Though Pi Fuzhen was the most prominent genius of the Pi family, his cultivation was only at the Foundation Establishment stage.

Ning Zhuo was also at Foundation Establishment, and his cultivation was even weaker than Pi Fuzhen’s. However, he had killed Golden Core cultivators, Soul Transformation cultivators, and had even directly fought against Divine Transformation level cultivators!

Pi Fuzhen’s eyelids twitched. Feeling Ning Zhuo’s immense confidence, he became even more hesitant to accept the challenge.

For a moment, he felt somewhat at a loss and began to regret greeting Shen Xi and his group, which had led to his current predicament.

If he retreated without a fight, and the news reached his family, Pi Fuzhen’s life would undoubtedly be difficult; he would be skinned alive.

“Hahahahaha!” Just then, the tiger demon beside Pi Fuzhen burst into laughter.

“Such a young brat, yet with such a big mouth. Let me, your lord, contend with you!”

This tiger demon had extraordinary strength and had just been successfully recruited by Pi Fuzhen.

Just as Shen Xi had once gotten close to Ning Zhuo, Pi Fuzhen also intentionally approached the tiger demon. Their initial intentions were the same. However, after spending time together,

Ning Zhuo displayed his strength, causing Shen Xi to immediately make a wise adjustment and treat Ning Zhuo as an equal.

Pi Fuzhen’s eyes lit up when he saw the tiger demon laugh.

The tiger demon cupped his fists and solemnly said to Pi Fuzhen, “Young Master Pi, we have only met a few times, yet you have bestowed upon me soul spirit tattoos. I should exert my strength and help you reclaim your honor!”

Pi Fuzhen breathed a sigh of relief, feeling joyful. This was undoubtedly the best response—he wouldn’t have to fight himself, and he would have an explanation for his family.

Pi Fuzhen immediately promised, “This is your first time taking action. Regardless of victory or defeat, there will be a reward!”

Ning Zhuo sneered, “No matter how much the reward is, dead cultivators can’t claim it, can they?”

The tiger demon glared at Ning Zhuo, “You little thing, you really have a big mouth. When I defeat you, I won’t kill you immediately. I will devour you alive. By then, I’d like to see if you’re still so arrogant!”

Ning Zhuo put away his Wuxing Shengmie Fan, a look of disdain on his face. “You, a mere demon cultivator, what right do you have to fight me?”

“If I were to make a move, cutting down Pi Fuzhen would be somewhat more justifiable.”

The tiger demon immediately burst into laughter, pointing his finger at Ning Zhuo’s nose. “You’re scared! Cowardly and afraid of death, you don’t dare to accept my life-and-death martial arts duel!”

“If you don’t accept, that’s fine too. I’ll spread the word everywhere that you’re weak and afraid to fight!”

“I know, you righteous cultivators cherish your reputation. Just you wait.”

Ning Zhuo sighed, “Very well. Since you seek death, I won’t stop you.”

“If you can defeat the automaton in my hand, then I will personally step in and grant you death.”

Shen Xi looked sideways, thinking, “Automaton?”

The two groups entered the martial arts hall. Since the tiger demon initiated the challenge, according to established custom, he would pay the spirit stone fee.

Ning Zhuo chose a room.

The room was equipped with a magic array. Everyone stepped through the doorway and entered the space within the array.

While waiting to enter, Shen Xi urgently sent a mental message: “Brother Ning, you might not be aware. The Pi family primarily cultivates the ‘Qifu Mopi Jing’ and can use paper-cutting and talisman-making techniques, using souls as the main material, to engrave talismans on their skin.”

“At their strongest, they will engrave seven talismans simultaneously, whether identical or not.”

“These talismans activate swiftly, almost as fast as innate spells. Not only that, but the talismans can often resonate with each other, forming combinations. Although that tiger demon hasn’t been loyal for long, Pi Fuzhen has the ability to engrave demonic talismans for him.”

“Listening to the tiger demon’s previous words, Pi Fuzhen has already engraved one for him to recruit him. Now that they are delayed, they are probably engraving the second one.”

