Absolute Resonance

n anything his resonant powers could have individually produced.

They cut through the destructive wave easily, both poison and sonic attacks vaporizing upon contact.

A rare moment of silence gripped the gorge as rocks quietly fell apart, cleanly sliced in two.

Duze Beixuan and Wang Hejiu stared in shock.

Their combined resonance arts, defeated by one slash from Li Luo?

”That power… ”

Wang Hejiu ’s face was twitching.
”It ’s beyond a First Pattern, ” he whispered hoarsely.

”Dual resonances. ” Duze Beixuan spat these words like a curse.

”But his control is probably unstable.
He might not be able to use it a second time… ”

Before he finished speaking, Li Luo sent his blades slashing down again, and two more identical slashes of energy fanned out.

Weng!

They were headed straight for the pair.

Their fear showed, and they answered with their best resonance arts.

Daaaang!

A hollow, metallic ringing, then their resonant powers were brushed aside.

Wang Hejiu ’s folding fan and Duze Beixuan ’s spear shuddered from the impact, and both were forced a dozen steps backwards.

Desperation and anger.

This was the power of dual resonances? Li Luo had only just reached the Upper Flowering Tier, and yet he was stronger than two First Pattern cultivators combined?

”Dual resonances are finicky in control.
He must be faking it somehow.
Surely not a third… ”

”Quiet. ” Wang Hejiu interrupted Duze Beixuan.
”Li Luo must be in the zone, a temporary high after getting his dual resonances for the first time.
It will definitely end.
Don ’t force the issue now.
We retreat, play for time, and wait for him to lose focus.
He ’ll be weak then. ”

Duze Beixuan was prickly at being overruled, but he swallowed it.
Defeating Li Luo was the priority here.

”Let ’s back off. ”

The two began to move away as quickly as they could.

A black curtain fell upon them, and they lost their sense of direction for the moment.

Xin Fu ’s hood fell off his face, exposing his gaunt face, which was even paler than usual.
”Leader, ” he groaned.
”There ’s really not a drop of power left in me… ”

”Damn, it ’s Xin Fu! ” Duze Beixuan snarled.
Hadn ’t they wiped him out already?

Wang Hejiu was frustrated too.
The black veil was harmless enough, but it confused their orientation.
They might well be walking straight into Li Luo.

As they stumbled around in panic, a familiar rumbling came from the ground, and they felt something grab their ankles.

”Don ’t panic, it ’s Qi Luozi! ” Wang Hejiu hurriedly stopped Duze Beixuan from snapping them in two.

Shoosh!

The vines swept them off their feet, dragging them out of the black veil.

They landed heavily beside Qi Luozi.
”Retreat! ” Wang Hejiu shouted.

The three turned around, but instead of the singular passage of the gorge, there were now dozens of paths before them.

”An illusion. ” Bai Mengmeng ’s doing.

It was just about useful enough in slowing them down.

Li Luo closed his eyes and crossed his swords, this time digging deep into the shining points of light within him and channeling his twin powers down into the ground.

The ground split open, and a jade tree began to grow at super speed, sprouting leaves as it grew.
After a few moments, it was already a tree of resonant power about two meters tall.

Wang Hejiu and Duze Beixuan stared at it warily.

”Tiger-general resonance art, Warrior Cultivar? ”

”How did it grow so fast? What ’s he up to now? ”