Tribulation, Fate's Opportunity

Li Sifeng moved with blinding speed. Yue Zhenchuan, whose name commanded fear throughout Guzhou's martial world, had fought countless battles, yet even he hadn't seen this coming. Instinctively, he tried to retreat, but Li Sifeng seized the front of his robe.

In the blink of an eye, Yue Zhenchuan drove his knee upward, stopping Li Sifeng's charge.

Midair, Li Sifeng hadn't expected such a swift reaction. He immediately slapped his left palm against Yue Zhenchuan's knee.

Thud!

Li Sifeng was knocked flying. When he landed, he staggered and plopped down on the grass, his right hand clutching a bloodstained piece of cloth torn from Yue Zhenchuan's body.

Yue Zhenchuan stumbled back several steps as well. Once he regained his balance, he looked down and saw five bloody gashes across his chest. A chill ran through him.

He raised his eyes to Li Sifeng, his expression turning vicious. Gritting his teeth, he said, "Young man, you're ruthless. When did Qingxiao Sect produce a genius like you?"

There were countless geniuses in the martial world, but he had never been injured by a child barely into his teens. He was furious, yet astonished.

Li Sifeng shouted, "You two, get up the mountain! I'll hold them off and catch up in a bit!"

Li Sijin was just about to speak when Xu Ning dragged her away.

Yue Zhenchuan didn't hurry after them. Two girls barely ten years old couldn't cause much trouble, and Qingxiao Sect was still a long way off.

"Do you know who I am? There aren't many people in all of Guzhou who dare speak to me like that." Yue Zhenchuan stared at Li Sifeng with a cold laugh.

Li Sifeng pulled a dagger from behind his waist and pointed its blade at Yue Zhenchuan. He taunted, "Someone said something similar to me before. Then we fought, and he was so scared he pissed himself, kowtowed nonstop, and begged for mercy."

He was incredibly nervous. He could tell this man was different from the opponents he'd faced before. He was dangerous.

Yue Zhenchuan snorted and lunged at Li Sifeng. Surging Internal Energy erupted, sending gust after gust of wind swirling around him. He curled his hands into claws and repeatedly raked at Li Sifeng, who hurriedly dodged.

After entering Nurturing Origin Realm Layer 1, Li Sifeng's reflexes had improved tremendously, and he had grown much more agile. As long as he wasn't sparring with Third Senior Brother, he'd never felt pressured. Everyone else seemed so slow.

But facing Yue Zhenchuan this time, he was terrified. He felt he still wasn't fast enough and could only dodge in a sorry state, unable to strike back.

Before long, he had retreated to the foot of a dirt slope. With nowhere left to go, he relied on the time he'd spent practicing Gale Technique. He slipped beneath Yue Zhenchuan's arm, leaped into the air, and arched backward. Like a fish breaching the water, he landed lightly on the slope.

Yue Zhenchuan turned his head, but Li Sifeng was nowhere to be seen. When he turned back, he found Li Sifeng standing at the top of the slope. His face twisted with rage.

"Ptooey!"

Li Sifeng spat a mouthful of phlegm at Yue Zhenchuan, then turned and ran.

Yue Zhenchuan had let his guard down and couldn't dodge in time. The spit landed squarely on his face, leaving him stunned.

At the same time, the Seven Peaks Alliance warriors in the woods rushed over. They had just seen Li Sifeng leap up the slope from behind Yue Zhenchuan. Many of them stared in disbelief, thinking their eyes had deceived them, until someone was the first to snap out of it.

Yue Zhenchuan wiped the spit from his face and turned to the disciples behind him. In a low voice, he shouted, "Charge up the mountain now! Slaughter everyone at Qingxiao Sect!"

With that, he leaped into the air and used his lightness skill to dash into the woods.

Elsewhere.

Li Sifeng darted through the woods like a leopard. Every so often, he used both hands to vault over fallen logs and rocks blocking his way. Ordinary people couldn't catch him—and neither could some wild beasts.

But the one pursuing him now was a martial master.

