Chapter 111: 111. Chapter 111

111. Chapter 111

Guan San is currently stroking the server; please complete your subscription to defeat him! After losing her vision, her other four senses became even sharper. The pulsing sensation of Wanjie in her hand, the sound of mana flowing through her meridians—Atian had never understood her own state as clearly as she did at this moment. She could even feel the fishy-smelling liquid flowing along the blade of Wanjie.

Oh my, this isn't going to end well, is it?

She thought distractedly, throwing herself heart and soul into perceiving the surrounding environment. The power within her body gradually gathered at her eyes, mouth, and nose. With the infusion of power and the concentration of her spirit, the scene around her gradually took shape in her mind.

This was a place similar to an underground karst cave, empty and hollow, with only hanging stalactites and sporadically distributed stalagmites as monotonous embellishments. She continued to expand her range of perception, sneaking toward the spot where "that thing" was sitting, but she gained nothing—the place she originally thought it was in was empty.

Atian immediately retracted her perception, only to discover that directly behind her, a monster with a human face, beast body, dog ears, and two green snakes coiled around it was silently opening its mouth, which was filled with layers of sharp teeth. Without a second thought, she thrust her sword backward. The sharp blade rubbed against the teeth, emitting a sound that made one's scalp tingle, and the fishy liquid gushed out, permeating the ground beneath her feet.

She turned around and stomped on the monster's lower jaw, kicking it away. The latter slammed into a nearby stalactite, its four hooves scraping the ground as it struggled violently in silence. Atian walked up to it, stepped on its shoulder, and raised her sword to pierce through its crown in one go.

A large amount of fishy liquid sprayed out. She took a step back, sensing that the commotion caused by the fight was rapidly attracting other things, and she raised her sword once more.

Atian knew this was only the beginning. She looked up toward the upper left, but it was still pitch black. Yet, for some reason, she felt that something was wrong.

"Sect Leader, Elder Li and Senior Brother Bai have arrived."

The Sword Attendant Boy's voice interrupted Duan Xuan's train of thought. The Water Mirror was playing the scene of Bai Tian bravely fighting the Shebi Corpse. He tapped his right index finger on the table a few times, rubbed his chin with his left hand, and said mysteriously to Li Ke, who had just walked over: "Junior Brother Li... don't you feel..."

"I don't." Li Ke not only coldly interrupted the Sect Master but also shut him down.

Having been fellow disciples for so many years, he knew Duan Xuan too well! If he let this Sect Master senior brother let his mind wander, they would never get to the point by this time next year.

Duan Xuan, having his topic rejected by his junior brother, wasn't angry. At his level of cultivation, it wasn't easy to get angry anymore.

As the Sect Master of the Beihai Sword Sect, Duan Xuan was not the steady middle-aged man the outside world imagined; instead, he possessed a very lively temperament, which, combined with his appearance in his prime, made him seem just like a young and vigorous youth.

"Alright, alright," Duan Xuan shrugged. The outer robe he was wearing loosely slipped off due to his movement, and his hair hung loose, the tips brushing against his shoulders. "Then I'll get straight to the point."

"According to reliable information, this year's Qingtan Assembly will be held at the Fangxian Dao on Luofu Mountain," he said, propping his head with his right hand and leaning sideways on the couch. "Oh my, that's the head of the Four Great Immortal Sects, the Fangxian Dao. I'm so scared; I don't dare to attend the meeting alone at all!"

Saying panicked words with a lazy expression—in terms of the ability to disgust people, Duan Xuan could be considered one of the best in the cultivation world. Heaven knows his so-called "reliable information" was just sending a letter to the Sect Leader of the Taixuan Sect.

"Junior Brother Li, you must accompany me. Since I'm timid, let's just bring more people and give the little brats a chance to see the world," Duan Xuan said, lying through his teeth. "Xin Li, you go too; you must protect your master well."

Bai Xinli, who was named, silently took half a step back.

"When do we depart?" Li Ke asked.

"In three days," Duan Xuan replied. "Junior Sister Luo asked me to wait for three days, so I will wait and see. Let those idiots have a few more days of fun."

When Duan Xuan said he would wait for three days, he really waited for three days. Early on the fourth day, the entire Beihai Sword Sect was in an uproar because the Sect Master was leaving the mountain gate. All the disciples scrambled to the square to see the Sect Master off, with only Luo Li and Atian missing from the crowd.

The group heading to the Qingtan Assembly was not very large. Apart from Duan Xuan and Li Ke, only about a dozen disciples led by Bai Xinli were chosen. Although it wasn't grand, it was a genuine display of heading to the assembly.

"A chance to go out with Senior Brother! And I wasn't chosen!" Zhao Kuo's desperate cry voiced the inner thoughts of many. Consequently, the disciples who were cut felt a wave of sorrow rise in their hearts, and for a time, the entire sky over the Beihai Sword Sect was filled with a sense of grief.

