Nine Dragons Saint Ancestor

”Enough, I’ll take this gamble!”

Yun Xiao’s face twisted slightly with ferocity, as he stared blankly at the black key within the light shield. After a long while, he made the gut-wrenching decision.

A broken key of unknown origin was actually priced at a thousand points for exchange—truly an outrageous scam that Yun Xiao inexplicably fell for.

Of course, if it weren’t for the inexplicable sensation from the blood-moon-shaped mark on his palm, Yun Xiao would never have done something so foolish, even if it killed him.

Having made up his mind, Yun Xiao no longer hesitated. As he reached out his hand, intending to press the points card against the shield...

Tap, tap...

Just at that moment, Yun Xiao suddenly heard hurried footsteps approaching. His heart stirred—although he had been hesitating just now, that was solely because of his reluctance to part with his points. The arrival of others only strengthened his resolve.

”Wait a moment!”

However, just as Yun Xiao’s right hand was about to touch the light shield, a vaguely familiar voice, tinged with urgency, came from behind him.

However, hearing those two words, Yun Xiao not only didn’t slow down but accelerated instead. In an instant, his points card made contact with the light shield, emitting a bright glow before disappearing altogether.

Sensing that a full thousand points had been deducted from his points card, Yun Xiao didn’t have time to feel the pain of loss, as he extended his empty left hand, intending to grasp the black key on the stone platform.

Whoosh...

Little did Yun Xiao know, as soon as his left hand reached out, a sound of rushing wind ensued, and without stopping to think, he channeled the Ice Cold Ancestor Vein Power through his left arm, colliding with a hand that burst out from somewhere.

Bang!

After a loud noise, the intruding hand was blasted away by Yun Xiao, now starting to form bits of frost. The Ice Cold Ancestor Vein Power was formidable indeed.

After repelling the unexpected hand, Yun Xiao grabbed the black key in his hand, then turned around to look, only to find two familiar figures.

”Bi Luo, Xuan Zhi!”

The names seemed to be squeezed through Yun Xiao’s clenched teeth. He had known these two for quite some time, especially the Third Prince of the Empire, now rubbing his wrist, whom he had developed a deep enmity with during the Jade Pot Sect’s entrance examination.

Later, Xuan Zhi even ordered the brothers Guan Tong to chase and block Yun Xiao, and although they ultimately perished by Yun Xiao’s hand, for some reason, this guy had now cozied up to Bi Luo, the genius of the Inner Sect’s Poison Vein, and sought to put Yun Xiao to death.

Yun Xiao had thought that after their failed scheme that night, they would lay low for a while, at the very least, until after the Outer Sect competition. However, these two unrelentingly followed him all the way to the Mysterious Artifact Hall.

The one who had just made a move against Yun Xiao was naturally the Third Prince, Xuan Zhi. He was eager to have the black key, and had clearly forgotten the gap in strength between himself and Yun Xiao, resulting in this embarrassment.

Fortunately, Xuan Zhi was a genuine Meridian Refining Master. Seeing the frost shimmering on his right hand, he hastily summoned his Meridian Fire and finally dispelled the Ice Cold Power.

Yet, Xuan Zhi’s expression was now as dark as if it could drip water. As a Third Prince of the Empire, his decision to join the Jade Pot Sect was part of a grand scheme.

And through certain channels, he learned that to execute his ultimate plan, he must retrieve an item from the Outer Sect’s Mysterious Artifact Hall—that item was the black key that Yun Xiao had just exchanged for a thousand points.

Now, Xuan Zhi was almost bursting with anger. Yun Xiao felt they were haunting him like ghosts, but how could Xuan Zhi not feel that Yun Xiao was always there, always ruining his plans?

Although Xuan Zhi did not know the true use of the black key, he was aware that such an inconspicuous key would not catch anyone’s attention. If he did not have some understanding of the key, who else would spend precious points to obtain it?

This was still under the assumption that Xuan Zhi did not know that acquiring the key could cost a thousand points—who would spend so many points on something useless, wouldn’t that be foolish?

”Yun Xiao, hand over the black key in your possession, and I can pretend nothing happened!”

Xuan Zhi rubbed his still chilly right wrist. His gaze swept over Bi Luo beside him, then turned back to Yun Xiao, or rather, to Yun Xiao’s left hand, because in it, was the black key he was determined to possess.

With Xuan Zhi’s current status in the late stage of the Meridian Gathering Realm, he couldn’t possibly be an opponent for Yun Xiao. Had he come alone, he might not have dared to say such words.

With Bi Luo backing him up, Xuan Zhi felt his confidence boosted several times over. He believed that the offer he presented Bi Luo was impossible to refuse. Therefore, today he must obtain that black key.

”Hehe, Your Highness Xuan Zhi, are you perhaps a newcomer who doesn’t understand the rules of the Mysterious Artifact Hall? This black key was exchanged by me, Yun Xiao, for a thousand points. Why should I give it to you?”

