Library of Heaven’s Path

With a splitting headache, Zhang Xuan gradually regained consciousness.

The first thing that came into his line of sight was a white ceiling. Swiftly scanning his surroundings, he found that he was lying on a bed in a relatively spacious room.

My strength…

Slowly sitting up, Zhang Xuan winced from the excruciating pain with every inch he moved. He took a look at his own body and found that it was wrapped tightly in bandages. He tried to drive his own zhenqi, but he realized that the zhenqi that remained in his body had become pathetically low.

Why is my zhenqi so heavy?

Taking a closer look, he noticed that his zhenqi had become incredibly heavy. Even slightly driving it created a huge strain on him.

It swiftly dawned on him that it was not that he was low on zhenqi but that the vast amount of zhenqi that he had previously stored in his body had been condensed into mercury-like zhenqi.

It was true that such a heavily condensed zhenqi would grant him greater burst power, but the problem was that he could not even drive it, let alone use it to recover from his injuries.

He quickly tried to recall what had happened prior to this.

I entered the passageway leading to the Azure, but I ended up getting blocked by a bolt of lightning. I was going to find a way to circumvent it when I was struck by another bolt of lightning and ended up blacking out…

Seeing the mess that his body was in and recalling his memories prior to the accident, Zhang Xuan narrowed his eyes in astonishment.

Could it be that… I am already in the Azure?

Since he had blacked out in the passageway, he had thought that he would wake up drifting aimlessly in there, but before he knew it, he was already lying in a room with his body fully bandaged. Could it be that he had somehow managed to bypass the lightning region and successfully arrived at the Azure?

This notion prompted Zhang Xuan to swiftly scan his surroundings. Thus, he attempted to release his Spiritual Perception into the surroundings, only to end up with his mouth twitching uncontrollably.

In the past, his Spiritual Perception could easily over millions of li, but at that moment, it was firmly stuck within his body, refusing to come out at all no matter how he pushed!

What incredible spatial pressure this is!

At this point, it was already certain that he was in the Azure. Not only was he unable to deploy his Spiritual Perception, but even his flight ability had been restricted. In fact, even his usual movements had been curbed significantly due to the immense spatial pressure.

Gugugugu!

Suddenly, a rumbling sound echoed from Zhang Xuan’s abdomen. He was hungry.

Ever since he had cultivated to Transcendent Mortal, he had been able to sustain his bodily needs through absorbing spiritual energy and cultivating. It did not matter whether he ate or not. This was the first time in a long time that he had felt so starved. It felt almost as if his body was completely empty.

Sighing deeply, he closed his eyes, and through his senses, he could feel that the surroundings were filled with an abundance of mercury-like spiritual energy. In terms of concentration, it was at least ten times higher than what had descended back at the elevated platform of the Kunxu Domain.

He tried absorbing the mercury-like spiritual energy there to refine it into his own zhenqi to recover his injuries, but the next moment, his face reddened, and a mouthful of fresh blood spurted from his lips.

There was a series of violent coughing, and Zhang Xuan had to strike his chest several times before the stifling sensation finally lessened.

Back when he was uninjured, he could still use the sheer resilience of his body to endure the backlash caused by the absorption of the mercury-like spiritual energy. However, with his current tattered body and cracked meridians, just trying to absorb the mercury-like spiritual energy made him feel like his body was going to collapse, let alone trying to assimilate it.

It looks like I can only give it a try after my injuries recover a little…Zhang Xuan sighed deeply.

He knew that impatience would get him nowhere, so he decided to simply let things run their course.

Nevertheless, the fact that he was unable to drive his zhenqi at all and the sheer extent of the damage that his body had suffered meant that he was almost no different from an ordinary human. He would have to tread carefully until he finally recovered his strength.

”First and foremost, I should start by finding myself some food,” Zhang Xuan muttered as another series of hunger pangs struck him.

Struggling to his feet, he rubbed his stomach as he trudged out of the room.

Huhuhu!

Pushing the door open, he heard a series of sharp wind currents slicing in the air. Turning his gaze over, he saw a young man holding a steel sword in hand executing a sword art. While his movements were not fanciful, they carried a peculiar grace to them that made them extremely pleasing to the eye.

One thing that quickly caught Zhang Xuan’s eye was that the young man’s left leg was as stiff as a block of wood. Zhang Xuan could not tell whether he had suffered an injury or that was the original state of his body, but it was clearly impeding his movements.

His foundations are still okay, but his sword art is severely lacking…Zhang Xuan frowned.

