Seeing the hulking Cong Wen advance, Xiao Lu realized his master was coming under attack, and that he was utterly unqualified to defend her. As a Dao Guardian, he was a complete failure. It had only been a few hours since he had promised himself to avoid using the system, but it seemed that was his only option. Still somewhat reluctant in his heart, he grit his jaw and braced himself for the inevitable.

[3 Martial Technique Tokens Redeemed. Target: User]

[Generating Technique Options]

Offensive:

Poison Mist — Disburses prepared venom or poison as an aerosol spray.

Piercing Maw — Temporarily improves jaw strength to increase fang penetration.

Defensive:

Crystal Carapace — Temporarily hardens carapace.

Elastic Heart — Temporarily increases ductility.

Movement:

Shadow Step — Increases stealth.

Dragon Gate — Increases movement speed and explosiveness.

Supplementary:

Heavenly Thread — Increases functional utility of silk and similar materials.

Spirit Weaving — Increases production speed and suitability of silk for use in formation creation.

[Awaiting User Selection]

Xiao Lu internally groaned at the unimpressive selection, but he could only blame himself for having a low cultivation base. It was impossible to manifest qi externally in the Qi Concentration Realm—even heaven grade martial techniques bestowed by the almighty system could only allow him to reinforce his natural abilities.

Xiao Lu made the best of a bad situation, quickly praised the system in his heart for its grace and benevolence, and made his selection. Naturally, he immediately lost control of his body and fell over. As there was simply too much going on, no one noticed his small quivering form as he tumbled from Xin Mei’s head and rolled a few steps away.

The large disciple didn’t bother to use a martial technique against Xin Mei. He merely circulated his Qi and relied on his greater physical strength and superior cultivation base to suppress her. Indeed, with her lower cultivation and limited methods, Xin Mei truly had no means to block or evade this simple attack. However, because Cong Wen took her lightly and failed to use his full strength, there was a chance for Xin Mei to at least retaliate. After all, her disposition would not allow her to meekly accept such treatment.

Quickly circulating her own qi in a specific pattern, Xin Mei activated her sole offensive method, Claw Under Claw. Supplemented by her qi, her sharp nails hardened. Xin Mei didn’t have the speed or reach to strike Cong Wen’s face. Instead, her clawed hand met his, borrowing the strength of his blow to score his skin. Con Wen grunted slightly in pain, but his attack did not slow. Rather, Xin Mei’s defiance only caused him to use more force. His strike connected with the side of her face, sending her tumbling to the side.

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Cong Wen inspected the wound on his hand and clicked his tongue. He followed after her, preparing another strike. “You dare harm me? I, your father, won’t go so easy this time.”

Xin Mei struggled to stand up, but Cong Wen’s heavy blow had dazed her. She only made it to her knees by the time Cong Wen’s second strike came rushing down, and at the moment she was entirely unable to defend herself. Just as his strike was about to land, it stopped as if it had collided with an invisible barrier.

“What the … ?”

When Cong Wen tried to push his fist forward, it wouldn’t move, so he attempted to pull it back. This also failed. He tried to change his footing, but only succeeded in stumbling slightly.

“What are—are these wires?” Cong Wen asked with some astonishment. He had somehow been completely bound up in durable lines. He grunted and flexed in various ways, but found himself unable to break free, like a fish in a net flopping uselessly.

“He he he he …” Xin Mei chuckled darkly as she slowly climbed to her feet. She didn’t completely understand what had occurred, but it was clear that the situation had completely reversed. “You dare harm me?” The little girl mockingly imitated Cong Wen as she again operated her Claw Under Claw technique. “I, your father, will not let you off so easily this time.” She approached Cong Wen slowly, savoring the moment. The malicious glint in her round eyes as she placed a nail against Cong Wen’s forehead caused him to shudder involuntarily.

“You dare—” he started, but was cut off.

“I dare! There is nothing which I do not dare to do! Anything that I desire, I naturally possess the resolve to achieve! This time, you can only blame yourself for kicking a steel plate! There was a path to heaven you chose not to walk! There was no gate to hell, yet you forced your way in!” As these embarrassing phrases tumbled from Xin Mei’s mouth like a virulent sickness, her voice became increasingly shrill, and her gaze appeared feverish and chaotic.

Xiao Lu watched this child of heaven completely lose herself in the moment, and sighed in his heart. He tilted his body up to stare at the sky, as if to ask, “Really? This one?” He had spent so much effort in order for Xin Mei to avoid a beating, and she had taken the opportunity to create an eternal enmity.

*snap* *snap* *snap*

Startled by the sound of his web being cut, Xiao Lu quickly looked back down. A handsome young man had appeared in the street below. His pristine white robes billowed dramatically as he brandished a white-bladed sword, cutting through Xiao Lu’s weblines as if they were paper.

Xiao Lu circulated his qi in the pattern he’d just learned, activating the dragon gate technique. He prepared himself to make a move, but with a second enemy that could cut his lines with contemptuous ease, he was not sure what he could accomplish.

When Cong Wen moved to charge at Xin Mei, instead of attacking together, the second cultivator held his sword up to block him. Both Xin Mei and Cong Wen looked at the white-robed cultivator in confusion. Xiao Lu also uncertainly glanced at him. Whose side was this handsome daoist on?

“Junior Brother Cong Wen, you’ve lost this bout. If you continue to attack without caring about the gap in your age and cultivation base, even if you prevail, you will not have the face to raise your head again in the Misty Mountain Sect. Return to your cultivation chamber, I will deal with the girl.”

The burly cultivator was obviously unwilling, but he didn’t dare to argue with his white-robed senior brother. He stormed away without speaking. If he was mad now, Xiao Lu imagined his fury would be positively incandescent when he saw that Xin Mei had clawed the character for ‘donkey’ into his forehead.

Xiao Lu was distracted from these events by a system pop-up.

Congratulations!

By performing your duty as a Dao Guardian and protecting a child of heaven, you’ve earned your first Achievement.

[Generating Achievement Award]

[Mental Fissure Detected]

[Implementing Correction]

[Mental Unification 23.5% Complete]

For the third time in the past several hours, Xiao Lu slumped over into a twitchy pile of spider legs