Nine Dragons Saint Ancestor

”Huixu, cousin, how could you...”

As soon as Shang Huiyu uttered these words, Yun Xiao hadn’t yet reacted, but Xue Qi on the other side couldn’t hold back anymore. Having been slapped twice by Yun Xiao, her only desire was for revenge, never expecting Shang Huiyu to make such a decision.

”Shut up!”

Little did Xue Qi know that as soon as her words fell, Shang Huiyu’s sharp gaze was already cast over, and the cold shout that came from his mouth made her immediately shut up, not daring to even breathe loudly.

Honestly, in Shang Huiyu’s heart, Xue Qi was just a pawn, a pawn used to drive Yun Xiao and his mother out of the Shang Family. Now that this pawn was proving useless, he naturally wouldn’t show any good expression.

Moreover, Shang Huiyu was extremely covetous of the treasure Yun Xiao had obtained from the Snake Nest; he did not want Xue Qi to spoil his plans, as he believed that after his words, Yun Xiao, if not wanting to die, would definitely make a decision satisfying to him.

”How about it? Yun Xiao, if you give me the item, I’ll give you a Meridian Rushing Pill in return, otherwise, how about adding an Advanced Mortal Rank Cultivation Technique?” Being the young master of the Shang Family with vast resources, this temptation made Xue Qi feel even more unbalanced.

Xue Qi betrayed Shang Li and her son for a mere Waist Storage and a Mortal Rank Middle Level Cultivation Technique and Meridian Techniques. Even the Meridian Rushing Pill was something she had swindled from Shang Li. Compared to what Shang Huiyu was now offering Yun Xiao, it was like heaven and earth.

Even Yun Wei, who hadn’t seen much of the world, felt her heart pounding at this moment, yet she did not interject, knowing her brother would definitely make the right decision.

”Meridian Rushing Pill? Advanced Mortal Rank Cultivation Technique?”

Hearing these two names, which would be extremely tempting to any cultivator specializing in Meridian Qi, a trace of mockery appeared in Yun Xiao’s eyes. If it were the old him, he might have agreed, but now...

As the Long Xiao Battle God of the Nine-layered Dragon Cloud, Yun Xiao, in his previous life, had seen all kinds of treasures, and to him, the Advanced Mortal Rank Techniques were nothing more than wastepaper.

As for the Meridian Rushing Pill, the most basic of elixirs, he utterly disregarded it. Remember, in his previous life, the Long Xiao Battle God was not only powerfully skilled in battle but also a revered Holy Rank Meridian Refining Master.

On the Nine Dragons Continent, apart from cultivating Meridian Qi, there was another enviable profession called Meridian Refining Master. These individuals could, through a special process, expand and enhance a cultivator’s meridian channels and improve the quality of their Ancestor Vein.

However, becoming a Meridian Refining Master required extremely stringent conditions, the most difficult being possessing a Fire Attribute Ancestor Vein and substantial Power of Soul. These conditions alone kept many cultivators on the continent away from the threshold of Meridian Refining.

Healing, Alchemy and Medicine Refining were specialties for a Meridian Refining Master. If it were during the heyday of the Long Xiao Battle God, he could probably refine several batches of Meridian Rushing Pills with ease.

Thus, Shang Huiyu attempting to tempt a supreme warrior from the Nine-layered Dragon Cloud using the perspective of a cultivator from the Hidden Dragon Continent was frankly laughable, and even more laughable was that Shang Huiyu was oblivious to this.

”How’s that? Still not satisfied? What if I add another Advanced Mortal Rank Meridian Technique?” Seeing Yun Xiao simply smiling without speaking, Shang Huiyu grew impatient and added another bargaining chip.

At this, Xue Qi’s expression turned even darker, realizing at this moment that perhaps her previous importance in Shang Huiyu’s eyes was merely her own wishful thinking.

”Yun Xiao, don’t be too greedy. Don’t refuse the toast only to be forced to drink the forfeit wine!” Believing he had maximized his offering, Shang Huiyu grew impatient with Yun Xiao’s lack of response.

”Hehe, Shang Huiyu, do you know what I obtained from the Snake Nest? You think you can exchange these trifles for it, it’s simply a fool’s dream!” Yun Xiao finally spoke, laughing, but his laughter was filled with intense mockery.

Indeed, Yun Xiao had obtained a treasure from the Snake Nest, but it was the soul of the Long Xiao Battle God. As he said, Shang Huiyu wanting to exchange some Mortal Rank items for it was purely fantastical.

Moreover, even if it were more precious, Yun Xiao would not possibly hand over his soul to anyone. This was a rebirth by fate, completely beyond his own control.

”Ungrateful!”

Receiving Yun Xiao’s response, Shang Huiyu finally realized after all his wasted persuasive efforts and sweet talk, he was just being played like a fool, and he was truly enraged.

Immediately, Shang Huiyu stopped the niceties, his body began to emit a dense Meridian Qi, and then his right arm seemed to have grown thicker.

”Is this the dominance of the Meridian Introduction Realm?”

