Master of Nine Stars

"You’re still conscious?"

’Who... who’s talking?’

Rong Taotao dug one hand into the ground, struggling to lift his head, only to see the hem of a snow-white robe before his eyes.

But the owner of that white robe brought a foot stomping down.

Rong Taotao strained, pushing himself backward with all his might. The profound weakness in his limbs made his heart sink. ’This is bad.’

’My brother’s body... is it really this battered?’

BAM! With a deafening crash, snow exploded in all directions. The violent shockwave sent Rong Taotao flying, his body tumbling through the air before slamming into a large tree behind him.

Splashes of crimson immediately stained the white snow.

THUMP!

The impact with the tree sent Rong Taotao crumpling to his knees in the snow. He gasped for breath. His brother’s body was grievously wounded—it was no exaggeration to say he was covered in injuries.

His internal organs, in particular, felt as if they’d been violently rearranged. Now, two or three seconds after taking over this body, a flood of sensations—pain, weakness, and more—overwhelmed Rong Taotao.

Struggling to prop himself up, he turned his head to look nearby.

There, he saw a woman in a long, snow-white robe and a white hood. Around her neck hung a necklace of Soul Pearls.

’My god!’

’The sheer number of tiny Soul Pearls on that necklace was terrifying. It was so long it was wrapped around her chest three or four times?’

’Is that even a necklace?’

’That’s not a necklace, it’s a fucking supply station for a Soul Martial Artist!’

As he watched her, Rong Taotao finished settling into this broken body. Waves of piercing pain shot through his limbs, but paradoxically, the agony sharpened his senses.

"You shouldn’t have caught up to us, Sheep," the white-robed woman’s cold voice came from up ahead.

"AHHH!" A bloodcurdling scream tore through the air. Rong Taotao blinked hard, his gaze shifting to the distance.

He saw a man drenched in blood, his rat-head mask shattered, being held aloft by the collar by a giant.

The towering man was also dressed in a white robe and hood, obscuring the upper half of his face.

He wasn’t attacking, just staring silently at the frail man in his grip.

But the man in the shattered rat-head mask was screaming madly, his legs kicking wildly in the air...

’Rat!?’

Rong Taotao had met Rat once before. He didn’t know the man, but he recognized the mask!

WHOOSH...

A faint breeze blew past, and Rong Taotao felt his heart leap into his throat.

’Danger!’

’Extreme danger!’

Hardened by countless life-and-death battles, Rong Taotao reacted on instinct. He had no time to think, only to act. Channeling what little Soul Power he had left, he swung his hand forward. As his palm swept across his chest, a Heaven-piercing Halberd made of snow took shape.

TING! The sound of striking steel!

Incredibly, the Heaven-piercing Halberd swinging toward the white-robed woman’s throat was caught in her hand.

She simply gripped the Crescent Blade on the side of the Heaven-piercing Halberd, yet her delicate, pale palm remained completely unscathed, without so much as a scratch, let alone a drop of blood.

"Hmm?" The white-robed woman hummed softly, a hint of surprise in her tone.

Rong Taotao immediately thrust forward. Using the rebounding force from the Heaven-piercing Halberd, he pushed himself back a step, finally steadying himself with his back against the tree.

The simple movement seemed to drain him of all his strength. Blood rained down from his battered body, dotting the snow with crimson.

"I was just wondering how you were conscious enough to get up," said the woman in the white robe and hood. A slight smile played on her glistening lips, the only part of her face that was visible.

"So... you aren’t Rong Yang. You’re Rong Taotao?"

...

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