Volume 1 Volume 6 Chapter 45

Volume 6 Chapter 45: Embarrassment, Disappointment, Ambition, Conflict

At first, with a cold expression, he spoke of a duel, but just moments later, he turned and fled. Such things have happened in the cultivation world for thousands of years. Low-level cultivators who are weak-minded but like to boast often do this. Even in the ordinary world, bullies who prey on the weak are familiar with this behavior.

But if Feng Qingtian was the main character in this story, it was a different matter.

Even if Feng Qingtian suddenly committed suicide or transformed into a woman at this moment, Xu Qingfan would not be more surprised than he was now!

Feng Qingtian actually ran away in front of him! He hadn’t even made a move yet!

In Xu Qingfan’s mind, Feng Qingtian was the type of person who would rather die in battle than run away, and now this unbelievable event was vividly happening right in front of him.

If Feng Qingtian were running away from a master, Xu Qingfan could understand, but the fact that Feng Qingtian was running away right in front of him was truly astonishing.

"When did I become so powerful that I could scare Feng Qingtian away?"

At that moment, Xu Qingfan was stunned, as if in a dream.

Xu Qingfan truly was not that powerful; in fact, all of this was just a misunderstanding, which led to a comical scene between him and Feng Qingtian in the midst of their great battle. Thankfully, it was not Xu Qingfan who made a fool of himself, but the normally cold Feng Qingtian.

When Xu Qingfan finally came back to his senses and hid his feelings of disbelief deep inside, ready to leave, he noticed that Feng Qingtian had returned.

…

Before, when he fled, he seemed panicked; now, as he came back, he was still being very careful.

Feng Qingtian’s next words finally explained the confusion in Xu Qingfan’s mind.

"This is the place where the legendary Mythical Beast Kylin has lived for generations, and many ancient wild beasts are hidden here. Instead of hiding your presence, you are letting your power show. Do you want to fight me to the end like this? Or are you too foolish to even think of that?"

Feng Qingtian first carefully looked into the depths of the cave before turning to Xu Qingfan and coldly mocking him.

Clearly, Feng Qingtian knew that there was a hidden secret of the "Jiazi Cave" in the cave, but he didn’t realize that all the ancient wild beasts in the black mountain were already dead. No wonder Feng Qingtian was so hesitant before entering the cave and cautious after he did; he was afraid of being discovered by the ancient wild beasts inside.

In fact, it is not entirely Feng Qingtian’s fault, as this information about the demon beasts in the Southern Wasteland being almost all dead is unknown to anyone in the cultivation world except Xu Qingfan. Faced with a great number of ancient wild beasts, even the top human powers like Mr. Liu and Zhang Xusheng could only flee in panic, so it is understandable that Feng Qingtian wanted to escape.

But thinking back on the events, Xu Qingfan still found it a bit funny, especially when it came to Feng Qingtian.

In the midst of this oddity, Xu Qingfan felt a sudden stirring in his heart and thought, when did Feng Qingtian become so timid? If it were the Feng Qingtian from years ago, he would never have turned pale even if he were not strong enough.

Seeing Xu Qingfan’s strange expression, Feng Qingtian coldly said, "You didn’t know there were ancient wild beasts here? Never mind, let’s step outside and battle again."

Xu Qingfan suddenly asked, "So, does that mean your revenge plan is almost complete?"

Feng Qingtian had already turned to walk outside the cave, but upon hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, he paused for a moment and asked, "What do you mean by that?"

Xu Qingfan shook his head and said slowly, "To tell you the truth, in this cave, there are no terrifying ancient wild beasts, and not even a single ordinary demon beast can be seen. Those ancient wild beasts have all died completely over the past thousand years due to certain events."

Hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, Feng Qingtian was slightly taken aback. He thought about how he had acted, and an unexpected hint of embarrassment appeared on his originally cold face. However, that hint of embarrassment quickly vanished, replaced by a colder and darker expression.

Xu Qingfan paid no attention to Feng Qingtian’s changing expression and continued, "You think there are still ancient demon beasts in this cave and that I might attract their attention if I make a sound, which would make you want to run away. There’s nothing wrong with that. Not just you and me, but any human cultivator would run away when faced with a large number of ancient demon beasts. But what truly surprised me is that at that moment, you seemed so terrified and frantic, as if you were a completely different person from who I remember."

Feng Qingtian’s expression grew colder as he quietly listened to Xu Qingfan’s words.

"With your personality, even in life-or-death moments, you shouldn’t act so helpless. Although I had a strong presence earlier, the ancient demon beasts had not yet arrived, and you were already eager to escape. This can only mean one thing: after all these years, you have come to value your life incredibly, and in moments of danger, your first thought is only to protect yourself."

