Breaking Through the Wall

Xu Yuan felt a complex mix of emotions.

Regardless of the past, he would likely have to use the name Xu Changtian from now on.

"Oh."

A voice, tinged with slight disappointment, echoed softly in the dark cave, as if she were let down that he hadn't told her his real name.

After a few seconds of silence, she whispered:

"Then will you use the name Xu Yuan from now on?"

"."

Xu Yuan?

A strange glint flashed in his eyes.

Thinking for a moment, Xu Yuan recalled that in Cangyuan, there was mention of courtesy names, but since the Third Young Master always died the moment he appeared, his given name had never been revealed.

Learning that the original body was also named Xu Yuan came as a surprise to him.

Was it a coincidence?

Or was it due to something else?

His thoughts wandered, then quickly pulled back; Xu Yuan never wasted time on things he couldn't figure out.

With that thought, Xu Yuan spoke slowly to the woman beside him:

"Ms. Ran, wait a moment."

"Ran Qingmo."

The big ice block suddenly interrupted him, her clear, quiet eyes unblinking, looking very serious:

"My name is Ran Qingmo."

"."

The air went quiet for a moment as he and she stared at each other in the darkness.

Taken aback, Xu Yuan nodded with a smile and spoke again:

"Ran Qingmo, after they arrive in a moment, do not speak. Let me handle it."

This time, the big ice block nodded as if satisfied:

"Mm, okay."

With that, neither of them spoke again.

Xu Yuan slowly closed his eyes, entering a state of cultivation once more.

Because the entire pool of spirit spring had been collected into his Sumeru Ring, the source qi in the cave had begun to thin out, but because the Spirit Locking Array was still active, the density of source qi he could sense still left Xu Yuan clicking his tongue in wonder.

As his cultivation technique began to circulate through his meridians, the surrounding source qi was gradually absorbed into his body.

The meridians in Xu Yuan's body, which had once been as narrow as sheep trails, had now become wide highways, the icy blue source qi that had previously coated the inner walls having been completely washed away by the immense medicinal power from before.

The source qi drifting between heaven and earth entered his meridians, transforming at a rapid, unimpeded speed.

In just a quarter of an hour, Xu Yuan realized that the source qi he had converted in this short time was already equivalent to a full week of his previous bitter cultivation.

He felt a mix of emotion and helplessness.

Things that an ordinary person could not achieve even with all their might were nothing more than a casual effort for geniuses.

With his mind fully immersed in cultivation, only by having experienced the struggle of an ordinary person trying to sense the faintest trace of source qi could one truly understand the terrifying advantage brought by an Innate Dao Body.

But soon, Xu Yuan noticed that for some reason, the surrounding drifting source qi was dissipating at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The existence of source qi was similar to air; it would constantly flow from "high-pressure areas" to "low-pressure areas," refilling the empty spaces.

Yet even so, the source qi within the cave was rapidly draining away.

From thick to thin, until finally, only a few weak "qi clusters" remained within two feet of his body.

Xu Yuan frowned with his eyes closed, controlling his intent soul to probe outward.

When an ordinary person first begins cultivation, their intent soul can only sense weak source qi within a foot of their body; they cannot sense the flow or replenishment of source qi at all.

The terror of an Innate Soul Body was manifested once again; Xu Yuan's current range of perception was not only wider, but he could clearly perceive the direction of the source qi's flow.

As his intent soul probed, Xu Yuan sensed that all the source qi dissipating from the cave was flowing toward a spot one meter to his side.

"." Xu Yuan.

He stopped his cultivation and opened his eyes to look.

Ran Qingmo was sitting cross-legged beside him with her eyes closed.

The source qi in the cave was being snatched away by her.

And he, he couldn't compete with this big ice block at all.

His eyes flickered slightly, and Xu Yuan shook his head, giving up on cultivation to lean against the stone wall and rest his mind.

Xu Yuan began to understand why Ran Qingmo had been able to reach the Grandmaster realm at such a young age.

She was cultivating at every waking moment.

Whether it was in the Buddhist hall where they first met, when she woke up shivering in the cave, or during the brief intervals while trekking through the Wanxing Mountain Range.

As long as she was sitting with her eyes closed, she was cultivating.

A genius who works hard is the only true genius.

Thinking of this, Xu Yuan's thoughts suddenly stalled as he recalled his eldest brother.

That guy, he didn't seem to cultivate much, did he?

In his childhood memories, he would constantly pester this brother, who was ten years his senior, to play with him.

Although Xu Changge would always look reluctant, he would still accompany him, often spending the entire day doing so.

In those memories, he never once saw Xu Changge stop to sit and cultivate.

As Xu Yuan's thoughts wandered, Ran Qingmo, sitting beside him, quietly opened her eyes, her voice cold and clear:

"They're here."

Xu Yuan snapped back to reality, his gaze sharpening.

The next moment, "BOOM!!!!"

Gravel flew as the cave's sturdy stone wall was blasted open by an external force, creating a hole over ten meters deep. Sunlight poured into the chamber, instantly dispelling all the darkness within.

Within that piercing sunlight, several figures were vaguely visible.

