From Fanwu to Xinghai

Chapter 12 The Dark Blade Strikes

As night falls, at the entrance to the Observer's Eye ruins on the back mountain of Qingshi Town.

Lin Chen stood at the edge of the cave, gazing at the distant horizon. After breaking through to the Spiritual Cultivation Realm, his perception underwent a qualitative leap. The spiritual energy flowing in the air transformed into luminous ribbons, clearly visible to his eyes. Every rustle of grass within a ten-mile radius was under his spiritual control.

"They're here."

Chen Bo emerged from the shadows, his expression grave. This old man, who had betrayed the Dark Blade Pavilion, now exuded the powerful aura of a late-stage Spirit Cultivation Realm cultivator, clearly having obtained considerable opportunities within the ruins.

"How many people?" Lin Chen asked in a deep voice.

"At least three hundred people, led by Zhao Wuji himself, along with three mid-stage Spirit Cultivation Realm deacons," Uncle Chen said gravely.

Lin Chen frowned slightly. Three hundred elites and three mid-stage deacons—such a lineup was enough to wipe out a small sect. The Dark Blade Pavilion had truly gone to great lengths to capture him.

"Where is Shi Ying?"

"It says the Relics Defense System can be activated, but it consumes a huge amount of resources, and it does not recommend that you rely on external forces," Uncle Chen replied.

Lin Chen nodded slightly. He understood Shi Ying's intention. A towering tree cannot grow in a greenhouse. If one relies solely on the protection of relics, one will never truly grow.

"Uncle Chen, you guard the entrance to the ruins, I'll go and meet them," Lin Chen said.

"You alone? There are three hundred people!" Uncle Chen exclaimed in surprise.

"I know." Lin Chen turned around, his gaze firm. "I need a real battle to solidify my Sea Transformation Realm cultivation, and I also want to try out the new abilities of the Time Compass."

Halfway up the mountain, Zhao Wuji stood atop a giant rock, overlooking Qing Shi Town. Behind him stood three hundred elite Dark Blade Pavilion warriors, all of whom possessed cultivation levels of at least the seventh level of the Mortal Martial Realm, with dozens more at the half-step Spiritual Cultivation Realm.

"Sir, the target is the ruins in the back mountain. The spiritual energy fluctuations indicate that a medium-sized spiritual vein is located below the ruins," the man in black reported.

Greed flashed in Zhao Wuji's eyes. A medium-sized spiritual vein was a treasure. If he could acquire it, his status in the Dark Blade Pavilion would surely rise.

"How is Lin Chen?"

"Having just broken through to the early stage of the Spiritual Cultivation Realm, my realm is not yet stable."

Zhao Wuji sneered, "A newly-established early-stage cultivator dares to contend with me? Issue the order to surround the back mountain and leave no one alive!"

Three hundred elite troops surged towards the back mountain like a black tide.

In the middle of the mountain path, Lin Chen stood quietly, a time compass the size of a thumb floating in his palm, emitting a faint golden light.

"The Sensation of Time, Activated."

He closed his eyes and concentrated, activating the compass's ability. In an instant, the flow of time around him became clear, and three hundred life auras rapidly approached. Among them, three powerful auras belonged to deacons in the mid-stage of the Spirit Cultivation Realm, while the more profound aura belonged to Zhao Wuji, who was in the late-stage of the Spirit Cultivation Realm.

With his sense of time, everyone's movements were rendered in slow motion, and he could see through all their attack trajectories and flaws in their moves.

The first dark figure darted out of the forest, a long blade aimed straight for his throat. In Lin Chen's eyes, the blade was ridiculously slow. He easily dodged it by sidestepping, and struck the opponent's chest with a palm. The expert, at the eighth level of the Mortal Martial Realm, was instantly sent flying backward, crashing into three large trees and breaking them.

The other members of the Dark Blade Pavilion were shocked and attacked simultaneously, their blades flashing and enveloping Lin Chen. But Lin Chen moved like a ghost, calmly weaving through the attacks, his dodges perfectly timed and his counterattacks precise and deadly. His ability to predict the future, granted by his Time Sensing, allowed him to maintain absolute control.

"Insolence!" a deacon roared, unleashing his mid-stage spiritual cultivation aura. He slapped his palm horizontally, snapping all the trees in his wake.

Lin Chen didn't take the blow head-on. Instead, he activated Time Reversal, allowing his consciousness to transcend time and see the future three seconds later—the opponent's palm strike missed its mark three inches to the left, leaving a 0.5-second stun after the strike, which was the perfect opportunity to counterattack.

Back to reality, Lin Chen moved swiftly, precisely avoiding the core of the palm strike, and pointed a finger at the opponent's vital point in his dantian. The steward screamed and flew backward, spitting out blood, defeated in a single move.

The entire room fell silent, and everyone looked at Lin Chen with disbelief in their eyes.

"Interesting. It seems I underestimated you." Zhao Wuji slowly stepped forward, his late-stage Spirit Cultivation Realm aura fully unleashed, two minor realms higher than Lin Chen's. "In the face of absolute power, any technique is futile."

Zhao Wuji unleashed a palm strike, its force as solid as iron, so fast that even the Time Sense could only catch a blurry trajectory. Lin Chen barely managed to dodge, yet was still struck by the palm's force, flying backward and crashing into the mountainside, coughing up blood, his internal organs churning violently. The difference in their cultivation levels brought an insurmountable suppression.

"It's over. The fragments of the River of Time, the spiritual veins, and your life—I want them all." Zhao Wuji pressed closer, raising his hand, ready to deliver a fatal blow.

"stop."

