Dao Cultivator Arts

When Chen Fan opened his eyes again, two Demon Cores he had taken from the Heavenly Court floated before him. Both were at the Qi Refining Eighth Layer, and blue halos shone around them, tinged with a trace of violent spiritual energy. They slowly hovered before his eyes.

Chen Fan raised his hand slightly and flipped his palm. The two Demon Cores shot straight into it.

Boom!!!

A vast, fierce energy surged into his palm, sweeping wildly through every meridian.

Immediately afterward, the spiritual energy of the Earth Cultivation World and the Pseudo Immortal Qi from the Heavenly Court slowly seeped in through his pores.

Three kinds of spiritual energy, each of a different degree, entered his body at once and converged into a three-colored force. The violent power contained in the Demon Cores grew even more frenzied.

Chen Fan furrowed his brow slightly as waves of tearing pain began to pulse through his meridians. Fortunately, he had once taken a Marrow Cleansing Pill, and his meridians had also been tempered by a Qi Refining Eighth Layer Demon Core. They were no longer what they had been before, but considerably tougher.

The three-colored force roared through his meridians like a river, surging and crashing against everything in its path. At last, guided by his Divine Sense, it followed the Lesser and Greater Celestial Circuits, gradually refining the violent energy into gentle True Qi that flowed into his dantian.

Little by little, Chen Fan was enveloped in a dense mass of spiritual energy. From a distance, he looked like a divine cocoon, as if a new god were about to break free!

A day passed. Chen Jingjing walked to Chen Fan's door, hesitated, then left again. Chen Fan had told them he would be in seclusion for the next few days.

On the second day, Chen Jingjing received a secret letter from Elder Li. He asked her and Chen Fan to meet him outside Heavy Sword City at midnight the following night. In the letter, Elder Li stated that the matter of the inheritance was extremely important: no one else could know about it, and both of them had to come.

After reading it, Chen Jingjing silently slipped the letter through the crack beneath Chen Fan's door. Zhang Rumeng saw her do it and, though a little puzzled, said nothing. They had known each other for so many years; if Chen Jingjing wanted to tell her something, she would.

Chen Jingjing herself paid little attention to anything suspicious in the letter. She instinctively trusted the people her father trusted, and had never once doubted Elder Li's motives.

Besides, from the letter, Elder Li seemed to be in a great hurry. But Chen Fan was still cultivating and could not be disturbed. If he still had not emerged by tomorrow, Chen Jingjing decided, she would go meet Elder Li alone. She was still worried that something might happen to the Chen Clan's inheritance.

The next evening, as midnight drew near, Chen Fan's wooden door remained tightly shut. Chen Jingjing pressed her ear to it and listened. She could just make out the faint sound of spiritual energy moving inside. After a moment, she stuck out her tongue and quietly returned to her room. She changed into lightweight clothes, then headed out.

Inside the room, Chen Fan slowly opened his eyes. The cocoon of spiritual energy around him suddenly cracked, turning into a cloud of turbid air that scattered in the wind.

He turned his head slightly and reached out with one hand. The letter by the door flew into his palm. After glancing over it, a cold glint flashed through his eyes...

Outside Heavy Sword City, two shadowy figures stood in a corner, coldly watching the city gates of Heavy Sword Peak.

"Hall Master Lin, don't rush into action. Wait for my signal before you move," Elder Li said calmly.

"Elder Li, Sect Master Su asked me to assist you, not to take orders from you," Hall Master Lin said with narrowed eyes and a cold laugh.

"Then by all means, try it. If you ruin the sect master's plans, let's see if you can bear the consequences," Elder Li replied with a cold laugh of his own. He looked nothing like a man of the righteous path.

"What an Elder Li you are," Hall Master Lin said, gazing deeply at him.

"You flatter me, Hall Master Lin. Don't let your guard down later. That boy is no ordinary opponent," Elder Li said evenly, then turned his attention back to the city gates.

"He's merely at the Qi Refining Layer 6. You're being far too cautious." Hall Master Lin laughed scornfully, licking his lips. "As for that girl, I intend to dote on her properly."

Not far behind Elder Li and the other man, two faint figures sat in the darkness, their cold eyes fixed on them.

"Master, I never expected the Heaven Ghost Sect to have planted a spy on Heavy Sword Peak," a burly man whispered. If Chen Fan had been there, he would have recognized him as Li Tieniu. And the sect master he addressed could only be Qin Xian'er.

"We have Lin Shang to thank for bringing us here. In just a few dozen days, this good-for-nothing broke through to the Foundation Establishment Early Stage. The Heaven Ghost Sect must have some secret. It seems we may reap a great harvest tonight." Qin Xian'er still wore a light black veil. A spark of excitement glinted in her eyes.

"They've sent out someone at the Qi Refining Ninth Layer and someone at the Foundation Establishment Early Stage. Who exactly are they waiting for?" Li Tieniu asked, puzzled.

"Wait patiently. We'll find out soon enough," Qin Xian'er said with a cold laugh.

"Elder Li, it's midnight already. Are we going to have come all this way for nothing?" Hall Master Lin, Lin Shang, looked up at the sky and grinned.

"Don't stir up trouble. He's here." Elder Li narrowed his eyes slightly as he watched a figure appear at the city gates. A trace of a smile crossed his face. Knowing the siblings as he did, he was sure they would do as he asked after reading his letter.

But only a moment later, his expression darkened. "Why did only one of them come?"

