Chapter 263
“Which sect are you from, ascender?” He lifted his chin, his expression haughty. “I am Luo Yun, a direct disciple of the Zhengyi Sect. We are currently hunting a king-level demon beast. Why don’t you join us? It’s safer, and you’ll earn quite a few points.”
The number of participants from hidden sects in the Demon Hunting Conference varied according to their strength.
Noticing that Chen Huai'an and Li Qingran were alone, he assumed they were from a small sect. Small sects were easier to manipulate.
“Heh, no thanks. We prefer to go solo and won’t trouble you,” Chen Huai'an replied politely, cupping his hands.
He was focused on studying the Fire Cloud and searching for the incomplete Dragon Soul, so he had no desire to get entangled with these people.
Luo Yun’s expression darkened. “What, do you look down on my Zhengyi Sect?”
Before he finished speaking, the other cultivators from Zhengyi Sect glared at them, as if ready to pressure them.
Chen Huai'an paused, the politeness fading from his face, replaced by a benevolent smile. “Alright then, I’ll give you a chance to impress me.”
You reap what you sow.
Chen Huai'an’s expression turned cold, and he spat out a single word.
“Kill—!”
…
…
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Chapter 281: Qingran Wants to Be a Hardworking Cultivator (tijin +1)
Chen Huai'an harbored murderous intent towards Luo Yun.
This was because Luo Yun’s gaze towards Li Qingran was anything but friendly.
Li Qingran also felt the urge to kill Luo Yun, as her master had a vendetta against him.
The targets of her master’s wrath were her own targets as well.
The moonlight flowed like water, cascading through the mountains.
The chirping of insects ceased, the wind stilled, and the air became thick with tension.
Luo Yun hovered in the sky, standing fifteen meters away from Li Qingran and Chen Huai'an.
When he heard the word “kill,” he found it amusing, even doubting if he had misheard.
Until—
Chen Huai'an and Li Qingran both gripped their sword hilts simultaneously.
Murderous intent surged forth.
Like a blizzard rushing towards him.
“Leave the leader to me!” Chen Huai'an and Li Qingran charged forward together.
Both practiced the Qinglian Sword Technique, their steps synchronized. In just three strides, they were before Luo Yun.
“Understood! Master!” Li Qingran zipped past Luo Yun, instantly accelerating, and in the blink of an eye, she was ten meters behind him, her sword spinning as she struck at another ascender.
“Just a mere Qi Refinement! You dare to kill me?!”
Luo Yun was in the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment, and Li Qingran’s speed was too fast for him to react.
However, he barely managed to respond to Chen Huai'an’s thrust, drawing his sword in defense.
“Falling Meteor, White Feather!”
“What?!” Luo Yun didn’t even see Chen Huai'an speak.
Or rather, the figure charging at him suddenly accelerated, moving so fast that it left only a blur in its wake.
Only a cold voice echoed in his ears.
Chen Huai'an’s black-scaled sword slithered upward, thrusting forward.
The sword tip trembled, as if it were plucking flowers and playing with jade.
With a fierce shake, he sealed off all possible paths for Luo Yun’s sword.
Luo Yun felt as if he were surrounded by a sea of sword light, his vision turning white.
As the phrase “Sword Flower, Autumn Lotus, Light Emerges from the Sheath” rang in his ears, a drop of cold sweat trickled down his forehead.
Who is this person?
Why does he possess such a powerful sword technique?
How can he, a mere Qi Refinement cultivator, easily contend with someone at the Foundation Establishment stage?
He had never heard of any ascender from that sect having such talent!
He couldn’t see where the sword was coming from, couldn’t make out the figure wielding it, only felt the killing intent closing in from all directions!
Just blocking was already pushing him to his limits.
As the saying goes, brute force can break finesse, but his full-powered strike was easily deflected, toyed with like a plaything.
Defending alone would inevitably reveal a flaw.
Moreover, he was not someone skilled in defense.
At a certain moment, the momentum of the sword suddenly shifted.
Luo Yun could no longer withstand it, and his long sword slipped from his grasp.
At that moment, a flash of cold light darted past him, unavoidable.
His vision flickered for an instant before plunging into darkness.
Chen Huai'an stood beside Luo Yun’s fallen body, his sword sheathed, blood trickling down the blade.
