The middle-aged man clearly hadn't antic.i.p.ated that the young crown prince consort from the Lower Star Domain would prove to be such a formidable adversary.
When he had accepted this mission, he had sworn to the Family Head that he would ensure the demise of this stoic-faced young lady and avenge the Family Head.
A trace of cruelty flashed across the man's eyes as he sneered, "Struggling on the verge of death is futile! If you accept your impending demise obediently, you might suffer less."
"Are you speaking from personal experience?" Qiao Mu retorted, conjuring an icicle that shot toward him from her fingertip.
However, the middle-aged man's spiritual energy barrier provided formidable defense, preventing her from breaking through completely.
The standoff persisted, and the middle-aged man suddenly smiled at her, his expression twisted. "Initiate the formation."
In an instant, the seven or eight individuals who had scattered earlier reconvened, forming a defensive array around the young stoic.
As the human matrix activated, the little one felt her vision blur slightly, and a few gleaming, sharp swords thrust toward her left side.
Swiftly, she launched herself into the air and kicked a sharp sword. Instantaneously, her surroundings transformed into a series of illusory bubbles and vanished from sight.
"Pfft." The nearest black-robed man suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.
Evidently, they hadn't antic.i.p.ated that the young stoic would discover a method to break their "invulnerable" array formation at the first available moment.
The middle-aged man brandished a supple black whip adorned with barbs and swung it at Qiao Mu.
However, the whip struck one of his comrades, causing the middle-aged man's eyebrows, eyes, and nose to scrunch together in frustration.
"Everyone, attack together! Master has ordered us to kill her."
Seeing that they hadn't managed to capture the little stoic after such a long struggle and had even suffered multiple losses themselves, the middle-aged man's anger surged, and he bellowed for his companions to unite against their common target.
At the sound of his command, several contract beasts were summoned, circling Qiao Mu menacingly.
These ferocious creatures attacked with agility, intensifying the pace of their a.s.sault.
Qiao Mu's fingers moved quickly, and she had to continually release talismans to defend herself against their relentless attacks.
In a split second, the whip shot out from an unexpected and peculiar angle, landing on Qiao Mu's arm with a resounding crack. Her entire arm immediately grew slightly numb, and her left hand involuntarily drooped.
The pain was excruciating, causing her body to tremble with anger. She seethed with rage at being restrained by the array formation, unable to move freely, and at the man who had taken advantage of the situation to whip her.
Moreover, the whip coiled around her arm didn't release its grip, and the hidden thorns and barbs punctured her skin.
Although the poison contained in them was insufficient to cause discomfort, it had been a long time since she had suffered such a significant injury, leaving her fuming with frustration.
The more she endured, the greater her desire to employ her combat prowess against the adversary before her.
"She won't last much longer." The middle-aged man expressed his confidence in the poison on his whip, his eyes gleaming with abnormal satisfaction as he observed Qiao Mu's plight.
"You're in for a world of trouble!" Qiao Mu declared with a cold expression, swiftly popping a medicinal pill into her mouth.
A talisman emanating a purple stream of light ascended from the tip of her right finger.
The middle-aged man initially believed his eyes were deceiving him, but then he gasped in shock, exclaiming, "A purple talisman?!"