The scene that greeted them upon pushing open the courtyard gate struck the two with immense shock.
They saw Bai Yue sitting in the courtyard, but there was another man with her, holding her forcefully in his arms and about to kiss her.
That man was no stranger to them—it was Long Haochen’s revered teacher, Long Xingyu.
“You… you…”
Long Haochen stood there, unable to speak. In that instant, his mind went completely blank.
Instinctively, he tightened his grip on Bai Xi beside him, as if this could lend him some strength.
Bai Xi also held Long Haochen tightly, while her mind raced, calculating the probability of killing the man she despised before her.
“Chenchen, Xixi.”
Seeing them, Bai Yue’s face also showed panic. She tried to break free from Long Xingyu’s embrace, but instead, he placed a Restriction on her, rendering her unable to move or speak.
“Bastard!”
Bai Xi gritted her teeth and spoke, determined to reclaim her mother.
Seeing the furious and hate-filled eyes of the two children opposite him, Long Xingyu found himself feeling a strange sense of satisfaction. Though after that satisfaction came a vague sense of loss, he subconsciously ignored it.
A sword appeared in his hand, its tip pointed at Bai Xi.
“Come at me together.”
Since he said “together,” they naturally followed his words. The siblings, acting in perfect coordination, immediately launched an attack on him from both sides.
Every move was executed with all their might.
But many of these techniques had originally been taught by Long Xingyu, and his strength was unfathomable. How could they possibly overcome him?
Soon, Long Haochen, who was weaker in strength, was nearly sent flying.
“Don’t use what he taught you. Use what I taught you.”
Bai Xi grabbed Long Haochen, tightly gripping his left wrist.
Long Haochen instinctively dropped the sword in his left hand, feeling the power Bai Xi transmitted to him, and moved according to the method she had taught him before.
The power Bai Xi transmitted to him circulated once within his body before flowing into the sword in his right hand. Relying on muscle memory, he swung the sword.
Instantly, two clear and piercing cries of a Phoenix rang out.
A golden-red Phoenix formed of flames and a brilliant golden Phoenix formed of light flew out from Bai Xi and Long Haochen’s swords respectively, carrying scorching power as they soared toward Long Xingyu.
This was a modified version of Phoenix Soars created by Bai Xi.
When she and Long Haochen used it together, two Phoenixes appeared simultaneously, also called Twin Phoenixes Soaring.
“I thought only you, Bai Xi, were hiding your true strength. I never expected both of you to have been concealing your abilities. I underestimated you.”
Seeing such a skill, Long Xingyu couldn’t help but marvel.
Yet he still didn’t take it seriously. The skill was indeed impressive, but those using it were still far too young and no match for him.
Only Bai Yue, who was restrained, watched this scene, so anxious that tears nearly welled up in her eyes.
She didn’t understand how things had escalated to this point, how they had ended up fighting.
She couldn’t help but feel some resentment toward Long Xingyu. The two children didn’t know his true identity, but didn’t he know these were his own son and daughter? How could he be so cruel?
“You admit it—you’ve always underestimated us.”
Long Xingyu’s strength was overwhelming, and Twin Phoenixes Soaring failed to harm him. Yet Bai Xi remained undiscouraged; she still had more tricks up her sleeve.
“So what if I underestimated you? Look at yourselves—impulsive, irritable, hot-tempered, arrogant, and conceited.”
“You’ve completely forgotten what I taught you: no matter who you face, you must remain calm.”
“Once you lose your composure, your weaknesses are exposed.”
“Fortunately, you encountered me. If it were an enemy, you’d already be dead.”
As he spoke, Long Xingyu intensified his assault.
With his strength, even when suppressing his Spiritual Power to just over a hundred, he remained formidable.
Soon, Long Haochen was the first to fall, rendered completely defenseless by Long Xingyu’s attacks.
“Only you remain.”
Long Xingyu turned his gaze to Bai Xi and raised his sword once more.
Both Bai Yue and Long Haochen could see that when facing Bai Xi alone, Long Xingyu struck much harder, as if holding nothing back.
But even with his Spiritual Power suppressed, Bai Xi managed to counter every move. He could only gradually increase his Spiritual Power, trying to test her limits.
In the end, he arrived at a startling figure, yet Bai Xi still struggled on stubbornly.
He couldn’t help but ask, “Still not giving up?”
“Give up? Absolutely not.”
Bai Xi was truly stubborn to the core. Even when her body was pushed far beyond its limits, she refused to admit defeat.
Catching a glimpse of Bai Yue, whose face was streaked with tears, wanting to speak but unable to, Bai Xi even found the strength to smile at her.
“Mom, don’t cry. I’m fine. I will definitely save you.”
As she spoke, she placed her hand over her heart.
Hearing this, Long Xingyu immediately panicked and turned to look at Bai Yue. Sure enough, he saw her weeping bitterly, and when she noticed him looking, she glared at him fiercely.
“Damn, I think I went too far.”
“Who knew this wretched girl had so many hidden cards? She’s so hard to deal with!”
“Truly worthy of that person’s bloodline. She can’t be treated like an ordinary ten-year-old.”
Just as Long Xingyu was panicking internally, he sensed something unusual.
A soft white light flashed, and two objects appeared in her hands. One was a small cauldron, about the size of a palm, seemingly made of the purest white crystal, emitting a white glow.
The other was a white sword. Unlike the heavy swords typically used by Knights, this one was slender, light, and thin, appearing almost weightless.
It was easy to overlook, especially with the Spirit Furnace drawing all the attention.
“This is a Spirit Furnace. How do you have a Spirit Furnace? Who awakened your Internal Spiritual Power?”
Seeing the small cauldron, Long Xingyu’s expression finally changed.
Damn it, who ruined his plans by awakening Bai Xi’s Internal Spiritual Power prematurely? Without sufficiently pure Light Power, how could Bai Xi ever become a Knight?
Bai Xi said nothing, merely awakening the Spirit Furnace in her hand.
The once pure, crystal-like Spirit Furnace instantly became radiant, filled with stunning colors that settled on red.
“Seven Emotions Sword—Wrath.”
Bai Xi swung the light sword in her hand. Wood fuels fire, and the overwhelming wrath fused with sharp Sword Intent, carrying the courage of a desperate struggle, surged toward Long Xingyu.
The wrath truly manifested as flames. Wood amplifying fire, combined with fire-attribute Spiritual Power, greatly enhanced each other.
“Oh no, this wretched girl really sees me as a mortal enemy.”
“I actually just wanted to use this opportunity to test their strength. If I had known, I wouldn’t have done it.”