Chapter 359 - Defence And Attack
"Another one!"
Xuefeng cried out happily after smashing one more Disk into grits and prepared for another attack. After getting the gist of it, Xuefeng could freely control all three swords of his, slashing left and right as he defended himself. They were no longer moving around clumsily but rather acting like the extension of his arms even though he wasn't the one holding them.
Seeing Xuefeng so eager to train, Nuwa smiled and decided it was finally time to increase the intensity of her training, "Well done. I guess we are done with our warm-up. Shall we start with the main training?" She already prepared something special for him which would force him to push himself further.
Xuefeng was getting excited with his progress but hearing her words, the spark that lit up his enthusiasm disappeared in a flash. "Huh? That was only a warm-up...?" He asked confused as he impaled his three swords into the ground, suddenly feeling weak from utilizing his Spirit for so long even though he was super energetic just a moment ago.
Instead of replying, Nuwa grinned and suddenly tens of Earth Qi disks started forming all around her, shocking Xuefeng as he knew what would she use those disks for. "I told you we won't stop training until you can control all ten swords. You can already control three really well so you should handle some more. It will be getting dark soon so we have to increase the pace." She said as she looked at the sun that was slowly hiding behind the walls of the courtyard.
Xuefeng wasn't someone who would easily give up so he pulled himself together and stood firmly on the ground, crying out as all ten training sword suddenly flew into the air, surrounding him, "Fine! Bring it on! If you can do it, so can I!"
As he looked back at his life this world, so far he didn't actually train hard yet with everything being really relatively easy to grasp. This time he wasn't using anyone's help to study his bloodline's ability and he wanted to finally master something on his own.
All ten training swords were kind of wobbly hovering around him, looking as if one single blow of the wind would crush his formation but Xuefeng didn't give up, splitting his mind into ten parts as he tried to keep them up in the air. Although each individual sword was weak, he believed he would master the control over them soon enough.
Although he was good at multitasking, it was still had to do more than ten things at the same time. He had to move each sword separately while also making sure they were flying in the direction he wanted.
Fortunately, Nuwa was patient enough to wait for him to stabilize before she would attack. At first, she thought he would add one sword each time she increases the difficulty so she was pleasantly surprised when he jumped into deep water right away.
With enough time, Xuefeng even closed his eyes to aid in keeping his focus in check and adjusted each sword, making them hover firmly in front of him in the orderly fashion. They acted like a shield for him and he was very satisfied with himself when he saw them keep that position even when he opened his eyes.
Grinning at Nuwa, he bowed as if he was showing off his control and called out with confidence, "Thanks for waiting. I am ready now. Show me what you got!" As long as he keeps his focus, he was sure he could somehow manage his defence.
"Haha," Nuwa laughed when she heard him, feeling bad to actually crush his confidence but she believed it was best for learning. She did not say anything else and simply launched the promised attack.
Flicking her finger left and right, she sent ten disks in quick succession. As they were not too far from each other, Xuefeng didn't have a lot of time for a reaction but that didn't discourage him. There were ten disks and he had ten swords. How hard would it be to aim one sword at one target?
Well, the answer seems to be easy but in this case, it was the opposite. It was god damn hard! His swords were placed in a formation around him but he didn't take Nuwa's skills into consideration while calculating his chances which brought his doom.
Although he planned to use his skill in the manipulation of three swords to destroy the disks three at a time, Nuwa attacked him on two fronts. One team of five swords back from behind while the other from the side. When one sword was busy, another disk would bypass it, heading straight towards Xuefeng's body.
Xuefeng had to forcefully use other swords to smash it but that action made him completely lose control on another front. Although he destroyed four from the side and another one at the back, the other five still hit him, blasting him a few meters away. For some reason, the disks were much heavier than before, causing him to flinch from pain.
Seeing all swords fall to the ground, as he laid on the ground, Nuwa taught him, "If you won't defend properly, the hits will only hurt more. Your defence is good but unless you are capable of controlling all of them together, you won't be able to fully block every attack. First, you have to focus on increasing the number of swords you can control before strengthening power behind each of them."
Xuefeng sat up and let a deep breath as he said, "Sigh, I know, but the moment I use more than three swords, I lose control over all of them. When you attack from two sides at the same time how am I supposed to defend?"
Nuwa had a quick response for that which made Xuefeng stop complaining, "Who told you to use all swords at the same time?" Hearing him not responding as if he was thinking how to solve the situation, she lifted him up from the distance and explained, "Although it will definitely be harder to take control over all then with your method, I was glad you picked it as that will definitely speed up the process. Just continue to push against the limits and your mind will adapt."
"Alright, I will try harder." Xuefeng nodded, easily regaining the will to fight as he knew from the beginning that it wouldn't be that easy. Just a moment ago, he recalled how a thousand blades could control a thousand daggers as if it was nothing which gave him the confidence that it was definitely possible.
Just as he lifted all swords up again in the air, Ling asked him warmly, 'Xuefeng, do you need help? I can lessen the burden from you—' Unfortunately, Xuefeng already knew he wanted to do everything by himself and rejected her offer, cutting her off, 'No sweetie. I will do everything myself. You also don't need to ease my pain when I get hit. I know you have been helping me from the shadows but this time I want to feel everything. The pain motivates me to try harder.'
'Alright, but I will still nourish your Spirit. You would get seriously hurt if you continue training for such a long time.' Ling agreed with compromise, realising that she couldn't help him with everything else he would feel useless. Having his own strength that he earned by himself would do him well.
Seeing that Xuefeng was ready, Nuwa didn't waste any more time, continuing their training.
...….
"Ughh…" Xuefeng grunted after getting hit for the hundredth time, but he didn't let himself fall on the ground, keeping his balance before crying out determined, "Again!" He didn't want to stop training until he finally masters this, his swords forming into a defensive formation.
It was already evening but even after all this time, Xuefeng was not able to master his defence. He did improve though, managing to control up to five swords at the same time but that still didn't guarantee him success, his body suffering from heavy strikes each assault. Because he stopped Ling from helping him, his body had many cuts and bruises but that didn't convince him to conclude their training.
He wasn't worried about his injuries, everyone else was, especially Yiren who could feel each hit he received. Although it felt as if she was stabbed by a needle, she knew that she only bore a small part of his pains. She didn't want to imagine what he had to feel.
