She naturally had reason to be proud; the Protective Crystal was so powerful that even divine weapons couldn't damage it in the slightest, otherwise it wouldn't have become the legendary best protective treasure.
She simply refused to believe that the bow and arrow conjured by Liu Lanyan's power could compare to divine weapons.
If Liu Lanyan were to take out the Dustless Sword given to her by the Demon God now, she might still be a little worried. However, the protective crystal that has been specially enhanced is enough to block three strikes from the Dustless Sword.
This was also because she was coming to Wuchenju, and she had gathered everyone's strength and painstaking efforts to specially enhance the protective crystal.
She could say that within the demon realm, apart from the Demon God's Dustless Sword, no other weapon could harm her in the slightest. Even with the Dustless Sword, she still had three chances.
Three chances were enough for her to deal with the demon god or escape.
Therefore, Liu Xinya was not worried at all at this moment.
The Protective Crystal is not only for defense against attacks; with her special method, whenever Liu Lanyan attacks, she will inevitably suffer an even more terrifying backlash.
The backlash will be twice as powerful as the attacker's, meaning that in the end, all of Liu Lanyan's attacks will not only fail to harm her in the slightest, but will also all return to Liu Lanyan herself.
"Miss Liu, use the Dustless Sword!" Peng Zhen shouted loudly.
He had never seen a protective crystal, but that didn’t mean he was unaware of its properties. He believed that if there was anything that could break a protective crystal, it would only be the Demon God’s former weapon, the Dustless Sword.
However, Peng Zhen finished shouting his words a little earlier. As he uttered the last word, Liu Lanyan released her right hand, and the arrow streaked out with a flash of light, leaving a dazzling trail of light in the air like a shooting star.
"Liu Lanyan, let's see how you die!" As the arrow shot out, Liu Xinya suddenly burst into laughter, chanting a few short characters. Upon hearing these characters, Peng Zhen's expression changed drastically, and he cried out, "Liu Xinya, you're despicable!"
He knew that he had vaguely heard about the protective crystal's characteristic of backfiring.
He never imagined that the protective crystal on Liu Xinya's body was actually a rare and precious one.
"Miss Liu, retreat quickly!" Peng Zhen shouted as he rushed forward.
He couldn't allow the backlash from the protective crystal to harm Liu Lanyan. Liu Lanyan was the person the Venerable Lord cared about most, and he absolutely wouldn't allow such a thing to happen.
As he ran, the demonic power within his body surged wildly, determined to protect Liu Lanyan even at the cost of his life.
The Lord has not moved yet. It's not that the Lord doesn't want to, but that he simply cannot move.
He didn't want to hurt the Lord, so... it was just one life, but if it could protect the person the Lord cared about most, it was worth it.
Peng Zhen genuinely wanted to protect him, but unfortunately, he no longer had the opportunity to demonstrate his loyalty.
With a soft "poof," the sharp arrowhead struck the protective crystal.
Liu Xinya laughed: "Liu Lanyan, let's see how you dodge the backlash."
She was just waiting for the backlash from the protective crystal to activate, knowing that Liu Lanyan would inevitably die.
However, before Liu Xinya's smile could fade, the events that followed froze her smile on her face. Her eyes widened in disbelief, making her look distorted, strange, and even ridiculous.
The sharp arrowhead didn't linger on the protective crystal; instead, it pierced through the crystal quickly, like a red-hot blade striking a thin layer of ice, and continued to penetrate.
Shattered.
Starting from that point, it began to shatter, spreading rapidly like a spider web, the most indestructible and powerful protective artifact breaking apart at an alarming rate.
The cracking sound reached Liu Xinya's ears, like hearing the soul-summoning bell from the underworld, making her tremble with fear.
My brain felt like it had been hit hard by something, and suddenly went completely blank.
Unable to think of anything, her eyes were wide open, to the limit, bloodshot, staring blankly at the cracked and shattered protective crystal before her.
It's broken, it's broken...
Why?
Why did the protective crystal break?
In a daze, Liu Xinya seemed to hear a sound, each word clearly reaching her ears, pulling her back from her detached mind.
"What is the power of backlash?" Liu Lanyan's voice was clear and innocent, like a curious student asking a question.
However, her question seemed to be a bit too damaging, causing Liu Xinya to open her mouth and spit out a spurt of blood, her face instantly turning an unnatural, sickly flush.
My legs went weak, and I slid down the tree trunk a few feet. I managed to grab the rough bark with my hands to keep from falling to the ground.
Peng Zhen abruptly stopped in his tracks, standing dejectedly in place, seemingly, perhaps, probably not needing his "help".
He carefully examined Liu Lanyan and deeply felt that Liu Lanyan was definitely someone who could match the Venerable Lord and stand shoulder to shoulder with him.
The arrow shattered the protective crystal into pieces, not only destroying the backlash it had been used to blast away, but also completely erasing the crystal's inherent powerful protective force.
Under such circumstances, Liu Lanyan was still able to ask so innocently what the backlash power was... This, it seems, is probably beyond the word "shameless".
Speechless!
I'm utterly speechless!
At this moment, Peng Zhen felt a deep sense of powerlessness in the face of the Lord.
He had always thought that only his master, the God of the Demon Realm, could leave him so bewildered and helpless. Now he realized that there was someone in the world who could match his master, and whose shamelessness and cunning were absolutely on par.
Peng Zhen took a deep breath to calm his "excited" feelings.
The stark contrast between his previous extreme tension and his current utter speechlessness left him utterly exhausted.
