening Scripture" within him and the primordial stones obtained from Fu Peng, Qin Anyu recovered at a rapid pace.

The people on the mountain peak seemed impatient, descending the mountain in small squads with their gazes locked onto the four figures.

"Very well, this place shall serve as your burial ground."

Seeing the blatant malice in their eyes, he concluded they were either members of the All-Heaven Gate or individuals associated with it—in short, enemies hostile to the three siblings.

For such people, the only solution was elimination.

As one squad neared the foot of the mountain, he stood up, cautioning the others to remain vigilant on all sides, specifically warning them to watch out for sudden, covert arrow attacks.

When charging toward Huai Mountain, he had already fallen victim to a stealth arrow shot by a Qi Condensation realm cultivator.

As for frontal combat, he had absolute trust in Lingxue and Youqin. Having fought beasts multiple times every day, these men would be no match for them.

When that squad finally approached, the four of them stood up as well.

Qin Anyu removed the unremarkable sword from his back, while the others emptied the stones from their bundles, stowed the cloth bags away into their storage rings, and drew their swords.

"Aha, brilliant! All three are here, and there's even an extra maidservant."

"Seeing us arrive and yet they didn't run. Do they actually think their combat power is that formidable?"

"Qin Tuo and his wife were already captured by us. Can these kids possibly be more formidable than two mere Qi Condensation cultivators?"

"In the past, only peripheral figures hunted them, which inflated their egos. Brothers, let them witness the true strength of All-Heaven Gate disciples."

"..."

How utterly oblivious, and how blindingly arrogant.

Qin Anyu, Qin Lingxue, and Qin Youqin all wore calm expressions, though their eyes turned glacial.

Qin Wushuang, however, could no longer endure their taunts and utter disregard, roaring out in fury, "Scumbags of the All-Heaven Gate, return my mother and father to me!"

His roar was met with peals of laughter from the enemy.

"Isn't this Qin Tuo's prodigy of a son? I heard he's already reached the early stage of the Qi Condensation realm. Everyone, don't be careless."

"A mere Wuyuan Sect—it only has a tiny bit of fame in the Song State; outside of it, it's worth less than dirt."

"Don't rush, you'll be reunited with them very soon."

"Be obedient and offer no resistance; with any luck, you might still catch up with them."

Provoked into a fury by their mockery, Qin Wushuang could no longer hold back. He brandished his sword and charged straight into the squad.

Qin Lingxue followed closely behind him.

Qin Youqin did not move. She had already perceived that none of these opponents could match Qin Lingxue in single combat. Therefore, she chose to wait, intending to bide her time until they were all surrounding the others, and then strike with fatal surprise.

Qin Anyu also remained still, having caught a crucial piece of information from their words: "Don't rush, you'll be reunited with them very soon." This sentence could be interpreted in two ways: either they, or at least one of them, had already been killed quite recently; or they were about to be transferred—transferred to the Chenqiao Plane.

As for this dozen or so men, he didn't care about them in the least. Their footwork and true Qi density had already betrayed their combat capabilities, which were far inferior to the beasts in the secret realm. Those beasts fought for survival every single day, whereas these men lacked such harrowing experiences. Thus, Lingxue would be in no real danger for the time being.

Qin Wushuang charged at the mid-stage Qi Condensation cultivator running at the very front, slashing down with his sword.

The man casually parried with his blade, deflecting the strike onto Qin Wushuang's body and sending him tumbling backward through the air.

That Qi Condensation cultivator was just reveling in his own successful blow when he caught sight of a tiny figure rushing toward him, and instinctively swung his sword to parry.

He fully intended to repeat the exact same outcome.

The next instant, he let out a shriek of agonizing pain.

The hand holding his sword was severed, followed immediately by the leg on that same side.

Losing his balance, he toppled sideways to the ground.

Qin Wushuang, still flying backward from the impact, felt pain wracking his entire body, his eyes glazing over as blood sprayed from his mouth.

Was this truly his little sister?

