When the third melody fell, the seawater felt as if it were being held up from below by an invisible hand.
Bai Qingxue's fingers moved rapidly over the holes of her flute. The notes pierced through the ice barrier, condensing in the water into dozens of slender ice cones.
They hovered unhurriedly in the dark, each pointing directly at a sea beast's throat or eye socket, as precise as if someone in the darkness were pointing out every single vital spot for her.
Right after, Bai Qingxue released the final note.
The ice cones shot forward simultaneously, carving dozens of silver-white trails through the dark green water.
The first one to hit its mark drove into the side of a sea beast's neck, piercing through a gap in its scales and running straight through its flesh to emerge from the other side.
Dark red blood welled out. The sea beast's body stiffened abruptly before sinking limply toward the seabed.
Sensing the danger, the remaining sea beasts retreated all at once.
They retreated even faster than they had approached. One by one, the dull yellow pinpricks of light sank back behind the tangled coral branches and into the shadows of the seabed fissures, as if something had summoned them back to their slumber.
In the dark waters, only the dark red patterns on the altar continued to pulse slowly, twitching slightly in the darkness like a half-open eye.
Bai Qingxue lowered her flute.
Her breathing was shallower than usual now. The moment her fingertips left the holes of the flute, the eerie blue light on the surface of her ice armor dimmed.
At the same time, a faint, burning heat flared on the inside of her wrist, right where the restriction lay beneath her ice armor.
However, Bai Qingxue merely lowered her eyes, choosing not to look.
For the moment she lowered her gaze, a figure stepped out from the shadows on the other side of the altar.
The newcomer wore a black robe, walking with casual ease despite being in the deep sea.
The carcasses of the sea beasts split open silently beneath his feet. The seawater parted half a foot away from his body, pushed aside as if by an invisible barrier.
He made no attempt to conceal his cultivation aura, which spread outward to reveal that he, like Bai Qingxue, was in the late stage of Foundation Establishment.
He walked to the edge of the altar and stopped. His gaze first fell upon Bai Qingxue's slightly pale lips, and his lips curled into a smirk.
“That was a fine performance, disciple of the Xuantian Sect.”
“But a spell like that must have drained you quite a bit. How much spiritual power do you have left? Thirty percent? Twenty?”
Bai Qingxue didn't answer. She simply held the Frost Moon Chant horizontally before her, her finger pads resting over the holes without playing.
The man took another step forward.
A dark red light surged from his palm, condensing into a twisted shadow in the water. Like a bodiless serpent, it slithered along the seabed toward Bai Qingxue's ankles.
Bai Qingxue was about to retreat.
A deep blue light slashed down from the side, striking the twisted shadow precisely at its neck.
The shadow hissed and dissolved into the seawater, scattering into countless tiny, dark red specks of light like ashes blown away by the wind.
Unnoticed, Ning Qinghan had moved from the ice wall to stand in front of Bai Qingxue.
Her bare feet stepped onto the coral stones at the edge of the altar. The layer of white frost on her insteps had completely melted away, replaced by an extremely faint, deep blue spiritual glow, as if the moonlight on the water's surface had been absorbed into her skin.
“For someone in the late stage of Foundation Establishment, you're being awfully bold with my companion. Are you really going to look down on me like this?”
Ning Qinghan spoke in a very light, casual tone, as if making small talk. Yet, her aura had completely changed.
The deep blue spiritual power surged from within her, climbing up her bare ankles, passing her wrists, shoulders, and the side of her neck, like a suit of armor being activated inch by inch.
Peak Foundation Establishment.
The man's footsteps halted. He shifted his gaze from Bai Qingxue to Ning Qinghan, the smirk on his face fading slightly.
“You...” He narrowed his eyes. “Where did you come from?”
Ning Qinghan tilted her head. “Take a guess.”
The man sneered. “So what if you're at peak Foundation Establishment? Your aura is unstable, your spiritual power is impure, and your foundation is as flimsy as sand. You dared to put on airs in front of me with cultivation forced up by external means?”
