Chapter 142: Ascending to the Spirit Lotus

Even so, I sustained several wounds of varying sizes. Their attacks grew increasingly fierce, with swords constantly piercing my body.

"Brother Yao! I'm coming to help you!" Li Zijian shouted from the side after stepping out of the car.

"Stay in the car! I'm fine!" Li Zijian coming over wouldn't help; he would likely just get injured, which would be a far worse outcome. I racked my brain for a solution, but for a moment, I was at a loss. The Eight-Trigram Arhat Formation in my hand shattered under the immense impact. There was no time to summon another, so I could only parry frantically.

At that moment, a sword pierced my stomach, causing me to lose my ability to fight momentarily, and I was struck by several more blades.

"Brother Yao!"

Those blades pierced deep into my lower abdomen. Blood gushed from my body, and before long, my vision began to fade into darkness. I struggled to retreat a few steps, but the middle-aged leader behind me slashed my left arm. I collapsed into a pool of blood, weak and limp, my eyes slowly closing. Yet, I knew in my heart that I wouldn't die like this.

Sure enough, the white orb within me began to spin madly, eventually exploding inside my body. The orb was gone, but I felt a state of being I had never experienced before. My internal spiritual energy swelled, and combined with my churning blood, my wounds began to heal rapidly. Suddenly, a surge of immense spiritual energy rushed to my head, and I successfully reached the Spirit Lotus Realm. This must have been the benefit brought by that white orb.

My wounds were completely healed. I slowly opened my eyes, touched the Snow Blade beside me, gripped it firmly, and stood up. The attackers were preparing to target Li Zijian, so I sneered and said, "Hey, come on. I'm not dead yet."

The men in front paused, then turned to look at me. Seeing me stand up from the pool of blood, they were filled with disbelief. I could now see the cultivation levels above their heads: they were at the One-Lotus level.

In a flash, I summoned the Snow Blade and charged. I could now dash across a great distance, and in an instant, I was thrusting toward them. I could see their spiritual energy slowly fading; the effect of their drugs must have worn off. They realized this too and tried to use their remaining strength to defeat me.

But I was no longer the person I had been minutes ago. Now, wind gathered at my feet, and my speed was so fast I left afterimages. I skillfully entered the second form of the Wing Shadow Blade Technique.

"Brother Yao is a beast!" Li Zijian shouted, leaning against the car and laughing recklessly.

Seeing my sudden transformation, the two men tried to use hidden weapons to ambush me, but I blocked them all. They still possessed some skill; their two short swords attacked and defended with remarkable coordination. My Snow Blade began to glow brilliantly due to my breakthrough, and the surrounding air grew colder. In this frigid environment, the Snow Blade became incredibly sharp, capable of cutting through iron as if it were mud. Yet, their weapons managed to withstand its attacks, speaking to the high quality of their blades.

As I entered the third form of the Wing Shadow Blade, illusory blades manifested around the main weapon. These illusions lingered for a second or two, inflicting significant damage on the enemy. Gradually, their spiritual energy returned to normal, and their cultivation dropped back to the fifth level of the Spirit Flower Realm. Suddenly, they both coughed up black blood—a side effect of the medicinal pills. I seized the opportunity and slashed the throat of one of them.

The other, seeing his partner die, charged at me recklessly. When people are consumed by rage, their judgment fails, and they just slash blindly. This man was no exception; he was all brute force. Even as I cut him several times, he didn't seem to feel the pain, continuing his wild hacking. With the conclusion of my move, I severed his left arm completely. I looked at him coldly for a moment before ending his life with one final strike to the throat.

"Amazing, Brother Yao, that was incredible!"

I ignored Li Zijian and took the two short swords and the rings from their hands. "Catch that man. Don't let him get away," I said to Li Zijian while examining the blades. The middle-aged leader had sensed the turn of events and had already begun to flee. Since he had tried to ambush me, I wasn't going to let him off. Old Li was the first to draw his weapon and give chase, pinning the man to the ground.

I tossed the short swords into a ring, walked over slowly, and asked the middle-aged man, "So, you're the one who ambushed me?"

The man, desperate to live, sobbed, "Boss, have mercy! I'm just a hired hand, please spare me..."

Hearing this, my resolve softened, but I couldn't just let him go. I drew a short sword and severed one of his arms. The leader was in too much pain to speak, gasping for air. "Get out of here."

With that, we returned to the car. After the incident, I wasn't in the mood for talk, and Li Zijian and Old Li, being sensible men, sat in silence. The car started again, and with no further obstructions, I returned to the mountain.

After bidding farewell to Old Li and Li Zijian, I hurried up the mountain. Because I was lost in thought, I didn't hear the sounds of fighting until I ducked out of the brush and saw the intruders. In the courtyard stood two men at the sixth level of the Spirit Flower Realm, dressed in attire I recognized all too well.

"Isn't this the Xia family..."

They were clearly up to no good. From a distance, I overheard their conversation in the courtyard. "Where is Lin Yao? Tell him to crawl out here."

My Second Uncle remained calm, not even drawing his sword, and said to them, "I've told you many times, he's not here."

The two men from the Xia family were scum. They leered at Nangong Xi and said, "He's just an old man with no spiritual energy. Big brother, let's kill the old man first, and then this girl..."

They could curse me or beat me, but if they dared to touch Nangong Xi, I wouldn't hesitate to risk my life to slaughter every last member of the Xia family. Since they were looking for me, there was no need to hide. I took a few running steps, leaped high into the air, and landed in the courtyard.

"Who's looking for me?" I slowly drew my Snow Blade and addressed the two Xia family members.

Second Uncle looked surprised, as I had only been gone for the morning, and yet I had reached the Spirit Lotus Realm upon my return.

"Our boss wants you to come back with us, or you'll die today."

"Oh?" I waved my hand dismissively and charged straight at them.

Second Uncle, in perfect sync with me, drew his long sword and followed. Facing two practitioners at the Spirit Lotus Realm, those at the Spirit Flower level had no chance and could only parry in a panic. My Snow Blade showed no mercy; every strike aimed for a vital point. My speed was such that they had no room to retaliate.