Chapter 140: The Inappropriate Occasion

Fortunately, the fall wasn’t too severe, and after hastily taking the Vitality Pill, her cultivation stabilized. But this time, it was bound to leave wounds.

From now on, if Ling Lin wanted to regain her original cultivation, it would likely come at a great cost, perhaps never fully restoring it.

Within the void of the ring, the phantom watched Ji Jiuxuan, who was deep in enlightenment, with a trace of worry etched between her brows.

“You’re covering for her; this might be the foundation establishment stage,” said Long Xuan. The black dragon body he inhabited was originally the Ink Abyss Profound Dragon, born with the innate talent to ascend to immortality, but his soul merged within it altered the body.

Under the strain of two souls, the dragon body could hardly bear it, which is why Long Xuan usually remained inside the ring, his true form dormant.

If Ji Jiuxuan established her foundation with Long Xuan’s assistance, it would undoubtedly be more secure.

“Covering for her with so many people around, it’s impossible to conceal all the auras of her advancement,” Long Xuan said indifferently, glancing at Ji Jiuxuan outside. His soul’s power was much weaker than the phantom’s. “There’s also a ranking in this competition, and if she establishes her foundation now, she definitely won’t be able to participate in the ranking matches.”

Missing the ranking matches would mean she couldn’t attend the Imperial Capital competition five years later.

They were aware of Ji Jiuxuan’s agreement with Nie Xingyuan.

“You forgot one thing. The contract with Ajiu is special. I can enter her dantian and help stabilize her cultivation. That’s entirely feasible.”

Long Xuan fell silent for a moment. “The Ink Abyss Profound Dragon carries immortal energy naturally. If I hover around her dantian, it will indeed benefit her foundation establishment.”

However, after this, he might need to sleep for a while.

“Alright, I’ll be your shield,” said the phantom. For Ji Jiuxuan’s well-being, the phantom would always act instinctively.

As the spiritual energy flowed, Nie Xingyuan, standing beside Ji Jiuxuan, sensed something unusual but could not discern what it was.

Seeing that Ajiu appeared fine, he chose to watch quietly, his mind focused on her, fearing any mishap.

At Ji Jiuxuan’s dantian, where she was feverishly absorbing spiritual energy to establish her foundation, the previously turbulent spiritual power calmed as the golden dragon coiled above.

The golden aura continuously nourished her dantian.

When Ji Jiuxuan awoke from her enlightenment, she was startled by the anomaly at her dantian: a Yin-Yang Fish totem floating behind it, with the golden dragon body enveloping it warmly.

She even felt that her aura seemed different.

“System, what’s happening?”

Unfortunately, Long Xuan’s presence made the system inexplicably reluctant to appear. It grew increasingly suspicious of Long Xuan and the phantom’s identities.

With its power, no one in the entire cultivation world could intimidate it, yet even this fragment of a soul made it cautious. The aura compelled it to submit instinctively.

Receiving no answer from the system, Ji Jiuxuan then realized that the dragon at her dantian resembled the one Long Xuan fought with.

“Long Xuan, why are you at my dantian?” She scrutinized and confirmed it was indeed Long Xuan. He could actually enter her dantian!

This was truly astonishing.

“You’re about to establish your foundation. I’m helping you stabilize it; we’ll complete it after the competition,” Long Xuan said nonchalantly, indifferent to the gradual loss of spiritual energy.

Once Ji Jiuxuan succeeded, he would fall into a deep sleep for a while.

Normally, the dantian was not an area one could easily access, but at this moment, Ji Jiuxuan felt no resistance. Deep down, she knew Long Xuan would not harm her. Even his presence coiling around her dantian felt natural.

This sensation was mysterious; she couldn’t quite understand why.

“Thank you!”

Long Xuan smiled and finally closed his eyes as if falling asleep.

Previously, he felt most at ease in the void of the ring with the phantom, but now he sensed a peace he had never felt before.

