A Troubled Breakthrough

Since then, the strange sound transmissions had made him upset and uneasy.

Finally tortured to the point of being at his wit’s end, Lin Xingjian had to temporarily turn on [Do Not Disturb].

His ears finally found some peace, and his taut nerves began to ease.

“Utterly preposterous, truly absurd!”

“Could this Bai Qingxue have gone mad?”

“Disturbing me daily with voice transmissions, as a senior sister of the Sword Dao Sect, does she truly have nothing better to do all day? Has she even forsaken her sword practice?”

He found it genuinely difficult to comprehend why Bai Qingxue was so persistently harassing him.

He had merely shared a year or so of sparring memories with her.

‘Could it be that Bai Qingxue had genuinely fallen for him?’

Sometimes, in the dead of night, when all was silent, a secret voice transmission would explode in his ear like a sudden clap of thunder, without the slightest warning, scaring him out of his wits and shattering all his pleasant dreams.

‘Revenge, it must be revenge!’

On the third day after he activated the shielding method, Lin Xingjian finally found some semblance of peace.

The morning sunlight filtered through the dappled leaves, scattering across the somewhat dilapidated courtyard of the Shadow Sect.

Lin Xingjian stepped out of his room with heavy footsteps, just as he encountered Junior Sister Li Xingtong.

Lin Xingjian’s face was pale, his dark circles so pronounced it looked as if he had been punched, and his entire being appeared utterly haggard.

“Senior Brother, why are your dark circles so heavy? Have you not been sleeping well these past few days?”

“Don’t even mention it, Junior Sister.”

Lin Xingjian yawned widely, his face etched with exhaustion, as if all his strength for speaking had been drained away.

“These past two days, some lunatic has been harassing me daily with secret voice transmissions, waking me up multiple times in the middle of the night. How could a Senior Brother possibly sleep soundly?”

Lin Xingjian was in the late Qi Condensation stage, barely different from a mortal.

Not only did he need to eat, but he also required sleep.

The most significant difference from mortals was merely an increased lifespan, guaranteeing him at least a hundred years.

“Who is it, Senior Brother?”

“Just block them. If that doesn’t work, I, your Junior Sister, will help you vent this anger! How dare someone bully my Senior Brother?”

As Li Xingtong spoke, she rolled up her sleeves, rubbing her fists together, looking eager to avenge her Senior Brother.

Seeing this, Lin Xingjian quickly stopped her.

He knew well that this girl could indeed handle ordinary people with ease.

But the one they had to face this time was no ordinary person.

Bai Qingxue, the renowned Sword Heart Enlightened individual of the Sword Dao Sect.

A once-in-ten-thousand-years prodigy.

Under the meticulous cultivation of the Sword Dao Sect, her progress was astonishingly rapid.

Her sword techniques were divine, and should she ever enter the Golden Core stage and officially become a high-level cultivator, she would likely become the future Sword Master of the Sword Dao Sect.

‘It would be best to avoid provoking such a figure.’

Moreover, Lin Xingjian was the one at fault in this matter to begin with.

He had inexplicably won against her using a dirty trick, only to then vanish, disappearing without a trace.

“It’s fine, Junior Sister, she’s merely someone with a narrow mind.”

“Perhaps she’ll give up after some time. I, your Senior Brother, have already handled it properly.”

The Shadow Sect was already in decline and truly couldn’t withstand any more storms or troubles.

Recalling the past, Lin Xingjian and Junior Sister Li Xingtong had secretly snuck out to play while their Master was away.

Extremely bold, the two of them had ventured directly into the mortal world between the sects.

The streets were bustling with carriages and horses, people coming and going, their cries and laughter interwoven.

Stalls of all kinds lined both sides of the street.

In that prosperous and lively mortal realm, they had sampled all sorts of delicacies.

But who could have foreseen that Lin Xingjian, in a moment of carelessness, would bump into a young master from a prominent family?

The young master was clad in luxurious brocade robes, wearing a gem-encrusted crown, and accompanied by a retinue of formidable guards.

Seeing Lin Xingjian’s simple attire, he deliberately made things difficult.

At that time, they were both still young and inexperienced.

Lin Xingjian, thinking it better to avoid trouble, honestly apologized, hoping the other party would forgive him.

Little did he know, the young master showed no appreciation, instead demanding compensation from Lin Xingjian and requiring him to kowtow in apology.

The Junior Sister, watching her Senior Brother being bullied from the side, could no longer bear it and immediately started a fight in the street.

Don’t be fooled by her usual gentle demeanor and adorable, plump cheeks; once she started fighting, she was absolutely relentless.

She struck without restraint, every move aimed at inflicting serious harm.

As a result, the young master and his entourage of cronies were beaten senseless by the Junior Sister.

Their faces were a mosaic of bruises, swollen like pigs’ heads, their front teeth knocked out, leaving their mouths gaping empty.

In the end, it was Lin Xingjian who quickly pulled his Junior Sister back, otherwise, a life might well have been lost.

He still remembered his Junior Sister’s incredibly bold declaration at the time.

“You want to bully my Senior Brother? Did you ask me first? If you bully my Senior Brother again, I’ll beat you into a three-sided fold!”

Her voice was clear and resonant, echoing through the street for a long time.

Later, this incident became known to the nearby sects.

The young master, being powerful and influential, naturally sought revenge on the Junior Sister.

Fortunately, as soon as their Master intervened, the matter quickly settled.

The Shadow Sect had always been a branch of the Xuantian Dao Sect, so how could mere mortals protected by the Xuantian Dao Sect be their match?

The matter was thus dropped.

