Fierce Battle on the Floating Island

The yellow orb of light bared its fangs and brandished its claws, letting out an "Ouch!" as it was repelled by the light barrier of the massive stone stele. It tumbled through the air, spinning head over heels in a dizzying display, before finally wobbling to a halt and hovering in mid-air.

It fixed its gaze and realized that the massive stele, along with the puny white orb of light, were both tightly encased within a pale gray light barrier several zhang in size. If one were not paying close attention, it would be nearly impossible to notice the existence of this ring of light.

The yellow orb was incensed and lunged forward once more. Yet, with every collision, it was violently repelled; the harder it charged, the more forcefully it was thrown back. Its onslaught had absolutely no effect on the barrier.

Hidden within the protective ring of light, Ye Qin felt a wave of immense relief upon seeing that the ferocious yellow orb could not breach the barrier. He whispered a silent prayer of luck, realizing that the light barrier of the Life Primordial Spirit Stele could not only keep out the Purple Lightning but also block other entities of the same nature. Otherwise, he truly would not have known where to flee for his life.

"What kind of devilry is this? You brat hiding inside, get out here this instant! Don't think this trinket can save your miserable life. Come out yourself, and I shall grant you a swift end."

The yellow orb roared in fury. Seeing the primordial spirit that was practically within its grasp blocked by a soft, flimsy ring of light, how could it not be enraged? If it could only devour the vital energy of this weak white orb, it would at least be able to recover a portion of its strength at the fourth level of Qi Refining.

Ye Qin had no intention of listening to its demands. He had made up his mind: even if he were to die, he would not step a single inch outside this barrier, lest he fall victim to the vicious yellow orb. Facing an opponent that shone several times brighter than himself, Ye Qin did not harbor the slightest hope of winning.

Ye Qin understood clearly what that brightness signified. For every fold the orb grew in brilliance, its strength increased by an entire tier.

A difference of one tier was a world-shaking gap, a fact Ye Qin had experienced firsthand.

When he first began practicing the Sitting-in-Forgetfulness Sutra: Gathering Qi and Focusing Spirit, he was no match for the likes of Yang Yicheng or Feng Xiao. But once he had perfected the first level of the Sitting-in-Forgetfulness Sutra: Sitting and Forgetting Selflessness, his physical senses and spiritual perception were greatly enhanced, and the likes of Yang and Feng were no longer worth a second glance.

Judging by the brightness of this yellow orb, its cultivation was roughly equivalent to the fourth level of Sitting and Forgetting Selflessness, far beyond what his current strength could contend with. Fortunately, the light barrier appeared quite formidable, keeping the yellow orb completely at bay.

Watching the yellow orb continue its futile attempts to ram the barrier in search of trouble, Ye Qin couldn't help but mock, "Hey, you yellow ball, aren't you tired? Stop ramming; you won't break it even if you spend ten years at it. And another question: why are you yellow, while I am white?"

The yellow orb, hovering outside the barrier and burning with impatience to get inside, was instantly infuriated by these words.

"Bah, 'yellow ball'! This Seat is Nan Tianba, head of the Nan family of Ping Province. I am a pure earth-element primordial spirit, naturally a solid yellow. Unlike your messy spiritual roots, which lack none of the five elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.

You, a mere Qi practitioner who has only just reached the second level of Qi Refining, dare to mock this Seat and oppose me? That is courting death! Do you think that just because you have a broken stele protecting you, this Seat has no way to deal with you? Heh heh, you underestimate this Seat too much! I, Nan Tianba, have roamed Ping Province for decades without a single rival. Today, this Seat shall teach you, little brat, what a fourth-level Qi Refining expert truly is."

The yellow orb sneered and drifted several zhang away, then began chanting a new incantation, its speed incredibly fast. In the blink of an eye, a small fireball manifested out of thin air several zhang away from the yellow orb, its flames flickering with a scorching, terrifying heat.

It was clear that the yellow orb had consumed a significant amount of vital energy to condense this fireball, as its own light dimmed and weakened slightly. Yet, seeing the fireball successfully formed, the yellow orb laughed with great excitement.

"Brat, do you know what this is? I suppose you wouldn't. This is the Fireball Technique, invincible and unstoppable. No matter what treasures you possess, a single touch will burn them to ash. Come out yourself, and I shall grant you a swift end!"

Ye Qin's jaw dropped in shock at the magical technique displayed by the yellow orb, and a faint, intense sense of foreboding rose in his heart.

He did not know how this fireball had been created, but he could clearly feel the scorching heat radiating from the tiny sphere and the terrifying power contained within it. If he were to be touched by even a spark from this little orb, he feared his soul would be scattered on the spot.

He had no confidence whatsoever that this thin ring of light could withstand the fireball.

A sliver of fear and despair took root in Ye Qin's heart.

He had previously considered himself a top-tier expert, capable of at least saving his life even if he couldn't defeat the peak masters of the martial world. Yet, before this formidable enemy, he found himself without the slightest power to protect himself, left only to await his fate. Whether he lived or died was no longer in his own hands.

Seeing that Ye Qin remained unmoved within the barrier, the yellow orb snorted, wasting no more breath, and immediately commanded the fireball to smash into the stele's light barrier, intent on shattering the thin shield.

The scorching fireball lunged toward the barrier.

The moment it made contact, it exploded with a thunderous, "BOOM!"

A sudden, strange change occurred.

Upon being attacked, the light barrier erupted with a blinding, scorching radiance. The barrier, originally only a few zhang in size, expanded violently to hundreds of zhang, repelling all the exploding flames into the distance.

"Ahhh—!"

The yellow orb, having been very close to the barrier, was caught off guard. It was struck by the rapidly expanding light, let out a scream, and was violently ejected from the Floating Island, cast into the endless void. It transformed into a speck of yellow light and vanished, while a domineering voice echoed from the distant void: "Brat... just you wait! I, Nan Tianba, shall return—!"

Ye Qin stared blankly at the sudden turn of events. The yellow orb had been smashed away by the barrier? Uh, it seemed to have been sent into the endless void; there was no telling how far it would be flung.

The yellow orb's attack had triggered the barrier's automatic counter-defense, a result he had not anticipated.

The protective power of the Life Primordial Spirit Stele's barrier far exceeded his imagination.

Ye Qin's initial fear and suspicion toward the yellow orb gradually shifted into sympathy and pity as he watched it vanish into the void. "Yellow ball, even if you are a fourth-level expert and far stronger than me, you had best hope you don't encounter the Purple Lightning in the void. Otherwise, heh heh, that won't be a laughing matter. The Purple Lightning here is far more terrifying than your fireball; don't blame me if you die."

With the threat of the yellow orb gone, Ye Qin finally set his mind at ease to cultivate the Dew Grass and begin his practice. The Cyan Jade Pendant had shattered into fragments when the yellow orb appeared, scattering across the ground. Fortunately, the spiritual energy within the jade shards remained undiminished, still perfectly suitable for cultivating the Dew Grass.