Nine Dragons Saint Ancestor
Chapter 268 Danger and Opportunity

Chapter 268: 268 Danger and Opportunity

Huff... Huff...

Yun Xiao, after plunging into one of the cave openings, was met with a chilly wind that contained an indescribable coldness, seemingly turning his mind into a haze.

Fortunately, with his powerful Power of Soul, Yun Xiao quickly regained his senses. He remained on guard as he ventured deeper into the Meridian Treasure, oblivious to the dangers that might unfold.

Swoosh!

At this moment, Yun Xiao’s hairs stood on end as he lunged forward without bending in the slightest, executing the Zombie Body Technique previously showcased in the Outer Sect competition.

It was a timely move, for in the very instant he lunged, an icy shadow swooshed right above him from behind, its aura terrifyingly potent.

Yun Xiao sensed it clearly; had he not lunged when he did, he would have likely sustained severe injuries from that force. Indeed, Meridian Treasure was fraught with peril at every turn.

Remaining cautious, Yun Xiao picked himself off the ground only to glimpse a shadow but couldn’t discern whether it was a special kind of energy, a formidable Vein Demon, or an unknown Strange Spirit.

The wind howled through the cave as usual, and about ten yards later, the familiar sound of rushing air reached Yun Xiao for a second time.

This time, well-prepared, Yun Xiao was not as disheveled as before. He stared straight ahead and saw a large bird encased in Ice Crystals swooping down, sending a chill through his heart.

"Indeed, a Strange Spirit!"

Yun Xiao, with his discerning eyes, could tell at a glance that the bird did not bear the aura of a Vein Demon. Moreover, he had never seen such an Ice Crystal giant bird before; it must be a Strange Spirit born from the Ice Cold Attribute.

Even though Yun Xiao identified it as a Strange Spirit, his mood did not lighten. He could sense that it was a Fourth Rank Intermediate Strange Spirit, even more powerful than his own Cultivation.

A Fourth Rank Intermediate Strange Spirit roughly matched the power of a human Cultivator at the middle or even late Meridian Rushing Realm. If an ordinary human Cultivator at Yun Xiao’s level were to encounter such a being, would they not simply be awaiting death?

However, upon sensing the cultivation of this Strange Spirit at the Fourth Rank Intermediate level, Yun Xiao showed no signs of retreat. Although the Strange Spirit was formidable, due to the nature of its Attribute, it did not cause him too much concern.

Not to mention that Yun Xiao himself wielded the Ice Cold Ancestor Vein Power, his right arm’s Fire Attribute Ancestor Vein sometimes proved particularly effective against Strange Spirits with the Ice Cold Attribute.

The Ice Crystal giant bird Strange Spirit approached rapidly, making it unclear how it had formed, but it seemed intent on piercing through Yun Xiao’s entire body with its fierce momentum.

"Bring it on!"

Upon seeing this, Yun Xiao let out a loud cry and extended his right hand. As the Ancient Dragon Taming Technique surged, the Meridian Qi from his entire body flooded into that right arm’s Ancestor Vein, emitting an extraordinary aura.

"Meridian Fire, appear!"

With another deep shout, a smear of blood-red flame appeared atop Yun Xiao’s right hand’s middle finger. For some reason, when the Ice Crystal giant bird Strange Spirit saw this blood-red flame, its non-existent eyes seemed to flicker with fear.

Indeed, Yun Xiao’s Ancestral Vein Fire possessed a miraculous power, especially effective against Vein Demons or Strange Spirits with an Ice Attribute.

Of course, if the cultivation and power of the Vein Demon or Strange Spirit far surpassed Yun Xiao’s, such as being a whole Great Rank higher, then the imposing force of his Ancestral Vein Fire would have its limits.

At least, the current Fourth Rank Intermediate Ice Bird Strange Spirit did not seem capable of overcoming Yun Xiao’s Ancestral Vein Fire. Moreover, it appeared that the Ice Bird’s Spiritual Wisdom was not particularly high; it sensed the great threat posed by the Ancestral Vein Fire but still fiercely pounced towards Yun Xiao.

"Condensed Form!"

Seeing that the Ice Bird Strange Spirit didn’t back away, a fierce gleam flashed in Yun Xiao’s eyes. With another low shout, the blood-red flame in his hand took the shape of an arrow.

This was another one of Yun Xiao’s techniques after breaking through to the Meridian Rushing Realm; previously, he had achieved external Meridian Qi gathering below the Meridian Rushing Realm using a specific method from the Nine-layered Dragon Cloud, confounding many disciples from the Jade Pot Sect’s Inner and Outer Sects.

In fact, while the Cultivators of Hidden Dragon Continent may have a limited perspective, the segmentation of Great Ranks within Meridian Qi Cultivation does hold certain truths.

When Yun Xiao broke through to the early stage of the Meridian Rushing Realm, he naturally became even more adept with the external gathering of Meridian Qi, and even his manipulation of the Ancestral Vein Fire grew a bit more varied, just like the condensation forming at this moment.

