Nesting Doll

The black energy pierced forward at a slowing speed, briefly pausing in mid-air.

Because of this momentary pause, the crimson color overwhelmed it, with raging red flames igniting on the black energy.

The crimson area surged like a roaring flood sweeping towards the three rabbits.

At first, the two rabbits encountered let out startled cries, pointing and gesturing towards Hong Feiheng.

This scene, which seemed comical to Hong Feiheng, was a different scenario in the eyes of the three rabbits.

The red domain rolled towards them, but Qiao Bai felt no fear.

With Bai Li present, nothing could happen to them except getting kicked away.

He covered his face with his paw and said in a muffled voice, "This rabbit's ability feels like Hong Feiheng's."

The duty officer, on the other hand, covered his buttocks, which had painfully struck his coccyx when he landed on the ground.

"Have you seen him use his ability before?"

As a former member of The Pillar Project and later one of the Dark Nine Seats, Hong Feiheng rarely appeared in public.

There was scant information about him, and since he had not taken any action on Sakura Island, the duty officer was completely unfamiliar with Hong Feiheng's ability.

Qiao Bai said straightforwardly, "He saved me before."

The duty officer did not doubt him and instead asked, "You mean he's Hong Ge? Should we inform Bai Seat?"

Although everyone knew implicitly that he and Qi Yuan were both Dark Nine Seats, he had no official position, so they usually addressed him respectfully as an elder brother.

"I'm not sure," Qiao Bai said, his gaze not leaving the battlefield. "Bai Seat definitely knows Hong Feiheng's ability better than us."

Meanwhile, Bai Li manipulated the black energy.

Without hesitation, she unleashed her domain, and darkness spread from around her.

An S-rank ability user's domain is incomplete, and the red domain only covered the ground.

The dark energy crept silently above the blood-burning domain.

If their abilities and domains were indeed the same, and even the degree of completion matched, this red-haired rabbit could be none other than Hong Feiheng.

However, Hong Feiheng had not realized this yet, and Bai Li could not afford to be passive.

In any case, she released her domain first to see if he could recognize it; if not, she would simply beat him up.

The two incomplete domains clashed in the same space.

The deep crimson flames leaped upwards as if to burn everything combustible.

The darkness pressed down heavily from the sky, making it feel suffocating to look at, with countless gloomy and depressing thoughts constantly welling up from one's heart.

Whenever the flames reached halfway up, they collided with the negative energy and turned into frosty mist, condensing the surrounding water vapor into ice blocks.

This colossal spectacle ignited the passion in the young men's hearts, causing them to clench their fists in determination, vowing to become high-ranking ability users themselves.

They wanted to become existences even mightier than the Nine Seats.

Just as they were making this grand aspiration, a shockwave from the energy collision swept them off their feet.

Like rootless duckweeds, they tumbled through the air, rolling twice before landing on the ground in an undignified heap.

Elder Ma's old waist had not yet fully recovered, and now he had new injuries.

He warned the young men behind him, "Let's leave first; staying here any longer will expose us to the shockwaves of the battle."

The group had just helped each other up when the ground trembled, causing them to struggle to maintain their balance and frantically search for support.

Debris flew towards them.

"Ouch!"

Someone cried out in pain, pulling their hand back from the tree trunk they had been leaning against.

As they loosened their grip, the trembling ground made them lose their footing, nearly causing them to fall.

"Are you alright?"

Someone grabbed the back of their collar, using that force to steady them on their feet again.

"Yeah..."

The man was about to thank the person beside him when he looked up and saw a pair of ruby-red eyes. "R-r-rabbit!"

His jaw trembled as he nearly developed PTSD.

"Don't be afraid, it's a person," he heard Luo Feng's voice.

Looking over, Luo Feng and some of their scattered companions stood behind the rabbit.

"What's going on here?" Elder Ma immediately inquired, warily eyeing Qi Yuan.

Luo Feng and the others met Elder Ma's gaze with shifty eyes, recounting their encounter with Qi Yuan in a vague tone.

Qi Yuan paid no heed to their conversation.

He lifted his gaze towards the center of the battlefield, where a rabbit with a tuft of red fur on its forehead was battling Bai Li.

"..."

Even as a rabbit, Hong Feiheng was still easy to recognize.

His arrival immediately caught Qiao Bai's attention, who was ready to call for help.

Just as Qiao Bai opened his mouth, he was met with a mouthful of air and dust.

"Qi Yuan, help!"

Qi Yuan was speechless once more, as the root cause of everyone's confusion had now arrived.

Up on the battlefield, Bai Li and Hong Feiheng were still at a standoff.

Bai Li held back, considering the possibility that the rabbit might be Hong Feiheng.

By this point, Hong Feiheng also suspected that the rabbit he was fighting might be someone he knew.

However, the problem was that neither of them dared to stop.

If the other party truly was who they thought, then all would be well and good. But what if they were mistaken?

They each had people behind them, and if they misjudged the situation, it would not only cost them their own lives.

Moreover, the other party had turned into a rabbit, so who knew if they were in a clear state of mind or not?

Thus, they tacitly opted to wear each other down, considering it a success if they managed to exhaust the other's stamina.

Bai Li was the first to notice Qi Yuan's arrival.

She slowly turned her head towards him, her expression a bit dazed.

Using negative energy had put her in a foul mood, and now she just wanted to lay around like a salty fish.

Qi Yuan's presence made her eyes light up as she greeted him, "This rabbit might be Hong Feiheng, but I don't dare strike with lethal force."

As she said the second half of her sentence, black energy billowed from behind her, and her gaze turned murderous, completely contradicting her claim of not daring to attack.

"It's him," Qi Yuan affirmed Bai Li's statement.

Upon hearing his words, the red-haired rabbit also looked over.

Hong Feiheng felt an overwhelming aura of power from this familiar voice, despite it coming from a rabbit. Its mere presence increased the pressure he felt.

Without further thought, he blurted out a rabbit's cry.

"Qi Yuan, why did you turn into a rabbit?"

Then, as if realizing something, he continued, "Am I in your illusion again?"

He then complained, "Hey, why me again? Can't you pick on someone else?"

Hong Feiheng wanted to shut himself off from the world at that moment, no wonder the rabbit was so strong!

It turned out to be Bai Li all along...

"It has nothing to do with me," Qi Yuan said lazily, turning to the two of them. "Both of you stand down; you're both conscious."

With his assurance, neither side hesitated, and they both withdrew their domains.

The two had no doubts about this, as although they could not understand each other's words, it was clear that both could understand what Qi Yuan said.

This meant they were once again trapped in Qi Yuan's illusion.