Self-Destruction!

Liu Xin had once been nothing more than an ordinary disciple one could find anywhere in the First Saint Sect, living the life of a workhorse every day—doing missions, cultivating, and paying off loans.

Until one chance encounter completely changed his fate.

It began with a bounty mission posted by a True Disciple. He wanted to explore a cave dwelling left behind by a predecessor and happened to be short of a few cannon fodder scouts.

Liu Xin had not known the full story. Drawn by the mission's reward, he joined the exploration party. By the time he realized he was actually cannon fodder, it was already too late. The True Disciple could only force him into the cave dwelling, yet he discovered that every restriction within it was strangely ineffective against him.

He obtained the opportunity without obstruction all the way through.

It was a golden casket. Inside lay the "Primordial Dao Scripture" and the Primordial Breath Ten Thousand Spirit Banner, while beside them was a letter left behind by the former master of the cave dwelling.

In the letter, the cave dwelling's master called himself the "Primordial Loose Cultivator."

The Dao Book and magical treasure in the casket had been left for a destined person. He had calculated that this person would be a Sacred Sect True Disciple with the character "Xin" in his name.

Yet he refused to accept it.

In the letter, the Primordial Loose Cultivator cursed the First Saint Sect's shamelessness. Without fate, they insisted there was fate, forcibly binding the karma of his inheritance to a Sacred Sect True Disciple.

That was why he had deliberately muddled the karma and given the inheritance to Liu Xin instead.

Moreover, the letter made it clear that after obtaining the magical treasure, Liu Xin would face a life-and-death calamity. Thus, a means of breaking the deadlock had also been left for him within the cave dwelling.

In the original karma, false "Xin" was not true "Xin," so Liu Xin had become someone else's cannon fodder, a mere treasure-delivering boy. Yet under the Primordial Loose Cultivator's deliberate arrangements, Liu Xin instead obtained the opportunity and even let the dove occupy the magpie's nest, turning around to kill that True Disciple.

It had been a soul-stirring night.

When the sun rose, only Liu Xin walked out of the Primordial Loose Cultivator's cave dwelling. From then on, he had shed his mortal shell and exchanged his bones, while that Sacred Sect True Disciple vanished without a trace.

However, Liu Xin had not completely killed him.

Instead, with the help of the backup measures left by the Primordial Loose Cultivator, he had refined that Sacred Sect True Disciple alive and turned him into the strongest Banner Spirit in his possession.

The Banner fluttered, and a figure in billowing black robes emerged. Yet rather than looking at Lu Yang first, he surveyed his surroundings with a nostalgic expression.

"The strong devour the weak, disciples slaughter one another. The Sacred Sect truly is still that familiar Sacred Sect."

"Senior Brother, have you been well?" Liu Xin cupped his hands.

"You incompetent fool, have you encountered another formidable enemy you cannot handle?" The black-robed figure sneered disdainfully. "Giving you the Primordial Dao Scripture was truly a waste."

"I cannot compare with Senior Brother."

Liu Xin did not get angry and remained respectful. "This man is a Sword Cultivator, and he has also cultivated the Heavenly Demon Blood-Dissolving Divine Light. This junior brother truly is no match for him."

"The Heavenly Demon Blood-Dissolving Divine Light?" The black-robed figure froze upon hearing this, his expression turning somewhat more serious. Then he shook his head. "To cultivate that divine ability successfully, he is indeed someone of note. Unfortunately, he has put his efforts in the wrong direction and labored in vain. According to our agreement, this is already the third time I have acted."

"Senior Brother sees clearly."

Liu Xin nodded. "After this matter, I will let Senior Brother enter Reincarnation. With Senior Brother's Merit and foundation, I believe you will surely be able to return to the Dao Path after reincarnating."

"Fine."

Only then did the black-robed figure turn around and look toward Lu Yang.

Lu Yang and Xiao Shiye had little reaction to this scene, but Fairy Qingchen's eyes widened as she stared fixedly at the black-robed figure.

She was no newly initiated disciple.

At first, she had merely felt that the black-robed figure looked somewhat familiar. Yet when his Aura truly erupted, she suddenly woke with a start and recognized him.

"It's Chen Xin'an, Senior Brother Chen!?"

The son of the Peak Master of Mending Heaven Peak, one of the Four Inner Peaks! The missing True Disciple!

After Chen Xin'an vanished back then, the Peak Master of Heaven Mending had flown into a towering rage. He personally deduced the karma, yet found nothing at all, causing an enormous uproar.

Who would have thought he was actually in Senior Brother Liu's hands?

For a moment, Fairy Qingchen's expression changed slightly, as if she had thought of something. She then instinctively retreated several steps, preparing to widen the distance between herself and Liu Xin.

Splat!

A blade went in and came out. Fairy Qingchen's pretty face was blank as she stared dully at the hand plunged into her lower abdomen. Then her head tilted to one side, and she lost all breath.

She had died again.

"What a pity. Since you saw it, I cannot leave you alive."

As Fairy Qingchen died, the surrounding formation immediately wavered. However, as Liu Xin activated the Ten Thousand Spirit Banner, Fairy Qingchen's corpse promptly fell into the Banner.

Before long, an entirely uninjured Fairy Qingchen walked out of the Banner, having unexpectedly become a Banner Spirit.

