At this moment, Chu Li’s mind was completely free of distracting thoughts.
She lifted her delicate face, still glistening with tears like pear blossoms after rain, her red lips parting slightly.
Lu Qingxuan casually waved his hand.
Buzz—
An invisible barrier instantly enveloped the entire Main Hall.
Outside, clouds drifted and shifted; inside, time flowed differently, forming a world of its own.
…
Seven days later.
When the barrier surrounding the Main Hall quietly dissipated, morning light streamed through the window lattice, falling upon a jade-like body damp with fragrant sweat, scattering into faint shimmering halos.
Chu Li reclined against the high seat, her long hair cascading like a waterfall, disheveled behind her.
Not a trace of strength remained in her body. Every inch of her skin radiated exhaustion, yet her exquisitely beautiful face was filled with unprecedented satisfaction and joy.
Looking inward, within her Dantian Qi Sea, the vortex of spiritual energy had already reached the 8th stage of the Foundation Establishment Realm!
From the 3rd stage to the 8th stage of the Foundation Establishment Realm!
In just seven days, she had crossed five realms!
What a terrifying rate of improvement!
During the first three days, it was almost one breakthrough per day, unstoppable like a force of nature, immersing her in the exhilarating sensation of power surging wildly.
Only when she reached the 7th stage did the speed slow slightly, yet it still took merely two days to break through.
If such a cultivation speed were made known, it would drive the entire Lizhou cultivation world into madness!
And all of this… came from the man beside her.
She turned her head, gazing at Lu Qingxuan with infatuation.
So this was the might of a Divine Transformation Ancestor…
Awe deepened in her heart. Struggling to rise and bow, her voice, weakened by exhaustion, came out soft and gentle, “Master… thank you for your divine technique. Only because of you could Li’er’s cultivation realm…”
“No need to thank me.”
Lu Qingxuan lifted a cup of spirit tea and took a sip, “This is all your own hard-earned effort.”
“Ah?”
Chu Li was momentarily stunned. Then the double meaning of his words spread through her mind.
A rush of heat surged to her head, making her already flushed cheeks burn even hotter, her ears turning red.
She buried her face shyly into her arms, yet her heart fluttered like a startled deer, filled with a strange sweetness.
Master… he could joke too.
Lu Qingxuan set down the teacup, his tone returning to calm, “Seven days are up. Go freshen up and prepare to depart. Don’t keep your senior brothers waiting too long.” This story is hosted at novelping(.)com.
“Yes, Master.”
Chu Li obediently responded. Supporting her sore and weakened body, she changed into a moon-white dress and stepped out of the hall with graceful movements.
As she exited, she immediately saw Su Qingyan waiting outside.
Su Qingyan was still dressed in her usual white robes, her expression cold and composed. Yet the moment she saw Chu Li, a ripple of emotion inevitably passed through her calm eyes.
At this moment, Chu Li’s face was like blooming peach blossoms, her eyes shimmering with moisture.
Though Su Qingyan had never experienced such matters herself, how could she not understand what had transpired during these seven days?
In fact, she had come to wait here every day. Each time she saw the tightly shut doors, her cheeks would faintly heat up.
“Sect Master.”
Su Qingyan composed herself and bowed respectfully toward the hall.
Lu Qingxuan appeared at the entrance, his gaze falling upon her.
“Qingyan, this time, you will lead the team to the Demon Emperor Inheritance.”
“This disciple understands.”
Su Qingyan nodded, then could not help but ask, “Master, will you not go personally? The Demon Emperor Inheritance is no trivial matter. The Ancestors of various sects may…”
For such a grand event, her master, as the pillar of the Azure Immortal Sect, should logically oversee matters personally to prevent unforeseen incidents.
Lu Qingxuan only smiled faintly, “I have more important matters that require my personal attention.”
He offered no further explanation, and Su Qingyan wisely did not press.
Her master always had his reasons.
Still, confusion lingered in her heart.
Across all of Lizhou, what opportunity could be more important than the Demon Emperor Inheritance, enough for her master to forgo overseeing the sect and act personally?
