The Relentless Pursuit

“Alas!”

“Run, run, we must run now.”

A look of sheer panic seized Lin Xingjian’s eyes as he frantically glanced at Bai Qingxue, the woman he had so cunningly deceived.

Her tall, slender figure, framed by the hazy night, emanated an aura of chilling coldness that sent shivers down his spine.

When it came to his true feelings for Bai Qingxue, Lin Xingjian found it impossible to deny the underlying currents of aversion within him.

He vividly recalled the first time he had donned his disguise, an oppressive afternoon when the blazing sun beat down like an inferno.

Bai Qingxue had been clad in robes as pristine as freshly fallen snow, her dark hair gently swaying in the soft breeze.

Her graceful bearing was akin to a startled swan taking flight, her movements as fluid as a soaring dragon.

Yet, that aloof, imperious demeanor had instantly sparked a profound sense of defiance within Lin Xingjian.

At that moment, Bai Qingxue’s eyes had held nothing but contempt for the world around her.

When he had arrived to challenge her to a duel, her face had been etched with utter disdain, unequivocally declaring his challenge as utterly trivial.

Lin Xingjian, a practitioner of Shadow arts, had found himself utterly defenseless against Bai Qingxue’s sharp, relentless sword attacks.

What fueled his indignation even further was Bai Qingxue’s dismissive remark after his defeat, delivered with her arms crossed and a chilling tone.

“Such half-hearted swordsmanship,” she had scoffed, “even if you were to train for another century, you would never even glimpse my shadow. To presume you could withstand ten moves beneath my blade is truly the greatest absurdity.”

Though Lin Xingjian understood this humiliation was merely a byproduct of his mission, those words had pierced him to the core.

From that day forward, he had secluded himself within a dimly lit secret chamber.

There, he had practiced with a fervor akin to the ancient scholars, tying his hair to a beam and pricking his thigh with an awl to ward off slumber.

He trained tirelessly, day and night.

Beneath the flickering candlelight, only his silhouette, swinging his sword, and the unwavering resolve in his eyes were visible.

He swore to himself that he would one day defeat Bai Qingxue.

Reality, however, delivered a crushing blow to his aspirations.

Months of arduous effort had culminated in a brutal realization.

Surviving ten moves under Bai Qingxue’s blade was an insurmountable task, akin to scaling the heavens themselves.

To surpass her in swordsmanship mastery was an utterly fantastical notion.

Lin Xingjian had even dared to fantasize that the system would generously bestow upon him a powerful Shadow Sect swordsmanship technique, lending him the aid he desperately needed.

Ultimately, however, it had proven to be a futile endeavor, like drawing water with a bamboo basket.

Had he not resorted to unorthodox trickery and psychological warfare, he suspected he would still be helplessly struggling to survive ten moves under Bai Qingxue’s relentless assault.

Setting aside the mission, to claim Lin Xingjian harbored no dislike for Bai Qingxue would be an absolute act of self-deception.

As these thoughts coursed through his mind, the smile on Lin Xingjian’s face grew increasingly unrestrained, verging on maniacal.

As the distance between him and Bai Qingxue steadily widened, he gradually slowed his pace, attempting to melt into the shrouding darkness.

The surrounding night deepened further, becoming as thick and impenetrable as congealed ink.

“Mission accomplished, System. Grant me my reward, swiftly.”

Lin Xingjian had always made it a habit to claim his rewards from the system the moment a mission concluded.

Since the system’s rewards were always distributed randomly, each anticipation filled him with a thrill of eager expectation.

After all, what is life without hope?

[Reward has been issued!]

As the system’s notification flashed into existence, a sudden surge of joy swelled within Lin Xingjian’s chest.

This time, the system had not bestowed a mere level bonus, but an entirely new cultivation technique.

Lin Xingjian’s eyebrow arched in surprise, his eyes gleaming with an excited light.

“The technique is named… ‘Dark Concealment’?” he mused. “That’s certainly an odd name. Could it conceal some profound mystery?”

Just as he was about to delve into studying it, intending to then rejoin his junior sister, a sudden, bone-chilling sensation assailed him from behind.