Li Sifeng glanced back and saw Yue Zhenchuan leaping rapidly from branch to branch. A mere tap of his toes carried him a great distance; at first glance, it looked as if he were flying through the woods.

The distance between them was shrinking fast!

Li Sifeng gritted his teeth and began to draw on the Origin Energy within him. He didn't even realize that his mastery of Gale Technique was improving. He was pulling off moves he wouldn't normally dare attempt, yet he wasn't falling.

Whoosh—

A gust of force came from behind. Li Sifeng instinctively tilted his head and caught a glimpse of Yue Zhenchuan swooping toward him like a diving eagle, one iron palm thrust forward.

Li Sifeng couldn't dodge in time. The palm struck his back, and he spat out a mouthful of blood. He pitched forward and crashed headfirst into a thicket.

Sunlight filtered through the trees. Jiang Zhaoxia sat cross-legged in an open clearing, nine long swords hovering around him, their tips pointed down as they quivered faintly. His hands rested on his knees, palms facing upward, while his robe fluttered gently.

Ever since he had devoted himself to practicing Supreme Sword Control Technique, his cultivation had advanced by leaps and bounds. He could now command nine swords.

Every day, he came here to practice alone. This was the only route to Qingxiao Sect, so no one would disturb him, and he could also guard the sect against intruders.

"Third Senior Brother! Something terrible happened!"

A cry came from afar. Jiang Zhaoxia abruptly opened his eyes and turned to look. His junior sister, Li Sijin, was running toward him with Xu Ning.

When he saw the tears covering Li Sijin's face, his heart sank.

He raised a hand and summoned the nine swords back into their sheaths at his waist. As he stood, the nine scabbards knocked against one another, their weight evident.

He went to meet the two girls, and they quickly reached him.

"There are lots of enemies coming up the mountain to attack us. My brother's holding them off. Third Senior Brother, hurry and save him!" Li Sijin said urgently.

Jiang Zhaoxia immediately asked, "Which way?"

Li Sijin turned and pointed. Jiang Zhaoxia dashed off at once, leaving them with a final instruction: "You two, hurry up the mountain. Don't stop."

Watching Jiang Zhaoxia vanish into the woods, Li Sijin turned to Xu Ning and asked anxiously, "There are so many enemies. Can Third Senior Brother handle them alone?"

Xu Ning didn't answer. Instead, she urged, "Hurry up the mountain and alert Master. I'll go after them and take a look."

"Can you handle it?" Li Sijin asked hesitantly.

Xu Ning shot her a glance. "Stop wasting time. People could die."

Thinking that Li Sifeng might already be in grave danger, Li Sijin gritted her teeth and immediately turned toward the mountain.

Xu Ning took a deep breath. Her expression firmed, and she chased after Jiang Zhaoxia.

Jiang Zhaoxia was frantic with worry. He began expending his Origin Energy and used Gale Technique to race downhill.

All along the way, he kept thinking of Li Sifeng as a child. Ever since Master had brought Li Sifeng up the mountain, he had hated the boy. He was filthy, always had snot running down his face, and constantly gave Eldest Senior Brother a hard time.

That impression had only begun to improve over the past two years. Now that they were in charge of Qingxiao Sect, Li Sifeng's decisiveness when trouble struck had completely changed Jiang Zhaoxia's opinion of him.

He thought Li Sifeng was someone worth cultivating. With proper guidance, he could help Jiang Zhaoxia support Eldest Senior Brother.

Now Li Sifeng might be in danger, and the bright future Jiang Zhaoxia had imagined was about to shatter. He could no longer hold back his murderous rage.

He ran faster and faster, to the point that he even stopped noticing his surroundings.

He didn't know how much time had passed when a crowd finally appeared in his line of sight. They were martial artists in blue robes, scattered throughout a pine forest like fiends waiting to drag him into hell.

His gaze quickly fixed on one man. His eyes widened, bloodshot.

Yue Zhenchuan was stomping on Li Sifeng's face again and again. Li Sifeng lay on the ground, his body twitching with every blow. It was impossible to tell whether he was alive or dead.

"You dare!"