“In the upcoming battle, you must be careful. It is a prudent move to use the automaton to probe the tiger demon and the talismans’ true capabilities.”

Shen Xi knew that Ning Zhuo’s understanding of the Five Elements far surpassed that of ordinary people. As for how much it surpassed, he had not yet fully probed.

In his opinion: Ning Zhuo was about the same age as him, perhaps slightly older. For someone of that age to possess such a profound mastery of the Five Elements was

quite remarkable. Ning Zhuo must have invested a great deal of time and effort into the Five Elements.

As for mechanism arts, he certainly wasn’t that proficient.

Therefore, he already had an estimate for the upcoming battle: Ning Zhuo would use the automaton to probe the tiger demon’s true capabilities. If the situation was favorable,

he could also wear down the tiger demon, weakening the opponent’s combat strength. Afterwards, Ning Zhuo would then use the Wuxing Shengmie Fan and Five Element spells to kill the tiger demon and claim victory.

Ning Zhuo waved his hand slightly, “Brother Shen, don’t worry, it’s just a small cat.”

Shen Xi praised, “Brother Ning is bold.”

Su Lingkou secretly curled her lips, thinking, “My cousin kindly advises you, yet you don’t appreciate it. If you’re so arrogant and then lose the battle, you’ll probably lose even more face.”

“Alas, I hope you can win.”

“He should be able to win, right?”

Su Lingkou had never actually seen Ning Zhuo in action, so she didn’t have much confidence in him.

After a while longer, Pi Fuzhen and the tiger demon entered the room.

The tiger demon went to the martial arts arena, while Pi Fuzhen, Shen Xi, and Su Lingkou stood outside to observe.

The tiger demon’s eyes glowed, filled with excitement.

He thought, “Challenging him was the right move! To win this battle, Young Master has given me another demonic talisman, greatly increasing my strength!”

“I will surely win this battle. You, young man, will be my promotion gift.”

He extended his finger and beckoned to Ning Zhuo, a very strong sense of provocation in his gesture.

Ning Zhuo’s face was expressionless. With a gentle wave of his hand, he released an automaton from his storage belt.

The automaton was six chi and three cun tall, with a feminine form and six arms, striking a graceful pose.

Its body was covered in a layer of three-color cloisonné armor, its face was a snow porcelain mask, and a head of black hair was woven from ice silk.

Xuecai Nü·Hui!

Upon its debut, its stunning appearance attracted everyone’s gaze.

Immediately, Su Lingkou exclaimed in a low voice, “A Golden Core level automaton?”

Pi Fuzhen’s brows furrowed instantly.

As of today, all of the elite automatons Ning Zhuo crafted were at the Golden Core level.

Xuecai Nü·Hui’s entire body was almost entirely made of Golden Core-level precious materials. Within the core mechanism component that supplied spiritual power, a Ghost Dao Golden Core was locked. The Golden Core emitted spiritual power, which was then converted into ice-attributed spiritual power through a magic array. This conversion process would inevitably result in some loss and delay.

However, Ning Zhuo had already done his best for the current situation.

He did not have a suitable ice-attributed Golden Core in his possession.

Upon seeing Ning Zhuo directly release a Golden Core-level automaton, the tiger demon secretly cursed, “This human brat is cunning! This is probably his strongest trump card. He’s saying pretty words, but in reality, to deal with me, he’s already gone all out from the start!”

The tiger demon’s expression was solemn, not daring to be careless.

He was quite experienced in battle and, seeing the automaton’s dazzling beauty, guessed that it was primarily a long-range combat puppet.

He roared, activating a wind-attributed spell that drastically increased his speed.

The tiger demon pounced towards Xuecai Nü·Hui, his tiger claws like knives, tearing through the air, swift and fierce.

“Good, I’m at close range!” The tiger demon was excited to see Xuecai Nü·Hui remain motionless in place.

His two tiger claws struck Xuecai Nü·Hui almost simultaneously.

