Expelling Sword Qi

The two arrived at the Star Dou Forest, and Di Tian, sensing their presence, came out to greet them immediately.

He stood at the edge of the forest, his black robes fluttering in the wind, and bowed respectfully the moment he saw them.

"Greetings, Senior."

Xuan Qing waved his hand. "I have said before, there is no need for such formalities."

"Etiquette cannot be discarded. Your guidance alone allowed Aunt Ice and Fire to survive; this favor is enough for us to treat you as an honored guest."

"Senior, please, this way."

Di Tian waved his hand to open a spatial gate. Silver light swirled, and behind the gate lay a tranquil lake—the true Life Lake.

Just as the three were about to enter, a gruff voice rang out: "Di Tian, why are you bringing a human here? This does not conform to our rules!"

A massive Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear lumbered over. It was Lord Bear, and he glared at Xuan Qing with ill intent.

This fellow loved to antagonize Di Tian, and now that he had caught him in an act he deemed improper, he naturally intended to make a scene.

Di Tian's expression darkened, and he was just about to teach this foolish bear a lesson.

A gray-white stream of light flew out from Xuan Qing, and a Qilin the size of a foal landed on the ground, yawning lazily.

It glanced at Lord Bear with disdain, its eyes clearly saying: What kind of status do you think you have to dare lecture my master?

Lord Bear's entire body stiffened. He felt a terrifying bloodline suppression emanating from the Qilin! He immediately wilted, shrinking his neck and daring not to make a sound.

Di Tian let out a cold snort, feeling secretly satisfied, but he did not let the opportunity pass and mocked him directly.

"Aren't you usually quite arrogant? Look closely; this is a Qilin. Among all beasts under heaven, the Qilin is the leader."

Although he did not know what a Qilin was, these were Xuan Qing's own words, and they served perfectly to intimidate others.

Lord Bear lowered his head and slunk away, not daring to provoke them again.

Di Tian ignored him and led the two inside.

The three arrived at the side of a tranquil lake. The water was emerald green and radiated a rich aura of life; this was the true Life Lake.

The one guarded by the Titan Giant Ape and the Sky Azure Bull Python was merely a decoy on the periphery, meant to deceive outsiders.

Di Tian walked to the water's edge and bowed.

"Master, I have brought the Senior back."

Ripples spread across the lake surface, and silver light rose from the depths, growing brighter until a cold, feminine voice echoed out.

"Please, come inside to speak."

The lake water parted automatically, revealing a passage. Di Tian led the way, and the three walked down the path.

At the end of the passage was an independent space where the life energy was even more concentrated than outside.

In the center of the space lay a giant silver dragon, its scales shimmering with moonlight-like luster.

However, there was a hideous sword wound on its body, stretching from its shoulder across to its abdomen, where red sword qi constantly eroded the dragon's body.

Seeing Xuan Qing and the others enter, the silver dragon endured the pain, and with a flash of silver light, transformed into human form.

It was a woman with silver hair and purple eyes, breathtakingly beautiful but pale, with blood still seeping from her chest.

The woman bowed respectfully.

"Silver Dragon King Gu Yuena, greets Senior."

Di Tian had previously told her about this person's identity—one of the Four Spirits of Heaven, a god of the East—with a background so grand it was frightening; she dared not be negligent.

Xuan Qing examined her. So this was the Silver Dragon King? The half split from the Dragon God was indeed beautiful, but she was truly severely wounded.

"The sword wound from the Asura Sword is not easy to bear, is it?"

Gu Yuena shook her head with a bitter smile.

"Senior has sharp eyes. This sword wound has plagued me for tens of thousands of years, and I have been unable to remove it."

She endured the erosion of the sword qi every single moment. If not for the immense life energy of the Life Lake, let alone healing, it would have been a struggle just to keep it from worsening.

Xuan Qing stepped forward and held his hand not far from her chest, careful not to get too close to avoid direct contact.

Gray-white energy surged from his palm—the true chaotic energy of the Chaos Qilin. Xuan Qing intended to use this chaotic energy to wear down the Asura Sword qi.

When the chaotic energy touched the red sword qi, it emitted a sizzling sound. The sword qi was worn away bit by bit, though the process was slow.