Fifty meters away, Li Qingran, dressed in white and carrying her sword, glanced back. Surrounding her were over a dozen corpses, blood rising to the sky.
“Not bad, your sword technique now has a bit of my might,” Chen Huai'an said with a faint smile.
His swordsmanship was at its peak.
It was even a level higher than what Li Qingran had comprehended, and he felt no embarrassment in saying so.
“I still need to learn more from you, Master,” Li Qingran replied, her fierce demeanor fading as she walked over to Chen Huai'an, standing obediently by his side.
The arrival of the Fire Cloud and the cultivators was quite timely, perfectly diffusing the awkwardness between her and her master.
Though she didn’t like these people, she still preferred to leave them intact.
“Master, what is that Fire Cloud? Do you know it?”
Reminded by Li Qingran, Chen Huai'an snapped back to reality and immediately checked his dantian.
At that moment, a small red snake was coiled before the Dragon Soul, bowing in reverence.
From its gradually fading form, it was clear that it was on the brink of death.
The Fire Cloud was merely its demon soul; its physical body had long been destroyed by the ascenders.
Noticing Chen Huai'an’s spiritual sense sweep over, the little snake struggled to turn, flicking its tongue and speaking in a low, feminine voice.
[Thank you for saving my life, Zhu Yu will never forget your kindness.]
[But Zhu Yu’s fate has come to an end; now I can only guide you to the Dragon Lord. Please forgive me.]
A glimmer of sorrow and regret flashed in the eyes of the fire snake named Zhu Yu.
It curled its body, its demonic aura spreading like mist, gradually merging with the Dragon Soul in the dantian.
Its voice grew softer and fainter:
[In the next life, I will repay your kindness, sir… Please… hurry to assist the Dragon… Dragon Lord.]
The demon soul completely dissipated.
It had sacrificed itself for the Dragon Soul.
As the holder of the Dragon Soul, Chen Huai'an also glimpsed a fragment of memory.
Zhu Yu had begun cultivating three hundred years ago, later receiving a trace of dragon energy that greatly enhanced its power.
Its mission was to guide those chosen by the Dragon Soul; it shouldn’t have needed to die, but a group of ascenders had come for it.
Luo Yun was one of them, but the one who obliterated its physical body was someone else.
That seemed to be an elder from a hidden sect, a monster who had lived from the Ming and Qing dynasties to the present, rarely seen in the world.
For three hundred years, Zhu Yu, as a demon, had never done evil; instead, it had done many good deeds.
Some climbers, not following the normal route up the mountain, would inevitably encounter danger.
It couldn’t save everyone who sought their own demise, but it would ensure the safety of those it saw.
Yet, just as it awakened with newfound insight, it was hunted down by a group of ascenders.
“So, it’s not that there was no guidance, but the guide was killed, and it barely escaped with just a demon soul?”
Chen Huai'an narrowed his eyes. “And in order to convey the message and fulfill its mission, it ended up dissipating completely…”
The Dragon Soul’s revival, Zhu Yu’s awakening and guidance, and the seemingly generous Demon Hunting Conference, combined with a group of strange ascenders.
All these events intertwined, giving a sense of deliberate orchestration.
It was only natural for cultivators to hunt demons.
He could understand humanity’s prejudice against demons and evil spirits.
But the premise was that it shouldn’t interfere with his chance to seize what rightfully belonged to him.
“I suppose I’ve come to know it,” Chen Huai'an nodded at Li Qingran, then shook his head with a sigh. “But it’s already dead, burned out.”
“Is that so? I’m sorry, Master.” Li Qingran adjusted her clothing, her gaze downcast.
“What’s there to apologize for?” Chen Huai'an squatted down, searching Luo Yun’s body.
“Master, what are you doing…” Li Qingran blinked.
Could it be that Master was investigating the other’s background, deducing secrets from the corpse?
As for searching a corpse…
A dignified Dongxu realm cultivator wouldn’t do such a thing.
“Of course I’m searching the corpse,” Chen Huai'an replied without looking up.
“Huh?” Li Qingran was taken aback.
Would a Dongxu realm cultivator really search a Foundation Establishment corpse?
Chen Huai'an’s hand froze as he realized his actions didn’t match his cultivation level.
In moments of extreme danger, adrenaline floods the system, activating a super brain for hyper-focused thinking.
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