"Xun'er..."
His voice, warm yet trembling slightly, reached her ears.
Xiao Xun'er froze.
The instant Lin Chen opened his arms and gently drew her into his embrace,
the girl's body stiffened. She was like ice tossed into warm water, forgetting even how to breathe.
His embrace was hot, as if he had just returned from a battlefield of blood and fire, and carried a faint scent of blood.
Yet, strangely, it made her feel safe:
It was the solid reassurance of being protected by strength, an aura she had never felt from anyone else, one that belonged to Lin Chen alone.
Xiao Xun'er's cheeks flared crimson, the blush spreading from her ears down her neck.
Even her delicate collarbones were veiled in a faint flush.
She had never been so close to a man in her life.
His cool yet scorching scent lingered beneath her nose, and her heart pounded against her chest like a war drum.
Even her glassy eyes grew misty, her long lashes fluttering in panic.
Like butterfly wings trembling in the wind:
"Xun'er."
Lin Chen's voice was low, with a gentleness he hadn't even noticed in himself.
His palm rested lightly against the back of her neck, drawing her a little closer.
His fingertips brushed her silky dark hair, smooth as the finest satin:
"There are some things I have to say. Otherwise, I'm afraid I won't be able to leave in peace."
Xiao Xun'er didn't push him away. Instead, she buried herself against his chest.
She could hear his strong heartbeat, beating half a pace faster than usual.
The subtle change made her heart quiver, and all she could manage was a muffled "Mm."
Her fingers instinctively clenched the corner of his black robe, wrinkling the fabric deeply.
As if that were enough to hold on to something:
"Of all the tea you've made these past four years, yours suits my taste best."
Lin Chen lowered his head, resting his chin on her crown. His voice carried a rare ease.
"The pills you've given me always came just when I needed them."
"And... when you're by my side."
"I don't have to keep thinking about the next fight, and how I'm going to win."
He paused, as if weighing his words.
In the end, though, they came out as bluntly as the sword in his hand:
"I feel at ease when I'm with you."
"No one else can give me that kind of tenderness."
Xiao Xun'er suddenly looked up, meeting his deep gaze.
The cold killing intent she was used to seeing was gone. In its place was a clear, burning emotion, like magma churning beneath a sheet of ice.
Her breath caught, and her eyes instantly reddened.
"I know you understand the road I have to walk: a path of flashing blades and blood, with powerful enemies all around."
Lin Chen's thumb brushed her flushed earlobe, his touch filled with careful tenderness.
The callus on his fingertip grazed her smooth skin, making her shiver.
"But listen to me. There's no obstacle on the road I, Lin Chen, can't flatten."
"Whether it's some trash blocking my way or a gifted, powerful enemy."
"I won't back down!"
"If I want to leave, no one can stop me."
"If I want to come back, no one can keep me away."
His voice was imperious, yet wrapped in a tenderness that made her heart tremble:
"So wait for me."
"Don't let your thoughts run wild. Don't be afraid."
"I'll crush everything in my way, just as I tore up the Jialie Clan by its roots."
"Then I'll stand in front of you and drink the tea you make again."
"When I do, I'll tell you all about what happened out there, and how many fools I killed for getting in my way."
Xiao Xun'er's tears finally spilled over, falling like broken pearls onto his black robe.
They spread into a small, dark patch.
She sniffled. Her voice was choked with tears, yet unshakably firm:
"I'll wait."
"No matter how long it takes."
"Even if... even if you come back covered in wounds, I'll still make you the hottest tea."
Lin Chen looked at her tear-red eyes, like a rabbit wet with dew, and his heart softened.
He raised a hand and wiped away her tears with his thumb, clumsy but gentle:
"Why are you crying? It's not like I'm not coming back."
"My life is tougher than nails. I'm not going to die that easily."
"I'm not crying."
Xiao Xun'er turned her face away stubbornly, but leaned into his embrace of her own accord.
Her small hand gently grasped his lapel:
"I'm just... afraid you'll forget the way back."
"I won't."
Lin Chen tightened his arms around her, holding her as if he wanted to meld her into his very bones and blood.
"Where you are, that's my guiding star."
"As long as I know you're waiting for me, I can find my way back, no matter how far I go."
This time, their embrace was no longer stiff. It was filled with a wordless understanding.
The night dew dampened their hair, and moonlight fell over them like a layer of silver frost.
Only when Xiao Xun'er's cheeks were so hot they seemed about to smoke did Lin Chen finally let her go.
His fingertips gave her cheek one last pinch, making her glare at him in embarrassed annoyance.
Her lively expression made the corner of his mouth lift in a smile:
It was a release he hadn't felt amid the slaughter of recent days.
"Wait for me."
He turned away, his black robe billowing in the night wind. His back was straight as a pine, and he didn't hesitate for a moment.
Soon, he disappeared into the ink-black night.
Xiao Xun'er stood where she was, gazing in the direction he had vanished.
She raised a hand to her burning cheek, where the warmth of his fingertips still lingered.
