I Was the Sun Before I Became an Immortal

"Hey, buddy, what are you staring at? Let's go!"

Heishan pointed toward the cave entrance with his bear paw — some had already gone in ahead of them.

Chifeng flicked his tail. "Yeah, don't let those bastards grab all the good stuff!"

Si Chen said nothing. His mind was elsewhere, turning over a single question: why hadn't that old fellow Lü Ci come down yet? What was he dawdling about up there?

At that very moment, a clear ripple of disturbance spread through the space above the lake.

Here they come!

Light flashed, and several silhouettes materialized in midair.

At the front was Lü Ci. Beside him, in addition to the two Core Formation Stage Elders from before, were two new arrivals — one old, one young.

The young man wore a resplendent brocade robe. He looked to be around seventeen or eighteen, with an air of arrogance written plainly across his brow. The black-robed elder at his side radiated a dense, settled aura that was nearly on par with Lü Ci's own!

"This… there's actually such a domineering flight-suppression barrier here?!" The lavishly dressed young man lost his footing in midair, his expression shifting sharply.

The group in the air had clearly been caught off guard — both by the bizarre flight-suppression barrier and by the pale white bones floating in the lake below.

Lü Ci and the grey-robed elder in particular both let a flash of disbelief cross their faces.

They were Nascent Soul Stage powerhouses. To have even them stripped of the ability to fly — just what cultivation level had that Flood Dragon reached?!

But those who had cultivated to the Nascent Soul Stage had weathered centuries of storms. Lü Ci and the elder suppressed their shock almost instantly, steadying their composure.

"Young Master, be careful!"

The black-robed elder reacted with lightning speed. With a low shout, a small, ancient bronze bell flew out from his sleeve.

The bell spun, casting a curtain of golden light that formed a bell-shaped phantom, shielding both the young man and himself.

Lü Ci hurriedly circulated his spiritual energy to protect himself, then addressed the young man with courtesy: "Young Master Fang, do not panic. Though this place is treacherous, with our cultivation, landing safely is no great difficulty."

Judging by the situation, Lü Ci had likely delayed outside precisely to wait for these two — individuals who were clearly no ordinary figures.

But did Si Chen, standing on the shore, care about any of that?

His gaze had locked onto Lü Ci from the very start. The Spear of Thunder already prepared in his hand let out a piercing shriek, like lightning breaking free of its chains, and tore through the air!

Almost the instant the first thunder spear left his hand, a second had already condensed in his grip — and was hurled out immediately after!

"Whoosh——!"

"Whoosh——!"

One, two, three…

Spears of Thunder flew from his hands in an unbroken stream, each one a bolt of lethal lightning aimed straight at Lü Ci!

Only then did Lü Ci finally notice the blue-grey-clad youth standing quietly at the lake's edge, thunder crackling in his hands!

"You little beast — how dare you!"

He was both shocked and furious. He had never imagined that Si Chen would not only have stayed, but would actually dare to ambush him!

He swept out with his palm, and the vast spiritual energy of the Nascent Soul Stage surged forth.

"Boom——"

"Boom——"

"Boom——"

Thunder-light burst and scattered in all directions.

Yet though Lü Ci shattered the thunder spears with ease, he was suspended in midair with nothing to brace against. The recoil from each explosion still caused his figure to sway slightly, throwing off his balance.

"Hmm?"

Inside the golden bell-shaped phantom, the young cultivator addressed as "Young Master Fang" and the grey-robed elder both fixed their gazes on Si Chen at the shore, a flash of unmistakable surprise crossing their eyes.

A Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator — daring to strike first against a Nascent Soul Stage powerhouse?

And the timing of that strike, and the ruthlessness behind it…

Si Chen, for his part, didn't spare the old man and the young one so much as a glance.

His gaze, from beginning to end, was locked solely on Lü Ci.

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Giving Lü Ci no chance to catch his breath, spear after Spear of Thunder flew from Si Chen's hands in a relentless barrage!

Lü Ci was like a living target suspended in midair, forced to continuously deflect and shatter them with bursts of sword-qi.

Every collision sent shockwaves and surges of spiritual energy crashing into him, stalling his movements and leaving him in a rather wretched state.

Worse still, the dark-green lake below — reeking of death — set alarm bells screaming in his mind.

This brat is trying to force me into the water!

"Annoying insect!"

Lü Ci was seething with shock and fury, yet he could not shake off this relentless, harassing assault.

Si Chen, seeing that the ordinary thunder spears were yielding little result, furrowed his brow slightly.