Lin Shang looked toward the figure at the city gates, then turned to Elder Li with malicious delight. "Elder Li, this complicates things, doesn't it? Let's hope it's the girl. Heh heh."

With that, he let out a chilling laugh and slowly disappeared into the darkness. Before long, only Elder Li remained, his face gloomy as he watched the figure draw closer.

In the faint moonlight, Elder Li finally saw who stood before him.

"Chen Fan," he murmured. His heart gave a sudden leap, and a sense of unease rose within him. He did not know why he felt that way, but he knew he could not let his guard slip. He quickly smoothed away the brief flicker of unease on his face.

Behind him, Qin Xian'er and Li Tieniu were also taken aback. They had not expected this matter to involve Chen Fan.

"Tieniu, be ready to save him," Qin Xian'er said, her eyes narrowing slightly as she studied Chen Fan's face. A strange smile touched her lips.

"Master, this man may be talented, but do you really need to save him time and again? The last time you negotiated with Senior Martial Sister, you did it to save his life, too," Li Tieniu said, baffled.

"He's an interesting piece on the board. I traded a sword that originally belonged to the Immortal Sect for his life. I haven't lost out," Qin Xian'er replied, a glint of wisdom in her eyes.

Li Tieniu looked at Qin Xian'er and seemed about to say something, but in the end, he swallowed his words. He knew that his childhood friend would not easily change a decision she had made, especially given the deep enmity between her and the Immortal Sect.

"Chen Fan, why did you come alone? Where's Qingqing?" Elder Li asked when Chen Fan drew near.

"I'm the one inheriting the Chen Clan's legacy. It's late, and she needs to sleep," Chen Fan said coolly as he looked at Elder Li. He had intercepted Chen Jingjing on her way and sent her home.

"Mm..." Elder Li nodded, his mind racing as he considered his next move.

"But I said in my letter that this matter was extremely important. Both you and your sister had to come," Elder Li said with a furrowed brow, putting on a thoughtful expression.

"Oh?" Chen Fan's lips suddenly curved into a smile. He glanced at Elder Li and said mildly, "But this inheritance belongs to the Chen Clan. I want to take it back. Do I really have to obey your orders?"

"Chen Fan, what do you mean?" Elder Li's expression darkened at once. He pointed at Chen Fan and rebuked him. "Your father entrusted the inheritance to me back then. That meant he trusted me. Who do you think you are to question me?"

"Trust?" Chen Fan laughed coldly. "You tricked the two of us into coming here. Weren't you planning to use that trust to lure us here and kill us?"

"You..." Elder Li pointed at Chen Fan in anger, but Chen Fan cut him off.

"Your accomplice doesn't look like much. You've only learned the barest scraps of concealment, yet you dare show your face here?" Chen Fan looked into the dark corner to Elder Li's right and spoke coldly.

The moment the words left his mouth, Elder Li froze.

Almost at the same time, the shadow Chen Fan had been watching suddenly stirred, and a figure stepped out of the darkness.

"No wonder Elder Li spoke so highly of you. Looks like you do have some skill." As the figure walked toward Chen Fan, he let out a strange, "Heh heh," laugh. The sound sent a chill through the night.

"Idiot. He was bluffing," Elder Li snapped at him.

At his words, Lin Shang froze mid-step. No one could see him in the darkness, but his face had turned bloodred.

Chen Fan watched them with a faint, knowing smile. He offered no explanation. With his Divine Sense at the Foundation Establishment Realm, detecting this unstable Foundation Establishment Early Stage cultivator was no challenge.

"Qi Refining Eighth Layer?" Lin Shang said, frowning when he finally sensed Chen Fan's level.

Elder Li's expression changed as well. At last, he understood the source of the unease he had felt. In just three days—barely three days—the boy had left Heavy Sword Peak and climbed all the way to the Qi Refining Eighth Layer, breaking through two levels at once. No matter how monstrous his talent, he should not have been able to cultivate at such a terrifying speed.

Li Tieniu, still hidden in the shadows, was once again stunned. A strange gleam flashed through Qin Xian'er's eyes, and the smile on her lips grew wider still.

"Even at the Qi Refining Eighth Layer, he can't possibly be a match for Lin Shang. That guy is a Dao Cultivator," Li Tieniu exclaimed, trying to remind Qin Xian'er that it was time to save him.

"No hurry. I want to see how many rounds he can last. If he makes it past five, I'll take him as my disciple for real," Qin Xian'er said calmly.

"Hall Master Lin, kill him! We can't let this boy live!" Elder Li suddenly roared, retreating at top speed.

But Chen Fan clearly wasn't going to give him the chance. A sharp sword hum rang out, and Chen Fan turned into a black bolt of lightning. A sword appeared before Elder Li in an instant, cutting off his escape route.

Lin Shang was startled by Chen Fan's speed, but then he remembered that he had already reached the Foundation Establishment Early Stage. He didn't think twice. With a decisive move, he flung several Talismans from his hand, while True Essence Power gathered in his other hand. He bellowed, "Earth Sinking Technique!" His True Essence Power poured into the ground, and the earth beneath Chen Fan's feet suddenly softened. Several huge hands emerged from it and clamped tightly around his feet.

"Dao Cultivator arts?" Chen Fan's lips curled in a faint, cold smile. He ignored the earth beneath him and swept his sword forward. Blazing Heaven Sword Qi slashed toward the Talismans.