Although becoming a Banner Spirit imposed many more restrictions than when she had been alive, she could still preside over the formation and quickly stabilized the wavering formation.

At the same time, Chen Xin'an, the black-robed True Disciple, arrived before Lu Yang.

"Hm?"

As Lu Yang looked at Chen Xin'an, his gaze immediately narrowed. The other party's cultivation was not high, only at the Qi Refining Seventh Layer like him, but he gave off an entirely different feeling.

Chen Xin'an also glanced at Lu Yang and shook his head. "The Yin-Yang Great Joy Ode is a dual-cultivation method. Its essence lies in mastering three thousand women, yet your True Qi is muddled beyond measure. One look tells me it was not obtained through dual cultivation. The Yin-Yang Dragon-Tiger Qi, originally Fifth Grade, has fallen into your hands and is at most Sixth Grade now."

That assessment made warning bells blare wildly in Lu Yang's heart.

"May I ask who you are?"

"My name is Chen Xin'an. I have no choice but to act this time, but if you can escape, bring news of me back to Mending Heaven Peak. My father will surely reward you greatly then."

Before his words had even faded, Chen Xin'an attacked!

He raised a hand and pressed down. His Aura instantly merged with Heaven and Earth, and boundless True Qi surged forth with a howl, actually drawing the surrounding spiritual Qi of Heaven and Earth into resonance!

At that instant, Lu Yang's pupils shrank sharply.

Not because of the strength Chen Xin'an displayed, but because as Chen Xin'an made his move, he could clearly sense the flaws and incompleteness in his own True Qi.

In an instant, Lu Yang understood.

"My Dragon-Tiger Yin-Yang Joy Scripture is not the limit. Mending Heaven Peak has an even more superior cultivation method! This man must be a True Disciple of Mending Heaven Peak!"

Lu Yang's guess was entirely correct.

As the son of the Peak Master of Heaven Mending, the cultivation method Chen Xin'an practiced was called the "Heaven Mending Scripture," an upgraded version of the Dragon-Tiger Yin-Yang Joy Scripture.

Ordinary dual cultivation meant cultivating with another person, with the emphasis on Yin and Yang joining together.

However, the dual cultivation of the "Heaven Mending Scripture" was cultivation with Heaven and Earth, emphasizing coupling with the cosmos. The Heaven Mending True Qi refined through it was even ranked Third Grade.

Thus, when Chen Xin'an struck down with his palm, even without using any divine ability, the deep foundation of Third-Rank True Qi alone was enough to make Lu Yang struggle to withstand him.

Liu Xin immediately revealed a confident smile at the sight.

After all, no one understood Chen Xin'an's strength better than he did. In his view, even if Lu Yang were ten times stronger, he could not possibly be Chen Xin'an's opponent.

"He'll win!"

Liu Xin made his judgment decisively, yet he failed to notice that Xiao Shiye in the distance was currently studying him with a dark expression, as though pondering something.

With Xiao Shiye's intelligence, he could naturally see that the situation was unfavorable to him.

"I hadn't wanted to use this, but you forced my hand."

Xiao Shiye knew full well that his strength was the weakest. He had relied entirely on this bodyful of magical treasures to keep up appearances, but now it seemed that magical treasures alone would not be enough.

With that thought, Xiao Shiye immediately took a deep breath and opened his Storage Pouch. In an instant, vast spiritual Qi and Precious Light erupted from its opening, drawing Liu Xin's attention. Even Chen Xin'an and Lu Yang, who had been locked in fierce battle, stopped and looked over.

Immediately afterward, a small pagoda flew out of Xiao Shiye's Storage Pouch.

The little pagoda seemed cast from gold and had nine levels. A streak of spiritual light manifested above its peak, resembling a human figure, its brows filled with liveliness.

"This is... a Spiritual Treasure!?"

The instant they saw this, before the inexperienced Lu Yang could speak, both Liu Xin and Chen Xin'an cried out in alarm, shock spilling across their faces.

When cultivators forged artifacts, an artifact that produced Precious Light was a magical treasure; only when a treasure produced spiritual wisdom did it become a Spiritual Treasure!

Magical treasures were divided into lower, middle, and upper grades and possessed endless wondrous uses. Yet no matter how formidable a magical treasure was, it needed its master to wield it before it could unleash its power.

But Spiritual Treasures were different.

A Spiritual Treasure possessed its own consciousness. Even without a master controlling it, it could unleash its power. More importantly, Spiritual Treasures could cultivate on their own and continuously grow stronger!

The next second, Xiao Shiye formed a hand seal, and the Spirit Treasure Pagoda immediately began to expand.

"Bastard!"

Chen Xin'an was the first to curse loudly, all his earlier composure gone, because he had seen it—Xiao Shiye actually intended to make that Spiritual Treasure self-destruct!

On the other side, Liu Xin nearly coughed up blood.

Such a treasure that seized the creations of Heaven and Earth was generally something only a Foundation Establishment True Person could possess. It would have been one thing if Xiao Shiye had one, but he was actually taking it out to self-destruct?

It was simply an outrageous waste of Heaven's gifts!

Even more absurdly, the Spirit Treasure Pagoda showed no intention of resisting whatsoever. Instead, it actively cooperated, moving so quickly that he had no time to stop it.

BOOM!

The exploding blaze swallowed everything.