[Yu Xian, Combat Power: 500]
[Dan Dinggui, Combat Power: 400]
Their gazes locked, and in the next instant, energy erupted from both of them simultaneously.
Yu Xian's golden energy and Dan Dinggui's emerald radiance expanded wildly, slamming into one another midway.
The ground fractured in an instant as a violent gale swept across the entire dao arena. Clutching one of Dan Dinggui's roots with a single hand, Aska shrieked in agony amid the tempest.
Dan Dinggui furrowed his brows, anchoring his roots deep into the earth to barely hold his ground.
Yet he was already well aware that the intruder was stronger than him. Though the true outcome could only be decided in battle, on paper, his opponent clearly held the upper hand.
"Stop! This old man concedes. He's yours."
Just as the earth was on the verge of being ripped in two, Dan Dinggui called out his immediate surrender.
He had no reason to risk his life fighting Yu Xian. Aska was merely a hound at his beck and call, not a close friend or kin; clashing with Yu Xian even once on Aska's behalf was already doing more than enough.
Yu Xian slowly reined in his surging energy. Dan Dinggui promptly wrapped a bough around Aska's waist and flung him toward Yu Xian.
"Lord Gui, you can't abandon me! I'm managing so many of your properties, and I have money—I can give you every last coin!" Still airborne, Aska was seized by sheer terror, crying out frantically through what remained of his mangled face.
With half of his face blown to shreds, his speech whistled and slurred, but everyone present understood what he meant.
"Aska, you crossed the wrong person. This old man cannot protect you," Dan Dinggui said flatly.
The moment Aska hit the ground, he scrambled onto his knees before Yu Xian to beg for mercy, only for a feather fired by Yu Xian to pierce his brain the very next second.
Yu Xian then strolled over to Aska's corpse and let a single drop of Primordial Pure Blood fall onto it. Like a tiny serpent, the blood slithered into Aska's wound on its own. In the blink of an eye, the wound squirmed and healed over, bringing Aska back from the dead.
"You won't hold a grudge against me, will you?" Yu Xian hoisted Aska up and turned to leave, but then, as if something had just occurred to him, he looked back at the relieved Dan Dinggui and asked.
Dan Dinggui closed his eyes and gave a slight shake of his head. "He is merely a lackey. This old man has no desire to seek his own grave."
"Good to hear." Yu Xian gave a slight smile and vanished through a ripple in space.
In truth, nobody present could perceive the spatial fluctuations; the only ones who could truly see the spatial ripples were Yu Xian and Little Nora. The ripples everyone else saw were merely distortions produced as space warped the surrounding air and light.
It was like how humans could not see the wind itself, yet when it rustled the leaves, they knew the wind had arrived.
Gazing at the fading ripples, Dan Dinggui let out a long sigh of relief and muttered to himself, "This old man doesn't even know who you are, let alone hold a grudge."
Still, this served as a valuable lesson: underlings could not be left completely unchecked, or crossing a ruthless killer could drag him down in a matter of moments.
Fortunately, the powerhouse who had tracked Aska down didn't possess an excessive lust for slaughter, but there was no guarantee luck would hold next time.
...
Yu Xian returned to the CEO's office of the 25th Floor Group with Aska, who had now been turned into a blood servant.
This time, nothing went awry. He obtained the real tracker from Aska, along with fifty million Star Coins "generously" gifted by Aska, plus one of Aska's private Star-rank warships.
It was worth mentioning that the funding for this Star-rank warship had come from Aska secretly pocketing a portion of the construction funds for the Primordial Water and supplementing the rest out of his own pocket.
Rounded off, Zhi'er had effectively paid for the warship. It falling into Yu Xian's hands was poetic justice—Zhi'er had posted Yu Xian's video online to make a fortune, and in the end, that money found its way back to Yu Xian in the form of a warship.
With the tracker and the Star-rank warship in hand, the next step was stocking up on supplies.
After all, Yu Xian had no idea what he would encounter or how long he would be in the Abyss. For safety's sake, thorough preparations were a must.
Initially, he had planned to hitch a ride with the Sea Clan.
The Sea Clan hauled massive crates of provisions onto their warship, leaving no need to worry about shortages.
Unfortunately, the Sea Clan wouldn't let him join in.
Meanwhile, Aska's ship was brand new, and unlike Zhi'er, who had begun preparing a century ago, Aska naturally had not stockpiled ample provisions.
Moreover, he had to take Little Nora and Huangquan with him; as Nora had put it, if they were going to die, they would die together.
Besides, if he died, neither of them would survive anyway. Going together meant fusing to boost their combat power, whereas leaving them on Earth meant that if an accident befell him, they would die senselessly without even knowing what happened.
The 26th floor.
Upon his return, a golden tether appeared in Yu Xian's hand—the bond between him and Little Nora.
Ever since Little Nora underwent atavism and became a Victorious True King Bird, Yu Xian had noticed a distinct change in the nature of their bond.
Originally, this golden tether could only pull Little Nora to his side, but now it could pull others as well.
Anyone bound to him by contract could now be reeled in with this tether. Perhaps this was tied to Little Nora's powers, given that most abilities of a Victorious True King Bird pertained to space.
With a thought from Yu Xian, the opposite end of the tether vanished into the void. Giving it a gentle tug, he reeled Nora out from the void in her pajamas, catching her right in his embrace.
"Yu Xian?"
Nora was momentarily wary upon opening her eyes, but she recognized Yu Xian the next second.
No matter what form Yu Xian took, the contract forged a deep telepathy between their hearts, allowing them to recognize each other with a single glance.
Releasing his hold, Yu Xian combined True Crimson Power with Little Nora's Heavenly Golden Feathers to instantly outfit Nora in a splendid set of golden armor. It protected all her vital areas while incorporating parts of her pajama skirt as decorative trim, looking extraordinarily striking.
Smoothing out her hem, he recounted everything that had transpired and explained his decision to her.
Once he laid out the whole situation, Nora pulled him into a warm, tight embrace and said with deep emotion, "Then we'll go save Shui Yuetian together, no matter what we face, no matter how great the danger..."
What moved her wasn't simply that Yu Xian decided to save Shui Yuetian, but that he hadn't quietly slipped away, abandoning her on Earth to wait alone in loneliness for her beloved's return.
"Big Bro, Big Sis, if you're done hugging, hurry up and go buy food! I want meat—preferably dragon meat!" Little Nora poked her head out from Yu Xian's shoulder, chiming in right beside their ears to spoil the romantic mood.
Both Yu Xian and Nora couldn't help laughing. Nora smiled. "All right, let's go buy meat right now."
"The meat market in Crescent Bay is over that way. Let's go," Yu Xian said at once.
With that, Yu Xian and Nora walked hand in hand toward the meat market, exchanging affectionate glances along the way before stepping into the market in high spirits.
Chapter 255