At the beginning, Yun Xiao’s face still wore a faint smile, but as he spoke, his voice gradually grew colder. He had never had the slightest fondness for the arrogant and domineering Third Prince from the Empire.

”A thousand points?”

This number of exchange points mentioned by Yun Xiao not only made Xuan Zhi pause momentarily but also caused Inner Sect Disciple Bi Luo to stir inside.

Initially, Bi Luo had remained silent because of the price Xuan Zhi was willing to pay, prompting him to follow into this Outer Sect Mysterious Artifact Hall. Another reason was because Xuan Zhi himself did not have many points.

Among the new batch of Outer Sect Disciples, the most anyone had completed were a few low to mid-level Mortal Rank missions. Xuan Zhi, albeit slightly stronger, had only finished one Mortal Rank Advanced mission with the help of Guan Tong, rewarding him with just six to seven hundred points.

However, in preparation for the Outer Sect competition, Xuan Zhi had already spent most of his points. That’s why he brought along Bi Luo. What he never expected was this inconspicuous black key would require an exchange of more than a thousand points.

Even though Bi Luo, as an Inner Sect Disciple, might also feel the pinch from a thousand points, now that it had come to this point, he started to entertain some other thoughts—perhaps he could save this thousand points after all.

”Yun Xiao, if you don’t leave the key behind today, you won’t be able to leave the Mysterious Artifact Hall!”

Xuan Zhi quickly snapped back to reality, his gaze on the black key even more fervent, the words he uttered filled with a heavy threat.

”Hmph, I refuse to believe you would dare to make a move in the Mysterious Artifact Hall!” scoffed Yun Xiao before, under the watchful eyes of the two, he stored the black key within his Waist Storage.

”Yun Xiao, I might not dare to fight you, but Senior Brother Bi Luo is an Inner Sect Disciple. Even if he kills you here, I expect that Outer Sect Steward wouldn’t dare to say much!”

Xuan Zhi was obviously provoked by Yun Xiao’s actions and, as the Third Prince, had always been arrogant and dismissive, never seeing an insignificant Meridian Master of the Jade Pot Sect’s Outer Sect worth his attention.

His words were threatening to Yun Xiao while subtly flattering Bi Luo—it must be said that Xuan Zhi was no fool, knowing a few tricks at crucial moments.

Bi Luo naturally had no good feelings for Yun Xiao. Whether it was inside Jade Pot Cave that day or with Guan Tong’s hospitalization, Yun Xiao had more than once made him lose face.

And Xuan Zhi was correct; as the second disciple directly descended from Fu Du, and a renowned talent within the Inner Sect’s Poison Vein, even if his strength was not as high as that of a Steward, his status was enough to intimidate the Steward from saying too much.

”Yun Xiao, hand over the key, and I can promise you a few more days of life!”

Bi Luo, looking down from high above, emanated a dangerous aura. Despite Yun Xiao’s dazzling performance in the Outer Sect competition and even defeating the number one on the Mortal List, Feng Hang, he was still just an ant that Bi Luo thought he could easily crush.

”Sorry, but this already belongs to me, nobody can snatch it away!”

Yun Xiao’s face darkened slightly and, after speaking, he actually walked towards the two, confident that this guy wouldn’t really dare to make a move in the Mysterious Artifact Hall.

However, Yun Xiao clearly underestimated Bi Luo’s arrogance. Seeing an Outer Sect Disciple at the peak of the Meridian Gathering Realm daring to completely disregard himself, an Inner Sect genius, Bi Luo, fueled by new grudges and old hatred, exploded in an instant.

”Court death!”

A low shout erupted from Bi Luo’s mouth; in his entire life, he had never encountered such an unappreciative person, so in this moment, he showed no mercy whatsoever.

Xuan Zhi, the onlooker, displayed a hint of joy on his face. In his eyes, no matter how crafty and strong Yun Xiao was, he simply could not be Bi Luo’s match, as the gap in their Meridian Qi was just too great.

However, what both Bi Luo and Xuan Zhi found strange was that Yun Xiao did not try to dodge or make any other defensive move against Bi Luo’s claw aimed at his throat. Instead, he calmly continued walking towards the exit of the second floor.

”Foolish boy!”

Watching this, although Bi Luo found it strange, it only boosted his confidence. If this boy was still trying to act inscrutable at a time like this, then he might as well leave his life here.

Bang!

However, just as Bi Luo thought he was about to grab Yun Xiao by the neck and break it, a red flash caught his eye, followed by a surge of great force that unexpectedly made his claw strike futile.

Although this force did not cause any harm to Bi Luo, it surprised him greatly because he was certain that Yun Xiao, a cultivator at the peak of the Meridian Gathering Realm, could not possibly unleash such tremendous power. Could it be that some unforeseen event had occurred?