He whipped his head around, the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end.

In the abyssal darkness of the night, a slowly approaching white speck caught his terrified gaze…

It was Bai Qingxue.

There could be no mistake; it was undeniably her!

The white speck drew nearer and nearer, resembling a wisp of spectral flame radiating an icy aura.

‘How could Bai Qingxue have caught up?’

‘Hadn’t she been held up by Li Tianliang?’

‘I should have long since made my escape. How did she manage this?’

Without sparing a moment for further thought, Lin Xingjian unhesitatingly accelerated his pace.

Dust billowed from beneath his feet as he employed his minor mastery of the Ghost Shadow Steps, each stride light and incredibly swift.

By all accounts, outrunning Foundation Establishment cultivators of a similar cultivation level should have been a simple feat for him.

Alas, Bai Qingxue was anything but an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator.

She was a prodigious talent of the Sword Dao, possessing a Sword Heart of perfect clarity, her mastery having ascended to an extraordinary realm.

“Where do you think you’re fleeing to!”

“Return to me at once! If you manage to escape this time, where am I ever to find you again?”

Bai Qingxue’s eyes were wide, her dark pupils reflecting nothing but Lin Xingjian’s retreating back, as if she wished to pin him to the spot with the sheer force of her gaze.

‘Damnation, utter damnation!’

To his horror, Lin Xingjian discovered that his Ghost Shadow Steps, even with his minor mastery, were utterly incapable of shaking off Bai Qingxue’s relentless pursuit.

The distance between them continued to shrink, and at this rate, he would inevitably be overtaken by Bai Qingxue.

As he fled, Lin Xingjian risked a glance back, scrutinizing Bai Qingxue’s footwork.

It was a Sword Dao footwork.

Combining both offense and defense, it exuded an undeniable aura of lethal intent.

He hadn’t anticipated that, in pursuit, it would prove to be in no way inferior to his Ghost Shadow Steps.

‘How could this be?’

The Ghost Shadow Steps were a genuine, peerless art of the Shadow Sect, encompassing concealment, assassination, and evasion.

Bai Qingxue’s Sword Dao footwork, however, was fundamentally geared towards decisive, lethal strikes. How could it possibly keep pace with the Ghost Shadow Steps?

‘Unless…’

A daring thought suddenly flared within Lin Xingjian’s mind.

While other Sword Dao cultivators would indeed be unable to match his Ghost Shadow Steps, Bai Qingxue was a different matter entirely.

This woman possessed a clear Sword Heart, and her comprehension of the Sword Dao had reached an extraordinary, profound state.

Only the heavens knew how much power her Sword Heart of perfect clarity amplified her sword footwork.

‘Damn it all, is this truly what it means to be a genius?’

Lin Xingjian grumbled inwardly, realizing that his most pressing concern was to escape Bai Qingxue’s relentless pursuit.

Despite employing every trick and technique in his arsenal, he was ultimately overtaken by Bai Qingxue.

A sharp blade was pressed directly against his throat, its icy touch instantly compelling him to halt his frantic flight.

The sword’s edge shimmered with a menacing, frigid gleam, appearing exceptionally piercing under the faint moonlight, as if it could cleave through his very soul.

“Finally… I have captured you.”

Bai Qingxue’s delicate brows were furrowed in a fierce scowl, her beautiful eyes brimming with a chilling menace, her voice like the frigid depths of a glacial pond, sharp and biting to the bone.

“Did you truly believe you could escape?”

“Hmph, a fool’s delusion!”

“Return with me, and we shall cultivate the Sword Dao together. From this moment forth, you are not permitted to stray even half a step from my side. Otherwise…”

Before her words could fully conclude, she gave a subtle flick of her delicate, jade-like wrist.

The longsword in her grip moved with the sinuous grace of a spirit snake flicking its tongue, lightly grazing Lin Xingjian’s neck.

A crimson line slowly emerged, and a trickle of rich, sanguine blood began to meander down his fair neck, a stark, vivid contrast against the ink-stained canvas of the night.