…
Soul-Breaking Mountain Range.
In just seven days, a magnificent city had already risen here.
Cultivators and merchants came and went in endless streams, brushing shoulders with one another, each carrying a trace of excitement on their faces.
At the city gate stood a newly erected white jade stele, upon which two bold characters were engraved—“Xuanqing.”
“Ancestor Qingxuan truly embodies benevolence! Have you heard? This city’s name is taken from his name to honor his achievements!”
“More than that! I heard if not for Ancestor Qingxuan, we unaffiliated cultivators wouldn’t even have the chance to enter the Demon Emperor Inheritance!”
“Exactly! The Azure Immortal Sect has also declared that anyone entering Xuanqing City will be under its protection. Such magnanimity, such bearing—it truly lives up to being a model of the righteous path!”
Amid the crowd’s discussions, a figure cloaked in a wide black robe and hood slowly entered the city along with the flow of people.
Beneath the shadow of the hood, a pair of eyes burned with a silent, icy flame.
Benevolent?
What a ridiculous joke.
A hypocrite who could take a life with a flick of his finger had, in the blink of an eye, become a revered and benevolent Ancestor, protecting all?
His ability to disguise himself was truly flawless.
If not for his own tenacious fate, he would have already become just another wandering soul beneath that so-called benevolence.
Thinking of this, Ye Fan’s mind drifted back to that life-and-death moment seven days ago.
The Heavenly Demon Dissolution Escape Technique—burning essence blood and soul in exchange for extreme speed.
Forcibly activating it twice was no different from drinking poison to quench thirst.
When he plunged into a hidden demonic beast cave deep within the Soul-Breaking Mountain Range, his final trace of strength vanished.
His meridians shattered inch by inch. The spiritual energy in his Dantian dissipated completely. The cultivation he had painstakingly built over years vanished within mere hours.
That kind of weakness and despair—worse than that of a mortal—was enough to shatter even the firmest dao heart.
Just as he believed he was doomed, he discovered a strange plant in the deepest part of the cave.
The plant was entirely crimson, shaped like a reborn phoenix, rooted quietly upon a small cluster of flames emitting scorching heat.
“This is… Nirvana Phoenix Lotus! Heaven is helping you! Boy, quick! Swallow it!”
Ye Fan didn’t even have the strength to pick it. Using his last bit of will, he swallowed the Nirvana Phoenix Lotus along with the surrounding soil.
The terrifying medicinal power exploded within him instantly!
The pain far surpassed that of shattered meridians.
It felt as though he had been thrown into a furnace of molten lava. His organs, limbs, and every inch of flesh were being burned!
He fainted from the pain, only to awaken again amidst agony.
This cycle repeated countless times.
Just as he was about to be completely torn apart by the violent power, the remnant soul of the Medicine Saint forcefully guided the energy, reconstructing his ruined body.
Destruction before rebirth—nirvana rebirth!
When Ye Fan opened his eyes again, everything within him had transformed.
His shattered meridians had been widened and reinforced several times over, becoming incomparably resilient.
His originally ordinary mortal body had been forcibly refined into a crystal-clear Spirit Body by the tyrannical medicinal power of the Nirvana Phoenix Lotus.
Not only was his cultivation fully restored, but he had also broken through the bottleneck in one stroke, stepping into the Foundation Establishment Realm!
As for the flame upon which the Nirvana Phoenix Lotus depended—a phoenix-shaped exotic flame—it had been forcibly suppressed and refined into his body by the Medicine Saint using the last of his soul power, becoming the first beast fire within his Dantian.
It was precisely with the help of this beast fire that he completely refined the remaining medicinal power of the Nirvana Phoenix Lotus.
His cultivation surged from the 1st stage of the Foundation Establishment Realm, stabilizing firmly at the 7th stage!
The price was that the Medicine Saint’s soul power was completely exhausted, falling into deep slumber. No matter how Ye Fan called out, there was no longer any response from within the ring.