Chapter 25: Awakening of Insects

Xuan Ningyue's expression turned frigid in an instant.

"Bai Ling, you are in danger!"

Just then, Bai Ling's voice drifted from within the great hall, leaving Bai Zhentian with a grim look on his face. Xuan Ningyue’s face remained void of any emotion as she listened to Bai Ling’s final words, in which he had urged her to forget him.

Her icy expression did not soften in the slightest. "You think doing this will make me forget you..." she whispered coldly.

Bai Zhentian slammed his fist against the heavy gate. The resulting boom sent him staggering back three paces. "Xiao Li!" he roared. "If you dare to harm a single hair on Bai Ling's head, I swear I will make sure you suffer a fate worse than death!"

Xuan Ningyue, her face frozen in a mask of coldness, drew a sharp blade and struck the gate with all her might. The immense rebound force sent her reeling back a step.

Due to their carelessness, Bai Ling was now completely trapped inside. Neither Bai Zhentian nor Xuan Ningyue had anticipated that Xiao Li, who three years ago possessed only the strength of a Level 10 First Origin realm cultivator, had now reached the Level 1 Earth Origin realm—the same cultivation level as both of them.

Under these conditions, it would take at least forty-five minutes for one person to shatter the primordial energy barrier surrounding the hall; even with both of them working together, it would take at least a minute.

Bai Zhentian was consumed by agonizing regret, his face contorted with fury. Like a father desperate to save his child, every move he made crackled with lightning, radiating a terrifying aura.

Xuan Ningyue held her sword aloft. Primordial energy from the surrounding Xiao family courtyard surged toward her blade. She raised it high and struck the gate with a thunderous force.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Inside, Xiao Li sensed the energy barrier he had placed outside the hall beginning to waver. Though he did not know why it was collapsing, he remained unconcerned. In the entire Liuyue City, the only person of his level was Ji Kun. A sinister smile curled his lips.

It was no secret in Liuyue City that Bai Zhentian had long ago lost his cultivation. This was the reason he had stopped hiding his own strength the moment Bai Zhentian turned to leave after discussing the lightning-struck black iron.

As for Ji Kun, what could he possibly do?

If he could uncover the secrets hidden within Bai Ling today, and then go into hiding for a few days to master them, would Ji Kun even be his match?

The memory of his father’s murder and everything he had endured on the Isle of Lost Souls over the past three years twisted his features into a mask of savagery.

He crushed the bracelet of primordial crystals on his wrist. The energy contained within surged into his hand, and he inhaled deeply, his face twisted in ecstasy.

Inside, Bai Ling’s heart burned with a raging fire. He felt the true peril of life and death.

Bai Zhentian’s cultivation had been lost and had not yet fully recovered. As for Xuan Ningyue, she had shared a special bond with him since childhood. Although the outburst of energy she had displayed days earlier had shocked him, he had carefully sensed her realm to be only Level 3 First Origin.

At this moment, the only one left to fight was Bai Ling himself.

With a low growl, Bai Ling leaped onto the table, his eyes locked onto Xiao Li.

"Overestimating yourself!"

Xiao Li waved his hand through the air. The primordial energy before him transformed into a massive wave, crashing toward Bai Ling.

Bai Ling gritted his teeth and threw a punch.

Boom!

Bai Ling felt the bones in his arm shatter instantly. A wave of excruciating pain washed over him as the wall of energy loomed larger and larger in his vision.

* * *

Bang!

Caught in the massive wave, Bai Ling was slammed against the gate and collapsed to the floor.

"Too weak! Relying on you..."

"Wait, Level 2 First Origin?"

"Heh heh heh... You continue to surprise me! How interesting!"

Xiao Li stood over Bai Ling and drove a fist into his chest. Bai Ling’s face contorted, and he lost consciousness instantly.

As Xiao Li turned to open the gate, he felt a sudden tug at his ankle. He looked down.

Though Bai Ling was unconscious, his hands were locked tightly around his ankles!

Xiao Li kicked him away, an excited grin plastered on his face.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The energy barrier outside the hall collapsed. Immediately following, the gate was blown open by a tremendous force. Two terrifying waves of energy, equal to his own, struck him square in the chest.