The power of the Ancestor Vein is a force much mightier than ordinary Meridian Qi. Generally speaking, to be able to command the outward-projected Ancestor Vein Power as if it’s an extension of one’s limbs, one must at least reach the Meridian Union Realm.

However, Yun Xiao had taken an unusual path, managing to condense his Ancestral Vein Fire into form while only in the early stage of the Meridian Rushing Realm, which would surely astonish the disciples of the Jade Pot Sect were they to witness it.

But the Ice Bird Strange Spirit before him certainly wouldn’t be surprised by Yun Xiao’s Meridian Fire Arrow; it only knew that the fire attribute of the arrow seemed to pose a great threat to itself, and if it did not dodge, it might suffer a major loss.

Yet the speed with which Yun Xiao’s Meridian Fire converged into an arrow was extremely fast; amidst the changing of seals in his hands, the Ice Bird Strange Spirit failed to recover in time and was shot straight through.

Crack!

A soft cracking sound emitted, and then Yun Xiao saw wisps of blood-red flames rising from the Ice Bird Strange Spirit’s body, as drops of ice water slid off it, appearing quite eerie in this tranquil passageway.

It turned out that when Yun Xiao controlled the arrow made from Ancestral Vein Fire and passed through the Ice Bird, he had left a touch of blood-red flames on its body.

The Ancestral Vein Fire issued by Yun Xiao could naturally be controlled, and indeed it was invincible; the blood-red flames lingering within the body of the Ice Bird did not extinguish due to its ice attribute but instead rampaged in an instant.

"Gu!"

A strange cry came from the mouth of the Ice Bird, imbued with a trace of anger and pain. It seemed that no matter how it struggled, it couldn’t escape the incineration of the blood-red flames.

Merely after a few breaths, what had been an invincible Ice Bird Strange Spirit turned into pools of ice water, no longer existing. For Yun Xiao, witnessing this scene brought him immense gratification.

To be honest, in that situation, any cultivator at the early stage of the Meridian Rushing Realm would likely have faced a nearly certain death, at most being able to flee in disarray—that was a Fourth Rank Intermediate Strange Spirit, after all.

Strange Spirits are generally a bit more powerful than Vein Demons of the same rank, not to mention human cultivators of the same level, and here was Yun Xiao with just the cultivation of the Meridian Rushing Realm early stage.

Yet the fact was, Yun Xiao, with just a special technique, managed to dispatch that Fourth Rank Intermediate Strange Spirit Ice Bird. It was all thanks to his peculiar Fire Attribute Ancestor Vein, or rather, the mighty Ancestral Vein Fire.

At this point, Yun Xiao indeed became curious about the Blood Moon Jade and even more so about the origins of his paternal lineage.

Having activated both Fire and Ice Attribute Ancestor Veins, and with a third Ancestor Vein faintly present, Yun Xiao had every reason to believe this was not a legacy from a mere minor Shang Family.

After all, within the Shang Family, only the Family Head Shang Yan activated an Ancestor Vein; even his own mother had no Ancestor Vein, so how could she pass on such a formidable Ancestor Vein Power?

Thus, it could only come from his paternal side, but Yun Xiao didn’t know much about his father. The only token he had was the Blood Moon Jade, now transformed into a crescent moon-shaped seal.

And because of this Blood Moon Jade, the Shang Family was wiped out. To this day, Yun Xiao believed that his mother and sister perished in that battle, and he had sworn to uncover the truth and avenge them.

These thoughts flashed through Yun Xiao’s mind. The next moment, his gaze had shifted from the remains of the Ice Bird and without much hesitation, he headed deeper into the cave.

What Yun Xiao did not notice was, as his figure disappeared into the distance, the pools of water which had turned into ice began to stir without wind, perhaps at any moment they might condense together again into a powerful Strange Spirit.

As opposed to Yun Xiao, in other places, people like Yue Qi and Mo Qing, as well as the two Family Heads who had reached the Meridian Union Realm, all encountered attacks from the same kind of Strange Spirits.

However, to these cultivators who had reached the early stage of the Meridian Union Realm, a mere Fourth Rank Intermediate Strange Spirit posed no threat at all.

But as more intruders ventured deeper, the dangers within the Meridian Treasure would reveal themselves one by one. To win the treasure, one must brave some risks, and if one loses their life to these risks, it’s but a matter of dying for wealth.

It’s worth mentioning that while everyone was engaged in fierce battles with Strange Spirits at various cave entrances, at the very depths of the Meridian Treasure, a pile of seemingly silent skeletons appeared to be emitting a strange aura, signaling unknown changes that might occur at any moment.

Deep within a certain cave, Yun Xiao continued his journey, occasionally leaving behind puddles of melted ice water, residue from the Strange Spirits melted by his Ancestral Vein Fire.

Bolstered by the Ancestral Vein Fire, Yun Xiao’s speed didn’t seem much slower than those Meridian Union Realm powerhouses, and as he advanced for about a dozen breaths, suddenly the path ahead brightened.

As soon as Yun Xiao stepped forward, a suffocating fragrance filled his nostrils, and with that scent, certain memories from deep within his mind surged forth like a tide, relentless and unforgettable.

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