"Mom, can you let him off for today? He already improved a lot. We can continue tomorrow. We are not in a hurry." Yiren begged her mother to stop and honestly, Nuwa also wanted that but it didn't matter when Xuefeng liked to continue.
All other girls nodded their heads in agreement, wanting Xuefeng to stop and Nuwa tried once again, not finding pleasure in hitting him when he was already beaten up, "Xuefeng, we will continue tomorrow. At this rate, it should still take you some time to control all ten swords. What's more, we still need to practise attacking aside from defending. That will add up other long hours of training. None of us wants to see you get hurt. Can't you regenerate your body already?"
Xuefeng looked down at his bruises before glancing at his wives worried expressions and decided to compromise, agreeing to their last plea. Naturally, Ling was already waiting for that, healing him before he even asked for it.
Just then, right when his body recovered, Xuefeng analyzed the rest of Nuwa's words and suddenly paused, thinking, 'Wait… Did she say practise attack?' For some reason, he felt dumb for not realising the idea that popped up in his mind just now.
Why would he wait for the attacker to strike when he can divide his swords and do both, defence and attack at the same time. He grinned when he realised this and called out to Nuwa, already having a plan in his mind, "Please, attack me one more time and we will stop right after that. Okay?"
Chapter 360 - Wager
"Alright." Seeing that Xuefeng was now fully healed, Nuwa decided to give him one last round. She knew it would be hard for him to control all ten swords even if they spent a whole night so it was better to give themselves a night's break first.
'I guess his bloodline is not fully matured yet. Next time he transforms and the Royal Elf Bloodline takes an even bigger chunk of the cake, he would definitely find it easier to use it.' Nuwa thought after analyzing their training tonight. She guessed that he should be already a seventy percent Royal Elf but it was still too little to gain full control over his bloodline ability.
She even thought of taking it easy for the last round but just as she did, Xuefeng called out as if he read her mind, "I want you to give me everything you got. You don't need to go easy on me. I know my limits. This time I will succeed for sure."
"Oh!" This surprised the girls as they exclaimed, seeing his confident smirk and Nuwa asked curiously, "You will? What makes you so sure?" He for sure figured out something or rather thought of a trick he can use to win and just as she expected, he grinned, replying mysteriously, "It's a secret. You will find out when we start."
"Alright, how about we set up a wager then? If you are sure you can win against me, you might as well bet something on it." Nuwa proposed casually, testing Xuefeng's decisiveness but he actually didn't take time to agree, calling out happily, "I'm in! What are the terms then?"
Seeing what was going on, Yiren grabbed her face in unease, knowing it will be hard for Xuefeng to win. She even whispered her opinion to the other girls who gathered around her, already finished with their training, "Ah… Xuefeng shouldn't bet with mom. She never makes a bet when her win is not guaranteed…"
"I believe that Xuefeng can win. It's good that he is confident with his skills. I doubt he would make a bet if he didn't consider everything." Tianshi was the first to defend Xuefeng, her eyes looking at him proudly. For her, Xuefeng was the greatest cultivator so she had unconditional trust in him.
Wuying, who already came back from her mission, also nodded, fully agreeing with that statement and both Yi and Princess Shan followed with their support after her. Only Xiao Wen was still busy with her Fate Spirit Breakthrough but she would definitely cheer with them as well.
Yiren naturally rooted for Xuefeng as well, but she had more information than them, knowing her mother's tendencies to bet. Back in the Holy Land, she was known for her likeness to wager the battles in the arena and everyone was welcomed to bet against her.
It wouldn't be anything special but if anyone looked at the score of her winnings, they would naturally feel hesitant to bet against her. It's because she never lost. Xuefeng already lost once to her on the arena so he should know about her skills. Unfortunately, as Xuefeng was already so hyped, there was no turning back anymore. She could only support him from the side.
Nuwa awakened her dormant betting potential and proposed, "How about this, the one who loses, will do whatever the winning party wants for a whole week and they can't say no. What do you think?"
Xuefeng got intrigued with this bet and accepted it without batting an eye, being sure of his victory, suggesting the conditions, "Alright, what are the conditions for the win? How about you will lose the moment I destroy all ten of your disks and I will lose when you hit me with any of them. What's more, we can only use our bloodline power and Spirit Awareness to fight. You can only control your disks and cannot touch my swords with your power."
Nuwa created ten sturdy Earth Qi Disks as if to show her agreement and asked with a confident smile, "Shall we start then? I cannot wait to receive a massage from a certain someone tonight." She has already beaten him so many times today so she didn't see a world where she would lose.
Setting up the conditions he wanted, Xuefeng also raised his swords, aligning the standard sword formation that was already familiar for Nuwa, awaiting her attack.
Just when Nuwa was about to launch her assault, she was disturbed by the cheerleaders who suddenly voiced out their support, "Go go Xuefeng!"
Tianshi was the first one who started jumping and shouting to hype Xuefeng more, behaving as if she was on a football match back on earth, "You got this! We will root for you!" Naturally, hearing her words, the others also joined her, creating a small fan group who cheered their favourite fighter.
Xuefeng finally understood how did those handsome athletes felt like, having their name chanted from the tribune. He definitely didn't want to disappoint the trust they had in him.
Aiming to decompose his opponent before the fight, Xuefeng bantered, "It seems like everyone thinks you will lose, hehe." Unfortunately, Nuwa was not bothered much by that and even smiled, fighting back, "Of course. I'm also cheering for you. If you can actually win, I will be really impressed. This a win-win bet for me after all."
They exchanged a look and Xuefeng called out, wanting to put his plan into action, "Then attack when you are ready." He didn't need to ask twice as Nuwa was only waiting for that.
Her face welcomed a focused expression as she sent all ten of her disks at the same time straight at Xuefeng. He knew that Nuwa would not go easy on him after setting up the bet so he expected much stronger and faster targets for him but that's exactly what he wanted.
Xuefeng already surrounded his swords with his Spirit Awareness, allowing himself a better precision in his attack before waiting for a perfect moment. He didn't want her to figure out his plan before it was too late for her to react. Naturally, with the short distance between them, he didn't need to wait for too long. The moment all ten disks passed the half-way distance, Xuefeng focused on five of his swords and launched them forward in an explosive fashion.