Seemingly wary of Ran Qingmo's strength, they did not rashly enter the cramped cave.

After a moment of silence, A cold, raspy female voice drifted in from outside.

"Master Ran, please come out."

The voice echoed throughout the entire cave.

After a second of silence, Ran Qingmo silently picked up her sword, stood up, and began walking toward the cave entrance.

Xu Yuan reached out and grabbed her wrist.

She looked back, and Xu Yuan shook his head at her slightly.

At this point in time, given his cheap eldest brother's strength, he was capable of killing this ice block in a single strike.

Ran Qingmo remained silent for two seconds, but she obediently stood her ground.

Xu Yuan slowly rose, brushed off his blood-red robes, and spoke up:

"Master Ran has not harmed me. Do not attack her; let her leave."

"."

Hearing Xu Yuan's voice, the figures outside remained silent.

Seeing this, Xu Yuan began to walk toward the cave entrance himself.

The blasted-out tunnel was over ten meters long and covered in debris; his boots crunched loudly as he walked over the rubble.

Standing at the entrance, Xu Yuan squinted, channeling Origin Qi into his eyes to adjust to the harsh sunlight.

Xu Yuan reached up to gently touch his neck as he looked at the four figures hovering in the air outside.

A scruffy, bearded man, a woman in a martial outfit with a high ponytail, a bald monk, and that masked woman in a tight black suit with bare, fair arms.

Xu Yuan's gaze locked onto the masked woman.

He remembered her.

This woman was Ying'er, the one who stood by and handed over the weapon when Xu Changge was beating him up.

Ying'er's cold gaze swept over Xu Yuan, and she said in a low voice:

"Zhou Chen, take the Third Young Master away."

"."

Zhou Chen glanced at the Third Young Master standing at the cave entrance and shook his head with a helpless expression.

The blood-red robe looked quite dashing, but who would listen to the words of this playboy Third Young Master?

Killing this Ran Qingmo was the Eldest Young Master's order.

With that thought, Zhou Chen flashed toward Xu Yuan, moving so fast that Xu Yuan couldn't even track him.

But halfway there, Zhou Chen's figure suddenly jerked to a halt, and he hung in mid-air, frowning.

As his gaze swept across the scene, The palm of that useless Third Young Master, which had been gently stroking his own neck, was now emitting wisps of eerie, blood-red Origin Qi that coiled tightly around his fair throat.

In the split second that Zhou Chen had lunged forward, beads of fresh blood had already begun to seep from the skin of his neck.

Xu Yuan continued to stroke his neck, his gaze circling the four of them once more as he repeated, word by word:

"I said, "Let Ran Qingmo leave."

Feeling the warmth of the blood trickling down his neck, Xu Yuan thought that if he were truly capable of absolute rationality, he should seize this opportunity to eliminate that block of ice.

If he did so, his identity would be firmly cemented, leaving no room for any further flaws.

But Xu Yuan could not.

Perhaps they would clash and turn against each other over some matters in the future, but it could never be now.

Call him a saint or a sycophant, it mattered not.

Even if one cannot be expected to repay kindness, one must at the very least refrain from returning kindness with enmity.

She had helped him so much along the way, and had silently aided him within the cave dwelling as well; if not for her, the mere inability to resolve his Alienation Syndrome would have cost him his life by now.

Ran Qingmo stood within the cave, sword in hand, watching that blood-drenched silhouette standing at the entrance, her red lips pressed into a thin line.

"..."

Clouds swirled about, and beneath their feet lay the ten-thousand-foot abyss of Hanging Heaven Cliff; the cave entrance plunged into a deathly silence.

Upon seeing that trace of blood-red Origin Qi, a flicker of surprise crossed Ying'er's cold eyes, though she quickly returned to her usual composure:

"Third Young Master, we are here to save you. What is the meaning of this?"

Xu Yuan shifted his gaze toward her and said softly:

"Saving me and letting Ran Qingmo go are not mutually exclusive."

After the brief exchange, the cave entrance fell back into silence.

For the four people hovering in the air outside the cave, the fact that the Third Young Master possessed Origin Qi was indeed unexpected, but for cultivators of their level, it was nothing of note.

Knocking the Third Young Master unconscious and taking him away would be simple—a mere matter of a single dash.

The problem, however, was that no one knew what cultivation technique the Third Young Master had been practicing, nor did they know if the blood-red Origin Qi coiled around his neck would go berserk the moment he was knocked out.

Admittedly, the disparity in their strength meant they could forcibly suppress that Origin Qi with their own before it could run wild.

But, What if?

What if the situation did not go as expected and the Third Young Master suffered an accident? Who would bear that responsibility?

If the Third Young Master died by their hands, it would be tantamount to their entire families being buried along with him.

No one dared to take that risk.

The standoff persisted for an unknown duration, Until a sigh suddenly drifted down from the summit of Hanging Heaven Cliff.

It was very faint, yet it fell clearly into the ears of everyone present.

As the sigh faded, A voice as gentle as jade resonated:

"Ying'er, if Ran Qingmo wishes to leave, let her go. Just bring Changtian up here."