Chapter 822: Concern Breeds Confusion

The freed individuals thanked Zu An one after another, while the crowd also cheered: "Lord Zu has made his move!" "We are saved!" "Lord Zu is incredible!"

Bi Linglong gazed deeply at his retreating figure. She didn't know when it started, but the impression he left on her was no longer that of a frivolous and unreliable man. On the contrary, he had become dependable and reassuring, even though his way of speaking was still very much the same as before.

Just then, the Sky-Measuring Azure Moon Dragon in mid-air let out an angry roar.Rage from the Sky-Measuring Azure Moon Dragon +444444444...

Hearing that it intended to turn Zu An into a puppet, Bi Linglong's heart instantly leaped into her throat. She wanted to help, but her cultivation level was simply too low to participate in a battle of this caliber. The only thing she could count on was commanding her troops, using their numerical and formation advantages, to see if they could provide some auxiliary support from the sidelines.

Realizing this, she immediately composed herself. In a stern yet charming voice, she reprimanded her subordinates not to get distracted, and to deal with the four puppets first.

If it hadn't been for the appearance of the Azure Sky Black Feather Eagle just now, the archers she had re-mobilized would have already delivered a fatal blow to the four puppets with their ice magic arrows. Unfortunately, the recent surprise attack by the Azure Sky Black Feather Eagle had caused heavy casualties among her archers.

Fortunately, the immense cold generated by Zu An's recent move, the Snowflower Divine Sword, had a suppressing effect on the four water-type puppets. Furthermore, there had been a mysterious surge of pressure moments ago, and now the four water-type puppets seemed significantly weakened. She was unaware of Mi Li's presence, only assuming it was Zu An's own technique, which made her even more confident.

Mi Li was currently speaking with Zu An: "That little girl is quite good. She can remain calm and command effectively at crucial moments, making the most suitable choices in complex situations. She is truly a born leader."

"Are you so fond of her because you see a reflection of yourself in her?" Zu An asked with a smile.

"That girl is just 'not bad'," Mi Li snorted, "To catch up to me, she's still far from it." She was clearly displeased that he was comparing her to other women.

Just then, the Sky-Measuring Azure Moon Dragon's angry voice resounded in the air once more: "Arrogant human, how dare you ignore this king's words! You will pay a heavy price!"Rage from the Sky-Measuring Azure Moon Dragon +745745745...

Zu An rolled his eyes. "You're just spewing nonsense. Why should I pay attention to you? And you, you pathetic worm, why do you keep calling yourself 'this king'? Who crowned you king? Calling yourself a king, aren't you ashamed?"

"This king will kill you!" The Sky-Measuring Azure Moon Dragon had only recently broken through to the ninth rank due to a fortuitous encounter and had just learned to use human language. It was no match for Zu An in an argument and was so enraged it shrieked loudly.Rage from the Sky-Measuring Azure Moon Dragon +728728728...

With a swing of its long body, the misty water vapor in the air immediately condensed into countless water arrows, which shot towards Zu An from all directions.

Seeing the spectacle, everyone in the main group was startled. If the Sky-Measuring Azure Moon Dragon were to use this move against them, probably at least half of them would die in a single volley of arrows, and the remaining half, even if they survived, would have no fighting capacity left. The power of a ninth-rank fierce beast was truly terrifying.

Thinking of this, they grew even more grateful to Zu An. If not for his presence, their entire party would undoubtedly have been annihilated.

At this moment, Zu An had no time to notice their admiring gazes. Such a dense and terrifying rain of arrows rendered any evasion meaningless, even with the Sunflower Phantasm.

He unleashed the Snowflower Divine Sword, and an area of several yards around him instantly transformed into a world of ice and snow. An energy shield resembling an ice sphere appeared around his body, forcefully blocking the attacks of the water arrows.

The Sky-Measuring Azure Moon Dragon sneered, "Let's see how long you can hold out." With another flick of its body, it condensed countless more water arrows and shot them forth.

Zu An's expression grew serious. The pressure he felt was mounting. The ice and snow space around him became increasingly difficult to maintain under the 365-degree, all-encompassing, no-blind-spot attack of the myriad water arrows.

The outermost ice element shield began to crack, and gradually more and more cracks appeared, like tempered glass just before it shatters.

Zu An changed his strategy, actively shrinking his defensive perimeter. The ice element shield gradually shrank to only a few feet in circumference. This significantly eased the pressure on him.

