Chapter 58: The Storm 2
A flash of silver light tore through the night sky, accompanied by a sharp, piercing whistle, and appeared right before Li Xuan's eyes in the blink of an eye.
The silver light rapidly expanded, completely enveloping Li Xuan.
Li Xuan's source power surged violently. With a stomp of his foot and his palms clapped together, water ripples spread across his entire body like concentric circles.
Whoosh!
Li Xuan caught the silver radiance between his palms, but the immense source power impact forced him to retreat rapidly, plowing two deep trenches ten meters long into the ground.
A strange glint flashed across Li Xuan's pupils as he stared intently at the night sky.
"This is the assassination technique of the Night Imperial Ranking! Everyone, fall back immediately!"
People from all walks of life, having wandered the pugilistic world for years and possessing vast experience, recognized the attacker's identity from a single move.
To cultivators, the Night Imperial Ranking was an absolute taboo. As long as the employer offered a sufficient bounty, no one could escape their pursuit, even to the ends of the earth.
They would stop at nothing to achieve their goal, fighting to the bitter end.
While the onlookers were terrified, they also felt a sense of pity for Li Xuan. Once targeted by the Night Imperial Ranking, there was only one destined outcome.
Yet, Li Xuan's courage to fight the Night Imperial Ranking assassin in order to survive won the unanimous respect of the crowd.
Suddenly, everyone held their breath as a dark figure descended from afar, stepping through the void. Silver light intertwined, and a breathtaking murderous intent pressed down.
Hah!
Li Xuan drew the Chiyue Imperial Shadow, concentrating all his source power into his arms. A crimson glow swelled, stretching several meters long.
Li Xuan dropped his shoulders, braced his stance, and let out a mighty roar, slashing forward with both arms at full strength.
Whoosh!
The blade light generated a ring of ripples, tearing through the night sky like lightning and striking toward the dark figure with the speed of thunder.
Clang!
The moment the crimson blade light collided with the silver sword body, a deafening metallic clash rang out, bursting into a shower of intense sparks.
A graceful female figure flashed past and vanished instantly. The dark figure came on aggressively, the silver light surging like a tide to reach him in a split second, brushing past Li Xuan's throat and leaving a trail of blood.
Li Xuan rapidly retreated to dodge the fatal blow, immediately driving his source power to rush forward and engage the dark figure in close combat.
Employing the "Divine Movement Burning Shadow Technique" and mastering the Wind-Control Technique, Li Xuan left afterimages all over the sky amidst roaring winds and thunder.
The dark figure shadowed his every move. At times, her silver sword qi swelled massively, sweeping outward with grandiose power; at other times, her radiance was restrained and coiled like a coiled spring, waiting for the slightest opening from Li Xuan to deliver a devastating strike.
Li Xuan walked a knife-edge through one perilous situation after another, yet he always managed to turn the tables and survive at the threshold of death. Every time the sword threatened his body, water ripples would flutter across his skin in the nick of time, allowing the blade to graze past by a hair's breadth.
Within the span of a few breaths, Li Xuan was covered in wounds, but this only ignited his survival instinct, making him braver with every clash.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Li Xuan consecutively slashed out three majestic blade images to slightly hinder the dark figure's assault, leaped backward, and his lips parted slightly.
"Sister Yueyue, are you trying to kill me?!"
However, the dark figure remained exceptionally cold. The source power fluctuations she emitted felt both familiar and unfamiliar to Li Xuan.
Li Xuan suddenly understood, while cursing inwardly. He had expected the script to unfold according to his own arrangements, but unexpected twists had turned everything upside down.
Sometime during the fierce battle, Jiang Qingyue had been swapped away silently, leaving him to face a genuine Night Imperial Ranking assassin.
Li Xuan shouted, "Who are you?"
The dark figure let out a cold "hum," completely enveloped in the chill and ruthlessness of an assassin, and slowly walked up to stand opposite Li Xuan. "Since you love acting so much, let's turn pretense into reality!"
With a movement of the dark figure, vast and boundless source power fluctuations spread outward like a tidal wave, instantly reaching Li Xuan's feet.
Li Xuan sensed an aura of death—yet this aura felt so familiar.
However, Li Xuan did not panic. Instead, he asked, "Where is Sister Yueyue? What have you done to her?"
