In the forest, the Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard was roaring furiously. Just moments ago, Kong Yan was struck by its claw. Although she barely dodged, the flying gravel and immense tremor from the ground still injured her, sending her flying into the air.
This blow, on top of her already severe injuries, caused her to cough up a mouthful of fresh blood in mid-air, staining a large portion of her clothes over her chest. She no longer had the strength to adjust her body for a stable landing and was about to fall heavily to the ground. Such a fall would likely leave her bedridden for months, if not kill her.
In the air, Kong Yan's gaze remained fixed on the enormous Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard. She was unwilling to accept that what was within her grasp was now gone...
Feeling her body plummet, Kong Yan closed her eyes in despair. But just then, she suddenly felt a soft sensation from behind her—it felt like an arm's embrace.
Thud!
Her body jolted, and a sense of landing came over her. Although her internal organs felt a bit uncomfortable from the shock, she knew in her heart that this was a million times better than falling directly to the ground.
She quickly opened her eyes, and when she saw the person holding her, she couldn't help but be startled, saying in surprise, "Why is it you?"
"Why wouldn't it be me?" Lu An replied, feeling quite awkward. It seemed his arrival wasn't exactly welcome, but he frowned as he looked at the bloodstain on Kong Yan's high-collared shirt.
Lu An didn't rush to put Kong Yan down. Instead, he carried her to the nearest large tree before carefully setting her down. Looking at Kong Yan's weak face, he frowned and asked, "How are you feeling?"
"Alright," Kong Yan's breathing was somewhat erratic. Although she cared about her image, she could only try her best to keep her mouth shut and breathe rapidly. Her heaving chest made Lu An blush slightly.
However, Lu An could tell that although Kong Yan was injured, her life was not in danger; she was merely physically exhausted. Turning his head to look at the Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard, Lu An asked, "Didn't you say it was severely injured? How is it still so lively?"
"It is indeed severely injured, but it also knows that if it's caught, it will surely die, so it's fighting back with all its might," Kong Yan raised her slender hand, wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, and said through gritted teeth, "It's just at the end of its rope; it can only struggle for at most the time it takes for an incense stick to burn before losing all strength!"
Lu An was startled by her words and looked at the Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard, saying, "Then aren't we successful?"
"It's not that simple!" Kong Yan said angrily, "If it were just this Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard, how would I have ended up in such a state? It's all because of that 'Murderous Group's' doing!"
"Murderous Group?" Lu An was startled again, frowning as he asked, "What is that?"
"It's Wang Zhenggang's team!" Kong Yan's delicate brows were tightly furrowed, and she couldn't help but curse, saying, "Those bastards ambushed me when I wasn't prepared, all to snatch this Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard's rebirth crystal core!"
Lu An's brows immediately furrowed upon hearing this!
Then, Lu An suddenly turned his head to look at the Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard, and upon closer inspection, he indeed found several figures continuously attacking the Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard!
Lu An frowned as he looked at those people. After a few seconds, he was startled and asked Kong Yan, "Is Wang Zhenggang among them?"
"No," Kong Yan shook her head, her brows furrowed, and said, "They must have split up to search for the Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard, but someone will definitely go and inform him. I estimate he'll be here soon!"
"It's good that he's not here," a cold smirk appeared on Lu An's lips as he turned his gaze back to those few individuals.
Kong Yan's heart trembled as she saw Lu An's cold smile, and then she immediately became nervous, quickly asking, "What are you going to do?"
Lu An looked at Kong Yan upon hearing her question, and said in a deep voice, "Yan Jie, don't you want to take back what belongs to you?"
"Don't be reckless!" Kong Yan was startled by his words and quickly said, "The worst among them are Tier 6 Sky Realm, and most are Tier 7 or Tier 8. You're not even a Sky Realm, how can you fight them?"
"I know what I'm doing," Lu An smiled reassuringly, then his brows furrowed, his eyes deepened, and he turned and charged forward!
"Hey!" Kong Yan shouted out, but Lu An didn't look back at all, making her even more anxious, and she cursed, "Damn it!"
She tried to get up, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stand. She could only lean against the tree, anxiously watching ahead.
And Lu An was indeed not a reckless person; or rather, he cherished his life more than anyone else. As he moved quickly, he kept using large trees as cover, and soon arrived behind the tree closest to the Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard.
