Chapter Ninety-Seven: What Is Going On?

“Alas...” came the old man’s sigh. “So be it. Let us set aside the matter of taking a master for now. In five days, go to the Purple Bamboo Grove. This old Daoist is worried that hatred has blinded your heart. Even if you succeed in taking revenge one day, you may end up living the rest of your life like a shut-in cultivator. Your Spirit-Channeling line is one that depends on faith. With such fierce vengeance in your heart, you will affect the power of that faith. Even if you sit here day after day in meditation and cultivation, you will only be taking the long way around.”

Jiang Wei’s eyes widened all at once. The old man’s words truly roused him. The Spirit-Channeling lineage was unlike other cultivation schools; without the support of faith, it could not advance any further.

He suddenly felt a chill of lingering fear. He had nearly strayed onto the wrong path.

“Thank you for your guidance, Senior!”

He bowed once more in the direction of the old man’s voice, then turned and descended the mountain.

On the other side, Shi Qi followed Sun Fanbai to the summit of Cloud Purity Mountain, and the two of them landed atop the peak.

Sun Fanbai explained, “Now that we’re at the summit, this is the main headquarters of our Cloud Purity Sect. Restrictions have been set here, so flying is not allowed. If you force your way through, you’ll crash into the barrier.”

Shi Qi was admiring the scenery all around him, seemingly not hearing a word Sun Fanbai said.

The two of them crossed a row of stone-paved paths and headed toward the main hall.

Passing by the disciples stationed on either side of the hall, they arrived at the entrance.

Sun Fanbai bowed to the disciple who announced visitors. “Junior Brother, please inform Master that Sun Fanbai seeks an audience.”

The disciple nodded, then went into the hall. A short while later, he returned and said to them, “Please come in.”

“My thanks.”

Sun Fanbai bowed again, then led Shi Qi into the main hall of the Cloud Purity Sect.

The moment Shi Qi stepped inside, he felt a solemn and majestic air settle over him. The hall was not ostentatious in the least; on the contrary, it was extremely ancient and understated. Yet despite its simplicity, Shi Qi could not help but feel a rising sense of reverence in his heart.

At the high seat sat a woman in a pale violet robe. Shi Qi guessed that she must be the current sect master of Cloud Purity Sect: the Lady of Startling Grace.

“Master, this disciple has brought my friend Shi Qi to pay a visit.” Sun Fanbai cupped his hands in salute.

The Lady of Startling Grace waved a hand at Sun Fanbai, signaling that there was no need for such ceremony.

Then she turned her gaze to Shi Qi.

At once, Shi Qi felt the pressure double. It was as though every inch of him had been seen through.

He cried inwardly in shock: This Lady of Startling Grace is even stronger than Master Phoenix-Distant of the Heavenly Origin Sect, it feels like.

After staring at Shi Qi for a long while, the Lady of Startling Grace slowly spoke. “Fanbai, step aside for now. I have a few words to say to this little Daoist friend of yours.”

At that, Sun Fanbai was baffled. He had thought that once he brought Shi Qi here for a polite visit, his master would simply let them go about freely. He had never expected her to leave Shi Qi behind alone.

Though surprised, Sun Fanbai still nodded and agreed. He looked at Shi Qi, exchanged a glance with him, and then turned to leave the hall.

Shi Qi was equally puzzled. He had never met this Lady of Startling Grace before, yet she had insisted on keeping him alone. It seemed she had something to say to him.

“Senior Startling Grace, this junior...” Shi Qi began politely.

“You demon-born wretch, you’ve got a bold nerve!”

Before he could finish, the Lady of Startling Grace slammed a hand on the table and barked at him.

!!!

Shi Qi was stunned. She had seen through his identity at a glance. His true qi had not leaked in the slightest; yet merely by observation, she had exposed his true form. Just how profound was this Lady of Startling Grace’s cultivation?

Shi Qi hurriedly said, “Senior Startling Grace, this junior is indeed of demon-blood, but I have never done any of the wicked deeds of the demon race.”

The Lady of Startling Grace snapped, “You say you haven’t, and that makes it so? Speak. What purpose do you have in following Fanbai? Are you a spy for the demon race?”

Shi Qi explained, “This junior is no spy of the demon race, and I have never had any contact with them! Meeting Brother Sun was simply fate. Please, Senior, see clearly!”

The Lady of Startling Grace continued, “Hah. I’ve seen plenty of your kind. Demon nature never changes, and the demons who have died by my hand number in the countless. Today, I shall rid the world of you, little demon-born creature, so you do not bring chaos to the Twelve Provinces in the future!”

With that, she struck the table and rose in a flash, sending a palm strike straight at Shi Qi.

The sudden turn of events left Shi Qi reeling. He had not even finished explaining, had not even had time to complain about how utterly unreasonable this Lady of Startling Grace was, and her palm wind was already in front of him.

Shi Qi hurriedly threw out the Thousand-Rend Shield. Before he could even use the Cliff-Wall Technique, the Thousand-Rend Shield was instantly put into dormancy by that single palm.

“How the hell am I supposed to fight this?!”

Shi Qi panicked a little. The difference in cultivation realms was far too great. It was not something battle experience or clever tricks could make up for.

Before he could think of a response, the Lady of Startling Grace struck again with another palm.

Shi Qi hurriedly raised three layers of ice shields.

But under the pressure of her palm wind, those three ice shields shattered into powder as though they were made of paper.

Shi Qi felt a tremendous force crash toward him, and for the first time, he truly sensed the threat of death.

At that life-or-death instant, Shi Qi suddenly saw a streak of blue light shoot out from behind the hall, so fast that he could not react in time. Before he even understood what it was, the blue glow struck his forehead and burrowed into his body.