A wisp of deadly intent flashed in the dark figure's eyes. "You care about her that much? Then I'll make her wish she were dead!"
The dark figure closed in at lightning speed, her sword body erupting with silver light that tore through the night sky like a bolt of silk, appearing right before Li Xuan's eyes in an instant.
Li Xuan raised the Chiyue Imperial Shadow and met her head-on. The ringing of metal on metal echoed continuously, producing crisp clashes.
Li Xuan locked eyes with the dark figure, their two streams of source power violently colliding and generating crackling arcs of micro-lightning.
Li Xuan roared, "It's you!"
The dark figure replied coldly, "I said it before: you are my prey, and this is to the death!"
Whoosh!
The two figures separated rapidly, kicking up dual whirlwinds.
Pointing his blade at the dark figure, Li Xuan shouted angrily, "Xiao Ning, what have you done to Sister Yueyue?"
Xiao Ning gave her delicate hand a shake, causing the silver sword qi to surge exponentially. "Li Xuan, did you treat my words as wind blowing past your ears?"
Li Xuan bellowed, "Fine! But you must guarantee Sister Yueyue's safety!"
As it turned out, during their initial exchange, Jiang Qingyue had been forcefully swapped out by Xiao Ning, who intended to turn Li Xuan's staged play into a harsh reality.
Having reached the Spirit Communication Realm, Xiao Ning indeed possessed such capabilities, and her goal was to torment Li Xuan.
Unwilling to hesitate even at the cost of suppressing her cultivation realm, Xiao Ning fought Li Xuan precisely to completely crush him at an equivalent realm, achieving her goal of taming him.
That being the case, Li Xuan no longer needed to hold anything back.
Ya-ha!
Li Xuan let out an explosive roar as source power erupted from him. Accompanied by a metallic sword hum, a beam of sword qi soared into the sky.
As the sword qi resounded across the heavens, the surrounding source runes instantly lit up and began to burn.
In a fraction of a second, thunder rumbled, and strands of black lightning runes surged into the pillar of sword qi.
Li Xuan's gaze turned sharp, glaring at Xiao Ning like a savage beast. His source power fluctuations rapidly climbed, breaking straight through into the God-Slaying Realm.
Xiao Ning's pupils constricted and she sneered, similarly channeling her secret technique at the peak of the Martial-Breaking Realm: Phoenix Nirvana—Rebirth.
Squawk!
A phantom of a phoenix spread its wings, and with a crystalline cry, the night sky was instantly illuminated. The source runes drifting in the void were ignited, radiating the power of rebirth.
Simultaneously, a beam of sword qi pierced the firmament. The sword qi was substantive, its brilliance restrained, yet it erupted with an awe-inspiring might.
Xiao Ning's pupils shrank as torrential source power poured out of her, causing the surrounding air to burst violently.
Li Xuan roared, "First Form of the Saintly Canglan Sword Art—A Single Sword Spans the Heavens, A Hundred Eras Vanish!"
Xiao Ning pursed her lips into a smile and chanted softly, "Phoenix Nirvana—Secret Realm Rebirth, Rarest Since Ancient Times!"
In an instant, two massive, boundless torrents of sword qi overturned the cosmos and collided with mighty momentum.
Boom!
Suddenly, the sword qi thundered, source power scattered in all directions, and an illumination akin to a blazing sun burst forth.
The night sky was completely lit up. The two sword qi beams mutually dissolved each other; the phoenix phantom shattered and reformed again and again through its Nirvana rebirths until, after the ninth rebirth, the void warped and the sword qi swelled to its peak.
Pop!
A massive shockwave swept outward, flattening everything in its path like a decaying dry twig before an army.
In an instant, sand flew, stones rolled, and the ground was left in utter devastation.
Pfft!
Li Xuan dropped to one knee, coughing up a mouthful of blood, but he slowly stood back up and pointed his blade at Xiao Ning.
Xiao Ning wiped the blood from the corner of her lips. As her source power revolved, her wounds healed rapidly while the phoenix phantom hovered above her.
At this moment, someone cried out in alarm, "It's her—Xiao Ning! Ranked fiftieth on the Night Imperial Ranking!"
