Chapter Fifty-Eight: The Elder in Black

Chapter Fifty-Eight: The Elder in Black
Chapter Nine: Sword Qi Pierces the Heavens—Teng Caiyan and Xiongjie Sharpen Their Hearts Across the Nine Provinces (Part Four)

Li Ruolan cried out in alarm, “Watch your chest!” Indeed, the elder in black deftly twisted his right claw and lunged at Ye Hua’s chest with startling speed. Ye Hua dodged at the very last moment, cold sweat breaking out across his body. The elder in black chuckled darkly, “You have some insight, girl, but alas!”

His right claw suddenly expanded, reaching Li Ruolan in an instant. Having just exhausted herself with the Great Annihilation Sound, Li Ruolan was now weak and could barely resist. Seeing the attack coming, she could only sigh inwardly and close her eyes, awaiting death. Unexpectedly, a pained groan sounded; she opened her eyes to see the elder’s claw gripping Ye Hua’s palm instead. Ye Hua, seeing Li Ruolan unable to evade, had gritted his teeth and leapt in front of her.

At that moment, the elder’s fingers pulsed with a crimson glow, while Ye Hua’s left palm radiated golden light, spreading like a resplendent golden canopy. Li Ruolan exclaimed softly, “The Little Sumeru Palm!”

The elder snorted coldly. Ye Hua felt the elder’s internal energy was far beyond his expectations; in mere moments, his left palm’s meridians were shattered, and the elder’s strange, domineering energy invaded his dantian and qi sea.

Unable to help himself, Ye Hua spat out a mouthful of blood, spraying it directly at the elder in black, some droplets even entering the elder’s mouth. The elder tasted the blood, unconcerned, and prepared to strike again, when suddenly a wave of dizziness swept over him. His expression changed drastically. “There’s demon poison in this blood!” He quickly released Ye Hua’s hand, retreated, and hurriedly took several pills from his robes, swallowing them.

Ye Hua found it odd that the elder had released him while he was at death’s door, but also felt relieved. He noticed a faint layer of black energy on the elder’s face, muscles twitching and writhing in a grotesque manner. Meanwhile, his own dantian was filled with the elder’s invasive, bizarre energy, internal forces boiling. He hastily activated the Sixfold Mystic Heaven technique to resolve and reclaim his energy through the meridians.

The elder in black stood at a distance, watching them intently. Ye Hua and his companions dared not move, each wondering silently, “What’s happened to this elder in black? How strange!”

Li Ruolan whispered to Ye Hua, “Brother, are your wounds serious? I am deeply grateful for your rescue.” Ye Hua turned slightly to look at Li Ruolan, finally seeing her face clearly—her cherry lips, white teeth, delicate skin like ice, arched brows, graceful as a flower. He was momentarily stunned, blushing, and lowered his head. “Sister Li, we’re of the same sect, there’s no need for such formality!”

Li Ruolan glanced at Li Ningyue and the woman surnamed Tang, then turned to Ye Hua. “Brother, soon I’ll hold off the enemy. You must seize the chance to take Sister Li and Sister Tang away quickly!” Ye Hua protested, “Sister Li, I should be the one to hold the enemy off, you should take—”

Before he could finish, the elder in black, looking somewhat recovered, grinned ferociously. “Little thief, you dare poison me and think you’ll escape!? Ha ha!” Ye Hua was taken aback, “Poison!” Suddenly he realized, “It must be demon snake venom; I refined the demon snake’s inner pill and poisonous energy, so my blood must carry some traces!”

Ye Hua was about to reply when a shrill cry echoed from above. A giant eagle, five or six zhang in length, swept down, still dozens of zhang from the ground, yet already stirring a wild gale and sending sand and stones flying. Ye Hua exclaimed joyously, “Xiaoyao!”

The great bird flicked its wings; dozens of wind blades shot toward the elder in black. The elder was shocked and furious, “What demon beast is this!” Crossing his hands in rapid claws, he conjured a barrage of crimson light to meet the oncoming wind blades. Though these blades appeared ordinary, they were incredibly fierce; as they clashed with the elder’s Blood Condensing Claws, a tearing sound filled the air, the forces evenly matched.

The giant eagle twisted its body with incredible speed, its talons lunging downward. The elder’s red glow shuddered, breaking apart. His expression changed, realizing the newcomer was a formidable foe, and with the unknown poison in his body, he feared he would not fare well today.

White light flashed; a single blade appeared, slashing at the eagle several times. While the giant bird dodged, the elder glanced at Ye Hua and the others, malice flashing in his eyes. He raised his left hand, shooting a crimson sphere toward the group. He cackled as black energy surged around him, fleeing into the distance.

