Traveling Together, Breaking Free

Elder Mo and the two Soul Ancestors quietly slipped away from Zhu Zhuyun's side, moving silently toward the perimeter of the group.

Elder Mo and the two Soul Ancestors formed a triangular formation, surrounding the rest of the team.

"Strike!"

Following Zhu Zhuyun's crisp command.

Before the group of Soul Elders and Soul Ancestors could react, they were instantly slaughtered by the two Soul Ancestors and the one Soul Emperor who had been prepared for this moment.

Only then did even the dullest of the Spirit Masters realize that Zhu Zhuyun intended to silence them all.

"Zhu Zhuyun! What is the meaning of this!?"

However, she only met them with a cold, icy gaze.

"Leave no one alive!"

Only these two Soul Ancestors and the Soul Emperor were her most loyal subordinates; as for the other guards arranged by the imperial family, they were always leaking information, so she took this opportunity to wipe them all out.

A Soul Ancestor struggled to block a strike from Elder Mo, and realizing he was doomed to die today, he burst into a frantic, manic laugh.

"We sold our lives for you, only to receive this end! Don't get too smug, you three—if she dares to treat me like this today, she will do the same to you in the future!"

As his voice fell, he charged madly toward Zhu Zhuyun.

He intended to detonate himself and drag Zhu Zhuyun down to the grave with him!

But before he could even get close to Zhu Zhuyun, Elder Mo pierced his chest from behind with a single claw!

Not long after, only Zhu Zhuyun and her three trusted subordinates remained on the scene.

"Let's go. Soul beasts will come to destroy the evidence for us soon enough!"

On the other side, Ye Guchen and Zhu Zhuqing had already arrived inside a cave.

Zhu Zhuqing turned her back to him and slowly removed her top, revealing her snow-white, jade-like back.

Zhu Zhuqing's face flushed red, and she gathered her courage to speak softly to Ye Guchen.

"Um... could you help me apply medicine to my back? I... I can't reach it..."

Her voice grew smaller and smaller, as if that single sentence had drained all of her courage.

Hearing this, Ye Guchen turned around, and what met his eyes was Zhu Zhuqing's pristine, jade-like back, marred by three hideous wounds.

One of the wounds was located below her shoulder, extending toward the front protrusion; it must have been from failing to dodge in time while turning, causing her to be grazed.

Ye Guchen took the medicinal powder, and while applying it, he teased her.

"Is this the reward you spoke of?"

This caused Zhu Zhuqing's ears to turn bright red, the heat spreading all the way down to her neck.

Watching from behind, Ye Guchen saw it clearly, which only added to her charm.

"However, I am quite satisfied!"

Zhu Zhuqing could no longer hold back; she buried her head into the bundle of clothes she was clutching tightly against her chest, cursing him as a lecher.

Yet, she did not refuse to let Ye Guchen continue applying the medicine.

The other two wounds had already been powdered and bandaged, but the final wound was in a sensitive location. Despite Ye Guchen's sharp tongue, he was still just a novice at heart.

After Ye Guchen finished applying the powder to the back portion of the wound, he looked at the part extending toward the front and swallowed hard.

"Um, for this part of the wound... how about you do the rest?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Zhuqing buried her head even deeper, and only a voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz drifted out.

"You... you do it..."

Having talked a big game, now that it was time for the real thing, the hand holding the medicinal powder reached toward the frontal area. As he caught a glimpse of the towering peaks and his hand drew closer, it began to tremble.

"Damn it! Choking at the critical moment—pull yourself together! Hey."

Zhu Zhuqing seemed to sense Ye Guchen's nervousness and couldn't help but cover her mouth to stifle a giggle.

After giving himself a pep talk, he finally managed to finish bandaging Zhu Zhuqing.

Just like that, for three consecutive days, under the dual treatment of Ye Guchen's healing pills and medicinal powder, Zhu Zhuqing's injuries were basically fully recovered.

As for why such minor injuries that didn't damage her meridians or vital points took three full days to treat—don't ask. If you ask, it's because the top-tier healing pills from Dou II were used up.

It was definitely not because someone wanted to use the opportunity to apply medicine...

Within the ten-thousand-year soul beast region of the Star Dou Great Forest, inside the territory of a thirty-thousand-year Explosive Ant, sword energy was currently raging, sweeping through its cave.

Ye Guchen's Dou I body's martial soul, the Shark Tooth Sword, and the accompanying Zongheng Sword Technique focused primarily on being fierce and domineering. This Explosive Ant happened to satisfy those requirements, and its age was appropriate, making it the natural choice for Ye Guchen's fifth soul ring.

The Horizontal Sword Technique attacks with skill to seek advantage, which is the 'Bai'; the Vertical Sword Technique attacks with momentum to seek reality, which is the 'He'. The Bai and He are the ways of heaven and earth.

Between the vertical and horizontal lies the word 'decide'. The so-called 'deciding feelings and settling doubts' means making the choice most beneficial to the present moment. Therefore, Ye Guchen did not blindly pursue the simultaneous advancement of the Zongheng Sword Technique, choosing instead to focus first on the Horizontal Sword Technique.

The Explosive Ant let out a heaven-shaking hiss, its massive body crashing through the cavern as every step of its six thick legs shattered the mountain rock.

The thirty-thousand-year-old soul beast had already developed a sliver of intelligence; it sensed that although this human's sword intent was sharp, he was not invincible.

Ye Guchen held his Shark Tooth Sword horizontally across his chest, cold light shimmering along its blade.