Grab any 3-star master teacher from the Master Teacher Continent, and the sword art that the other party executed would be even more profound than the young man before him. However, considering the difficulties in the young man’s movements, it could barely be considered acceptable.

Zhang Xuan heaved a slight sigh, and it immediately caught the young man’s attention. He halted his sword practice and turned his head over. Upon seeing Zhang Xuan, a look of delight crept onto his face as he said, ”You’re awake!”

Taking a closer look at the young man, the other party seemed to be in his late teens. He was not too tall, roughly a head shorter than Zhang Xuan. Using the measurement system from his previous world, the young man would not even be at 1.6 meters. There was a glaring scarlet birthmark roughly half a cheek wide imprinted on his left cheek, and it concealed part of his face.

In terms of appearances, the young man could not be associated with the word ’handsome’ at all. In fact, he might be considered hideous even.

”Thank you for saving my life.” Zhang Xuan clasped his fist.

”It’s nothing much. I saw you by accident, so I brought you back… I thought that you would die given the severity of your wounds, but you somehow managed to recover on your own…” The young man scratched his head awkwardly as he spoke.

His words were a little awkward, hinting that he was not too good with social interaction.

”Third Young Master…”

At this moment, an elder walked into the courtyard. Upon seeing Zhang Xuan, he was stunned for a moment before calmly bowing to greet him. ”Sir, it seems like you are finally awake!”

Zhang Xuan returned the gesture with a simple nod.

He assessed the elder before him closely and noticed that the latter’s clothes were stained with oil marks. The corners of his lips were a little torn, and there was a hint of fresh blood. His cheeks were also bruised. It was apparent that he had just been beaten up by someone else.

The crippled young man known as Third Young Master turned his gaze over as well, and as soon as he saw the current state of the elder, his face warped in astonishment. He hurriedly rushed over and worriedly asked, ”Elder Yi, what happened?”

”Third Young Master, it’s nothing,” Elder Yi replied awkwardly.

However, the young man continued staring at Elder Yi intently, clearly unconvinced by the latter’s words. Eventually, under the persistent stare of the young man, Elder Yi relented and said, ”The Second Young Mistress of the City Lord Manor is here!”

”Xue Qin is here?”

This news caused the eyes of the crippled young man to glow in excitement.

”That’s right…” Seeing the response of the young man, Elder Yi’s face grew even redder. It was as if there was something that he wanted to say to the young man, but he had no idea how he should broach the subject.

The crippled young man also swiftly noticed that there was something amiss about Elder Yi’s expression. The smile faded from his face as he asked, ”Does her arrival have anything to do with your injuries?”

”Isn’t the Ascendant Cloud Sword Pavilion coming to our town to accept menial disciples three days from now?” Elder Yi was conflicted for a moment before continuing. ”Through tapping into the connections of the City Lord Manor, Second Young Mistress Xue Qin managed to acquire a slot in advance…”

”She managed to obtain a slot in advance?” The crippled young man’s face lit up in joy. ”Isn’t that good news?”

But barely after he said those words, the young man lowered his head to look at his crippled left leg, and his face swiftly sunk. ”I guess that I don’t stand a chance at all…”

”Having acquired the slot, there’s no doubt that she will be leaving with those from the Ascendant Cloud Sword Pavilion three days from now. Did she come here to bid me farewell?” The crippled young man shook his head and sighed deeply.

”She… She…” Elder Yi hesitated for a long while before finally confessing the truth. ”She’s here to withdraw from the marriage agreement with you!”

”She wishes to withdraw from the marriage agreement?”

The young man’s face turned ghastly pale. His body staggered a little, and he nearly fell to the ground. ”She’s going to withdraw from the marriage agreement with me just because she has become a menial disciple of the Ascendant Cloud Sword Pavilion?”

No matter where one was, being rejected by one’s fiancée was something incredibly humiliating.

Hearing the conversation between the young man and the elder, Zhang Xuan’s eyebrows shot up.

A talented young lady scorning her fiancé and proposing a withdrawal from the marriage agreement. An injured and insulted young man deciding to buck up and return the favor.Thirty years the river’s east, and thirty years the river’s west1?

To think that he would encounter such a matter as soon as he arrived at the Azure.

How exciting life was!

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1. Thirty years the river’s east, and thirty years the river’s west - This is an idiom used to refer to the cycle of the rise and decline of all powers in the world. It’s famously used in the Battle Through the Heavens by the protagonist back when he was weaker to convey that the tables would turn one day.