Chapter 128: 128. Chapter 128

128. Chapter 128

Guan San is currently stroking the server; please complete your subscription to defeat him! This was a place similar to an underground karst cave, empty and vast, with only hanging stalactites and sporadically distributed stalagmites as monotonous embellishments. She continued to expand her range of perception, stealthily sneaking toward the position where "that thing" was sitting, but she gained nothing—the place she had originally assumed was empty.

Atian immediately retracted her perception, and then discovered 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, behind her. Without a second thought, she thrust her sword out backhanded. The sharp blade rubbed against the sharp teeth, emitting a sound that made one's scalp tingle, and a foul-smelling liquid gushed out, permeating the ground beneath her feet.

She turned around and stepped 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 in front of it, stepped on its shoulder, and raised her sword to pierce through its crown in one go.

A large amount of foul-smelling 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 again.

Atian knew that this was only the beginning. She looked up toward the upper left, but it was still pitch black. Yet, for some reason, she always 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, stroked 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's words but also blocked them.

Having been fellow disciples for so many years, he understood Duan Xuan too well! If he were to let this Sect Master senior brother let his mind wander, they would likely not be able to get to the point by this time next year.

Duan Xuan, whose topic was rejected by his junior brother, was not angry. At his level of cultivation, it was not easy to get angry even if he wanted to.

As the Sect Master of the Beihai Sword Sect, Duan Xuan was not the steady middle-aged man imagined by the outside world; 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 was disheveled, the tips brushing against his shoulders. "Then I'll get straight to the point."

"According to reliable information, this year's Qingtan Assembly has been decided to be held at the Fangxian Dao on Luofu Mountain," he said, resting his head on his right hand and leaning sideways on the couch. "Oh my, that is 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 Master of the Taixuan Sect.

"Junior Brother Li, you must accompany me. Anyway, I'm timid, so let's bring more people to give the little brats a chance to see the world," Duan Xuan said nonsense with his eyes open. "Xin Li, you go too, and you must protect your master well."

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

"When are we leaving?" 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 good time for a few more days."

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 team heading to the Qingtan Assembly was not very large. Apart from Duan Xuan and Li Ke, they only picked a dozen or so disciples led by Bai Xinli. Although it was not grand, it was a genuine display of heading to the assembly.

"A chance to go out with Senior Brother! Yet I wasn't chosen!" Zhao Kuo's desperate shouting voiced the inner thoughts of many people. Consequently, the disciples who were cut felt sorrow rising from their hearts, and for a time, the sky above the entire Beihai Sword Sect was filled with a sorrowful atmosphere.

At the same time, beside the sinkhole in the Martial Arts Arena, Luo Li sat on a mountain rock, tapping a rhythm on her leg with her hand, singing a little tune intermittently, and occasionally peeking at the bottomless sinkhole. Seeing no one, she continued to shake her head and sing.

Just as she was singing the best part, a hand covered in blood stretched out from under the steep rock wall, grabbing Luo Li's left ankle tightly, leaving a bloody handprint on it.

"Oh?"

The woman stopped humming. She raised her eyebrows and watched the owner of this hand slowly climb up from the cliff that looked like it had been carved by knives and axes. She saw that her whole body was stained with blood, her dress was so dirty that its original color was almost unrecognizable, and the fabric was damaged in many places. However, the long black sword she carried on her back was stored in a scabbard engraved with inscriptions, shining brightly under 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 narrowed her eyes, the corners of her mouth curling up in satisfaction.

Bai Xinli was far stronger than her; fighting him would only result in being suppressed by that overwhelming power. Song Zhicheng was too weak; fighting him was only enough to warm up.

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

"Since you're out, let's go. I hope we can still make it in time." Luo Li said this, but found that Atian had no reaction. Looking closely, she realized that the young girl had already fainted. She laughed heartily, directly hoisted the person up, and hurried toward the entrance of the Floating Island.

At that time, Duan Xuan's group was about to leave the island. After Luo Li caught up, she shouted, "You forgot something!" and threw the unconscious Atian over, who was caught by the quick-witted Bai Xinli.

"Fine!" 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 piece of clothing, 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 covered, it's cold on the sword."

Bai Xinli, who was not wearing his outer robe, sat beside her, and what they were under was naturally his Wuo Sword.

"Master saw you were tired, so he let me bring you along," he explained.

"Where are we going?" Atian asked blankly.

"To attend the Qingtan Assembly." Bai Xinli thought for a moment; he didn't know if it was appropriate to use the word "attend."

Atian did not pursue 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 could not ignore the severe cold like him and could only silently wrap herself tighter in his outer robe.

Afterward, an awkwardness stretched between the two.

Bai Xinli was not a total stranger to Atian, but they could definitely not be called familiar either; they couldn't even find a topic for small talk.

To Atian's surprise, it was Bai Xinli who broke the silence first. "Have you... lived 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 time she and Bai Xinli had a serious exchange before was in the Stone Chamber. Perhaps no one would believe it, but at that time, although she was utterly defeated in terms of strength, she held the upper hand in terms of stance—it was Bai Xinli who had a request of her, not her who had a request of Bai Xinli.

And now, they had another chance to communicate. She suddenly realized that the youth before her, even with his astonishing Sword Cultivation, was only two years older than her.

Atian naturally would not 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 life. When she mentioned how Lady Bai disciplined Master Bai, the youth beside her softened his brows and eyes, the corners of his mouth slightly curved, vaguely forming a smile.

Bai Tian suddenly became curious. "Senior Brother, do you also have times when you miss home?"

Hearing this, Bai Xinli pursed his lips. "I missed it very much at first, and even made a fuss. As time went by, I got used to it."

"Then have you never thought about going back to take a look?"

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

"I can't go back, and I must not go back."

"Why?"

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

He couldn't finish his sentence, and his companions couldn't speak either. The crisscrossing Sword Qi tore them to pieces in an instant, and blood droplets fell like rain.

Atian looked at the youth beside her in astonishment, not because he had ended multiple lives in the blink of an eye, but because at the moment he struck, she felt that "Bai Xinli" had disappeared. Even though his body was still in place, she just felt that there was no one beside her.

"In this world, there are forty-eight fellow Daoists whose paths are incompatible with mine; therefore, it can only be a fight to the death."