Luo Bing raised her palm, a faint blue glow radiating from it. As Du Yao's needle flew toward her like a bullet, she deflected it effortlessly with her bare hand.
Clank! The sound echoed through the room, as if metal had struck reinforced steel.
Despite the power infused into the needle, Luo Bing didn't even flinch. She looked at Du Yao, her expression cold and indifferent.
"I'll give you one last chance," she said calmly. "Surrender now."
Du Yao scowled. He couldn't believe this woman was treating him like a child. Although she was stronger, he was confident his poisons could turn the tide.
"You think just because you're stronger, you've already won? Don't underestimate a poison cultivator."
Suddenly, Du Yao's skin turned a sickly black, and a strange vapor began to rise from his body. The room instantly filled with a pungent, acidic scent. Anyone touching him now would be poisoned instantly.
"Poison Killer Body Mode," Du Yao hissed, grinning as he opened his mouth unnaturally wide. A black, corroded-looking sword emerged from deep inside him. It dripped with venom.
"Let's begin, shall we?" He charged at Luo Bing.
Disgust flickered in Luo Bing's eyes at the sight of the sword emerging from his mouth. She quickly summoned her inner strength and condensed it into an elegant blade of ice.
Their swords clashed.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The two dueled within the confines of the meeting room. With unconscious civilians lying around, Luo Bing had to hold back to avoid injuring them. Still, Du Yao was struggling—her swordsmanship and pressure left him on the defensive.
She slashed at his shoulder, but as he tried to dodge, her blade suddenly changed direction mid-swing, slicing his chest.
He stumbled back, black liquid oozing from the wound. It splattered onto the ground, hissing and smoking as it corroded the floor. Even her ice sword began to dissolve at the edges.
Luo Bing narrowed her eyes. "His poison is stronger than I thought."
Snarling, Du Yao thrust his palm forward. "Hand Poison Killer Technique!"
A dark pulse shot from his hand, heading straight for her.
"Ice Barrier!" she countered, raising a crystalline shield of ice in front of her.
Boom! The poisonous technique slammed into the barrier but didn't even make a crack.
"Tch," Du Yao cursed under his breath. "Her defenses… they're unreal."
Realizing brute force wasn't enough, he closed his eyes. A dense black mist began pouring out of his pores, thick and suffocating. The air turned toxic. It wasn't just a technique—it was a lethal area-of-effect poison.
"Scorpion Poison Refiner," he muttered.
This was his ultimate move—one that had ended the lives of countless Spirit Profound Realm cultivators. The gas crept toward the unconscious people on the floor.
But before it could reach them, the air temperature plummeted.
Luo Bing stepped forward, her palm glowing with concentrated Ice Energy. Frost crystals danced in the air as she exhaled slowly, blowing the crystals toward Du Yao.
The moment they touched him, his body froze over, locking him in solid ice.
"I told you to surrender," she said, her voice steady. "The result was inevitable."
She didn't kill him—just immobilized him. Then she turned, rushing over to check on Ye Chen's condition.
But just as she approached, a blur of movement caught her off guard. A powerful blow struck her from behind, launching her across the room.
BAM!
She crashed into several walls before collapsing to the floor, coughing up blood. She struggled to lift her head, and when she did, she saw a middle-aged man standing where she'd been seconds earlier.
His presence radiated danger. The air around him was thick with poisonous energy.
Trying to stand, Luo Bing's limbs went numb. She staggered, then fell again.
"I… I've been poisoned," she whispered, pain contorting her face.
The man stepped forward. "How dare you hurt my junior?"
Luo Bing's eyes widened. Another poison cultivator? She couldn't sense his cultivation level, which meant it was higher than hers.
He walked over to the ice sculpture that had once been Du Yao and pressed his blackened palm against it. The ice instantly melted away.
"Uncle Khun," Du Yao said weakly, bowing his head in respect.
The man—Du Khun—looked to be in his forties, but his true age was closer to ninety. He was a master of poison cultivation and had reached the seventh level of the Earth Realm.
Luo Bing gritted her teeth. The difference in their power was overwhelming.