Too much of a coincidence.
Seeing the beasts around him growing increasingly unable to suppress the urge to tear and bite, Chí Jīn gave a light chuckle.
He was too young back then, still unable to balance or suppress them. The two bloodlines within him fought each other, tossing and turning, giving his meridians no rest.
Chí Jīn closed his eyes, and within a few breaths, he forced down the Demon Race bloodline in his body.
With a wave of his hand, spiritual qi transformed into thin blades. With a few quick strokes, the starving wolf collapsed, and the falcon's long wings were slashed, fleeing into the sky with a panicked scream.
"Usable," Chí Jīn felt the spiritual power within his body, "though not much."
He vaguely remembered that after becoming the Demon Lord, he had never used spiritual power again.
Looking at the deep forest mist outside the cave, gleaming with an eerie red light under the blood moon, it was back again—this fog.
This mountain forest was bizarre. A thick fog often rose, looking like light smoke at a glance, but feeling incomparably sticky to the touch. He hadn't understood it before, but later he learned this valley was the Valley of Ten Thousand Demons.
It was one of the former ancient battlefields, where far too many of the Demon Race had perished.
Demonic Qi permeated this land at all times.
His past descent into demonic deviation was largely due to the erosion of his body by this demon valley in his childhood.
His biological father had abandoned him here, leaving him to fend for himself. In his past life, Chí Jīn took five years to grope his way out of here.
Upon stumbling out, he ran straight into Feng Wuya, who had come to the valley to exterminate the demons.
Chí Jīn remembered his master saying when they first met, "A human child?"
He was too young back then.
Upon seeing a stranger, he bared his teeth and snarled, ready to bite.
He was pressed into the ground with a single slap by his Master and passed out.
Master wrapped him in thick fleece garments, brought his unconscious self back to the Penglai Immortal Sect for treatment. In this vast world, that was the first time Chí Jīn possessed a place he could call home.
"Five years," Chí Jīn murmured to himself, "too long."
He urgently wanted to return to the Penglai Immortal Sect.
Even if changing the timeline might result in him failing to become Feng Wuya's disciple.
...
Penglai Immortal Sect.
Ruan Wei spent the night regulating her breathing according to the original owner's cultivation method from her memories.
In the Cultivation World, there is no sleep.
Exhaling a long breath, she worked herself to the bone.
Feng Wuya had dropped by during the night, and left upon sensing that Ruan Wei was already engaged in cultivation.
After all, it was just a cultivation technique; tomorrow morning would be the same.
"Junior Sister, it's time for morning practice."
Xiao Xuantong knocked on the door.
With a swish, Ruan Wei pulled the door open, full of spirit. "Morning, Senior Brother."
She still felt a sense of novelty at the moment. Although her body seemed very familiar with the feeling of cultivation, it was a completely fresh experience for Ruan Wei. Spiritual qi circulated through her meridians according to her thoughts; for the first time, she could look inward and perceive every inch of the human body's meridians.
Ruan Wei was eager to try morning practice.
The original owner hadn't started learning the sword yet.
Thinking of the flamboyant sword moves of cultivators in the cultivation novels she used to read, it was hard for a socialist successor trained in modern scientific civilization not to feel a yearning.
Xiao Xuantong frowned, recalling his very first day of sword practice.
He seemed just as excited back then.
"Junior Sister, you should dress warmer."
Xiao Xuantong offered a kind "reminder."
He was dressed very differently from yesterday—very warmly, in two layers of thick fleece robes, wrapped up like a bear.
Ruan Wei was puzzled, still holding onto a stubborn streak. "It's not cold."
With spiritual qi protecting the body, how could one be cold?
Besides, why was Xiao Xuantong, who possessed an ice spiritual root, dressed so thickly?
Yet, Xiao Xuantong wouldn't warn her for no reason. Ruan Wei still went back to her room to add a padded jacket where aesthetics outweighed practicality.
Xiao Xuantong opened his mouth to speak, then stopped himself.
Oh well.
You can't save someone who is hell-bent on courting death.
Ruan Wei followed her bear-like Senior Brother to the back mountain peak.
Feng Wuya had been waiting for a long time.
"Ruan Wei," Feng Wuya handed the cultivation technique to her, frowning at the sight of her attire. "Why are you still dressed so lightly?"
Xiao Xuantong was already gripping Raven tightly, his expression solemn. "I did tell Junior Sister."
Feng Wuya understood.
Just as Ruan Wei wanted to open the manual for a closer look, she saw Xiao Xuantong already stepping in front of her to one side. "Senior Brother?"
Xiao Xuantong didn't look back, simply tossing another spirit sword from his Mustard Seed Bag over to her.
"Put that away, and hold your sword properly."
Ruan Wei caught the spirit sword. She wasn't one to ask unnecessary questions; observing Xiao Xuantong's posture, she flicked her wrist and also held her sword horizontally across her chest.
Xiao Xuantong kept his eyes fixed tightly on Feng Wuya.
What is this? Sparring with Master?
"Works for me," Feng Wuya laughed heartily, casually untying his heavy cloak. The cloak was instantly whipped into a roaring flutter by the mountain-top wind, landing far away beneath the apricot blossom forest.
"Second, open the array."
From deep in the distant forest, Cháojiàn acknowledged the command.
The faint sound of gears turning echoed.
In an instant, Ruan Wei's hair was whipped high into the air by the fierce winds atop the peak. Her lightness vanished in a flash, and her whole body felt dozens of times heavier.
Her spiritual power was gone!