Beneath the moonlight, her smile was both sweet and bittersweet, like a green olive held in her mouth. It lingered for a long time.
Several days later, in Qingshan Town, on the eastern outskirts of the Magical Beast Mountain Range.
When Lin Chen stepped into Yingkelai Inn, the stench of blood on him was almost dripping.
It drew glances from the innkeeper and the drinkers.
He couldn't be bothered with their wary or fearful looks and tossed out a bag of gold coins:
"The best room you've got, and two jars of strong liquor."
The innkeeper swiftly took the gold and personally led him to the inn's innermost room on the second floor.
Only after closing the door and shutting out the noise downstairs did Lin Chen remove his bloodstained black robe.
Beneath it, his fitted clothes were stained with blood as well.
He first drained half a jar of strong liquor, its scorching sting sliding down his throat.
Only then did the murderous rage roiling inside him subside.
Once his breathing had steadied, he took the green jade slip from his Storage Ring.
The jade slip glowed with a green light, which flowed into the space between his brows.
The contents of the Void-Splitting Sword Art surged into his mind like a tide:
A High-grade Earth-tier Dou Technique!
Its sword moves were fierce enough to split the void, and their killing intent faintly resonated with that of the Yuantu Abi Twin Swords.
A flicker of surprise passed through Lin Chen's eyes, then the corners of his mouth lifted.
Xun'er really was thoughtful. She had even remembered the sword art he had mentioned in passing.
He ran through the sword art in his mind once, then collected his thoughts:
"Good stuff, but this isn't the time to practice it."
What he needed was power that could rapidly improve his cultivation, brute strength enough to smash through every obstacle.
After resting for half a day and stocking up on water and provisions, Lin Chen took up the Yuantu Abi Twin Swords.
Then he plunged back into the Magical Beast Mountain Range.
He headed straight for the inner region, ignoring the low-rank monsters he encountered along the way.
Their gains were too meager.
This time, he had no intention of slowly searching for prey. He went straight for a fourth-rank Bloodthirsty Demon Wolf.
Deep in the forest:
Whoosh!
The wolf was gnawing on the carcass of an antelope when Lin Chen burst in. It jerked its head up.
Its eyes glowed with a fierce green light as it roared and pounced.
Lin Chen didn't even draw his sword. He dodged the wolf's claws and jabbed a finger into its brow:
Boom!
Blood-red Dou Qi erupted, shattering its brain on the spot.
"Not enough."
Lin Chen frowned, carried the wolf's corpse to the middle of a valley, and tore it apart with a burst of force!
Rip!
The crisp sound of breaking bones echoed through the forest as hot blood splashed across the rocks and grass.
Whoosh!
The stench spread instantly, like a silent war horn announcing a challenge to the beasts all around.
Less than the time it took an incense stick to burn, the earth trembled faintly. A fourth-rank Iron-Armed Ape charged over with a roar.
It stood over two zhang tall, its arms thick as pillars. With a rush of wind, it swung them at Lin Chen's face.
Boom!
Lin Chen advanced instead of retreating, thrusting the Abi Sword backward at an incredibly tricky angle.
It pierced beneath the ape's armpit, the weakest point in its defense.
Though it hardly mattered where he struck.
He still wanted to hone his combat skills. He couldn't rely solely on the weapon's advantage!
Thud!
The blade sank to the hilt. Lin Chen twisted his wrist, and Dou Qi erupted, crushing its heart outright!
The Iron-Armed Ape's massive body crashed to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. Its limbs still twitched.
Lin Chen planted a foot on its chest, and blood-red Dou Qi surged through his sole:
Hiss!
In less than ten breaths, the giant beast was reduced to a shriveled husk.
Only its bulging eyes still stared at the sky, refusing to close in death.
The stench of blood grew thicker, so dense it seemed impossible to disperse.
Soon, two third-rank Variegated Leopards pounced from in front and behind, swift as lightning.
Their claws flashed as they raked toward his throat and the small of his back.
Lin Chen's figure blurred as he pushed Shadow Escape to its limit, becoming a streak of afterimages as he dodged their attacks.
The Yuantu Sword flashed like a blood-red bolt of lightning. Two quick swishes rang out!
Slash!
Two leopard heads soared into the air!
Scalding jets of blood drenched him, splattering his face with a warm touch.
He casually kicked the twitching leopard carcasses onto the heap of corpses and rested the crossed swords on his shoulders.
His gaze swept coldly across the surroundings, like a hunter waiting for his prey:
"Come on. Faster."
As if answering his taunt, a fourth-rank Venom Python soon emerged from a crack in the rock face.
Its body, over twenty meters long, coiled into a small hill. Its jaws gaped open, revealing two curved fangs.
Drool dripped to the ground, instantly eating through it with a trail of white smoke.
Lin Chen charged through the poisonous mist. The instant the python's body began to coil around him,
he swung both swords at once, one in each hand!
Thud! Thud! Thud!
A flash of swordlight, and the Venom Python was sliced into several pieces, its foul-smelling entrails spilling across the ground.
Green venom splattered against the rocks, sizzling as it struck.