As he spoke, the dark red light in his palm coalesced once more. This time, it was denser and thicker, nearly turning solid, its edges shimmering with a corrosive dark glow.
He took a step forward, and the dark shadow surged out like a tidal wave.
Only to be sliced right through by a deep blue light barrier.
Ning Qinghan hadn't even lifted a hand.
The deep blue light spread from the coral stones beneath her feet, raising a thin, transparent light barrier between the two of them.
The shadow slammed into it. The light barrier remained perfectly still, while a corner of the shadow shattered, scattering like spray hitting a reef and dispersing into fine droplets.
The man's expression shifted.
He took half a step back, staring at the light barrier for a couple of breaths before looking up at Ning Qinghan again.
His gaze lingered on her face for a moment, as if recalculating his options, or perhaps trying to recognize a silhouette he should have known. His lips parted slightly as if to speak, but in the end, he only furrowed his brow.
Standing behind the light barrier, Ning Qinghan kept her hands at her sides, her posture unchanged. Her bare feet rested on the coral stones, the deep blue spiritual light flowing along the curve of her insteps like a lit lamp.
“Who on earth are you?” the man demanded. This time, there was no trace of his previous arrogance.
Ning Qinghan did not answer him.
She tilted her head, glancing over her shoulder at Bai Qingxue behind her.
Bai Qingxue leaned against the ice wall, her hand gripping the Frost Moon Chant still trembling slightly.
Ning Qinghan withdrew her gaze and said, “None of your business.”
The man stared at her and sneered.
“I don't need to know who you are. But I know exactly who carries that restriction. You can protect her for now, but you can't protect her forever.”
Having said his piece, the man chose not to linger.
A dark red token lit up in his palm, enveloping him in its glow. He began to drift backward, supported by the undercurrents beneath his feet, about to sink into the deeper darkness.
But Ning Qinghan moved.
Deep blue spiritual light burst from her toes, the force tearing open a passage through the water.
Ning Qinghan took a step forward. Her second step cleared the coral pillars at the edge of the altar, and her third step landed directly above the water the man was retreating into.
She raised her hand and spread her fingers. Deep blue light surged from her palm, piercing straight through his dark red protective spiritual light. As she clenched her fist, the light condensed into a collar that clamped tightly around his throat.
The man's eyes widened in shock as he finally got a clear look at her face.
“Saint...”
The word was cut short after half a syllable, choked off by the tightening collar.
The deep blue light spread along the side of his neck, seeping into his skin and meridians.
His body convulsed violently, his limbs thrashing in the water as his dark red protective light shattered piece by piece, like a shell peeling away from the inside.
Ning Qinghan's hand did not shake.
She watched him struggle with an expressionless face. After a few more breaths, his thrashing grew weak, and the dark red light went out completely. His body tilted backward, dragged down into the abyss by the deep blue collar.
Ning Qinghan released her grip.
The deep blue light receded and dissolved into the current, leaving not even a ripple behind.
She then turned and walked back to Bai Qingxue's side, her bare feet stepping on the coral stones. The layer of spiritual light on her insteps was slowly receding, like moisture left behind by a retreating tide.
Crouching down at the edge of the ice wall, Ning Qinghan looked down at Bai Qingxue's hand holding the flute, her gaze lingering for a moment on those slender fingers.
“Can you stand up on your own?”
Bai Qingxue looked up, meeting her gaze, and asked instead, “I thought you were a weak woman?”
Ning Qinghan blinked in surprise, then curled her lips into a smile, though the amusement didn't reach her eyes.
“I was just saying that. Did you actually believe me, Immortal Master Bai?”
With that, Ning Qinghan stood up and offered her hand to Bai Qingxue, palm up. Her fingers were clean and spotless, showing no trace of having crushed a man's throat just moments ago.
Bai Qingxue stared at the outstretched hand. After a brief pause, she ultimately stood up on her own.
Ning Qinghan wasn't bothered by this, her lips still curved in a faint smile.
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