Detonation

"Cough... *pu*." Standing a hundred paces away, the instant Tianyan realized she had been struck, she knew everything was too late. She was entirely stripped of the ability to resist. The blood spilling from her mouth stained her lips crimson. The abrupt internal trauma robbed her of the strength to maintain her flight, sending her plunging toward the ground like a kite with a snapped string. Yet none of this drew the attention of the two men locked in a standoff at the edge of the lake. Though less than half an incense stick of time had elapsed since the battle erupted, the conflict had already reached its final stretch. Anyone who allowed themselves a split second of distraction right now would face utter damnation. Tang Ruofu narrowed his eyes, staring deeply at Xu Yuan below. Aside from the sword wound that had burst open at the very beginning, not a single additional injury marked the youth's body. Evidently, the complete strike of his Dao domain had been entirely evaded by that unknown, instantaneous sword technique. That meant the technique's rapid-strike capability was only half the story; at the moment he vanished, he could completely avoid all spell attacks. To think such a terrifying sword technique existed under heaven! A flicker of doubt crossed Tang Ruofu's eyes. For the first time, he felt genuinely troubled by this junior. It was not merely because of that flash-stepping sword technique, but because he could not understand how Xu Yuan, a mere cultivator of the Origin Realm, had anticipated the precise timing of his Dao domain's activation. The anchoring of the Xingwu Domain was silent and formless. Even among those in the Transcendent Realm, no one could detect the means by which he anchored an enemy. Only those who had attained the pinnacle of Sainthood could perceive it in advance through their mastery of saint origin. *Could this brat have mastered saint origin?* The sudden thought startled Tang Ruofu. *No, that's impossible.* Even as a Semi-Saint, he himself could only vaguely sense that ethereal saint origin. If the youth had mastered saint origin only a few years after stepping into the Origin Realm, such talent would make him peerless throughout history. Thoughts surged through his mind in a split second like a tempest-tossed tide. With his meticulous perception, Tang Ruofu quickly caught a telltale clue on the youth below. That clue brought a slight wave of relief to Tang Ruofu's heart. On the other side of the youth's chest, opposite the wound bearing the Meishen Dao Charm, an additional cut had appeared. The cut was shallow, penetrating less than an inch into the flesh, yet the edge of that torn flesh carried the "intent" of his own blade. It seemed his Dao domain had not failed entirely. However, this did not bode well for Tang Ruofu either. Just as a physical blade required a process to pass from skin to flesh and then to bone, the Xingwu Domain possessed a fleeting interval when inflicting wounds upon an enemy. In the past, Tang Ruofu had never cared about this split-second interval. Once the technique took shape, not even a Saint could reverse it, left with no choice but to watch helplessly as their body was torn apart. The problem was that the brat below possessed a sword technique capable of avoiding damage. Troublesome. In fact, it left him feeling faintly helpless. Tang Ruofu had never imagined that as an existence near-invincible among Semi-Saints, he would find himself at his wit's end against a junior. True, he could activate his Dao domain once more to inflict damage from afar, but the boy would simply repeat what he had just done and evade it with that sword technique. Furthermore... Unleashing that trump card just now had consumed too much of his reserves. *Negotiate, then...* The moment the thought crossed his mind, a smiling voice floated up from below: "Uncle, was that what you call your trump card?" A sinister crimson light flickered in Xu Yuan's narrow eyes as he casually rubbed his chest with one hand. Two sword wounds—one deep, one shallow—marked his torso. The deeper one had already stopped bleeding, sealed temporarily by his healing arts and the formidable physique of an Origin Realm cultivator. The shallower wound, however, showed no signs of healing at all. The sharp sword intent clinging to it severed any restorative power. After rubbing it for a moment, Xu Yuan looked up with a smile. "It seems my sword technique just happens to counter your trump card. If you don't have any other tricks up your sleeve, I suppose I win this wager." "..." After several breaths of silence, Tang Ruofu gently closed his eyes and slowly exhaled, "You win. I can let you both leave." "..." "..." "Huh?" Xu Yuan seemed amused by those words. A teasing grin curled at the corner of his lips as he said softly, "Do you think the advantage lies with you right now?" Tang Ruofu paid no heed to the mockery in Xu Yuan's voice. Opening his eyes, he said calmly, "The two of you are no match for me, and I have no desire to see Qing'er die here. Isn't letting you leave the best choice for all of us?" At that, Tang Ruofu glanced toward Tianyan, a hundred paces away. The young woman was still falling toward the ground, her sleeves fluttering. Her bloodstained black robe looked poignantly tragic amidst the white haze. "Jinghe, you hold Qing'er's life in your hands, and I hold hers in mine. Isn't this a fair trade?" "It is quite fair indeed." Xu Yuan