His aim? Fast attack! Destruction! Confusing the enemy! Retreat and repeat!
'So that's what you wanted to do…' Nuwa thought the moment she saw Xuefeng attack but it was too late for her to retreat. She could change the trajectory but definitely not come to a full stop in a split second.
When his swords were wrapped in Spirit Awareness by him, she was already suspicious but she continued with her charge nonetheless. Knowing that she already lost five of her soldiers, she didn't bother with them anymore, saving the other five as she sent them to the sides, continuing her attack.
Even though she could try to bypass them, because of Xuefeng's Spirit Awareness around the swords he would still hit her disks so she did not focus on them.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
All five disks were destroyed in a clean fashion, slashed right through the middle. As another five projectiles were heading towards him, Xuefeng discarded his attacking formation and focused on his defence instead. This time he was not at a disadvantage as he had five swords against five disks. Apparently, Nuwa also realised that and suddenly retreated, halting her advance.
Xuefeng was surprised by that but also happy, quickly returning with his attacking formation, joining both of them together. He would naturally accept the present she just gave him with pleasure.
"Good job Xuefeng! Keep it up!" Tianshi cheered from the side, seeing that Xuefeng was winning, believing in him from the start.
"So this is what you planned. The best defence is naturally a good offence. Not bad." Nuwa praised as she returned all five disk to her side. Although she lost five units, it didn't seem like she was worried too much.
Xuefeng knew she wouldn't give up this easily and silently accepted her praise while preparing for the second assault. Just as he expected, Nuwa called out right after as she cracked her head left and right, "Well, I guess I can't hold back else you will actually win. Shame on me."
She gave him a last smile and her disks suddenly disappeared, flying forward with a flash, leaving a series of afterimages.
Chapter 361 - In A Heartbeat
This time, Xuefeng didn't attack, solely focusing on his defence as he knew anything else would be useless. Nuwa's disks were now so fast that only thanks to his Spirit Awareness was he able to see their movement. What made him more worried though was the leisure in which Nuwa launched her strike. Instead of going hard on him, she would rather tease him by spinning the disks around him in a circular route.
It seemed like she was waiting for an opportunity to strike but he imagined that she was rather thinking of what to do in her situation. She was naturally in a big disadvantage and it would be tough for her to break through his defences. At least, that's what Xuefeng thought because Nuwa didn't seem to be bothered at all, still smiling to herself with confidence visible on her face.
He tried to think of a way for her to win but nothing came to his mind. As he still did not get any signs from her for more than twenty seconds, Xuefeng didn't wait anymore, deciding to scout her plans with one of his swords.
Unfortunately, this happened to be what Nuwa was waiting for from the start. Just when his single wooden sword rushed towards the encirclement, Nuwa smirked and flicked her hand, sending four of her disks forward.
Xuefeng quickly abandoned his single sword knowing he couldn't catch the escaping disks anymore. Seeing all four of them already upon him, Xuefeng sent four strikes on his own, aiming right in the middle of the disks, surprisingly, managing to get a successful hit on each of them.
'Huh? Did she give up?' Xuefeng thought, feeling that something was off. Nuwa didn't do anything aside from crashing straight at him, allowing him to easily destroy the disks which made him suspicious.
He cast a glance at Nuwa, expecting to see a troubled expression but he still found her smiling. In the sky, there were no more disks, but then, something occurred to him. There were five of them left but he only destroyed four, meaning, one was hidden somewhere.
Seeing nothing in the air, he looked down, thinking, 'If it's not in the air… It's underground!'
Bang!
Just as he exclaimed in his mind, he immediately jumped upwards, wanting to give himself some time to block the attack but it was already too late. The disk exploded forth and banged against his leg, breaking apart the moment it touched him.
"I won" Nuwa called out happily as she walked to Xuefeng, planning to pick him up but Tianshi and Yiren were first, appearing right at him while calling out worriedly, "Xuefeng, are you okay?!"
Their hands quickly skimmed through his body as if they searched for some injuries, almost taking off all of his clothes but he stopped them while rolling his eyes, asking confused, "Why are your hands roaming on my chest when I was hit on the leg?"
He naturally saw how Yiren was all flushed, coming up to him with ulterior motives but he knew it wasn't her fault. Knowing he could create such a reaction on Nuwa, it wouldn't be strange if Yiren was also affected.
Xuefeng thought that he could stop them by exposing them, but he underestimated the power of outside of the box thinking in the critical situations that women had and Xuefeng heard Yiren call out to her partner in crime, "Right! Tianshi, we need to take off his pants to check as well."
Tianshi's eyes naturally lit up and couldn't reject this plan to tease him, saying in agreement, "Yes, I couldn't agree more." Unfortunately, just as they moved in action, Nuwa stopped them by pulling on their ears and drew them away from Xuefeng, giving him some air to breathe.
"Au Au Au!" Both Yiren and Tianshi quickly stood up to ease their pain before rubbing on their ears upset. The rest couldn't help but laugh out loud and Xuefeng knew they would receive some scolding from Nuwa soon so he acted to shield them.
He broke off the handcuffs and hugged them both as he said to Nuwa, "It's alright, they were trying to help me, right?" Naturally, the girls hugged onto his chest and nodded happily, forgetting about the pain before glancing playfully at Nuwa, making her eyebrow twitch.
He gave a peck to the both of them before focusing on Nuwa as he also hugged her tightly to soothe her a bit and thought out loud regretfully, "I really could have thought about it. You used Earth Qi to create those disk so naturally, you can attack with them from the underground. I guess I'm still inexperienced. I need to battle more else one day I will suffer a loss like that not from you but from the enemy."
Feeling his arm pull on her waist, pressing her against his well-toned abs that were earlier exposed by the two naughty girls, she couldn't say anything other than agree with him, "Mhmm... I will train more with you."
Xuefeng shook his head and widened the scale as he said, "No, not just you. I need to train with everyone as each person has their unique thoughts and skills. If I can defend against all of your skills, I have more chances against real opponents. When we travel on the Warship to the Central Region, we will create a schedule for our training to make sure I train with everyone. What do you think?"
