Chapter 237 - 234: Aesthetics

Chapter 237: Chapter 234: Aesthetics

Crossing over the snowy mountains, they entered the territory of the Yu Xiao Demon Sect. This place was north of True Demon Mountain, the opposite direction from Fuyuan Temple, where they had run into trouble before.

Chen Qingyang had no plans to seek more trouble with the Demon Sect for now. He would wait until they were about to leave and see if any opportunities arose.

The Demon Sect’s reaction had been more ferocious than he had imagined. They might have already extended their search to the south of True Demon Mountain, so it was best to be careful.

They found a town and rested for a day, washing up and bathing. They were now sitting in a tavern, drinking tea.

"Senior Brother Chen, if you just keep heading north from here, you’ll be able to return home. So... why don’t we..."

She brought the teacup to her full, red lips but hesitated to drink, her hand wavering. A hint of clarity shone in her eyes, and a sliver of light from outside cast a soft glow upon her fair face.

"...why don’t we part ways here? I can head east from here, back to Duling City... and in the future... we’ll have a chance to see each other again." The words came out sounding like a question. With a fate as turbulent as hers, she truly didn’t know if such a chance would ever come.

Chen Qingyang smiled as he watched her. "No. I came out on this journey for experience, and I won’t rest until I’ve reached Duling City."

Lin Qingxuan’s lovely eyes darted about. She stole a glance at him, only to meet his resolute gaze, and she grew flustered. "But... Senior Brother, you’re from a Daoist Sect. I’m afraid..."

Seeing her expression, Chen Qingyang let out a knowing laugh. "You’re not a very good liar. At least, not in front of me."

Hearing him say that, Lin Qingxuan released a breath she’d been holding and suddenly relaxed. "Sigh... I won’t hide it from you, Senior Brother. I’m truly in no rush to return. I have something else to attend to!"

"And what’s that?"

Lin Qingxuan replied, "I have to kill someone."

Chen Qingyang’s immediate reaction was, "Do you know where he is? I can kill him for you."

’Helping her was secondary; what mattered was that he was still short on Immortal Seedlings—very short.’

"There’s no need. His cultivation is far inferior to mine. I can go by myself."

"Sigh!" Chen Qingyang let out a breath, a look of exasperation on his face. "Junior Sister Lin, I’ve been completely honest with you, and this is how you repay me? By lying? Whether or not this can be done, or whether or not we should even do it—let’s set that aside for a moment. You should have told me first so we could discuss it!"

"I..." His words seemed to strike a chord with Lin Qingxuan. She fell silent for a moment. "Senior Brother, the only reason my cultivation has improved so quickly is because I seize every opportunity. This one is incredibly rare. If I miss it, it will jeopardize all my subsequent plans."

Chen Qingyang was incredibly astute; he quickly read between the lines. "Are you saying... the person you want to kill is one of your fellow disciples?"

Lin Qingxuan looked slightly surprised. "Yes... one of my senior brothers."

"You have the Xuanji now. All that’s left is the Sixth Acupoint, Dongming. You’re not planning to use this momentum to push your cultivation up to the next level, are you?"

Gazing at Chen Qingyang, Lin Qingxuan suddenly broke into a clear, gentle smile.

It was clear and gentle.

Her faint dimples were, naturally, a wonderful sight.

"I really can’t hide anything from you, Senior Brother. But this matter is extremely risky. I will find a secluded spot to first break through to the Fifth Realm. By borrowing the power of the Star-Attracting Wheel, I will be able to reach the peak of the Fifth Realm almost immediately upon entry. Then, as the weaker party, I will defeat my stronger opponent and find a way to obtain the Artifact of Dongming."

"Once I enter the Sixth Realm, I will be the number one disciple under our master. Even if he knows what I’ve done, he’ll have no choice but to focus all his resources on training me. This is all part of my plan."

’Formidable. Truly formidable.’

’So formidable it was beyond belief!’