pondered for a moment and gave a solemn nod, then grinned. "But what if I tell you that Tianyan is actually leagues stronger than me? What will you do then?" "..." Tang Ruofu raised a brow, glancing at Tianyan's languid form with a snort. "Even if she is stronger than you, what use is that now? As a cultivator of the Way of Qi, the moment all her meridians ruptured, she lost the ability to use spells. She has no power left to resist." Even if one could cast world-shaking spells, once crippled beforehand, they were nothing. With that, a meaningful smile tugged at the corner of Tang Ruofu's lips. "Or do you believe you have the ability to rescue her from beneath my watch in that state?" "I don't." Xu Yuan smoothed his somewhat disheveled long hair and shook his head frankly. "I've burned through more than half my Source Qi, and cracks have formed along the inner walls of my meridians. In this state, it's hard enough just to keep myself alive against you." Xu Yuan was telling the truth. After finding a way to deal with the man's trump card, the scales of victory had tipped slightly in his favor, but unfortunately, only slightly. As long as the Dao domain maintaining Tang Ruofu's peak combat prowess remained active for even a single second, the Meishen charm poison would be suppressed for that second, making it impossible to defeat him. Even so, there was little worry in Xu Yuan's eyes, and certainly no intention of negotiating. He simply stood there in quiet composure. A cold wind rustled their battered robes, sending ripples across the surface of the lake and brushing over the budding blossoms in the flowerbed. The pavilions stood tall, the waterside terraces remained unchanged, and everything suddenly fell still. Tang Ruofu already knew the young man's answer. And so, he moved. In an instant, wind and thunder surged together like sparks from flint. The billowing white haze was blasted apart by the gale, and an explosive sonic boom echoed through the valley basin. Instantly alert, Xu Yuan pushed the Pure Yang Art to its limit, catching Tang Ruofu's trajectory. He was heading straight for Tianyan. Seeing this, Xu Yuan showed no intention of stepping in to stop him, calmly remaining where he was and watching. Xu Yuan's serene reaction fell under Tang Ruofu's perception, planting a seed of doubt in his mind. But with the swiftness of gale and lightning, Tang Ruofu traversed the hundred paces in an instant, arriving before the black-robed young woman. He reached out in a flash, aiming to seize the defenseless girl. Since words carried no weight, he would teach the junior a lesson. Yet right at that moment, an unexpected turn occurred. Under Tang Ruofu's nearly unrivaled kinetic vision, the young woman with clear golden eyes suddenly raised her hand. Only, she did not aim it at him, nor at Xu Yuan, but directly at her own head. Time seemed to slow to a crawl. Tang Ruofu could not fathom what she intended to do. *She wants to resist?* *Then why aim at herself?* Doubt flashed through his mind, only to be suppressed immediately. He did not understand, nor did he need to. All he had to do now was capture the girl to exchange hostages with the youth. "..." In the span of an electric spark, Tang Ruofu's fingertips closed to within three inches of the girl's fair neck. Then— *Bang.* A brilliant blossom of blood detonated before Tang Ruofu's eyes. She blew apart. The girl's exquisite features, along with her entire head, vanished into a cloud of red mist. Staring at the flying gore and the headless corpse of the black-robed girl, even Tang Ruofu, who had weathered countless storms, experienced a momentary freeze in his mind. *She... she ended her own life?* A jolt of shock and suspicion rose in his chest. Tang Ruofu instinctively looked back at Xu Yuan, who remained in place, trying to discern something from his expression. Yet what puzzled Tang Ruofu even more was that he saw neither grief nor panic on the youth's face—only a cold, indifferent gaze fixed upon him. *Why?* *What does this mean?* *What is going on with these two juniors?* *Why would Tianyan end her life so decisively, and why could Jinghe remain so calm?* Chaotic thoughts rippled through his mind, and an unfamiliar sense of unease welled up within Tang Ruofu. *Something is wrong...* Yet the momentum of his body still caused his palm to sweep across the girl's headless neck. And then, Tang Ruofu discovered something that alarmed him even further. His hand met no solid resistance. The girl's body was like a phantom; his entire frame passed clean through it. *A spell?!* *Impossible.* He had shattered every single meridian inside the girl's body earlier. With broken meridians, no one could cast a spell! This defiance of common sense made the hairs on Tang Ruofu's arms stand on end. In the next instant, Tianyan's figure materialized in the empty air above, her face pale as paper. Her hands formed an incantation seal, pointing straight down at Tang Ruofu. At the same time, Xu Yuan's Void-Stepping Slash arrived right on schedule. The blade severed the void, leaving behind a stroke like spilled ink. As a Semi-Saint, Tang Ruofu instantly unleashed several arcs of sword light to parry. The two blades clashed violently with crisp metallic rings, stirring up rolling shockwaves and bursting into countless sparks in midair. Within merely a few breaths, the three-foot azure blade in Xu Yuan's hand was knocked away by the colossal force vibrating from the man's sword, followed immediately by a thrust aimed straight for his throat. Xu Yuan's pupils shrank. *Void-Stepping Slash.