He finally understood why the Lord treated Liu Lanyan so differently; she absolutely deserved it.
"H-How is this possible?" Liu Xinya snapped out of her humiliation and mockery, staring at Liu Lanyan in astonishment, her eyes filled with disbelief.
She didn't understand, she couldn't comprehend, she couldn't figure it out.
Why could Liu Lanyan's arrow, formed from concentrated power, pierce through the most precious treasure among treasures, even the extremely protective Yuan Crystal?
Why?
why is that?
Could it be that Liu Lanyan's arrow just now wasn't a condensation of power at all, but a divine weapon even more powerful than the Dustless Sword?
"Where did you get the bow and arrow?" Liu Xinya questioned loudly. She was unwilling to accept it. Everything was planned perfectly, so why did an obstacle appear here?
She wouldn't be surprised or accept anyone who became an obstacle, except for Liu Lanyan.
Liu Lanyan smiled and slowly shook her head at Liu Xinya: "Liu Xinya, have you forgotten the dance I danced at your sister's wedding banquet that day?"
"Dance?" Liu Xinya looked at Liu Lanyan in confusion, not understanding why the topic had suddenly shifted to that direction.
Looking at Liu Lanyan's serious expression, Liu Xinya pondered carefully, recalling the scene from that day.
Suddenly, a thought struck her—the essence of water.
Could it be that the water essence that makes one feel like they're floating on clouds wasn't passed down to Liu Lanyan by the Demon God, but rather Liu Lanyan's own original power?
“Water essence…it’s actually water essence…” Liu Xinya carefully observed the bow and arrow in Liu Lanyan’s hand, which was filled with light. Could it be that it was formed from the essence of water?
"Hmph, how is that possible? How could the essence of water possess such power?" Liu Xinya clearly didn't believe it. "Liu Lanyan, things have come to this point, is it still necessary for you to hide the source of your power?"
Liu Lanyan shook her head in disappointment and sighed deeply, "Just because you can't use it doesn't mean others can't either."
As she spoke, specks of light slowly rose from the woods and the lawn, quickly flying towards Liu Lanyan.
An arrow fletching reappeared.
Upon seeing the arrow feather, Liu Xinya instinctively shrank back. How could she not be afraid of an arrow feather that could even shatter a protective crystal?
This time, Liu Xinya had learned her lesson. As the arrow appeared, she released her power, carefully sensing the situation. Then, the truth was what she could least accept.
It is indeed the essence of water.
The essence of water is the most fundamental element of natural power, which can be sensed by demons or monsters when their power reaches a certain level.
Therefore, Liu Xinya clearly understood one fact—Liu Lanyan had not lied to her.
Since Liu Lanyan's weapon is not a divine weapon that surpasses the Wuchen Sword, there is only one answer.
This was also the most terrifying answer that Liu Xinya could not face and could not accept.
What could break the protective crystal was not the bow and arrow, but Liu Lanyan's strength.
Liu Lanyan's power!
How is that possible?
Just how much power does she possess?
Ninth rank?
wrong.
It is definitely far beyond the ninth rank.
It has reached a new level, transcending the scope of worldly power assessment.
"Liu Lanyan, since you are so powerful, why didn't you go to save your parents when they were defeated and died?" Liu Xinya's eyes darted around, and she immediately thought of a vicious question.
Disturbing people's minds is her specialty.
The gathering light suddenly paused, disturbing Liu Lanyan's mind and causing her to pause in condensing her power. This pause was enough.
Liu Xinya roared, her hands flying rapidly, the crimson demonic pattern on her forehead flashing a blinding red, as if thick blood was flowing along the lines of the pattern.
A blinding red light suddenly erupted, striking straight at Liu Lanyan. This attack concentrated all of Liu Xinya's power. Because a large amount of her demonic energy was extracted, Liu Xinya coughed up several mouthfuls of blood, and blood flowed rapidly from the wounds on her body.
With blood trickling from the corner of her lips, Liu Xinya let out a piercing, shrill laugh: "Liu Lanyan, die!"
The violent power was like a giant boulder crashing down from a towering mountain, the resulting shockwave suffocating people.
Peng Zhen was standing not far from Liu Lanyan when he was swept away by the powerful shockwave and fell to the ground. He rolled several times before he could barely regain his balance.
A trickle of bright red blood had seeped from the corners of his lips; his internal organs had been injured by the shock.
The strong wind whipped Liu Lanyan's long hair, making it dance wildly in the air, and her clothes fluttered and rustled in the wind.
Liu Lanyan narrowed her eyes, her lips slightly upturned, and held the bow and arrow steadily in both hands, completely ignoring Liu Xinya's strength. She waited until the best moment, then released her right hand, and the arrow flew out, leaving a bright afterimage in the air and tracing a beautiful path.
With a muffled boom, like a thunderclap from nowhere, as if it came from underground, the earth trembled violently.
The arrow was fired with dazzling light, eclipsing the sun and moon.
The power of blood was utterly shattered by the brilliant arrow fletching, vanishing instantly like snowflakes encountering a raging fire.
After the crimson power dissipated, Liu Xinya's pale, stiff face was revealed, staring at Liu Lanyan with a look more terrifying than if she had seen a ghost.
She watched helplessly as the radiance coalesced, and a luminous arrow reappeared on the bow, its sharp tip pointing directly at her face, gleaming with a cold light. Liu Lanyan's languid voice rang in her ears: "Liu Xinya, tonight is destined for you—defeat!"