The difference between demonic cores and Daoist ones lay in their contrasting paths. Just like heaven and earth, white and black, they could never intersect. Even Cui Youwang, the former top martial artist of the demonic sects, never attempted to join the two cores—nobody had, not in thousands of years. But Yan Wushi’s very nature demanded that, in his endless pursuit of martial arts, he try the things all others thought impossible. Hence, during his ten years of seclusion, he’d not only finished practicing all the martial arts recorded inside the Zhuyang Strategy scrolls, he’d also used the Zhuyang Strategy’s true qi to forge a set of new foundations for himself: a Daoist core. No matter how powerful a person was, their body could only house one set of foundations. But Yan Wushi aspired to have both a demonic and Daoist core coexist inside of him—to fashion a Daoist core while retaining his demonic one.
Of course, this was impossible. How could someone house both a demonic and Daoist core inside their body at the same time? Which was why, for ten years, Yan Wushi did not succeed. Even though his abilities grew by leaps and bounds, and although he’d already become a martial artist to rival the likes of Qi Fengge, he still couldn’t overcome that hurdle. Instead, his efforts left a lurking peril inside him. Normally it wasn’t obvious, but during his fight with Ruyan Kehui today, both sides had been forced to go all-out, and so this inner peril had been dragged to the surface.
Shen Qiao frowned deeply. He tried to send his true qi into Yan Wushi’s body, but it seemed to reject him. Not only that, but it lashed back at him with a surge of icy qi which rampaged through Shen Qiao’s body. In an instant, it’d spread to all his meridians. Shen Qiao jolted and was forced to let go of Yan Wushi’s hand to focus on himself. He sat down to regulate his breathing, trying to dissolve the frigid burst of qi.
The moon was cold and bleak, the mountains silent and empty. Owls hooted again and again, sending a shock of desolation right through to his bones. The balmy coolness of early summer was nowhere to be found.
Li Yue’s torch had already burnt out. Shen Qiao stood and walked toward the fallen man, hoping to find another few torches on his body that he could light and warm himself with.
“Shen-lang, this one was sitting outside for so long, and you didn’t even invite her in! You don’t how to take care of a lady at all!” The sound of complaining reached his ears, and a face appeared outside the cave, looking both annoyed and pleased.
Shen Qiao wasn’t surprised, nor did he answer.
Smiling brightly, Bai Rong invited herself in. “I waited outside for so long, all because I was afraid that Sect Leader Yan might wake up. Shen-lang, let’s make a deal! You didn’t want to give Li Yue a shot because he’s too ugly. So why not give me that shot?”
“I refuse,” said Shen Qiao.
Bai Rong started, at a loss for how to react. “This one hasn’t even finished yet. How could you refuse her already?”
Shen Qiao felt around on Li Yue’s body and found two more torches. He lit one, the fire’s glow immediately illuminating half the cave.
Bai Rong shifted ever so slightly, reappearing at Yan Wushi’s side in an instant. She raised a palm high and aimed it at his head, but she was blocked by Shen Qiao, who’d somehow appeared there as well. They quickly exchanged dozens of blows inside the cramped cave. Hehuan Sect was famous for their charm techniques and pair cultivation, but their martial abilities were no less potent than the likes of Huanyue Sect and Fajing Sect. Although she was young, Bai Rong’s grasp of martial arts was already spectacular. She used Sang Jingxing’s set of footwork techniques, “Sixteen Steps from Heaven to Abyss,” coupled with her palm techniques, so that the variations in her moves became endless and unpredictable, almost impossible to defend against.
She knew that Shen Qiao wasn’t someone she could subdue by herself, so she’d launched a pre-emptive attack in a bid to finish things quickly. She executed more than ten palm strikes in just the blink of an eye. Combined with her ever-changing, unpredictable footwork, it was as if she were striking at Shen Qiao from every direction at once. She even giggled as she attacked. “Shen-lang, you’re so sly! Last time when we fought, you mimicked Yan Wushi’s Spring Waters finger technique and gave me such a scare. Now that I’ve seen through you, you can’t scare me anymore!”
Shen Qiao didn’t speak. His current martial abilities put him just about equal to Bai Rong. Which meant that, under ordinary circumstances, neither of them could do anything to the other, and that perhaps Bai Rong was even the slightest bit stronger. During their last encounter, Bai Rong’s fear of his finger attack had given him an opening to exploit, but there wouldn’t be a second time—Bai Rong was clever and had learned better.
She might have been all smiles and gentle words while speaking to Shen Qiao before, but when it came time to take action, she showed not one shred of mercy.
Bai Rong had observed from outside for a while because she couldn’t tell if Yan Wushi had really entered qi deviation. But thanks to the commotion Li Yue had cooked up, she’d been able to confirm her suspicions.
And now that she wanted to kill Yan Wushi, Shen Qiao was her biggest obstacle.
“Shen-lang, didn’t you feel sorry for my situation in Hehuan Sect? If I kill Yan Wushi, I’ll have eliminated a great enemy for them, and from then on, no one in Hehuan Sect will dare look down on me. This one doesn’t need you to do anything at all—just stand aside and watch. Simpler than lifting a finger, yet you won’t do this one little thing?”
Bai Rong’s eyes were soulful as she pleaded and wheedled, but her attacks didn’t let up for an instant.
“Shen-lang, was Yan Wushi truly kind to you? He might have saved you, but he only sees you as a plaything—a way to indulge his little hobby of messing with people. You have a gentle nature, so you repay every kindness you receive ten times over. But if he was truly kind to you, why does he leave you in danger time and again? It can’t be that…you’ve truly fallen for the Demon Lord, can it?
“If you let me kill Yan Wushi, I’ll do everything I can to help you recover your martial arts and regain your position as Xuandu Mountain’s sect leader. Isn’t having power within your grasp a hundred times better than being forced to depend on others?”