Chapter 217 - 217 Lack in Close Combat Experience
Lin Ran subconsciously raised his sword to block it, but when he heard the crisp sound of the two swords colliding, he immediately realized that something was wrong.
The moment Liu Ruxi’s sword collided with the Yin-Yang Sword, it seemed to have suddenly come to life. The flexible sword body twisted and continued to sweep at Lin Ran’s chest in a strange arc!
Slash!
The clothes on Lin Ran’s chest were ripped apart, and blood spurted out. If he hadn’t retreated immediately, this sword would have cut his heart into two!
“Damn that soft sword!”
Lin Ran gritted his teeth and quickly activated his internal energy to stop the bleeding. At this moment, a blurry white figure appeared in the corner of his eye.
The cold light flashed again. In his hurry, Lin Ran instinctively raised his sword to block it, but it didn’t help. As a result, another deep wound was cut on his arm.
Before the pain could reach his brain, Liu Ruxi attacked from an even more tricky angle.
In just two to three seconds, there were seven or eight more wounds on Lin Ran’s body. Apart from the soft sword being flexible, Liu Ruxi’s unpredictable movement technique also gave Lin Ran a headache.
Lin Ran didn’t know how Liu Ruxi, as a Heavenly Saint martial artist, could learn the cultivation technique of Great Yong.
Fortunately, Lin Ran had also learned a movement technique. As he dodged the attack, he activated the Mystic Gate Sword Technique to its limit!
Buzz—
With a faint buzzing sound, a black and white Taiji pattern spread out from the Yin-Yang Sword and almost instantly enveloped an area of nearly a hundred steps!
The qi of good and evil intertwined and surged. Liu Ruxi’s speed was slowed down a little, but Lin Ran’s speed had already reached its limit!
Whoosh—
Wherever the Taiji pattern reached, Lin Ran’s figure was appearing and disappearing at an extremely fast speed, as if there were hundreds of Lin Rans in this space at the same time!
Liu Ruxi stopped and looked up at multiple Lin Ran above her, as if she was shocked by this strange scene.
However, instead of panicking, Liu Ruxi focused her mind. Knowing that she couldn’t catch up with Lin Ran’s speed, she entered a vigilant state and turned to defending.
This way, Lin Ran only had two choices:
Firstly, he could gather all his strength to kill Liu Ruxi in one strike. However, Liu Ruxi seemed to be guarding against that. She was only 20 to 30 steps away from the empress. If Lin Ran used too much strength, the empress would definitely be affected.
Secondly, he could fight her in close combat. However, facing the former general of the Heavenly Saint Dynasty, Lin Ran was really not confident in winning.
Once upon a time, Lin Ran thought that his absolute power was enough to make up for his weakness, such as close combat, but after meeting Liu Ruxi, he knew that he was still too naive.
In the blink of an eye, more than half of the “Lin Ran” in the air was gone. In the end, the remaining dozens of shadows gathered together to form a solid figure. Lin Ran stood in front of Liu Ruxi with a helpless expression.
“Are you really going to use your daughter as a hostage?”
Lin Ran frowned and asked helplessly. Previously, he thought that Liu Ruxi was a very pitiful woman, but now, he was fed up with her.
Liu Ruxi smiled but did not answer. She looked down at the Taiji pattern slowly spinning on the ground. “How long can you last? A day? A month? Or a year?”
“It won’t be a problem to last until you die of old age!”
Lin Ran replied angrily. At the same time, he realized that Liu Ruxi had discovered his second flaw—time.
Actually, with Lin Ran’s majestic internal energy, if he just needed to maintain the Taiji pattern, it wouldn’t be a problem for him to last for eight to ten years.
However, he had just transferred a large amount of internal energy to the empress and had used a portion to stop the bleeding. The remaining internal energy could only allow him to last for a few hours at most.
Liu Ruxi clearly understood this, so when she heard Lin Ran’s answer, she only smiled. Then, she suddenly asked in her usual tone, “How long have you known Wan’er?”
“More than six years.”
Lin Ran didn’t know why Liu Ruxi suddenly used a casual tone, but he still replied honestly, “I came out top in that year’s martial arts examination. I first met her when I was summoned to the palace by her.”
“More than six years… No wonder.”
Liu Ruxi nodded and suddenly smiled at Lin Ran. “I can tell that she depends on you a lot.”
Lin Ran blushed for some reason and didn’t know how to respond, so he simply stopped talking.
“If you die, Wan’er will definitely be very sad.”
Liu Ruxi’s tone suddenly turned cold and bewitching. “So come with me? You’re very smart and capable. If we join forces, we’ll definitely be able to solve the problem you mentioned.”
“The problem of the cocoons rebelling?”
Lin Ran narrowed his eyes. “That problem is unsolvable. No one can live forever.”
“But you can.”
Liu Ruxi looked at Lin Ran firmly, her eyes filled with sick fanaticism. “I have an idea. Although it has never succeeded, if it’s you, you should be able to withstand it. It can help you maintain the critical point of ascension.”
“At that time, you will have unparalleled strength and endless years to live.”
“What’s more, you can’t continue to protect Wan’er and the Heavenly Saint Dynasty for tens of thousands of years!”
Liu Ruxi’s voice seemed to have a bewitching charm. Lin Ran couldn’t help but feel excited about it.
If Liu Ruxi could really do that, the problem of the cocoons rebelling would no longer be a problem. Or rather, all the problems would no longer be a problem, but…
“Do you think I’m a fool?”
Lin Ran’s expression darkened as he said coldly, “I swore to protect the empress, but I didn’t intend to protect your family for generations. You want me to be your family’s servant for eternity? You are really bad!”