Chương 101: War God’s : — Chapter 101 - Falling into the Nest, Yan Zhaoxue's "Injury"!

In the distance, moonlight seemed to rise. The entire cavern glowed with an added layer of radiance. Three streaks of light flashed and vanished, shooting toward the Blaze Dragon Serpent like auroras. The first pierced through the creature's skull, freezing it mid-strike. Even its shadow on the stone walls seemed severed. The second struck three inches below its jaw. The head separated cleanly, as if sliced by an impossibly sharp blade. The neck's surface was unnaturally smooth, only writhing flesh visible.

The Blaze Dragon Serpent died instantly. The third pierced straight through from body to tail, scattering its very soul. Death in an instant. The two on the shore stood with mouths agape. They looked toward the origin of those three streaks. That was... The senior's position! Wang Xian. Immortal-Slaying Flying Blade Art. First form. Three blades unleashed together. One blade Shadow Pursuit, two blades kill, three blades soul severance. Wang Xian had anticipated this.

He'd guessed the other Blaze Dragon Serpent would emerge when everyone was most relaxed. These beasts' intelligence might not match humans', but their cunning was carved into their bones. Just like how they both knew to play dead. The three blades together formed the complete first form of the Immortal-Slaying Flying Blade Art. But even though the Blaze Dragon Serpent was annihilated instantly, Yan Zhaoxue, trapped in its tail, had already plunged into the central hollow. Wang Xian didn't hesitate.

He leaped from the platform and dove straight down. He brought his hands together, accelerating his descent. Then grabbed Yan Zhaoxue's wrist. Her eyes went wide, pupils dilating. Cold light glimmered in her gaze, tinged with disbelief.

"Hold tight." Wang Xian's voice was light, but to her ears it carried confidence and strength. She gripped his wrist. Her powerless body seemed to find a surge of strength. They plummeted rapidly down the central hollow, no idea where they would land. Until Wang Xian gave a gentle twist of his arm, dispersing the force as she landed. They came to a steady stop on a platform. Wang Xian released his grip and scanned the surroundings, eyes narrowing.

This underground space beneath the magma dragon vein was the true nest of the two Blaze Dragon Serpents. If the place above was their home, then this was their bedroom. The innermost core. Compared to above, this place was thick with Malevolent Qi, jagged rocks jutting everywhere. In the massive elliptical hollow, many round stone pillars hung down from above. These inverted pillars were where the Blaze Dragon Serpents coiled and slumbered. Below lay a fire pool.

The pool was remarkably clean and carried a strong sulfur scent, likely the serpents' daily bathing area. Around the space were quite a few human bones. A new relic site shouldn't contain human bones. If there were any, it could only mean one thing. The Blaze Dragon Serpents came from outside. They devoured some human martial warriors and fled from some unknown place into this relic. Could it be the Northern Treasury Relic?

Wang Xian looked around, then walked over to the corpse of the Blaze Dragon Serpent slain by his three blades. The previous one he couldn't lift. But this one was much smaller, and it had just shed its skin, still weakened with vulnerabilities all over. At most D-rank strength. He could lift it. He hauled the body to the fire pool, took out a small knife, and made a precise incision. Essence blood gurgled into the pool.

The Blaze Dragon Serpent's essence blood contained immense dragon breath but surprisingly little Malevolent Qi. The Malevolent Qi was all concentrated in its serpent pearl. Unfortunately, the flying blades had been too powerful. This pearl had shattered. But no matter. This pearl was far inferior to the previous one anyway. Wang Xian tested the temperature and Malevolent Qi concentration with his hand. Once satisfied, he walked over to Yan Zhaoxue.

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"I've placed the Blaze Dragon Serpent's essence blood in the fire pool. If you want to cultivate the Dragon Blood Vitality Art, now's the time." Yan Zhaoxue stared blankly, as if she hadn't fully recovered yet. After speaking, Wang Xian paid her no further attention and continued surveying the surroundings. She bit her lip lightly and looked toward the fire pool. Too calm. Too composed. Too steady. It was as if, before the senior, any situation could be resolved with ease.

In that moment when the second Blaze Dragon Serpent had coiled around her and dragged her down, she'd felt she was going to die here. But now, not only had she come down completely unharmed, the senior even had the leisure to consider her cultivation needs. This kind of security... she had never felt before. She walked step by step toward the fire pool, turning to look at his back. The senior was examining the surroundings, tapping here, peering there, occasionally looking up at the suspended stone pillars.

Yan Zhaoxue gently removed her already tattered face mask, revealing an exquisitely beautiful face. The natural world-weary look in her eyes seemed to have diminished, imperceptibly, by a few degrees. She looked at the fire pool, then at the senior far away who hadn't noticed this area at all. Her cheeks grew hot. Gritting her teeth lightly, she unfastened her Ice Cloud Armor. The form-fitting battle suit was high-tech. The moment it vanished, it revealed her inner garment and tight pants.

She removed those as well. In that instant, it was like the Tianshan Mountains in early winter, refracting dazzling light under soft sunlight. Two majestic peaks on the range, covered by snow as thin as cicada wings, trembled gently like an avalanche, swaying with arcs that could overturn the world. The mountainside cinched like a gourd, showcasing the proud contours of this celestial range. Below the mountainside, the tail rose high and proud like a ridge, its lines graceful.

That thin layer of gauze utterly failed to conceal the curves. All the way to the base, it stood straight as bamboo. The entire Tianshan was as flawless as a work of art. Especially the snow-clad spine of her back, where faint dragon-shaped patterns seemed to flow across the surface. Yan Zhaoxue immersed herself in the fire pool filled with essence blood, only her head exposed. The crimson blood, separated by a layer of gauze. Immense dragon power flowed into her bloodstream. She stole a glance into the distance.

