"Qi Yuan Slash"
Without resorting to explosive techniques, Uchiha Kiyo executed the Qi Yuan Slash with minimal movement. The technique, though powerful, was subtle in its delivery, making it almost undetectable.
Moreover, Uchiha Kiyo did not rely on his sand-based abilities.
The Qi Yuan slash cleaved through the battlefield, scattering the bodies of several ninja and banishing the souls of An Lushan's forces.
"Damn, how can such a powerful ninja have come from the Dragon Vessel? I've never heard of any ninja this strong in that time and space," Uchiha Kiyo muttered, unable to comprehend the strength of the enemy.
Originally, Uchiha Kiyo had planned to work with An Lushan to solve the problem, but as soon as An Lushan witnessed Uchiha Kiyo's display of power, he fled. After executing his jutsu, he vanished from the field, leaving Uchiha Kiyo unable to track him.
"Huh? Is he using Dragon Vein chakra? Can he manipulate the Dragon Vein chakra already?" Uchiha Kiyo wondered aloud, his frown deepening. He searched for any sign of An Lushan but only felt a strange yet familiar chakra nearby.
That chakra was unmistakably the Dragon Vein Chakra.
"The Dragon Vein chakra has space-time properties, so it's not impossible for him to escape this way."
After failing to locate An Lushan, Uchiha Kiyo refused to waste any more time. He pressed forward, moving deeper into the direction where An Lushan and his group had previously traveled.
"Damn, who was that just now? Such powerful strength... Why have I never heard of him?" An Lushan raged as he escaped. His voice was laced with frustration as he thought back to Uchiha Kiyo's abilities.
He knew Uchiha Kiyo was also from the Dragon Vessel, and clearly, the man was deeply interested in the Dragon Veins.
"No, I mustn't let him get his hands on the Dragon Vein."
An Lushan had long planned for the Dragon Veins, and the thought of anyone else beating him to it sent him into a fury.
With a determined look in his eyes, An Lushan clenched his teeth and made a vow: "If anyone dares to steal my Dragon Veins, they will pay the price!"
Unbeknownst to Uchiha Kiyo, An Lushan quietly returned to the core of the Dragon Vein.
Uchiha Kiyo had no idea that the man he nearly killed had returned with one objective in mind: himself.
While Uchiha Kiyo might have expected An Lushan to return with reinforcements, the man had returned alone, something Uchiha Kiyo had not anticipated. The real reason for his return, however, was something Kiyo couldn't yet fathom.
"Something feels off here," Uchiha Kiyo muttered as he ventured deeper. The closer he got, the more he could sense the time-space attributes of the surrounding energy.
"The time-space attributes seem similar to space chakra... But why does it feel like a twisted form of space chakra?"
The more he focused on this, the more Uchiha Kiyo felt his suspicion grow. Was it really possible to control the time attribute in the ninja world?
"Does the time attribute really exist? And if one could master it... could they actually travel through time?"
His thoughts were interrupted by a sudden shift in chakra.
"What is this?"
Uchiha Kiyo suddenly felt his chakra network contract. The chakra pulse that An Lushan emitted was unmistakable, and it was clear he had returned to the core of the Dragon Vein.
Uchiha Kiyo's expression shifted. "Why did he come back? Doesn't he know what's at stake?"
At that moment, An Lushan appeared, his face twisted in a savage expression, far from the dignified minister of Loulan that Uchiha Kiyo had previously encountered.
"The Dragon Veins are mine! Those who covet them will die!" An Lushan screamed as he made a series of hand signs.
The core of the Dragon Vein trembled, the chakra becoming more volatile. Uchiha Kiyo could sense the shift, but An Lushan's control over the chakra was limited. He may not have mastered it fully, but he was still able to disturb its natural flow.
In the blink of an eye, An Lushan wrapped himself in the chakra he had manipulated. But something strange happened: his body went limp, and his movements became unnaturally stiff, as though his soul had temporarily vacated his body. It was like he had transformed into a lifeless puppet.
An Lushan's soul was temporarily sealed within his body, leaving behind only his puppet-like shell. But wrapped in the Dragon Vein chakra, he seemed to have fused himself with it, intent on self-destruction if necessary.
Uchiha Kiyo watched in confusion as the entire scene unfolded before him. His mind raced, trying to understand what was happening.
"Is he attempting to travel through time?" Uchiha Kiyo thought. His suspicion was that An Lushan intended to use the Dragon Vein chakra to manipulate time and space. But the process was inherently dangerous.
Uchiha Kiyo could feel the time-space energy surging around him, pulling him in every direction.
"I can feel it. This is a time-space disturbance. What are you trying to do, An Lushan?"
An Lushan's plan was far more complicated than simply manipulating space. The chakra was not just rioting; it was awakening, activating the dormant time-space attributes hidden within the Dragon Vein.
Suddenly, Uchiha Kiyo felt himself surrounded by shifting images, as though the very world around him was breaking apart and reforming in strange, unpredictable ways.
"I'm about to cross time... but where?" Uchiha Kiyo thought to himself. The more the scene changed, the less he could sense any stable point of reference.
Before Uchiha Kiyo could make sense of it, the environment around him began to distort again. He gritted his teeth, forming seals with precision, using his mastery of space perception to try and control his next steps.
"Damn it! I can barely keep up with this..."
Uchiha Kiyo reacted swiftly, his body flashing in and out of existence as he used his Instant Body Technique to evade the chaotic distortion of space.
But the spatial distortion only worsened. What should have been a brief escape felt like it had cost him hours of energy.
"This is crossing the timeline... and the space is completely unstable," Uchiha Kiyo realized as he found himself locked in a battle against the very nature of time and space.
He used his body replacement techniques repeatedly, each one a desperate attempt to stay safe as the space around him threatened to collapse at any moment.
"Crossing is too dangerous..." Uchiha Kiyo reflected as his chakra reserves began to deplete, yet the time-space disturbances persisted.
Even though he had escaped certain death, Uchiha Kiyo knew he could not afford to make another mistake.
In the midst of the chaos, he couldn't help but think of those who had traveled through time before. "How did Naruto manage it? His abilities must be incredibly unique..." he thought, still reflecting on how different his journey was from the hero's.
But there was no time for idle thoughts.
"Time travel... truly, it's fraught with danger," Uchiha Kiyo muttered to himself as he continued to fight against the destabilizing space.
"I will make it out of this alive... but there are so many questions left unanswered."
At that moment, his thoughts shifted. An Lushan's experiment had failed, but there was something deeper that Uchiha Kiyo had yet to understand.
"Could the Dragon Vein truly allow someone to control time? Or is this just another myth?"