Beside Kunlong Gorge, Yang Kai trained with focused intensity.
Not far away, several Three Yang Fruit trees grew strong and tall. The largest of them had already produced three fruits nearing maturity, while the smallest was nothing more than a seedling that had only just broken through the soil.
Ever since his return from the Blood Battle Gang's mining camp that day, Yang Kai had been training here ceaselessly, day and night, forgoing food and sleep. Long Zaitian's unreasonable attack had left him burning with a fierce determination to grow stronger. He would reclaim that humiliation someday—through his own hands.
After nearly ten days of grueling cultivation, his Body Tempering Stage Nine was approaching its peak. The breakthrough to the next major realm felt tantalizingly close, yet something remained elusive, leaving Yang Kai with a nagging sense of helplessness.
He knew that breaking through a major realm required a certain stroke of fortune. It wasn't like advancing through the smaller stages, where sufficient Yuan Qi alone might carry you through. Even if you had enough energy, you needed the right moment, the right understanding of what needed to be grasped.
Truthfully, these days of cultivation had gone smoothly enough. He no longer needed to sweep the grounds, which freed up additional time for training. The three-leaf residual soul flower and desolate wood grass had long since been used up, and without the suppressing interference of their strange fragrance, the circulation of the True Yang Technique was noticeably faster than before. This made it all the easier for Yang Kai to absorb Yang Qi from heaven and earth.
However, all the Yang Liquid he had refined during these days had been spent catalyzing the Three Yang Fruit seeds, and not a single drop remained stored in his dantian.
Heaven and earth's energy gathered around him, ready to flood into his body the moment Yang Kai comprehended the mysteries of the Kaiyuan Realm, cleansing his meridians and marrow. But sitting cross-legged on the ground, Yang Kai failed to succeed.
Another day and night passed. Yang Kai remained stuck at the threshold. His mind was calm and patient, yet he simply couldn't break through the shackles binding him. It was truly exasperating.
The night deepened, dew growing heavy beneath a vast canopy of stars. Beside Kunlong Gorge, Yang Kai suddenly fell into a state of bewildered trance. His Yuan Qi grew slightly chaotic, and a pained expression crept across his brow.
Not far away, Xia Ningshang—who had been quietly watching Yang Kai—couldn't help but let out a soft gasp. Though separated by a considerable distance, she could still sense that unusual fluctuation of Yuan Qi, carrying with it a sinister, cold energy.
How could this be happening? This was clearly a precursor to Qi Deviation. He was merely breaking through from Body Tempering Stage Nine to the Kaiyuan Realm—how could Qi Deviation even be possible?
To put it bluntly, a warrior of Yang Kai's low caliber didn't even qualify for Qi Deviation. Only those with deeper cultivation encountered such dangers during their training.
And yet now, this very thing was about to happen to Yang Kai.
Xia Ningshang's delicate brows furrowed as she tried to make sense of it.
Her presence here was of her own choosing. After all, silently observing Yang Kai for over two years had long since become a habit. When he had suddenly disappeared these past few days, she'd felt an inexplicable emptiness, as if nothing held any interest anymore. She had searched everywhere until she found him here by Kunlong Gorge, and only then did the heavy stone in her heart finally settle.
Once she arrived, she realized Yang Kai was on the verge of a breakthrough. She had kept watch for a full day, yet he still hadn't succeeded. Now this strange development—how could she not be alarmed?
Just as Xia Ningshang grew anxious in silence, a burst of pure and rich scalding aura suddenly erupted from Yang Kai's body. The moment this aura surged forth, the traces of incipient Qi Deviation were burned away in an instant, and his Yuan Qi fluctuations immediately stabilized.
"True Yang Force!" Xia Ningshang's lips parted in astonishment, her beautiful eyes wide with surprise, barely suppressing a cry. "How is it so pure!"
That wave of scorching aura was unmistakably a Yang-attribute force. Many disciples of Lingxiao Pavilion practiced fire or Yang-attribute martial arts and harbored similar heat within their bodies, but compared to Yang Kai, none of them came remotely close in terms of purity.
The scalding aura wasn't particularly dense—after all, Yang Kai's cultivation was still modest—but it was extraordinarily clean, without the slightest impurity, like an untouched spring untouched by pollution.
Before she could fully process what she'd seen, Xia Ningshang noticed that Yang Kai had slipped back into that pre-Qi Deviation state. A sinister, evil energy had replaced the Yang aura, slowly radiating from within his body.
Moments later, another eruption of True Yang Force burst forth, suppressing the sinister energy and allowing Yang Kai to regain clarity.
This cycle repeated several times, leaving Xia Ningshang utterly dumbfounded. She had never witnessed a warrior experience such a bizarre phenomenon during a Kaiyuan Realm breakthrough.
Normally, breaking through to the Kaiyuan Realm did encounter some resistance from heaven and earth, but given the low level of this realm, a bit of effort was usually enough to push through. Yang Kai's situation was clearly different—the resistance he faced was far greater than what anyone else endured, rivaling the difficulty of breaking through a major realm.
Yang Kai was suffering terribly. Just moments ago, he had caught a faint glimpse of the mystery, one foot already stepping across the threshold of the Kaiyuan Realm. But at that exact moment, a sinister energy suddenly surged from deep within his bones, nearly robbing him of his sanity. Fortunately, the True Yang Energy within his body erupted in response, pulling him back from the brink.
Now two forces waged war inside him: the True Yang Energy he had painstakingly cultivated and the sinister energy seeping from his bones. They clashed relentlessly, using his body as their battlefield. Sometimes the sinister energy gained the upper hand, and his mind grew clouded—excitement and bloodlust surged through his heart, making him crave nothing more than to find someone and kill.
The feeling resembled the wild exhilaration one experienced after being wounded in battle, yet it was fundamentally different. In actual combat, the thrill of injury was accompanied by a clear head. This was something else entirely.
At other times, the True Yang Energy prevailed, his divine sense grew clear, and his body felt comfortable and at ease.
Back and forth they fought, endlessly, with no resolution in sight.
Yang Kai was in agony.
Xia Ningshang sprinted through the grounds of Lingxiao Pavilion, clad in a form-fitting black outfit that left her exquisite figure on full display—willowy waist, long legs, truly the stuff of idle fantasy. Her lustrous hair was tied back, and a black mask covered the lower half of her face as she raced toward Yang Kai.
She had watched him for a long while, her heart aching with worry. After turning it over and over in her mind, she had decided to lend him a hand. Ordinarily, one must never disturb someone during a breakthrough, but Xia Ningshang could clearly sense the combative will surging within Yang Kai—a battle-spirit that yearned for the baptism of blood.
Only a fight could free him. Only combat could pull him from that endless loop.
So Xia Ningshang had first returned to her quarters and changed into a different outfit—otherwise, he might have recognized her, since they had met before.
She hurried back and forth, and when she returned to Kunlong Gorge, Yang Kai was still caught in his torment, the commotion even more violent than before.
Without a moment's hesitation, Xia Ningshang launched herself at Yang Kai, killing intent swirling in her beautiful eyes, and struck out with a palm.