Chapter Forty-Five: Stepping Through the Void

Clang!!

It was as if a cannonball had struck the blade of the Thousand-Forge Saber.

A powerful backlash nearly wrenched the weapon from Xu Chen’s grip. With sheer force of will and the circulation of his blood energy, he managed to dissipate the force.

Seeing that the Thousand-Forge Saber remained unbroken, the doppelganger’s face revealed a flicker of surprise.

In that instant, Xu Chen forced his blood energy to surge, slashing the saber fiercely toward the doppelganger.

“Desolation Slash!”

The shimmering blade aura cut toward the doppelganger.

At the very moment of the strike, Xu Chen felt the saber slice through the doppelganger’s skin.

The doppelganger instantly retreated several yards, looking down at his own abdomen.

“Come, come, we’re already past a hundred moves. Let me see if you have a third stage.”

Xu Chen swung the saber again, aiming for the doppelganger.

“Boosting your strength with medicine, applying poison to your weapon—these combined finally managed to injure me,” the doppelganger said. Behind him, the phantom of the Sacred Ape roared in fury, his eyes turning blood-red.

“These weapons and poisons can restrain me.”

“But you’ve forgotten one thing.”

“In front of me, you’re still a little nobody!”

The doppelganger’s palm cut through the blade’s radiance, seizing Xu Chen by the neck and snapping it cleanly. Yet, as he did, the blade light severed the doppelganger’s arm.

“This is only the beginning,” Xu Chen said with his last breath, a defiant expression on the doppelganger’s face.

His consciousness reformed within the sacred white space.

“The Corrupted Blood Sap isn’t toxic enough. When applied to the blade, as long as it wounds the doppelganger, he goes mad and will stop at nothing to kill me.”

“With such a disparity in strength, I’m bound to die first.”

“I must quickly concoct a poison that can disperse through the air, along with its antidote.”

Sitting cross-legged in the sacred white space, Xu Chen replayed the battle in his mind.

“Earlier, I took two doses of Seven Wounds Balm and two Blood-Burning Pills—my strength increased by at least the power of a tiger. This can be optimized further.”

“If I’m still lacking, I’ll spend another month cultivating in that Treasure Nurturing Small World.”

“I need to forge another Thousand-Forge Saber.”

Xu Chen looked toward the wooden door of the Sacred Ape’s Six Forms. Any weapon that landed there would disappear upon a second entry.

With that thought, he rose and entered the gate of Forging Arts.

At dawn, Xu Chen flew straight to the market at the foot of Spirit Herb Mountain.

While riding the Wind Spirit Bird and admiring the sect’s scenery, a distant figure suddenly caught his attention.

He saw a silhouette striding upon the wind, each step unleashing a faint sonic boom.

“Little Grandmaster.” Xu Chen was just about to approach and pay his respects when a voice sounded in his mind.

“The Little Grandmaster is cultivating. Do not disturb.”

Hearing this, Xu Chen changed direction and continued flying toward the market.

“A Little Grandmaster at the Blood Energy realm, walking on the wind without any external aid?”

“What kind of blood energy foundation technique is this?” Xu Chen was intensely curious.

He had browsed nearly every blood energy foundation technique in the sect’s library, but had never encountered one that allowed walking on the wind.

The Wind Spirit Bird landed gently outside the market, and Xu Chen headed to a familiar shop.

“Junior Brother Xu, what kind of herbs will you be buying today?” the shop assistant greeted him.

“Senior Brother Liu, did you find that poison formula I asked your shop to look for?” Xu Chen inquired.

“As you requested, we did find a formula. Poison Sand Powder and its antidote. But it’s extremely rare, and the supplier is asking a high price.”

“Five thousand spirit coins. Can you accept that?” The assistant took out a ledger and turned to Xu Chen’s commission slip.

“Five thousand spirit coins.” Xu Chen frowned slightly.

Even the most expensive formulas here rarely exceeded five hundred spirit coins.

After some quick mental calculation, Xu Chen gave up on the purchase.

After leaving the shop, he headed straight for the sect’s Miscellaneous Affairs Hall.

At the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, Xu Chen looked up at the list of tasks available for disciples at the Blood Energy realm.

He wanted to make a trip to Danling City in Leizhou, the place outside the five great sects that gathered the most alchemists.

Correspondingly, it was also where the most complete range of medicinal herbs and formulas could be found.

He searched the task list in the light screen for a long while, but found nothing.

Just as he was about to give up, a jade-like hand landed on his shoulder.

“Greetings, Chief Bai,” Xu Chen said, turning to see Chief Bai and bowing.

“Coming to the Miscellaneous Hall and not even stopping by to see me?”

“What task are you looking for?” Chief Bai’s beautiful eyes sized him up.

“Chief Bai, I’d like to find a task that takes me to Danling City. I have some matters to attend to there,” Xu Chen answered directly.

In the sect, only disciples on official tasks could leave.

“Come with me.”

Chief Bai glanced at Xu Chen, her graceful figure swaying as she walked into the inner hall. Xu Chen hurried after her.

In front of a spherical, intricate artifact, Chief Bai took out a command token and tossed it to Xu Chen.

“Danling City is one of the most prosperous cities in Leizhou. Most tasks there involve purchasing or market surveys.”

“Such tasks are rarely assigned to ordinary disciples.”

“Recently, the sect is purchasing a large batch of basic cultivation elixirs. As usual, another small batch will be bought in Danling City for price comparison.”

“I’m assigning this task to you. The list and spirit coins are in the storage space inside the token.”

“Go to the sect’s teleportation hall. With this token, you can teleport to and from Danling City,” Chief Bai said gently.

Xu Chen examined the token and sensed a storage space within, containing one million spirit coins and a pill list.

“Chief Bai, this task...” Xu Chen was at a loss for words—any fool could see how valuable this opportunity was.

“Consider it a favor. If you ever come across a Three-Colored Fox Tribe in trouble, lend a helping hand.”

“Is there anything I should watch out for on this task?” Xu Chen asked.

“Buy from the largest pill shops in Danling City at regular prices, nothing more.” Chief Bai gave him a knowing look.

Xu Chen nodded in understanding, then went straight to the sect’s teleportation hall.

At the foot of the main peak of Grand Creek Sect stood a massive palace.

Jade floors, coiling dragon columns, and a grand hall dozens of yards tall.

Inside were seventy-two small teleportation arrays and four large ones, arranged on either side of the vast hall.

The scene reminded Xu Chen of the waiting hall at a high-speed rail station in his previous life.

Upon entering, he saw over a thousand disciples coming and going via the arrays, all with higher cultivation than his.

Following the instructions, Xu Chen quickly found the small array leading to Danling City.

He showed his token to the nearby guard and entered the array.

Once ten disciples had gathered, the formation activated.

It felt as though Xu Chen had entered a tunnel through space and time. When he regained his senses, he was already standing on a strange teleportation array.

“Hurry up and get out—the next group is waiting.”

Urged by the attendant, Xu Chen and the other nine quickly left the array.

Looking around the teleportation hall of Danling City, Xu Chen saw that, while not as grand as his sect’s, it bustled with extraordinary prosperity.