Chapter 158: A Pendant on the Leg

Lin Zhan threw a punch downwards, but because his own thigh was right there, he could only use thirty percent of his strength. Otherwise, if he were to smash his own leg to pieces, wouldn't he become the laughingstock of Wushan and his gang?

Moreover, now that he was close enough to observe Shui Xinxin's tender face, he realized that she was fundamentally just a little loli. If he were to genuinely resort to a killing blow, he simply didn't have the heart to do it.

"Damn it!" Lin Zhan threw his punch, but suddenly found that his thigh was no longer his own. Shui Xinxin had used some strange art; she had somehow shifted it, nimbly moving to a different spot so that his Blazing Fire Fist missed entirely, crashing into the ground and instantly leaving a massive crater.

Lin Zhan leaped into the air to avoid falling in. While airborne, he smoothly kicked and whipped his leg out, trying to fling Shui Xinxin away.

She was like sticky taffy—how could she be shaken off so easily? This series of postures looked more like a game played between an elder and a young child, and if Shui Xinxin were to burst into giggles, the scene would have been even more harmonious and heartwarming.

"Let go, or I won't be polite!" Lin Zhan transmitted his voice with utter frustration; he was starting to find this posture unbearable.

Shui Xinxin refused to show weakness: "If you have the ability, shake me off, let's see if you can throw me away..."

This was deeply awkward, and Lin Zhan was left with black lines across his forehead. Since she had put it that way, what could he possibly do?

What on earth was he supposed to do?

He couldn't hit her, nor could he shake her off. This was truly a delightful predicament—with a little accessory hanging from his leg, walking around was certainly full of swagger.

Lin Zhan landed on the ground and switched to a new train of thought. Since Shui Xinxin was just hugging his thigh and showed no signs of making a more lethal move, should he just let her be for the time being?

Shui Xinxin's clone happened to strike again at that moment, and Lin Zhan unhesitatingly employed the white bone pagoda, swallowing it whole and sealing it within the restriction.

He had locked away a clone, but what would happen next? If he continuously suppressed that clone and kept it trapped inside, could Shui Xinxin create a new one?

As for Shui Xinxin, she truly was a child with a complex personality. In front of other disciples, she could act bold, fierce, and mighty, calling herself your grandaunt with the swagger of a tough heroine, yet she also possessed the meticulousness, covert observation, and wisdom of someone who plans before she acts.

As for her acting talent, Lin Zhan had witnessed it firsthand; a few volumes of blood-and-tears history wouldn't even be enough for her grievances.

Yet right now, hugging his thigh, she had reverted entirely to an incorrigible, mischievous brat.

"Give me a lollipop, or I'm not letting go..." Such demands left Lin Zhan utterly furious.

With the clone dealt with, he could now focus entirely on dealing with the little lord hanging from his leg.

At that exact moment, because the clone was abruptly swallowed into the bone pagoda, Shui Xinxin herself suffered a severe spiritual sense backlash. The portion of consciousness belonging to the clone was forcibly severed, leaving her disoriented and somewhat dazed.

She released Lin Zhan's thigh, clutched her head, and rolled around on the ground, seemingly enduring unbearable pain.

"Wasn't she completely fine just a moment ago? That clone actually had such a heavy impact..." If Lin Zhan had known earlier that it would have this effect, he would have used the white bone pagoda to deal with this brat long ago. "Is a man's thigh something a young girl can just hug whenever she pleases?"

Although Shui Xinxin's actions filled Lin Zhan with deep abhorrence, when she unleashed her avatar technique, Lin Zhan finally realized why he had felt a familiar aura earlier—it was that faint, delicate fragrance that belonged to Ning Wanqing!

This Shui Xinxin must definitely be connected to Ning Wanqing. They shared the same aura, the same avatar technique, and the same utterly unreliable style of conduct. This was the most important reason why Lin Zhan had held back his punches.

Seeing Shui Xinxin in such agony, Lin Zhan wanted to step forward to check on her. Before he even got close, a streak of red lightning flashed toward his face, carrying an unprecedented murderous intent and a rather unsettling sensation.

Lin Zhan felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end, and he executed the fastest teleportation of his life. *Whoosh!* Emergency evasion—he had no idea whether it had succeeded or not.

The disciples of Burial Sword Peak watching from afar let out simultaneous gasps of astonishment!

"Ah, Senior Brother Wu De isn't dead!"

Yet almost without pause, they added: "Careful, the Red-Tailed Scorpion Queen!"

And naturally, this followed immediately after: "Ah, Senior Brother Wu De is going to die again!"

Lin Zhan looked back, and the sight was utterly bizarre—it was like seeing a ghost!

Because Wu De, who should have been thoroughly dead, was currently standing right behind the spot where Lin Zhan had just been standing, still holding that Cangyang Sword. The brilliance of the sword body had reached its peak, and with a single swing of that sword, he would likely be either dead or severely wounded.

What the hell! Lin Zhan nervously touched the back of his neck; a moment ago, it almost stopped belonging to him.

Yet the very next second, amidst the cries of the Burial Sword Peak disciples, he realized he had directed his lingering fear at the wrong target. At that moment, the declining sun sword in Wu De's hand suddenly dropped on its own, and his hand retracted to clutch his throat. His body convulsed, he collapsed face-first onto the ground, and after struggling no further, a wisp of black smoke rose from his body as thick white foam bubbled up profusely from his skin...

What on earth was that? That tiny red shadow from just now!

Gathering his spiritual sense, Lin Zhan finally figured out what that mischievous, eerie creature was—it was the Red-Tailed Scorpion Queen, one of the ten great demonic domain poisons!

To touch it meant instant death, with zero margin for survival.

If he hadn't dodged in time, the one lying there turning into a pile of foam right now would have been Lin Zhan himself.

As Wu De's body dissipated along with the black smoke, only a large pool of foam remained. The bubbles burst one after another, slowly receding to reveal what lay within.

A tiny, exquisite body stood atop a red sphere, its tail tipped with a majestic, intimidating stinger that emitted a reddish glow and a somewhat demonic aura.

This time, the Red-Tailed Scorpion Queen did not flee. Instead, it returned to Shui Xinxin's side and remained motionless, as if standing guard.

"Truly bizarre!" Lin Zhan wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

He thought to himself: "When she was hugging my thigh just now, if this Red-Tailed Scorpion Queen had come out to bite me, then..."

He didn't dare to continue imagining.

That Wu De was also deeply suspicious. Lin Zhan approached the red sphere, locked onto it with his spiritual sense, and carefully inspected it.

Naturally, the disciples of Burial Sword Peak, seeing that the Red-Tailed Scorpion Queen was still lingering here, hesitated to step forward, choosing instead to whisper anxiously among themselves from afar.

Wushan had felt a surge of pleasant surprise mixed with tension when Wu De had miraculously reappeared and resurrected earlier.

Yet the trajectory of events had far exceeded his expectations. Before Wu De even had a chance to unleash his killing blow against Lin Zhan, he had been targeted by the Red-Tailed Scorpion Queen and ultimately reduced to that puddle of foam. How on earth could he possibly resurrect from this?

In the past, whenever Wu De resurrected, at least his corpse remained, or at the very least a couple of bones or flesh fragments were preserved. This time, however, he had died so thoroughly that not even dust was left. Could he still pull it off?

The confidence that had always defined Wushan's consciousness began to waver at this moment.