"Yes!" Yi was the first to shout out in agreement but seeing everyone look at her afterwards, she blushed and coughed, saying softly, "Cough, I mean… I would love to help…"
Everyone else nodded and accepted the deal, finding such training a great opportunity to spend some alone time with him. What would be better than some personalized training and a special physical contact when they make a silly mistake, forcing Xuefeng to adjust their bodies into a correct position. The girls couldn't help but imagine such scenes already.
Nuwa heard Xuefeng plans and suddenly asked, not feeling as if she even won anything with such turn of events, "Hmm, you just decided everything for yourself, what about our bet? I thought I would be the one to decide everything for a week?"
Only then did Xuefeng recall the wager from the bet but fortunately, he already knows how to compromise, "Don't you think this is necessary? I will be training with you the most, don't worry. I still need to get much better control over my bloodline."
To further convince her, he made sure to give her a solid kiss while holding onto her face. When his fingers rubbed around her earlobe, he felt her shiver in his body and he knew she was already convinced.
Lifting her chin after he pulled away, Xuefeng rubbed their noses together and whispered, "I will let you schedule the training for me, alright?" Even for such a tough player like her, Xuefeng's treatment was deadly and she quickly softened.
She agreed hesitantly, her mind affected by his gentleness and whispered back, "Okay… But I want more of those later…" Even though Nuwa was older than the rest and much more experienced, she was also a woman in love which sometimes clouded her decisions in favour of her lover.
"Deal." Xuefeng naturally knew what she meant and sealed the deal with another peck before turning to the ladies that waited for him, saying to the each of them, "I hope you all trained well. Wuying, tell me what you decided with the Shadow Guard. Tianshi, show me your wings that you worked on. Shan and Yi, how was your sparring, did you learn anything?"
When everyone faced their own question, it was the matter of quickness of who would be first and Tianshi was the winner this time. She walked forward and created pure white wings on her back. Although they were still in their initial phase, they already had a good shape, looking like proper wings.
Xuefeng finally let go on Nuwa and walked up to Tianshi, gently touching her wings, as he commented proudly, "Yiren did a good job. I'm also happy you managed to learn so fast. You only need to make them look like feathers which will make them even more beautiful. We will work on that tomorrow."
"Alright~" Tianshi nodded happily, wanting exactly that and reverted her wings back to normal as she rushed to hug Yiren. It was thanks to her that she gained praise from Xuefeng.
Just as he was about to move to Wuying, someone came in through the entrance and rushed towards the garden. The sound of footsteps was short and rushed, signalling the person was small and in a hurry.
Just as Xuefeng thought, it was Little Mei who came and she called out as she ran, "Xuefeng~! Uncle invites you for dinner— Ahhh! Why are you naked!" Too bad that just as she came to the garden, she saw Xuefeng's naked chest and her small face quickly flushed.
She glanced at his toned abs, abundant muscles on his chest and only after she stared at them for a while did she realise what she was doing, blushed even more. Although she didn't want to look, her curious eyes were wandering on his body on their own.
Without saying anything, she ran back to the entrance with the image of naked Xuefeng and touched her chest, feeling the fast beating of her heart. At that moment she knew Xuefeng was the only one for her in this world.
Chapter 362 - New Ability
Xuefeng couldn't help but smile when he saw Little Mei's reaction and called out to the rest as he buttoned up his shirt, "I guess we will have to attend this dinner. I think we never had one when everyone was gathered. What do you all think?"
Now that he thought about it, he was rarely eating in this world. Because of Ling, he was always well-nourished due to her regeneration ability but also because of his cultivation, he could basically survive without food for a few weeks if he wanted to.
Yiren clapped her hands, all ready to go as she said, teasing Xuefeng, "Mhmm, we should go. We haven't spent much time with your parents. I want to gossip with auntie. She should tell us about your childhood, hehe."
Xuefeng snickered as he grabbed Yiren into his arms and held onto Yiren from behind, "Tsk, please. I changed. I'm a completely different person now. I doubt you would find anything similar to my previous self." She wanted to tease him but now she was in his arms and Xuefeng was ready to strike back.
Yiren could only give up and lean on his chest while changing her mind, "Yeah… I guess I still prefer the older Xuefeng. He is the one that can give me cuddles after all."
Tianshi smiled when she heard that, knowing the truth behind Xuefeng's words and absorbed back her Air Qi wings, already imagining their joint training that would happen tomorrow.
Smiling at her fast change, Xuefeng gave her one last tight hug and finished wearing his clothes, saying to Wuying who didn't get the chance to talk, "Wuying we will talk on the way." She didn't mind that so she simply nodded, agreeing without any unnecessary words. They were already close enough to understand each other without those.
Just then, Xuefeng recalled that it was Nuwa who was the boss now for the next week and returned to her while asking, "My Queen, can we proceed this way or do you have some other wishes? This man honours his promises." He extended his hand to her, inviting her to join him and Nuwa couldn't help but take it.
She won the bet after all. The least she should get was the support of his arm that many would fight for. Leaning on his shoulder as she selfishly wrapped her fingers with his, Nuwa showed that it was her own place for tonight.
"What about Wen? She still didn't finish." Tianshi asked as she glanced at the last person that was still not ready and Xuefeng frowned, approaching Xiao Wen to check her condition.
As Nuwa didn't let go of his hand, she followed after him and tested the durability of the barriers around Xiao Wen before commenting, "She placed a lot of layers around her. I can break through them with my own Qi if you want but that might disturb her."
The protection that Xiao Wen set up wasn't simple and even he didn't think he could break through it this easily. There were many high ranked Life-saving barriers circling around her, even protecting her from below, underground which would trouble even a few Monarch Stage cultivators.
He thought that it was a bit paranoid of her to do so but then Ling explained it to him, shedding some light to his ignorance, 'I think it is normal behaviour. She already absorbed all the stones and she is currently undergoing Spirit Transformation. This is not a quick process and the Fate Holder is very vulnerable in this moment. If she is disturbed, her Spirit could be potentially damaged.'
'I understand… But she could tell me. I would make sure to protect her well…' Xuefeng replied, not knowing how to feel but Ling thought differently about it, assuring him, 'Don't worry, she didn't tell you so you wouldn't waste time and train yourself as well. Everyone was near so you would still protect her if there was a need. She also needed a calm environment to breakthrough and those barriers could make that happen.'
