An Omen
White clouds rose from the mountains, and the courtyard was deep and secluded.
Somewhere, red trees must have been in bloom; a faint floral scent drifted through the entire mountain.
Qi Xianqing followed behind Yun Zhen as they slowly walked into the Thunderflame Sect’s courtyard.
Yun Zhen lounged carelessly on a long couch and asked, “Ten days from now is the Five-Dragon Summit. Does Xianqing have confidence in taking first place this time?”
Qi Xianqing did not answer. She lowered her brows and thought for a moment.
Yun Zhen was surprised. “You’re already at the mid Fusion Realm. Your biggest rival in the sect, Yun Jie, only broke through to the early Fusion Realm a few days ago. By rights, you should be far ahead of everyone; no one ought to be able to surpass you.”
In this cultivation world, after all, there were twelve realms in total.
Cultivation below the Fusion Realm was less about true cultivation than about helping a cultivator quickly grow familiar with the spiritual energy and order of the cultivation world.
The Fusion Realm, the fourth realm, was the great threshold that marked a cultivator’s true entry onto the path of cultivation.
There were plenty of cultivators in this world who were stuck at the peak of the Enlightenment stage and unable to advance for their entire lives.
Breaking through to the mid Fusion Realm already put one far above one’s peers; Qi Xianqing had originally been very pleased with herself.
But now, for once, she felt uncertain, even hesitant.
“Hmm?” Yun Zhen said.
Qi Xianqing knelt and said solemnly, “Disciple begs Master to lend me your Black Profound Copper again. I want to strive to break through to the late Fusion Realm before the summit.”
“Hah? Why are you suddenly being so serious?” Yun Zhen said. “There’s no need to rush to improve your realm before the summit; don’t put so much pressure on yourself.”
Besides, from Yun Zhen’s understanding of this disciple of hers, with Qi Xianqing’s ferocity and decisiveness, killing someone across one or two minor realms was hardly a difficult feat.
Could it be that there was someone in the sect who was enough to make Qi Xianqing feel threatened?
Qi Xianqing met Yun Zhen’s puzzled gaze and understood.
She had originally been satisfied with her current cultivation, until the day she saw Yan Jue’s techniques and divine arts at the Cold Pool.
Although she had also felt the satisfaction of seeing a disciple become promising, for some reason, she had simultaneously felt a deep sense of crisis.
At this Five-Dragon Summit, would she have an opponent?
She did, in fact.
That little troublemaker was someone even she had reason to fear.
She would have to be especially careful in this competition.
-
Yan Jue left Five Dragons Square amid a murmur of whispers.
There was no helping it; she didn’t want to make a move before the competition even began.
But since Li Hao was so eager to teach her a lesson, then for the sake of self-preservation, she had to strike back.
Yan Jue did not rush back to Watercloud Sect.
She simply took the mountain path on the right and quickly reached the Muyin Sect dormitory.
Duan Luxi was standing in the courtyard in a green-and-teal daoist robe, channeling a bronze giant sword.
With a wave of her right hand, the giant sword cut through the air; amid a fierce roar of wind, it smashed heavily into a boulder nearby.
In an instant, the huge rock shattered into pieces.
Who knew how immense the giant sword’s power had to be to pulverize a boulder like that in one blow.
It had only been a few days since they last met, and Duan Luxi’s cultivation seemed to have improved again...
Yan Jue sighed in admiration and walked over. “Senior Sister Duan.”
Duan Luxi was drenched in sweat. Turning around and seeing Yan Jue, she smiled. “Junior Sister Yan.”
“The competition is about to start. Why aren’t you practicing in the dormitory? Why did you come here instead?”
Duan Luxi removed her outer robe, wiped the sweat from her face with a handkerchief, and sat in a chair, idly fanning herself with a round fan.
It was already summer; even the temperature on Five Dragons Mountain was quite high.
Yan Jue couldn’t help looking around Duan Luxi’s room.
Of the four walls, three were lined with bookshelves, all packed with thick volumes.
It was practically comparable to a small Library Pavilion...
“Senior Sister, I came here today to ask you something.”
Then she took the stone the white fox had spat out for her that day in the dormitory from her Qiankun bag.
The irregular, round stone was placed on the table; its surface gave off a faint fluctuation of spiritual energy.
“I wanted to ask what this stone is. Where does it come from?”
