Zhao Wuji stood in the pouring rain.
The icy rain penetrated his straw cape, streaming down his expressionless, rugged face.
The small courtyard before him trembled in the rainy night like a trapped beast.
Like the last gasps of dying prey.
"Ma Hongjun was brought to Heaven Dou City by me."
"Now that he is crippled and dying, it is my failure as his teacher."
"Tonight..."
"Your teacher is here to avenge you."
Without the slightest hesitation or mercy.
As his murmurs faded, his figure shot up like a cannonball, aiming for the window of the house.
His already thick arms suddenly swelled, muscles coiling like giant pythons, and a scorching aura steamed forth, turning the surrounding rainwater into white vapor.
The oppressive power of a Level 76 Spirit Saint erupted.
Behind him, a three-meter-tall phantom of a brilliant golden giant bear roared skyward.
Zhao Wuji swung his arm in a full circle, unleashing a punch with unstoppable force, slamming it viciously into the house.
Before the punch even landed, the violent fist wind had already torn through the rain curtain, making the entire house totter precariously.
Boom—!!!
The punch landed.
The house exploded like fragile cardboard.
The residual force of the punch, unabated, carved a deep pit several meters in diameter into the flat ground beneath the foundation.
If anyone had been inside, there would have been no chance of survival.
"Hoo..."
Zhao Wuji let out a long breath.
He might have seemed crude, but his mind was keen.
His gaze swept over the ruins before him, and a hint of doubt flashed in his eyes.
Even if Li Dixian had been smashed into a pulp.
Under the washing rain, there should still be scattered traces of blood seeping out.
However, as far as his eyes could see, there was not a single drop of crimson.
He furrowed his brows.
Taking a step forward, he intended to search more carefully.
Just at this moment!
A cold, starlight-infused sharp edge silently sliced at him from behind!
The hairs on Zhao Wuji's back instantly stood on end!
In his haste, he only managed to block with his arm!
"Three Sword Splendor · Yaoguang!"
Li Dixian, who should have been buried in the ruins, unexpectedly appeared behind Zhao Wuji.
The Azure Lotus Sword in his hand shimmered with starlight, carrying an ultimate sharpness that seemed to tear through everything, striking Zhao Wuji's hastily raised arm.
Screech—!
His Soul Power only held for a few breaths before being cut open.
In an instant, flesh was torn, revealing bone, and hot blood mixed with rainwater splattered.
"Ugh..."
Zhao Wuji grunted, staggering back two steps.
Once he stood firm, his tiger-like eyes widened, staring intently at the blurry white figure a few meters away.
The heavy midnight rain greatly reduced visibility.
Only that long sword, spitting cold light, was clearly visible and striking in the rain curtain.
"You..."
Sharp pain shot from his arm, and Zhao Wuji's expression subtly changed.
He raised his injured arm, only then realizing that a faint green glow adhered to the wound.
Like a bone-deep poison, it hindered the healing of his flesh.
"Li Dixian..."
Zhao Wuji's deep voice chewed on the name, his killing intent so thick it almost overflowed.
Terrifying!
He, a Level 76 Battle Spirit Saint, was actually injured by a junior!
Even with the advantage of surprise, it was still an unbelievable tale!
"Today..."
"Li Dixian must die."
"If he doesn't die, I will be the one who dies in the future."
"It might even bring disaster upon Shrek."
The icy rain soaked Li Dixian's white robes.
His hair was matted to his forehead, and raindrops rolled down his cheeks.
He gripped the Azure Lotus Sword tightly, his chilling gaze piercing through the rain curtain, locking onto Zhao Wuji a few meters away.
"Old man..."
Fortunately, he had eaten too much and couldn't sleep tonight.
So he was enjoying the rain and drinking alone in a tent beneath the courtyard wall.
In fact, the moment Zhao Wuji stepped through the courtyard gate, he had already quietly concealed himself.
That's right.
Li Dixian's original intention was to hide.
A swordsman should have an unyielding will.
But that was when the difference in strength was not an insurmountable chasm.
To ask a thirteen-year-old boy to directly confront the Immovable King Zhao Wuji?
That wasn't fearlessness!
It was foolishness!
But he hadn't expected it.
Zhao Wuji didn't leave after smashing the house.
This old man was crude but meticulous, insisting on confirming his death.
Thus, with his retreat cut off, he could only strike first.
All sorts of thoughts flashed through his mind.
Li Dixian grabbed the clear spring wine pot at his waist, tilting his head back and taking a large gulp.
The reddish-green spirit wine, mixed with rainwater, flowed down his chin.
The Azure Lotus Sword seemed to sense its master's resolve, emitting a chilling hum.
