Dark clouds churned above the grand hall's domed ceiling. Inside, Ye Chuan was ensnared by dozens of golden restraints, trapped like a beast in a spider's web, unable to move.
Yet his back remained straight, his gaze calm, as if the oppressive pressure around him were nothing more than a passing breeze.
Not far away, atop a high seat, Qin Tianya stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his white robes flowing. The spiritual energy around him was as vast and deep as an abyss, his piercing gaze locking onto Ye Chuan like a hawk's. The chilling pressure he exuded was almost tangible.
With a flick of his sleeve, Qin Tianya cast an invisible barrier over the hall, freezing the very air. No living being could escape now.
The aura of the Dao Comprehension realm radiated from him.
Yet Ye Chuan seemed indifferent to his opponent's power. His eyes drifted past the crowd, settling on the shimmering Celestial Water Mirror beside Qin Tianya—a relic several feet long, its surface swirling with silver light and mysterious runes, as if containing boundless power.
"So that’s the Celestial Water Mirror?" His voice was steady, cutting through the silence of the hall.
"You remain composed," Qin Tianya sneered, his tone dripping with authority. "Huang Haotian was just an alias, wasn’t it? Who are you, really? Did you truly believe the Qingyun Sect had no one capable of stopping you?"
Had Qin Tianya not activated the Celestial Water Mirror, he would never have guessed that the thief causing such chaos was this seemingly unremarkable youth, barely twenty years old!
"Who am I?" Ye Chuan spoke slowly, each word sharp as ice. "Lei Hao. Of the Jade Void Sect."
The Jade Void Sect?!
The hall erupted in uproar. The elders' expressions twisted in shock and fury.
A remnant of the Jade Void Sect?!
None had imagined that an infiltrator from their sworn enemy had slipped into the Qingyun Sect, wreaking havoc under their noses!
Yet now, his motives became chillingly clear.
"The Jade Void Sect? Junior Brother… you…" Zi Ning'er staggered back, her face a mask of disbelief. How could the disciple she had trusted and protected turn out to be a spy?
Elder Ziyun stepped forward, his expression dark. "Sect Master, this was my oversight in taking him as a disciple. Allow me to seize his soul—I will uncover the truth!"
A sinister black Soul Shackle materialized in his hand, its chains pulsing with eerie light, exuding a dread-inducing aura.
Soul Search!
Memories within the soul never lied. And interrogation was Elder Ziyun’s specialty.
"Very well. I, too, wish to know how he bypassed our seals," Qin Tianya said coldly, waving his hand in permission.
"So it was you. My suspicions were correct—you little beast nearly fooled us all!" Elder Ziyun advanced, seizing Ye Chuan, who was pinned under the combined might of the elders and the Sect Master. Helpless. Or so they thought.
"Old fool."
In the next instant, Ye Chuan twisted his wrist free and drove a fist into Elder Ziyun’s face.
"ARGH—!" The elder howled, stumbling back from the blow.
The hall froze in shock.
How was he still able to move?!
"Something’s wrong! Destroy his body now!" a elder roared, unleashing a devastating palm strike infused with spiritual energy, powerful enough to obliterate mountains.
The attack, at the Spirit Transformation realm, should have reduced Ye Chuan to dust. Yet when the smoke cleared, he stood untouched, robes fluttering, unharmed.
What?!
The elder’s face contorted in disbelief.
How had a mere youth withstood his strike? He was a Spirit Transformation expert!
"This… this can’t be!" Others summoned their artifacts, bombarding Ye Chuan with relentless assaults. Yet he remained unscathed, his gaze fixed on the Celestial Water Mirror with a faint smirk.
Impossible!
Before they could react, Ye Chuan vanished.
He reappeared directly before Qin Tianya. Under the Sect Master’s stunned gaze, Ye Chuan reached out—and the Celestial Water Mirror disappeared into thin air.
"You dare—?!" Qin Tianya’s fury erupted. His lifebound sword flashed like a silver river, slashing toward Ye Chuan’s vitals.
"Gh—!" Ye Chuan couldn’t evade in time. The blade carved a deep gash across his chest, blood gushing forth.
Qin Tianya watched impassively, as if already seeing a corpse.
But in the next moment, he noticed that Ye Chuan, who had just been slashed by his sword, wore a mocking smile. "Heh."
Why was he laughing?
Qin Tianya couldn't understand.
Causality Reversal—
[Magic: Causality Reversal (Passive) Red
When suffering a fatal blow, reverses causality to transfer the damage to the attacker and fully restores the user's condition.]
"Gush!" The blood spraying from Ye Chuan's body seemed to freeze midair before rapidly retreating, flowing back into his wound, which instantly healed as if it had never existed.
Yet at that very moment, Qin Tianya felt a metallic taste rise in his throat. His body trembled violently as an indescribable sensation washed over him. Disbelieving, he looked down.
A crimson stain spread across his robes—a sword wound identical to the one he had just inflicted on Ye Chuan.
"W-what kind of monster are you?!" Qin Tianya forced out the words, his voice strained. He could feel his chest split open, the pain as if he had struck himself with his own full power.
He was at the peak of the Enlightenment Realm!
How could he be injured?!
The other elders paled in horror. Why had their sect leader been the one wounded after the exchange?
Could this man possibly be at the Enlightenment Realm as well?!
Seizing Qin Tianya's moment of shock, Ye Chuan instantly flashed to the side. He couldn't afford to take another hit—his life-saving "Famed Blade" passive had already shattered. If Qin Tianya regained his focus, the next strike would undoubtedly kill him.
"Now. This is the moment I've been waiting for." Ye Chuan produced the Heavenly Dao Golden Core.
[Breaking through to Golden Core—]
[Heavenly Dao Golden Core]
[Due to your unique constitution, survive the Heavenly Tribulation.]
"BOOM!"
"CRACKLE—!"
In an instant, the sky darkened as pitch-black tribulation clouds gathered. Countless arcs of lightning flickered within the roiling mass, their oppressive might causing the entire Qingyun Sect to tremble. The thunder roared like ten thousand stampeding horses, heralding a cataclysmic tempest that could annihilate all in its path.