How could someone so tiny defeat such a formidable opponent?

Unaware of her second brother's profound shock, Qin Lingxue felled this mid-stage Qi Condensation cultivator and immediately lunged toward the next, cutting him in half at the waist amidst his expression of utter disbelief.

At this sight, the remaining members of the squad stopped their jeering, instantly scattering and tightening their encirclement around her with grave expressions.

The other squads rapidly accelerated their descent down the mountain, their roars and shouts echoing through the air.

Everyone had said that Qin Tuo's eldest son was a fool with freakish strength and formidable combat prowess, and his second son was a prodigy. Now, the eldest hadn't even made a move, while the prodigy second son had been batted away with a single strike by an enemy. Yet, none of them had anticipated that the youngest daughter would be the most terrifying of all, a reality they found impossible to accept.

Watching the roaring squads charging down the slope, Qin Anyu asked, "Youqin, is anyone else left on the peak?"

His eyesight was inferior to hers, which prompted the question.

Qin Youqin shook her head. "There are still two. Eldest Young Master, I am going to join the Young Miss in battle."

Qin Anyu nodded. "Go ahead, and be careful."

She replied, "I understand."

Clearly, she too had realized the necessity of swiftly dispatching these few before focusing entirely on the forty-odd enemies arriving behind them.

Having seen Lingxue instantly cripple the strongest cultivator in this vanguard squad, Qin Anyu knew she wouldn't encounter any real match among them. However, after killing another opponent, the remaining foes would likely adopt defensive encirclement tactics to restrict her movements, a potential bind that Qin Youqin had also anticipated, hence her decision to provide reinforcement.

Left to his own devices, he would have preferred to let Lingxue adapt further, testing whether he could squeeze out more of her hidden potential or even force a breakthrough. But since Youqin had already chosen to offer backup, he could only let things take their course.

With Qin Youqin's reinforcement, the encirclement was swiftly shattered, leaving the enemies either dead or severely wounded.

Qin Wushuang had landed on the ground, staring fixedly at the battlefield ahead. He had forgotten his pain and forgotten to stand up, massive waves churning within his heart as he achieved a chillingly clear realization of his own standing: Among the four of them traveling together, he turned out to be the most incompetent one by far.

He could not comprehend the movements of his little sister and Qin Youqin; they were absent from any of the sect's martial techniques, yet they seemed vaguely familiar—swift as rolling thunder, rapid as lightning, their trajectories as elusive as an antelope hanging its horns by its horns on a branch.

What on earth had these two experienced over the past few months?

In that so-called secret realm, had they truly encountered such immense, fate-defying opportunities?

Willingly or not, like it or not, he finally understood that if he did not push himself to the utmost, he would truly be left further and further behind by the two of them.

Steeling his resolve, he gripped his sword, climbed to his feet, and lunged toward a stray, isolated opponent.

Although Qin Anyu's attention remained primarily fixed on the descending squads, his peripheral vision closely monitored the three of them—observing the battle style of the two girls so he could offer constructive suggestions afterward, while also gauging Qin Wushuang's mental state to see how he processed this heavy blow to his pride.

The performance of the two girls was entirely normal, flawlessly replicating the combat state they had maintained against beasts in the secret realm: utter concentration, with every single move aimed at taking a life.

Qin Wushuang's psychological trajectory was equally normal: first, being sent flying by a single enemy strike and falling into a daze; next, watching in stunned disbelief as Qin Lingxue consecutively injured and killed her foes; then, feeling utter shock upon seeing her remain completely unfazed by being surrounded, instead fluidly maneuvering through offense and defense; following that, experiencing total bewilderment when Qin Youqin charged into the fray to shatter the encirclement and rescue Lingxue; and finally, after a brief moment of disorientation, his gaze sharpened, he hoisted his sword, stood up, and charged back into the fight, regaining his composure.

"Not bad, his willpower is reasonably firm."

Qin Anyu gave Qin Wushuang this internal evaluation before charging forward to meet the descending hordes.