The senior was still exploring. She breathed a sigh of relief, and at the same time, a strange feeling sprouted in her heart. On the other side, Wang Xian naturally had no time to look at Yan Zhaoxue. Two reasons. First, the Dragon Blood Vitality Art generally required removing clothing, leaving only extremely thin undergarments. Otherwise, the power in the essence blood couldn't be absorbed. So naturally, he couldn't stare at her at a time like this. Second...

In my past life, the dragon-shaped stone key that opened the Northern Treasury Relic was, without a doubt, in this relic. It wasn't above. Then it can only be here. If I can find this dragon-shaped stone key, even if I can't prevent the Northern Treasury Relic from opening, I can at least delay it for a long time. Without that critical item, the Northern Treasury Relic wouldn't open so quickly. At that point, he could hand it over to the military and let them investigate.

Or I could find time to investigate it myself. There would be time to choose either way. Those were hundreds of thousands of lives at stake. Wang Xian searched earnestly.

"Not here, not here... nowhere at all."

"And why is there no spirit core either?"

"Could it be that the dragon-shaped stone key is the spirit core?"

"Wait..." Wang Xian looked at those human bones, and a thought suddenly struck him. If these two Blaze Dragon Serpents came from outside, then what were they doing here? Could they have been searching for the dragon-shaped stone key? If they came from the Northern Treasury Relic specifically to find the key... At this thought, Wang Xian's mind stirred. The Northern Treasury Relic buried a dragon-type beast. There were even many dragon-type beasts inside. If that were the case, then it all made sense.

And yet, apart from the fire pool area, Wang Xian had searched the entire nest thoroughly and found nothing.

"Where exactly is it..." Wang Xian frowned slightly. At that moment a sudden cry of agony rang out from the fire pool. Wang Xian started and hurried over. He saw Yan Zhaoxue half-collapsed against the edge of the pool, only the curve of her back exposed, her face filled with pain.

"What's wrong?" Wang Xian walked over. The thick essence blood concealed the view within. Wang Xian swept his gaze over her condition and was slightly taken aback.

"The injury to your meridians, has it still not healed?" Yan Zhaoxue was stunned, her flushed face showing a trace of surprise.

"Senior, you... how did you know..."

"Have you forgotten? The first time we sparred in Martial Arts Unbounded, I already told you that you had an injury." Wang Xian frowned.

"The Dragon Blood Vitality Art is an improved version of the old martial path's vein activation method. To cultivate this secret skill, you first need to open the Conception and Governing Vessels. Your meridians were damaged before. Even though you tried to hide it, the moment we exchanged blows, I sensed it. That's why I said you were injured." Yan Zhaoxue suddenly understood. She had nearly forgotten.

"My Conception Vessel..." she murmured, lowering her head.

"There's Malevolent Qi in your Conception Vessel that still hasn't been purged," Wang Xian said.

"Why has it gone so long without being removed?" Yan Zhaoxue said softly, "It's a bit complicated. That strand of Malevolent Qi came from when I went to a small relic in the north last time, searching for dragon-type beasts, and got injured. Because it seeped into my meridians, I didn't dare try to purge it recklessly. I've been suppressing the injury all these days." Malevolent Qi entering the body, especially into a critical meridian, that was indeed extremely troublesome.

And to then use that meridian to cultivate a secret skill made it even more problematic. Truly very difficult to handle.

"Your meridians weren't even healed, and you didn't say so earlier?" Wang Xian was speechless. Reality was different from the game. Yan Zhaoxue had also worn battle armor, and he had only ever demonstrated techniques to her without really sparring. He had assumed her injury had long since healed.

"With damaged meridians, you absolutely can't directly cultivate the Dragon Blood Vitality Art. Once the dragon serpent's essence blood encounters Malevolent Qi, it will inevitably go out of control. At best, your meridians will rupture. At worst, Malevolent Qi will flood your entire system, and even your talent power will be affected."

"I... I..."

"I have 100% confidence I can purge that strand of Malevolent Qi for you." Wang Xian spoke directly.

"Otherwise, not only will you fail to master the Dragon Blood Vitality Art, but your martial talent will also decline." There was actually another way, directly teaching Yan Zhaoxue the Stellar Body Refinement Art and having her refine this Conception Vessel into a divine meridian. The problem was, she was already at the fourth realm of the new martial path and had cultivated the genetic cultivation method.

Even leaving aside whether it could succeed in one attempt without problems, even if she refined a divine meridian, the Malevolent Qi flooding the entire divine meridian would inevitably conflict with her talent power. If any accident occurred then, he would bear full responsibility. Far better to simply draw out that bit of Malevolent Qi from her acupoint using a divine meridian. Simple, convenient, safe, and 100% successful.

"Mm..." Yan Zhaoxue did not refuse, only sounding somewhat hesitant.

"Which acupoint near the Conception Vessel is the Malevolent Qi in?"

"The Qi... Qihai acupoint." Wang Xian froze. The Qihai acupoint was at the lower end of the Conception Vessel, located 3 inches below the navel. A rather private location. Drawing it out with a divine meridian would at minimum require fingertip contact, since the fingertips contained acupoints of the 12 regular meridians.

"What do you think?" Wang Xian asked.

"Ah? I..." Yan Zhaoxue was silent for a moment, her cheeks growing increasingly crimson. Gritting her teeth, she said, "Then... I'll trouble you, senior!" Having spoken, she slowly turned around, revealing her front. ➤ Next: Yan Zhaoxue: Senior, Don't Go Down!