Chapter 40: Terror

"Li Xuan!"

Jiang Qingyue’s eyes were filled with concern. She supported Li Xuan, channeling a stream of source energy into his body. "Li Xuan, your internal source energy is in total chaos, and your skin is burning hot."

Li Xuan shook his head and said, "Sister Yueyue, withdraw your energy, or else... or else you will be hurt as well. I can... heal myself!"

Li Xuan urged his own source energy to repel Jiang Qingyue's hand, beginning to circulate the "Green Satchel Scroll" to mend the injuries within his body.

Jiang Qingyue wept helplessly, cursing, "Li Xuan, you idiot! How can you still be so stubborn at a time like this..."

Tang Ruoxian looked toward Instructor Mo Xi’er, parted her crimson lips, and said, "Instructor Mo Xi’er naturally disdains Li Xuan's healing efforts, for even if he were to cultivate for another hundred years, he could never withstand your third palm, 'Green Ox Butterfly Transformation: Dragon Ascension'."

Instructor Mo Xi’er pursed her lips into a smile and nodded slightly. "As a mentor, I am in no rush. Let us see just how far he, Li Xuan, can truly cultivate!"

In truth, Instructor Mo Xi’er was in a difficult position. It went without saying that Li Xuan could never withstand the third palm, "Green Ox Butterfly Transformation: Dragon Ascension." That he had survived the second palm was already a stroke of luck. She dared not actually kill him; it would be difficult to answer to the Dean. Should anything go wrong, the Star Constellation Elders would certainly not let the matter rest. He was, quite literally, a hot potato.

Instructor Mo Xi’er hoped Li Xuan would recognize the futility and retreat, which would preserve her own reputation while giving the Star Constellation Elders sufficient face.

"Instructor, if Li Xuan spends his whole life cultivating here, are we to wait for him forever?" Wang Zifan chimed in, eager to fan the flames. He believed this should be settled quickly; a man should know when to bend and when to stretch. Even if Li Xuan could endure the third palm, the most he could do was kneel and apologize.

"Wang Zifan, what are you saying? Are you looking for a beating?" Jiang Qingyue’s fists were clenched, her delicate body trembling with rage, her eyes filled with killing intent.

Tang Ruoxian was no pushover either, her gaze sharp enough to kill. The other students were equally indignant, raining down verbal condemnations upon Wang Zifan until he was nearly drowned in their scorn.

"Enough, everyone, quiet down!" Instructor Mo Xi’er waved her jade hand, using her vast source energy to suppress the noisy crowd. "Student Wang Zifan, this matter began because of you, and it shall end because of you. Li Xuan and I have an agreement. His performance is enough to shine in the annals of the Sacred Dao Academy. Regardless of whether he can withstand my third palm, he must apologize to Tang Ruoxian and Jiang Qingyue."

Her words not only gave Li Xuan a way out but also satisfied the students. Only Tang Ruoxian and Jiang Qingyue understood that the instructor was merely wary of the consequences and did not want to push things to the point of no return.

"Look, two lights..."

The students watched in shock as two auras inside Li Xuan began to repel each other. As ripples shimmered, green light and white light began to intertwine. Following the flow of the ripples, the green light was being consumed by the white, slowly but surely, in a one-sided trend. Clearly, the green light was the sword qi released by Instructor Mo Xi’er, while the white light originated from Li Xuan’s own cultivation method.

The green light was powerful and tyrannical, yet the white light persisted in devouring it. As the ripples surged, faint rumbles of thunder accompanied by flickers of lightning caused the green light to gradually dissolve.

The "Green Satchel Scroll" stated: Water and fire do not repel. The water ripples were indeed enveloping the green light, carrying it along until it was finally consumed by the white light.

"This is..." The students turned to Instructor Mo Xi’er, their faces full of curiosity.

Instructor Mo Xi’er was also stunned. In the entire cultivation world, such a strange phenomenon had never appeared. The melding of water and fire for healing was a feat unprecedented and likely never to be repeated.