Xuecai Nü·Hui extended a pair of auxiliary arms, crossing them to block in front of her.

A clang of metal erupted, piercing their eardrums.

“What?!” The tiger demon’s pupils constricted slightly, revealing a look of disbelief.

After the clash, the expected sight of the automaton’s arm breaking did not occur. The three-color cloisonné armor covering her arms shimmered, resisting the earth-shattering blow head-on, without even a single crack appearing!

Instead, the tiger demon felt a sharp pain in his own tiger claws.

Xuecai Nü·Hui’s snow porcelain face mask showed no expression. Another pair of auxiliary arms darted out like venomous snakes, striking directly at the exposed flank of the tiger demon’s waist.

“Nngh!” The tiger demon was struck, his heart once again startled. “So fast!”

He retreated several large steps, stooped down, and swung his thick tiger tail.

The tiger tail, like a steel whip, lashed out at the automaton’s lower body.

Xuecai Nü·Hui stepped forward, her movements graceful yet swift and agile, easily avoiding the attack.

She actively closed the distance, her six arms transforming into a blur of motion. Whether punching, palm striking, or finger jabbing, she precisely attacked the tiger demon’s joints, kidneys, and other areas, causing the tiger demon to retreat in defeat.

Seeing this scene, Shen Xi, Pi Fuzhen, and the others were all greatly surprised.

None of them had expected the automaton’s close-combat ability to be so powerful and its movements so agile.

Shen Xi looked at Ning Zhuo, whose ten fingers moved frequently, his spiritual power-infused threads manipulating Xuecai Nü·Hui, making various combat postures, all while possessing the beauty of martial arts.

The tiger demon roared repeatedly, claw shadows flying, trying to regain control of the situation.

However, Xuecai Nü·Hui’s cloisonné armor had astonishing defensive power, and her six arms cooperated seamlessly. Moreover, she was perpetually tireless and felt no pain.

Under Ning Zhuo’s control, she defused, parried, and suppressed each of the tiger demon’s furious attacks!

The tiger demon’s massive body appeared clumsy and powerless in front of Xuecai Nü·Hui.

The tiger demon’s counterattacks failed, and he was beaten black and blue, his heart filled with dread: “This automaton is so strong, it must be a close-combat model! I don’t need to attack its strength!”

He roared, unleashing the demonic art of tiger might, shaking the automaton for a moment.

Taking advantage of this moment, the tiger demon swiftly retreated, creating distance.

Ning Zhuo smiled, “You made the wrong choice.”

The tiger demon’s heart suddenly skipped a beat, “Could it be…?”

The next moment, Xuecai Nü·Hui’s six arms were already raised, her slender jade fingers pointing at the tiger demon.

Inside her body, the Nuan Yu Lun, as the core mechanism component, began to spin at high speed! The three colors of cloisonné flowed faster, and Golden Core-level spiritual power converted into ice-attributed energy, gushing to her fingertips.

Various ice-attributed spells were unleashed, forming sharp and unmatched ice cones and ice spears. At the same time, fierce cold winds blew out, forming a powerful long-range offensive.

Pi Fuzhen’s expression turned quite ugly.

Even Shen Xi and Su Lingkou became solemn. Putting themselves in the situation, they realized that if they faced such an onslaught, they would undoubtedly prioritize dodging and would be unable to resist it head-on!

The tiger demon also chose to dodge.

However, Xuecai Nü·Hui also began to move, her figure like willow catkins floating, easily soaring several zhang.

The tiger demon was chased and attacked, and soon he was covered in various ice spells.

Pi Fuzhen, Shen Xi, and Su Lingkou watched with twitching eyelids.

The defensive spiritual artifacts the tiger demon relied on quickly couldn’t hold up and were destroyed one after another.

“What kind of mechanism is this? It’s a long-range model?! You want me dead, I’ll make you die first!!” The tiger demon was pushed to the brink of survival, forced into a frenzied state, bloodlust surging in his eyes. He slammed his chest, and the two demonic talismans bestowed by Pi Fuzhen instantly activated!

