Silver sword light filled the passage.
Lu Han no longer fought with the calm confidence he had shown at the beginning. His attacks had become heavier, sharper, and more ruthless, every sword carrying the power of an almost Early Spirit Foundation cultivator, suppressed only enough to keep the ruin from rejecting him completely. The suppressing talisman on his chest burned fiercely, and a thin crack had already appeared across its surface.
The Demon Sealing Ruins trembled around them.
The walls groaned as if something ancient had begun to wake.
Fang Lin stepped through the storm of sword light. Blood ran down his left arm, his shoulder robe had been sliced open, and several shallow sword wounds crossed his chest and back. Yet his eyes did not change. Frost Wind moved in his hand like cold moonlight, blocking, shifting, and sometimes allowing Lu Han's sword to graze past him by the smallest possible distance.
He could not waste strength.
He could not take heavy injuries.
He had to end this before his enemies(Yan Chi and Guo Zhen) arrived.
Lu Han understood that too.
"You want to kill me quickly?"
His sword swept out, and a silver wave cut through the passage. Fang Lin lowered his body and slid beneath it. The sword Qi tore through the wall behind him, leaving a deep mark in the stone.
Lu Han's eyes were cold. "Dream on."
He thrust his sword forward. The blade split into five silver shadows.
Fang Lin's pupils narrowed.
Four false.
One real.
No.
Two real.
Frost Wind turned and blocked the first real strike. The second pierced toward his ribs, and Fang Lin twisted his body using Phantom Transformation at the last instant. His bones and muscles shifted subtly, changing the angle of his body in a way no ordinary movement technique could imitate. Lu Han's sword brushed past his side. Blood appeared, but the wound was not deep. If it was not due to Phantom Transformation, he would have been injured critically.
Lu Han's eyes sharpened. "That body-altering method again."
Fang Lin's left hand moved.
Wind Break Palm.
Lu Han retreated half a step, avoiding the palm, but Fang Lin had expected that. The palm had not been aimed at him.
It struck the wall.
Compressed wind exploded through the cracked stone. Dust and broken rock burst outward, swallowing the passage.
Soul Thrasher.
Lu Han's vision blurred for a breath, and his spiritual sense spread immediately from his mind.
Spiritual Sense was the speciality of Spirit Foundation Cultivators. And it was very important for a sword user. Without opening a Spirit sense, one cannot break the spirit foundation and form a core.
Too late.
Fang Lin appeared inside the dust, Shadow Breath wrapped around him until his presence had nearly vanished. Frost Wind stabbed toward Lu Han's throat.
Lu Han reacted by instinct, his sword rising just in time.
The two blades collided inches from his neck, and the force pushed him backward. Before he could stabilize, Fang Lin's knee struck his abdomen. Nine Nether Phantom Body operated in full speed and erupted a blow, shaking Lu Han's protective Qi violently and making his face pale.
Fang Lin followed with his left palm.
A faint black death thread coiled around his fingers.
Lu Han's heart tightened. Without hesitation, he burned more Spirit Foundation Qi, and silver light erupted from his body. Fang Lin's palm struck the silver barrier. The death thread corroded it silently, dimming it for one breath before Lu Han's sword cut downward.
Fang Lin withdrew, but the blade still sliced across his forearm. Blood fell to the ground.
During that exchange, Fang Lin had left another frost mark beneath Lu Han's feet.
Then another behind him.
Then another along the wall.
Lu Han noticed, and his expression turned ugly.
If he moved carelessly, he might be stuck by the frost mask making him weaker and spend energy to extricate himself, even if he didn't get critically injured.
Again.
Fang Lin was turning the passage into a trap.
He could not allow it.
"Sword River Domain."
Lu Han's voice became cold. His sword rose before him, and silver Qi spread outward in a circle. The passage seemed to fill with flowing water, but it was not water. It was sword Qi.
Every inch of air became sharp.
Fang Lin immediately felt pressure against his skin. Tiny cuts opened across his arms and face, and his robe fluttered without wind. Lu Han stood in the middle of the silver flow, eyes cold and bright.
"Within this range, every movement of yours will be cut."
Fang Lin's expression remained calm, but his heart sank slightly.
This was a domain-like sword field. Not a true domain. Lu Han was far from the Domain Forging Realm. But for a Spirit Foundation cultivator, this technique was already extremely powerful. If Fang Lin moved carelessly, the sword Qi in the air would slice him apart before Lu Han even attacked.
Lu Han stepped forward, and the silver flow moved with him.
"Your movement technique is useless now."
His sword flashed.
Fang Lin blocked. The impact drove him back, and the moment he moved, the surrounding sword Qi cut into his body. Blood lines opened across his skin. The white life force beneath his flesh immediately began repairing them, but the pain remained sharp.