Lin Chen stood atop the remains of the python's head, letting his blood Dou Qi greedily devour its essence blood.
A cold smile curled his lips.
For him, a toxin of this caliber, as a cultivator of the Blood Scripture...
Was nothing more than a paltry bit of nourishment.
As the stench of blood grew stronger!
A sweet fragrance spread unchecked, drawing more and more Magical Beasts!
A Fourth-Order Iron-Armored Rhino, a pack of Third-Order Wind Wolves, and even a Fourth-Order Shadow Demon Bear...
"Shhk! Shhk! Shhk!"
But not a single Magical Beast could withstand one sword strike!
Soon, corpses piled across the valley, and the stench of blood grew so thick even flies dared not approach.
Lin Chen moved through the beast pack like a blood-soaked asura:
"Shhk!"
Every swing of the Yuantu and Abi Swords came with the crisp crack of breaking bones and tearing flesh.
The sword wind swept by, and Magical Beast limbs went flying.
Sometimes, when he couldn't bring his sword back in time, he simply smashed a Magical Beast's skull with his fist:
A crisp "crack" rang out.
Brain matter mixed with blood splattered across his face, but he didn't even blink.
He caught another Magical Beast by the neck with his other hand and exerted his strength, snapping it clean in two.
When a Fourth-Order Golden Eagle plunged down, its talons like steel hooks reaching for his back...
Lin Chen couldn't even be bothered to draw his sword. He sidestepped the talons, seized the Golden Eagle's wing with his other hand, and exerted his strength:
"Crack!"
He tore the wing clean off. The Golden Eagle let out a shrill scream that echoed through the valley.
Lin Chen slammed it into the ground and crushed its chest beneath his foot, as blood-colored Dou Qi surged into him.
In moments, the three-zhang-winged bird had become a sheet of skin, its feathers scattered across the ground.
The heap of corpses rose higher and higher, nearly swallowing him.
Yet Lin Chen's aura grew stronger and stronger:
Four-Star Dou Ling!
Five-Star Dou Ling...
Blood Dou Qi roared through his body, washing through his meridians and making them ever more resilient. A faint red glow shimmered beneath his skin.
Even the depths of his soul stirred with scorching heat. It was a sign that the Blood Scripture's Blood Sea divine ability was awakening through slaughter:
It seemed that, if he wished, the mountain of corpses and sea of blood beneath his feet could become an inexhaustible wellspring of battle power.
Only when the valley could hold no more corpses and even the air had grown viscous
Did Lin Chen leap to the top of the heap and spread his arms:
"Devour!"
His low shout fell, and blood Dou Qi became a vast vortex.
The heap of corpses withered at a visible speed as essence blood surged into his body like a tide.
The essence blood of Fourth-Order Magical Beasts was as violent as storming waves, while that of Third-Order beasts flowed like streams.
Roars from countless beast souls mixed together, surging and colliding through his meridians before the Blood Scripture forcibly refined them.
This tempering was far more thorough than any before:
Dou Qi compressed wildly in his dantian, shifting from dark red to deep purple.
As it coursed through him, it rang with the sharp whine of metal scraping against metal; his muscles and bones were washed again and again by the essence blood.
They gave off a faint "crack, crack."
Every inch of muscle brimmed with explosive strength, and beneath his skin, it was as if magma flowed.
Most wondrous of all was his soul. As countless beast souls crashed into it and fused with it, ripples spread across his long-dormant sea of consciousness.
His perception spread outward like a spiderweb, allowing him to clearly discern even the path of falling leaves several li away.
The Blood Scripture's vague insights into the "Blood Sea"!
For a fleeting moment, they became crystal clear:
It was an ultimate state of mind that proved the Dao through slaughter and nourished the soul with blood.
"Boom!"
The barrier to his breakthrough shattered.
Peak Six-Star Dou Ling!
Lin Chen's eyes snapped open. A flash of blood-red light flickered in his pupils, then they cleared again.
He clenched his fist, feeling the power surging through him:
"Bang!"
He could even crush the air between his fingertips, producing a faint explosive pop.
He looked down at the blood smeared across his hands. Both swords gleamed with an eerie red sheen beneath the moonlight.
Yet a cold smile curled his lips.
This slaughter, this power—only they were worthy of the path he intended to walk.
But something more important had happened. He had gained a glimmer of insight into Boundless Blood Sea, this divine ability!
He had to seize it!
Without hesitation, he immediately sprinted toward the outskirts. He needed to find somewhere to digest his insights!
Just as he had entered the relatively safe outskirts!
"Roar!!!"
From a cliff he had passed earlier!
Came the roar of a Magical Beast.
Its voice carried unprecedented savagery.
Right after it came a young girl's panicked scream!
Lin Chen had intended to turn and leave:
Fighting in the Magical Beast Mountain Range was commonplace. The survival of the fittest was the rule here.
But he suddenly stopped:
A cliff? A girl?
His gaze sharpened. He gripped both swords.
Like a phantom, he darted toward the sound!
Before you continue