However, both of them also received severe punishment from Yao Guang.

Lin Xingjian was harshly punished by Master Yao Guang with three days of cultivation, not allowed a single moment of rest.

In that cramped cultivation room, he continuously circulated spiritual energy, practicing various cultivation techniques over and over again.

Sweat drenched his clothes, only to be evaporated by spiritual energy, leaving behind streaks of white perspiration.

Surprisingly, the Junior Sister, who had actually done the fighting, received a much lighter punishment: merely being made to go hungry for a day.

Lin Xingjian felt particularly resentful.

He hadn’t done anything, so why was he punished so severely instead?

Later, as he lay on the ground, panting from exhaustion, his Master told him.

He was the Senior Brother, and it was his duty to protect his Junior Sister.

His Junior Sister’s actions were correct.

‘An evil person will always be dealt with by another evil person’ (TL Note: A Chinese idiom meaning that bad people will eventually meet their match or suffer consequences, often implying a form of karmic justice). Since no one else was willing to be that ‘evil person,’ it was his turn to be one.

For that was what the Shadow Sect was meant to do.

From then on, Lin Xingjian underwent a significant transformation.

When it was time to act, he no longer hesitated.

Most of the time, he was even willing to become the ‘evil person’ for the sake of his Junior Sister.

His eyes now held a newfound resolve and sense of responsibility, no longer those of the indecisive youth he once was.

“Junior Sister, the time has come.”

Lin Xingjian took out a medicinal pill and said with a resolute expression.

“I, your Senior Brother, will establish my foundation first. Once I’ve completed my Foundation Establishment, it will be your turn.”

These past two days, his and Li Xingtong’s cultivation had progressed smoothly, coincidentally reaching a breakthrough bottleneck.

The difference between the Qi Condensation stage and the Foundation Establishment stage was indeed significant.

The Qi Condensation stage was essentially still a mortal phase, whereas the Foundation Establishment stage already showed a slight resemblance to a true cultivator.

For mortals to enter the Qi Condensation stage, it wasn’t exceedingly difficult.

As long as they possessed a spirit root, talent, weren’t dull-witted, and had a cultivation manual, any mortal had the chance to step into the Qi Condensation stage.

It was merely a matter of time.

It took Lin Xingjian and Li Xingtong less than a year to enter the Qi Condensation stage.

To become Shadow Sect cultivators, they first needed several years of assassination training, which resulted in their cultivation realm being lower than that of ordinary cultivators.

In the eyes of ordinary cultivators, one’s realm was generally the fundamental basis for gauging strength.

Shadow Sect cultivators, however, were different.

As long as the situation was entirely within their control, they could effortlessly kill a Foundation Establishment cultivator without leaving the slightest trace.

Cultivation was a momentous undertaking; a solid foundation was crucial, and gradual progress was equally indispensable.

Shadow Sect cultivators had pushed these two points almost to their extreme.

They received rigorous training from a young age.

Whether it was physical fitness or spiritual energy manipulation, both had undergone countless trials.

Therefore, every time a Shadow Sect cultivator entered a new realm, they could almost become an invincible presence within that same realm.

Only they themselves knew how much hardship they had endured behind this achievement.

It was said that the Shadow Sect’s criteria for selecting cultivators were once extremely stringent.

Many people had even chosen to give up and leave before they were even qualified to enter the Qi Condensation stage.

The selection process was filled with challenges and trials; only the most resilient and talented individuals could remain.

Lin Xingjian and Li Xingtong were unaware.

Even though the Shadow Sect was now in decline, Yao Guang, as the Sect Master, had not lowered her demands for disciples’ aptitudes in the slightest.

Li Xingtong and Lin Xingjian, whether cultivating the Shadow Dao or the Sword Dao, would be among the most outstanding of their generation.

It was only regrettable that Yao Guang’s methods were far from subtle, giving people the mistaken impression that anyone could be lured into the sect.

Lin Xingjian calmed his mind, preparing to begin his Foundation Establishment.

He went to the serene back mountain of the Shadow Sect.

Here, lush trees provided shade all around, flowers and plants flourished, and the air was filled with refreshing spiritual energy.

He found a flat patch of grass, slowly sat down, crossed his legs, and placed his hands on his knees.

He took a deep breath, slowly closed his eyes, and began to mobilize the spiritual energy within his body.

Lin Xingjian gradually entered the Foundation Establishment state.

His body trembled slightly, and the spiritual energy within him surged and churned through his meridians like raging waves.

Suddenly, he felt a powerful force erupting from deep within him, attempting to burst through his body.

This force seemed uncontrollable, causing him a degree of panic.

In the courtyard of a certain Gu Dao Sect (TL Note: A sect specializing in Gu worms), an unfortunate man was suffering the agony of ‘ten thousand arrows piercing his heart’ (TL Note: An idiom describing extreme, excruciating pain).

The Gu worm he had swallowed was mercilessly tearing and gnawing at his internal organs, making his life a living hell.

“Ah, stop biting, stop biting.”

“Miss Yu, help me!”

The man lay writhing in agony on the ground, while inside the room, Yu Linglong stared coldly out the window, her expression remaining largely unchanged.

“You are not Gege, you are not carrying our child.”

“I want the real Gege… Gege’s organs, inside his belly… are carrying my newly born child. It is very important, and Gege is also very important.”

Yu Linglong’s gaze was as cold as ice.

Meanwhile, in the Shadow Sect’s courtyard, Li Xingtong was idly fiddling with the hidden weapons in her hand.

A sense of unease suddenly welled up within her heart.

‘Senior Brother, will he be able to establish his foundation successfully?’