* Before the blade could pierce his throat, Xu Yuan used Void-Stepping Slash once more to break free of the fray. Appearing beside Tianyan, he immediately heard the girl's intent-soul voice transmission sharing what she had detected: *"Xu Yuan, this man walks the way of the martial apprentice. Aside from his Dao domain, his physical body likely harbors some lethal technique."* "..." Hearing this, Xu Yuan's heart shuddered. *Huh? This boss has a phase three?!* Glancing at their nearly depleted state, Xu Yuan replied via transmission, *"Cancel the spell. We're getting out of here."* He glared down at Tang Ruofu below and barked, "Move one more step, and I'll ruin your Dao companion!" With that, he raised his hand, pointing straight at the voluptuous mature woman writhing in the flowerbed. "..." Madness flashed in Tang Ruofu's eyes, and without the slightest hesitation, he swung his sword forward. He knew very well that the girl was gathering power for some devastating spell. If he held back, both he and Xia Qing would perish here. Seeing that the man refused to listen, Xu Yuan did not hesitate either. He immediately detonated one of the Source Qi bombs he had planted within the woman's body. Xia Qing, lying amidst the flowers, instantly coughed up a spray of blood. Yet before he could detonate the second one— *BOOM!* A terrifying pressure surged from Tang Ruofu's frame, releasing an aura like that of a primordial beast. Just as Tianyan had warned, this Semi-Saint Sword Madman truly had a third phase. He was preparing to stake his life. In Xu Yuan's perception, Tang Ruofu turned into an afterimage so fast it was virtually imperceptible. "..." Seeing this, Xu Yuan and Tianyan turned tail and fled one after the other without a second thought. *Void-Stepping Slash.* *Instant True Word.* Tang Ruofu: "..." The two figures reappeared a hundred paces away. Showing no intention of lingering, they cast their respective teleportation arts in two separate directions in rapid succession, traveling thousands of paces in the blink of an eye until they dwindled into two black dots that vanished over the horizon. "*Haaah...*" All returned to calm, leaving only the battered, desolate waterfall valley. Tang Ruofu stood alone in midair, gasping for breath. Watching the two figures disappear into the sky, he let out a soft sigh. "Splitting up to flee... clever indeed." With them fleeing in opposite directions, he did not dare give chase. If he pursued one, the other might double back, leaving Qing'er in mortal danger. Flashing down to the flowerbed, Tang Ruofu arrived beside Xia Qing, his fists clenching tight in an instant. The woman before his eyes retained none of the dignified, virtuous grace of his memories. Even as blood continually seeped from the corners of her lips, her alluring, curvaceous body writhed ceaselessly on the ground. Her garments were half-unfastened, her eyes brimmed with lustful spring light, and tantalizing moans spilled from her lips. After a moment of silence, Tang Ruofu stepped forward, scooped the woman into his arms from the ground, and carried her into the pavilion belonging to Xu Yuan and Tianyan. Inside the main hall, the incense still burned, and the furnishings were elegant and cozy. Retrieving two prayer mats and placing them on the floor, Tang Ruofu sat down and gently rearranged Xia Qing's half-exposed garments before preparing to heal her wounds. "Are you... Ruofu?" The mature woman suddenly opened her eyes and threw herself into his embrace. Her gaze, gleaming with a cherry-pink luster, drew close, and her luscious red lips pressed softly against his. "Mmh... please..." The air was still as their lips met. With tenderness in his eyes, Tang Ruofu caressed the long hair of the woman in his arms, doing nothing more. Once the kiss ended, Tang Ruofu stayed the fair hands tugging at his clothes, shook his head, and began to treat her injuries. If Qing'er lost her purity before attaining Sainthood, all hope of reaching that realm would be lost forever. While she continued to seek his kisses, he pressed his hand against the Zhongji acupoint on her back, channeling Source Qi into her body to cleanse the impurities. Time slipped quietly by. As the Source Qi penetrated deeper, Tang Ruofu's brow furrowed tighter and tighter. *Something is wrong...* *Why are Qing'er's meridians completely intact?* *Didn't that brat just detonate the Source Qi planted inside her?* Amidst his pondering, Tang Ruofu suddenly felt a wave of dizziness rise in his mind. Snapping his eyes open, Tang Ruofu discovered that his own clothes had unknowingly been stripped off by the delirious Xia Qing. And his vision began to sway uncontrollably. *It's... it's over...* What that boy had planted and detonated from the start was not Source Qi, but Dao charm poison! He had used Xia Qing to thoroughly ignite the charm poison inside Tang Ruofu's own body! *Tap.* *Tap.* *Tap.* In the quiet air, gentle footsteps approached from afar. Gritting his teeth, Tang Ruofu stared at the brocade-robed young man walking in through the doorway. He instinctively tried to rise, but his body would no longer obey. Xu Yuan crouched down beside the two of them, resting his chin on his hand, and squinted with a radiant smile. "Hey, Auntie's figure is actually pretty nice, isn't it?"