Duan Luxi held the stone and pondered for a long moment. “It has spiritual energy, but the surface is uneven. It doesn’t really look like a spirit stone...”
Yan Jue watched her seriously.
After thinking for a while, Duan Luxi went to the wall, climbed a little ladder, and pulled a book from the shelf.
Flipping through the yellowed pages, she said, “This book records all the strange stones in the world. I think I saw a similar mention in here. Your stone looks like the legendary Seven-Glow Stone.”
Yan Jue raised a brow. “Seven-Glow Stone?”
“Junior Sister, stand by the wall,” Duan Luxi said.
Yan Jue did as told and stood by the wall.
Duan Luxi opened the wooden chest under the table and pulled out a black handkerchief from inside, which she tied over her eyes.
Yan Jue froze.
Duan Luxi raised her hand and directly hurled the stone at her.
The stone, carrying spiritual energy, shot through the air and actually struck Yan Jue’s left shoulder with exact precision before falling to the ground.
Duan Luxi removed the handkerchief and exclaimed excitedly, “Oh my god, Yan Jue, where on earth did you get this treasure? It really is the legendary Seven-Glow Stone!”
Yan Jue asked, “What exactly is the Seven-Glow Stone? Does it have any special qualities?”
Duan Luxi sat back down and turned the stone over in her hand, saying thoughtfully, “The legendary Seven-Glow Stone only requires a trace of divine sense to be infused into it when it’s launched. Even with your eyes closed, it can still be shot exactly where you want it to go.”
Yan Jue brightened. “That sounds pretty amazing.”
Duan Luxi: “Would you be willing to leave the stone with me? I can help you improve it a little.”
Yan Jue blinked. “You can improve it too?”
“Of course. This stone is only the raw material. If you just hold it in your hand, it can still hit its target, but it’s not exactly elegant. I can help you pretty it up a bit and turn it into a proper magical artifact.”
Yan Jue was practically moved to tears. She stood up and looked at Duan Luxi. “Thank you, Senior Sister Duan.”
“It’s nothing. I’m studying artifact refining on my own anyway; I don’t have much to practice with lately.”
Yan Jue beamed. “Thank you.”
-
Soon, seven days passed.
During those seven days, Yan Jue did not see Qi Xianqing again.
She only received a short note from Qi Xianqing one morning four days ago.
The note carefully explained another essence of the Myriad Sword Art: combining it with the power of the five elements.
For example, since she had a mutated ice spiritual root, she could attach ice attributes to the “myriad swords” while executing the Myriad Sword Art.
Yan Jue practiced by the Cold Pool for a few days on her own and grew somewhat familiar with it, though she still hadn’t really grasped the key to it.
So Yan Jue set the Myriad Sword Art aside for now.
She had more important matters to deal with.
...
At night, Yan Jue sat cross-legged on her bed and sank her divine sense to sense what the white fox saw.
Bai Ying once again turned into a fly, just as before, clinging to Chu Fu and following him into a cave.
Faintly, Yan Jue heard the Demon Lord’s weak voice: “Three days from now is the summit banquet. By then, the disciples of the six great immortal sects will all be coming. That will be the best time for you to obtain her yin essence.”
Yan Jue’s eyes sharpened.
Chu Fu hesitated and said, “But that woman is extremely cunning. I don’t know how to get close to her.”
The Demon Lord laughed. “What’s so difficult about that? I’ll use a plan to lure her out. You just seize the opportunity to couple with her and take the yin essence within her body.”
“After the banquet ends, the Five-Dragon Summit will begin. If you take her yin essence in three days, then winning the Five-Dragon Summit will be all but certain.”
“Yes, thank you, Your Excellency,” Chu Fu said.
...
After hearing the news Bai Ying brought back, Yan Jue felt completely numb.
She knew the day the male lead would target her was right around the corner.
But she hadn’t expected it to be in just three days.
Yan Jue found this hard to understand.
If that Duanhun Mountain Demon Lord was seriously injured, how could he still come out and help the male lead lure her into the open?
This was wildly inconsistent with the original plot.
In the original novel, it was the original host who had willingly gone to couple with the male lead.
But Yan Jue believed her own dao heart was still very steady; how could she possibly take the initiative to approach this male lead?
But if she didn’t take the initiative, would the male lead really still try to rob her in broad daylight?
Forget it; worrying now was useless. She could only see what tricks the Demon Lord and the male lead would pull in a few days.
-
Ice-type divine art: Ice Expansion.
