Chapter 354: Half

~~~

Su Daji is silent as she considers the white space in front of her. Her ears stand straight on top of her head, barely twitching even as her head tilts from left to right.

She raises one of her tails and brings it forward.

The drain begins immediately. It does not matter that her tail is not touching the ground. It is enough that she has trespassed the territory of the True Dead Plains. She advances her tail another two inches and flinches when the tug on her Qi becomes stronger. It is not so strong that she is in danger of being turned into a withered husk, but it is definitely noticeable. Manageable, but noticeable.

Steeling herself, Su Daji takes a whole step inside the True Dead Plains.

The drain magnifies. Before, it only came from one direction. Now, thousands of invisible hands tug on her Qi, trying to take it all away from her. Lesser people would have been overwhelmed by the sudden increase in difficulty, but she is Su Daji. Qi shines around her body as she holds tight and lets it go no further.

It is enough for now, but the True Dead Plains will never tire. The pull will only grow stronger as she ventures deeper inside. That means the effort required to prevent her Qi from being taken will only grow.

Can she do this for a full day? For two?

For a week?

“This is not going to work,” she says as she turns around to look at Boss and Big Nose. “I’m only one step into this place, and it’s already difficult. There’s no point even attempting a journey. The wagons will collapse before we clear the first yard. The pets will run scared, and…you will probably disappear, Boss.”

Cries of outrage rise from the dog and the bird at being called pets, but Su Daji ignores them and focuses on the Boss. Unlike the rest of them, he is not here in his own body. He might feel incredibly similar, but the man in front of her is a copy of the original Liu Jin. Though nearly as strong as the real thing, his existence is considerably more frail. He will not last under the constant drain of the True Dead Plains.

“I concur,” the lady from the Divine Frozen Palace says. “I’d hoped I would be able to bear this, but it really is quite trying.”

Su Daji frowns. Unlike her, Bai Wen is already a few yards into the True Dead Plains and shows no sign of strain. If she didn’t know any better, she’d think the woman was making fun of her.

“I imagined it’d be like this,” Liu Jin says, sitting down on the ground and rubbing his chin in thought. “However, there has to be a way to cross. Otherwise, those from the Other Side wouldn’t be such an issue.”

“I mean, that’s natural, right?” Big Nose Li says. “They’re from the other side. They can do all sorts of weird things.”

“The ceremony to renew the barrier takes place somewhere in there,” Su Daji says, pointing at the white wasteland. “That means there is a way for people from this side to go, but maybe it can only be done if you’re escorted by an Emperor or something.”

“Xun Huwen managed it somehow,” Boss says after a while. “He was only in the Heaven Realm.”

Bai Wen raises an eyebrow.

“That madman?”

“You know of him?” Boss asks.

“His release caused quite a stir among several important people,” Bai Wen says. “Even though I was in the Storm Dragon Empire back then, my master deemed it necessary for me to be aware of his existence. Having read his history, I can tell you that the Divine Frozen Palace would have never nurtured such a toxic talent. Do you really believe he made it to the other side?”

Boss frowns menacingly. That usually means he is deep in thought, probably considering some very important, needlessly complicated thing.

~~~

He badly wishes he had punched Xun Huwen in the face.

Just thinking about the mad cultivator annoys Liu Jin. Though he only encountered the man twice, Xun Huwen undeniably left an impression on him. Such tends to happen when the same person is responsible for nearly killing you twice. Even when the tide turned in Liu Jin’s favor, Xun Huwen still managed to get away without a scratch.

Liu Jin can still remember Xun Huwen’s words about the weight of one’s existence. As much as Liu Jin wishes he could dismiss them as nothing more than the crazed ramblings of a lunatic, the more he learns about the world, the more he realizes that Xun Huwen was more right than wrong in his assertions. That burns him more than words can say.

“There is no doubt in my mind that Xun Huwen is alive and on the other side of the Dead Plains,” he says.

Big Sister Bai frowns. Slowly, she walks out of the True Dead Plains. That says much about how annoying the drain must be.

“That’s almost hard to believe considering he was supposed to be in the early stages of the Heaven Realm,” she says. “If he truly managed to cross, it must be due to a manifestation of his Dao.”

“Burnt Path Manifestation,” Liu Jin says. “That’s probably the technique he used.”

After the ordeal in the Dead Plains was over, Liu Jin researched all he could about Xun Huwen. His deeds before his imprisonment, his fighting style, and, more importantly, his Dao. The Eternal Flame Clan keeps extensive records on all things related to Destruction, and becoming a Core Disciple made it relatively easy to access them.

“It is a technique only those with a Dao tied closely to Destruction can use,” Liu Jin explains. “It destroys every single path of attack towards the user, making it impossible for any harm to befall him.”

For an attack to do that damage, it has to reach its target. That is common sense. However, if a path towards someone does not exist, how can any attack reach them? That is the basis of Burnt Path Manifestation. The technique doesn’t only affect physical paths. Going by what Liu Jin read, the effects seem to go deeper than that. It is a completely outlandish technique, yet that is Xun Huwen’s standard mode of defense.

Thinking about it… that technique might be how he has survived for so long.

“Ah, the Eternal Flame Clan,” Big Sister Bai shakes her head. “I realize you still belong to the Sect, but that place is far too dangerous. They make a habit of nurturing things that should not be nurtured. No one should be so proud of having produced so many Dao tied to Destruction.”

“I will not deny it is a problem, but Big Sister Bai, you forget something,” Liu Jin smiles and points at himself. “As far as many people are concerned, I am also something that should not have been nurtured.”

“Do not say that!” Big Sister Bai tells him.

“Even if it is mostly true,” Su Daji adds. “The people close to you will be sad if you speak like that, Boss.”

“I disagree. It is only right and proper for people to be aware of their standing.”

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Everyone freezes in place.

It was not Big Nose Li who said that. It also wasn’t Liu Jin. Marrow and Soaring Feather did not spontaneously gain the ability to use human speech, yet it was definitely a male voice that suddenly reached their ears.

At once, their senses reach out. Their heads all turn toward the same direction.

Towards the True Dead Plains.

A black blur appears in the distance. In the blink of an eye, it is suddenly in front of them. A furious Qi that feels weirdly familiar washes over them. Liu Jin’s aura flares. A qi snake appears around his hand while purple flames float in front of Su Daji. Big Nose Li has his fists raised.

Big Sister Bai is faster than all of them.

A mighty wall of ice rises before them. The force created by the abrupt appearance of such a large mass sends them flying back, effectively pushing them away from their attacker and the True Dead Plains.

The ice shatters into a million pieces.

Countless impacts echo throughout the Dead Plains in less than a second. Ice covers the land, only to be immediately destroyed. Though Liu Jin is already in the Heaven Realm, his eyes struggle to follow what is unfolding before him. He only sees the final hit clearly, steel shattering ice, before both fighters step back. Big Sister Bai stands protectively in front of them. Her breathing is heavy, and the single cut on her robes speaks volumes.

“That was interesting.”

The man in front of them looks… familiar. Certainly, there are some differences. His jaw is more pointed, and he might even be an inch shorter than the last time Liu Jin saw him. However, there is no denying who it is. The violet-eyed man dressed in black and white robes is undoubtedly…

“Bright Sword,” Liu Jin says, narrowing his eyes.