'Alright. Do you know how much longer it will take her?' Xuefeng asked after understanding the situation fully. If there was a need, he was willing to change the plans for her.
Ling already counted it before and replied right away, 'From my calculations, it shouldn't be long. About ten minutes.' Feeling genuinely happy Ling was always there to help him in need, Xuefeng didn't spare his words as he expressed himself, 'Thank you, Ling, I love you. I honestly don't know what I would do without you.'
'Mhmm…' He only received a soft acknowledgement from her but he knew it was because she was too happy.
Knowing he couldn't leave Xiao Wen like that, he asked the lady by his side as he squeezed her hand, "There are still about ten minutes until Xiao Wen finishes her breakthrough. How about you all go first and I will join you all in a bit?"
He knew she would be against it and he confirmed his guess when he saw her squinting her eyes, but planting a soft kiss on her lips, he tried to convince as he whispered, "I don't want my parents to wait, but I also can't leave her alone here…"
Leaning for another kiss, she demanded, not willing to lose even one day, "My reward will start from tomorrow. Today doesn't count." Xuefeng continued to decide everything even after she won so she decided to take over the leadership when they are on their trip to the Central Region.
Naturally, this was fine for him and he quickly whispered, "I will reward you in bed tonight..." It was something Nuwa expected already from him so she did not even need to mention it and finally let go of it, announcing to the rest, "We will leave earlier. Xuefeng will wait for Xiao Wen and join us at the dinner."
"Yup, she is currently undergoing a breakthrough. It should take a moment so you can all go first. Little Mei is waiting at the entrance so she will lead you all to the dining place." Xuefeng added and no one had any problems with it.
Well, only one person had questions and it was Little Mei who asked right after the girls left the courtyard, "Where is Xuefeng?" She was really looking forward to jumping on Xuefeng and take advantage of this walk to snuggle in his arms.
"He will join us a bit later." Nuwa explained before asking, giving Little Mei a smile that made Little Mei feel that Nuwa didn't expect other answer than yes, "How about you lead us first?"
Little Mei listened to her intuition and nodded gently, knowing this lady could be her husband's second wife in the future, "Alright." She snuggled into Wuying's arm, being the only one she knew the best and led them to Clan Leader's mansion.
...….
Just as she successfully broke through, advancing her Fate Spirit into a Fate Law, Xiao Wen stretched her arms as if she was a newborn baby, calling out to herself, "Aaaah! I feel amazing!"
The barriers all around her broke off the moment she touched them and she saw lonely Xuefeng who was sitting there cross-legged, observing her movements.
Although Xiao Wen was wondering where everyone was, the priority for her was Xuefeng and she immediately jumped into his arms, knocking him over to the ground. They rolled a few times on the grass before finally stopping with Xiao Wen on top of him. She didn't hesitate to cover his lips with hers before exclaiming sincerely, "I love you!"
"Hah, I see that you successfully broke through." Xuefeng chuckled at her reaction and didn't change their positions, hugging Xiao Wen into his chest before asking, "Did anything change? Maybe a new ability?" He was also curious about Ling's transformation in the future so he naturally asked to be prepared for it.
Xuefeng's question made her excited and she quickly exclaimed, sitting up on Xuefeng's waist, "Haha, yes! I also want to test it out, but I don't know if this is the right time of the day. Based on Lang's explanation, he says that my second ability is much powerful than the first one. And it's also an offensive one! Let me see if I can test it without alerting anyone."
Hearing Xiao Wen, Xuefeng immediately got excited and picked her up so that she could test the ability in a more comfortable position. He couldn't help but wonder what would be his second ability the moment he advances.
Creating a small fireball in her hand, Xiao Wen described, "My first ability is called Fire Body. No fire can hurt me and all fire attacks I create are much more powerful. It is basically a booster to everything fire-related. This is why I didn't have trouble to master Fire Qi as it was already flowing through my veins."
"Whoa, that's great. You didn't tell me about that before. How about my Black Flames. Can you also defend against them with ease? They seem to be different than normal."
"You can check it then on my hand then. It won't leave any burns at all." Xiao Wen smiled as she extended her hand to him and Xuefeng couldn't help himself but test her Fire Body by attaching his Black Flames Slayer to her arm.
To his surprise, the black fire that was always burning crazily now calmed down and moved according to Xiao Wen's gestures, following her fingers. It looked as if the flame was listening to her which quite impressed him, making him watch her in amazement.
Playing with the black flame on top of her palm, she solved Xuefeng's questions, "I couldn't do that earlier because just as every ability, my Fire Body also draws my Fate Qi when I use it to control the enemy's flames. Now I have more than enough to use it in battle. It's all thanks to you."
Looking warmly at him, she held onto his hand, cutting their talk and extended her hand excitedly as she called out to gain his attention, "Let me show you my new ability."
Chapter 363 - Sudden Death
Xiao Wen squeezed Xuefeng's hand and at the same time, closed her fist, locking the small flame inside of her palm. Xuefeng watched her palm, expecting something to happen but then Xiao Wen called out, "Look forward."
Just as Xuefeng listened and moved his eyesight upwards, Xiao Wen aimed her fist in the direction of the pond and opened it with an excited expression on her face. She already knew what would happen but wanted to see Xuefeng's shocked expression.
Bang
As if something blew up, they heard a suppressed, dull sound and the ground shook, followed by a water geyser that exploded upwards from the pond. Xuefeng opened his eyes, thinking she gained new affinity but this time to either water or air but then, a burning fire illuminated the courtyard as it accompanied the water and he knew he was mistaken.
After both water and fire encountered each other, hot steam gushed out to the sides, filling the whole courtyard momentarily. Fortunately, Xuefeng reacted quickly, flying upwards with Xiao Wen in his arms and successfully dodged the hot wave.
"Haha, it worked!" Xiao Wen laughed happily, knowing that everything worked perfectly and hugged Xuefeng, repeated herself after an excited peck on his lips, "Xuefeng, it worked."
"Hah, I saw." Xuefeng chuckled at her reaction and asked curiously, finding this ability interesting, "What did you do exactly? Did you transport the flame into the pond with Ether Qi and then detonate it from the distance?"
Xuefeng questioned but then felt a few people approaching from the distance, probably hearing the explosion or seeing the water geyser which forced him to first call out loud to halt them, "Everything is alright! We were just training."