Before he could think further, a freezing sensation spread across his back, followed by an unbearable itching deep in his spine.

“Ahhh!”

Shi Qi roared. The cloth at his back burst apart, and his enormous wings once again broke through the restriction, forcing their way out of his body. Then the wings folded inward, shielding him within.

Boom!

The Lady of Startling Grace’s palm wind slammed into the wings, making Shi Qi’s wings and body tremble violently, yet it caused him no real injury at all!

The palm force that had reduced the Thousand-Rend Shield to dormancy had actually been blocked by Shi Qi’s wings.

“Interesting.” The Lady of Startling Grace praised him lightly, vanished in a flash from where she stood, and charged at Shi Qi.

Just as she was about to appear before him, Shi Qi’s wings suddenly spread wide, and a massive spirit orb came crashing toward her.

It was Shi Qi’s Water Spirit Orb!

And not just any version, but an enlarged, enhanced giant Water Spirit Orb.

This was a new attempt Shi Qi had made after reaching the peak of the Orange Core stage.

He had tried compressing the Water Spirit Orb even further. Once compressed to the extreme, the true qi inside would swell violently, causing the entire orb to expand in size, and the energy contained within it would be several times greater than that of an ordinary Water Spirit Orb.

The advantage of this gigantic Water Spirit Orb was its terrifying destructive power. Its flaw was that it required a long preparation time, namely the time Shi Qi needed to compress the true qi.

He had named it the Grand Spirit Orb.

Just now, when the Lady of Startling Grace’s palm wind had reduced the Thousand-Rend Shield to dormancy in a single blow, Shi Qi knew that he was no match for her. He could only think of a way to buy time, and then escape.

As for how to delay her, he could only catch her off guard.

Originally, Shi Qi had intended to follow the three layers of ice shield with the Binding Art: Prison Within a Marked Circle, but the sudden change in his wings had allowed him to take that last palm with much greater ease.

Shi Qi was not surprised by his own change. He knew the situation was changing in an instant, so he simply used the protection of his wings to continue gathering the Grand Spirit Orb.

And the moment the Lady of Startling Grace reached him, Shi Qi hurled the completed Grand Spirit Orb at her.

“Hm.” Seeing the Grand Spirit Orb flying toward him, the Lady of Startling Grace let out a soft snort and formed a sword with two fingers, pointing one finger straight at it.

Boom!

The Grand Spirit Orb exploded at once, the true qi within it scattering in every direction.

Shi Qi drew his wings in again to block the torrent of energy, but then he was sent flying by his own exploding force. Meanwhile, a faint layer of protective true qi appeared around the Lady of Startling Grace, withstanding the rampage of energy as she stood unmoving in place.

Shi Qi flew straight toward the entrance of the hall. His goal had never been to threaten the Lady of Startling Grace, but to borrow the force of the explosion and break out of the hall.

Once he got outside, he could use the Hundred-Mile Sword to burst straight off the summit. Then, if he activated Lightning Flash, he might still have a sliver of hope.

Just as he was about to reach the hall doors, Shi Qi was about to draw the Hundred-Mile Sword when a flash of violet light appeared before him. The Lady of Startling Grace was already standing outside the hall behind him!

“Damn it, so fast!” Shi Qi groaned.

The Lady of Startling Grace extended a hand once more.

“I’ll go all out!!”

Shi Qi gathered the power of the void in his right hand. Within a few breaths, a crackling thunder sphere formed in his palm, then shot straight at the Lady of Startling Grace!

He had once used this move to tear out the hearts of Yuan Chenglu and Hai Ri!

But right now, Shi Qi only wanted to delay her, to buy himself a chance to escape!

In an instant, a spirit sword sprang forth from the tip of the Lady of Startling Grace’s finger and met Shi Qi’s divine thunder.

Boom!

The divine thunder exploded before Shi Qi’s hand, and the force of the blast sent him flying backward once more.

The Lady of Startling Grace looked at the spirit sword broken off at her fingertip, then at Shi Qi with a trace of admiration.

Shi Qi was blasted back into the hall and crashed directly into the main dais. At that moment, his right hand burned with searing pain as it endured the backlash of the divine thunder.

He spat out a mouthful of blood, and the wings behind him withdrew on their own.

Indeed, before absolute strength, no amount of cleverness meant anything.

Shi Qi stared coldly at the Lady of Startling Grace. He had not expected that he would die today in such an absurd and bewildering manner.

No. He still had a chance!

Shi Qi concealed his hands behind his back and quietly drew out the Hundred-Mile Sword.

If the Lady of Startling Grace pressed closer again, he would use Lightning Flash. He did not know whether he could truly break out by relying on its speed, but at this point, that was his only option.

The Lady of Startling Grace slowly walked toward Shi Qi and stopped before him.

She said softly, “Shi Qi, you...”

“Lightning Flash!!!”

Shi Qi suddenly shouted. Then he yanked the Hundred-Mile Sword from behind his back, stepped onto it with both feet, and shot forward with a whoosh.

“What in the world is that?!”

The Lady of Startling Grace only heard a tearing sound through the air. A streak of white light flashed before her eyes, and Shi Qi had already vanished from the hall.

Outside the hall, Sun Fanbai was standing by the entrance waiting. Suddenly, a white blur burst out from inside, skimming along the ground as it rushed outward. The fierce wind carried by that white light toppled the disciples on either side, sent Sun Fanbai’s white robe and long hair streaming back, and made his stance wobble.

Then the white light shot out from the summit and slammed into the restriction at the peak...