Meanwhile, beside the sinkhole in the Martial Arts Arena, Luo Li sat on a mountain rock, tapping her leg with her hand, singing a little tune intermittently, and occasionally peering into the bottomless sinkhole. Seeing no one, she continued to sing, shaking her head.

Just as she reached the best part of her song, a blood-stained hand reached out from under the steep rock wall, gripping Luo Li's left ankle tightly and leaving a bloody handprint on it.

"Oh?"

The woman stopped humming. She raised her eyebrows and watched as the owner of the hand slowly climbed up from the cliff that looked as if it had been carved by a knife. She saw that the girl was stained all over with blood, her dress so dirty that its original color was almost unrecognizable, and the fabric was torn in many places. However, the black sword she carried on her back, stored in a scabbard engraved with inscriptions, shone brightly in the morning light.

As soon as she climbed up, Atian collapsed to the ground as if exhausted. After three consecutive days of high-intensity fighting, even she had been pushed to her limit. Several times, she even had the illusion that she would die down there.

But it was truly exhilarating.

She squinted her eyes, the corners of her mouth curling up in satisfaction.

Bai Xinli was far too strong; fighting him would only result in being suppressed by that overwhelming power. Song Zhicheng was too weak; fighting him was just a warm-up.

This was probably the first time Bai Tian had unleashed all her power without reservation. Even covered in wounds, it was the most exhilarating battle she had ever had.

"Since you've come out, let's go. I hope we can still make it in time." Luo Li said this, only to find that Atian had no reaction. Looking closely, she realized the young girl had already fallen into a deep sleep. She laughed out loud, hoisted the person up, and hurried toward the entrance of the Floating Island.

By then, Duan Xuan's party was about to leave the island. After catching up, Luo Li shouted, "You forgot something!" and threw the sleeping Atian over, who was caught by the quick-witted Bai Xinli.

"Alright!" Duan Xuan glanced at Atian in Bai Xinli's arms and nodded. "Bring her along, let's go!"

When Atian woke up, she found herself covered in a garment, flying high in the sky. She steadied her still-dizzy head, and just as she was about to get up, she was stopped by a hand.

"Keep it on, it's cold on the sword."

Bai Xinli, who was not wearing his outer robe, sat beside her, and the object beneath them was naturally his Wuo Sword.

"Master saw that you were exhausted, so he asked me to bring you along," he explained.

"Where are we going?" Atian asked blankly.

"To attend the Qingtan Assembly." Bai Xinli thought for a moment; he wasn't sure if the word "attend" was appropriate.

Atian didn't ask what the Qingtan Assembly was; she wasn't that curious anyway. Bai Xinli was right, it was very cold on the sword. Although she had reached Foundation Establishment, she couldn't ignore the bitter cold like he could, so she could only silently wrap herself tighter in his outer robe.

Afterward, an awkward silence hung between the two.

Bai Xinli was not a total stranger to Atian, but they could by no means be called familiar; they couldn't even find a topic for small talk.

To Atian's surprise, it was Bai Xinli who broke the silence first. "You... have you been living with Mom and Dad all these years?"

"Mm." Atian nodded.

"Then can you tell me... how have Mom and Dad been all these years?" A rare look of hesitation and embarrassment appeared on Bai Xinli's face.

This feeling was fresh to Bai Tian. The only serious interaction she had with Bai Xinli before was in the Stone Chamber. Perhaps no one would believe it, but at that time, although she was defeated in terms of strength, she held the upper hand in terms of position—it was Bai Xinli who needed her, not her who needed Bai Xinli.

And now, they had another chance to interact. She suddenly realized that the young man before her, despite his astonishing Sword Cultivation, was only two years older than her.

Atian naturally wouldn't refuse Bai Xinli's request. She began to recall every bit of her life with the Bai couple, from their preferences to the trivialities of daily life. When she spoke of how Lady Bai disciplined Master Bai, the young man beside her softened his brows and eyes, the corners of his mouth curving slightly—it was vaguely a smile.

Bai Tian suddenly became curious. "Senior Brother, do you ever miss home?"

Hearing this, Bai Xinli pursed his lips. "I missed it a lot at first, and even made a fuss, but as time went on, I got used to it."

"Then have you never thought about going back to visit?"

She continued to ask, earning a deep look from him.

"I cannot go back, nor should I go back."

"Why?"

Bai Xinli did not answer her. Instead, the Wuo Sword beneath them suddenly jolted. Atian looked up abruptly and discovered that, without realizing it, the two of them had been surrounded by a group of men in black. These men in black held various strange magical artifacts, and the leader among them cried out in a weird voice: "Bai Xinli! Hand over your life..."