He took a deep breath, calming the roiling blood in his chest.

He had just taken a direct hit from the Explosive Ant's charge, and his left arm had been gashed by an ant leg, blood dripping down his sleeve.

Yet, a smile curled at the corner of his mouth; if it were easy to defeat, it would lack a certain thrill.

"Again!"

The Horizontal Sword Technique emphasizes breaking finesse with power and overcoming hardness with hardness.

Ye Guchen pushed off the ground with a sudden burst of force, shooting toward the front of the Explosive Ant like an arrow released from a bowstring.

The soul beast clearly hadn't expected its prey to dare a frontal assault. In a fit of rage, it opened its giant mandibles, and a stream of crimson Explosive Ant acid erupted like magma.

Ye Guchen did not dodge or evade the deadly poison that would have stopped an ordinary soul master in their tracks.

He swung the Shark Tooth Sword upward, a layer of pale golden sword-intent gale condensing on the blade, actually splitting the glob of acid right down the middle! The splashing venom landed on the cavern walls, hissing as it corroded deep, charred pits into the stone.

The Explosive Ant's giant compound eyes reflected the figure drawing ever closer, and a sliver of fear finally took root.

It wanted to retreat, but the cavern was narrow, and its massive body had become a burden.

Ye Guchen closed the distance, unleashing the killing moves of the Horizontal Sword Technique without reservation.

Every swing of the Shark Tooth Sword carried the force to cleave mountains and shatter rocks, each strike targeting the vital joints between the ant's head and thorax.

The Explosive Ant frantically waved its legs to parry, but every collision with the strange Shark Tooth Sword left deep cracks in its carapace, dark green bodily fluid seeping from the wounds.

"Horizontal Sweep!"

Though it was merely a clumsy imitation of the ultimate mystery of the Horizontal Sword Technique, it already possessed enough power to break through the defenses of this thirty-thousand-year-old Explosive Ant.

With a low shout, Ye Guchen slashed the Shark Tooth Sword horizontally, the sword momentum like a crashing tide, carrying an irresistible, rigid force.

The Explosive Ant's two front legs snapped off, and its massive body lost its balance, toppling backward.

It let out a final hiss, the explosive sac in its abdomen expanding rapidly; it was attempting to take its enemy down with it.

Ye Guchen's pupils constricted.

The self-detonation of a thirty-thousand-year-old Explosive Ant was enough to level everything within a hundred yards.

But he did not retreat a single step—the essence of the Horizontal Sword Technique lies in the word "decisive." Once the heart is set and doubts are cast aside, one must press forward without hesitation.

The Shark Tooth Sword stabbed diagonally into the wound where the leg had been severed, precisely piercing the expanding explosive sac.

Sword intent exploded inside the sac, strangling the self-detonation in its cradle.

The Explosive Ant's massive body convulsed violently a few times before finally crashing to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Ye Guchen pulled his sword back and retreated, dropping to one knee as he gasped for air.

The wound on his left arm had torn deeper during the final burst, and his right ribs throbbed with a burning pain where he had been grazed by the ant's death throes.

He fished an Origin Returning Pill from his storage ring and swallowed it; the warm medicinal power dissolved, slowly mending the injuries within his body.

Zhu Zhuqing, who had been watching from the side, saw the gruesome wounds on Ye Guchen and was about to step forward out of concern, only to see him swallow a pill and watch as his wounds began to heal at a visible rate.

Zhu Zhuqing was stunned, her face flushing red as she cursed him for a lecher.

So he had just been lusting after her body all along!

Looking at the giant soul beast carcass before him, a hint of satisfaction flashed in Ye Guchen's eyes.

A thirty-thousand-year soul ring was slowly rising from the Explosive Ant, that deep, profound black appearing exceptionally dazzling in the cavern.

Seeing that his secret was out, Ye Guchen pretended not to hear, hurriedly sitting cross-legged to channel his soul power and draw in the soul ring.

With the Horizontal Sword Technique now taking shape, the soul skills granted by soul rings had become like chicken ribs—tasteless to eat, yet a pity to discard.

It was not the case that the more sword techniques one integrated, the greater the power; the creation of a soul skill was equivalent to a carving of a sword technique, which could be triggered simply by channeling soul power.

However, the drawbacks were too obvious; soul skills produced like assembly-line products were extremely wasteful, failing to utilize every ounce of soul power efficiently.

They were nowhere near as efficient as the Zongheng Sword Technique, which was why self-created soul skills were generally far stronger than those bestowed by soul rings.

Ye Guchen simply abandoned the soul skill granted by the ring, focusing entirely on honing his Horizontal Sword Technique.

After all, the Way of Opening and Closing lies in knowing what to take and what to discard.

Focusing solely on the horizontal sword today was the most advantageous choice for the present.

Seeing Ye Guchen's feigned ignorance, Zhu Zhuqing could only stomp her foot in frustration, standing guard by the cavern to keep watch for him.

Watching the sun set in the distance, the long evening glow draping across the sky as a flock of birds soared freely by, Zhu Zhuqing felt as though the rules that had always bound her had finally collapsed.

She felt an unprecedented sense of ease and liberation.

Perhaps it was the elevation of her mental state, or perhaps the long-awaited relaxation, but Zhu Zhuqing's soul power broke through by a level on the spot.

She cast her gaze toward Ye Guchen, who was still absorbing the soul ring, finding him so reassuring; as she watched, her gaze softened.

Slowly, she began to move toward where Ye Guchen sat.