’Chen Qingyang reflected that even with Stealing Immortal in his possession, all he did was scramble about day after day, using every trick in the book, clawing his way up just to barely touch the edge of the Sixth Realm.’

’And yet, in such a short amount of time, she was able to break through one realm after another.’

Previously, Chen Qingyang had seen her with her outer robes removed, her upper body bare.

She had an Inscriptionless Jade Stele at her Earth Root Acupoint and had refined the Exquisite Pagoda at her Mingtang Hall. He didn’t know what she had at her Jiang Palace and Spirit Platform, but he assumed they were treasures as well. Adding the Xuanji Star-Attracting Wheel to the list, she was practically a walking armory of Magical Treasures—incredibly powerful.

’A Fifth Realm cultivator fighting someone in the Sixth Realm... with a few special circumstances thrown in, she might actually pull it off.’

"But advancing so rapidly... aren’t you afraid of succumbing to cultivation deviation?"

Controlling Magical Artifacts relied entirely on the Power of the Divine Soul, and this was especially true for Armor-type treasures. Without a sufficiently powerful Divine Soul, a cultivator would surely go insane. The various artifacts would clash with one another, and they might even meet a violent end.

Thus, Chen Qingyang’s question was born of genuine concern.

Lin Qingxuan replied, "Senior Brother, you don’t need to worry. I wouldn’t be doing this if I wasn’t confident. The only thing I’m missing now is an Armor-Protecting Treasure."

’The Profound Nether Storage Body is truly wondrous,’ Chen Qingyang thought with a sigh. He himself had only managed to cultivate his Divine Soul to its current level through the Great Soul Scripture.

"So if we team up, what do you think our chances are of killing him?"

When Lin Qingxuan just stared at him, Chen Qingyang added, "Don’t make me repeat myself. Let’s just get straight to planning our strategy."

Her senior brother was being domineering, so the junior sister stopped arguing. "That person is also one of my master’s disciples, a senior brother from my own branch of the sect. He originally had a Half-Step Foundation Establishment cultivation. But when he tried to break through to the Master realm, his Divine Soul wasn’t strong enough, which caused the Magical Artifacts embedded in his body to attack one another. He nearly died a violent death."

"It was only because our master acted decisively and removed the Magical Artifacts from three of his acupoints that his life was saved. But his damaged Divine Soul has never fully recovered, and his cultivation has been steadily declining. He’s now barely clinging to the Sixth Realm, which is why I dare to make a move on him."

"He normally never leaves the Sect, so I could never find an opportunity. But this time, his family suffered a catastrophe—they were completely wiped out—so he was forced to leave. I know this chance is rare. If I miss it, I have no idea when another will come. That’s why I’m willing to take this risk."

Chen Qingyang had observed Lin Qingxuan closely. Her own strength was likely no less than that of Senior Brother Tong. Last time, if the Demon Sect hadn’t meddled, she would have certainly succeeded in her scheme against her Half-Step Foundation Establishment senior brother. For her to make this new judgment call now meant that her current endeavor was very likely to succeed.

"I’ll help you. It will be a good chance for me to temper my Sword Dao."

Lin Qingxuan knew she couldn’t dissuade him, so she could only nod. "Let me break through first. Afterward, I should be able to fight him to a standstill. I’ll ask Senior Brother to watch from the sidelines and provide support if needed."

’She wasn’t treating him as a main combatant, just asking him to observe. This alone was enough to prove the power of the Star-Attracting Wheel; otherwise, where would she get such confidence?’

"Alright."

After resting for another day, the two traveled north under Lin Qingxuan’s guidance.

They traveled until they had almost left the heart of the Demon Sect’s territory and were approaching the Cyan Nether Riverbank. There, in the depths of an ancient forest, Lin Qingxuan prepared to draw on the Power of the Stars for her breakthrough. Chen Qingyang sat a short distance away, acting as her Guardian.

On a grassy patch of green, Lin Qingxuan cast a gentle look his way. She always took on this soft demeanor when she was with him. "Senior Brother, I’m about to begin."