This divine art was rather interesting.
Yan Jue first condensed her divine sense and summoned a palm-sized ice cone.
With a sudden wave of her right hand through the air, the ice cone shot from her hand and flew out the window.
The little ice cone flew in a straight line through the air, and wherever it passed, a layer of frost condensed.
An enormous amount of spiritual energy in the air was drawn toward the ice cone, strengthening its power.
As the ice cone flew farther and farther, it also grew larger and larger.
When it flew beneath the big tree five zhang away, there was a loud bang as it struck; countless tiny snowflakes shattered down from the sky.
Ice Expansion was an offensive divine art. If it hit the enemy successfully, it could also cause a three-breath stun effect.
The larger the ice cone when it struck the enemy, the longer the stun lasted.
Yan Jue looked at the small ice cone in her hand and frowned slightly.
The power of Ice Expansion was indeed strong, but the reason it was classified as a most basic divine art was not only because it was easy to learn, but also because its hit rate was painfully low.
After all, in real combat, the opponent would not patiently wait for your snowball to slowly roll over and hit them.
Was there any way to improve its accuracy?
Yan Jue sat by the table and thought for a moment, then closed the book and stood up.
For some reason tonight, she had been thinking about Qi Xianqing the whole time.
She wondered what Qi Xianqing was doing tonight. Then she would stop studying for now and go take a look at Frozen Peach Haven.
Yan Jue sat by the bed and closed her eyes.
Her mind sank lightly, and she became her red fox true form. In the bronze mirror, the fox’s fur was red as flame, four tails fluttering in the wind; it was flamboyant and beautiful.
Yan Jue jumped out the window and quickly arrived at the familiar Cold Pool.
The Cold Pool was still as before, radiating the chill of a thousand years of ice; beneath the moonlight, it was peaceful and beautiful.
Frozen Peach Haven.
Before Yan Jue even got close, she could sense faint fluctuations of spiritual energy in the air.
The fur all over her body bristled; she crouched low on the spot and looked up toward the roof of Frozen Peach Haven.
Clouds steaming and rosy light rising.
A breathtaking multicolored glow was actually swirling over the roof of Frozen Peach Haven; every wisp of cloud reflected the cool moonlight, peaceful and auspicious as it rose into the heavens.
Yan Jue’s pupils contracted slightly.
This was the phenomenon of a cultivator breaking through in the Fusion Realm!
Actually, when ordinary cultivators broke through, they would not do so in the kind of dangerous, earth-shattering circumstances Yan Jue and Qi Xianqing had experienced before.
When cultivators wanted to try to break through, many of them would choose seclusion.
If they gained sudden enlightenment and broke through during secluded cultivation, they would have plenty of time to disperse the spiritual energy within their bodies, making it safer for them.
Yan Jue crouched in the grass for a long time, watching the rosy cloud qi roil over there; her heart couldn’t help beating faster and faster.
Only when the roof over there gradually quieted down did she stand and walk inside the fence, only to suddenly see a figure standing by the doorway.
Qi Xianqing wore a black long robe and stood casually against the doorframe, both hands raised as she worked out her stiff joints.
The immortal sword Zhuying was tied tightly to her back with a black cord.
The higher Qi Xianqing’s cultivation rose, the stronger the attraction her Immortal Spirit Physique held for demon beasts.
That kind of terror, like thunder rolling overhead and making one’s scalp tingle, only grew greater.
Yan Jue looked at Qi Xianqing and froze for a second.
A massive wave of spiritual energy spread outward from Qi Xianqing, surging like a hidden tide in every direction.
So strong.
Yan Jue slowed her steps; for a moment, she almost didn’t dare go forward, afraid of disturbing something.
If Yan Jue remembered correctly, the last time they returned from Fengxian Town, Qi Xianqing had already been at the mid Fusion Realm.
Yan Jue knew just how hard progress became after entering the Fusion Realm, and she had not expected Qi Xianqing to advance so quickly!
Only then did Yan Jue immediately understand why she had not seen Qi Xianqing for the past few days. So Qi Xianqing had been in seclusion; seclusion was hard on cultivators, but the benefits it brought were undoubtedly greater as well.
Even someone as gifted as Qi Xianqing cultivated diligently.
Then she, even more, could not afford to slack off.
Yan Jue stood in the grass, staring at Qi Xianqing while her mind wandered.
The person over there suddenly lowered her head and looked over.