The sphere had barely reached halfway when the four sensed its explosive power. Li Ruolan cried out, “Ashura Pearl! Quickly, dodge! Brother, no!” The Ashura Pearl was swift; under normal circumstances, the four could easily evade, but now they were all gravely injured and lacked the strength. Ye Hua knew his agility might let him escape, but the other three would surely perish. Without hesitation, he activated Ghost Shadow Evasion, darting forward to meet the Ashura Pearl, holding a golden bell in his hand. He quickly covered the sphere, and a thunderous explosion shook the earth, a burst of lightning engulfing his form.

Li Ruolan and Li Ningyue screamed in alarm. Seeing lightning soar skyward, their hearts ached. “This junior brother, whom I barely know, has sacrificed himself for us! With the Ashura Pearl’s power, surely not even bones will remain!” The two exchanged glances, both sorrowful and despondent.

The giant eagle, seeing its foe flee as black smoke and Ye Hua crushed by the Ashura Pearl, assumed Ye Hua was dead. Though they shared a bloodline connection, the eagle sensed Ye Hua had no life signs, but perhaps he was gravely injured and near death. The eagle, both shocked and enraged, unwilling to accept it, beat its wings and soared after the fleeing elder!

Li Ruolan gazed at the distant lightning, murmuring, “This junior brother must be from North Terrace! The Little Sumeru Palm he used is only practiced by those who follow the Path of Bitter Saint.”

Li Ningyue suddenly realized, “No wonder he looked familiar. Now I remember—during the contest with Ling Yun’er of North Terrace, I saw him among the disciples! But, but…”

The woman surnamed Tang sighed, “Sisters from Five Terrace, what’s done is done. Let’s not delay—let’s hurry to Dafulingjiu Temple, lest more trouble arise!”

Li Ruolan nodded, “That’s all we can do. Let’s leave at once! Sister, you flew thousands of li to bring news; we must not delay! Let’s hurry back!” She turned to Li Ningyue, “Sister, you escort Sister Tang back to Dafulingjiu Temple. The road ahead should be safe now! I’ll wait a bit longer and bring our junior brother’s body back to Five Terrace.”

Li Ningyue hesitated for a moment, then said, “Sister Li, why don’t you take Sister Tang back, and I… I’ll bring our junior brother’s body home.”

Li Ruolan gazed at Li Ningyue for a long time, then looked back at the dwindling thunderclouds, finally nodding and sighing gently, “That’s fine. Sister, be very careful! Sister Tang, let’s go.” She went forward to support Tang, and together they flew off.

Li Ningyue watched them vanish into two streaks of white light, then slowly turned to the distant thundercloud, lowering her head to survey the scene. After the fierce battle, what had once been a garden of several acres was now nearly destroyed, petals strewn across the ground, red and white intermingled, glistening with summer dew, like the tears of a beautiful maiden, inexplicably stirring the heart.

She did not know how much time had passed; Li Ningyue simply stared at the thundercloud as it gradually dissipated, revealing the scene within. Reluctant to look, she forced herself to do so. At the center of the thundercloud stood a figure, holding something unknown, golden light radiating, drawing in the thunder’s power. The figure’s body was charred black.

When the Ashura Pearl exploded, white light flashed; Ye Hua’s purple-gold bell covered the sphere, yet his body was struck as if by ten thousand bolts of lightning, pain searing him, as if scorched by fire. Looking at the three distant women, his mind inexplicably conjured Ling Yun’er’s smiling face, as if she were saying, “Little brother, what kind of flower is the Manzi Suolan? I must see it someday!”

“Does senior sister know I came here to pick flowers for her? Will she ever see the Manzi Suolan? Perhaps… perhaps she never will!” A wave of dizziness swept through his mind, and he lost consciousness.

The purple-gold bell radiated dazzling violet light, barely containing the power of the Ashura Pearl. This bell had been acquired from the Fire God, an Upper Yuan Jade Spirit Treasure infused with ghostly power day and night, exceedingly strange. Ye Hua had never fully unleashed its power, and its usual strength was great, but not to this extent.

In the face of life and death, he had gambled everything, and the latent powers of the bell were awakened, thanks to Ye Hua’s unique cultivation, allowing him to narrowly escape death.

Before the lightning had fully dissipated, Li Ningyue had already floated forward. As the thunder faded and the figure at the center began to collapse, she rushed to catch him, cradling him in her arms. His face was charred black, seemingly lifeless, but upon closer inspection, his lips moved faintly.

Li Ningyue’s heart trembled, hands shaking as she gently rocked him, whispering, “Brother! Brother!” She hurriedly took several golden pills from her robe and fed them to him. After a while, the man in her arms seemed to awaken slightly, muttering in his sleep—something about the Manzi Suolan…