Chapter 40

The north wind howled, and snowflakes drifted down.

Under the sky, Xu Tao's sinister laughter echoed.

Although Meng Jing's sword speed had shocked him, he was completely unharmed thanks to the protective talisman.

Not to mention two warriors who hadn't yet reached the Martial Artist stage; even if they had, with the protective talisman, they couldn't harm him!

Xu Tao gripped his large saber and swept it toward the two.

Even if they had any hidden cards, it would be futile; they were certain to die!

"Son, Father will avenge you soon!"

It was all because of Jiang Ping'an that his son had died and the front line had been lost.

He had to kill this boy to quell his inner rage.

Meng Jing was utterly despairing, but dying with Jiang Ping'an wouldn't make her feel lonely.

"Meng Jing!" Jiang Ping'an suddenly shouted.

He summoned a black array flag, covered with runes.

He activated the black array flag and attacked Xu Tao.

Although Meng Jing didn't know what the array flag was, she understood Jiang Ping'an's meaning from his shout and, disregarding her life, once again unleashed the Thunderbolt Blade Technique.

Although she still felt she couldn't break through the opponent's defense, it no longer mattered.

Whether they resisted or not, they would die, so they might as well die bravely.

Lightning flashed and struck Xu Tao.

Xu Tao looked at the two as if they were fools.

Could his protective shield be broken by these two trash? This was a protective talisman personally bestowed by the governor.

The moment the array flag reached Xu Tao, it emitted strange waves.

In an instant, the protective shield in front of Xu Tao disappeared.

Xu Tao's eyes widened.

How could this be!

Why did the protective shield suddenly disappear!

His expression was the same as Jiang Ping'an's when he was ambushed by the leader of Great King Mountain.

At that time, Jiang Ping'an was also very shocked that his protective shield had become ineffective.

This was the power of runes.

The protective talisman generated a protective force because of special runes, and the array flag had an array to break those runes.

This was one of the reasons Jiang Ping'an chose to fight Xu Tao.

He had refined this array flag.

It was a Foundation Establishment stage magical treasure with functions like gathering spiritual energy, protection, and breaking arrays.

However, because the array flag had multiple functions and was an auxiliary magical treasure, its level wasn't particularly high.

But it was enough to deal with Xu Tao's protective shield.

Xu Tao tried to retreat but found his body unresponsive. Pain shot from his neck, and blood spurted out.

Meng Jing, holding the blue-flowered saber, panted heavily, her face full of shock and surprise.

"I killed Xu Tao! I actually killed Xu Tao!"

He was a Martial Artist, a realm higher than her, and she had actually cut his neck!

Although she had Jiang Ping'an's help, she had taken down Xu Tao, and it gave her a great sense of accomplishment.

Excitement, pride, and joy surged within Meng Jing, and she laughed with relief.

"No~~"

Xu Tao let out a heart-wrenching roar.

He was unwilling! He, a Martial Artist, had been killed by two non-Martial Artists! He was unwilling!

Xu Tao used his last bit of strength to attack Meng Jing, determined to take one with him!

The saber was unmatched, and the momentum was overwhelming.

Meng Jing's laughter abruptly stopped, and her face turned to fear.

The opponent was still moving! It was over!

She couldn't run in time.

Suddenly, a wall of earth rose from the ground, instantly sending Meng Jing flying.

Xu Tao's saber struck the earth wall.

With a bang, the earth wall shattered, and dust flew.

The attack failed, and Xu Tao's expression froze as he fell straight to the ground, his eyes fixed on Jiang Ping'an, never to close again.

Only at this moment did he regret not killing the other side earlier.

Meng Jing fell from the air, and Jiang Ping'an caught her, saying,

"An enemy is still dangerous as long as they have a breath left. If they have any talismans or special magical treasures, they can still be extremely dangerous in a desperate fight."

Meng Jing lowered her head, her face red. She had been too complacent, and if it weren't for the earth wall, she would have died.

Jiang Ping'an said, "I'm sorry for putting you in danger."

If he hadn't wanted to fight Xu Tao, he could have avoided it.

He had noticed Xu Tao earlier and could have taken a detour to avoid him.

But he hadn't. He didn't like having a thorn in his heart, constantly giving him a sense of crisis, so he had chosen to fight.

Although the battle didn't last long, he had faced several life-threatening situations, especially by having Meng Jing fight Xu Tao, which put her in great danger, and a slight mistake could have been fatal.

"It's okay." Meng Jing surprisingly didn't throw a tantrum.

Throughout the ordeal, Jiang Ping'an had calmly handled all the dangers, like a thousand-year-old pine tree.

This heavy, calm personality gave the young girl Meng Jing a strange feeling.

"Really trashy, dealing with a worthless Martial Artist took so long, and you almost died."

A voice full of disdain suddenly sounded.

Meng Jing looked to the side, and on the tip of a green pine tree, a girl stood, seemingly out of nowhere!

The girl was about sixteen or seventeen, wearing a green cotton robe, her body light as a feather, standing on the tree tip.

"Want to participate in the Hundred Counties Competition? Go home!"

"None of your business!"

Seeing the girl, Meng Jing immediately got off Jiang Ping'an and held her saber, guarding against her.

The two girls seemed to know each other.

The girl, seeing Meng Jing holding her saber, looked even more disdainful.

"You were defeated by me in one move before. Do you think your saber can do anything to me?"

Hearing this, Meng Jing gritted her teeth in anger.

Jiang Ping'an asked, "Who is she?"

Meng Jing, gritting her teeth, said, "She's my opponent from the county's talent selection, Zhang Lingmin, an early Foundation Establishment stage cultivator with a mutated wind spirit root."

Meng Jing paused and added, "She is very strong, defeating several mid-Foundation Establishment stage cultivators with her early Foundation Establishment cultivation."

Jiang Ping'an was startled. This girl didn't seem much older than them, yet she was so terrifying.

Zhang Lingmin looked down at the two, her voice cold, "Were you in Minghai City yesterday?"

"No, we've been traveling non-stop." Jiang Ping'an replied.

Zhang Lingmin snorted, "Don't pretend. According to the information, my worthless brother saw a very beautiful girl riding a white horse yesterday, which matches your description."

"Moreover, the only ones who could silently take out three tenth-level Qi Practitioners in the city are you."

Meng Jing and Jiang Ping'an were shocked. The girl was the fat man's sister!

Jiang Ping'an activated his blood qi and prepared for battle.

Meng Jing gripped her saber tightly.

"Don't worry, if I wanted to kill you, I would have done it already. I've long wanted to get rid of that scum brother, but I can't because of our blood ties."

Zhang Lingmin didn't take the two seriously and didn't care that they had killed her brother.

"But my brother spent ten thousand spirit stones to buy a Foundation Establishment Pill yesterday, and I need to get it back."

"You..."

Meng Jing was about to say something, but Jiang Ping'an pressed her shoulder, communicating with his storage bag, and took out a pill, tossing it to her.

Better to lose some wealth than to invite disaster.

He didn't care about losing a pill; safety was the most important.

Zhang Lingmin caught the Foundation Establishment Pill, and her face finally showed a hint of emotion.

The Foundation Establishment Pill was expensive, worth ten thousand spirit stones, more valuable than many Foundation Establishment stage pills, and could be exchanged for resources to quickly boost one's strength.

"Let me give you a friendly warning: with your strength, go home. You don't have the qualifications to pass the princess's test and participate in the Hundred Counties Competition."

With that, Zhang Lingmin flew away at incredible speed.

Seeing her speed, Jiang Ping'an was shocked.

So fast!

Even Xiao Bai couldn't match her.

This woman is so strong.