This was not because Xuan Qing's cultivation was lacking, but because the status of chaotic energy was higher than that of the Asura Sword qi; simply put, a higher rank naturally suppresses the lower.

Xuan Qing's soul power vanished rapidly. After about half an hour, his soul power neared exhaustion, and he collapsed to the ground, gasping for air.

Looking at the sword qi on Gu Yuena's chest, the red energy had diminished by about one-twentieth. Though it was not much, it was indeed effective.

"My soul power is too low right now. If I were a Title Douluo, I might have been able to clear it all at once."

Gu Yuena seemed not to hear his words; instead, a smile appeared on her face as she felt the change in her wound, her eyes brightening.

"Even if it is just this little bit, if I were to recover on my own, it would take nearly a thousand years."

She looked at Xuan Qing and thanked him sincerely.

"Many thanks for your intervention, Senior. This kindness, Gu Yuena will keep in her heart."

Xuan Qing ignored her, took a waterskin from his storage space, and took a sip. The feeling of having his soul power completely drained was truly uncomfortable; he needed a moment to recover.

Gu Yuena asked curiously, "Senior, is there something you need by coming here?"

She was truly ignorant of the outside world. Ever since she escaped back from the God Realm, she had been nursing her injuries and had never once stepped out.

Xuan Qing did not beat around the bush. "I have reached level twenty, and I need a soul ring."

Gu Yuena was stunned. "Can Senior not condense a soul ring yourself?"

Di Tian and Zi Ji were also curious. It was common knowledge that for soul beasts undergoing human reincarnation, the first seven soul rings could be condensed manually.

Xuan Qing smiled and explained, "I am not a dragon from this Douluo Continent, and as I told those two before, I am merely an avatar created to experience the warmth and cold of the mortal world. Since I have chosen to take human form, I must abide by the rules of the mortal realm. You can think of me as a candidate undergoing a divine trial."

Once put that way, the three of them understood. Candidates of divine trials faced all sorts of restrictions, and since he was not a dragon of Douluo Continent, it was normal that he could not condense his own soul ring.

Gu Yuena nodded. "Senior, just go directly to Di Tian for whatever you need. My current condition is such that I truly cannot be of any help."

Her injuries were so severe that even moving caused her pain; merely maintaining her human form to speak was already a struggle.

Xuan Qing understood. "Rest easy and tend to your wounds. I shall not disturb you further."

He stood up to leave. Gu Yuena thanked him once more and watched the three of them walk out of this space.

Back at the Life Lake, Di Tian asked, "What attribute soul ring does Senior require?"

Xuan Qing thought for a moment. "Around five thousand years. Time or space attributes are preferred; if those are unavailable, lightning or wood attributes will suffice. The age must not be lower than five thousand years, and it must be at least a sub-dragon species."

Di Tian nodded. "Please wait a moment, Senior. I shall return shortly."

He waved his right hand, and spatial ripples surged before him as he vanished from the spot.

Zi Ji remained behind to keep Xuan Qing company.

Xuan Qing sat by the lake to regulate his breathing and restore his soul power. The previous expenditure had indeed been quite heavy, and he needed to seize the time to recover.

About a quarter of an hour later, Di Tian returned, carrying a cyan-green dragon in his hand that was about six meters long.

The dragon was already unconscious and covered in wounds, but its aura was not weak; it was indeed a sub-dragon species.

Di Tian tossed the dragon onto the ground. "Senior, this is a six-thousand-three-hundred-year-old Green Wood Flood Dragon. Although it is purely wood-attributed, it is indeed a sub-dragon species."

Xuan Qing examined it and nodded in satisfaction. It was indeed quite good—a wood-attributed sub-dragon with a suitable age.

He stood up, waved his right hand, and the Azure Sky Demon-Breaking Spear appeared in his grip. He walked up to the dragon and thrust three times into its eyes, clean and efficient.

The dragon twitched a few times before its aura vanished.

A noble purple soul ring drifted out from the corpse, its color quite deep.

It was close to a dark purple, indicating that its age was indeed high. Xuan Qing sat cross-legged and began to absorb the soul ring.

Di Tian watched the dragon's corpse, thinking it a waste to leave it, so he shifted into his true form. The hundred-meter-long black dragon opened its massive maw and swallowed the corpse in one gulp.

Predation between soul beasts was necessary and normal. He smacked his lips; the taste was not bad.