Volume 5
278 An Invisible Battle

"Looks like the only subordinate who can share the world with the Ghost King is rather confident of himself." Si Luo acknowledged Cang Ming"s confidence, but he wasn"t the least bit afraid.

Cang Ming narrowed his eyes. "We"ve went against each other before, Si Luo. You should know very well if I have the ability."

Si Luo answered calmly, "Yes. Not including Huai Du and Feng Zhu, I think you and Ta Lai are the only ones whose power I"m not able to gauge fully."

Why was Ta Lai included in this? Was he that powerful?

I knew Ta Lai was strong, but is he that strong? If that"s the case, does it mean that the two strongest individuals in the Split Zone both liked Bian Ying?

That fragile-looking girl, Bian Ying, does this spell luck or disaster for you?

Cang Ming frowned at Si Luo"s words of praise. "That"s a lot of people not being included. If you"ve even included Ta Lai in that list, then I think it"s really been a long time that we"ve not seen each other. To the point that you don"t even know me that well now."

Jiao S interrupted him. "Does that audacity stem from real abilities or is that just a show? I guess we"ll only know after we witness it."

A glint of excitement shone in Cang Ming"s eyes. "I"d love to start the fight."

A light flashed in his eyes as his blood-red robes fluttered on its own while an unknown pressure filled the entire plaza.

Soul splitters were rather sensitive to looming danger. Those who were initially watching us in the surroundings began to disperse as they sensed that pressure. They are just like humans when it comes to protecting oneself from danger.

"I should actually be thanking you for helping me heal my face. But I"m a little upset in this situation, so I"m afraid I won"t be giving you any chances." Though Nie Zun"s hair was tousled by the sudden air current sweeping past the plaza, his hands were in his pockets and his gaze was as calm as ever.

I then realized that he had stepped out and he was already face-to-face with Cang Ming.

A dangerous aura seeped out from both figures as they stared at each other.

"I"d tear you apart if you were the kind who gave your opponents chances," Cang Ming said with overflowing confidence.

Why did they have to speak like this before engaging in battle?

Jiao S stood unmoving, and her eyes seemed empty. I asked quietly, "What do you plan on doing?"

Her neck produced a cracking sound as she turned to me. "Don"t worry. They won"t be fighting," she said in her low and hoa.r.s.e voice.

Si Luo waved his hand lightly. It was a casual movement, but he attracted the attention of everyone else.

With that wave, the air around us seemed to change.

It felt as if someone had thrown you a lifesaver when you were about to drown in the water, but when you finally grabbed hold of it, you realized that your lifesaver actually had a hole in it. This description was weird, but it was exactly the feeling Si Luo exuded.

There was a sense of danger about him from the beginning, but you"d think it was nothing after looking at his casual stance, and he"d be coming at you with a killing strike before you even realize it.

He didn"t seem to be launching a large-scale attack with that casual wave. When he opened his palm in the air, a transparent bead of water appeared.

From where I stood, that transparent bead of water looked like a clear, beautiful crystal.

But no matter how much it looked like a crystal, it was mere water. I couldn"t think of how mere water would be able to do any harm, and I couldn"t think of how it could actually be used as a weapon. I didn"t understand what he was trying to do.

I wanted to say something like "Nice trick!", but I decided to shut my mouth after seeing Cang Ming and Nie Zun"s faces turn dark.

Both of them were staring at the drop of water in Si Luo"s palm very seriously, and they looked like they had lost all will to fight.

I was suspicious of this. Weren"t the both of them exuding immense confidence just seconds ago? What"s going on here? Did this water have some magical power that could kill them both in a second?

I looked at Jiao S. Her usually emotionless eyes were s.h.i.+ning as if she saw something that excited her.

I knew her too well. That gaze meant that she had either seen something of immense interest to her, or it was simply a look of appreciation for Si Luo.

I guess something was wrong with that bead of water.

I glanced at all of them before Cang Ming finally broke the silence. "It"s been such a long time. I guess I"ve really been too audacious."

Nie Zun spoke immediately after. "As expected of someone whom even Mr Blond respects. It"s no surprise that you"re able to protect all of the Southern District for so long."

Si Luo smiled, but it was not a genuine one. "You think too highly of me. I"ve not been able to take care of them well, and I"ve even caused them to lose their families and their lives."

What were these people playing at?

I looked at Jiao S with a questioning gaze. She tilted her chin towards that bead of water in Si Luo"s palm.

Knitting my brows, I focused on that transparent bead of water.

Finally, I understood what was going on.

A sense of joy overwhelmed me, but slight fear entered my heart at the same time. What amazing power…

Air current control was Si Luo"s preferred technique, and he did it very well. It was also what he taught Jiao S and Gaoqin Jiuye, and this was why the both of them had great power. To Si Luo however, that was only a tiny part of the technique. What he just did was also a manifestation of air current control.

The fact that he was able to grab a bead of water from nothing in the air ill.u.s.trated two points.

The first was that he was able to make use of air currents and MF to alter the form of things.

Simply put, he can change air into water and water into ice. He could alter the states of things. This proved that his technique was already at a level where he could affect the natural state of things, just like how Feng, Huo and Lei could control the elements. This meant that it was possible for him to control whatever that had water in others" bodies as well, like blood. One could only imagine the immense power that he had.

Secondly, such an ability proved that he was able to use his MF very well. This proved that he was able to manipulate his MF so intricately that no one was able to match his ability in it.

The two figures opposite him had already lost just by looking at that casual act of grabbing a bead of water from the air.

Though this doesn"t mean that Cang Ming would lose in a battle against Si Luo, Si Luo had proved that Cang Ming had definitely underestimated him. To someone who was so confident of his own abilities, the fact that they had underestimated an opponent was already a loss in itself. Their will to battle would waver in such a situation.

Cang Ming was in this exact situation.

What"s terrifying was that in Si Luo"s current condition, he doesn"t have a corresponding heir. Logically speaking, his abilities should be more or less on par with Cang Ming"s since he wasn"t relying on a split symbol.

"How terrifying…" I mumbled to myself. I didn"t know if any of them heard me, but Jiao S definitely heard it.

She smirked as she said with calm confidence, "This is why I told you they won"t be fighting."

Jiao S should be happy about this. I would be happy too if the one I liked was powerful like this.

I glanced at Nie Zun subconsciously as I thought about this, but I looked away once I realized what I was doing.

I had to remember that I couldn"t love Nie Zun anymore. It had nothing to do with me whether he was living well or not. I should stop bothering with him if I said I wanted to let go.

"I guess the both of you have decided not to fight." Si Luo said calmly with another casual wave of his hand. That bead of water disappeared without a trace.