Amidst the vast rain curtain.
Two figures, two killing intents as solid as substance, clashed across the air.
In a flash.
Li Dixian moved.
The twelve Azure Lotuses carved on the sword body suddenly bloomed, spewing out viscous, magma-like crimson flames.
The flowing flames instantly enveloped the sword body, extending into a several-meter-long fiery tail flame.
The high temperature and icy rainwater collided violently, emitting a piercing "sizzle" sound, and steaming up even thicker white mist.
Whoosh—!
The white figure tore through the rain curtain, as swift as a startled swan!
In the blink of an eye, he had swept to within a few meters of Zhao Wuji!
Li Dixian slightly bent his knees, then straightened them sharply, his body shooting up several meters like an arrow from a bowstring!
He gripped the crimson flame longsword with both hands, raising it high above his head!
"Second Spirit Ability - Three Swords' Splendor!"
"Azure Lotus Sword Song Second Style - Two Poles · Blazing Sword!"
Amidst his fierce roar.
A dense purple Soul Ring suddenly coiled around the sword body.
The already incomparably sharp crimson flame sword's power surged once again.
The surrounding torrential rain seemed to be repelled by an invisible force field, turning into rolling, escaping white mist.
Li Dixian, with the brutal posture of splitting a mountain.
Hacked down fiercely towards Zhao Wuji's head.
"Li Dixian, your talent is monstrous, but you're still too green right now."
Zhao Wuji stomped his right foot.
The ground trembled violently three times.
Yellow, Yellow, Purple, Purple, Black, Black, Black!
Seven Soul Rings rose from beneath his feet, and his majestic Soul Power erupted like a volcano!
His second Soul Ring glowed yellow, and his fifth Soul Ring even flickered with suffocating black light.
His palm swelled to the size of a millstone, and thick golden-yellow fur broke through his skin, covering his palm.
"Second Spirit Ability - Mighty Vajra Palm!"
"Fifth Spirit Ability - Furious Bear's Wrath!"
Facing the crimson flame sword that cleaved down from the sky.
Zhao Wuji's hand, transformed into a giant bear's paw, charged with overwhelming power, slammed out fiercely.
Wherever the palm wind passed, the air compressed and collapsed, emitting a deafening bang under the unbearable pressure.
Boom boom boom boom—!!!
Sword and palm collided fiercely.
Terrifying energy ripples spread out from the two of them as the center.
Crimson flames were slapped away by the immense force, splattering against the curtain of rain, turning into rolling steam that surged for hundreds of meters around.
Back then, Li Dixian was short on money and chose this remote area.
Therefore, with such a huge commotion now, coupled with the cover of the heavy rain, no one had yet discovered this fierce battle in the rainy night.
A mountain-like immense force came from the sword body.
Li Dixian's tiger's mouth split open, and the sword nearly slipped from his grasp.
"Kid, practice more in your next life!"
Zhao Wuji's eyes gleamed with savagery.
His Soul Power boiled, and the bear's paw's strength increased by another third.
Hum—!
The Azure Lotus Sword was forcefully bounced back by the immense power, striking Li Dixian's chest.
"Pfft—!"
A mouthful of fresh blood was spat into the vast white mist.
Li Dixian, like a kite with a broken string, flew backward at an even faster speed than he had arrived.
He crashed into the surrounding wall, which collapsed with a roar.
His figure was buried by bricks, stones, and rubble.
Zhao Wuji's face twisted into a sneer as he waved his hand to clear the white mist obstructing his vision, then strode towards the ruins that had buried Li Dixian.
"Why do I feel so uneasy..."
Crown Prince's bedchamber.
Xue Qinghe, dressed in a goose-yellow gown, walked to the window with furrowed brows.
Whoosh—
She opened the window.
The sudden gust of wind and rain blew off her outer garment.
She bent down to pick it up, but her fingertip touched the corner of a protruding stone brick, and a bead of blood immediately welled up.
Dugu Manor.
Dugu Yan was reading by lamplight late at night.
She wasn't studying cultivation, nor was she delving into poison arts.
Instead, she was diligently learning soup-making techniques.
"The soup I made for Dixian Didi yesterday seemed to be a bit undercooked."
"Next time I invite him, I'll definitely be able to make even better soup."
Ye Manor.
Ye Lingling lay on her side on the bed.
She looked out through the window lattice at the wind and rain outside.
In her heart, she was thinking about what Li Dixian had said to her during the day.
"You don't need to cater to anyone, including your mother..."
Ye Lingling's lips curved into a smile.
She drifted into slumber.
The desolate and messy courtyard.
Zhao Wuji kicked away the broken bricks and tiles...