Chapter 133: Chapter 133

It had to be a fake name. What kind of parents would name their child Heroine?

Helan Que’s thoughts raced. Logically speaking, there were only a handful of factions across the Central Plains capable of equipping their offspring with Legendary Tokens. He sifted through surname after surname in his mind, only to reject each one. In the end, he found almost no one to suspect.

Or rather, every faction was suspect, because the token this little girl wielded didn’t ring a bell. She could only be a deep-cover agent cultivated with immense resources by some other faction.

Yes—Helan Que was now certain that this little girl was an intentionally planted spy, sent to cause chaos. Most likely from Great Qi or Great Liang, both of whom would be more than happy to support a Demon-Path Messenger brimming with hatred toward the royal family and Pillar of State of the Great Zhou.

As long as Medicine Master Wen escaped alive, she would surely plunge the Zhou Kingdom into utter chaos. And since the girl was a covert agent, all the Zhou Kingdom could do was issue a wanted poster. They wouldn’t even be able to determine which faction had sent her.

But on the flip side—if she were killed here, no faction would step forward for her!

A Second-Stage at such a young age, already almost guaranteed to become a Foundation Messenger... If allowed to continue growing...

His greed for the Legendary Gauntlets, his wariness of Medicine Master Wen, and his jealousy of the girl’s talent, all converged into a firm and decisive killing intent in Helan Que’s heart—it had to be now, right here, he had to kill this little girl and Medicine Master Wen. Only then could he sleep peacefully at night, nestled beside his beautiful concubines.

Within three breaths, dark veins crawled across his face like a terminal disease, and his entire presence grew ethereal. His right hand clenched a golden spear, his left drew a blue curved blade. Golden radiance flared from his long boots, and even his armor lit up with golden inscriptions—as expected of a Third-Stage from a great clan, there wasn’t a single ordinary token on him.

When he charged into the forest again, Helan Que’s figure almost seemed to glide, making no sound at all. To Wu Qiu and Shi Dong behind the girl, Helan Que looked like a soul-collector from the Underworld itself.

His movements were no longer violent like before. In fact, they became deceptively light, as if gravity no longer affected him. His speed had more than doubled.

The instant the girl dodged his spear tip, Helan Que’s rare curved blade already swung up toward her escape route, while his head jerked back just in time to avoid her sword thrust.

Leaves rustled and snapped, twigs breaking apart in sections. His spear moved like an extension of his own limbs, the curved blade shifting unpredictably. His strikes were perfectly controlled—threatening enough to pressure the girl, yet always able to retract in time to launch another. He made barely a sound, and even the surrounding foliage was largely undisturbed.

Their deadly exchange within the bushes raged on breath by breath, yet it was so quiet it almost resembled two butterflies dancing in the wind.

Their weapons never clashed. They both abandoned the safest tactic of blocking, choosing instead to attack mid-dodge!

So close that Wu Qiu and Shi Dong could see everything—and they were completely entranced. For a moment, they even forgot to feel afraid, captivated by the near-perfect techniques on display before them.

The spear finally struck the girl, but was blocked by an invisible barrier.

After that, the girl was struck more and more often. Helan Que’s combination of long spear and short curved blade, though unwieldy on paper, worked wonders under his control. He sealed off her evasion paths with surgical precision, ensnaring her like a web cast from the heavens! The most update n0vels are published on N0veI.Fiɾe.net

“It’s Yunqiao Pill!” Wu Qiu finally remembered. “It’s a pill from the Third-Stage Secret Realm, it speeds up a Messenger’s reaction for a short time, but leaves them weakened afterward!”

Helan Que glanced at Wu Qiu. Even though her knowledge came from serving beside Medicine Master Wen, for her to recall the pill’s effects so quickly and even dare to shout it out loud to warn the girl—it showed her intelligence and courage. Perhaps there was a reason Medicine Master Wen cherished these two handmaidens so much.

He had indeed taken Yunqiao Pill. Without it, he wouldn’t have dared to dual-wield the spear and curved blade. Without enough reaction speed and control, dual-wielding only exposed more weaknesses.