His voice resounded throughout the area and it stopped the Shadow Guard members from approaching, going back to patrolling Liu Clan Territory. Knowing there might be some people around them who could eavesdrop, he decided to carry Xiao Wen high in the sky so they could have some privacy.
Hovering above the sky, Xuefeng lifted her chin and asked again, "So, what was it?" He could already think of many uses of such ability in battle like sneak attacks or distracting the enemy.
Xiao Wen still looked excited by her new ability but calmed down enough to explain it to him, "You were close but it's not exactly it. I'm not using Ether Qi but Fate Qi and I can simply create explosions from the distance wherever I want. I think there is some limit to the distance but I think the limit will increase the more I progress in the future."
Creating another small fireball, Xiao Wen locked it in her palm once again before sending it less than twenty meters away from them. This time both of them could see exactly what was happening. The flame that disappeared from her palm appeared out of thin air in the shape of a round crimson pill which exploded right after, sending a wave of heat their way.
Although Xuefeng shielded both of them, he could still feel both the heat as well as the shock wave from the explosion. It wasn't any powerful but this was just a tiny flame. How much damage would she cause to someone if she provided much more fuel to the fire?
Looking at Xuefeng with a smile on her face, she asked happily while pointing at the place where the fireball exploded, "Hehe, how cool was that? I called it Sudden Death." Although she had a few offensive abilities, they were not her main damager dealers and she was mostly using her sword to fight but now she had something much more powerful she could depend on.
"Hah, pretty cool!" Xuefeng naturally agreed while chuckling before proposing curiously, "I wish to measure its power. How about you attack me with it so we can test it?"
Naturally, Xuefeng received a quick rejection as she decided, "No! This was the smallest fireball and look at what happened. The explosion wasn't small at all. I definitely won't be testing it on you. It's a waste of your Fate Qi in case you get hurt. We will test it on something else tomorrow morning before we depart. Today it is too late already."
"Fine... We will do as say." Xuefeng was excited to test it now but recalling they didn't actually have much time, he gave in, changing the topic instead as he said happily when they started slowly descending, "I'm happy for you. I told you it will be worth it."
"Mhmm… I know." Xiao Wen nodded as she hugged into his chest, knowing she shouldn't have rejected him before asking what she wanted to know much earlier, "Where did everyone go? I did not feel any of them in the courtyard."
"There is a dinner party organized by my father. We should also attend it. I was simply waiting for you while the rest went first without me." Xuefeng was quick to reply but then Xiao Wen stopped them and began fixing Xuefeng's clothing together with his hair, adding after she was done, "Let's go then. We can't allow the main host to be late."
Looking at his changed appearance, she couldn't help but comment about her preference, "I like you in this transformation. It would be nice if you made it permanent."
As if to tease him, she reached out to caress his long ear not expecting it to be Forest Elves' special spot. Naturally, Xuefeng quickly showed a reaction on his face as he opened his mouth wide, wanting to let out a sound but fortunately, he stopped himself in the last moment by covering his mouth.
This didn't escape from Xiao Wen's attention as she quickly noticed his weird behaviour and gave Xuefeng another rub on the ear, finding that amusing.
The moment he reached out to take her hand away, he couldn't stop himself and moaned softly but quickly covered it up with his scolding, "Aah— stop it. This is not the time for games…" He was already stopping himself a lot as although the effects were much weaker compared to Nuwa's teasing, he still felt deep enjoyment.
Xiao Wen couldn't help but chuckle and continued to tease him, "I guess I know what I will do when you don't listen to me, haha."
Royal Elf Bloodline was one of the high tiered ones, giving great benefits but at the same time, it had a flaw of having such a sensitive part. Although one would only react to the people they loved, it was still considered as a flaw.
Seeing how cheeky Xiao Wen was, Xuefeng didn't hesitate to counterattack and started tickling her as he snickered, "Tsk, we will see who will tease who in the end." They were in the air but as Xiao Wen was in Xuefeng's arms, she had nowhere to run.
It didn't take long for her to beg for mercy as she laughed maniacally, "Aah! Hahah, stop, stop, I give up!" Only after she surrendered did Xuefeng finally stop and commented, recalling the thought he just appearing in his mind, "I just thought of something. Can you use this ability only with your Fire Qi? Did you think of using other elements as well?"
"Huh?" Xiao Wen looked at him confused but then the same realisation hit her, "Right… Why didn't anyone think about it? Lang said one can use it with Fire Qi, but what if I use something different instead as you suggested?"
They were already close to the ground as they were descending the whole time and Xuefeng asked with a smile, playing with her, "How about we test it after the dinner is over? I bet everyone is waiting for us."
When she heard him, Xiao Wen quickly shook her head, already being too excited about the new idea and said, "Nu, nu, nu, nu! We have to check it now! Let me check it with Water Qi."
Without waiting for Xuefeng's approval, Xiao Wen extended her hand and created a small ball of water, hovering on top of her palm. Naturally, it was much harder to create one without any water in the area but she transformed Water Qi into Water easily.
Xuefeng was also curious so he watched closely as she closed her fist before releasing it some distance away from her. Unfortunately, what they expected didn't happen and instead of a giant explosion, the water just burst out of a bubble-shaped ball of water before falling down from the sky.
Xiao Wen looked disappointed, thinking she would discover something new but Xuefeng wasn't convinced of their failure. He already figured out a few methods to fix the problem but they would need many tests to confirm his theories. Luckily, they had a whole week of training ahead of them and Xuefeng already decided to make the full use of it.
Chapter 364 - Dinner
"Xuefeng! You finally came! What took you so long?" Little Mei called out as soon as Xuefeng landed on the ground, immediately standing up from her chair before running towards him. As Xiao Wen was inside of his arms, Little Mei couldn't hug him so she had to wait for the moment when Xiao Wen would leave his side instead.
The family dinner was situated in the garden, inside his parent's courtyard so Xuefeng could directly descend from the sky, landing inside the nicely lit place. There were a lot of appetizers placed on the elegantly prepared table and everyone seemed to be drinking red wine. No one was eating yet so he figured they were waiting for him to come before they start.
