668: Duel To the Death

Duel To the Death

Ming Yue said nothing to him, not even an attempt to get the Hound to leave. 

"There's no point in trying it, Langshen planned on killing them to lure me out. And since he's here, I can't let him leave."

She took no chances, activating her trump card. Her eyes flashed blue as her energy stirred and her armor shapeshifted into its second form.

"Pale Moon."

As the two continued to approach one another, Ming Yue raised the Black Blade before her figure suddenly vanished from sight. Langshen suddenly stopped and turned, raising his shield up just as she reappeared, striking it. 

The sword screeched as it grinded against the shield and she wasn't finished yet. Twisting her body, she spun around, smashing Blood Moon against it. 

Letting loose a wild barrage of swings, he had no chance to attack, bracing himself only to be pushed back bit by bit. But the Hound wasn't going to falter so easily. 

Ming Yue sharpened her gaze, jumping back just as he swung his shield out and thrust his sword at her. The Hound lunged forward, aiming to pierce her stomach though she was ready. The young cultivator crossed her swords, blocking the strike but she could not nullify all of its power. 

"Urgh!"

She groaned as her body was thrown back by the force of the attack, landing on a knee. 

Looking up at him, there wasn't even a second for her to relax when he pounced, striking at her. She backed off, avoiding the attack before countering with a swing of her own. 

"Now I get why he's called the Hound, such relentlessness. It's like fighting a monstrous wolf", she thought. 

Langshen always seemed to be pushing forward, not once was Ming Yue able to push him back or even stagger him! Even with all that armor on, he was swift and his strikes were always on point. He would always trade her blow for blow. 

"That's not all, is it?" he asked. 

The Hound leaped up and slammed his shield into the ground, causing the entire city to shake! With that power, he shot forward, swinging his sword down at her. Ming Yue stood her ground and lunged forward, striking at his blade and his shield. 

As their weapons met, she twisted her body, throwing him off to the side. He slammed into the ground and his shield pierced deep into the stone. For just a few seconds, he was stuck. Her figure suddenly vanished, reappearing at the edge of the arena. Raising Blood Moon up to the sky, she concentrated hard, pulling the clouds together. 

They swirled and swirled as the red sword howled, her eyes stared at where Langshen was. 

"Of course not."

In that moment, she activated the very technique that destroyed a whole city, Mortal Lightning. The skies cracked once, producing a blinding flash before the clouds parted, revealing a massive golden lance. And it shot down, quickly condensing as it aimed at a single point. 

What followed was an impact greater than what Langshen did, shaking the ground and rattling everyone. Everyone that was weak fainted immediately, even some of the wolves did while those that managed to stay conscious could barely stand their ground. 

"Rou'er! Uncle! Aunt!" 

Fei Xian quickly moved as did many others, shielding and protecting as many as they could. 

The young man's eyes darted around, searching for his family. Rou'er was quicker than him, moving in front of her parents and striking at whatever debris came at them. 

He ran to them and to his family. 

"It's not safe here. Quick, we must escape before this gets even more dangerous!" he shouted to them. 

Rou'er looked at him before staring at the arena which was now destroyed. There were dust clouds everywhere and it was too thick to be able to see everything.

"But... but..."

Both Elder Fei and Cui Fen grabbed her hands, looking at her worriedly. 

"She'll be fine, she must've done it to give us this chance to escape!" 

She turned to look at them, scared and hesitant before her mother faced her. 

"Don't worry about Ming Yue, trust her. She saved us before and the best thing that we can do for her is to stay alive. Now come on, let's go", she said. 

Rou'er was then pulled away and everyone made their escape. None of them wanted to stay any longer, not when death could happen at any moment.

As the young girl ran with the others, her eyes were still glued to the arena. 

"Where is she? I don't see her!" 

She looked hard before suddenly seeing something fly out of the dust, two figures in the air. 

"There she is!" 

At first, Rou'er smiled but then her expression turned to one of terror when she looked closer. 

"Oh no! Ming Yue!" 

She turned back, wrenching free of her mother's grasp and running after them. 

"Wait! Rou'er!" 

Cui Fen nearly ran to chase after her but Elder Fei pulled his wife back. 

"Don't!" he shouted. 

From the side, Fei Xian moved quickly, looking at the pair. 

"I'll get her back! Don't worry!" he shouted, before flying after her. 

Meanwhile, Ming Yue was struggling in the air as Langshen held her by the throat. The Hound was in a horrid state. Part of his armor had been destroyed, revealing his face and half of his body. But what was revealed was left burnt up and melting.

They were horrifying injuries, melted flesh and blackened skin. 

It was still hot to the touch, and the smell of blood was strong as it steamed out from his body. 

Despite all of that, he was alive and he was grinning.

"If I had been a second too late, I might've died there! At first, I wasn't sure how a First Sky Cultivator could've killed someone at the Second and Third Sky but now I know! You're a monstrous little genius, aren't you?! But I'm afraid you aimed for something just out of your reach!" he shouted. 

Without his armor, it was as if something had been unleashed, like a wild beast that was out of his cage. 

"Urgh, keh!" 

Ming Yue could barely speak a word as his grasp on her was tight. 

"Damn it!" she thought, "I didn't think he'd be able to match me in speed. He caught me by surprise."

In all that dust and debris, never would Ming Yue have thought that Langshen would sprint straight to her. And now she was in his hands.

But things were far from over, she still had her swords. 

The cultivator swung out only for him to slam her back into the arena. She could feel the stone break beneath her body as the air was knocked out of her lungs. Her internal organs were shaken. 

She coughed out before spitting blood, seeing it splatter on his face. 

The Hound leaned in, ignoring the pain and the blood. 

"This is a duel to the death and it will not end until one of us die. Once you're dead, I'll raze this entire country. It will be nothing but ashes once I'm done."

He spoke quietly into her ear, letting her know what was next. 

"My wolves will tear everyone to shreds." 0

With each word, his grip on her neck tightened, choking the life out of her. And she could do nothing about it. She didn't have much strength left and soon enough her consciousness was about to go. 

But then she heard something, a familiar voice. 

"Let her go!" 

There was a slight clink as a sword struck the Hound, hitting his armor before sinking into the flesh of his shoulder. But he barely even reacted to it, slowly turning to see who it was that dared to attack him. 

And out of the corner of her eye, Ming Yue saw Rou'er standing there with her hands wrapped around that sword. 

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