Xiao Li was sent flying, his eyes widening in the air, his mouth agape in disbelief, before he was slammed against the wall by the sheer force of the blow.

He vomited a mouthful of blood. Through the haze, he saw the young woman kneeling on the ground, frantically calling out "Brother Ling," and Bai Zhentian, his face a portrait of terrifying remorse.

"Earth... Earth Origin realm!" Xiao Li gasped in horror.

The two figures standing ten meters away were radiating an aura identical to his own.

Level 1 Earth Origin realm!

"Bai Zhentian, no... that’s impossible. Your... your cultivation..." Xiao Li wheezed in terror.

Beside Bai Ling, the young woman was radiating a murderous intent so intense it manifested as blades of chaotic energy, swirling throughout the hall.

Xuan Ningyue drew her sword and, with a swift leap, appeared before the terrified Xiao Li.

Xiao Li felt the tip of the blade pierce his chest and drive toward his heart. A single millimeter further, and it would pierce through his very core.

Xiao Li felt as if he had swallowed a fly; it was unbearable. Before him, this sixteen-year-old girl in white looked at him with eyes as cold as an abyss, exuding a natural air of superiority that filled him with shock and despair.

"Who exactly are you!" Xiao Li shrieked.

Although she was at the same level as Bai Zhentian, she felt several times more terrifying.

As for why two Earth Origin masters were guarding Bai Ling, he couldn't fathom it even if he tried. His plan had been to cripple Bai Ling, kill the two people outside, and then study the secrets hidden within Bai Ling. He had sensed the barrier collapsing, but he had never expected Bai Zhentian to have fully recovered his strength, nor that the girl beside Bai Ling would also be an Earth Origin master.

Now, having been struck by the combined force of Bai Zhentian and Xuan Ningyue, he was nothing more than a lamb waiting for the slaughter.

"No... don't kill me! The lightning-struck black iron, I'll give it all to you!"

* * *

Xiao Li pointed tremblingly toward the table. With a flicker of his spatial ring, dozens of pieces of lightning-struck black iron appeared out of thin air.

Xuan Ningyue pulled her sword back and slashed at Xiao Li’s chest a hundred times in rapid succession. A torrent of blood sprayed out, gathering into a pool on the floor.

"Urgh, ahhh! You... you..." Xiao Li’s vision blurred, stained red by his own blood.

Xuan Ningyue glanced at the dead Xiao Li and turned away.

The murderous intent and lethal efficiency she had displayed left Bai Zhentian chilled. Was this truly a normal sixteen-year-old girl?

Bai Zhentian hurried to lift Bai Ling, checking his injuries. He discovered that Bai Ling had sustained only moderate wounds, which had caused him to lose consciousness. His chest and back were bruised, but there were no fatal injuries.

Xuan Ningyue looked at the unconscious Bai Ling, tears welling in her beautiful eyes. Bai Ling’s final roar echoed in her mind. "Brother Ling, you will be fine. You must be fine!"

The two of them felt incredibly fortunate that Xiao Li hadn't gone for the kill. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

Bai Zhentian and Xuan Ningyue supported Bai Ling as they left the Xiao residence.

At that moment, hundreds of people from the Xiao family swarmed out, surrounding the three of them.

Xuan Ningyue’s gaze turned frostier than winter, locking onto the crowd. Had she not been so worried about Bai Ling’s condition, she would have slaughtered the entire Xiao family.

As for the "Kill Order" issued by Ji Kun, could it possibly stand against the current Empress?

The members of the Xiao family paled. This girl was an Earth Origin master!

Before Bai Zhentian could even speak, the crowd, trembling with fear, hastily cleared a three-meter-wide path for them.

...

Back at the Bai residence, Bai Ling’s consciousness slowly returned. He stared blankly at the ceiling and muttered in horror:

"Is this the final flash of life before death?"

Just then, a familiar, angry voice echoed through the room.

It was Ji Kun.

"You brat, are you in such a hurry to die?"

"Do you think if you died, your Third Uncle and Yueyue would be able to escape unscathed?"