Shui Bing'er naturally saw her teammate, a Spirit Elder, get knocked off the stage by Dai Mubai. However, at that moment, she and Xue Wu were in the midst of preparing something and couldn't afford to split their focus.
When Lin Jie shouted "Break!" earlier, Tai Long and Huang Yuan had already broken free from Shui Bing'er's ice seal. They now charged directly at the two Power Attack–type Spirit Masters who had previously been struck by Lin Jie's lightning net.
Although injured by Lin Jie's lightning, the two girls had spent the brief moments since channeling their Spirit Power to recover. Thanks to their unique Martial Souls, they also possessed a partial self-healing ability. While not fully healed, they were in stable condition and ready to fight.
The moment they saw Tai Long and Huang Yuan charging toward them, the two girls quickly clasped hands. Spirit Rings lit up on both their bodies, and a wave of pale, cold mist formed over their arms. As soon as the frost had covered their hands, they separated and rushed to meet their attackers.
Having been frozen twice already, Tai Long was more than a little irritated. He didn't hold back—his enormous palm swung forward with full force at the approaching Spirit Master.
His massive hand, nearly larger than the girl's entire head, whipped forward with a gust of wind. Yet the girl didn't dodge. Instead, she raised her frost-covered hands to meet Tai Long's blow directly.
From appearance alone, Tai Long's strike should have shattered her delicate hands. But unexpectedly, she wasn't injured. She was only forced backward several steps by the sheer force of the blow.
The moment Tai Long's palm made contact, a surge of frigid energy rushed into his body. The chill felt as though it was trying to freeze his very blood, causing him to instinctively pull back. Otherwise, that girl would never have been able to block his full-powered attack.
Huang Yuan faced a similar situation. The frost on their hands had clearly weakened his offensive momentum as well.
Still, the technique took a toll—the two girls were visibly weaker than before after using it.
Tai Long and Huang Yuan exchanged a glance, then simultaneously activated their third Spirit Rings. They didn't hold back, pouring all their remaining Spirit Power into their next strike as they charged again.
Meanwhile, Xiao Wu, having received Lin Jie's command to go all-out, didn't hesitate. As a Rank 44 close-range Power Attack–type Spirit Elder, she made short work of her Agility-type opponent.
She darted forward, instantly appearing in front of the Spirit Master—Teleportation, her innate ability. With Waist Bow and her self-created Eight-Stage Throw, she launched a rapid flurry of strikes. Her opponent had no chance to react. The Agility Spirit Master was hurled through the air and knocked off the platform.
Jing Ling, however, wasn't faring so well. As a Rank 35 Agility-type, he was at a disadvantage against a higher-ranked Spirit Master with countering abilities. Gradually, he was forced into a corner.
Back on the battlefield, the sky over the arena began to darken as four Spirit Rings lit up around Xue Wu. Clouds gathered overhead, covering the entire arena.
Lin Jie's eyes narrowed. Just as he was about to act and interrupt Xue Wu's casting, a sudden wave of ice sealed him in place.
Shui Bing'er had been waiting for this moment. The instant Lin Jie moved, she activated her first Spirit Ability—Ice Bind—to lock him down.
Crack!
But Lin Jie immediately shattered the ice. Though his immunity only worked against energy-based ice, not solid-state freezing, his strength was more than enough to break free. After all, the ice within his own body was far more potent.
Glancing back and seeing Jiang Zhu still frozen, he quickly barked out, "Regroup!"
Dai Mubai, already near his limit, quickly returned to Lin Jie's side. Jing Ling disengaged from his opponent and fell back, and Xiao Wu, having defeated her opponent, teleported to rejoin them. Tai Long and Huang Yuan gave up their assault on the weakened enemies and moved to regroup near Jiang Zhu without hesitation.
At the same time, Lin Jie acted. With a snap of his hand, lightning surged to his palm. He hurled a thick bolt of lightning toward the dancing black-haired girl—Xue Wu.
Shui Bing'er saw that Xue Wu hadn't finished her casting yet. Watching Lin Jie charge in and seeing his lightning fly toward her, she immediately reacted.
A Spirit Ring on her body lit up, releasing a blue-white ring of energy that rapidly expanded outward—Repelling Ice Ring, her third Spirit Ability. Similar to Huo Wu's Defying Fire Ring, but with added offensive power.
Boom!
The Repelling Ice Ring collided with Lin Jie's lightning in midair, creating a powerful shockwave. The lightning was shattered, and the ice ring continued onward, slamming directly into Lin Jie and sending him flying—not backward, but sideways.
More precisely, he flew straight toward the two weakened Power Attack Spirit Masters.
His lightning bolt had only been a distraction. Lin Jie's real target was them.
He knew Shui Bing'er could cast group control abilities instantly, and attacking Xue Wu during the ritual was no longer viable. So instead, he aimed to reduce the enemy's overall strength.
Shui Bing'er sighed in relief when she saw Lin Jie sent flying by her Repelling Ice Ring—until she realized where he was going. Her brows furrowed—she understood immediately. But she had no time to intervene, as her fusion with Xue Wu was nearly complete.
Lin Jie used the repelling force to gain momentum. In the blink of an eye, he was in front of the two girls. Another bolt of thick lightning lashed out, forming into a whip that wrapped tightly around both of them.
Zzztt! Zzztt!
Paralyzed by the shock and with no strength left to resist, the two were flung off the platform.
Immediately after, Lin Jie hurled another bolt toward the still-casting Xue Wu.
"You're too late," Shui Bing'er said softly.
Just as Lin Jie knocked her teammates off the platform, she and Xue Wu completed their casting.
Shui Bing'er stepped backward to stand in front of Xue Wu. A brilliant light surged around them as blue and black merged. A blue-white beam of light shot into the clouds overhead. Then, both of them vanished.
They had completed their Spirit Fusion Ability.
From the start, Shui Bing'er had used every means to stall Lin Jie—using Ice Bind repeatedly, even when her teammates were defeated. It was all to buy time for this one move: the ultimate fusion with Xue Wu.
Seeing the activation, Lin Jie instantly returned to the team. Thankfully, he had already gathered everyone close.
"Jiang Zhu, heal!"
Having broken free of her ice seal, Jiang Zhu slammed her staff into the ground. Spirit Rings glowed as waves of healing energy spread across the team.
Then, the rain falling over the stage began to change—snowflakes drifted down, light and ethereal.
Each snowflake born of Shui Bing'er and Xue Wu's fusion was razor-sharp, circling in midair like blades, waiting to tear through Shrek's formation.
Seeing how deadly the technique was, Shui Bing'er hesitated. She looked at the Shrek team with a kind expression and said, "If you can't hold out, surrender. I'll stop the attack."
Lin Jie glanced at his teammates. Dai Mubai was completely drained. Jing Ling was in no better shape. Tai Long and Huang Yuan still had strength left, but their power was far from enough to withstand a Spirit Fusion Ability cast by two Rank 40+ Spirit Masters.
Jiang Zhu, a Support Spirit Master, had little defense of her own. Only Xiao Wu remained in good condition—and her fourth ability had yet to be used.
"Dai Mubai, Tai Long, Huang Yuan, Jing Ling, Jiang Zhu," Lin Jie said quickly, "The power of this Spirit Fusion is beyond what you can handle in your current state. I'm sending you all down. Leave the rest to me and Xiao Wu."