Vol. 1 - Ch. 3 - Turning Danger into Safety

After drifting as a primordial spirit for three days, Bai Yun finally felt solid ground beneath her, but the situation didn’t allow for much reflection. Red lights flashed frequently outside the cave, striking the external barrier which caused the ground to tremble. Scorching heat surged in, like an invisible wildfire inching closer. She could tell the barrier was on the verge of collapsing.

"Go! Show your skill and hold him off for me!"

Suddenly, another voice echoed in her mind, the same voice she heard in the consciousness void. Bai Yun recalled the infant clinging to her neck and formed a plan. This person’s primordial spirit seemed to be in a weakened state, unable to control the body, hence hiding here in seclusion. The person outside must be his enemy and somehow found this place.

Boom—

Scorching airflow, mixed with gravel, rolled into the cave. The gravel streaked past her, cutting the skin of this body in several places, sending sharp, burning pain through her. Bai Yun had no time to think further. She and the owner of this body were now in the same boat, and she had to give her all to deal with the immediate threat before considering anything else.

She moved her limbs, and the webs binding her snapped automatically. She fell from the web—this body was tall, strong and full of power. She couldn’t see his face but felt the strong spiritual energy flowing through his meridians. In merely a moment, she judged that this body’s cultivation was many times higher than her original form.

She looked at her hand; the fingers were distinct. White and slender, without any calluses. When she clenched her fist, green veins surfaced. She formed a hand seal, gathering spiritual energy in her palm. The energy condensed rapidly, visible to the naked eye, filling her with both amazement and joy.

The realm of a powerful cultivator was truly astonishing.

She wondered if she could ever reach such a realm in her lifetime. The new sensation filled her heart, unexpectedly stirring a surge of excitement.

Outside, thunder rumbled, and the booming sounds continued. With a flash of red light, the precarious barrier finally shattered completely. A red figure flew to the cave entrance, laughing loudly.

"Let’s see where you can hide now! Prepare to die!" With this shout, the red light turned into five red snakes, slithering into the cave.

The voice of the body’s owner didn’t resound in her mind again. Bai Yun wiped a blood trail from her face, leapt into the air, and used the gathered spiritual energy to form her sect's Thunder Light Seal, launching it with sixty percent power. The blue seal collided with the enemy’s attack a few meters in front of her, blue and red lights clashing and dazzling her eyes. She vaguely heard a surprised "huh" from outside, indicating the enemy’s shock.

The Thunder Light Seal was a foundational technique of the Wu Xiang Sword Sect. Despite being a basic skill, it was part of their orthodox teachings. Given the exceptional cultivation of this body, the technique’s power was formidable. The first exchange ended evenly matched.

"You dare to attack while I’m in seclusion? You must be tired of living! You’re the one who should die!" she said, squinting her eyes, emulating the arrogance of high-level cultivators. Without giving the enemy a chance to react, she formed another Thunder Light Seal and launched it.

Being called a "rat," the enemy snorted coldly, forming a red lightning strike with his hand seals to counter. The blue and red lights clashed again, but this time, the red light surged, swallowing the blue light and rushing towards Bai Yun. Shocked, she leapt to the side just in time, but her robe was singed.

"Hahaha!" The enemy laughed triumphantly, continuing his attack.

Bai Yun was forced to dodge continuously within the cave. The difference in their realms wasn’t something that could be bridged by power alone.

"Heh." A faint laugh echoed in her mind, the source unclear.

"And you’re laughing?!" Bai Yun, angry, disregarded decorum and shouted.

"He’s just probing the cave. Think of a way to lure him inside and use the artifact!" The voice remained calm.

With his words, an object floated before Bai Yun.

　　————

A three-foot-tall, six-sided bell tower emitted frigid air, with ghostly blue flames burning inside. Though the flames gave off no heat, they exuded a bone-chilling cold.

"This…?" Bai Yun frowned and blurted out, "The Netherworld Ice Flame!?"

The Netherworld Ice Flame was a ghostly item from the thirty-sixth layer of the underworld. She had read about it in the "Wan Hua Record of Strange Items" at Wan Ren Mountain. This fire could burn both form and spirit, fearing neither wind, thunder or water, ranking among the top ten ghost treasures of Wan Hua.

"You’re well-versed for someone so young," the man said indifferently. "This cave is already set with the tower formation. The item in your hand is the formation’s core. Once he steps inside, he’ll be trapped."

Bai Yun looked at the restless flames in the tower, hesitating. This fire could burn both form and spirit. She had no personal vendetta against the man outside. Could she really kill him? But she had no time to ponder further. A red lightning strike hit her shoulder, causing searing pain.

The body’s original owner sneered, "Soft-hearted? A woman’s benevolence. He was the one who tried to kill us first. We’re just defending ourselves. What are you hesitating for? Typical of those pedantic disciples from Wan Ren Mountain."

He not only saw through her thoughts but also recognized her origin.

Bai Yun was startled, but another attack came, leaving her no time to think. Instinctively, she activated the six-sided bell tower, saying, "Hiding in the dark and running your mouth isn’t skill. Show yourself if you have the guts instead of being a coward!"

The clear male voice echoed confidently, provoking the enemy outside. "Now the one hiding is you! Come out and face me!"

"Yes, I’m hiding. Come in if you’re so brave!" Bai Yun dodged the attacks, racking her brain for insults. Unfortunately, raised in a prestigious sect, she knew few curses and ended up repeating the same ones. "I’m a coward, and you’re a rat. We’re a pair! You can keep yelling outside, but I won’t come out to see you, big rat. Yell all you want. It won’t matter!"