Lu Han attacked again.
Fang Lin blocked again.
Another step back.
More cuts.
Lu Han's eyes became colder. "You are strong. Stronger than any Qi Conjunction cultivator I have ever seen."
His sword pressed down.
"But realm is realm."
Fang Lin's arm trembled, and the ground under his feet cracked.
Lu Han leaned closer. "You should have hidden better."
Fang Lin looked at him. "I did."
Lu Han frowned.
At that moment, the frost marks Fang Lin had left behind suddenly lit up.
Not around Lu Han.
Behind Fang Lin.
The pale marks connected into a thin arc, forming a shield-like net of cold Qi. The silver sword field pressed against it, and frost clashed with sword Qi. The cutting pressure around Fang Lin weakened for one breath.
Only one.
But one breath was enough.
Fang Lin stepped forward.
Lu Han's eyes widened. Instead of retreating from the sword field, Fang Lin entered deeper.
"You are insane!"
Sword Qi cut into Fang Lin's body from every direction. Blood sprayed, but Fang Lin's eyes remained terrifyingly calm. Nine Nether Phantom Body endured. Life force repaired. Soul Metamorphosis Technique locked onto the thinnest gap in the sword field. Shadow Breath hid the exact direction of his palm.
Lu Han's heart shook.
For the first time, he felt that Fang Lin was not trying to survive.
He was trading injury for one decisive strike.
Lu Han retreated, but Fang Lin was already in front of him.
Wind Break Palm landed on Lu Han's chest.
Compressed wind exploded inward.
Lu Han's silver protective Qi shattered layer by layer. The jade armor beneath his robe cracked completely, and his chest sank slightly as blood burst from his mouth. He flew backward and smashed through a stone pillar.
The River Sword Domain collapsed.
Fang Lin landed on one knee. Blood dripped from dozens of cuts across his body. His breathing became heavy, and pain spread everywhere, but his eyes remained fixed on Lu Han.
Not dead.
The smoke cleared.
Lu Han pushed himself up from the rubble. His white robe was torn, his chest was bloody, and the jade armor hidden beneath his clothes had broken into fragments. Without that armor, Fang Lin's palm would have heavily crippled him.
Lu Han looked down at his chest, then at Fang Lin.
His expression was no longer cold.
He was shocked.
Furious.
And afraid.
A Qi Conjunction cultivator had nearly shattered his chest. A Qi Conjunction cultivator had forced him to use a defensive treasure. A Qi Conjunction cultivator had made him feel death.
(Spirit Guard Jade Armor
A one-time-use Spirit Foundation defensive treasure refined from low-grade spirit jade. Before battle, the wearer fills it with their own Spirit Qi. When struck by a dangerous attack, the armor releases that stored Spirit Qi to block or weaken the blow, then cracks or shatters after a few uses.
Cost: 1,200 low-grade spirit stones.)
Lu Han's fingers tightened around his sword until his knuckles turned white. "You..."
He coughed blood.
"You must die."
Fang Lin slowly stood. His wounds were healing, not fully and not quickly enough to erase the damage, but visibly. Lu Han saw it, and his pupils contracted.
"Your body..."
Fang Lin did not give him time to think.
He moved again.
Lu Han gritted his teeth and met him. Their swords collided repeatedly, each strike shaking the passage. Fang Lin's strength had dropped slightly from injury, but Lu Han's strength had also fallen after taking Wind Break Palm. Both understood that the next decisive moment would matter.
Far away, two auras were approaching.
One burning hot.
One heavy as a mountain.
Yan Chi.
Guo Zhen.
Fang Lin could sense them through the faint response of the ruins.
They were not far now.
His time was disappearing.
He had to kill Lu Han before they arrived.
His gaze sharpened. The dark flame in his spiritual sea flickered, and the Nine Abyss Shadow Scripture circulated. Shadow Breath deepened. The darkness around Fang Lin's feet stretched.
Lu Han noticed the change and immediately stepped back. "Do you think I will let you use that strange shadow palm again?"
Fang Lin's expression did not move.
His figure blurred.
Lu Han slashed, and his sword cut through Fang Lin's afterimage.
Behind him.
Lu Han turned instantly.
Fang Lin was there, but he was not attacking with his palm.
Frost Wind struck downward.
Lu Han raised his sword to block. At the same time, Fang Lin's shadow moved. A thin black needle emerged from the ground beneath Lu Han's foot. It was weak, crude, and barely formed, but it pierced the edge of Lu Han's ankle.
Lu Han's body stiffened for a fraction of a breath.
Death force entered.
Only a trace.
But his foot went numb.
Fang Lin's eyes flashed.
