"I've broken through again." Qingxuan resisted the urge to smile. He was now at the seventh layer of Body Tempering. He sat down on the ground, looked into the skies for a while as his lips curled up into a small smile.
And then he turned his gaze to the side. Long Feng and Lan Xue were busily cultivating just like he was. The only reason why he was here and they weren't was because of privacy. After here he planned on joining up with them.
Qingxuan watched them carefully, until he spotted a rather tall figure whose torso was wrapped in bandages and cloth walk out of the tents like a zombie.
"Liu Chang?" Qingxuan watched carefully. He saw the listless expression on his face as he walked out, as he had just survived an apocalypse.
Long Feng and Lan Xue immediately run to him, checking his injuries with their faces clouded in worry, but he began to respond to them after a while.
Qingxuan frowned, with the extent of his injuries, he shouldn't have been up for a couple of days more. He speculated as he put on a recently dried brown sleeveless top, buttoned it up and zipped down the Yin Shadow Cloak, before locking his straw hat under his chin.
The blade was sheathed onto his lower back, right beneath the cloak, as he made his way to the group.
*
Back at the clearing, Lan Xue placed a jug of water beside a fire to boil, while Long Feng arranged a bunch of medicinal stalks to cook. Their expressions were anxious, frightened even. Liu Chang himself was seated calmly on a rock beside them, his eyes closed in deep meditation. His left arm, forehead and back were bandaged roughly.
Long Feng gestured to Lan Xue who brought the boiling water over to him and then he gently placed the medicinal stalks into them and allowed them to cook for a while.
Then, he poured a cup and walked to Liu Chang.
"Here, drink this buddy. It'll help with the nausea.." Long Feng handed the cup to him, when he opened his eyes and then he drank it down in one go and exhaled.
"Thanks.." He nodded. Long Feng sighed. In three days, they had made it so close to the sacred ruins with the mysterious Qingxuan's brilliant perception and insight, something that would've taken them months to do.
Entering the Sacred Realm required them all to be at their physical peak. Any weak link within the team would instantly become a liability that could bring the whole team down.
And per Qingxuan's analysis of the map, the journey from their current point to the ruins was just half a days journey.
He didn't think Liu Chang could recover fully in time to join them on the expedition.
"Mmn!" He cleared his throat and turned to him. "Junior brother, we've made progress on our journey to the sacred ruins." He spoke calmly. Liu Chang lifted his head to listen.
"Our analysis suggests we'll make it to the sacred ruins within half a days journey.." He added. Liu Chang's eyes lit up. "That's great!! What are we waiting for then?!" He was rather enthusiastic, even forgetting that he was injured.
Lan Xue saw the distress on Long Feng's face in regards to Liu Chang's condition and simply walked up to both of them..
"The thing is, with your current condition, you'll not be able to operate at you full physical peak, and considering the dangers…"
"What are you on about?!" Liu Chang didn't even let her finish speaking and interrupted coldly.
"Liu Chang we know how important this is for you, but if we let you come with us… we fear for you.."
Lan Xue's eyes grew teary. She wanted him to believe her, that they weren't trying to oust him, rather, they were doing it to protect him.
Liu Chang turned to Long Feng and seeing the downcast expression on the man's face, realization dawned on him. "Hahaha!!!" His expression shifted from disbelief into disappointment and then to anger, then he broke out in a hysterical laugh.
"I never asked any of you to care for me! Those bastards killed my brother! And the only way to be able to kill them all and raze that dojo to the ground is the sacred ruins! Anyone of you who tries to stand in my way, I'll kill you!!!"
His eye turned red, and he summoned a long black spear into his hand, as a murderous intent exploded from his body.
Long Feng sighed. This was not what he expected at all, meanwhile, Lan Xue's heart shook within her chest.
The trio stared down each other for a couple of seconds, until the silence was broken by a black cloaked figure in a straw hat.
Long Feng exhaled gently, the moment he noticed Qingxuan's figure, Lan Xue heaved a sigh of relief, but Liu Chang eyes widened in shock, the moment he spotted Qingxuan's blade sway to the side behind him.
In a split second, memories flooded back into his consciousness. Blood. Grief. Fear. Blades. He held his brother's corpse in his hands as he cried out.
"Die!!!" His eyes turned red, he grabbed his blade and blitzed towards Qingxuan in a golden blur.
His right hand held the spear at the shaft and then he let it rip towards him with full force.
Long Feng and Lan Xue were startled. But, before they could even move, Liu Chang had already attacked. Being the fastest of the group, they were naturally not his match.
"Stop!!"
"Liu Chang!!"
Long Feng reached out to chase after him, and Lan Xue chased after him.
Meanwhile, Qingxuan understood the situation rather easily. The Raging Blade Dojo were known for their use of blades and sabers. Liu Chang probably saw the blade strapped to him and attacked blindly. Was it stupid of him? Absolutely. Attacking someone out blindly out of vengeance was literally one of the easiest ways to get one self killed in this world.
Liu Chang roared. His spear ripped through the air, as it stabbed straight towards Qingxuan's eyes, trying to tear him apart in one go.
"NO!!"
Qingxuan stood still, nonchalant, barely lifting a finger to stop the incoming blade. Long Feng and Lan Xue cried out to stop him, but to no avail. Liu Chang pressed on with fierce murderousness.
However, the moment his spear stabbed straight into Qingxuan's eyes, he gasped in shock. The Qingxuan before him slowly began to disappear like a wisp of smoke, blown away in a silent gale..
"An afterimage?" Liu Chang was beyond shocked. Since he had started cultivating, he had never encountered any one faster than him in the same realm. He had simply thought it impossible.
