Let’s do it!
Ye Xuan turned to the Spirit Realm Princess with a smile. “You know the Spirit Palace Temple, right?”
She nodded. “Of course.”
Ye Xuan said seriously, “Princess, I’ve got a way to take you straight there, but you’ll need to cooperate.”
She looked at him. “How?”
He stepped closer, opening his palm. “Place your hand in mine, think of the temple’s location, and I’ll teleport us there.”
She froze.
The black-armored woman instantly stepped in front, glaring at Ye Xuan.
The princess said, “Stand down.”
The woman hesitated, then retreated.
The princess looked at Ye Xuan. “He bears the Heavenly Dao mark—proof he’s not some schemer. I trust him.”
She stepped forward, placing her right hand in his.
It was warm.
Ye Xuan said, “Picture the temple’s location.”
She nodded, closing her eyes.
Little Tower’s voice piped up in Ye Xuan’s mind, “Young master, you don’t actually need to hold hands to sense her thoughts, do you?”
Ye Xuan snapped back mentally, “Mind your own business!”
Little Tower: “…”
Soon, Ye Xuan said, “Got it.”
The princess looked at him, silent.
He glanced at the armored woman. “Bring her too?”
The woman: “…”
The princess nodded. “Yes.”
Ye Xuan nodded, summoning the Qingxuan Sword to his palm. In a flash, he whisked both women away.
But as they entered the space-time tunnel, their faces changed.
A terrifying force slammed down, pinning them.
*Boom!*
They were hurled back to their starting point.
Ye Xuan looked skyward. Far above, a woman gazed down at them.
The princess said gravely, “Ling Tian!”
Ye Xuan eyed the woman in the clouds, his gaze growing heavy.
Unfathomable.
Few could give him this feeling now, but she did.
Not simple.
Ling Tian shot him a cold glance, then vanished.
Ye Xuan rubbed his head, frustrated. He hadn’t expected her to block him in the tunnel.
After a pause, he looked at the princess. “Do you trust me?”
She nodded slightly. “I do.”
“Don’t resist,” he said.
A mysterious force enveloped her. She blinked but didn’t fight it. In an instant, she was inside Little Tower.
Inside, she and the armored woman froze, stunned.
Ye Xuan ignored them, glanced skyward, and vanished tracelessly.
He left the ancient city, heading for the Spirit Palace Temple.
Smuggling.
He wasn’t about to clash with Ling Tian head-on. She wasn’t alone—she had the Spirit Realm behind her. Though strong, he wasn’t delusional enough to take on a whole realm.
Outside the city, he cloaked his aura completely.
But soon, a terrifying force surged from the space ahead.
His pupils shrank. His thumb flicked.
*Buzz!*
The Qingxuan Sword slashed out with a hum.
*Rip!*
The space-time before him tore open, the force shattered. But a jade finger tapped his sword’s tip.
*Boom!*
The Qingxuan Sword quaked, and Ye Xuan, sword and all, was flung back tens of thousands of feet.
As he stopped, a fiery lightning bolt, like a blade, ripped the space behind him, aiming for his back.
His eyes narrowed. The sheathed Qingxuan Sword flew out.
*Rip!*
It cleaved the fiery bolt.
*Boom!*
Flames exploded.
Then a white fist seal roared toward his face.
The Qingxuan Sword couldn’t return in time, but Ye Xuan stayed calm. Another sword appeared in his sheath—an ordinary one.
His thumb nudged.
*Rip!*
The sword unsheathed.
Behind it, six more followed.
Six-Sword Chain!
The first hit the fist seal and shattered. The seal pressed on…
One by one, the swords broke.
They couldn’t stop it.
All six were dust.
But by then, the Qingxuan Sword was back in its sheath. It flew out.
*Boom!*
The fist seal shattered.
Ye Xuan tapped his toes, retreating thousands of feet, and looked ahead. A woman in a white skirt stood there.
Ling Tian!
She stared at him. “What *are* you?”
Ye Xuan frowned. “What do you mean, what am I?”
Ling Tian demanded, “Hand her over!”
Ye Xuan said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Her brows furrowed. “Where’d you hide her?”
He frowned deeper. “I *really* don’t know what you mean.”
She stared for a moment, then vanished.
Far off, Ye Xuan’s eyes narrowed. His thumb flicked, and the Qingxuan Sword slashed out.
*Boom!*
A white light erupted before him.
A shadow retreated a thousand feet.
Ling Tian.
She glanced at the Qingxuan Sword, frowning. “What sword is that?”
Ye Xuan met her gaze, his wariness deepening. She could clash with his Qingxuan Sword head-on.
Terrifying.
Ling Tian asked, “Who are you?”
Ye Xuan decided to reason. “Elder Ling Tian, do you know the Spirit Ancestor?”
Her eyes narrowed. “You know her?”
He nodded. “I do. We’re on the same side.”
She stared, then said, “No, you don’t.”
Before he could reply, she vanished. Countless mysterious, terrifying forces surged around him, rushing toward him.
His heart jolted. He drew the Qingxuan Sword and swept it wide.
*Boom!*
A wave of sword light erupted, turning the space before him pitch-black. Two fingers tapped his sword.
*Boom!*
The Qingxuan Sword trembled, a massive force channeling through it into Ye Xuan.
*Boom!*
He was blasted thousands of feet back. As he stopped, he plummeted into a white space-time realm.
Frowning, his pupils shrank. He slashed out.
*Draw and Decide Life or Death!*
*Boom!*
Sword light exploded.
*Boom!*
A blast echoed in the white realm, and Ye Xuan was thrown back again. As he retreated, the white space quaked, and eerie forces seeped out.
His eyes narrowed. These weren’t space-time forces—his Qingxuan Sword couldn’t ignore them.
The princess’s voice rang in his mind, “That’s spiritual power. Be careful!”
Spiritual power!
No time to think, Ye Xuan stepped forward, a wave of sword light enveloping the surrounding space.
*Square-Inch Sword Domain!*
Within, countless sword lights crisscrossed, terrifyingly sharp.
But they faded bit by bit.
They couldn’t hold against the spiritual power.
Ye Xuan’s brow furrowed deeply. With no choice, he activated his bloodline power. If that spiritual power got close, he’d be erased instantly.
With his bloodline ignited, his thumb flicked. A blood-red sword flew out.
*Rip!*
A tearing sound echoed as the spiritual power split apart. The Qingxuan Sword slashed toward Ling Tian.
She remained calm. As the Qingxuan Sword neared, she pointed two fingers, a white light blooming at their tips.
*Boom!*
Her fingers met the sword, but her light dimmed visibly. Just before it vanished, she pulled back, flickering to a thousand feet away. The Qingxuan Sword followed.
Instead of retreating, she stepped forward, aiming to tap the sword again. Her fingers twisted, missing the tip, and swept across the blade’s side.
*Boom!*
The force knocked the Qingxuan Sword away. She appeared before Ye Xuan, her finger aiming for his brow. If it landed, his head would explode.
He hadn’t expected her to deflect the Qingxuan Sword. No time to marvel—his thumb flicked again. Another blood-red sword flew out, followed by eight more.
*Nine-Sword Chain!*
Without the Qingxuan Sword, Ling Tian met his nine swords head-on.
A glint of ferocity flashed in her eyes. She tapped the lead sword.
*Boom!*
It shattered instantly, and a terrifying force poured from her fingertip, obliterating the remaining six in a blink. Her finger shot toward Ye Xuan.
Far off, Ye Xuan closed his eyes slowly. The Qingxuan Sword slid back into its sheath…
…
