The silver bell's chime froze the blood in Jian Long's veins.
Elder Lian stepped onto the dueling platform with the lazy grace of a viper uncoiling. Her poisoned-jade eyes gleamed under the morning sun as she circled him, the hem of her violet robes whispering against stone still wet with Gao Shun's vomit.
"Tell me, cousin," she purred, the silver bell at her waist emitting a subsonic hum that made Jian Long's molars ache, "which Western Branch taught you to fight like that?"
Jian Long's grin felt brittle. "The School of Hard Knocks and Poor Life Choices."
[System Alert]
Elder Lian - Threat Assessment
• Cultivation: Foundation Establishment (Mid-Stage)
• Technique Specialization: Soulbrand Needles (Pain Amplification)
• Kill Intent: 37% and rising
• Recommended Survival Chance: Play dead → 12%
• Recommended Survival Chance: Run → 3%
• Recommended Survival Chance: Fight Dirty → 0.9%
Jian Long cracked his neck. "I like those odds."
The crowd of outer disciples had swollen to nearly three hundred, their murmurs forming a living wall of sound. At the forefront, Su Ling stood rigid, her fingers white-knuckled around her sword hilt. Their eyes met for a fleeting moment—long enough for Jian Long to catch the unspoken warning in her gaze.
Don't.
Elder Lian's chuckle slithered through the arena. "Shall we make this interesting? If you land a single blow, I'll grant you a personal recommendation to the inner sect." Her nails—each painted with what looked suspiciously like dried blood—tapped against her thigh. "If you lose..."
The silver bell chimed once.
"...you become my new test subject."
[Hidden Quest Unlocked: "Dance With the Viper"]
• Objective: Survive 3 minutes against Elder Lian
• Bonus: Land a telling blow (Reward: Yin-Yang Core Unseal +5%)
• Failure Penalty: Eternal torment as a soulbound puppet
Jian Long exhaled through his nose. The scent of plum blossoms and iron filled his lungs—Su Ling's qi, spiking with anxiety from the crowd's edge.
"System. Give me everything you've got on her meridians."
A translucent web of light superimposed over Elder Lian's form, revealing her qi pathways in pulsing crimson and gold. Unlike Gao Shun's overdeveloped channels, hers were... wrong. Twisted like brambles, with dark knots pulsing at every major acupoint.
[Analysis Complete]
Elder Lian's Condition:
• Soul Corruption: 89% (Self-inflicted through forbidden arts)
• Pain Receptors: Artificially enhanced x12 normal
• Critical Weakness: Left knee (Old injury never healed)
The bell chimed again.
Elder Lian struck.
There was no telegraphed movement, no gathering of qi—just agony as her fingernails grazed Jian Long's cheek, leaving four parallel burns that seared straight to the bone. He barely managed to roll away as her follow-up kick shattered the stone where his head had been.
"Fuck!" Blood dripped from his face onto the platform, sizzling where it touched the engraved runes.
"One minute down," Elder Lian sang, her bell jingling merrily. "Tell me, boy—do you know why we discard failed awakenings?"
Jian Long spat blood. "Bad breath?"
Her next attack came low—a sweeping kick aimed at his legs. Jian Long leapt, but not fast enough. Her nails raked his calf, sending white-hot fire racing up his nervous system.
[Pain Threshold Exceeded!]
Emergency Measure: Yin-Yang Core forcibly activates 0.3%
Cool darkness welled up from Jian Long's birthmark, numbing the worst of the agony. The system's display flickered with new data:
Elder Lian's Pattern:
• Attack Rhythm: 2.7 second intervals
• Blind Spot: 0.5 seconds after right-handed strikes
• Qi Flare: Precedes soulbrand techniques by 1.2 seconds
Jian Long wiped his mouth. "Alright, granny. Let's dance."
He charged.
Elder Lian's eyebrow arched as Jian Long deliberately telegraphed a clumsy right hook. She caught his wrist with effortless grace—just as he'd predicted.
[Calculated Risk]
Sacrifice Play: Allow capture to enable touch
Her fingers clamped like iron manacles, but Jian Long's free hand was already moving, two fingers extended in the precise formation the scroll had illustrated.
"Heavenly Pulse Massage Art: Reverse Flow Technique"
Instead of stabilizing qi, he disrupted it.
Golden light exploded at the contact point between his fingers and her wrist. For the first time, Elder Lian's smirk faltered. The twisted meridians in her arm spasmed violently, dark veins surfacing like worms beneath her skin.
"You—!" Her shriek was half rage, half something Jian Long didn't like one bit—recognition.
The silver bell at her waist screamed.
A wave of force hurled Jian Long across the platform. Ribs cracked on impact with the stone edging. Blood filled his mouth, copper-bright and burning.
Through blurred vision, he saw Elder Lian clutching her corrupted arm, face contorted in what might have been pain—or perverse delight. The crowd's murmurs had turned to shouts.
"Enough!"
The new voice cut through the chaos like a blade through silk.
A woman descended from the upper tiers of the amphitheater, her violet robes edged in gold—the mark of a Pavilion Elder. Where Elder Lian was sharp angles and poisoned grace, this woman moved with the inevitability of a glacier. Frost crystallized in her wake, forming delicate snowflakes that hovered midair.
Elder Xue
• Title: Mistress of the Silent Blade
• Cultivation: Late Foundation Establishment
• Relationship to Host: Unknown
• Threat Level: 89% (Lethal)
Elder Lian's smile turned venomous. "Sister Xue. How... timely of you to intervene."
Elder Xue didn't bother looking at her. Her gaze—the pale blue of glacial ice—locked onto Jian Long. "This one bears the Swordbirth Mark." A ripple went through the crowd. "By ancient law, his life belongs to the Grand Elder until proven otherwise."
A tense silence fell.
Jian Long used the moment to check his system:
[Combat Results]
• Damage Taken: 4 fractured ribs, 2nd-degree soulburns
• Rewards Gained:
Yin-Yang Core Unseal: 0.1% → 0.8%
Lifespan: +48 hours (Forced breakthrough)
New Title: "Elder Botherer"
Elder Lian's bell gave one final, petulant chime before she turned away. "Next time, boy." The promise in her whisper followed Jian Long like a shroud.
Elder Xue gestured, and two inner disciples hauled Jian Long upright. "You will come with me," she said, in a tone that brooked no argument.
As they marched him toward the inner sect gates, Jian Long caught Su Ling's eye in the crowd. Her lips moved soundlessly:
"You idiot."
He winked.
Then the massive gates sealed behind them with a thunderous boom, cutting off the outer world entirely.
System Status
Host: Jian Long
Cultivation: Early Qi Condensation (Stabilized)
Techniques:
• Heavenly Pulse Massage Art (Apprentice)
• Reverse Flow Technique (New!)
Core Unseal: 0.8%
Lifespan: 160 Hours Remaining
New Enemies:
• Elder Lian (Hostility: 91%)
New Allies(??):
• Elder Xue (Interest: 45%)
Quest Updates:
• "Who is the Grand Elder?" (Locked)
• "Survive Inner Sect Politics" (Ongoing)