I Can Merge Techniques

Like the punishing staff of a god, it blotted out any path of escape for the woman!

As the shadow of the colossal staff was about to descend, a look of desperation and madness flashed in the eyes of the heavily injured and poisoned woman. With a piercing shriek, her body erupted with a BANG, transforming into a wisp of shifting black smoke in an attempt to flee!

The next instant—

BOOM!!!

The shadow of the giant wooden staff slammed down viciously right where the smoke had been!

Amidst the earth-shattering roar, a pit dozens of yards long and bottomlessly deep was blasted into the ground. Dust and smoke shot into the sky, obscuring the sun!

"*Hiss!*"

From a distance, Chu Fan shot upright, sucking in a sharp breath as he watched the world-shattering strike.

He recalled a Demon Suppression Guard once saying that Xiao Ziye’s strength was on par with Princess Zhaohua’s. At the time, he had been too preoccupied with the matter of Xiao Ziye being "contaminated" to have a direct sense of it.

But now, witnessing her attack firsthand, her tyrannical and savage style left even Chu Fan speechless.

’This woman is practically a Fierce Beast in human form!’

As Chu Fan, Li Mubai, and the others watched, Xiao Ziye—who had arrived late and was already in an unstable mental state—

seemed to have descended into a complete frenzy!

Paying no mind to whether the woman was dead or alive, she gripped her staff and began smashing it wildly and erratically into the crater and the surrounding area!

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The earth groaned in agony as rubble shot through the air.

All of Cold Crow Valley seemed to tremble in fear!

Watching this apocalyptic scene, Chu Fan, Li Mubai, and the others felt their hearts pound in their chests. They instinctively retreated even further.

But this was no time to stand around in shock!

Chu Fan, who had previously fled a fair distance, had a sudden idea. He quickly turned and charged back, heading straight for the heart of the battlefield.

...

Li Mubai and the others stared, dumbfounded, wondering what the audacious brat was up to now.

They watched as Chu Fan weaved through the battlefield, nimbly dodging the cascading shockwaves of energy. He charged into the center of the ruined Cold Crow Valley, a landscape of scorched craters and fissures, and landed right beside the corpse of Zhang Lie, the Sect Leader of the Blood Shadow Sect.

"That guy... he’s actually thinking about looting the body at a time like this..."

When Li Mubai and the others saw what he was doing, the corners of their mouths twitched. They didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

’Such a willingness to risk life and limb for profit is truly a rare sight!’

But was Chu Fan’s plan really as simple as looting a corpse?

With nimble hands, he quickly searched Zhang Lie’s body, collecting several Sumeru Rings and the Demon Blade of extraordinary quality. Then, his eyes narrowed with focus.

HUMMM!

He summoned a small, ancient cauldron—it was the Five Elements Cauldron!

The Five Elements Cauldron expanded rapidly in the air. With a heavy THUD, it descended, mouth-down, enveloping all of Cold Crow Valley and isolating it from all external auras and prying senses.

Within the completely private space created by the Five Elements Cauldron, Chu Fan focused his mind and summoned the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, which radiated an ominous aura.

His target was Zhang Lie’s soul, which had not yet fully dissipated!

’The Ten Thousand Souls Banner needs the souls of experts like him for nourishment!’

’As for the other souls... I’ll just take as many as I can get!’

...

「Outside.」

Xiao Ziye, holding her staff which had returned to its normal size, landed atop a large tree that had miraculously survived.

Her expression was grim, the mania in her eyes having faded slightly as she scanned the ravaged landscape below, which looked as if it had been plowed over.

Seeing this, Li Mubai and the others flickered through the air and appeared at the base of the tree.

A careful sweep with their Divine Sense revealed no signs of life in the craters Xiao Ziye had created, especially not in the final, deepest one.

Had the woman’s body and soul been completely annihilated by Xiao Ziye’s furious assault?

Just as they were about to leap into the pit to search, Xiao Ziye spoke from the treetop. "Don’t bother looking. She escaped."

...

Li Mubai and the others froze, their faces filled with regret as they sighed softly.

’They had finally hooked a big one, only for it to get away in the end.’

But their opponent was a mid-Fourth Realm expert, after all. Her life-preserving techniques were endless, and that final Fog Transformation Escape Skill was clearly a brilliant escape Secret Technique.

But Xiao Ziye added, "She may have escaped, but she took several of my hits head-on and was poisoned by your Bone-Eroding Pill. Even if she survives, she won’t recover her Primordial Energy for at least three to five years."

Li Mubai looked up, a hint of complaint in his voice. "What took you so long? If you’d been a moment later, we’d probably all be dead."

According to the plan, Xiao Ziye was supposed to follow close behind, ready to provide support at a moment’s notice.

Beside him, Nangong Yue also breathed a sigh of relief, her voice laced with lingering fear. "That’s right. Luckily, Chu Fan bought us some time. He used that method to draw all of the woman’s attention, otherwise we might not have lasted until you arrived..."

"I got fucking lost," Xiao Ziye stated, her face a blank mask.

’You weren’t lost. Your condition must have flared up again...’

They all exchanged a knowing glance but didn’t dare to say it out loud, merely shrugging in helpless resignation.

Xiao Ziye seemed to finally process what Nangong Yue had said. She paused. "Chu Fan bought time? He was able to hold her off?"

As she said this, she blinked, recalling the scene just as she had arrived—

’The woman was bearing down on Chu Fan, ready to kill him, and the kid just... lay down...’

"This world is getting crazier and crazier," Xiao Ziye sighed. "So crazy I don’t even understand it anymore."

’Then again, maybe it’s not the world that’s crazy. Maybe it’s that kid, Chu Fan?’

’Otherwise, who lies down when they’re about to be killed?’

...

Li Mubai and the others stared at Xiao Ziye, speechless.

’You’re clearly the crazy one here.’

Xiao Ziye snorted, looking at them with a hint of disdain. "You lot are truly useless. Letting a junior go to his death in your place? That’s just pathetic!"

The faces of Li Mubai and the others instantly darkened.

’They had all agreed on the plan. Providing support was her responsibility. She was the one who got lost and arrived late, and now she had the nerve to blame them!’