In the moonlight, Qi Xianqing’s eyes were clear and bright.
She crouched down, said nothing, and her peach blossom eyes curved slightly as she motioned for the little fox to come over.
Yan Jue took a few tiny steps forward, making a gurgling sound in her throat.
For some reason, the closer she got to Qi Xianqing, the more excited she became; by the end, she was completely unable to control herself, and her four big tails were whipping wildly behind her, fanning out like a flower.
Qi Xianqing had been in seclusion the past few days.
The days of secluded cultivation were bland as water; now that Qi Xianqing saw the little fox cub, she felt all the tension in her body loosen.
Cool fingertips brushed over the little fox’s soft head, and the fox narrowed its eyes in comfort.
Yan Jue suddenly, for some reason, thought of what Bai Ying had told her a few days ago. She then licked Qi Xianqing’s hand back; this counted as one way of showing affection. Qi Xianqing paused slightly and lowered her hand. The little fox, growing excited, pounced up again and licked her face.
Qi Xianqing smiled. “What’s this? Why have you suddenly become so clingy?”
She pressed down on the little fox’s head, rubbed those sensitive big ears, then lowered her fingertips to scratch at its chest. Yan Jue instantly went limp, her four paws pressing tightly to the ground.
Ah... she’d wanted to tease Qi Xianqing, too. Every time her ears got grabbed, she ended up like this; how was she supposed to make a comeback?
The little fox wrinkled its nose and lay on its back on the ground, kicking its legs in the air.
Yan Jue followed behind Qi Xianqing. Just as she stepped into the room, she suddenly smelled a faint herbal fragrance in the air.
This smell...
Yan Jue froze and looked toward the bathtub at the far left of the room.
The tub was filled with water, its surface rippling faintly.
Qi Xianqing said gently, “I’ve been sitting around the past few days without much rest; just in time, I was planning to bathe.”
Yan Jue’s heart gave a jolt.
Qi Xianqing went on, “Your fur’s gotten a bit dirty too. Do you want me to wash you?”
Yan Jue certainly didn’t want that; she glared at Qi Xianqing for a while, then jumped onto the bed and hid herself.
Faint sounds of water came from over there. Qi Xianqing did not insist, and Yan Jue let out a quiet breath of relief.
Lying on Qi Xianqing’s bed had always been a very comfortable state for Yan Jue.
The unique fragrance of the Immortal Spirit Physique, mixed with a faint herbal scent and a touch of plum blossom freshness, made it feel as though she were soaking in cool, deep seawater.
Yan Jue lay in the soft blankets and felt very comfortable; her teeth started itching again, so she bit the blanket, then suddenly remembered something and spat it back out. “...”
She couldn’t bite it.
Qi Xianqing quickly finished cleaning up and came to the bed in fresh clothes.
In the dim light, she wore a plain white inner robe, with wet black hair spread over her shoulders, making her figure look even more slender.
Qi Xianqing drew back the gauze curtains and saw the little fox obediently curled up in the blanket. She couldn’t help but smile. “So well-behaved?”
No wonder Qi Xianqing was surprised; the little fox was simply too mischievous, and it would actually be strange if it didn’t tear the house apart on a normal day.
The little fox poked its head out from under the blanket, blinked one eye open, then slowly sat up, its black ears hanging down.
Qi Xianqing patted its head and casually lifted the wide sleeve of her robe. “I learned something good recently. Look.”
Yan Jue subconsciously glanced over.
The “Winter Leaf” really was very useful. The poison marks on Qi Xianqing’s arm had completely faded; her fair skin looked as smooth as congealed jade.
Qi Xianqing sat by the bed, leaning leisurely against a pillow, and took a blade of Ulava grass from her Qiankun bag. Her fingertips moved deftly through the grass cord.
Yan Jue blinked slightly, watching something in Qi Xianqing’s hands grow visibly larger.
The room was very quiet. Night wind drifted in through the window; the lamplight on the desk swayed faintly.
Qi Xianqing soon finished weaving what she held.
Yan Jue rested her chin on Qi Xianqing’s arm and stared at the dark little thing, unable to help freezing.
It was actually a mouse.
A mouse woven from grass cord, palm-sized in body, with a pair of big ears; it was even rather cute.
Qi Xianqing placed one hand on the little fox’s back and set the large grass-woven mouse on the bed with the other. “For you—do you like it?”
“If your teeth itch again in the future, bite this instead. Got it?”