Chapter 149: Seana’s Breakthrough

Chapter 150: Seana’s Breakthrough

A figure emerged from the gray mist.

He wore plain gray robes that seemed to blend into the shadows. His face was pale and entirely devoid of emotion, like a mask carved from bone. At his waist, two circular blades spun slowly, humming with a low, predatory vibration.

Situ Li.

He stopped ten meters away. His eyes scanned Seana’s face with a mixture of cold disdain and a twisted, lingering resentment.

"The Veyra Commander and the Sovereign have more important business at the Core," Situ Li said softly. "But you... you and that Array Master boyfriend of yours have been a recurring irritant."

He touched one of his spinning blades, his eyes narrowing into slits.

"Qing Lian wants the Array Master dead. But for me? I want to see the expression on his face when I present him with your cold, lifeless head."

Seana’s grip tightened on the Blood Moon Sword. Her blood-red gaze locked onto his throat.

"Many people have wanted my head, Situ Li," she replied, her voice as sharp as a blade. "They are all currently decorating the floors of this palace."

Situ Li chuckled, a dry, grating sound that bounced off the stone walls. "Those were mindless constructs. I am a direct disciple of the Gray Moon. I don’t follow the Palace’s patterns. I create them."

BOOM!

Situ Li’s aura exploded.

Unlike the vibrant, toxic Emerald Qi of Qing Lian, his power was a dull, suffocating gray. It was a thick mist that didn’t just obscure vision—it seemed to sap the light and life out of everything it touched.

The twin circular blades at his waist detached, hovering in the air with a high-pitched, screaming whine.

"Let’s see how that mortal Art holds up against a Disciple of the Gray Moon," Situ Li hissed.

Seana’s hand tightened around her sword. The crimson glow along its blade flickered weakly.

Her breathing was uneven. Her body still remembered the brutal battle against the corrupted Jules. The physical wounds had closed, but her Qi had not recovered. Her meridians felt parched, like dry riverbeds. Every circulation of Crimson Blood Qi through her body felt heavier than the last.

Yet, she didn’t retreat an inch.

Situ Li’s oily gray Qi seeped from his body, crawling across the floor like sentient smoke. Wherever it touched the stone, the surface darkened and turned brittle.

Seana narrowed her eyes. That Qi...

It felt remarkably similar to the energy of the being inhabiting Jules. It wasn’t merely violent; it was fundamentally evil. It carried a corrupting nature that made her skin crawl.

Situ Li smiled faintly. "You’re injured."

Seana said nothing.

"Your breathing is unstable. Your Qi circulation is sluggish." His fingers moved in a sudden, sharp gesture.

SHING!

The Silver Moon Circular Blade flew from his hand, spinning so fast it became a blur of gray light.

Seana immediately raised her sword.

CLANG!

The circular blade collided with the Blood Moon Sword. The impact was heavy, forcing Seana’s arm downward. Before she could recover—

SHING!

The blade suddenly detached. The circular weapon split into two smaller, razor-sharp crescent blades.

One flew around her left side. The other curved toward her back in a lethal pincer move.

Seana’s eyes sharpened.

She twisted her waist, bending her body at an impossible angle.

WHOOSH!

The first blade passed inches from her face. She spun on her heel, her silk robes fluttering.

CLANG!

Her sword deflected the second blade. But the moment the metal was knocked away, Situ Li’s hand clenched.

The two detached blades changed direction mid-air. They curved back through the darkness like twin moons returning to their orbit.

Seana’s pupils contracted. "Annoying."

She stepped forward, forcing her meridians to roar. Her crimson Qi erupted in a violent burst.

[Crimson Blood Sovereign Art — First Form: Crimson Lotus Burial!]

BOOM!

Crimson sword light exploded from her blade. The shockwave knocked the two Silver Moon Blades backward.

But Situ Li didn’t retreat. His oily gray Qi surged, wrapping around the weapons. The sinister energy made the blades accelerate to twice their previous speed.

SHING! SHING! SHING!

One blade came from above. Another from below. They crossed paths in a chaotic "X" pattern.

Seana blocked the first with a sharp upward strike.

The second slipped through her guard.

SLASH!

A thin, stinging cut opened across her shoulder. Blood began to flow, staining her crimson robes a darker shade.

Seana stepped backward, her boots skidding on the stone. Her breathing was becoming labored.

Situ Li watched her silently, his expression pitying. "You’re running out of Qi, mortal."

Seana wiped the blood from her shoulder, her face remaining a mask of cold resolve. "I know."

The Silver Moon Blades floated back to Situ Li’s side. The oily gray Qi around them thickened, smelling of stagnant water and old graves.

"Then why are you still standing?"

Seana slowly raised her sword, the tip pointing straight at his heart. "Because... I’m not finished."

Situ Li’s eyes narrowed. His fingers moved in a complex sequence. The two circular blades detached and split again.

Four silver crescent blades.

Each one was surrounded by that suffocating gray mist. Situ Li flicked his wrist.

SHING!

The four blades disappeared into the shadows.

Seana’s instincts screamed. She didn’t wait to see them; she moved.

WHOOSH!

A blade whistled through the space where her head had been a microsecond before. Another sliced across her waist as she twisted away.

CLANG!

Her Blood Moon Sword blocked a third. But the fourth blade came from her blind spot—directly behind her.