He was thinking that maybe it would be a dinner with a lot of people but it turned out his parents wanted only a close family to attend it. Aside from all of his women and his parents, there were Wu Lan and her brother, Little Mei and her family as well as Senior Wang who was already considered as part of the family.
As he was supposed to be the next Clan Leader of the Branch Clan, his father probably needed him around to discuss some matters. There were not that many of them but Xuefeng prefered it this way, finding the small gatherings much more climatic.
To Little Mei's annoyance, instead of replying by himself, Xiao Wen was the one who acted on his stead as she reached out to pat Little Mei's head while still hugging into Xuefeng's chest before saying, "You have such a nice little sister. So cute."
As Little Mei didn't want to look bad in front of Xuefeng and her parents, she could only bear with it while protesting cutely, "Big sis! You will ruin my hair…" She was a good girl in front of Xuefeng and she wanted it to stay this way.
Just as she successfully suppressed Xiao Wen's attacks, finally something fortunate happened. Xuefeng reached out to rub her right cheek before naturally grabbing her and receiving everyone as they walked together towards the table, "Greetings to everyone. I am sorry for being late. Something came up."
Liu Xiaobei nodded happily as he invited them to sit down, saying warmly, "Welcome. We were waiting for you. Now that everyone is here, we can officially start our dinner." Everyone else already stood up when Xuefeng came so they could now sit down.
Although the girls sat down, Little Mei's parents did not, waiting for Young Master to sit down first. It was a common courtesy but they didn't know that Xuefeng did not care about things. On Earth in the modern world, such behaviour was unheard of and all that mattered was age.
Xuefeng sat Xiao Wen on the empty chair first before walking up to Little Mei's parents with their child next to him. For some reason, Little Mei got nervous but then Xuefeng simple smiled warmly at them and said while patting her on the head, "Please sit down, Sir, Madam. Little Mei is my dear little sister. You don't need to stand on ceremony. We are all family."
Little Mei knew her parents would still stand even if they were asked to sit down so as to avoid being embarrassed, she gave up cuddles and sat down first on her own seat in between of them before pulling them down by their arms, saying, "Mom, Dad, sit down. Xuefeng said it is okay."
Naturally, they didn't listen and her mother bowed her head, thanking politely, "Young Master Liu, we would like to thank you for taking care of our daughter. I hope she didn't create any troubles for the Young Master. Sometimes she can be a little mischievous—"
"Mom!" Little Mei quickly exclaimed to stop her mom as her face flushed red but fortunately, Xuefeng's warmth saved the day as she once again felt his hand rubbing on her cheek before hearing his praising words, "Nah, she is a great kid. She works hard and she is determined to achieve her goals. She will one day become a great cultivator and her name will shake the whole world. As long as she continues walking the current path, nothing can stop her from achieving her goals."
"Thank you, Young Master." Hearing such praises, Little Mei's parents thanked again, naturally extremely happy and finally sat down, not wanting to make Xuefeng stand so much.
Of course, what Little Mei imagined was different as her main goal was conquering Xuefeng's heart and based on his words, it was definitely possible as long as she works hard. She couldn't help but blush even more while looking down. She had to calm down her heart as being praised by him caused it to cry for help.
When Wu Kong saw the whole scene between Xuefeng and Little Mei, he wasn't jealous. What he felt was a new determination that awakened in his mind as he knew his wife would be snatched by someone else if he didn't work hard. Only when she sees how serious he is will there be a chance for him.
When everyone was seated, only then did Xuefeng finally sit down as well, his seat being the head seat at the end of the table. Usually, it should be his mother to sit in this position as the hostess but she liked to seat next to her husband so nothing could be done.
It was one of the reasons why Xuefeng didn't want to go together with everyone and was happy that someone had to wait for Xiao Wen. He could already imagine the headache he would have when his wives argue who sits where. Without him, everything was decided by them in the inner circle. The closest to him was naturally Nuwa and surprisingly Xiao Wen was placed by his side as well.
He guessed that Nuwa assigned everyone based on their strength as Tianshi was sitting beside Yuren, the furthest from him but it didn't seem like she minded such assignment as she was sitting right next to his mother, gossipping with her while giggling to themselves. Tianshi was working hard to gain Mu Lan acceptance which made Xuefeng smile.
Clink, clink.
As the host, it was Liu Xiaobei role to officially start the dinner so he stood up, tapping the wine glass with his fork to gather everyone's attention before saying as he toasted, "As tomorrow we will be leaving this place that we all put a lot of heart into building, I wanted everyone to gather for the last time and enjoy dinner together. For the new beginning."
This sentence worked perfectly for Xuefeng so he was the first to join his father and repeat, "For the new beginning!" Arriving in this world was literally his new beginning and if he was, to be honest, he liked it here. Although just as on Earth, there was a rat race to be the best here as well but it wasn't as intense as at his old home.
When the food came, Xuefeng started talking with his father about the certain specifics of their relocation but the girls were talking between each other instead. They didn't mind revealing those things in front of Little Mei's parents as they only talked about some vague information. Her father also joined in the talk which made the dinner lively.
Picking another snack from the table, Xuefeng looked around the girls to check if they were enjoying themselves and noticed something which bothered him. Wuying wasn't eating much, only smiling and talking instead but he knew what was the reason behind this. Normal food was okay for her but it naturally didn't taste well for her anymore.
Xuefeng didn't hesitate to put down his food and stand up, walking up to Wuying as he said out loud, "Excuse me, I need to talk to Wuying about something." She looked up at him and realised what he wanted to do which warmed her heart.
Although it seemed like Wuying was already much better, Xuefeng liked to spoil his wives and this little bit of blood wasn't much for him. Nuwa watched as Wuying grabbed his hand, walking away with him but she didn't say anything, knowing it was Xuefeng's decision.
...….
"It's okay… You can drink faster…" Xuefeng whispered as he hugged her from behind, watching as she gently licked his wrist, slowly tasting each drop of blood that dripped out of his skin.
They were inside a guest room, sitting on the sofa with Wuying behind on top of him. She leaned on his chest, deeply enjoying this moment. Although Xuefeng wanted to just let her drink some before returning, Wuying was currently in heaven so she didn't want to let go of him this simply.