He raised both hands at once. Blinding arcs of lightning surged forth again, and two Spears of Thunder rapidly condensed — one in each hand.

Then, with a sudden, violent motion, he slammed both hands together!

"Crackle——!"

A single, massive Spear of Thunder — several times thicker than any before it, with lightning raging wildly across its surface — took shape in his grip!

The destructive energy contained within it sent a wave of dread through the cultivators still on the shore who had yet to enter the cave, and even through the demon clan members watching from a distance!

Was this really a technique a Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator could pull off?!

Si Chen's gaze was ice-cold as he looked up at Lü Ci, who was barely maintaining his position in midair:

"I'm returning the hospitality from before."

Before the words had even finished, Si Chen drew his arm back like a fully drawn bow — then hurled the massive thunder spear straight at Lü Ci in the sky!

Thunder scattered in its wake, the sheer force of it terrifying to behold!

Lü Ci's face went iron-grey. Faced with this clearly different strike, he no longer relied on bare hands alone.

With a cold snort, the spirit sword on his back finally left its sheath. A torrent of refined, overwhelming sword-qi swept out to meet the massive thunder spear head-on!

"BOOM——!!!!"

An unprecedented thunderous roar exploded across the space!

Thunder and sword-qi raged against each other in a frenzy — and ultimately cancelled each other out.

But the collision unleashed a terrifying pressure wave that blasted outward in every direction!

The young man and the elder were shielded by the golden bell-shaped phantom; their figures only swayed slightly.

The two Core Formation Stage Elders of the Liuyun Sword Sect were not so fortunate.

Caught in the sudden shockwave, they lost control of their footing and plummeted toward the deadly lake below with cries of alarm!

"Ahhh——!"

But both were Core Formation Stage cultivators after all, and their reflexes were sharp. They instantly summoned their Magical Artifacts to protect themselves, and for the moment were not immediately dissolved by the lake — though they thrashed desperately in the viscous water, their situation dire.

Lü Ci himself was blasted backward by the explosion, but his combat experience was vast. Using the momentum, he drove his spirit sword into the rock face beside him and wrenched himself to a halt.

Yet he — a Nascent Soul Stage cultivator — along with two Core Formation Stage Elders, had been humiliated like this by a Foundation Establishment Stage brat!

He stared at the two Elders flailing in the water, the veins on his forehead bulging with rage.

Si Chen looked at Lü Ci — pinned to the rock face, face iron-grey, eyes nearly splitting with fury — then glanced at the two Core Formation Stage Elders struggling in the lake, on the verge of being dissolved at any moment.

He said nothing. He simply raised his hand toward Lü Ci's direction and gave a light, casual wave.

The meaning was unmistakable: courtesy returned in kind — we're even. For now.

Then he swung himself onto Red Bean's back. The magnificent creature had been waiting patiently at his side all along.

"Let's go."

Red Bean let out a clear, ringing cry, beat her wings once, and transformed into a streak of crimson, racing into the depths of the cave.

"Hahaha! Well done, brother!" Heishan reared up on his hind legs at the sight, excitedly clapping his bear paws together.

"Old fart! Take your time swimming! We're heading in first!"

Chifeng let out a long howl, his face full of contempt as he delivered a parting shot: "Old geezer, enjoy your bath!"

Then he flicked his tail and, together with Heishan, charged after Si Chen into the passage.

Lü Ci watched helplessly as Si Chen and the two demons vanished into the cave's depths, knowing he had to save his people first. He nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Si Chen!! I will kill you!!"

Behind them, Lü Ci's roar — fury pushed to its absolute limit — echoed through the vast underground space for a long, long time.

He watched Si Chen leave, yet had no choice but to rescue the others first.

If those two Core Formation Stage Elders also perished here, the Liuyun Sword Sect would suffer a truly crippling blow!

* * *

A short while later, the grey-robed elder and Young Master Fang safely descended to the shore with the aid of their Magical Artifacts.

The elder recalled the small bronze bell, his gaze drifting toward the direction Si Chen had gone. A look of quiet amazement crossed his face. "To think that in such a remote place, one could encounter a figure like this."

"A Foundation Establishment cultivator challenging a Nascent Soul powerhouse… utterly unheard of. And that strange technique of condensing thunder into a weapon…"

Young Master Fang straightened the slight creases in his lavish robes. Far from being angered, the corner of his mouth curved into a smile of genuine interest as he murmured softly to himself:

"Heh. That's actually rather interesting."

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