Xiao Fan had not noticed the person who had suddenly appeared. The agonizing pain that pierced his soul had already consumed all his senses.
And if that person didn't want to be seen, then even standing right before him, Xiao Fan would never have been able to see him.
"Gahhh!!!"
The drop of blood entered through the center of his brow and sank downward. His flesh, blood, sinews, and bones seemed not to exist at all before it.
In just a dozen seconds, that vibrant drop of blood, pulsing faintly, reached Xiao Fan's dantian. Bright Red Radiance shone in all directions as an immense, boundless will surged like an abyss and a sea. The dazzling Red Radiance spread without end, as if it meant to occupy every corner of his body.
Soon, his dantian, meridians, and even bones seemed to be coated in a thin layer of blood, an eerie sight.
Only that mysterious and fragile Dao foundation wavered, its faint light resisting the Red Radiance and keeping it from seeping in.
Above the Dao foundation, a drop of translucent blood like red jade floated quietly, shining brilliantly like a wheel of fire.
But as Xiao Fan was tortured by the pain until he lost consciousness and fell into a coma, the faint light resisting the Red Radiance dimmed considerably.
The drop of blood floating above the Dao foundation seized its chance and plunged down!
Sss!
Like a red-hot branding iron thrust into a snowdrift, the faint light was breached with ease. The blood drop, bright as a wheel of fire, showed no mercy as it slammed straight into the Dao foundation.
Success!
A feeling of delight emerged from the drop of blood. Today, it would seize the Human Race's foundation of fortune!
Crack!
A crisp sound rang out, as if something had broken.
That feeling of delight faltered, then turned to utter terror and rage!
A huge, jagged fissure ran across the mysterious Dao foundation, as if it could no longer bear the pressure and was about to shatter.
Impossible!
How could the foundation of fortune be so fragile?!
Crack, crack!
As the crisp sounds continued, dense cracks appeared. The Dao foundation seemed ready to collapse at any moment.
The Red Radiance grew ever more dazzling and eerie. Anger, resentment, and countless other emotions filled the dantian, but the next moment, they all abruptly ceased.
It was a gaze.
A gaze seemingly woven from the Dao and its principles looked down from some impossibly distant, impossibly high place, somewhere beyond mortal ken.
In an instant, the Red Radiance fell silent. The boundless will, deep as an abyss and vast as the sea, seemed like a candle guttering in the wind beneath that gaze, ready to go out at any moment.
Outside.
The ordinary-looking figure, gentle in bearing, let his smile fade and rose to make a solemn bow.
"Dao Brother, this was my plan. It was not a foreign race stealing the foundation of fortune from the Human Race."
His voice drifted away, as if carried to some unknowable place beyond mortal ken.
Under the pressure of that gaze, the will within the drop of blood tottered on the brink of extinction.
The next instant, perhaps because his words had taken effect, the gaze vanished.
The last, feeble trace of will in the drop of blood trembled. It tried to flee the crumbling Dao foundation, but it was already too late.
Boom!
The shattered Dao foundation unleashed an utterly terrifying shockwave. Had the drop of blood been at full strength, it might have withstood it. But now, it could not.
The final trace of will within the drop of blood was almost instantly annihilated by the shockwave from the shattered Dao foundation.
The destructive shockwave left Xiao Fan's body in pieces as well.
His sinews snapped, his bones broke, and all six viscera were injured.
He wasn't dead yet, but he was close.
"Now that the tribulation has passed, fortune shall follow," the figure standing beside Xiao Fan said softly.
Then he pointed a finger. Mysterious spiritual light entered Xiao Fan's body, and the blood film covering his meridians, bones, and dantian slowly faded, transforming into a vast and pure force of vitality.
Under the power of that vitality, his body, broken like a worn-out sack, began to recover rapidly.
His sinews and bones mended; his six viscera were restored.
"Had it not been for that old ghost who was doomed to die early, this might not have worked."
With that Dao Brother watching over them, who in the Great Profound Realm would dare covet the Human Race's foundation of fortune? Truly, they didn't know their place.
"Still, it was fortunate that he knew nothing," the gentle figure said, looking at Xiao Fan. "You've gained part of that foreign race's accumulated power. You should now be able to contend with the person favored by that Dao-attaining brother."
Amid the hazy steam, Zhang Yunlu tilted her face up and closed her eyes, letting the hot water wash over her.
The water slid over her delicate collarbones and flowed farther down.
She took a step forward, lowered her head, and opened her eyes. A faint gleam of purple qi flashed and vanished. Her pale, slender fingers curled loosely, as if she were trying to feel something.
The enemies she encountered in the trials grew stronger and stronger, which meant that every night she would "die" a fair number of times.
But not only was she unafraid, she even relished that feeling of teetering between life and death, dancing on the edge of a blade.
Sigh~
She let out a long sigh.
I really have become abnormal.
Zhang Yunlu turned off the hot water and walked barefoot to the side, where a full-length mirror stood.
She picked up a towel and wiped the mist from the mirror. Then she stood before it, expressionless, studying her reflection.
Her once slightly baby-faced cheeks had lost their last trace of childishness. Her eyes were clear as a spring, yet held a hint of coldness.
She was tall and slender, without an ounce of excess flesh. Bright droplets of water clung to her pale, smooth skin. Her arms looked delicate, yet were brimming with explosive strength.
How long had it taken her to become like this?
A few days?
As she tried to remember, the image that flashed through her mind was of her battling the sword cultivator's phantom, and the sense of security and fulfillment she felt when gripping her sword.
She understood that she could never return to the way she used to be.
Zhang Yunlu's lips curved slightly. "Still, I do like the person I've become."
"You don't even reply to your senior sister's messages, yet you still send her marshmallows?"
Divine Machine Express, founded by the Immortal Sect—the Divine Mechanism Artifact Refining Pavilion—was one of the most famous courier companies in the Great Profound Realm. Its services covered the entire Central Continent and even part of the Starry Sky Battlefield.
The only company that could rival it was World Relief Express, founded by the Immortal Sect—the World Relief Valley.
Alchemists and artifact refiners were a bunch of very rich... glass cannons, as Chi Jiuyu put it.
She filled out the shipping form and handed the enormous, feather-light box to a staff member. Then she turned to look at Xu Xing.
"One thing has nothing to do with the other. I'm a very filial disciple!"
"Heh. I hope your senior sister thinks so too."
"Come on, Martial Uncle! Can't you let me enjoy myself a little longer?"
"Fine. I'll stop."
After spending so much time with his eccentric disciple, Xu Xing felt as if he'd grown a little younger himself.
After sending the package, the two headed outside.
"Are we continuing tonight?" Xu Xing asked.
"Of course!" Chi Jiuyu replied without hesitation.
That Zhang Yunlu died night after night, and she still hadn't given up.
"I'll get through that first sword sooner or later... No, I'll get through all three sooner or later!"
"I might not come out with you again tomorrow."
"I'm not that fragile."
She muttered under her breath. After walking for a while, she suddenly turned her head and glanced at Xu Xing.
When she'd arrived, she'd thought her Martial Uncle would be a very stodgy, inflexible ancient cultivator after spending so long in seclusion.
But she'd been wrong.
"Martial Uncle, I can give you a ride back on my bike. It'll be faster."
"I refuse."
"Why? Didn't you have fun last time?"
"That was your opinion."
Before you continue