A detached voice rang out, and Zhao Wuji froze abruptly as a terrifying pressure, far beyond his comprehension, descended upon him. He turned his head with difficulty and saw a golden figure slowly emerge at the entrance of the ruins—it was Shi Ying.

"Who are you?" Zhao Wuji's voice trembled.

"You don't deserve to know," Shi Ying said coldly. "But remember this: I'm protecting this person."

"Senior, this is a private feud between Dark Blade Pavilion and Lin Chen. Please do not interfere," Zhao Wuji said, suppressing his fear.

"Mortal forces dare to be so insolent before me?" Shi Ying chuckled. "I'll give you three breaths to get out of here, or you'll die."

Cold sweat streamed down Zhao Wuji's forehead. He knew the other party was not lying, and he gritted his teeth and roared, "Go!"

Three hundred elite troops retreated like a tide, disappearing into the mountains and forests in an instant.

Lin Chen leaned against the stone wall, panting, "Thank you."

"No need. You are the one chosen by the river of time. I can protect you for a while, but I can't protect you forever. A true strong person can only rely on themselves," Shi Ying said calmly.

Lin Chen nodded, glancing in the direction Zhao Wuji had left, a cold glint in his eyes: "Next time we meet, I will defeat him myself."

At the Dark Blade Pavilion branch in Cloud City, Zhao Wuji sat in a chair with a livid face.

"My lord, are we just going to give up like this?" the steward asked unwillingly.

"Give up? Impossible." Zhao Wuji sneered. "That golden being can't stray too far from the ruins. Once Lin Chen leaves, his death is imminent. I've already requested reinforcements from headquarters, and the young master will personally intervene. At that point, no one can save him!"

Inside the ruins, Lin Chen sat cross-legged beside the spiritual vein, healing his injuries. Uncle Chen stood guard to one side, his face full of worry: "Zhao Wuji won't let this go."

"I know, so I must become stronger as soon as possible." Lin Chen opened his eyes. "Early stage of Spiritual Cultivation is too weak."

"I have a way to help you improve quickly," Uncle Chen said after a moment's thought. "The dimensional rifts deep within the spiritual veins contain void energy that, while dangerous, can cause your cultivation to skyrocket if you can refine it."

Lin Chen's pupils contracted slightly. The void energy could even devour ancient civilizations, making it extremely dangerous.

"It's too dangerous."

"But this is the only way," Chen Bo sighed.

Lin Chen was silent for a moment, then stood up: "Take me to see."

Deep within the cave, the sealed dimensional rift emitted a faint black light, and a terrifying aura emanated from it.

"This is void erosion, high-dimensional energy, deadly to three-dimensional life," Shi Ying's voice rang out. "But you can neutralize it with the imprint of the River of Time, and perhaps you can gain some benefit, for time and space are originally one."

Lin Chen took a deep breath. This was a huge gamble; if he won, his cultivation would increase dramatically, but if he lost, he would be reduced to ashes. He had no other choice.

He reached out, and the golden light of the Time River mark between his brows shone forth, touching the black void energy. In an instant, excruciating pain swept through his entire body, as if a thousand knives were tearing at his soul. He roared, but did not back down. He gritted his teeth and guided the void energy into his body, the mark operating wildly to neutralize this terrifying power.

Black lines appeared on his skin, traces of the void's erosion, yet the flames in his eyes burned ever brighter.

"Refine it for me!"

boom!

A powerful aura erupted, reaching the peak of the early stage of the Spiritual Cultivation Realm, and then directly broke through to the middle stage of the Spiritual Cultivation Realm! Void energy poured in continuously, his meridians were reshaped, his dantian expanded several times, and his soul seemed to touch a higher dimension.

boom!

Another loud bang! The cultivator was at the peak of the mid-stage of the Spirit Cultivation Realm, just one step away from the late stage!

Three days later, Lin Chen slowly opened his eyes, his body surging with power. He had not only broken through to the peak of the mid-stage, but also awakened a new ability—Void Perception, which allowed him to see through dimensional gaps and briefly borrow the power of the void.

"You've created a miracle. No one has ever been able to fuse with void energy before. You're the first," Shi Ying said with surprise.

"Where is Zhao Wuji?" Lin Chen got up and stretched.

"Still lingering at the foot of the mountain, waiting for reinforcements. The young master of Dark Blade Pavilion is at the peak of the Spirit Cultivation Realm," Uncle Chen replied.

Lin Chen raised an eyebrow slightly, then smiled calmly: "Let them come. This time, I won't run away."

Down the mountain, Zhao Wuji waited anxiously: "When will the young master arrive?"

"Just in the last two days."

"No need to wait."

A voice came from the mountaintop. Zhao Wuji looked up and saw Lin Chen standing at the top of the mountain path, looking down.

"I'm coming down."

Lin Chen's voice was calm, yet it carried a terrifying pressure. Zhao Wuji's pupils shrank sharply; he could clearly sense that Lin Chen's aura had completely changed, becoming profound and terrifying.

"You broke through?"

"Not just, peak of the mid-stage of the Spiritual Cultivation Realm." Lin Chen slowly descended the mountain. "Now, we can have a fair fight."

Zhao Wuji's face was grim. In just three days, he had progressed from the initial stage to the peak of the middle stage. Such speed was astonishing.

"Even at the peak of the mid-stage, I am still stronger than you!" Zhao Wuji roared, unleashing his full power as a late-stage Spirit Cultivation Realm cultivator.

"Is that so?" Lin Chen's lips curled into a slight smile. "Then let's see if your realm is higher, or if my River of Time is stronger!"

Two powerful auras collided violently in the air, and a great battle was about to break out!