The body's original owner was speechless in the consciousness void. Her words not only insulted his enemy but indirectly called him a coward, using his own body.

"Spit! Who’s a pair with you, coward?" The enemy outside was so furious he paused, thinking his cunning opponent, usually ruthless, wouldn’t just hide in the cave unless severely injured and stalling. Deciding, he conjured countless red lightning strikes, launching a massive attack.

Over a hundred red lightning strikes filled the cave like an inferno. The cave was saturated with red light, accompanied by crashing rocks. A muffled groan indicated that the person inside was injured. The enemy was overjoyed and rushed in, only to be met with a ghostly cold, and the cave transformed into the six-sided tower with rising ghostly flames. Terrified, he saw the man in the green robe holding the tower, breathing heavily.

He had fallen into a trap.

He realized this too late. He was struggling like a trapped beast, unable to move. The ghostly flames approached, causing his primordial spirit to tremble. Furious, he shouted, "I’ll grind your bones to dust!" He summoned a nine-petal celestial lotus and, with a look of reluctance, jumped into it. The lotus bud closed and shot towards Bai Yun.

"Celestial Lotus? Retreat!" The man’s alarmed voice echoed in Bai Yun’s mind.

The celestial lotus, imbued with divine energy, was no ordinary treasure. Bai Yun abandoned the bell tower formation and fled outside. The lotus bud was incinerated by the ghostly flames at the cave entrance, but it allowed the enemy to escape. Losing his life-saving treasure infuriated him, and he formed deadly claws, lunging at Bai Yun.

With no more instructions from the man, Bai Yun had to face the claws herself. She turned resolutely, formed hand seals, and summoned thunder. Lightning bolts snaked across the dark sky, stopping the red-clad cultivator in his tracks. "This is…"

Bai Yun remained silent, focusing all her spiritual energy into the sky. Thunder roared and thousands of swords appeared behind her, merging into a giant sword with her seal, exuding immense pressure.

"Wu Xiang Sword Technique?" The enemy recognized it immediately.

Bai Yun felt the overwhelming power of the Wu Xiang Sword Technique. Memories of her two hundred years at Wan Ren Mountain flooded her mind, ending in silence. This was the sixth level of the Wu Xiang Sword Technique, the Unity of Ten Thousand Swords. With her cultivation, she could only perform up to the third level. Even her master, Ancestor Xie Lengyue, could only reach the seventh level.

But this might be her last time using the Wu Xiang Sword Technique.

It was too late. Her primordial spirit was dissipating. Experiencing the full power of the Wu Xiang Sword Technique, even with another’s body, brought her peace.

The giant sword cleaved through the sky, targeting the red-clad cultivator. Despite his high cultivation, he couldn’t escape in time and had to endure the attack.

Red light exploded in mid-air as the giant sword struck, its destructive force shattering the rock forest into rubble.

It took a long time for the terrifying explosion to subside.

The sky had darkened, stars filling it.

Exhausted, Bai Yun’s primordial spirit could no longer sustain itself. She vaguely saw the red-clad cultivator emerge from the rubble, approaching step by step. She was powerless.

Her vision blurred, and she reverted to her spiritual form, falling back into the owner’s consciousness void, an endless expanse. She didn’t know where she would land.

Lost in thought, her falling suddenly stopped.

Someone caught her by the waist.

She hung lightly in the crook of his arm, half-leaning against his chest. The infant was gone; the true form of the consciousness void's owner appeared. She could only see his blue and white robes and a sharp jawline.

"He…" Bai Yun pointed to the void.

The void projected the outside scene; the red-clad cultivator was gathering spiritual energy for another attack.

The man snorted softly, dismissively flicking his sleeve. Bai Yun watched as the red-clad cultivator was hurled away by a powerful wind. Coughing up blood, the cultivator looked at the man in horror, then turned and fled, no longer willing to fight.

"Has your primordial spirit been out for three days?" The man looked down slightly at her now semi-transparent form, his voice deep and resonant like a morning harp in Wan Ren Mountain.

Bai Yun still couldn’t see his face, the light fading from her vision. She couldn’t respond.

This was a sign of her primordial spirit's destruction.

The man pondered for a moment, saying, "You’re lucky it was me. If it was anyone else and your little soul would be gone."

His tone was arrogant and self-assured.

He lifted her chin and said, "You dared to call me a coward? You’re quite bold."

Bai Yun, dazed, could only let him handle her. Fortunately, he seemed uninterested in further punishment. He picked out a star from his forehead, pressing it into her brow. Warmth enveloped her cold primordial spirit, and she trembled, noticing her form becoming solid again.

"Who are you?" Bai Yun asked, touching her brow. Only a few in Wan Hua could lock spiritual energy.

"No need to know my name. We met by chance. You helped me escape danger, and I promised you rebirth. It’s just a deal. Once it’s done, we’re even." His tone was sharp, with no politeness.

Bai Yun frowned, struggling to lift her head to see his face, but he coldly said, "Leave now."

The void shifted, and she was expelled from his consciousness. Before leaving, she only saw a pair of narrow phoenix eyes, one gold and one black, flashing with different colors.

　　————

Bai Yun’s primordial spirit turned into a green light, flying out from his forehead. Before she could go far, he pinched her back.

He played with the green light in his hand, then turned her into a green ring, firmly placing it on his right little finger.

Dizzy from his constant teasing, Bai Yun was about to speak when he said with a smile, "Serves you right for calling me a coward!"

He was a petty person who held grudges. Bai Yun was furious.

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