Chapter 248: Suck It Dry

Xuan Ming never expected Chen Fei to still have the strength to fight back!

“How interesting! Truly fascinating!” Xuan Ming chuckled, clearly amused despite his earlier surprise at Chen Fei’s techniques. But he quickly shook his head, laughing softly.

“In the past, I might’ve waited to see how far you’d grow. But now… enough. Let me show you what true power is!”

He raised his hand.

Flesh visibly began to regrow across Xuan Ming’s skeletal form, quickly forming a youthful body—but only halfway. It was clear that even this state was hard for him to maintain.

He frowned, clearly dissatisfied with his current condition.

“Your strength is great, but your methods are far too crude,” he said with a tone of regret. Then, with a flick of his finger—

A seemingly casual motion—

—but the space in front of him tore apart instantly.

Chen Fei felt the surge of danger and immediately raised his massive, blunt-edged sword in defense.

CLANG!

A thunderous boom echoed as Chen Fei was sent flying backwards.

His feet skidded across the ground, gouging twin trenches in the earth.

Even with his formidable body, Chen Fei felt as if his entire frame had nearly shattered.

Still, he had managed to block the blow!

More importantly, he noticed something strange—

The Xu Tian Cauldron began to tremble!

When Xuan Ming regenerated half his body, the cauldron emitted a familiar craving.

But the problem remained—Xuan Ming was far too strong! If they continued fighting here, it would be a one-sided massacre.

Without hesitation, Chen Fei made a decision. With a wave of his hand, Ziqing Palace—a majestic, floating structure—appeared in midair.

The display stunned the members of the Chen family. Even among the core family members, only a few had entered the ancestral domain.

Climbing out of the rubble, Chen Wang’s face went slack with shock.

“The core of the ancestral ground?”

Chen Fei ignored the crowd. He activated Ziqing Palace and immediately turned to dive into it.

“Still hiding tricks?” Xuan Ming snorted, instantly vanishing and reappearing behind Chen Fei.

But entering the palace was simply a matter of will for Chen Fei. He had fumbled deliberately, all to lure Xuan Ming in.

And it worked.

Without hesitation, Xuan Ming followed him inside.

But the moment he entered—

A massive cauldron was waiting for him.

“How childish,” Xuan Ming sneered, waving a hand dismissively and striking the cauldron.

The Xu Tian Cauldron trembled faintly—then suddenly, an overwhelming suction force exploded from within.

Xuan Ming’s expression finally changed.

“What the hell is this thing?!” he howled.

The cauldron was madly absorbing his power.

He had spent countless years recuperating, secretly siphoning off Chen family members just to gather enough energy to regenerate half his body. And now, in just one breath, he lost 1% of his total power.

It might sound small, but for someone like Xuan Ming, it was equivalent to three years of cultivation—gone in an instant!

Worse still—

He couldn’t escape the cauldron’s pull!

Seeing this, Chen Fei smiled.

It worked!

“Who are you really? What happened to my father?!” Chen Fei shouted, unleashing a slicing sword aura—Void Severing Slash—that swept toward Xuan Ming.

The move would’ve been deadly to any ordinary cultivator at the Yuan Realm. But against Xuan Ming, it barely registered.

Not that Chen Fei expected it to hurt him.

All he needed to do was stall for time—the cauldron would handle the rest.

Better yet—Chen Fei could recover energy mid-fight, while Xuan Ming was being drained.

Judging by the rage in Xuan Ming’s eyes, he wouldn’t last long at all.

“You want answers? I won’t tell you!” Xuan Ming sneered, though a trace of desperation flickered in his eyes.

Then—he made a brutal choice.

He severed his own arm.

The moment it fell away, Xuan Ming vanished, reappearing elsewhere in the palace.

“You only get one chance. Don’t worry—I won’t kill you quickly. I’ll make sure you feel every moment of your slow, painful death,” he snarled.

Losing that arm clearly enraged him.

But Chen Fei just laughed.

This was his domain.

“Shrink,” Chen Fei whispered.

Suddenly, the vast Ziqing Palace shrunk in size, catching Xuan Ming completely off guard.

Worse still—the shrinking space meant the Xu Tian Cauldron was now pressed right up against his face.

“You little—!”

Xuan Ming had never been this humiliated, not even after achieving the Great Dao.

And now, a mere ant had cornered him.

“You’re dead!” he roared.

But to Chen Fei, it was nothing more than rage-fueled barking.

If he were truly capable—come get me.

Chen Fei didn’t speak. Instead, he struck again—another Void Severing Slash, but this time, not at Xuan Ming—

at the cauldron.

The impact shoved the Xu Tian Cauldron against Xuan Ming’s chest.

The suction ramped up to full force.

Xuan Ming’s eyes went dark.

The precious flesh he’d regenerated—withered instantly, his body reverting to its skeletal form.

“Damn you, insect! I’ll kill you!” Xuan Ming howled in fury.

But it was obvious—he was completely overpowered.

Inside Ziqing Palace, he couldn’t even counterattack.

Though Xuan Ming appeared desperate and cornered, Chen Fei remained cautious.

This was an ancient monster—who knew what kind of tricks he still had?

Now was not the time for arrogance.

He watched warily as Xuan Ming’s body visibly dried up, his power completely countered by the cauldron.

“Fine! I’ll remember this!”

The soul flames within Xuan Ming’s skull flickered violently, and even in his skeletal form, one could feel his burning hatred for Chen Fei.

“No!”

Chen Fei’s heart sank. He struck out immediately.

Too late.

Xuan Ming’s body exploded violently.

The blast hurled the Xu Tian Cauldron aside—

—right into Chen Fei’s body, where it merged with him.

Chen Fei’s face changed instantly.

At the center of the explosion, the soul flame flickered once—then darted out of Ziqing Palace, unimpeded.

Chen Fei rushed after it—but the flame was already gone.

Letting an enemy of that level escape—especially one holding such hatred—was terrifying.

Xuan Ming’s bizarre methods were far beyond what Chen Fei could understand.

He stood silently in front of the palace, lost in thought.

But the rest of the Chen family members quickly gathered around him—

—this time, with burning admiration in their eyes.

The Ancestral Bloodline Awakening had changed everything.

As Chen Fei grew stronger, the entire family’s bloodline would grow with him!

And though Chen Fei was only at the Yuan Realm now—so what?

With the full support of the Chen family’s resources, his rise was no longer in question.