On his left shoulder, a tattoo appeared, which was the Qianzhong Linpi Fu.

The talisman emitted a grayish-green light, then quickly condensed a layer of grayish-green scales over the tiger demon’s entire body, greatly increasing his defense.

A talisman also appeared on his right chest, this was the Ranxue Benteng Fu.

For a moment, the tiger demon’s blood qi surged, his speed instantly increasing several times. He left an afterimage in place, his true body already flashing like a ghost.

The ice spell attacks were quite dense, but there were always gaps.

The tiger demon used these fleeting gaps, paying the smallest price, to close the distance with Xuecai Nü·Hui!

Ning Zhuo thought, “This is good too.”

He was about to take this opportunity to let Xuecai Nü·Hui engage in more close combat to cultivate her sentience, but then Xuecai Nü·Hui’s sentience suddenly trembled,

A strong desire and impulse, flowing through the spiritual power threads, was transmitted to Ning Zhuo.

Xuecai Nü·Hui actually wanted autonomy and even tried to seize control from Ning Zhuo!

Ning Zhuo was stunned for a moment, revealing a flaw.

Under the burning blood, the tiger demon keenly captured the flaw and launched a furious attack.

His speed and defense surged, also increasing his combat power significantly.

However, at this critical moment, Ning Zhuo secretly completely gave up control, causing Xuecai Nü·Hui to become a punching bag, being brutally beaten by the tiger demon. “Good!” Pi Fuzhen suddenly clenched his fist and shouted loudly, his face overflowing with ecstasy.

Shen Xi and Su Lingkou’s expressions changed dramatically.

Shen Xi thought to himself, “Indeed! Brother Ning excels in the Five Elements, and mechanism arts are at most a secondary cultivation.”

Xuecai Nü·Hui fell to the ground.

The tiger demon’s attack succeeded, his fierce aura burning even brighter, and he let out a wild laugh, “Break for me!!”

He wanted to seize this opportune moment and dismantle this automaton in one go!

Ning Zhuo’s spiritual consciousness had already receded like a tide, and the Five Element spiritual power threads that remained were merely a superficial disguise, in reality offering no control.

The moment the tiger demon’s sharp claws touched its body, the eyes of Xuecai Nü·Hui, who had fallen to the ground, suddenly lit up.

A chill emanated from the depths of the tiger demon’s heart. At that moment, he had a thought that even he felt was absurd—this automaton seemed alive!

The Nuan Yu Lun, the core component inside Xuecai Nü·Hui, burst forth with an unprecedented dazzling brilliance! Three hundred and sixty pores spewed out extremely cold ice mist.

Six hands directly pressed onto the tiger demon’s body.

The immense cold solidified into a cold current, enveloping the tiger demon.

Kacha kacha…

The “Qianzhong Linpi Fu” on the tiger demon’s body flickered wildly, and the phantom scales quickly became covered in cracks and thick white frost!

The blood qi accelerated by the Ranxue Benteng Fu, on the other hand, was rapidly frozen and consumed by the cold.

The tiger demon was horrified to discover that his speed was plummeting, his strength was decaying, and the operation of his demonic power became incredibly difficult! He wanted to retreat, but the cold tide storm trapped him like a quagmire!

The tiger demon let out a desperate roar.

He struggled frantically, burning his vital blood and urging his demonic power, but he could not break through the increasingly thick ice layer and the increasingly biting cold.

After a dozen breaths, the tiger demon’s roars ceased. His last sound was a whimper filled with unwillingness and fear.

He was completely frozen in place, turning into a lifelike, huge ice sculpture with a face full of terror!

His life aura was completely extinguished.

Xuecai Nü·Hui slowly ceased her actions and gracefully stood up, her six arms hanging down. The radiance of the Nuan Yu Lun retracted, and the three-colored cloisonné armor shimmered with a cold luster in the ice mist.

She stood quietly before the ice sculpture, her head slightly tilted. The snow porcelain mask showed no expression, but all the onlookers felt that Xuecai Nü·Hui was displaying a proud look.

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