However, the opponent's water arrows seemed endless, as if they cost nothing, consistently maintaining a saturated and dense bombardment.

"This won't do," Mi Li's voice rang out. "This is that wretched dragon's home ground. The massive waterfall and the bottomless pool below provide him with an endless supply of water elements. If this stalemate continues, you'll only exhaust your energy and be worn down to death."

Zu An felt a warmth in his heart. Although she often declared she wouldn't care for him and would let him fend for himself, she couldn't help but offer advice at times.

He responded with a smile, "It's fine. I've roughly figured out the attack power of his water arrows by now. I plan to take a few hits directly with my body, then use Great Wind to get close to his side and engage him in close combat. You know the strength of my body; taking a few arrows shouldn't be a problem."

Several rounds of tempering from the Primordial Chaos Sutra had forged his incredibly robust body. At the same same time, his powerful regenerative abilities gave him more confidence in enduring prolonged battles.

"You're already at the ninth rank, yet you only know such crude and simple brute-force fighting?" Mi Li said with a look of disdain. "While this fighting style is valiant, it will make you overly reliant on it and create unnecessary illusions. Yes, your body strength is indeed formidable, allowing you to use attrition tactics against most enemies. But what if you encounter enemies with exceptionally powerful attacks, where a single blow instantly surpasses your regenerative abilities, wouldn't you just die?"

Zu An's heart tightened. What she said was indeed very plausible. When his cultivation was lower, the enemies he encountered, though stronger than him, were only marginally so.

Now that he himself had reached the ninth rank, he truly understood how powerful the forces that top-tier masters could wield were. If ninth-rank was like this, what about Grandmasters and Great Grandmasters?

No matter how strong his body was, it couldn't compare to heaven and earth. And which of these powerful cultivators wouldn't borrow the power of heaven and earth? If someone's attack method was exceptionally overbearing and combined with the power of heaven and earth, his body might truly not be able to withstand it.

"What then?" Zu An's head ached. He was accustomed to brute force, and for a moment, he couldn't think of any other solutions.

"After reaching the ninth rank, you should prioritize mastering the application of techniques," Mi Li said. She knew his situation best. Although he had consolidated his understanding of the power of heaven and earth at the eighth rank through his battle with Shi Tong, his experience at the ninth rank was still severely lacking. That's why she deliberately took this opportunity to guide him. "Don't you have a skill that allows you to summon the Blue Duck? It seems to have an affinity for water elements."

Zu An hummed in affirmation. "It allows me to breathe freely underwater like a fish and to some extent manipulate water. You're not telling me to use this skill to fight against a water element master like him, are you?"

The Blue Duck's skill had always been more geared towards support, and its power was considerably weaker than that of the other divine birds. Presumably, its true power could only be fully unleashed once he obtained and cultivated a water-element combat technique.

At present, he had never even considered using the Blue Duck to deal with the Sky-Measuring Azure Moon Dragon.

Because the Sky-Measuring Azure Moon Dragon was a ninth-rank water-type fierce beast, its control over water elements would certainly surpass what he could achieve through the Blue Duck.

"Of course I know you can't control the opponent's water element attacks," Mi Li snorted. "However, even if you can't directly counter-control these water element attacks, you can always slightly influence them through the Blue Duck, right? For example, making the arrow rain slightly... change direction?"

Zu An's mind lit up. "Right, why didn't I think of that?" So he slowly weakened the ice element shield, deliberately letting some water arrows pass through.

Then, using the Blue Duck, he connected with the water elements within the arrows, influencing their direction.

At first, he was not proficient. He was almost instantly pierced by several water arrows, and blood flowed freely from his body.

The Sky-Measuring Azure Moon Dragon burst into laughter. "Ant, you're finally unable to hold on, aren't you? I will have you pierced by ten thousand arrows, so your dying soul will be filled with pain and resentment, making you a perfect specimen for a puppet."

Hearing its triumphant laughter, the people from the main group on the other side looked over one after another. Seeing Zu An's current miserable state, their faces changed drastically, and they all fell into despair.

"Ah Zu!" Seeing Zu An bleeding profusely, Bi Linglong's face turned pale. Her heart felt as if it were being twisted by an invisible pair of hands.

She reached up and touched the beautiful, bright red flower pattern on her forehead. A hint of resolute determination flashed in her eyes.