Instantly, Zhou Weiqing felt everything slow down around him, and his body froze slightly in midair. In just that moment, the two opponents had already arrived by his side.
Blink. Left with no choice, Zhou Weiqing could only use his last line of defensive, and two flashes of light passed by where his body was a moment ago, barely missing him.
“Wait! Hold on a second!” Zhou Weiqing shouted out loud, as he dodged behind a tree.
Surprisingly, the two BaoPo Battle Team members actually listened to him. They did not attack any further, resuming their hand holding, though their attentions and spirits were fully focused on Zhou Weiqing.
Zhou Weiqing stuck his head out cautiously, the customary honest grin on his face as he said: “Please, let’s not fight first, hear me out if you will, I have a proposition.”
This BaoPo Battle Team couple were extremely attractive; the guy suave and handsome, and his lady beautifully stunning, looking the picture of a match made in heaven. Still, Zhou Weiqing recalled that they were not the two who had been leading the pack of BaoPo Battle Team members earlier, and shouldn’t be the most powerful in the team.
The two of them looked at him curiously, interested in what he had to say. They were not in a rush; they had seen all of the Fei Li Battle Team’s fights, and Zhou Weiqing’s fight against Shen Little Demon had definitely left them a deep impression. Still, that did not mean that it was sufficient for them to attach too much importance to him.
After all, not only did they have the numbers advantage, but as the members of the Passion Valley, they were extremely well versed in fighting together as a couple. Besides that, they had their pride as a member of a Great Saint Lands, and they felt they already had a good grasp on his powers and abilities, and were hence not afraid that he could escape their control. More importantly, the Blood Red Hell had always been the weakest of the four Great Saint Lands joining the Heavenly Jewel Tournament, usually taking the last position.
Seeing that they did not take action and were willing to hear him out, Zhou Weiqing stepped out from behind the tree, smiling as he said: “Hello, my name is Zhou Weiqing, may I have the honour of knowing your two esteemed names?”
The man said: “My name is Ao Le, and this is my wife, Liu Yinan. Brother Zhou, your fight with Shen Little Demon in the preliminary heats was indeed amazing, beating her then has truly given you a name in that one fight, and it should be my honour to meet you.” As he said that, he lifted up his hand and smoothed his hair. Clearly, he placed much importance on customs and ceremony.
Zhou Weiqing quickly said: “You are too kind, you are too kind. That was mostly luck indeed.”
Ao Le smiled faintly, saying: “Bro Zhou, your Demonic Change State is indeed impressively powerful. I am quite clear about Shen Little Demon’s power, having fought her before, and I am confident of being equal to her. If I were to meet Bro Zhou for the first time, I would also definitely be hard pressed to take you down. In any case, enough with the pleasantries, why did Bro Zhou call out to us? This Lustre Spatial Realm is not very peaceful, and we do not want to stay too long here.”
Inwardly, Zhou Weiqing was cursing away. What call out to you?! Isn’t it you two who chased me all the way? From this Ao Le’s words, he could tell that this fellow would be extremely difficult to handle. Although he was smiling away, his gaze was unwavering and focused, clearly the type who had a strong heart and resolute mind. This would not be an easy foe indeed.
“Bro Ao Le, it is like this. As you know, this is the first time our Fei Li Battle Team has actually entered the Finals of the Heavenly Jewel Tournament, and we have no experience at all, and are all unfamiliar with the Lustre Spatial Realm. As such, we know that we have no chance at all to get the championship, and have resigned ourselves so. However, in truth, we are likely to get the 4th position, but that would be rather sad and embarrassing. As such, I hope that we can cooperate together with the BaoPo Battle Team.”
“Cooperate?” Ao Le looked on with interest at Zhou Weiqing, saying: “So… what sort of cooperation did you have in mind?”
Zhou Weiqing continued: “Amongst the four teams in the Tournament, our Fei Li Battle Team is definitely the weakest. Also, I might be wrong, but I think that your BaoPo Battle Team should not be stronger than the WanShou or ZhongTian Battle Teams right? That is to say… both our teams are the two weakest teams in the Tournament. If we can work together, we could possibly get a much better result in this Tournament. For example, the three of us are currently together… Under such a situation, working together, if we meet any of the ZhongTian or WanShou Battle Team members, we will have a good chance of winning. If we meet anyone from our two Battle Teams, that would be even better, and we can keep growing our team while slowly whittling down the numbers of the ZhongTian and WanShou Battle Team members. In the end… perhaps we might actually be able to throw them all out of the Lustre Spatial Realm.”
“At that point, the final champion will naturally be your BaoPo Battle Team, and we can also benefit from association to get a second position. Isn’t that a win-win situation ripe for cooperation?”
Hearing Zhou Weiqing’s words, Ao Le laughed heartily, saying: “Bro Zhou… that is a very good suggestion, and a great plan indeed. however , do you know what was the final placing in the last Heavenly Jewel Tournament?”
Zhou Weiqing started a little before saying: “No, I do not.”
Ao Le smiled faintly, saying: “The final placement last Tournament was ZhongTian in the first place, us BaoPo in the second place, WanShou in the third place and DanDun in the fourth, and last place. Can you guess why something like that would happen?”
