The Spirit Ring floating before him—
Had long surpassed the limits of what normal colors could denote in age.
Its entire form was crystalline and translucent, radiating a shifting glow of multiple elemental attributes. Engraved across its surface were twelve sword-feather markings.
However—
Rather than the ring itself, what truly seized Li Zhexian's attention were the twelve suspended sword feathers hovering in the air, making his pupils contract slightly.
"This is... a Spirit Bone?!"
He slowly raised his hand,
Reaching out with a hint of caution.
As his fingertips brushed the twelve sword feathers—
In that instant,
To Li Zhexian's stunned eyes,
The twelve feathers turned into streaks of radiant light and shot toward his spine, embedding themselves instantly.
"Ah—!"
A sharp, bone-rending crack resounded from deep within his body.
The twelve sword feathers, as if alive, fused together into a single spine-shaped bone, carrying an unstoppable sharpness as they attempted to forcibly replace his original spine!
Li Zhexian's face turned deathly pale, sweat pouring like beads from his forehead.
He clenched his teeth so hard his jaw creaked from the pressure.
A searing, tearing pain exploded across his back and surged through his entire body, so intense he nearly passed out.
Suddenly—
A lotus-shaped sword mark appeared on his forehead.
A fierce, unstoppable sword qi burst from his body.
Shhhht—!
Invisible sword qi sliced through the skin of his neck, causing blood to bead and flow.
Even his own spine, under the dual assault of internal and external sword qi, gradually took on the shape of a sword.
It was as if his entire being was transforming into a peerless sword unsheathing itself.
The twelve sword feathers could no longer replace the "Sword Bone" being born from within him.
Instead, traces of the feathers' properties began to merge with Li Zhexian's innate sword bone.
Pain!
Excruciating pain!
This was truly a pain that reshaped the body and soul!
Li Zhexian trembled violently, like a candle flickering in a fierce wind. A trickle of crimson blood flowed from the corner of his tightly pressed lips.
But amid this unbearable agony—
A realization dawned.
The two times he had felt a foreign object trying to burst out of his back were exactly when his own innate sword bone was awakening!
The extreme sharpness of his Qinglian Sword, after being amplified several times, seemed to be on the verge of entering an unpredictable state. With the help of his clear and lucid sword heart, it had finally given birth to his very own sword bone.
And the twelve sword feather Spirit Bones from the Dragon-headed Sword Falcon were the final kindling that ignited and activated his own sword bone!
Crack—
Crack—
The sounds of bones shattering and re-forming echoed endlessly.
Though this was the growth of his own Sword Bone, it was no different from undergoing a complete rebirth.
His clothes were already drenched in blood, and the fragments of his original spine, stained with gore, fell away—
Replaced by the newly formed Sword Bone, infused with the attributes of the twelve sword feathers, becoming denser, sharper… more refined.
And more astonishingly—
His new spinal Sword Bone faintly revealed the coiled shape of a dragon!
This sword bone was divided into twelve sections.
The first section glowed with the brilliance of stars; the second shimmered in intertwined red and blue, representing fire and ice.
The remaining ten had not yet changed. They appeared pure white, like polished jade—holding latent, raw sharpness.
—
Time—
Seemed to slow to a crawl in the sea of agony.
Until finally—
When the twelfth sections had fully transformed,
The tide of pain receded like a falling wave.
Li Zhexian slowly straightened his body.
His tall frame now stood like a divine sword piercing skyward, awe-inspiring and unmatched.
Sword qi burst out from his body in waves, shredding the scattered spirit beast remains around him into dust. The blood pooled on the ground rippled under the force, and even the cliff walls behind him silently gained deep sword marks.
The great vertebra of the human body connects the head above and the feet below, and it is the key pivot of a human's spine!
At this moment, Li Zhexian's aura was so sharp that it was intimidating to look at, as if even his eyes were hone with a cold sword's edge! As he opened and closed his eyelids, the air in front of him was actually cut by an invisible sharpness, creating subtle ripples!
"Hah..."
He exhaled deeply, then activated his spirit power with a thought.
Swish—
Swish—
Two crisp whooshes echoed.
