Chapter 100: Master’s Workouts Hurt Worse!
Arden frowned. Not only did he need to be cautious against this poison user, but also his companion, who was about to move.
His companion began to step forward and drew out a single-edged sword strapped to her back.
She smirked faintly, her eyes glowing beneath her hood.
"Let’s make this quick, too, shall we?"
She lowered her stance slightly, and suddenly the air beneath her feet compressed, and she vanished instantly.
Then, she reappeared right in front of the disciples, scaring them, and Arden included.
"DUCK!" Arden yelled.
They ducked just as the sword cut through the air, leaving a bright arc that whistled like slicing wind.
"Veil Slash!"
Even though most ducked in time, several of them were hit, cutting open their arms with shallow wounds.
Clara rushed to one of them, checking the wound.
"Fortunately, it was not a deep one! It was just a shallow cut!"
The woman straihgend back up, smirking.
"Strong bodies indeed. Just like they said, all of you trained your body, not mana."
She swung her sword lightly, the air whistling around it.
"That means all of you will make excellent targets to slice apart."
Arden was now frowning, his thoughts spinning fast, thinking of a solution.
’Damn it... Both of them had mana traits, so they should be at least Second Realm Stabilization Stage cultivators.’
He looked around him. His fellow disciples were strong, but still, they were only First Realm cultivators.
"This is really bad..."
Then suddenly, Rynor, looking at his ugly face, yelled loudly.
"Arden, don’t think too much! Remember that we’ve got numbers!"
Rynar, beside him, also yelled at him, grinning.
"Yeah! We have a hundred strong people here! Although most of us were injured, we can still take more hits!"
A few others raised their voices too, shouting in agreement.
"We trained our bodies for this very moment, right?"
"Master’s workouts hurt worse than this!"
"If we’re dying, we won’t die easy!"
Someone laughed. "And if we break something, Master will just heal us later anyway!"
That made a few of them grin nervously, and even Arden couldn’t help but smile a little.
"Fine... if that’s what all of you want... then let’s make it count and beat those two stupid bastards!"
He then raised his hand, gathering their attention for easier orders.
"Listen up! Don’t go alone. Move in small teams of five. Rotate when injured, strike togher and overhelm them."
He flexed his body, reminding them.
"Use your mana to harden your skin and muscles and hit them with your full weight!"
"YES!" they roared.
Arden raised his hand and chopped it down.
"GO!"
They rushed out, shaking the ground as hundreds of them charged forward.
Even the two enemies paused for a brief second.
They never thought that all the hundreds of them would charge at them all at once.
The knife-wielder grinned.
"Fine, if you think you can win with numbers... then let’s crush your hope."
He crossed his blade and rushed forward.
"Pulse Fang!"
His arms blurred as he stabbed the air again and again.
Each stab released a wave of poisonous pulse that exploded outward like small shockwaves.
The first row of disciples took the hits head-on, sliding backward, coughing.
Some clutched their stomach as faint green lines began to spread across their skin.
"Fall back and rotate!" Arden shouted.
Immediately, the injured fell back, and others took their places.
They quickly channeled mana into their muscles, mainly on their arms.
The sword-wielding woman smirked as she raised her blade high, wind swirling around it.
"Veil Slash!"
A wave of air blades blasted through the front lines, cutting across their clothes.
The impact also sent several disciples flying backward, rolling through the dirt.
Eliza gritted her teeth. "Damn, that wind slash again! It’s too annoying!"
Clara stepped up beside her. "Then, let’s just make her unable to use that again!"
They dashed forward, quickly covering all parts of their body with mana, strengthening them.
Arden stayed in the center, his mind working nonstop, overseeing the battlefield.
"Keep their focus divided! Teams one through four, draw the knife guy to the left! Teams five through ten, surround the sword user!"
All of them obeyed, splitting into groups and encircling and splitting the two enemies.
The knife guy hissed. "You think you can surround me with only you guys? You’re dead wrong!"
He slashed his knives downward. "Let’s see if you can take this one! Venom Drift!"
Green mist exploded around him, forcing several disciples to cover their mouths and fall back coughing.
Arden narrowed his eyes, thinking of another solution.
"Damn it... Poison cultivator was just too troublesome."
Then, as he looked around, he suddenly noticed a cluster of broken trees, which quickly sparked an idea in his mind.
"Rynar, Rynor! Knock those trees down!"
The twins didn’t hesitate. They sprinted toward the side and kicked the trees.
The trees toppled, sending a rush of air and debris toward the mist, scattering it.
"Now!" Arden shouted. "Go in while it’s clear!"
The disciples roared in excitement and surged forward, wanting to get revenge.
The knife guy barely blocked the first barrage as fists hammered against his arm and chest, forcing him backward.
He could only slash wildly as his poisonous mana was already quite thin for a moment.
Then suddenly, a few disciples appeared from behind him, grabbing his sleeves and holding him in place.
The other took this chance to deliver numerous knee strikes and kicks straight to his chest and stomach.
He growled in anger, unleashing Serpent Step, vanishing and reappearing behind them all.
But Arden already expected that one probable outcome. "Behind!"
The moment the man appeared, ten disciples spun and attacked in perfect sync, elbows, knees, and fists to different parts of the body.
The impact sent him flying back into a bouklder, cracking it in half.
The sword user’s eyes widened. "Tch, what an idiot! You let them corner you!"
She kicked off the ground, wind bursing under her feet to launch herself into the air.
When she was above the disciples, she swung her sword in a wide arc.
"Air Mirage!"
Her body split into two, one dashing left and the other to the right, confusing them all.
"How can there be two of her, now?!" someone shouted in confusion.
Arden focused on both figures. "No, only one’s real. The air distortion is stronger on the left! Hit the left one!"
Eliza and Clara lunged at the left figure together, covering their fists with mana.
The woman’s eyes widened when she found out. "What the hell? How can you find me?!"
Their punches landed before she could dodge, slamming into her midsection, sending her crashing to the ground.
The disciples erupted in cheers..
"She’s down!"
"We got her!"