Chapter 94: There’s A Way
Elder Mei watched the approaching sword with widening eyes, his body twisting desperately as he barely managed to dodge the attack. How could this have happened? He had thought Li Yao was strong, but never imagined she was this powerful. And where did she get that strange sword from?
His mind raced with panicked thoughts as he found himself continuously pushed back, unable to land a single hit while defending against her relentless assault. If this continued, he might actually die here.
"Wait! Wait! You can’t kill me!" he shouted, voice cracking with desperation. "My men have your senior brother. If I die, he will too!"
The words caused Li Yao to pause mid-strike.
Elder Mei struggled to maintain his composure, internally relieved his bluff had worked. In truth, he had no idea what had happened to his men—somehow they had been eliminated. Perhaps there was more to Xiang Yu than met the eye. But Li Yao didn’t know that the men had already perished. According to his intelligence, the sect genius was hopelessly in love with her senior brother.
"Now then, what are you going to do?" he thought, a smug smile spreading across his face.
Then his expression froze as his smile literally split in two. "Huh?" He suddenly realized what had happened—Li Yao had swung her sword regardless, cleaving him cleanly in half.
As his consciousness faded, final thoughts flickered through his mind: How was this possible? Wasn’t she supposed to be in love with her senior brother? Why didn’t she care about him? Was the information wrong?
After killing Elder Mei, Li Yao floated high into the sky. She raised her hand toward the heavens, and in the next moment, lightning began to gather in her palm. The energy accumulated until it formed a massive sphere of crackling electricity. The ball of lightning then began to move, raining down countless bolts onto the battlefield below.
Many scattered in terror, diving for cover, only to realize that the lightning selectively targeted only the demonic cultivators. The surviving sect members watched in awe as their enemies were struck down one by one. Hope blossomed across their faces—they were going to survive after all.
Li Yao observed her handiwork with satisfaction. In her elemental form, her lightning affinity was dramatically enhanced, allowing her to eliminate all enemies with this single devastating attack. Though she had to admit, the technique was incredibly draining. She turned her attention inward, addressing the Empress.
"Are you sure about what you said earlier?" she asked.
[Don’t worry, with my recovered soul strength, I can easily spread my divine sense throughout the Azure Cloud Sword Sect,] the Empress replied confidently. [Your senior brother is okay. He is the only person in the pavilion.]
After just a few minutes all the remaining demonic cultivators were eliminated. Li Yao descended toward her master and martial aunt.
"Master?" she approached tentatively, concern etched across her features.
"I’m okay, just a scratch," Elder Guo insisted as he attempted to move from Elder Huang’s supporting grasp, only to stumble backward into her arms.
"I told you to stop moving," Elder Huang scolded, tightening her hold on him.
"Master, your cultivation..." Li Yao began, but Elder Guo raised his hand to stop her.
"It’s okay. It was bound to happen at some point," he said with resignation in his voice.
Elder Huang glanced at Li Yao’s worried expression. "I see that you’re concerned," she said softly. "Why don’t you go check on your senior brother? I’ll look after the old man." She offered a reassuring smile, and Li Yao nodded gratefully before flying away.
"Who are you calling old man?" Elder Guo protested weakly.
Elder Huang just laughed, "Now that you’ve lost your cultivation, you’ll grow old faster..." Her voice suddenly trailed off, tears welling up and streaming down her cheeks.
Without his cultivation, he would age like an ordinary mortal. He had already lived far beyond a normal human lifespan. Did this mean he was going to die soon?
Seeing her distress, Elder Guo averted his gaze toward the Celestial Summit Peak—the Sect Master’s peak. "There is nothing we can do about it," he said quietly. His eyes moved to the sect members struggling to recover from the battle. "At least the sect survived," he added softly, before finishing with, "for now."
Suddenly, Elder Huang’s eyes brightened with realization. "Wait, there is something we can do about it!" Without warning, she pushed him to the ground and ripped open his already tattered shirt.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Elder Guo asked in alarm. Had this woman decided to sleep with him and bear his children now that he was facing mortality? Not that he minded, but... His eyes darted to the side, noticing the large crowd of onlookers witnessing this scene. "Not in front of everyone," he protested, cheeks burning with embarrassment.
"What are you talking about?" Elder Huang looked genuinely confused by his reaction. "Anyway, let me test your spiritual root." She placed her palm against his exposed abdomen and injected a stream of qi, carefully sensing what lay within.
"It’s just as I thought—it’s still there!" she exclaimed triumphantly.
Elder Guo, thoroughly embarrassed now, pushed her off him. "So what if it’s there? The golden core has already exploded, and the qi pathways are destroyed..." He hurriedly donned a new shirt that had been offered to him.
Then understanding dawned on him. "Xiang Yu," he whispered.
"That’s right! Just like before, he can help you recover the broken qi pathways," she confirmed excitedly. "But since the core is broken, you’ll have to form a new one. Basically, you’ll have to start from scratch."
"Quick, let’s go talk to him!" She jumped to her feet and, before he could protest, scooped Elder Guo up in a princess carry.
"Wait!" he objected frantically, but she ignored his complaints and flew off with him held in this embarrassing position.
"I should’ve just died," Elder Guo thought miserably, hiding his face behind his hands. "How can I have any dignity left after this?"
...
Xiang Yu sat immersed in the spirit spring, his body perfectly still in deep meditation. The multicolored waters swirled gently around him, continuing to heal his remaining injuries and replenish his depleted energy. Suddenly, his eyes snapped open, alert and focused. Dawn was approaching—just a few minutes away according to his internal clock.
He had stopped cultivating because of a growing uneasiness that he couldn’t shake. The silence outside was unnatural and concerning. He couldn’t hear the commotion happening below the peak anymore. The complete absence of noise felt more ominous than any battlefield clamor.
Should he go down to check the situation? The question lingered in his mind as he weighed his options carefully. But what if enemies still lurked outside? He had already exhausted most of his resources in the earlier battle. He didn’t have any more talismans.
It wasn’t that he didn’t care—despite having transmigrated into this body, he possessed all the memories and emotions of his predecessor. Genuine concern for his junior sister, his master, and his martial aunt nagged at him persistently. Their faces flashed through his mind, heightening his anxiety.
Yet he also recognized the harsh reality of his situation. Even if he went down there now, what difference could he make? He was still too weak to face Core Formation cultivators directly, especially if they came in numbers.
Just as these troubled thoughts circled through his mind, a familiar voice called out, piercing the silence.
"Senior brother, where are you?"
Li Yao’s voice echoed through the pavilion.
Relief washed over him immediately. She was alive and apparently well enough to search for him. If she was freely moving about, the immediate danger must have passed.
He quickly climbed out of the spirit spring, retrieved fresh clothes from his spatial ring and dressed swiftly. After ensuring the spirit vein remained hidden, he emerged from the concealed cave entrance.
...
Author’s Corner:
Volume 1 will be ending tomorrow or the day after that.
Any name suggestions for the volume?