Sword-Shaped Pendant

The rampaging Azure-Eyed Giant Snake sent everyone flying. Lin Xuan had little spiritual energy to begin with, and he had suffered grievous wounds all over his body.

Fortunately, he had swallowed the Fire Lingzhi beforehand. Its potent medicinal power was healing his injuries, yet even so, he still coughed up mouthfuls of blood.

His body fell into a mountain ravine. The impact nearly shattered every bone in him, and the front of his robe had long been dyed red. Lin Xuan did not notice that when his blood touched the Sword-Shaped Pendant, it vanished in a strange manner.

Boom!

Another sweep of the snake's tail sent Lin Xuan flying again. This time, he passed out directly. The Dragon-Shaped Pendant sank entirely into his body, turning into a streak of light before vanishing in a flash.

The Sword-Shaped Pendant burrowed into his dantian and began to tremble without pause. The spiritual energy around him surged rapidly toward Lin Xuan, while a tiny black hole formed in his abdomen and swallowed all the incoming energy.

Some of that spiritual energy entered Lin Xuan's body, racing wildly through him and continuously crashing against his meridians. His spiritual meridians had never been opened, so when this stray energy entered them, the pain was ten times worse than opening them himself.

Lin Xuan was jolted awake by the pain. He gritted his teeth and endured it, having no idea what was happening.

When he discovered the culprit, he nearly went mad. The little sword inside his body was his pendant, and it was now crazily devouring spiritual energy.

Although most of the spiritual energy was swallowed by the little sword, even the small portion that overflowed was more than Lin Xuan could absorb.

"Damn it, I'm already at the Ninth Level of Body Tempering. If this continues, it'll be a Meridian Breakthrough!"

There were nine great spiritual meridians within the human body, running throughout it. Only after the meridians were opened could spiritual energy circulate through the body and generate power.

Lin Xuan's cultivation soared like a rocket, rapidly reaching the peak of Body Tempering. Clenching his teeth, he prepared to use this power to assault his spiritual meridians.

Enduring the pain, he focused his mind and prepared to strike at the first spiritual meridian in his body. Forming a hand seal, Lin Xuan launched his full-force attack. The spiritual energy within him gathered together and charged at the first meridian.

Boom!

It was as though an invisible wall stood before him. The spiritual energy was scattered by the impact, and Lin Xuan's cultivation rapidly dropped, eventually falling back to the Third-Order Spirit Disciple stage.

"Again?!" Lin Xuan roared unwillingly. He had already attempted this twice, and each time he had been rebounded. It was as if some mysterious force within his body had locked him down tightly.

"Again!" Lin Xuan refused to believe it. Once more, he gathered the spiritual energy in his body and charged at the spiritual meridian.

Rumble—

The two forces collided, producing a thunderous roar within Lin Xuan's body. The impact struck him, and he vomited blood again.

At that moment, a gentle force appeared inside his body. Lin Xuan knew it was the medicinal power of the Fire Lingzhi. Thankfully, he had swallowed it beforehand. Otherwise, he would likely have died already.

More and more spiritual energy accumulated in Lin Xuan's body, making him feel as though he were swelling to the bursting point.

"You bastard, you're still absorbing it? Stop already!" Lin Xuan could now clearly see everything inside his body. He cursed anxiously, but the little sword did not react in the slightest.

With this much spiritual energy, he should be able to break through that seal. Lin Xuan decided to attack once more, but if he failed this time, he would be blown apart by the spiritual energy.

"I'll risk it! Even if there's only a sliver of hope, I have to try!" Lin Xuan was that kind of person. Until the very last moment, he would never give up.

This time, endless spiritual energy transformed into a raging torrent and rushed toward the unopened spiritual meridian.

Boom! The collision rang out like a thunderclap. Black ripples appeared within Lin Xuan's body, winding around his spiritual meridian and forming a Black Lotus.

Mysterious and demonic. Strands of black mist seeped from the Black Lotus like thick ink, carrying an ancient aura as it blocked the spiritual energy outside.

"What... what is this?" Lin Xuan's eyes widened as he stared incredulously at the Black Lotus inside his body. "How could something like this be inside me?"

He vaguely guessed that his inability to open his spiritual meridians might be related to this mysterious Black Lotus. Am I going to remain a Spirit Disciple for the rest of my life? I refuse to accept this!

A surge of fury suddenly rose in Lin Xuan's heart. He hated his fate, hated the Black Lotus within him, and hated having his destiny controlled by others!

Buzz!

The little sword seemed to sense Lin Xuan's emotions and began to tremble violently. Dreamlike radiance spread across its blade. With a flash of sword light, the Black Lotus was cleaved in two.

This—

Lin Xuan had not expected the little sword to be so powerful, severing the mysterious Black Lotus with a single strike. He immediately gathered spiritual energy and charged toward the spiritual meridian.

Without the Black Lotus blocking him, Lin Xuan quickly opened his first spiritual meridian with his abundant spiritual energy. Like a river channel, the meridian guided the spiritual energy and formed a complete circulation within his body.

The little sword also stopped devouring spiritual energy and floated within Lin Xuan's body.