Confused, she looked toward Tang Ruoxian and Jiang Qingyue. As Li Xuan’s closest confidantes, if they didn't know, no one would. They both shook their heads, equally perplexed.

Suddenly, the flow of the water ripples accelerated, and rings of divine patterns emerged. The green light dimmed and vanished in the blink of an eye.

At that moment, Li Xuan’s internal source energy flowed smoothly, giving birth to a sacred power. Golden light shone brilliantly as ancient, solemn scriptures were chanted. His source energy surged, and his bloodline power boiled over.

Li Xuan sensed something was wrong. Awakening his bloodline too early would surely invite fatal disaster, so he was forced to suppress it. Even so, golden radiance spilled out, wrapping around his skin and reflecting the rapid circulation of his blood.

Roar!

Li Xuan let out a long cry toward the heavens, venting the bloodline energy as his fingers moved nimbly, using the "Nine Suns Soul-Returning Needles" to seal his bloodline power.

He slowly stood up and bowed. "Please, Instructor Mo Xi’er, execute the third palm!"

Instructor Mo Xi’er’s fair face darkened. Li Xuan was as stubborn as a mule, and performing this in front of all the students was incredibly difficult. If something happened to him, her future would be ruined.

"Li Xuan, stop while you can. That is also the way of a man. 'Green Ox Butterfly Transformation: Dragon Ascension' is no trivial matter. Once unleashed, a single breath from the dragon would shatter your internal organs!"

Her words were no exaggeration. Those in the Profound Realm had attained enlightenment, and their source energy had mutated into profound energy—a power Li Xuan simply could not contend with.

Li Xuan’s expression remained resolute. He had given his word, and he would not back down. He demanded that she fulfill her promise.

Jiang Qingyue, trembling with anger, pinched Li Xuan’s ear with her slender fingers. "Come back with me!"

She had always been headstrong. She pulled with enough force to turn his earlobe crimson, yet he stood like a wooden stake. Even as the skin broke and bled, he showed no intention of leaving.

Li Xuan reached back, gripped Jiang Qingyue’s alabaster wrist, and pulled her toward him, bumping her against his solid chest. "I can leave, but Wang Zifan must kneel and apologize to Tang Ruoxian and Jiang Qingyue."

Li Xuan was exceptionally imposing. His clenched fists cracked with the sound of snapping sinews, blood qi flowing rapidly as his body surged with source energy. Jiang Qingyue tried to punch his chest, but he caught her wrist again, pulled her close, and whispered warmly against her ear. She went limp, blushing furiously, her heart racing.

Watching this, Wang Zifan was consumed by malice. He raised his sword and lunged at Li Xuan’s waist.

"Wang Zifan, no!" Instructor Mo Xi’er shouted, but it was too late to intervene.

*Clang!*

A sword hum erupted, accompanied by the roar of thunder and a fierce blast of air.

*Pop!*

With a light tremor, water ripples flowed like a spring, surging toward the longsword.

"What? Li Xuan actually blocked Wang Zifan’s sneak attack!" The crowd gasped in horror.

Water ripples acted as a medium for the sword light, flowing toward Wang Zifan. He placed his left hand on his right, converting his source energy into thunder to block the surging water. In an instant, wave after wave of water formed a wall, separating the two. They began to clash in a contest of pure source energy.

"Li Xuan, you son of a bitch! If you dare hurt me, my cousin Wang Teng will never let you go!"

Wang Zifan’s powerful source energy poured out, thunder crashing as the water ripples fluctuated violently. However, the water possessed an incredible defensive capability. Even though the thunder could shatter mountains, every time it hit the ripples, it caused a splash, but as time passed, the thunderous power weakened, causing Li Xuan no harm at all.

Thunderous power required a massive amount of source energy. Within the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Wang Zifan began to falter, tiny beads of sweat appearing on his forehead. Li Xuan, conversely, despite his earlier fatigue, now seemed calm and composed. His source energy flowed steadily, weakening the thunder with every ripple.