This dual-wielding style wasn’t Helan Que’s original invention either. It was a secret technique developed over generations by the Helan Family, specifically designed to counter their clan’s Third-Stage Secret Realm Demon Lord—White Paper Fan. It significantly increased survival odds in such battles.

As it was a key strategy for conquering a Third-Stage Secret Realm, this technique was a closely guarded secret of the Helan Family. Helan Que wouldn’t expose it unless absolutely necessary.

Originally, he had reserved this Yunqiao Pill and dual-wielding style to deal with Medicine Master Wen. But this little girl had now far surpassed her in value. If he didn’t resolve this quickly, both she and Medicine Master Wen might escape… So he had no choice but to show her the Helan Family’s peerless combat art.

Soon, the girl’s defensive barrier shattered like glass under the spear’s barrage. Wu Qiu and Shi Dong held their breath, while bloodlust flashed in Helan Que’s eyes—his curved blade followed up instantly, slashing toward the girl’s neck!

Snap—another barrier emerged. The girl seized the opening to strike, but Helan Que still dodged it. With Yunqiao Pill in his system, his reflexes alone were enough to evade most attacks.

It looked like a Heartguard Mirror, but that was a Third-Stage Token, requiring immense spirit energy to activate. How could a Second-Stage Messenger power such a thing? Or perhaps it was some Second-Stage defensive token similar to the Heartguard Mirror?

Many thoughts raced through Helan Que’s mind, but his movements never faltered. No matter what the token was, he was confident he could smash it to pieces!

The Yunqiao Pill’s effect ramped up over time. Once fully activated, Helan Que could attack four times in a single breath. If he threw all defense aside, he could unleash seven strikes per breath. Even a Third-Stage Demon Lord wouldn’t be able to respond!

It wasn’t that the pill was that powerful—it was that every token on Helan Que had been traded and selected by the Helan Family over decades. Normally, he could never unleash their full potential. Only with the Yunqiao Pill could he truly draw out their power!

He even believed that after killing this little girl, he could still return and subdue Medicine Master Wen! As for the post-pill weakness—they wouldn’t live long enough for that to matter!

"That’s about enough."

The little girl, who had been leaping around like a rabbit getting pummeled, suddenly spoke. From start to finish, her expression hadn’t changed one bit—not a hint of panic even while she was being pushed back. Her face remained just as arrogant and smug.

Helan Que felt no fear. The only wildcard was the Legendary Gauntlets. But the abilities of gauntlets were nothing more than unarmed strikes, speed boosts, extra damage, or secondary effects like fire, ice, beast phantoms—all of them attack-based.

But Helan Que also had a Third-Stage Rare Token for defense. No matter how powerful the girl’s offense, it couldn’t break through his defense. If it came down to a no-holds-barred fight, he was certain he’d be the one to survive!

And yet, the girl didn’t do anything unusual. She didn’t even try to strike him. Instead, she lowered her sword and waited for his next move. When the golden spear swept across—she didn’t dodge, but swung her sword upward.

But she wasn’t aiming at Helan Que—she was targeting the spear shaft!

With a jarring metallic crash, she sent the spear flying with a single upward slash. If Helan Que hadn’t gripped it with all his might, it would’ve flown right out of his hands!

Clenching his teeth, he resumed the battle—curved blade in front, spear behind. But the girl suddenly stepped forward and slashed at the blade itself!

Helan Que, an experienced Third-Stage with mastery over numerous advanced techniques, had a vitality second to none among the Zhou Kingdom’s Messengers. He considered his strength just below that of Foundation-level powerhouses. Shattering stone and splitting jade was child’s play for him.

And yet, in this sword-clash, he was horrified to feel his entire left arm go numb, barely able to grip the curved blade!

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

Whether it was the soldiers and Banner Officers surrounding Medicine Master Wen, or Medicine Master Wen herself, they all froze in shock at what they were seeing—Helan Que retreating step by step, while the little girl advanced.