Everything returned to normal.

Lin Xuan slowly let out a breath, finally relaxing completely. What had just happened was far too unbelievable; even now, he hardly dared believe it.

"What exactly was that Black Lotus, and why did it appear inside my body?" Lin Xuan could not make sense of it at all. And the Sword-Shaped Pendant—how had it entered his body? Its origins seemed even more mysterious than those of the Black Lotus.

Lin Xuan's father had given him this Sword-Shaped Pendant, and it had just helped him split apart the Black Lotus, allowing him to open his spiritual meridian. Thus, Lin Xuan felt that this mysterious little sword should not harm him.

Lin Xuan examined his body and found that his injuries had long since healed. Moreover, his cultivation had reached the Late Phase of First Level of Meridian Condensation, and he would soon break through to the Second Level of Meridian Condensation.

"No matter what, I've opened my spiritual meridians. I'll be able to cultivate from now on. I must return to Sword Pool Prefecture and fulfill Father's final wish!"

He had originally belonged to Sword Pool Prefecture, but because he had been framed, he was expelled from it. Now that he could cultivate and was no longer trash, he would reclaim everything he had lost!

"If I can become a core disciple of the Profound Heaven Sect, I should be able to return to Sword Pool Prefecture without trouble." Lin Xuan made his decision and immediately set off. The Profound Heaven Sect had a strict hierarchy; its disciples were divided into outer disciples, inner disciples, and core disciples. It would not be easy for Lin Xuan to stand out among countless young disciples.

"At the beginning of every month, there's an entry examination. Pass it, and you can become an outer disciple." Lin Xuan had stayed here for three months and had already learned the basic situation. He sprang up and raced toward the sect.

Within the forest, several youths in white fled in a sorry state. Their once-clean clothes were covered in blood and mud.

"Damn it, we almost died here!"

"If that Azure-Eyed Giant Snake hadn't disturbed another ferocious beast and been intercepted, we'd have been finished today!"

These miserable youths were Zhang Bin and the others. They had survived, but of the original dozen or so people, only four remained.

"It was all that sword servant named Lin Xuan's fault. We came back empty-handed and wasted a Fire Lingzhi for nothing!"

"I wonder whether he's dead. I really hope he isn't, so I'll get the chance to show him what it means to wish for death but be unable to die!"

"Hmph, a Third-Order Spirit Disciple took an attack like that. He must already be dead. How could he still be alive? Let's go. We need to hurry back. So many sword servants died that we must quickly replenish our fresh blood."

After resting briefly, the four headed back. They did not stop along the way and finally emerged from the Dark Forest.

"Hey, Brother Feng, look at that person!" one youth cried out.

Chen Feng and Zhang Bin looked over. Ahead and to their left was a figure covered in mud. They could vaguely make out coarse gray clothing, and the person was running toward the Profound Sword Sect.

"It's that brat—he isn't dead!" Chen Feng exclaimed. "Damn it, let's see how I kill him!"

"Come on. Let him know my Fire Lingzhi isn't so easy to eat!" Zhang Bin said with a gloomy expression.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The four accelerated, stirring up a fierce gust of wind as they quickly caught up with Lin Xuan.

Hah—

The four surrounded Lin Xuan. Chen Feng sneered viciously. "Brat, I didn't expect you to still be alive. Good. I'll kill you little by little!"

"Don't kill him. He ate the Fire Lingzhi, so his blood should be full of medicinal power now. Bring him back and bleed him every day for our cultivation. Wouldn't that be better?" Zhang Bin smiled sinisterly like a demon.

Lin Xuan took a deep breath and placed his hand on his sword hilt. The Profound Heaven Sect was already in sight, yet he had still been intercepted.

Of the four before him, Zhang Bin had reached Meridian Condensation, Third Stage, making him a Third-Stage Spirit Warrior. Chen Feng was at the Second Level of Meridian Condensation, while the other two were about as strong as Lin Xuan, both at the First Level of Meridian Condensation. Under normal circumstances, Lin Xuan would undoubtedly lose.

Yet Lin Xuan did not panic. His expression remained calm, the hand gripping his sword steady and powerful, his gaze fixed on Chen Feng ahead.

The sect was very close. As long as he broke through their encirclement, he was confident he could enter it. Once inside the sect, he would be much safer.

These people underestimated him, so they would not take him too seriously. That was his chance to strike. But once he struck, he had to succeed, because these people would not give him a second chance. In other words, he had only one chance to attack.

At that thought, a trace of excitement suddenly rose in Lin Xuan's heart. What kind of power would that sword move he had practiced for three years possess now that he had spiritual energy?

"Break both his legs first, so he can't run!" Chen Feng drew his longsword and swept it toward Lin Xuan's legs.

At that moment, Lin Xuan moved. He drew his sword in a flash and leaped into the air, like a meteor streaking across the sky and vanishing in an instant.

Pfft! Lin Xuan thrust out his sword, then ran toward the sect without even looking back. His speed shocked the others.

"Ah! My hand!" At the same time, Chen Feng clutched his right arm and screamed without end. Blood gushed out in great quantities, staining the ground red.

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