Not far away, Yun Wei, who was at the peak of Meridian Qi strength, constantly desired to break through to that realm. At this moment, feeling Shang Huiyu’s overwhelming aura, she grew even more eager to achieve it.

In the path of cultivation, Meridian Qi comes first. The lowest level of Meridian Qi strength merely involves cultivating Meridian Qi from the major meridians in the body, but it hardly means one has entered the threshold of Meridian Qi cultivation.

The true introductory stage of Meridian Qi cultivation is the Meridian Introduction Realm, because only upon reaching this realm can one mobilize the Meridian Qi cultivated throughout the body to enhance one’s combat abilities and achieve the effects of overcoming and injuring opponents.

Yun Wei and Xue Qi both understand this well. As a reincarnation of the Dragon Cloud Battle God, Yun Xiao naturally has a deep understanding of this, except his current body has not broken through to the Meridian Introduction Realm, and the only means he can employ are his combat experience from his previous life.

But just this combat experience alone was enough. Shang Huiyu, at the middle stage of the Meridian Introduction Realm, could not make Yun Xiao retreat.

Seeing him flick his fingers, Fuxue Technique that startled Shang Huiyu earlier was deployed again, and this time, it was even faster than before.

”Bring it on!”

Cautious from his prior setback, Shang Huiyu shouted as he saw Yun Xiao’s movement and guided the Meridian Qi in his body to several spots, exactly where Yun Xiao was about to strike.

It seems Shang Huiyu was no fool. After all, his Meridian Qi Cultivation was nearly a whole major realm higher than Yun Xiao. He believed that with his full-preparedness, even the exquisite Fuxue Technique could not inflict even the slightest harm on him.

When Yun Xiao’s fingers just touched several of Shang Huiyu’s acupoints, a strong resistance indeed emanated from the latter’s body, preventing him from succeeding on the first attempt.

As the person involved, Shang Huiyu clearly sensed this himself. Delighted at first, but in the next moment, he felt those spots turn numb and his whole body stiffened.

”Meridian Qi gathering externally? This... this is impossible!”

It must be said, Shang Huiyu did have some insight. In just a brief moment, he understood what had happened.

But thinking of one possibility, Shang Huiyu could hardly believe it because the ”Meridian Qi gathering externally” he exclaimed about was a signature skill of someone in the Meridian Rushing Realm. How could it appear in Yun Xiao, who was only in the late stages of Dan Qi?

Meridian Qi cultivation starts with Meridian Qi strength, continues to the Meridian Introduction Realm, and then to the Meridian Gathering Realm, which allows one to forcibly gather the Meridian Qi from the body’s meridians to enhance a specific part of the body, whether for defense or attack, and achieve double the results with half the effort.

Even reaching the Meridian Gathering Realm, one could only condense Meridian Qi internally and launch attacks through certain Meridian Techniques, but not manifest and gather it externally. To reach this level, one must at least be a stronger practitioner in the Meridian Rushing Realm than those in the Meridian Gathering Realm.

This was why Shang Huiyu was so shocked upon realizing this; in the entire Shang Family, only the Family Head Shang Yan, who had barely stepped into the Meridian Rushing Realm, possessed the means to gather Meridian Qi externally.

Shang Huiyu clearly sensed that Yun Xiao was merely an ant in the last stages of Meridian Qi strength, but why could every strike of his catch him off guard?

After some quick thoughts, Shang Huiyu concluded that Yun Xiao was using this miraculous method because of a treasure obtained from the Snake Nest, but currently, he didn’t have much capacity to ponder further.

As Yun Xiao achieved success with this tactic of external Meridian Qi gathering, he pressed his advantage relentlessly. Seeing his right foot kick ferociously against Shang Huiyu’s abdomen, he sent this young master of the Shang Family flying several meters away.

These cultivators from the Hidden Dragon Continent could only externalize their Meridian Qi after reaching the Meridian Rushing Realm, but for the once Dragon Cloud Battle God, such a minor technique came naturally to him.

This was also why Yun Xiao, with his late-stage Meridian Qi strength, could secure victory in just a few moves; even if his Meridian Qi cultivation was insufficient, that combat experience was more than enough to outperform Shang Huiyu by a long shot.

”How... how is this possible?”

Watching Shang Huiyu flying through the air after that kick, landing with his aura in disarray, Xue Qi’s face was blank and disbelieving, as this was far beyond her expectations.

Previously, Xue Qi had always thought she lost to Yun Xiao merely because he was opportunistic. But now, a trace of fear arose deep within her, as it seemed the Yun Xiao before her had completely changed into someone she did not recognize.

Even the middle-stage Meridian Introduction Realm Shang Huiyu, falling easily within just a few moves from Yun Xiao, made Xue Qi shudder at the thought. What if Yun Xiao had used his full power in their battle—could she still confidently stand here?

On the other hand, Shang Li and her son were also staring dumbfounded. If Xue Qi felt Yun Xiao was somewhat unfamiliar, wasn’t it the same for them? Was this the Yun Xiao they knew? Was this change not too drastic?