"But that’s not who you are. Remember when you fought against Junior Brother Jin? There were many times you fought with your life on the line. For you, the pride of your Feng family and your honor were far more important than your own life."

"Everyone is like that; the closer we get to success, the more we cherish our lives. In the mortal world, at the beginning of their reign, every emperor leads the charge, personally participating in battles. But as their power grows and their goals draw near, they lose the sharpness they once had, standing far behind, riding the fastest horses with the most elite guards protecting their lives. While these examples may not compare directly to your current situation, they still illustrate a lot. You are nearing success, and to witness that moment, to experience that feeling, you no longer prioritize your honor and pride above all else, but instead cherish your life much more. Am I right?"

Feng Qingtian remained silent, but the icy coldness in his eyes became even more apparent.

Xu Qingfan sighed and added, "Or perhaps there are other reasons, and maybe that reason is the real main one."

"What other reasons are there?"

Feng Qingtian finally spoke up, asking coldly.

"Ambition." Xu Qingfan’s tone suddenly had a hint of disappointment and sadness. "Before you entered that mysterious ‘Jiazi Cave,’ I secretly watched you in some way. Do you know what I felt then? I felt a chill in my heart, as if you were no longer the familiar Feng Qingtian, but a highly poisonous snake. At that moment, I thought, although your aura has become extremely cold and dark, it shouldn’t make me feel this way. But now I realize, while you were searching for ‘Jiazi Cave,’ I saw not only coldness in your eyes but also a strong ambition, a willingness to do anything to achieve your goal. Because of this strong ambition, you stopped caring about honor and pride, and began to treasure your life more."

After a pause, Xu Qingfan looked at Feng Qingtian and sighed, "Over these hundred years, you have truly changed so much. When you betrayed Jiuhua back then, although you almost killed me, I did not hate you; instead, I felt pity for you. To me, you were like Junior Brother Jin, a pure cultivator, with no other thoughts in your mind. But the hatred of your family changed everything about you. And now, with ambition, your ambition actually chills my heart. You are no longer the Feng Qingtian of the past."

Just as Xu Qingfan sighed, Feng Qingtian suddenly smiled.

Though the smile was incredibly cold and dark, it was the first time Xu Qingfan had seen Feng Qingtian smile since he met him.

"Do you know who the first person I met after escaping Jiuhua was?"

Feng Qingtian gently asked.

"I don’t know."

"It’s Zhang Xusheng, the one who wiped out my Feng family."

After hearing Feng Qingtian’s words, Xu Qingfan was a little shocked.

Feng Qingtian did not pay attention to Xu Qingfan’s surprise; his eyes became a bit distant, as if recalling the scene from that time.

"Back then, Zhang Xusheng once told me, ‘The stronger the hatred, the stronger the desire, the stronger your power will become.’ It cannot be denied that, although he is my enemy, what he said was indeed true. Over the years, my strength has grown so quickly because my hatred has become stronger and I have developed more desire."

Feng Qingtian said softly.

"You cannot imagine the hidden secrets of the Mythical Beast family and the immense power they hold. Even I, who can control it, am shocked by this power. Once you understand this power, once you discover that you can possess it, you will, like me, slowly begin to harbor ambition. Because once you control this power, you can have everything you desire: revenge, restoring the Feng family, even dominating the cultivation world can be easily achieved. Ambition only grows stronger as your knowledge and power increase."

Feng Qingtian slowly spoke, a faint smile playing at the corners of his mouth. Xu Qingfan had never seen Zhang Xusheng; otherwise, he would be shocked to realize how much Feng Qingtian resembled Zhang Xusheng at that moment.

As he spoke, Feng Qingtian wiped the smile from his lips, and his gaze grew cold as he stared at Xu Qingfan, softly saying, "However, I must thank you. Over the years, I have indeed noticed my own significant changes, both in strength and in character. The changes in strength are clear, but the changes in character are something I can’t quite explain. Yet your words have allowed me to truly confront my ambition and have made my goals clearer."

"The stronger the desire, the stronger the power. I feel as if I can sense an even greater strength within me now."

Feng Qingtian whispered to himself softly.

…

Xu Qingfan listened quietly to Feng Qingtian’s story. After Feng Qingtian finished speaking, Xu Qingfan’s face was very serious. His presence grew stronger as he stared at Feng Qingtian and said, word by word, "I cannot agree with Zhang Xusheng’s words. I do not fully understand the strength of the secrets your Mythical Beast family hides, but what I do know is that you are slowly becoming another Zhang Xusheng. Perhaps not as cunning as Zhang Xusheng, but in the future, you will be even more frightening."

"Are you thinking of changing your mind and fighting me?" Feeling the change in Xu Qingfan’s presence, Feng Qingtian said, "Perhaps I really am beginning to care about life and death, but at this moment, I want to see if you will be fearless before you die."