"I wouldn't dare hurt you, but I can certainly cripple your cultivation. If I’m not mistaken, while thunderous power is tyrannical, its consumption of source energy is equally massive, so..."

A strange light flashed in Li Xuan’s eyes. He stomped his foot, and the ground beneath Wang Zifan turned into a muddy mire, causing him to sink involuntarily. Before he could recover, the ground hardened like stone, locking him in place.

Before Wang Zifan could react, a spring bamboo shot up from the hardened earth, aimed directly at his crotch. It grew at a visible rate, its sharp tip piercing his skin, staining the bamboo with a streak of blood.

"Ah! Li Xuan, you bastard! You want to ruin my manhood! Shameless!"

Wang Zifan let out a blood-curdling scream, but his feet were locked tight. Simultaneously, a lump began to bulge within his bloodline, as if something were trying to claw its way out, stretching his skin taut.

"Ah! My Wang family will never let you off..."

"Li Xuan, stop at once..."

Seeing things spiral out of control, Instructor Mo Xi’er shouted, striking out with her jade palm. A wave of massive source energy shattered the bamboo and neutralized Li Xuan’s technique.

Li Xuan felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He turned pale, his body shuddering as he gasped for air.

Suddenly, Instructor Mo Xi’er grabbed Li Xuan by the throat and roared, "Li Xuan, what kind of sorcery is this?"

*Cough, cough...*

Li Xuan coughed, gripping the instructor’s hand. "Sorcery... then let me show you, Instructor!"

Suddenly, darkness descended. Black clouds rolled in, and lightning flickered. The area where Li Xuan and Instructor Mo Xi’er stood was engulfed in shadow.

Li Xuan prepared himself, his source energy exploding outward. He shook off the instructor’s hand, a strange, eerie smile playing on his lips. The boundless darkness brought a sense of terror and palpitations. Bolts of lightning flashed like in the primordial era, and a desolate aura seemed to traverse time and space.

"Li Xuan, what have you done?" the instructor shouted, the scene before her no different from a great catastrophe.

"Heh!" Li Xuan let out a dry laugh. "I know you look down on my Li family for its decline. Today, I will prove to you that my family will rise again. You are merely a whetstone for our rise. 'Green Ox Butterfly Transformation: Dragon Ascension'—go ahead, try to transform!"

Instructor Mo Xi’er was thoroughly enraged. She immediately unleashed the technique. The bellowing of a green ox shook the heavens, and the source patterns on her body turned terrifying, mutating into clanking iron armor. An archaic aura permeated the air, and the dark space was instantly illuminated by a white light as bright as the sun.

Suddenly, a dragon’s roar echoed across the sky, and an ancient, weathered aura manifested into a white dragon. The dragon opened eyes the size of lanterns, scanned Li Xuan, and shifted its body. A vast pressure swept down, leaving Li Xuan dizzy and his skin cracking.

The white dragon exhaled, the force of reversing heaven and earth creating a monstrous wave that surged down like a tide.

"Li Xuan, you’re looking for death, don't blame me for being ruthless!"

The void shuddered with a deep rumble, and the sun-like light exploded with a powerful sonic wave, rushing toward Li Xuan with unstoppable force.

Yet, Li Xuan kept that eerie smile on his lips. His hands formed seals, and source patterns were etched into the void. The energy stored in the mountain terrain was guided by the array, erupting like a flash flood. The massive energy fluctuation shot into the sky, crashing into the dragon’s breath.

*Boom!*

*Pop!*

The violent explosion shattered the dark space, the shockwave destroying everything in its path.

"Ah!" Li Xuan retreated rapidly, a streak of blood spraying from his mouth.

However, at that moment, a bizarre scene unfolded. A pair of mysterious, unfathomable eyes appeared. They gazed at the white dragon, and as they closed, the dragon was swallowed whole, vanishing without a sound.

*Pfft!*

Li Xuan spat out more blood as the mysterious eyes lingered for a second before disappearing.

The illusion suddenly faded. Instructor Mo Xi’er stood there in a daze, her expression blank, her soul seemingly lost.