One had to admit that the wanderers from all walks of life, having traveled the length and breadth of the country, were well-informed enough to identify Xiao Ning's true identity.
Although Night Imperial Ranking assassins were ruthless, there were bound to be survivors who leaked information. Word of mouth had naturally painted vivid descriptions of the appearance and traits of those on the ranking.
Gasp!
The crowd gasped in shock and retreated in unison. That was a god of slaughter, someone who had never tasted defeat since her debut!
Mo Qianqiu knitted his brows tightly, muttering to himself, "How did this brat manage to provoke Xiao Ning? Things are getting a bit tricky now!"
Meanwhile, Court of Law Elder Wang Chengxin was inwardly overjoyed, thinking to himself, "Keep acting so arrogant, you brat. Let's see how you get yourself out of this mess now!"
Administrative Court Elder Xi Yue cast a stern, imposing gaze toward Wang Chengxin and said, "Is Elder Wang very happy?"
Wang Chengxin immediately explained, "Not at all. I just feel it's a pity for Li Xuan. To be hunted by the Night Imperial Ranking—no matter how astonishing your talent is, in the end..."
Wang Chengxin glanced at Dean Mo Qianqiu and smiled faintly.
Mo Qianqiu snorted coldly. "Let's watch and see!"
A jolt ran through the hearts of Wang Chengxin and Xi Yue: *Could the Dean actually want to protect Li Xuan?*
Wang Chengxin wanted to say a few more words, but a single glare from Mo Qianqiu choked them back down his throat.
Wang Chengxin cursed inwardly, *Damn it, with so many people protecting you, let's see who dares to interfere!*
Wang Chengxin was immensely proud; he was in an exceptionally good mood tonight, and Wang Zifan beside him also wore an excited expression.
Suddenly, Li Xuan walked slowly up to Xiao Ning and asked in a loud voice, "Are you satisfied yet?"
Gasp!
The crowd gasped once more, their jaws dropping to the floor.
What kind of tragic fool was Li Xuan anyway? Not only had his internal organs been severely shaken by Xiao Ning, but he actually had the audacity to ask if she was satisfied? Wasn't that just courting death?
However, Xiao Ning's reply triggered an earthquake of magnitude ten: "This young lady is *not* satisfied!"
Everyone was left completely baffled, all of them wildly guessing what kind of relationship the two actually shared.
Suddenly, someone shouted, "It must be because our little Xuanxuan is peerlessly elegant, humorous, and brilliantly talented that she's fallen in love with him while hunting him down!"
Xiao Ning's delicate brows furrowed tightly. She raised a foot and kicked Li Xuan squarely in the cheek, sending him flying backward for several meters before he crashed heavily onto the ground.
Li Xuan vaulted back to his feet, the Chiyue Imperial Shadow erupting with brilliant radiance as he once again engaged Xiao Ning in fierce battle.
Neither of them held anything back; every move was a killing blow, and each genuinely wanted to take the other's life.
Xiao Ning let out a soft whistle and slammed a fist directly into Li Xuan's stomach, shattering a distant artificial rockery into dust.
The crowd held their breath, staring fixedly in the direction where Li Xuan had fallen, but for a long time, there was no movement whatsoever.
Yet, no one dared to step forward, because no one knew what Xiao Ning would do in the next second. It was always wiser to steer clear of anything concerning the Night Imperial Ranking.
Suddenly, shattered rocks scattered and shot out like cannonballs toward Xiao Ning.
Xiao Ning raised a hand, her thick source power instantly pulverizing the flying stones.
In a flash, an afterimage materialized amidst the roar of wind and thunder. Li Xuan vaulted out from the pile of rubble, thrusting a crimson flame straight toward Xiao Ning.
Xiao Ning flipped her palm, grabbing the blade of the Chiyue Imperial Shadow. A vast torrent of source power poured out, completely suppressing Li Xuan.
Xiao Ning said coldly, "Li Xuan, I know you're about to break through your realm, so..."
Xiao Ning's pupils constricted as a flame-like light directly blasted Li Xuan flying backward.
With a voice like thunder that resounded through the night sky, Xiao Ning declared, "If you want to satisfy me, break through your realm once more—or wait until I undergo my Transcending Mortality Realm heavenly tribulation right here at Saintly Dao Academy!"