Chapter 0830: Isolation Area
Qin Yi frowned a little when she witnessed Lu Qingmei stepping up for Li Luo. Initially, she had planned to finish Li Luo off before entering the isolation area so that she could focus on securing the Coiling Dragon Pillars later on.
However, she had not expected Li Luo to be so sly. She had just sniffed out his location, but he had already found a helper.
In fact, the most surprising thing to her was that Lu Qingmei was willing to help him.
Among the Twenty Banner Leaders, Lu Qingmei was second only to Li Qingfeng. Although Qin Yi was confident in winning against her, she was afraid that causing such a huge commotion now would attract the other Banner Leaders over.
In that case, she might become a common enemy for all of them. While she was confident that she would come out on top in that scenario, she was afraid it would no longer be a perfect end for the tasks she had on hand today.
As a result, she was slightly hesitant for a moment.
In the same moment, Li Luo had also noticed that Qin Yi did not continue her advance. His eyes lit up immediately as he whispered to Lu Qingmei, "Banner Leader Lu, can you hold her down here for a short while? I'll go get help from the others to surround her!"
However, Lu Qingmei casted an unfriendly gaze towards Li Luo's suggestion. “This brat is really cunning. Is he thinking of slipping away after bringing trouble straight to me?
“Did you believe I'll just abandon you here and throw you at Qin Yi?”
Luckily, Li Luo understood the meaning behind her gaze. He hurriedly smiled and added, "Don't worry, it's just a suggestion. If she dares to make a move, we'll work together and send her out!"
Lu Qingmei snorted softly as she grasped tightly onto her glazed rod filled with mysterious patterns. Her eyes locked onto Qin Yi, filled with fighting intent. Truth to be told, she had stood forward earlier because her hands were getting itchy.
A true ninth-grade opponent was really hard to come by!
She would gladly welcome it if Qin Yi decided to fight it out here.
However, Lu Qingmei's expectations did not come to fruition. Qin Yi hesitated for a while before she lightly smiled and said, "It's a waste of time to fight now. If we drag it out and miss the opportunity to enter the isolation area, we'll lose more than we gained here. Banner Leader Lu, I am sure we'll have a chance to exchange blows later on."
When she finished speaking, her clear eyes glared at Li Luo again. Without saying anything more, she turned around and left. After a few breaths, her delicate figure disappeared into the mist.
"She left," Lu Qingmei said with a little surprise mixed with disappointment.
"Impressive, Banner Leader Lu! Even Fairy Qin from the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Qing was scared off by your dominating presence. Your name should be on the Empyrean Chronicle instead." Li Luo praised her with a big thumbs-up.
Hearing this, Lu Qingmei merely rolled her eyes and responded, "You're her true target. You can run from her now, but there will be no place for you to hide in the isolation area."
Li Luo smiled as he replied, "I am not afraid of her. I just did not want to be delayed by her before the isolation area and miss my chance for a Coiling Dragon Pillar."
"Still acting tough." Lu Qingmei shook her head. She believed Li Luo was putting on a brave front because he did not want to lose his face.
"You're not allowed to follow me afterwards. We will go our separate ways. After all, we are not from the same lineage and are still competitors," Lu Qingmei warned him as she prepared to leave.
Hearing this, Li Luo sighed with disappointment as he said, "I thought we were already comrades in arms."
This made Lu Qingmei both furious and amused. This guy was really thick skinned.
"Don't follow me!"
She grabbed her glazed rod tightly and waved it towards Li Luo, pretending to be fierce. Nonetheless, this was a rare instance of her acting kind of cute.
Following this, she speedily stepped onto the void and went off ahead without waiting for Li Luo's response. Soon, her silhouette also disappeared into the distance.
As Li Luo watched her get away, he smiled a little. Lu Qingmei had a pretty good personality. Although she was a martial arts fanatic, she was very loyal. He now owed her a favor due to her assistance in stopping Qin Yi. If the chance arose in future, he would surely repay this debt.
As he thought about this in his heart, he did not waste any more time. He dashed ahead towards the deepest part of the dragonbreath pool.
For the next few moments, Li Luo charged ahead at full speed. However, more and more Shadow Dragons appeared as he headed deeper into the pool. This caused him to take a detour several times. After all, even though he could guarantee his own safety against a few lower first-grade Shadow Dragons, he would undoubtedly be slowed down by them. This would make it challenging for him to reach the deepest part of the pool in time.
During this time, he had already seen a few unlucky Banner Leaders entangled in battle with Shadow Dragons. If things proceeded as they were, they would surely not make it in time.
However, Li Luo did not lend a helping hand to the unfamiliar Banner Leaders. He continued full speed ahead as he felt that the isolation area should not be too far ahead.
And so, dozens of minutes passed like this.
Suddenly, the mist ahead of Li Luo cleared up. When he looked into the distance, he noticed dozens of Shadow Dragons in the area with huge energy undulations emanating from their bodies.