As Feng Qingtian spoke, Xu Qingfan had already taken action.

Xu Qingfan raised his hands, and suddenly, "Rainbow Ruler" appeared in front of him, turning into seven colorful rays of light that shot toward Feng Qingtian’s vital points at lightning speed.

Sensing the timing and force of the "Rainbow Ruler’s" attack, Feng Qingtian nodded slightly and said, "You have indeed made great progress over the years."

As he spoke, the seven rays of light from "Rainbow Ruler" stabbed into Feng Qingtian’s body, but at that moment, Feng Qingtian transformed into a ball of flames. After being struck by the "Rainbow Ruler," he exploded into sparks that scattered throughout the cave.

The sparks surrounded Xu Qingfan, and then they turned into flames. The flames formed fireballs that connected with each other and became a raging sea of fire, with countless waves rising ten feet high, crashing toward Xu Qingfan, who was surrounded in the middle.

"The Technique of Mars Spreading Flames."

Xu Qingfan knew about Feng Qingtian’s move. He and Jin Qinghan had both suffered from this trick before. When Feng Qingtian first used it against Xu Qingfan, it was not perfect yet. When he used it against Jin Qinghan, it was better, but still much weaker than now.

At that moment, Feng Qingtian’s true self was hidden in the sea of flames. Every spark could be Feng Qingtian’s true form, and he could instantly move to any spark. If you could not find his true form, you would only be able to passively defend against the endless attacks of the sea of flames. The sea of flames seemed small, but each spark was made up of countless fire Spirit Qi, which was very powerful. Controlling such dense fire Spirit Qi, Feng Qingtian’s control was much stronger than before.

Xu Qingfan, of course, would not just wait. With a wave of his hands, the "Five Spirit Bell" appeared instantly, forming a colorful shield around him. No matter how the waves of fire crashed, he remained steadfast in the center.

However, Xu Qingfan did not close his eyes to sense Feng Qingtian’s true self as he had before. Xu Qingfan knew that Feng Qingtian would never attack him with a skill that he understood. There must be hidden tricks that Feng Qingtian had not used yet. Closing his eyes to find Feng Qingtian’s true form would only give Feng Qingtian an opportunity.

Sure enough, after several waves of fire struck without success, Feng Qingtian’s hidden move appeared.

Under Feng Qingtian’s fire magic, the temperature in the cave quickly rose, and the rocks turned to gas in an instant. But suddenly, the hot temperature dropped sharply, a cold wind howled, and the cave became extremely chilly in an instant.

At the same time, the sea of fire surrounding Xu Qingfan changed from bright red flames to dark blue. The flames, which should have been hot, were now very cold, yet still appeared flame-like, giving an incredibly strange feeling.

The cold dark blue flames turned into waves again, crashing toward Xu Qingfan. On top of the waves, the dark blue flames transformed into countless faces. Each face showed different expressions, but all reflected pain, fear, and hatred. The many dark blue faces opened their mouths wide and screamed, their cries echoed from the waves of fire, capturing people’s hearts and minds.

But Xu Qingfan’s face was serious because he realized that these dark blue flames were an even greater threat to him than the Phoenix Spirit Fire before.

Although the dark blue fire had changed greatly in form, Xu Qingfan still sharply observed that its essence remained the Phoenix Spirit Fire, but it was now filled with powerful evil Spirit Qi and countless vengeful souls, which not only increased its power but also added strange ways to use it. It seemed that Feng Qingtian had learned many dark supernatural techniques in the "Ming" organization over the years and combined them with his Feng family cultivation method.

"Boom…"

Xu Qingfan decided to test the power of Feng Qingtian’s new techniques. Instead of dodging the strange waves of dark blue fire, he commanded the "Five Spirit Bell" to meet them head-on. The moment the dark blue waves clashed with the barrier formed by the "Five Spirit Bell," a huge rumbling sound erupted.

To Xu Qingfan’s surprise, the destructive power of the dark blue flames was far less than he had imagined, even weaker than pure Phoenix Spirit Fire.

But Feng Qingtian seemed completely unaware, still controlling the dark blue flames to form countless waves that attacked Xu Qingfan.

Something unusual must be a sign of danger.

Faced with Feng Qingtian’s unreasonable attacks, Xu Qingfan’s expression grew more serious. He controlled the "Rainbow Ruler" to continually pierce through the waves while calming the restless Little Black, carefully observing Feng Qingtian’s offensive.

Feng Qingtian’s methods surely wouldn’t be limited to just this. Until Feng Qingtian revealed his true intentions, Xu Qingfan, despite having many strategies, remained cautious. Against an opponent like Feng Qingtian, even a slight recklessness could lead to an irreversible situation.

Sure enough, not long after Xu Qingfan started watching, Feng Qingtian’s surprise attack appeared.