Two sword feathers, each three feet six inches long, materialized and hovered behind him.
One shimmered like starlight, dazzling and radiant; the other pulsed with dual elements—fire and ice—radiating heat and chill in equal measure.
Li Zhexian looked toward a cliff wall nearby.
The two sword feathers shot out as beams of light, cleaving toward where his gaze landed.
Szzzz—
A soft tearing sound echoed, like a blade slicing silk.
Looking closely—
A chunk of cliff rock was cleanly sliced away like tofu, leaving behind a smooth, mirror-like surface.
The two sword feathers returned without a sound, floating once more behind him.
As Li Zhexian gazed at the polished cliff face, his eyes sparkled.
"So that's how it is…"
"My innate Sword Bone has perfectly inherited the twelve distinct elemental attributes of the Dragon-Headed Sword Falcon's sword feathers."
"And conveniently…"
"My Qinglian Sword Song also follows an all-encompassing path."
"Having comprehended two forms of the Qinglian Sword Song, two corresponding elemental sword feathers now float behind me."
"If I were to master all twelve forms of the Qinglian Sword Song one day, and all twelve sword feathers with their different sword intents were to appear at once, who would be able to stand against me?"
As the thought crossed his mind—
A flicker of curiosity flashed across his handsome features.
"My main vertebra Sword Bone now consists of twelve sections. With each form of Qinglian Sword Song I master, one sections transforms in kind."
"If I someday complete all twelve, allowing the sword intent to flow through every vertebra and reach the divine center of my mind…"
"What kind of earth-shattering change would that bring…?"
Li Zhexian forced himself to suppress the tantalizing thought.
He turned his gaze to the stunning Spirit Ring floating before him.
Taking out his Clear Spring Wine Gourd, he took a deep swig.
Then sat down cross-legged.
"Now, it's time to absorb this Spirit Ring!"
However—
Li Zhexian had underestimated the terror of the Dragon-Headed Sword Falcon's Spirit Ring.
The energy within brimmed with deadly sword qi, making it ten times more difficult to absorb than the Three-tailed Sword Scorpion King!
Even with theClear Spring Wine Gourd's aid and his resilient Molten Frost Spirit Vein Body, the refining process was long and grueling!
Shhh—
Shhh—
The Spirit Ring's energy was like billions of sharp blades. Li Zhexian's skin was already a bloody mess. The pain, which was penetrating his bones, was no less intense than the pain of merging with the sword bone.
And the trickiest part was... a wisp of colorful blood was dormant deep inside this magnificent Spirit Ring. It was as hard as a rock and completely unaffected.
Just when Li Zhexian was about to collapse from the pain and the blood's overwhelming will—
A faint, strange fragrance drifted into his nose.
In a flash of inspiration,
He unleashed an invisible sword qi toward the mysterious tree above him.
A fully-bloomed flower gently drifted down, and with great effort, he tilted his head back—allowing the flower to land perfectly in his mouth.
The petals melted the instant they touched his tongue.
A warm, nourishing flow surged through his limbs and meridians.
In that instant,
The violent sword qi within the ring was calmed, and even the stubborn blood seemed pacified.
The pain on Li Zhexian's face slowly began to ease.
Roughly half an hour later—
Li Zhexian's eyes suddenly snapped open.
In the depths of his black pupils—
A glowing sword wheel composed of twelve tiny sword feathers appeared…
And then vanished.
A powerful wave of spirit power erupted from within him!
His spirit power surged rapidly—
From Rank 30 to Rank 33 in an instant!
At that moment, everything aligned perfectly in his mind.
The Spirit Ability granted by his third ring was seared into his consciousness.
"This ability is called…"
"Qinglian Twelve Tribulations!"
Li Zhexian rose to his feet, a faint smile tugging at the corners of his lips.
"Well then, time to head back. The others are probably getting anxious."
—
Meanwhile—
On the other side of the forest, during their search for Li Zhexian—
Dugu Yan, Ye Lingling, and the others—along with the disciples of Wind Sword Sect—
Encountered a pack of Howling Moon Wolves.
Dozens of giant white wolves, each as strong as a calf, surrounded them with gleaming green eyes…