Han Li exited Yue Lu Hall, bid farewell to the two red-robed figures, and flew toward the Hundred Herb Garden on his magical instrument.
Mid-flight, while pondering the refinement of the Foundation Establishment Pill, he cast an indifferent glance at the rolling hills below. Suddenly, a thunderous roar erupted from beneath, startling him. He focused his gaze downward.
On one of the small hills below, flashes of lightning crackled, accompanied by faint cheers, piquing Han Li’s curiosity. He descended with his magical instrument, landing near the source of the commotion, and approached on foot.
“Brother Murong, another one! Let us witness it again!”
“Exactly! This is the first time I’ve seen lightning up close—it’s terrifying!”
…
As Han Li reached the hilltop, he heard the clamor ahead. The mention of “Brother Murong” stirred something in him.
“Those twin geniuses with Thunder Spiritual Roots who just joined the sect—aren’t they surnamed Murong? Combined with that earlier roar, could it be them showcasing their skills here?”
By now, he could see thirty to forty disciples of varying ages gathered in a loose circle, excitedly pointing and discussing two boys around eleven or twelve years old at the center.
The ground within the circle was scarred with several charred pits, their edges melted from intense heat and emitting faint wisps of blue smoke. A light breeze carried the smell of scorched earth everywhere.
Witnessing this, Han Li hurried over and took a closer look at the boys. Both had delicate features, fair skin, and looked remarkably alike. Their eyes sparkled with a clever, almost impish glint.
Flushed with excitement from the onlookers’ attention and praise, the boys exchanged a glance before simultaneously forming hand seals and chanting incantations. Electricity crackled in their palms, and two thin bolts of lightning shot out, striking the nearby ground with deafening booms and blinding white light, leaving two new craters.
“Is this the thunder-attribute Palm Lightning? Whether in power or auditory impact, it far surpasses fireball or ice spike spells of the same level. Truly worthy of being called the most destructive thunder-attribute spell!” Han Li marveled inwardly, feeling a pang of envy toward the brothers’ spiritual roots.
Clearly, he wasn’t the only one with such thoughts. Most of the surrounding disciples also watched the brothers with envious eyes, lamenting why they hadn’t been blessed with such coveted supreme spiritual roots.
After performing several more lightning strikes amid the cheers, the brothers began to show signs of exhaustion—their young age clearly limiting their stamina.
“What’s the big deal? The power of Thunder Spiritual Roots isn’t all that. I think my Wind Spiritual Root is better!” A discordant male voice rang out from the crowd opposite Han Li, drawing everyone’s attention.
A young man and woman stood side by side—the man handsome and tall, the woman beautiful as a flower—clearly a couple deeply in love. The man wore an arrogant expression, seemingly dismissive of the Murong brothers’ Palm Lightning, while the woman blushed under the collective gaze, her shyness adding to her charm.
“Who is that guy? So arrogant!”
“Wind Spiritual Root? That’s also a variant spiritual root! Does he have one too?”
“I know him! It’s Senior Brother Lu. He does have a variant spiritual root and is incredibly skilled with wind-attribute spells!”
“Even if he has a variant spiritual root, why would he say something like that?”
“Probably jealousy! He used to be the only low-level disciple with a variant spiritual root, but now two with even better aptitude have appeared. Of course, he’s unbalanced!”
“What? How petty!”
“Shh! Keep it down. Don’t let him hear—he holds grudges. If he targets you, you’re in trouble!”
…
The young man’s appearance sparked whispers and murmurs among the crowd, suggesting his popularity was far from stellar.
“Hmph! Little ones, let me show you what a real variant spiritual root can do!” The young man’s expression darkened at the议论 around him. He strode into the circle and declared arrogantly, “Go ahead and attack me with your thunder spells. If I so much as dodge, I’ll kneel and apologize to you brats!”
The Murong brothers, incensed by Senior Brother Lu’s unwarranted contempt, paled with anger.
“You won’t dodge?”
“Of course not!”
“And you won’t use any magical instruments?”
“Fine!”
The brothers, true to their twin synergy, quickly laid out conditions favorable to themselves with one sentence each. The young man, brimming with arrogance and dismissive of the boys, raised no objections.
“Good! Then we’ll take you on, Senior Brother!” the boys said in unison, their voices filled with indignation.
“Senior Brother Lu, are you sure about this?” his female companion asked worriedly.
“Hehe! No need to worry about dealing with two little kids. Just relax, Junior Sister Chen!” The young man waved dismissively and stood confidently opposite the Murong brothers.
The brothers exchanged a glance, then moved close together, clasping one hand each while raising their other hands toward the sky, chanting identical spells in unison.
The young man sneered, casually casting a defensive spell that enveloped him in a cyan barrier.
“Chain Lightning Strike!”
The twins finished their incantation and pointed toward the young man’s head. Immediately, a dark cloud about ten feet in diameter formed above him. A flash of white light within the cloud heralded a lightning bolt as thick as a finger, striking the cyan barrier and causing it to shudder violently. The young man’s expression shifted—the lightning’s power had exceeded his expectations.
But this was only the beginning. From the hovering cloud, bolt after bolt of identical lightning strikes rained down, battering the barrier until it flickered and dimmed, seemingly on the verge of shattering.
The young man’s face darkened. Suddenly, his hands moved in a dazzling series of seals before he pressed them firmly against the barrier. The cyan light flared, not only restoring the barrier but making it even thicker than before.
Unwilling to relinquish their advantage, the Murong brothers sent various hand seals into the sky, causing the dark cloud to expand to over thirty feet in diameter. The lightning falling from it grew thicker and more frequent.
Faced with the brothers’ fierce assault, Senior Brother Lu was both shocked and furious, caught completely off guard. He never expected them to have mastered a mid-level chain lightning spell at such a young age. Temporarily pinned down by the relentless attacks, he was unable to counterattack, suffering a humiliating defeat in front of everyone.
Thus, the contest turned into an unexpected stalemate: the boys struggled to maintain the relentless lightning strikes, while the young man labored to reinforce his cyan barrier.
In theory, the attacking side holds the advantage, conserving more energy than the defender. However, the Murong brothers had already expended considerable energy during their earlier demonstration and started with limited reserves. Moreover, Senior Brother Lu, being older, possessed far more refined and abundant energy than the newly initiated brothers, giving him the upper hand in a battle of attrition.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the dark cloud released its final few lightning bolts before dissipating into clear sky. The brothers, drained of energy, were forced to cease their attack first.
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