C92 It Was over

Cui's reflexes were lightning-fast as she flipped her long knife and thrust it into the ground.

Regrettably, the assassin was well-prepared. The knife failed to wound him, and he seized the opportunity to yank it from Cui's grasp. With a powerful tug, the knife flew from her hands, and Cui herself was hurled toward Lee Yu.

"Master Lee, watch out!"

Cui sensed a persistent shadow at her back.

In a flash, she grasped the assassin's plan: he intended to use her as a distraction to disrupt Lee Yu's defense.

With only inches between them, Cui clenched her teeth, twisted her delicate frame, and positioned herself in front of the assassin's thrusting dagger. Astonishingly, she used her own body to shield Lee Yu from the deadly blow.

"Curse you!"

Rage blazed in the assassin's eyes.

"Today is your end!"

Lee Yu had quickly caught on. Seizing the moment of distraction, he unleashed a punch.

Alas, the assassin was too quick, releasing the dagger and effortlessly stepping back.

"Attack together!"

The assassin commanded. The man in black, drained from using a secret technique, finally caught on. He hadn't anticipated the presence of a Fifth Grade assassin in hiding.

'Whose side are they on?'

The man in black couldn't afford to ponder. The forces on both sides were nearly depleted, and soldiers from the Azure Sun Army were breaking through the blockade, surging toward them.

Time was of the essence!

The man in black was acutely aware of this. If the soldiers arrived, he'd stand no chance if forced to become a human barricade.

"Attack together!"

His eyes wild with frenzy, his energy soared as he invoked the secret technique once more.

Together with the assassin, they flanked Lee Yu, who was cradling Cui.

"Master Lee, don't mind me!" Cui's abdomen was a grotesque shade of black and red. With a sharp focus in her eyes, she yanked the dagger out, and the sight of her black blood was startling.

"Their weapons are surely poisoned. I'll fend them off... Wait for reinforcements..."

Before Cui could finish speaking, her body had already become limp and powerless.

"Don't take the risk!" She moved to confront the enemy, only to be halted by a firm hand.

"I've got this!"

Lee Yu stepped forward, his spiritual energy erupting, clashing with the two Fifth Grade Spiritual Territories.

All three were vying for control of the spiritual energy within the territory.

'Fifth Grade?!'

'How can his Spiritual Territory be so vast?'

The two deathsworn were taken aback, but before they could process their shock, a torrent of Thunder Spiritual Force hit them, sending them stumbling back two steps.

Lee Yu's face was set in determination as he advanced.

Mimicking the circulation of Qi and blood with his spiritual energy, he transformed into a martial arts cultivator for a moment, a wild beast seizing the opportunity to punch through the rift between the Spiritual Territories.

Bang!

The assassin, emerging from beneath the ground, managed to raise his left hand in defense but was struck as if by a massive vehicle, hurtling into the stone wall.

"So you're the one I should have been wary of. Too bad the intel was wrong!"

The man in black's eyes were filled with fury. He drew a dagger and, seizing the moment Lee Yu's fist was extended, aimed a slash at Lee Yu's chest.

"Master, watch out for the poison!"

As the toxin spread, Cui collapsed to the ground, her warning cry filled with urgency.

Lee Yu didn't respond verbally. He subtly shifted his stance to evade the dagger, then with a straightforward punch, sent the man in black reeling back.

This time, however, the man in black was on guard and managed to avoid serious injury.

The other assassin leapt into action once more, joining the man in black in a pincer attack on Lee Yu.

Some soldiers from the Azure Sun Army attempted to provide support, but they were swiftly dispatched by the duo before they could even reach the fray.

"Fall back and get her to safety!"

Lee Yu couldn't stand to watch these soldiers throw their lives away in a futile attempt to protect him.

These soldiers, all at the Eighth Grade, would have been able to minimize losses against Sixth Grade cultivators in open terrain, especially with the aid of their azure bull beasts.

In such a cramped space, facing off against Fifth Grade cultivators, it was utterly pointless for the soldiers to advance one by one.

"Listen to me! Everyone, fall back! I can handle this myself!" Lee Yu commanded, his voice seething with rage.

A group of Azure Sun Army soldiers quickly moved Cui to safety, while the rest charged forward undeterred.

"Don't distract him!"

Cui's shout from the sidelines halted the Azure Sun Army's advance.

She felt a twinge of helplessness; Lee Yu had the upper hand, but his efforts to rescue the advancing soldiers had put him in peril. It was out of this urgent concern that she spoke up. To her, using lives as a means to buy time seemed like the best strategy.

Lee Yu breathed a sigh of relief and deliberately dialed down the energy fluctuations to avoid injuring anyone nearby.

Meanwhile, the two Fifth Grade cultivators' spirits plummeted.

They were outmatched!

They hadn't anticipated the vastness of Lee Yu's Spiritual Domain, which allowed him to compete for spiritual energy without falling behind, even against both of them. Lee Yu's simulation technique was so powerful and swift that in a one-on-one fight, they could be defeated in an instant.

Moreover, the man in black's energy was flagging, a clear sign that his secret technique was faltering.

Once the man in black's power waned, their predicament would only worsen.

"Let's go all out!"

The two exchanged a determined glance.

The man in black lunged forward in a frenzy, while the assassin withdrew and made a beeline for Cui, who lay on the ground.

"Get back here!"

Lee Yu was startled. He leaped and landed behind the assassin, ready to apprehend him, but the assassin turned with a sinister smile, a pitch-black dagger appearing in his hand, which he swung backward.

Simultaneously, the man in black summoned his strength, transforming his spiritual energy into a massive sword aimed at Lee Yu's back.

Caught between the jaws of a wolf and the claws of a tiger!

A deathblow!

The duo had gambled on Lee Yu intervening, setting this trap with simple yet deadly effectiveness.

"There's no escape!"

Lee Yu's heart skipped a beat; such underhanded tactics were never seen in his clan's sparring sessions. Clenching his teeth, he declared, "You're going to die!"

With only a moment to react, he shifted slightly as the Thunder Spiritual Force in his hands coalesced into a sword, slashing across his opponent's throat.

But the incoming attack from behind was inescapable.

The massive sword, formed from Fire Spiritual Force, effortlessly shattered Lee Yu's hastily formed Thunder Spiritual Force shield before stabbing into his back.

Blood sprayed everywhere.

The assassin clutched his neck as he collapsed, his eyes reflecting the satisfaction of a mission accomplished and a hint of relief.

Lee Yu's back was a similar scene, with copious amounts of blood pouring from his wound. Struggling, he turned his head, his sword crackling with lightning, and drove it into the skull of the man in black.

The man in black stood motionless.

His strength was spent, drained by the secret technique, leaving him powerless and immobile.

"Young Master!"

Cui cried out in alarm.

The bizarre turn of events saw all three individuals collapse before her.

From a distance, the alarming amount of blood gushing from his back sent her into a frenzy. Her eyes reddened as she called out to the dazed soldier of the Azure Sun Army nearby.

"Hurry, help the Young Master up!"

"You..."

Her words trailed off as her vision blurred, the poison in her system breaking through its confines and wreaking havoc.

As she fell hard to the ground, her eyes caught sight of two figures rushing to Lee Yu's aid, and with that, she allowed herself a moment of peace.