Chapter 50: Moon Rises Over Tianshan

A book’s value is only realized when you truly need it.

Chen Huai’an suddenly felt that his vocabulary was incredibly limited. He could only try to force something out.

As soon as he spoke, the entire Qingyun Sect plaza fell into a heavy silence.

Daoist Qingxuan remained silent, simply drawing his Qingxuan Sword.

The overwhelming aura of a Late Nascent Soul cultivator surged like a tidal wave, causing the surrounding Spiritual Qi to churn violently. His hat fell to the ground, and his robes and hair billowed wildly in the unseen force.

“Elder Qingxuan, let’s talk this through!” Wu Duantian was the last person who wanted to see a fight break out between two cultivators. This was the Qingyun Sect—if a battle broke out, he would be the one suffering for it. Besides, he was still waiting for that mysterious cultivator to help Zhao Lingtian recover his shattered dantian. If they became enemies now, how the hell was he supposed to negotiate later?

“Lu Changtian is my personal disciple. How can I stand by and watch his dantian be destroyed?” Daoist Qingxuan’s voice turned sharp as he directed his words toward Wu Duantian. “He is definitely not at the Fusion Realm. Judging by his relationship with Li Qingran, even if they aren’t master and disciple in name, they share the bond of one. If he were truly a great cultivator of the Fusion Realm, would he need to be so roundabout in his actions?”

His tone was resolute—he had made up his mind to protect Lu Changtian at all costs.

How could he not understand Daoist Qingxuan’s reasoning? Everyone here wasn’t blind.

It was clear that the other party was also wary of Qingyun Sect’s strength, which was why he hadn’t acted recklessly.

But Wu Duantian didn’t care about any of that. What realm the opponent was in meant nothing to him.

All that mattered was whether he could heal Zhao Lingtian’s dantian.

“Can’t we just sit down and have a proper conversation?”

“There’s nothing to talk about.” Daoist Qingxuan’s expression remained cold as he responded flatly.

“Fine, fine, then just fight already!” Wu Duantian, seeing that persuasion was useless, gave up entirely. “Break the sect’s gates, force the ancestor to come out, and let the entire Cangyun Realm’s righteous and demonic factions mock our Qingyun Sect!”

“Good. Then let’s see whether any of you even have the right to meddle in this matter today!”

The space behind Li Qingran twisted.

A chilling snort filled with fury echoed from within.

A pressure even more terrifying than Daoist Qingxuan’s descended upon everyone.

A figure slowly emerged from the void.

Dressed in black, with long white hair, he wielded a black-scaled longsword. His face was shrouded in a divine glow, making his features indistinct, but his air of elegance was undeniable. However, the most striking feature was his pair of golden slit-pupiled eyes, radiating an unparalleled sense of authority. Just making eye contact with him was enough to send shivers down one’s spine.

He hovered behind Li Qingran.

As his body fully materialized—

ROAR—!

A thunderclap split the sky.

A massive black dragon’s phantom surged forth from behind him, coiling around him in a majestic display of power. Its fangs bared and claws extended, its terrifying presence shook the heavens before partially merging into the black-scaled sword, as if it were the weapon’s very soul.

“Se-Senior!”

Li Qingran’s eyes locked onto Chen Huai’an, who now stood before her. Even though she could only see his side profile, she found herself unable to breathe. Her face grew hotter and hotter, and her mind went completely blank.

“Step back, girl. I… cough—I am about to put on a show— cough cough—I mean, start killing.”

Li Qingran was nervous, but so was Chen Huai’an.

His vision was filled with a dazzlingly chaotic array of skill icons, all fully lit up. He didn’t even know what half of them did—before he could even figure things out, he had already been thrown into the fray.

And the worst part? He was wearing a VR helmet. The hyper-immersive experience only intensified his sense of urgency.

He didn’t even dare to look at Li Qingran.

He had glanced at her once just now—she was too stunning. Absolutely gorgeous.

The difference between seeing her in VR and real life was night and day. He was afraid that if he kept looking, he wouldn’t be able to look away.

Now the real problem was—how the hell was he supposed to fight?

Tap on whatever’s glowing? But everything was glowing!

[Beginner Combat Tutorial Initiated.]

A game window popped up in Chen Huai’an’s vision, and he was instantly overjoyed.

“Thank god, it’s a noob-friendly tutorial! We’re saved!”

The next second, everything around him froze.

Chen Huai’an realized he had entered the tutorial and immediately turned his head to stare at Li Qingran, committing her face to memory.

This was what he called desensitization training.

[This game utilizes the latest neural mapping technology, allowing players to control their characters entirely through thought.]

A water-like mirror and a practice dummy appeared before him.

Reluctantly tearing his gaze away from Li Qingran’s face, Chen Huai’an turned to the mirror and attempted a peace sign.

A Nascent Soul Perfection cultivator making such a gesture was absurdly out of place. He quickly returned to his composed, otherworldly demeanor. Once fully immersed in character, he couldn’t help but put on an act.

[All techniques and skills available to you will be mapped directly into your mind. Don’t worry, this will not burden your brain. As the mapping process continues, they will gradually become part of your muscle memory.]

[Please attack the training dummy.]

Chen Huai’an considered for a moment before casually slashing at the dummy.

The dummy shattered instantly.

There was no impact feedback—it felt like slicing through tofu. Way too effortless.

[Please use a skill.]

The dummy regenerated, and after a moment’s thought, Chen Huai’an activated Green Lotus Sword Manual – First Form: Riding the Waves.

Swoosh—!

With a sharp sword cry, his body moved with the sword, striking as fast as a dragon.

In an instant, a blinding sword light flashed, and the dummy was sliced into four pieces.

In the next moment, he was already back in place, while a watery afterimage of himself remained at the dummy’s previous location, frozen in a thrusting motion.

At that moment, the second part of Riding the Waves lit up—

Shadow Strike: Instantly teleport to your afterimage and thrust again.

“Holy sh*t, that’s sick!” Chen Huai’an might not have been well-read, but he knew how to appreciate something awesome.

Who would’ve thought the very first move of the Green Lotus Sword Manual would be this insane?

He had to master it and teach it to Li Qingran.

[Tutorial complete. Enjoy your game!]

…

The frozen world around him came back to life.

Chen Huai’an’s gaze locked onto Lu Changtian and Daoist Qingxuan.

The hesitation in his eyes was gone, replaced by unwavering confidence.

So, Daoist Qingxuan…

You like to meddle, huh?

Chen Huai’an smirked coldly.

For stubborn old fossils like him, there was only one solution—

Drop the ultimate move.

In his mind, Green Lotus Sword Manual – Tenth Form: Moon Rises Over Tianshan surfaced.

The Eleventh and Twelfth Forms were still locked—Nascent Soul Perfection wasn’t enough to use them.

Otherwise, he would’ve planted the entire Milky Way onto Daoist Qingxuan’s face.

His black-scaled sword slid half an inch from its sheath, its radiance dim yet sharp.

A storm of sword intent spilled forth, slicing the very air with an eerie screech.

So you want to protect your disciple, Qingxuan?

Chen Huai’an’s eyes gleamed.

Then take this sword!

Clang—!

Thunderous sword cries echoed.

Above the Qingyun Sect’s grand hall—

A sliver of moonlight rose from the earth.

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