The Empress's No.1 Lackey

The black-robed magician's face looked extremely ugly. The moment Jin Jian appeared, he realized just how terrible his situation was.

Priest Zhu Dian, prized as a direct disciple of the "Old Heavenly Master," often possessed combat power that exceeded his realm.

But… why?

Logically, with Jin Jian's status, there was no need for her to heed the court's commands.

Moreover, it was just a case of a "firearms craftsman"—was there a need to use a cleaver to kill a chicken?

Could it be that the Empress favored this pretty boy, thus specially ordering Priest Zhu Dian to protect him?

This was the most reasonable explanation.

"Right," Zhao Douan said with a smile, adding fuel to the fire, "the very principle you just taught me: never underestimate your opponent."

The boomerang had just left its sheath, still warm, when it ruthlessly stabbed into the magician's heart.

That hurts, buddy...

Without hesitation, the black-robed magician's Daoist robe abruptly inflated, ballooning out.

He took a deep breath, his cheeks ballooning under his mask and his body nearly floating off the ground. He wrapped his arms around himself and his body rapidly collapsed inward as a cannon-like blast sounded from his lips.

"Boom!"

The vortex in his arms exploded, turning into hundreds, perhaps thousands, of "Wind Blades," each the size of a palm, covering the stretch of the street.

It was like a volley of a thousand arrows shot toward the two of them.

"Ss-ss-ss!"

As the Wind Blades swept through, lanterns hanging under the awnings of closed shops on both sides drifted to one side, and the blue brick pavement was etched with countless slashes.

"Be careful—"

Zhao Douan frowned and retreated behind Jin Jian.

The priestess, with an otherworldly and mysterious air like a dark night witch, paid no attention to his move. A moment before the other cast his spell, she gestured with her pale, slender hand.

A strangely shaped Magic Wand appeared out of thin air in front of her.

The Magic Wand was dark brown all over, with knotted vines coiled around the shaft, and the tip bulging, bearing a pale gold eye.

Caught in the moment of "half-awake," as soon as it opened, it stared wide-eyed, and the Magic Wand, as if triggered, turned to flee.

"...Don't go."

Jin Jian showed no expression, grabbed the Magic Wand firmly, and threw it fiercely toward the ground.

"Clang!"

In an instant, starlight and moonlight shone like a tide bursting its banks, crazily converging toward the Magic Wand.

"Whoosh, whoosh..."

Zhao Douan, crouching in the rear, watched in amazement as moonlight congealed into substance, forming waves beneath the young girl's feet.

Then, the "waves" surged like a tide, colliding silently with the Wind Blades, and the sharp green blades dissipated without a trace.

The illusory waves continued their wild rush.

In an instant, they submerged the whole street. The black-robed magician, unbeknownst to them, had already turned tail to flee, but as soon as the moonlight enveloped this small district,

he felt as if his entire body was like mud thrown into the sea, moving terrifyingly slow, each step requiring a massive effort.

"Those who specialize in 'Marquis of Wind' are very fast and are good at escaping," Jin Jian suddenly said softly, as if explaining to Zhao Douan:

"But the speed of light is faster."

You seem to be showing off... Zhao Douan muttered to himself, then suddenly realized:

Earlier, she could have left me behind. Maybe she intentionally slowed her pace to counterattack me.

When the black-robed magician realized he couldn't escape, his heart sank, and his eyes flashed with madness.

He suddenly turned around and with a withered hand, he reached out into the air toward the two of them.

"Hum—"

Zhao Douan suddenly had a bad feeling. He saw the air around them, within about three feet, swirling frantically in all directions.

A suffocating sensation came over him; he turned his head and saw the air seemingly congealing into a "sphere" that enveloped the two of them.

"What's this?" he asked.

Jin Jian glanced at him, her lips moved as if she said something, but he couldn't hear a thing.

Zhao Douan suddenly understood.

It was a vacuum!

At this moment, the black-robed magician had sucked away the air around them, forming a spherical vacuum zone, which was why sound couldn't travel.

Isn't it... The magic in this world feels both ludicrous and scientific?

Zhao Douan's expression changed slightly, trying to escape, to avoid being suffocated.

He then saw Jin Jian's face suddenly shine with light, and her slightly curly blue hair abruptly fell to her waist.

Her hair moved on its own without wind, each strand seemingly flowing with starlight.

"Bang!"

Countless strands of hair pierced through the air wall first, shattering the vacuum, and Zhao Douan once again gained the freedom to breathe.

The next second, the young girl suddenly lunged forward, swinging the Magic Wand to smash down on the magician.

However, the expected physical head smash didn't happen.

The black-robed magician quickly pulled out a strange puppet from his bosom, the size of a palm, tossed it forward, and chanted a spell.

In an instant, an Iron-skinned Giant a zhang tall, covered in iron plating, bulky, and squat, like a Buddhist guardian deity, descended.

"Iron-skinned Giant!"

Jin Jian suddenly retreated, giving up her attack—magicians always feared being approached by martial artists.

"What Giant?" Zhao Douan called from a distance.

"A Suppressing Object that Artisan God magicians can create."

Jin Jian replied succinctly, her gaze curious as if she had never seen one in person.

What's a "Suppressing Object" again… Zhao Douan suppressed his curiosity and looked up.

Upon discovering that the ironclad strongman's joints had mechanical connections, they moved with ease.

Its body covered in metal, with Array patterns faintly visible on the surface, its left arm ended in a double-edged hand axe.

