"W-well, all right."
In the end, Lin Xue could not win against Ye Xuan and could only nod in agreement.
Ye Xuan smiled without saying anything more.
Then the two headed deeper into the rear mountain, chatting and laughing.
Along the way, demonic beasts would appear from time to time and attack them.
But those Meridian Opening Realm demonic beasts were nowhere near enough for Ye Xuan to kill. Usually, they died at his hands in a single exchange.
After a little over half an hour, Lin Xue visibly began to grow nervous.
She slowed down, her pretty face solemn as she stared ahead nervously and said:
"Junior brother, up ahead is the area where Essence Condensation Realm demonic beasts roam. We must be careful. If we can't beat them, you absolutely mustn't push yourself."
Ye Xuan nodded. "Mm, I know."
The demonic beasts in this rear mountain had all been captured by the sacred land's elders specifically for their disciples' trials.
Through certain means, they confined demonic beasts of different realms to different areas, preventing them from crossing over.
Thus, although Ye Xuan had killed quite a few Meridian Opening Ninth Layer demonic beasts earlier, he had not encountered even a single Essence Condensation Realm demonic beast.
That was because he had been in the Meridian Opening Realm demonic beast area, which Essence Condensation Realm demonic beasts could not enter.
The two slowed their steps as they walked along the rugged mountain path.
Their clothes brushed against the weeds, making rustling sounds.
Lin Xue was clearly very nervous. She could not even spare a thought for shyness; one hand had already gripped the hem of Ye Xuan's clothes tightly, and her beautiful eyes kept sweeping back and forth.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, a piercing whistle tore through the air. The next instant, a demonic beast burst out of the dense forest ahead and lunged straight at them.
Spiritual Qi ran wild between heaven and earth, the ground shook, and sand and pebbles flew.
The instant the demonic beast lunged over, all the weeds were blown flat. Even the trees it struck shattered with cracking sounds.
"A second-tier demonic beast, a Violent Ape! It's equivalent to Essence Condensation Second Layer!"
At the sight of that demonic beast, Lin Xue's expression changed, her face turning deathly pale in an instant.
Ye Xuan said nothing.
Almost the instant Lin Xue spoke, his left arm swung back and wrapped around her slender waist.
The next second, the Spiritual Qi within him gathered in his right leg, and he stamped it hard against the ground.
Boom!
As Spiritual Qi surged wildly, he rose into the air with Lin Xue and shot up a towering tree.
"Roar!"
The Violent Ape swung its massive fist and smashed it into a boulder.
With a bang, the boulder split into pieces.
Having missed its strike, it raised its head. Its bloodthirsty eyes turned toward Ye Xuan and Lin Xue, growing even more savage and frenzied.
Without pausing for even a moment, it moved its legs and charged fiercely, heading straight for the tree the two occupied.
Ye Xuan froze briefly, then reacted swiftly. Wrapping his arm around Lin Xue again, he leaped onto another large tree.
Boom!
Almost as soon as he jumped away, the Violent Ape rammed its enormous body into the tree where Ye Xuan and Lin Xue had just been.
The ground shook, and the tree swayed violently before snapping with a crack and toppling over.
"Roar! Roar! Roar!"
The Violent Ape roared madly, its feet pounding the ground repeatedly as it continued charging at astonishing speed.
This time, Ye Xuan did not keep dodging. Instead, he quickly told Lin Xue, "Stay here and don't move. I'll kill it. Trust me."
With that, Spiritual Qi swept through Ye Xuan's body, and he leaped down like a goshawk, charging at the Violent Ape.
Seeing Ye Xuan charging toward it, the bloodthirst in the Violent Ape's eyes intensified. It threw back its head and let out a sky-shaking roar.
As its thick legs stamped the ground, its enormous fist pierced the air and hurtled straight toward Ye Xuan.
At this sight, Ye Xuan fully opened all one hundred and eight spiritual meridians within him, dense Spiritual Qi gathering inside them.
He did not pit his fist against the Violent Ape's. Instead, he pushed off the ground with his left foot and sprang up.
The next second, he straightened his right leg and lashed it straight out like a steel whip.
Whumm!
Spiritual Qi wreathed his right leg as his kick left afterimages and unleashed a sonic boom!
Bang!
A tremendous crash rang out.
Ye Xuan's right leg collided with the Violent Ape's fist.
A wave of force spilled outward.
Ye Xuan felt his right leg go numb and sore. As a tremendous force surged toward him, he involuntarily began retreating.
The Violent Ape fared even worse under Ye Xuan's kick,
its fist, which looked as though it were covered in a layer of keratin armor, actually split open and spurted blood, while its enormous body was sent flying straight backward.
There was a thunderous crash.
Its body slammed heavily into a giant tree, shattering it, and it fell onto its back on the ground.
"H-how... how is this possible? Isn't Junior Brother Ye Xuan in the Meridian Opening Realm? How could he knock the Violent Ape back with one strike?"
Watching from the tree, Lin Xue was stunned once again.
She could not help raising her delicate hand to cover her rosy little mouth, her beautiful eyes wide,
feeling only that her heart was being struck by a heavy hammer, pounding at a frantic pace.
After all, this Violent Ape's combat strength was absolutely no weaker than that of an ordinary Essence Condensation Third Layer cultivator.
It was no exaggeration to say that if ordinary Essence Condensation Third Layer cultivators had not practiced powerful martial techniques,
even two or three of them together could not defeat this thick-skinned, tough-fleshed Violent Ape with its boundless strength.
Yet now, with just one strike, Ye Xuan had knocked back such a powerful Violent Ape.
Lin Xue simply did not know what to say.
Was he a freak?
Ye Xuan retreated three steps and quickly steadied himself.
By now, there was little solemnity left on his face.
Although this Violent Ape was very strong, it still fell far short of him.
He felt that he still could not draw upon the Spiritual Qi within him with complete fluency. Otherwise, he could have blown this Violent Ape apart with a single effortless strike.
In fact, that was indeed the case.
The Chaos Sacred Body was unmatched throughout the ages. Combined with his one hundred and eight opened meridians, it gave him a tremendous foundation and advantage.
What Ye Xuan lacked now was practice and control over his strength and Spiritual Qi.
If he could control his own strength and Spiritual Qi, he would have no trouble effortlessly blowing this Violent Ape apart, even without practicing martial techniques.
As he pondered, the Violent Ape charged at him again, even more frenzied than before.
Ye Xuan was utterly unafraid. He seemed even more like a Violent Ape than the beast itself, lunging forward like an even more bloodthirsty demonic beast.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Explosive crashes rang out incessantly as man and ape collided madly and struck furiously, just like two machines of violence.
While fighting the Violent Ape, Ye Xuan also tried to gain practiced control over the strength and Spiritual Qi within him. He kept trying to dodge as well, training his reflexes.
One minute later, Ye Xuan turned sideways to evade the Violent Ape's incoming fist, then swung a backhanded punch into its head.
Spiritual Qi swirled around his fist, sharp as a blade. With a bang, he easily blew its head apart.
The Violent Ape's head burst open, blood spraying out as it toppled headfirst onto the ground, all signs of life gone.
Lin Xue had watched the entire battle from the tree. Her heart pounded with fright, unable to settle down at all.
When she finally saw Ye Xuan blow the Violent Ape apart, she could no longer hold back and cheered.
But she seemed to have forgotten where she was. That cheer brought trouble: with a crack, the branch beneath her feet snapped.
The next second-
"Ah-!"
Lin Xue screamed as she fell.
Ye Xuan: "..."