With a golden spear in one hand and a curved blade in the other, Helan Que looked like he could crush the little girl, who wasn’t even half his size. Yet his face was filled with fear.

How could she be so precise?

How could her technique be so divine?

Every one of his attacks failed. The girl danced through them like a stroll in the garden, deflecting them all. His own defensive barriers rippled constantly, as if he weren’t facing a girl, but a living, moving Vajra mountain that reflected everything back at him!

Bloodlust flashed in Medicine Master Wen’s eyes. She pierced a soldier’s throat with her spear and surged forward. Before the others could encircle her, she launched herself off her spear in a two-zhang leap, forming a pincer with the girl around Helan Que!

"Traitor! Face your death!"

Seeing Helan Que in danger, the soldiers roared and charged at Medicine Master Wen—but she did something completely unexpected—

Secret Technique · Spinning Lamp!

She completely abandoned defense, spinning her spear to activate Spinning Lamp! Though the Banner Officers and soldiers sensed something was wrong, they had no choice but to attack. Weapons crashed into Medicine Master Wen’s armor, cracking her steel breastplate and backplate to reveal the glowing blue Vajra Armor beneath!

Medicine Master Wen bellowed, and her spinning spear swept down in an arc. The tip moved so fast it seemed to vanish, leaving only a streak of icy brilliance behind—as if a god had drawn a stroke across the world, and everything it touched would soon be erased.

When she fought Shang Xuanwen in Jiangnan City, her Spinning Lamp had not reached its full potential. After all, Shang Xuanwen hadn’t been foolish enough to attack her.

But now, thanks to the Banner Officers’ help, her Vajra Armor had stored up enough damage, all of it channeled into the spear. Enhanced by Spinning Lamp, even an ordinary steel spear became a divine weapon capable of threatening a Foundation Entity!

Helan Que sensed the killing blow from behind and, rather than panic, felt relieved. He couldn’t wait to face Medicine Master Wen, even turning his back completely on the little girl.

From the moment she began counterattacking, Helan Que had felt like he was trapped in a nightmare.

He couldn’t understand why his attacks were deflected, why the recoil was so damaging—even his palms were cracked. Nothing worked. Every strike rebounded.

Since becoming a Messenger, even when on the verge of death in a Third-Stage Secret Realm, he’d never felt this powerless... This wasn’t a difference in strength—it was some inexplicable form of domination.

He had given everything he had. He could have gravely wounded even a Third-Stage Demon Lord—but couldn’t shake this tiny figure in front of him.

He guessed the girl had some kind of shield-enhancing ability, but such powers were notoriously hard to trigger. Even veteran Shield Messengers couldn’t activate them every time—attacks were too varied, and no Messenger could maintain perfect focus. A slight change in strength or timing could throw everything off.

But this girl had no such weaknesses.

Environment, numbers, body, killing intent... none of it disturbed her judgment. Nothing disrupted her movements. It was as if some deity high above was watching the battlefield, using her hands to perform a miracle.

Helan Que had already realized—he couldn’t defeat this inexplicable little girl. Medicine Master Wen’s arrival was perfect for him.

Kill her and leave. Legendary Gauntlets, child prodigies... he didn’t care anymore. He just wanted to go back to the garrison and sleep. He never wanted to see another little girl again!

The Yunqiao Pill still burned in his veins. Helan Que turned and immediately sensed he couldn’t dodge Medicine Master Wen’s strike—he had to block. Raising his curved blade with his left and thrusting his spear with his right—if her defensive token could hold, he’d still push her back with the spear.

But just as the spear and curved blade were about to intersect, Medicine Master Wen suddenly froze. Her spear hovered in midair.

It was as if her time had stopped.

Then, in the blink of an eye, her body moved again—as if time itself resumed spinning. The blue glow of the Vajra Armor flared blindingly. Her spear tail swept out at a speed beyond comprehension, while Helan Que, already mid-guard and counterstrike, had no time to react!

Secret Technique · Spinning Lamp + Secret Technique · Flow + Dragon Tail Sweep!

You have your dual-wielding technique?

I have Spinning Lamp Flow!