He was even willing to sleep this way for a lifetime.

Seeing Long Xuan silent and asleep again, Ji Jiuxuan did not ponder further.

Exiting enlightenment, her insights into the sword path deepened. From the remnants of Long Xuan’s aura, she sensed a different kind of energy, and faintly, a familiar, almost recognizable sword technique began to take shape.

If not for the inappropriate occasion, she would have practiced it right then and there.

“Ajiu, do you feel unwell anywhere?”

Facing her junior uncle’s concern, Ji Jiuxuan smiled sweetly and shook her head. “I’m fine.”

Ling Lin had already left with Jiyue. On the field, only she and her junior uncle remained. Meanwhile, the secondary competition arena had already opened, and the audience, absorbed by the intense matches there, rarely glanced their way.

At that moment, Xiaoxiaowei waved toward her.

“Go rest well. The ranking matches start in a couple of days,” Nie Xingyuan said gently, stroking her hair. His warm and handsome demeanor caused the distracted young disciples nearby to freeze in surprise.

“Uncle, I’m off then!” Ji Jiuxuan saluted her junior uncle and ran toward Feng Hanxiao’s group.

After the little girl left, Nie Xingyuan personally rearranged the formation, turning this competition arena into a hidden reserve venue.

“Xuanxuan, I told you, you’re the strongest.” Ji Jiuxuan was certain she had defeated Jiyue. Despite all the rumors, she firmly believed Ajiu was nothing like what they said.

“She established her foundation, and Elder Ling sacrificed his own cultivation to forcibly help her,” Qin Yuzhou relayed quietly. He thought more than Feng Hanxiao did. Now that Jiyue had established her foundation, with such a temperament, she would sooner or later cause trouble for Ji Jiuxuan again.

Today’s events, nearly failing to establish her foundation due to instability, might make her behave for a while, but the hatred between them would never dissipate. Conflict was just a matter of time.

“Thanks for letting me know.” Ji Jiuxuan looked toward the competition stage. Even if she had established her foundation, she wasn’t afraid.

She had once dared to set a formation alone to injure Yu Heng; Jiyue was even less concerning.

Qin Yuzhou glanced at the laughing Ji Jiuxuan with Feng Hanxiao, unable to read her mind.

In their sect, few commanded his respect, and Ji Jiuxuan was one of them.

Curious about how she would handle things, he even considered helping her deal with Jiyue to spare them both the daily annoyance.

But thinking of Ji Jiuxuan’s superior strength and the formidable senior uncles she had, he chose to watch and wait.

The original grand competition would have taken several days, but since it had become a team event, the duration was greatly shortened, finishing all matches in just two days.

The ranking matches would begin on the fourth day. Ji Jiuxuan continued to study the books her master gave her, researching pills and talisman arrays daily.

If not limited by her cultivation, she could already refine third-grade pills.

In the afternoon, the sword technique that appeared in her mind during the earlier match surfaced again. She closed her eyes, and the once vague sword technique grew clearer in her thoughts.

After a long while, Ji Jiuxuan opened her eyes, excitement shining within them. A child's sword appeared in her hand as she practiced the sword technique from her mind.

Again and again, the sword moves became smoother.

Inside the ring’s void, the phantom looked on in surprise at the sword technique Ji Jiuxuan had developed. She had sensed this set of sword moves from Long Xuan’s aura!

Noticing several mistakes, the phantom couldn’t help but appear beside her. With a gentle wave of his hand, a protective barrier emerged. Even if Zhou Guangsheng, Qi Shuoyuan, and others approached, they would be unable to detect his presence or sense anything unusual.

Ji Jiuxuan was somewhat surprised by his casual appearance. Usually, unless under special circumstances, he stayed in the space. She looked at him puzzled.

“Shall I teach you?” The gentle voice carried a fondness even the phantom hadn’t noticed in himself.

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(End of chapter)