Instead of replying, she pulled away from his wrist and placed her head on his shoulder before luring his lips with a slight caress of her fingers before connecting with a soft touch. Xuefeng momentarily felt the taste of blood but it was quickly connected with her own saliva adding other flavours that she tried earlier.
"I like to enjoy when I get the chance…" Wuying replied gently as she continued kissing him deeply while slowly turning around, suddenly appearing to be facing him face to face. Her hands rubbed his scalp, entangling itself in his hair as she kept releasing the desire that was building up inside of her.
Wuying was now in a much better position as she regained the control over her actions during this special state but it didn't mean her desire was much smaller. It was the opposite. Although she was in control, she still wanted to do everything the same way. The only difference was her ability to stop when she wanted.
Licking the drop of blood she left on his cheek, Wuying asked softly, "Will you let me teach you about the Blood Element?"
Chapter 365 - Sneaky Quickie (**) - Part 1
"Of course. Who else would I ask other than my beautiful wife, Wuying? I need to learn all elements sooner or later." Xuefeng replied with a smile as he wrapped his arms around Wuying's waist and pressed her against his chest. When his love sat directly on top of him, it was hard for him to retract his hands.
Assured expression appeared on Wuying's face as she snuggled into his cheek, whispering happily, "I'm glad… I will make sure to teach you well…" As she thought of her behaviour during this whole time she was adjusting with her power, she added softly, "But can that not include the skills I received from Blood Inheritance? They are really addicting and change you completely… I don't want you to be like me right now."
As Xuefeng was much more powerful than her, she knew that his reaction would be much worse. It was really hard to forecast what would happen so she didn't want to try it. Fortunately, Xuefeng already had the same plan as her and agreed right away, "Alright. I will only learn the basics and master some of the easiest skills. I need them to one day combine all elements together and form Fate Qi."
He would never learn skills that could potentially hurt both him and his loved ones. Wuying's Shackles of Doom were unpredictable. Last time she activated it, although the power behind them was enormous, it did not distinguish between a friend or a foe.
Although he believed that upon perfect mastery, she would be able to control them with full awareness, he knew it would take a lot of time before that happened. The risk of hurting someone wasn't worth it.
"Mhmm…" Getting his approval, Wuying could finally stop suppressing her desire that was clouding her thoughts and allowed them to carry her forward, influencing her actions. Her lips returned to kissing him, invading his mouth with her tongue as if it was hers and immediately attacked the first target it touched, trying to suffocate its opponent like a snake that strangles their prey with its body.
Unfortunately, it was too sly and slippery, always getting away while using the same methods as her to counterattack. As Wuying knew they had little time at her disposal, she retreated from her attack, giving up on her current target and whispered without opening her eyes, rubbing her nose against his, "Can I have some more…?"
Hearing the desire in her voice as well as the softness of her rubs, Xuefeng got somehow influenced by her and looked forward to more, whispering back with some rationality left in his mind, "Okay… But be quick. Others are probably wondering what take us so long…" They were already away for a few minutes so they couldn't prolong their disappearance for too long.
Having Xuefeng's approval, Wuying body rejoiced as he felt her skin shivering from excitement. As if she tried to find the best spot to bite through his skin, her lips skimmed through his face, travelling downwards while leaving a trace full of kisses behind her.
The hands that never stopped massaging him also started to relocate. They dropped down onto his shoulders and quickly slipped underneath his shirt, unbuttoning it one by one from the top, showing more and more with each second. Her lips were already kissing him on the neck when the last button popped and both his chest and abs were exposed.
Xuefeng allowed this much, finding it erotic but he also didn't want to ruin her flow. Wuying left many playful bites on his neck right at the spot where his blood was flowing, each time making him think that she would finally attack but then she would change the spot only to repeat the same teasing action.
She repeated it a few times, making Xuefeng lose his vigilance but then, when he least expected it, her fangs finally bit into his skin. "Ahhh…" He let out a deep breath, letting the air slowly leave his lungs before filling them with the fresh dose that brought the sweet smell of his blood through his olfactory sense.
After being nourished by Ling so many times, even his blood tasted sweet and tasty as he felt before from the leftovers that Wuying brought into his mouth. Feeling his vital liquid slowly flowing out, Xuefeng closed his eyes while diving into the soft sofa. Just as before, Wuying had much better control and this time, she was controlling the flow of his blood, letting her enjoy each ounce of it.
At the same time, outside the round in the garden, most people didn't think much of Xuefeng's disappearance, knowing he will be back really soon but Nuwa observed. She was looking at her daughter and seeing her rub her neck from time to time, she figured out what Xuefeng and Wuying were doing.
As Yiren was connected with Xuefeng the whole time, Nuwa could tell what was going on with Xuefeng at all times. Seeing Yiren's face redden in the next moment, she knew that the two couldn't help themselves but do something naughty. She didn't do anything, only pouring herself another glass of wine while reminding herself to punish Xuefeng later at night.
Although Wuying sat on his lap the whole time, Xuefeng could still stay calm, not releasing his inner desires but when Wuying's butt started moving back and forth, rubbing against his crotch, it was naturally much harder to resist. His manly companion got awakened with just a few movements of her hips which only encouraged her to assist him further.
When her hands suddenly dove downwards and found the location of the disturbance, grabbing it firmly to eliminate the danger, Xuefeng acted rational and tried to stop her, "Wuying, it will take too long… How about we continue back at our place?"
Unfortunately, his whispers did nothing to stop her and instead only prompted her to continue. Knowing the time was tight, she quickened her pace and revealed his raging erection to the world. As she only wore her skirt today, the access to her entrance was extremely easy and she used it to her advantage.
She controlled his firm staff, pushing her panties to the side with its soft head, revealing her soaked lower mouth that was all ready, begging to be opened and kissed by something long, thick and hard. Having the exact thing she needed right in front of her, she sat down right on top of it without hesitation.
"Ahh…" They both moaned at the same time, Wuying while pulling away from his neck and while pressing her bottom even closer to himself, allowing him to reach much deeper inside of her.
The moment she stopped sucking on the wound she created, it sealed up, preventing her from tasting his blood anymore. Fortunately, it didn't bother her as she already got her to fill and focused on something else. She moved her hips upwards, feeling the throbs of her body as his hardness rubbed against her walls, trying to escape from being eaten alive but then she slammed down with power and decisiveness, showing that it was all hers now.