On the right arm's end was a fan-like metal wheel.

At the head's position, there were no eyes, just a piece of yellow talisman paper, outlined with red cinnabar.

"Chi chi—"

At that moment, the strongman advanced with heavy steps, its massive body trampling on the ground making a "dong dong" sound, the metal wheel spinning rapidly, and slashing towards the young girl.

Jin Jian brandished her Magic Wand to defend, her golden monocular eye clenched shut in terror, shivering violently.

"Clang!"

"Clang!"

Weapons from both sides clashed, and the art style instantly shifted from Spell combat to hand-to-hand fighting.

Zhao Douan, however, saw that their weapons never actually made contact; with each swing of her Magic Wand, ripples of light spread from its tip.

Jin Jian's flowing hair, like thousands of silk ribbons, struck the ironclad body, drawing out a trail of sparks each time.

Unlike the Magician who was controlling the Suppressing Object with a heavy and strained appearance, the young girl seemed to have ample leeway, as if she was using the battle more to understand the details of the contraption.

In the blink of an eye, the two exchanged dozens of rounds. The strongman's metal surface became mottled and peeled, revealing the complex machinery inside.

Suddenly, a Magician in black who seemingly was straining to resist, his mask's eyes suddenly sharpened, and from his robe sleeve, he flicked out a new Wind Blade, drawing Jin Jian's attention.

The ironclad strongman's left arm abruptly rose, the double-bladed giant axe shot out, attached to a length of iron chain.

"Whirring..."

As the chain rattled, the axe head with a "boom" sound embedded itself into a distant stone wall.

The chain tensed sharply, pulling the colossal strongman into the air, bypassing Jin Jian, and, like Mount Tai, crashed down toward Zhao Douan who was leisurely watching the commotion from behind!

"Chi chi—"

As it descended, the metal wheel still glinted with a chilling cold light!

"Eh?!"

The young Priestess suddenly became alert, raising her hand to quickly dispel the Wind Blade. Twisting at the waist, she caught sight of Zhao Douan, who was now in a perilous situation, and her expression subtly changed.

She had been fooled...

She hadn't expected that the Magician who seemed no better than a clay Bodhisattva crossing a river would still make a move against Zhao Douan.

The corners of the black-clad Magician's mouth curled upward, a crazed look in his eyes as swirling currents of air wrapped around his feet.

Since Priest Zhu Dian's goal was to protect this pretty boy, a severe injury to him would surely take priority in her actions to heal.

He would take the chance to escape.

Indeed, he was no match for Jin Jian in combat strength, but he prided himself on his rich repertoire of tactics.

So what if she's a disciple of the Old Heavenly Master? In the end, she was too green and inexperienced.

As for Zhao Douan... he hadn't taken this so-called decorative pillow seriously at all, as the rumors suggested.

But Jin Jian, despite her surprise, did not panic. With the trump card she possessed, she was more than capable of acting in the nick of time to ensure Zhao Douan's safety.

The black-clad Magician might have had experience, but his vision was limited; he couldn't even fathom how rich the Heavenly Master's disciple was in resources.

And just when she was about to act, she abruptly stopped, a look of surprise in her eyes.

Under the moonlight.

Zhao Douan's aura suddenly altered.

He tilted his head slightly upward and abruptly raised his left hand, boldly grasping the spinning metal wheel!

In the instant he struck, a wisp of dawn light traced over his palm.

"Clang!!"

Amidst the clanging of metal, dazzling sparks flew, and the rotating wheel, composed of three slicing blade edges, was forcibly stopped by his bare hand.

Simultaneously, Zhao Douan's right hand, which from the very beginning had been resting on the hilt of the blade at his lower back, suddenly drew the sword.

"Ching!"

The energy within him, fierce like a dragon, surged into the blade, heating the sword instantly as if it were a branding iron.

A streak of red Sword Energy burst forth from the darkness.

Invasive as fire!

The ironclad strongman briefly paused in mid-air, then appeared to divide at the waist joint, its huge metal body splitting in two and crashing down with a thunderous roar, the severed edges smooth as mirrors.

"Crack!"

The sword in Zhao Douan's hand also could no longer bear the strain and disintegrated into countless pieces, leaving only the hilt.

Silence fell upon the field.

Zhao Douan exhaled a breath of foul air, a smile appearing on his face.

He cast his gaze toward the black-clad Magician stiffening in the distance and taunted him:

"All flash and no substance, it took only one slash from me."

One slash...

How could this be possible?

This couldn't be the power of a mere mortal Martial Artist... The black-clad Magician couldn't believe it, his worldview nearly collapsing.

Then it seemed he realized something and exclaimed in shock:

"The Martial God's heritage! The Fake Emperor actually taught you the Royal secret techniques!"

Didn't the Zhang family brothers tell you? You're way behind on the news... Zhao Douan criticized.

Jin Jian, about to unleash a great power, her eyes lit up with surprise and she took another look at him, then immediately turned towards the black-clad Magician. In the background, the shadow of a waning moon seemed to flicker and vanish.

"Thump!"

The distracted Magician failed to notice, his world going dark as he fell face-first to the ground.

Jin Jian, as if performing a sleight of hand, plucked from the air a gourd painted with a colorful mask. She pinched it lightly with her small hand.

Suddenly, the mask came alive, opened its wide mouth, and swallowed in one gulp. The black-clad Magician's Divine Soul was shockingly ripped from his body, terror-stricken as it was sucked into the gourd.