Zhou Weiqing’s heart sank as he said: “Could it be… you and the ZhongTian Battle Team…”
Still smiling faintly, Ao Le inclined his head, saying: “Indeed, your guess is very accurate. Our BaoPo Empire and ZhongTian Empire have always been allies, no matter in war, or in this Heavenly Jewel Tournament. The WanShou Battle Team is indeed powerful, but they are our common enemies. Furthermore, our Passion Valley also has a secret arts allowing man and wife like us to have a very close connection. As such, even though we are in this Lustre Spatial Realm, we are able to reunite relatively easily, to get a numbers advantage. Your plan is very good indeed, and I am truly impressed, but I’m afraid that your Fei Li Battle Team does not have the qualification to work together with us. I’m sorry Bro Zhou… Now, do you want to use your Lustre Gem directly, or do we have to force you to do so?”
Ao Le had been polite, almost amiable, the entire time, but with those words of not having the qualification, he showed the pride and arrogance of a disciple of the Great Saint Lands, as well as his disdain for the Fei Li Battle Team. From the beginning, he had not even felt they were worthy of his attentions as opponents, and naturally would not cooperate with them.
Zhou Weiqing grinned broadly. Naturally, he had hoped that his suggestion would be accepted, and if it were, he was confident in making it work, as it would be a good win-win situation. As for how the final result would be, it would be hard to say. Yet, that did not mean he was afraid of them. Ao Le’s words had confirmed that there was no longer any shred of possibility of them working together, and a fight was definitely coming.
Ao Le saw that natural big grin on Zhou Weiqing’s face, and couldn’t help but ask: “Bro Zhou, what are you grinning about.”
Zhou Weiqing said calmly: “I’m grinning because your time in this Tournament has come to its end.”
As he said that, he struck the ground hard with his right foot, his entire body charging forward towards the pair like a cannonball. In midair, his entire body turned a darker black shade as the familiar black tiger tattoos covered his entire body and a powerful, violent aura erupted from him. It was the Demonic Change State.
Seeing Zhou Weiqing charge at them, A cold light flashed in Ao Le’s eyes, and he smiled coldly: “Hmph, I am not Shen Little Demon!”
Both Ao Le and Liu Yinan raised their hands, unleashing their Heavenly Jewels at once.
Ao Le was at the six-Jeweled cultivation level, while Liu Yinan was at the five-Jeweled level. Ao Le’s Physical Jewels were the same as Zhou Weiqing’s, the Icy Jade representing Strength, while Liu Yinan’s were the Waxy Jade representing stamina. As for their Elemental Jewels, both of theirs were exactly the same, and they did not bother concealing them at all.
It was a rather strange looking gemstone, its entire body a dull dim yellow colour, but it was glowing with a soft light that seemed to twist and warp the very air around it.
A weird yellow light flashed out from their hands respectively, twisting the light rays as it sped towards Zhou Weiqing and enveloped him,
Instantly, Zhou Weiqing slowed drastically in mid charge, as if he was acting in some slow motion picture.
Slow Barrier!
That strange barrier of yellow light was naturally the Slow Barrier that Ao Le and Liu Yinan had unleashed with their combined efforts. They both had Stored the same Skill, and releasing it together would not only increase its power, but also its area of effect.
Realising that his speed had been slowed drastically, a alarmed, panicked look appeared on Zhou Weiqing’s face, as his flailing fists in the air slowed to a crawl as he struggled with all his might, only to see his speed grow slower and slower.
Ao Le did not rush into attacking Zhou Weiqing, instead smiling as he said: “Bro Zhou, how is the feeling of this Slow Barrier of our husband and wife team? In truth, losing to our Time Attribute should be an honour to you. After all, the Time Attribute is one of the three Great Saint Attributes; even in the Heaven’s Expanse Palace, no one has an Attribute like this. Although your Evil Attribute is not bad, but alas your cultivation level is just too low. Facing this Slow Barrier that both of us have worked together to release, you do not stand a chance…”
As he said that, Ao Le lifted up his left hand, waving it towards Zhou Weiqing. At the same time, he stuck out his index finger and middle fingers, slowly drawing a line in midair at Zhou Weiqing’s body.
Two lines of yellow light shot out from his two fingers, not making a sound as they struck out at Zhou Weiqing, who felt everything darken around him, as if everything had become unreal, all part of an illusion.
Ao Le’s voice seemed to come from all directions: “This Skill is called Interlocking Time. The two bouts of light from my fingers will each slow and hasten the time in the area by one second respectively. Time will start changing, warping and become unstable, causing a massive energy field. This is similar in principle to your Spatial Rend, just that my Interlocking Time cannot be dodged. Goodbye now, Bro Zhou.”
The Interlocking Time Skill was not just a powerful attacking skill, but was also considered a Control Skill at the same time. As one of the Great Saint Attributes, the Time Attribute was definitely a force to be reckoned with, and not one of its Skills could be considered ‘simple’.
Zhou Weiqing had already been slowed and stuck in the Slow Barrier, and now with this Interlocking Skill used upon him, it was as if his entire body was frozen in space and time, unable to move. From the way things were going, it seemed as if the two bouts of yellow light were about to tear his body into two.
From Ao Le’s perspective, the only hope for Zhou Weiqing now was to activate his Lustre Gem and retreat from the Spatial Realm, otherwise he would be torn apart by his powerful skill. After all, the power levels between the two of them was just too huge, and his Interlocking Time Skill was also one of the top Time Skills available.
Yet… just as Ao Le and Liu Yinan thought that victory was in their grasp, a strange sight occurred…
A layer of invisible, twisting light appeared around Zhou Weiqing’s body, streaking across momentarily before disappearing.
Zen’s Notes: There is a minor ‘bug’ here. In Chapter 96.3, it was mentioned that the teams would enter in order of their previous ranking, and WanShou Battle Team was actually mentioned before BaoPo. Checked several sites for verification & it appears TJSS must have forgotten about it. Just assume it’s the other way around previously I guess.