Jiang Zhaoxia roared. His right hand reached for his waist and drew a sword. The ring of the blade leaving its sheath rang out, making hundreds of Seven Peaks Alliance disciples turn to look.

Yue Zhenchuan, his face twisted in a grin, turned around. When he saw Jiang Zhaoxia rushing toward him, he wasn't alarmed. His smile only grew more terrifying.

"Just in time! This brat's already finished. I hope you can give me a good fight!"

Yue Zhenchuan threw his head back and laughed. He kicked Li Sifeng aside, then charged at Jiang Zhaoxia. The other Seven Peaks Alliance disciples drew their weapons and quickly circled around behind Jiang Zhaoxia to stop him from escaping.

Suddenly.

Yue Zhenchuan saw the swords on Jiang Zhaoxia's back fly from their sheaths and circle around him. His pupils dilated as if he'd seen a ghost.

Inside the house, Li Qingqiu was writing down a manual. He intended to record all the Spells he had acquired, while Li Dongyue stood beside him, grinding ink.

"Senior Brother, I've realized my handwriting is so ugly. How can I make it look nice?"

Li Dongyue asked softly, her voice full of anticipation.

Li Qingqiu replied, "In a few months, I'll have Yuchun invite some scholars up the mountain to teach you all how to read and write."

The level of education at Qingxiao Sect was very low. When he was a child, simply teaching his junior brothers and sisters to recognize characters had nearly driven Li Qingqiu to despair. The Qingxiao Seven Sons had all come from mountain villages and had never learned to read or write, either.

Even after arriving in this ancient world, Li Qingqiu still thought education was useful. It trained the mind, broadened one's horizons, and books were symbols of how the world had changed.

"Then could you buy more books? Master and Grandmaster left so few behind, and I'm already tired of reading them."

"Of course."

Li Qingqiu calmly chatted with Li Dongyue while doing two things at once.

Suddenly, the hand holding his brush stopped.

A line of text appeared before his eyes:

[As Qingxiao Sect has repelled an invading force for the first time, the legacy has survived a tribulation and received one Fate selection opportunity]

Repelled an invading force?

What had happened?

Li Qingqiu wasn't excited about the reward before his eyes. His brows furrowed as his thoughts raced.

If it could be called a force, there must be many enemies.

He hadn't heard a thing, which meant the fighting was far from Qingxiao Sect.

Had something happened at the foot of the mountain?

He immediately put down his brush and left with a quick instruction: "I have something to take care of. Keep watch for me, and don't let the disciples peek."

Li Dongyue had just begun to answer when Li Qingqiu was already out the door.

As soon as he left the courtyard, Li Qingqiu used Gale Technique and raced downhill.

Less than a mile down the mountain, he met Li Sijin, who was gasping for breath. When she saw him, she was overjoyed and quickly told him what had happened to them.

Li Qingqiu had no time to comfort her. He hurried in the direction she pointed.

On the way, Li Qingqiu was overcome by the same panic Jiang Zhaoxia had felt. He brought up the Legacy System and confirmed that the number of disciples hadn't decreased, which put him slightly at ease. But he didn't dare lower his guard, and kept switching back to check the Legacy System.

After the time it took to burn one incense stick.

Li Qingqiu finally spotted Jiang Zhaoxia, Xu Ning, and Li Sifeng in a pine forest. Corpses littered the ground, and blood stained many of the trees.

Jiang Zhaoxia was covered in blood, sitting on the ground with Li Sifeng in his arms. Xu Ning sat slumped nearby, gasping for breath as well. She seemed to be in slightly better shape, though her hair was somewhat disheveled.

Li Qingqiu's heart sank at the sight. He hurried over to Jiang Zhaoxia and placed a finger beneath Li Sifeng's nose. When he confirmed there was still breath, he couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief.

But seeing his two junior brothers reduced to bloody figures, he could barely contain his rage.

Jiang Zhaoxia looked up at Li Qingqiu and said weakly, "Senior Brother, you were right. The martial world and a battlefield are completely different. Forget a vast army—even against a few hundred martial artists, my swords were all hacked to pieces..."