Seana turned, but her tired body was too slow.

SLASH!

Blood sprayed from her back. She stumbled, a sharp gasp escaping her lips. Her knee almost touched the cold stone floor.

Situ Li appeared before her in a blur of gray. His palm struck forward.

BOOM!

Oily gray Qi erupted like a geyser. Seana raised her sword horizontally to block.

CRACK!

The force sent her sliding backward, her boots carving two deep lines into the basalt floor.

She breathed heavily, her vision beginning to blur at the edges. Her body was reaching its absolute limit. The battle against Jules had drained her, and Situ Li was methodically dismantling what was left.

Her Crimson Blood Qi circulated, but the flow was shallow. Her meridians were nearly empty. Her muscles screamed for rest.

Seana clenched her teeth until they bled. Not yet.

She remembered Lothe.

She remembered his calm expression, his lazy, confident smile. She still needed to find that "little fox" and ensure he wasn’t overreaching again.

Her grip on the hilt tightened. "I won’t fall here."

Situ Li raised his hand. The four Silver Moon Blades hovered behind him like a halo of death. "Then prove it."

His fingers snapped.

SHING!

All four blades shot forward simultaneously.

Seana moved.

One step. Two. Three.

Her footwork became increasingly precise, guided by desperation. She stopped fighting the blades directly. Instead, she began to read the trajectories and sense the subtle fluctuations in Situ Li’s Qi.

Her sword moved in a fluid, circular motion.

CLANG!

One blade was deflected into a pillar. She ducked.

WHOOSH!

Another passed above her head. She rotated her body like a dancer.

CLANG!

The third was blocked. The fourth curved toward her chest, but Seana’s sword moved upward with a sudden, flicking motion.

BOOM!

The blade was knocked away.

Situ Li’s eyes suddenly sharpened. He closed his fist, and the four blades merged back together in mid-air. The massive Silver Moon Circular Blade appeared directly above Seana’s head.

It descended with the weight of a falling star.

BOOOOOOM!

Seana crossed her sword before her body. The impact was astronomical, shattering the stone beneath her feet into a crater of dust.

CRACK!

Her knees bent under the pressure. Her meridians trembled.

But then, deep within her soul, something snapped. Her cultivation bottleneck... cracked.

A faint, haunting crimson light appeared within her eyes.

Situ Li noticed the change. "What?"

Seana’s Crimson Blood Qi suddenly surged, not from her meridians, but from the very marrow of her bones.

BOOM!

A wave of crimson energy exploded from her body, pushing the gray mist back. Her cultivation began to climb. Her meridians expanded, widening to accommodate the new, refined flow.

Situ Li’s smile disappeared. "You’re breaking through? In the middle of a fight?!"

Seana slowly lifted her head.

A familiar sound echoed inside her mind as translucent crimson text flashed across her vision:

[PING!]

[BREAKTHROUGH DETECTED.]

[Cultivation Realm Advancement Confirmed.]

[Level 5 — Tier 3: Foundation Establishment — Peak Stage]

[Crimson Blood Qi has undergone qualitative refinement.]

[Crimson Blood Cycle efficiency increased.]

Seana’s fingers tightened around the hilt. The System flashed again.

[New Technique Detected.]

[Technique Recorded: Crimson Blood Sovereign Art — Second Form: Crimson Moon.]

[Technique successfully integrated.]

[EXP Gained: +400]

Seana’s Qi erupted with the force of an awakened volcano.

BOOOOOOM!

The entire corridor trembled. Her wounds were still there, and her exhaustion hadn’t vanished, but her Qi had transformed. Her strength had risen to an entirely different dimension.

Behind her, a massive, translucent crimson moon slowly formed, bathing the gray corridor in the color of fresh blood.

Situ Li stared at the celestial manifestation, his pale face finally showing a trace of sweat. "What technique is that?"

Seana raised her sword.

The crimson moon behind her began to rotate, glowing with a terrifying, divine light.

"You wanted to see my head, Situ Li," Seana whispered. Her voice carried a new, echoing authority.

"Now... try to take it."

BOOOOOOOOOOM!

A massive arc of crimson sword light swept through the corridor as she swung.

The four Silver Moon Blades collided with the strike.

KRRRRRACK!

The oily gray Qi was torn apart like wet paper. The blades were thrown backward, spinning wildly out of control.

Situ Li’s expression changed. He crossed his arms, summoning every drop of his Gray Moon Qi to form a shield.

BOOM!

The crimson sword light slammed into him. The impact forced him backward.

One step. Two. Three.

His boots dug deep trenches into the solid stone. The Silver Moon Circular Blades trembled violently before returning to his hands, their gray light dimmed.

Situ Li slowly looked up. For the first time, his expression was grave.

Seana stood at the opposite end of the corridor. The Blood Moon Sword rested at her side, and the crimson moon continued to pulse behind her, illuminating her striking, determined face.

Situ Li stared at her. "Foundation Establishment... Peak Stage."

His oily gray Qi thickened, his killing intent turning cold and focused. "A remarkable breakthrough. But a child with a bigger sword is still just a child."

Seana’s crimson eyes locked onto him.

"Come and see."

The crimson moon behind her pulsed.

BOOM!

The battle resumed, and this time, the gray mist was the one retreating.​