He was taken aback by the sight of so many Shadow Dragons at first. However, he soon noticed that they were staying in their original positions instead of moving about.
Furthermore, there was faint light radiating from each of their bodies that were connected to each other, like a giant wall.
Li Luo finally understood what was going on. The so-called isolation area was, in fact, formed from the bodies of these Shadow Dragons.
As he scanned the surroundings, he noticed other people arriving as well.
Li Qingfeng, Li Hongli, Lu Qingmei, Deng Fengxian, and the other Banner Leaders.
At another location, he even spotted Qin Yi.
The top Banner Leaders had arrived before him.
Yet everyone simply hovered in their locations, distinct from one another. They did not attack each other but rather stared intently at the Shadow Dragons that were slowly transforming into a wall of light.
They were all patiently waiting for the Shadow Dragons to completely transform. When the time came, they would grab onto the small window of opportunity and slip past the gaps into the deepest part of the pool.
If they tried to do it now, they would unnecessarily draw the attention of all the Shadow Dragons that were standing guard. And no one would be able to fight against so many at once.
As such, all they could do now was wait.
Some of the Banner Leaders had taken notice of Li Luo's arrival too. However, they were merely surprised at the speed he had taken to arrive and did not give it much thought.
Just like this, ten minutes passed by.
At this moment, the Shadow Dragons ahead started to condense, and the transformation continued unabated. The light walls would merge with each other soon to form an impenetrable barrier that would prevent anyone else from heading into the Coiling Dragon Pillars.
"Let's go!"
The Banner Leaders that had arrived here did not wait any further. The resonant power within them spiked up and they flashed by like bolts of lightning.
This was their only chance to sneak in through the gaps before the light wall formed completely.
Li Luo did not hesitate any longer either. He acted immediately and tried to sneak past through a tiny gap in the rapidly forming wall of light.
However, he was stopped in his tracks when he was about a hundred meters away from the tiny gap he was aiming for. An attack filled with resonant power whizzed through the air and flew straight towards him all of a sudden.
Li Luo frowned at this sudden attack. He retaliated with a swing from his blade, and the dazzling slash tore open the void and neutralized the attack.
At the same time, he looked over to see where the attack had originated.
In the distance, there was a skinny man with a long nose hovering in the air, staring at him with eyes filled with hostility.
Li Luo recognized this gentleman immediately.
He was none other than Li Lu, the Banner Leader of the Dark Blood Banner from the Dragon's Blood Lineage.
"Banner Leader Li Lu, the isolation area is forming now. Why are you coming after me instead of making use of this precious window to sneak past?" Li Luo calmly asked.
Li Lu pouted as he replied, "There are only six Coiling Dragon Pillars. I will not be able to get any even if I go in. As such, my mission here is to stop other Banner Leaders from entering. As you happened to defeat Li Tong from the Dark Blood Banner earlier, I would like to see your skills for myself.
"You will not be able to go in there. You can stop dreaming about taking a Coiling Dragon Pillar," Li Lu continued.
Hearing this, a cold light appeared in Li Luo's eyes. Li Lu was really good at picking his timing. If he was delayed in such a crucial moment, Li Luo would have no more chances to obtain a Coiling Dragon Pillar.
If he were to retaliate, he would need to finish off Li Lu in the shortest time possible.
As Li Luo was lost in thought, Li Lu wasted no time in his endeavor. With a long howl, his resonant power surged and a giant finger made of immense energy fell from the sky, pressing down upon Li Luo.
Li Luo prepared for his counterattack.
However, a beam of light pierced through the air in this instant. A sakura-red spear filled with a domineering aura pierced apart the void.
The spear clashed against the giant finger of energy, creating a deafening roar. The aftermath of the energy collision raged like a storm.
As the energy storm swept across the field, a familiar figure emerged in front of Li Luo.
"Little Brother, you go for the Coiling Dragon Pillar. Leave this young man to me." A shout came from the distance, and it was none other than Li Fengyi.
As she clenched her jade fists, the spear teleported back into her hands. Her high ponytail danced along lightly in the wind.
Li Luo was startled. He knew that Li Fengyi wanted to help him hold down Li Lu here. However, this would mean that she would lose her only chance to slip past the isolation area.
Li Luo felt warmth in his heart, but this was not the time to express his thanks properly. He merely smiled and said, "Thank you, Second Sister."
With that, he turned around and dashed towards the gap in the light wall.
A moment later, there was another tremendous clash of energy behind him.
Li Luo managed to slip past the wall of light, entering the deepest part of the dragonbreath pool.
After passing through the wall of light, his pupils narrowed slightly when he gazed into the distance. In the depths of the mist, he faintly saw the huge pillars glowing with mysterious lights.
There were lively dragon imprints on each pillar that seemed to swallow up the power of heaven and earth.
He could finally see the Coiling Dragon Pillars!