The vast and boundless Fire Maple Forest stretched for thousands of miles. Even at Xiao Yan's speed, he traveled straight south for two days. Now, behind him was an endless sea of crimson fire. Before Xiao Yan stood a Qing Shan, rising straight up.
At the foot of the Qing Shan, in a shaded area on the east side, on a cliff, a graceful figure sits quietly cross-legged.
When Xiao Yan arrived, the woman opened her eyes, and their gazes met.
"It's you... Li Bingrui!"
Upon seeing this woman here, Xiao Yan frowned, somewhat surprised. He hadn't expected to see her again after their parting. Just as Li Bingrui had said, they had met again.
"I told you we would meet again. I've been waiting for you here for over two months, and you did come, but much later than I expected."
Li Bingrui remained expressionless, her face icy cold, yet she seemed to have anticipated Xiao Yan's arrival.
Did you know I would come?
He frowned. He had only met this woman a few times, so how did she know he would definitely come here?
"You will definitely come here for the sake of the Red Lotus Karmic Fire."
"Red... Red Lotus Karmic Fire is here!"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan's expression first froze, then quickly transformed into boundless joy. If that was the case, then his trip to the Fire Maple Forest had not been in vain!
Looking up at the Qing Shan before him, Xiao Yan's heart was instantly ignited with passion. He had found the Red Lotus Karmic Fire, which meant that his cultivation could advance to the next level.
With this in mind, Xiao Yan quickened his pace and headed towards the valley behind Li Bingrui.
"Stop!"
However, the next second, as the cold voice rang out, a chilling longsword suddenly pierced through Xiao Yan's front. The sharp sword energy caused Xiao Yan to stop in his tracks instantly, and he unconsciously took two steps back. Looking up, he saw Li Bingrui's figure already in front of him, her icy longsword pointing directly at him.
What does this mean?
With a frown, Xiao Yan's mind was preoccupied with the Heavenly Flames, and he had no time to pay attention to this girl.
"Why do you think I'm waiting for you here? If you want to see my master, you must first get past me!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Xiao Yan's expression changed instantly, and he was extremely surprised. Master, the one Li Bingrui was referring to was undoubtedly Ye Honglian. But Ye Honglian was Heavenly Flames, and her nature was violent. How could she possibly have a disciple who cultivated the ice attribute? This was simply too unbelievable.
However, upon hearing Li Bingrui's words, Xiao Yan understood that the "they" Li Bingrui had mentioned to him back then must have been referring to Gu You and Hai Mochen Xiao Yan. Only Li Bingrui, who knew this, would know the fact that Xiao Yan's memory contained their two bodies.
"I came here to find Senior Ye Honglian, and I don't want to have any conflict with you."
After a moment's thought, Xiao Yan shook his head slightly. Li Bingrui was, after all, Ye Honglian's disciple, so he naturally had to be more polite in his words and actions. Moreover... Luo Jin seemed to have been deeply impressed by this woman from the very first moment he saw her. If he made a move against Li Bingrui, it would probably be difficult to get along with Luo Jin later.
"If you want to see my master, you must defeat me. Otherwise, I will do everything in my power to stop you, and killing you will be part of that."
However, Li Bingrui showed no mercy to Xiao Yan's words. As soon as she finished speaking, she Yan Ci, aiming straight for his brow.
"Whoosh..."
However, what she pierced with her sword was merely an afterimage of Xiao Yan.
"What!"
Upon seeing this, Li Bingrui was immediately shocked. Although they were both at the Origin Return Realm, Xiao Yan's speed was far superior to hers. In fact, she had not even noticed how Xiao Yan had dodged this attack, which was truly ghostly!
As Li Bingrui turned around, Xiao Yan's figure had already appeared outside the valley. Looking at the crisscrossing steps in front of him, Xiao Yan slowly stepped onto them.
Since we're on their turf, we have to follow these rules. We'll just walk up the thousand-foot stone steps.
"Get down!"
The next moment, Li Bingrui's figure flashed out again, her long sword slashing fiercely in front of him. Xiao Yan twisted his body and bent his waist, dodging the sword at an extremely strange angle. As he stood up, a streak of energy suddenly shot out from the long sword, heading straight for Xiao Yan's crotch.
"This is tantamount to having no descendants!"
Startled, Xiao Yan had no choice but to lean back and retreat. In the instant his body paused, he immediately unleashed the Strength Elephant Art Technique, blasting the energy beam away with a direct punch. At the same time, an extremely cold aura enveloped Xiao Yan's fist, and a thin layer of ice rapidly spread across his right arm. The extreme cold caused Xiao Yan's body to feel a stinging pain.
"Bang!"
With a thought, Heavenly Flames ignited, gradually melting the thin layer of ice. This scene also greatly surprised Xiao Yan.
It was merely a thin layer of ice, yet it withstood his Heavenly Flames for several breaths. In Xiao Yan's past experience, apart from the Extreme Cold Ice Soul, no other ice could withstand such resistance from his Heavenly Flames. And Li Bingrui's ice was actually able to...
"Hmph, my icy Origin Qi, honed by my master, is already capable of resisting the erosion of Heavenly Flames. In this world, no flame can suppress me, not even you!"
Noticing Xiao Yan's surprise, Li Bingrui coldly uttered a sound, then her delicate body flashed again, her longsword spinning rapidly. In the blink of an eye, several streaks of energy shot out one after another, which even Xiao Yan could not dodge. Helpless, he could only use his Heavenly Flames to block them all. As he retreated, Xiao Yan fell down the steps leading to the depths of the valley.
"Leave here, and I can pretend nothing happened. If you don't come back, I won't bother you."
Li Bingrui stood on the steps, staring coldly at Xiao Yan, her words particularly resolute.
In order not to leave her master, nor to let her master disappear from this world, she would never allow Xiao Yan to set foot in this valley. Over the years, she had painstakingly cultivated and trained across the continent, all for the sake of one day being able to drive away those who came looking for Ye Honglian. She would not allow anyone to intrude into the pure land of Fire Maple Forest.
"I'm sorry, I understand how important your master is to you, but please understand that finding her is my inevitable decision, and no one can stop me."
Xiao Yan shook his head slightly, and as soon as he finished speaking, he unleashed the Giant Elephant Art.