For some reason, Chen Qingyang detected a hint of coyness in her tone. Not understanding its source, he could only say, "Okay. I’ll be waiting. If you run short on Spirit Stones, I have plenty!"

Lin Qingxuan said nothing more. She simply placed a hand at her collar. Her dress slid down like silk, followed by her undergarments. And just like that, facing Chen Qingyang, she stood completely bare.

Her skin was like jade, her figure exquisite. She was curved where she should be curved and full where she should be full. He hadn’t expected such a magnificent world to be hidden beneath her petite frame.

Small pieces of White Jade covered the upper half of her chest, leaving her two jade-like mounds exposed. The pattern extended up and behind her neck, resembling silver feathers.

Down the center of her chest, one below the other, were two embedded Magical Treasures. They looked like intricately carved tattoos, clinging tightly to her skin.

Further down, black patterns spread out from the center point above her legs, expanding outward like a pair of wings. This center was her Earth Root Acupoint.

It was an image of extreme beauty, yet it wasn’t strange or out of place. Instead, a sense of harmony emanated from her body. Chen Qingyang had seen it before, but never this clearly.

Perhaps from sheer bashfulness, Lin Qingxuan didn’t dare to look at him, focusing all her attention on the Xuanji Star-Attracting Wheel in her hands. Chen Qingyang, however, stared intently, studying the patterns on her body in great detail.

He was no callow youth; he was a mature man. If he wanted to look, he would look. If he didn’t, he would turn his head. He wasn’t the type to be caught in a state of wanting to look but not daring to.

For the moment, he was simply curious about this Dharma Gate.

"...Mm." She must have felt his gaze. Her lips parted as if to speak, but she said nothing, seemingly resigning herself to his scrutiny.

The vault of the heavens was a deep blue, dotted with countless stars.

The moonlight tonight was beautiful, draping Lin Qingxuan’s lovely body in a veil of white gauze. Her expression grew solemn. With both hands, she slowly pushed out her True Essence. The Star-Attracting Wheel began to spin in her grasp, its internal mechanisms whirring to life and scattering a brilliant, intense starlight.

At that moment, the heavens themselves seemed to respond, pouring streams of Starlight down upon the Star-Attracting Wheel. The light grew increasingly intense.

A wind seemed to pick up. A powerful force began to swirl, with Lin Qingxuan at its very center.

The surrounding grass and trees rustled violently. Just the sliver of True Essence overflowing from her breakthrough was enough to cause such a commotion. The power was beyond Chen Qingyang’s imagination.

After a long period of brewing, a faint halo of light began to radiate from her naked body. Perhaps sensing the time was right, she changed her hand Technique, turned to face Chen Qingyang, and sat down cross-legged.

The Star-Attracting Wheel settled over her lower abdomen. Then, shrouded in the fierce starlight, it began to embed itself into her flesh.

The wind howled with increasing fury, and the surrounding Star Power grew even more potent. After this continued for the better part of the night, the roar of the wind finally began to subside.

He realized that all the power was now funneling through her lower abdomen and into her Dantian.

"Nnngh... Mmm..."

Perhaps from a slight twinge of pain, Lin Qingxuan let out a series of soft, coquettish moans that were both charming and pleasant to the ear.

Without those sounds, Chen Qingyang might have been able to keep his focus on her Qi Mechanism. But with them, he found it difficult to calm his mind and had to turn his head away.

Gradually, the light dimmed, once again revealing her beautiful, naked form in perfect detail. Chen Qingyang had been contemplating this Dharma Gate for a long time. Seeing that the process wouldn’t be over any time soon, he settled down to meditate.

This went on for three full days and nights. Chen Qingyang was only roused when Lin Qingxuan finally returned to her senses.

Meeting Chen Qingyang’s subtle gaze, she flushed with embarrassment and hurriedly dressed. The surrounding starlight receded, and soon, only the young woman was left on the grassy clearing.