Quietly peeking out, Lu An carefully observed his surroundings. He saw six people continuously releasing Tian Yuan Power to attack the Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard. These six people were spread out, surrounding the Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard, and because the Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard was huge, the six people were also very far apart.
Looking up, Lu An gazed at the Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard. Indeed, there were already many bloody marks on its body, with several wounds deep enough to expose bone. It was continuously wailing, and its attacks were chaotic, disorderly, and without any pattern, posing no real threat.
Taking a deep breath, Lu An tried to calm himself down, because next, he wasn't going to deal with a wild beast or a Strange Beast, but with people.
Lu An frowned slightly. The opponents were not truly enemies, but rather students from the academy. He didn't know how strong his Nine Heavens Holy Fire truly was, or if these people could withstand it, but if they couldn't and someone died, that wouldn't be good.
After thinking for a moment, Lu An made up his mind. Then, a piece of ice crystal radiating boundless coldness appeared in the air above his left hand. He poked his head out and looked at the person closest to him. After confirming that the other person's attention was completely on the Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard, he rushed forward without hesitation!
Whoosh!
Lu An was fast, but his footsteps on the ground still made a sound. However, the Heavenly Spirit Flame Leopard's movements were simply too loud, drowning out his footsteps, until he reached the person's back before they reacted!
Just as the person was about to turn around, Lu An's brows furrowed, and he released his Destiny Wheel without hesitation. Instantly, an ice spear appeared in his hand, and he fiercely stabbed it into the person's shoulder while they were completely unprepared!
"Ah!!!"
A scream echoed far and wide, causing the others to shiver and turn their heads towards the source of the sound! And the person ambushed by Lu An looked at their shoulder, pierced by the ice spear, and knelt to the ground in pain!
"It's that kid!" one person discovered Lu An and shouted loudly!
"Damn it, catch him!" another person also discovered Lu An and cursed angrily!
Lu An's heart tightened as he saw the two people who had spotted him. Without another word, he turned and ran! And those two people also charged towards Lu An, pursuing him relentlessly!
Facts proved that the gap between a Tier 7 Sky Realm and a Tier 2 Sky Realm was still enormous. No matter how fast Lu An ran, the distance was rapidly shortening. Looking at the two people relentlessly chasing him from behind, Lu An's expression was solemn. He waved his hand and instantly flung out two ice cones!
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The two ice cones were extremely fast; even those two people were startled and quickly ducked, barely managing to dodge them. Looking at the ice cones completely embedding themselves into the large tree, they couldn't help but feel a lingering fear in their hearts, and their gaze towards Lu An became even more furious.
"Kid, you're courting death!" one of them shouted loudly, then his brows furrowed, and he roared, suddenly waving both hands. In an instant, countless vines surged out from his arms, and at the same time, he loudly shouted, "Imprisoning Vines!"
Lu An, who had just turned to observe, was startled upon seeing this. His eyes narrowed. Teacher Han had said that Tian Yuan Power could transform into anything, and the five basic attributes were something everyone could achieve. Seeing the vines attacking him, Lu An instantly knew this was the basic wood attribute!
Seeing the vines grabbing at him like countless hands, he knew that if he was touched, he would be bound. Just as the vines were about to reach him, Lu An suddenly stomped on a rock in front of him, then leaped, his body soaring high into the air. After rapidly spinning a few times in the air, he landed on a thick tree trunk!
After landing, Lu An immediately looked back, only to find the vines right behind him. Startled, he quickly leaped off the tree trunk!
"Crack!"
The thick tree trunk was instantly ensnared by the vines, even emitting cracking sounds. Lu An glanced back, and his heart sank as he saw the thick tree trunk's bark completely split from being constricted.
"I can't be caught!" Lu An thought to himself. Once caught by these vines, he wouldn't be able to break free with his strength!
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Lu An's body continuously changed direction as he weaved through the forest, all to prevent the vines from catching him. Fortunately, the opponent's strength was limited, and the vines' length was only a few zhang, giving him a chance to escape.
As Lu An ran, he kept an eye on the two people behind him. Running endlessly was not an option; he had to find an opportunity to counterattack!
But just then, his pupils suddenly constricted, staring intently at the other person!
He saw a light brown glow on that person's palm, and then that person suddenly roared loudly, slamming both palms forcefully onto the ground!
Rumble!
In an instant, Lu An felt the ground beneath his feet tremble! What shocked him even more was that the soil beneath him rapidly rose, coiling around his legs!