Chapter 45: Ice and Fire Death Guards

Thus, it is destined that you will never become a Martial Saint in this lifetime!

At the end of these words, the voice of the hidden person grew even colder and devoid of warmth, radiating an endless intent to kill.

Upon hearing this, Luo Qingyao finally realized that this person had come specifically to assassinate her. Yet, what puzzled her was that she had never mentioned coming to this place; she had merely wandered aimlessly out of frustration with her father and master, eventually ending up here. How could this person have been lying in ambush waiting for her? Did he possess the ability of prescience?

Naturally, Luo Qingyao refused to believe that.

"Since you are here to kill me, why do you still not dare to show yourself? Are you afraid that you might fail to kill me and thus expose your own identity?" Luo Qingyao tried to provoke the hidden figure while observing the surrounding terrain to check for other hidden ambushes and simultaneously calculating her chances of escaping.

Because she could not sense the depth of the opponent's cultivation, it proved that the enemy's strength far surpassed hers, leaving her entirely unable to read his power.

When facing such an adversary, escaping was naturally the wisest course of action. Luo Qingyao was certainly not foolish enough to march to her death, especially not an obscure death where she didn't even understand the cause.

"Vile wench, I have already said that even if you talk until your tongue is frayed, I will not step forward, because you are not worth my personal appearance!"

The hidden person's voice rang out coldly once more. As the words faded, a sharp whistle echoed through the air, and in the next instant, Luo Qingyao was surrounded by ten figures dressed in black.

Moreover, these ten men in black were not on foot; each of them was mounted on a Volcanic Cloud Leopard. Every single leopard was as massive as a rhinoceros, and their coats were covered in patterns resembling burning clouds, blazing bright red. Their eyes, in particular, flickered with flames.

The Volcanic Cloud Leopards enclosed Luo Qingyao within their circle. Their bronze-bell-like eyes burned with leaping fires, and their bared, fanged jaws continually exhaled billows of scorching breath. With every breath of heat they expelled into the air, the surrounding temperature rose by another degree.

Gradually, Luo Qingyao began to feel as though she were being consumed by roaring flames. The intense heat soaked her back through and large beads of sweat cascaded down her forehead.

She even found it difficult to breathe, for every gulp of air she drew into her lungs felt as though she were inhaling blazing fire, leaving her entire mouth unbearably dry and scorched.

In contrast to the scorching heat radiating from the ten Volcanic Cloud Leopards, which felt like being burned alive, the men in black seated atop the beasts each wore dark masks and gripped long swords. The fierce, piercing glare of their blades emitted an endless wave of biting chill, making one feel as though they had plunged into a freezing ice cavern.

Extreme cold and extreme heat—frozen to the utmost degree and scorching beyond endurance—two utterly incompatible auras abruptly materialized at the same time, making it all the more difficult for Luo Qingyao to endure.

She raised her hand to wipe the sweat from her brow with her sleeve and let out a cold, mocking laugh, "I truly never would have imagined that a mere good-for-nothing like me, who cannot even cultivate, would be worth such an extravagant effort from you all, even bringing out battle beasts like the Volcanic Cloud Leopards. How is it that I never knew I possessed such captivating charm?"

"Hmph!"

The hidden person let out another cold snort, though his tone carried a hint of added anger. "To be able to die at the hands of the Ice and Fire Death Warriors, vile wench, should be considered your fortune! Across the entire Lanxi Kingdom, the people for whom our Ice and Fire Death Warriors are dispatched are absolute rarities, but in your case, it is imperative to deploy them!"

"Is that so? I had no idea anyone valued me to such an extraordinary degree!"