Not even Penglai's Cloud-Ascending Ladder could suppress Ruan Wei's Innate Spiritual Body, yet what kind of array had they opened that left not a shred of spiritual qi anywhere around?
Ruan Wei was too small and battered by the wild wind; she had to grip her sword tightly and plant her feet firmly into the ground to keep from being swept away.
Penglai was simply too high. Usually, with spiritual qi to protect the body, one wouldn't feel the chill, but once the spiritual power was sealed, her body almost instantly turned into a block of ice. Her fingertips grew stiff and disobedient, frozen and unable to move.
"Weiwei," Feng Wuya suddenly called her childhood nickname. Ruan Wei squinted slightly against the wind to look over, only to see Master wearing the same brilliant smile as yesterday as he spoke: "Penglai Sword Technique, want to learn it?"
Ruan Wei immediately strained her throat to shout, "I want to!"
"Good."
Feng Wuya replied.
The moment his voice fell, Xiao Xuantong's gaze sharpened. His right hand held Raven straight to guard his chest, while his left hand instantly scooped up his Junior Sister and hurled her backward.
Ruan Wei: "???"
Before she even hit the ground from the air, she heard:
"Clang—!"
The wooden sword struck Raven with the force of a thunderbolt. Wood and spirit sword could actually produce such a loud collision.
Feng Wuya countered with a flick of his sword.
And kicked straight at Xiao Xuantong, who was retreating.
Landing flat on her bottom with a solid thud, Ruan Wei didn't even have time to cry out in pain before shouting:
"Senior Brother, watch out!"
Xiao Xuantong executed a side spin, dodging Feng Wuya's kick.
At the same time, Raven pressed downward, as if trying to cleave Feng Wuya's wooden sword clean in two.
Feng Wuya chuckled lightly.
"Watch closely," he easily evaded Raven, shifting his body to a different angle so Ruan Wei could see his sword forms better.
Ruan Wei's eyes widened.
Feng Wuya extended his arm, and the wooden sword flashed outward in an instant.
Falling straight down.
A single sword stroke slashed across the empty air, carrying the momentum of a rainbow piercing the sun. The thin sword seemed to multiply into thousands of blade bodies, pointing directly at Raven.
Clearly devoid of the slightest fluctuation of spiritual qi, it nevertheless abruptly stirred up and cast down the surrounding aura, the tip of the sword piercing toward Xiao Xuantong's neck at an incredible angle.
Xiao Xuantong knew all too well the might of this sword strike from Feng Wuya.
To this day, he had never managed to survive this move under Feng Wuya's hands.
Xiao Xuantong gritted his teeth, his sword qi instantly shifting from offense to defense. Raven was once again held horizontally across his chest, veins bulging on his forehead.
"Penglai, Form One."
In the blink of an eye, the corners of Feng Wuya's thin lips curled up, and the wooden sword in his hand twirled a sword flower, returning to the starting stance.
Ruan Wei couldn't even see clearly how Xiao Xuantong had been flicked away.
She only knew he flew a very, very long way.
Then, Feng Wuya walked closer with a smile.
She only had time to raise her sword to block in front of her, before she could even grip it tightly.
"Retract your arm strength,"
Feng Wuya frowned as he spoke.
Hearing this, Ruan Wei immediately complied.
The wooden sword crashed into the spirit sword, and a tremendous force struck. The spirit sword instantly shot straight into the clouds, driving itself deep into the distant forest.
Master hadn't even bothered to flourish a sword flower; he had flicked her away with a single stroke as well.
She was young and light, and the mountain winds were fierce, sending her flying a great distance in an instant.
"Once you retract your strength, you really fly—much farther than your senior brother."
Feng Wuya withdrew his sword and sighed with emotion.
Ruan Wei, still up in the air: You told me to retract my strength just so I could fly farther, hey?!
Before she could land, Xiao Xuantong, who had climbed back up first, flew over, grabbed the back of her collar, and firmly set her down on the ground.
"Cough, cough, cough! Ugh—"
The moment she stood firm, Ruan Wei rushed to the side and vomited violently.
Feng Wuya had used too much force, and the power at the tip of the sword felt like a vicious punch straight to Ruan Wei's waist and abdomen.
Then there were her numb, buzzing arms and her fingers, frozen so stiff she couldn't even curl them. She trembled like a reed in the wind, shaking uncontrollably.
Xiao Xuantong's expression remained as usual. Seeing that Feng Wuya had no intention of continuing the attack, he went deep into the woods and retrieved Ruan Wei's spirit sword.
"Cough, cough," Ruan Wei was still coughing, tears welling in her eyes.
Calculating that the time was up, Xiao Xuantong removed one of his fleece garments and wrapped it around Ruan Wei.
"Tie your clothes tight, grip your sword."
Xiao Xuantong once again stepped in front of Ruan Wei. The youth assumed a starting stance with Raven, cold light flashing from the blade as he stood tall and ice-cold, Raven emitting a series of clangs buzzing with fiery battle intent.
A sword hilt was abruptly shoved into her hand. While still retching, Ruan Wei used the sword to prop herself up, managing to straighten her back with a shred of backbone.
Oh, so we're fired up now, are we?
Feng Wuya looked at the two youths, big and small, both with dumpling-like faces full of sullen defiance after taking a beating.
Very good. Sword cultivators ought to have this kind of momentum.
If you're going to take a beating, you have to take it stubbornly.
Learning the sword, after all, meant growing more spirited the more you got beaten.
Ruan Wei wasn't smiling anymore either, frowning as she mimicked Xiao Xuantong's starting stance.
A blazing fire raged in her eyes.
Who on earth teaches by flipping you over headfirst right off the bat?