His left palm pressed forward.
Lu Han roared and burned his Spirit Foundation Qi. The suppressing talisman cracked again, and silver light exploded. Fang Lin's palm was forced slightly aside, striking Lu Han's right shoulder instead of his heart.
Wind Break Palm erupted.
Lu Han's shoulder shattered. His sword arm dropped, and blood sprayed across the passage as he screamed for the first time.
Fang Lin stepped in.
Frost Wind aimed at his throat.
This was the chance.
Kill him. Take the storage ring. Leave before the others arrived.
But at that instant, blazing heat erupted from behind.
A red flame spear tore through the passage toward Fang Lin's back.
Yan Chi had arrived.
Fang Lin's eyes turned cold. He abandoned the killing strike and shifted sideways. The flame spear passed through the space where his back had been and struck the wall ahead.
Fire exploded through the passage.
Lu Han staggered backward, clutching his ruined shoulder.
A red-robed figure landed on a broken stone beam above the passage. Yan Chi looked at Lu Han, then at Fang Lin, then at the blood covering both of them. His smile slowly vanished.
"Lu Han," he said quietly. "You were almost killed?"
Lu Han's face twisted. "Shut up."
Yan Chi's eyes moved to Fang Lin.
Late Qi Conjunction Realm. Bloodied. Breathing heavily. Still standing. Still holding his sword. Still calm.
Yan Chi's eyes grew bright. "So it is true."
He jumped down from the beam, and flames gathered around his hands. "The inheritance really made you this strong?"
Fang Lin said nothing.
Yan Chi smiled again, greed filling his eyes. "No wonder you wanted him alone, Lu Han."
Lu Han's expression darkened. "I called you here, did I not?"
"Only after nearly dying."
Yan Chi laughed softly, then his gaze turned sharp. "Where is Guo Zhen?"
A heavy crash answered him.
The ceiling above the far passage broke apart, and a large figure dropped down, landing between cracked stones. Guo Zhen stood slowly, his black-brown armor stained with blood, his expression flat, and his aura heavy enough to make the broken passage feel smaller.
The three hunters had gathered.
Fang Lin stood alone before them.
Blood dripped from Frost Wind, some of it his own, some of it Lu Han's. The passage was broken behind him, and the ruins trembled faintly around them.
For a moment, no one moved.
Yan Chi looked at Fang Lin and smiled. "Hand over the legacy. I will give you a painless death. Els....." Fire danced in his palm as he looked at Fan Lin with a cold smile.
Guo Zhen said nothing.
Lu Han raised his sword with his left hand. His right shoulder was ruined, but his killing intent had only grown stronger.
"He is mine."
Yan Chi laughed. "Yours? You could not take him."
Lu Han's eyes turned icy. "If you want to fight me first, you can try."
Guo Zhen's heavy voice cut through them. "Enough."
The air became still.
Guo Zhen looked at Fang Lin. "He is delaying."
Yan Chi's smile faded slightly.
Lu Han's gaze sharpened.
Fang Lin did not speak.
Because Guo Zhen was right.
Every breath mattered. The life force inside his body was repairing his wounds. The grey stone was refining the remaining spiritual energy inside him. The dark flame was stabilizing Shadow Breath after his forced use of death force.
He needed time.
But they would not give him much.
Yan Chi raised his hand, and flames gathered into three burning wheels behind him. Lu Han's silver sword Qi rose again, weaker than before but still dangerous. Guo Zhen stepped forward, stone-like pressure spreading from his body.
Three Middle Spirit Foundation sect geniuses stood before Fang Lin.
Each one was far stronger than Qin Yuesheng, Huo Lan, and Meng Shi.
Each one was determined to seize the inheritance.
Each one was ready to kill.
Fang Lin slowly straightened his back. His wounds burned. His meridians ached. His soul felt strained from repeated use. But inside him, something colder than fear settled into place.
If he lost here, the legacy would be taken. The clue would be severed. The path toward Uncle Wei would become darker. The truth of his parents would sink farther away.
He had left the sect to find answers. He had walked into this ruin to follow the grey stone's call. He had endured the questions of darkness and taken the legacy with his own will.
He would not hand it over.
Not to Lu Han.
Not to Yan Chi.
Not to Guo Zhen.
Not to the three sects behind them.
Fang Lin lifted Frost Wind. A faint white light moved beneath his skin, and a faint black shadow wrapped around his blade.
His voice was calm, but every word carried iron.
"If you want it..."
The darkness around him deepened.
"Come take it."
Yan Chi laughed wildly. "Good!"
Flames exploded.
Lu Han vanished in silver light.
Guo Zhen charged like a collapsing mountain.
Fang Lin stepped forward.
The entire passage erupted.