But.. the next moment his eyes widened when he felt it. A figure was calmly standing behind him silently, back to back. His head lowered gently as the straw hat covered up his features.
"Bastard!!" Liu Chang roared. The spear in his hand twirled masterfully, and then he grabbed the edge and swung it out, with all the strength he could muster with just one hand.
WHOOSH!
The spear whipped through the air like the tail of a dragon. Liu Chang was fast. Very fast. But Qingxuan was barely trying. He skipped into midair, stepped on the tip of the spear that was whipping towards him and corkscrewed of it, then he spun gracefully to the ground several meters away.
About two moves had already been exchanged before Long Feng and Lan Xue reached the duo.
"Stop this madness!! He's one of us!" Long Feng tried to talk some sense into him, but he pushed him back, grabbed the spear and turned to Qingxuan who was simply watching him from a distance.
"I'll kill them all! Divine Serpent Strike!!!" The twirled the spear in his hand masterfully with just one hand. Golden Yuan power shone at the tip of the spear. He flipped mid air and simply hurled the spear towards Qingxuan.
The spear was like the arrow of a divine being, shining gold with power and streaking through the air, as it tore a large parting groove in the ground.
Qingxuan didn't wait for the spear to get him. He backflipped onto his toes and skipped into the Bai Jong stance. When the spear was just a couple of meters away from his temple, he moved.
"Black Shadow Guillotine!!" Qingxuan skipped onto one leg and exploded with a high kick that tore an arc in the air and simply smashed into the tip of the spear, sending it flying into the skies.
Aside from Azure Dragon's Soaring Steps, the intent he comprehended from the Dragon-Tiger Manual boosted even his normal techniques, elevating them to higher levels.
Liu Chang stood dumbfounded by Qingxuan's attack. Of course, he wasn't yet at full power, but countering one of his strongest spear attacks with a simple kick was nothing short of extraordinary.
Qingxuan waited to the spear to fall back down towards him. He spun, and kicked it back to the owner with incredible force. The spear spun. Its shaft slammed right into Liu Chang's chest. He gritted his teeth and trapped the spear with one hand, but the force from kick pushed him back several meters, leaving two long footprint trails in his wake.
Liu Chang watched Qingxuan intently. The bloodlust had replaced with a somber clarity. Qingxuan had effortlessly fended off his attacks, without even showing him what he was capable of. And from his looks, he looked rather young, even younger than he was. Liu Chang felt insulted. He knew he was strong, but Qingxuan in front of him was simply unfathomable and mysterious.
Blood leaked from the corner of his mouth, yet he gritted his teeth. His hand shivered, yet he grabbed the spear tightly and pointed the tip towards Qingxuan. This meant only one thing. He wasn't ready to give up yet.
Qingxuan saw this and exhaled gently. Then he took a step forward and executed Azure Wake from the Azure Dragon's Seven Soaring Steps.
The Yin Shadow Cloak billowed behind him. Before Liu Chang could ready himself to attack, Qingxuan simply blurred into motion beside him, their bodies only separated by a distance of several meters.
"If I wanted you dead, you wouldn't last a second.." Qingxuan's voice was a deathly whisper in Liu Chang's ears, that sent shivers down the young man's spine. He grit his teeth, grabbed his spear and spent it spinning towards Qingxuan's head.
Shaking his head, Qingxuan simply slipped into his guard effortlessly.
"Junior Brother Xuan! Don't!"
Long Feng seemed to realize just what was about to occur and he cried out to Qingxuan to force him to stop. But he simply shifted with immense speed into Liu Chang's guard and just poked him on the forehead, his fingers wrapped in a tendril of mental energy.
Liu Chang simply dropped to the ground, unconscious at Qingxuan's feet. Long Feng and Lan Xue ran to check on him in panic, and only sighed when they found him unconscious and not dead.
"Thank you.." Long Feng sighed, and then carried him back to his tent near the caravan.
Qingxuan shrugged and walked along with them back to the clearing. He sat down on a rock silently, and waited for them to deal with the whole Liu Chang situation between themselves.
Long Feng walked out with a small jug in hand, filled with tongue burning alcohol and leaned on a rock beside Qingxuan.
"Want a drink?" He offered. Qingxuan shook his head. Long Feng nodded. "We came to an agreement. Me and Lan Xue. We had to. Liu Chang is unstable. Letting him come with us to the ruins is just risking his life. I can't do that. Not after the bond between us."
He sighed heavily. Qingxuan watched him. He could tell, it took a lot for the man to come to this decision, but it was expected.
"So what's it going to be?" Qingxuan asked.
Long Feng took another sip before he spoke. "Lan Xue and I will join you. I'd leave him here in the clearing. He should be safe till he wakes up. Whatever we get from the clearing, we give him a share.." He spoke.
Qingxuan nodded. "That's quite generous of you, but it should be for the best…" He nodded and put the Liu Chang matter aside and took out the map.
"If we leave now, we will be able to make it there before sunset.." He explained. Long Feng nodded took one look into the skies and exhaled deeply, then went back to the tents.
He informed Lan Xue, and the both of them began to clear the area. With Qingxuan busily studying the map, Lan Xue got to removing the tents and packing their belongings, while Long Feng inspected the caravan and the demonic horses for any unseen damages and made sure they were ready to go.
After about 30 minutes, they were ready to go. Long Feng jumped onto the main seat and took the reins. Qingxuan hopped onto the side.
Lan Xue took one last look at Liu Chang wiped a tear and climbed into the caravan, and then they set off on their journey towards the Sacred Ruins.