Chapter 36: Not Enough

Outside the tower.

A deathly silence.

Then,

Boom!!!

“She won?! She actually won?!”

“Nine fifth-level Golden Core puppets! In less than a hundred moves!”

“What kind of monster is Senior Sister Lin?!”

“You’re the monster! She’s a peerless genius!”

“Are peerless geniuses really this terrifying?!”

In the crowd, gasps of shock and cries of admiration rose and fell in waves.

Those who had been doubting her earlier now shut their mouths completely.

Those who had been worried were now boiling with excitement.

*

Li Yuanyi stood with his hands behind his back, his eyes filled with shock.

“Ninth-level Qi Refining, slaying nine fifth-level Golden Core puppets…”

he muttered.

“If this girl grows to her full potential, she will surely become a pillar of our Qingyun Sect.”

Saint Qingyuan did not speak.

But his slightly trembling hands betrayed his inner turmoil.

The Heavenly Dao Divine Physique…

Was this the terrifying power of the Heavenly Dao Divine Physique?

Outside the tower.

On the light screen, Lin Xiaoyu’s figure did not pause for even a second.

She stood in the center of the second-floor battlefield, covered in blood, yet she still stood perfectly straight.

“Next level.”

Her voice was calm, but it made everyone’s scalp tingle.

She was going to keep fighting?

Did she have a death wish?!

The light screen flickered.

The third level opened.

Thirty-six figures slowly stepped out from the void.

Seventh-level Golden Core.

Thirty-six puppets.

The entire area fell into a deathly silence.

Then,

The crowd erupted!

“Thirty-six puppets?! Seventh-level Golden Core?!”

“Senior Sister Lin is crazy! She’s completely lost it!”

“How could she possibly win?! This is suicide!”

“Get her out of there! Quickly, get her out!”

Among the crowd, cries of alarm and pleas to stop rose in a chaotic din.

But Lin Xiaoyu could not hear them.

She gripped her cracked Qingfeng Sword tightly and charged toward the thirty-six puppets.

*

The third level.

Thirty-six crimson lights flared simultaneously!

Those were the eyes of the thirty-six seventh-level Golden Core puppets, glowing blood-red like ghosts, locking their gaze onto Lin Xiaoyu.

They possessed no emotion, no fear.

Only the instinct to kill.

Lin Xiaoyu took a deep breath.

Inside her body, the Thirty-Six Heavenly Dipper Acupoints spun frantically.

The massive amount of stored energy erupted like a volcano!

Golden light enveloped her entire body.

Then,

she moved.

Pushing the Grand Dao Evasion Technique to its absolute limit, her figure blurred into countless afterimages in the void!

The thirty-six puppets attacked at the same time!

Crimson light blanketed the sky, nearly drowning the entire battlefield!

Lin Xiaoyu threaded through the crimson tide.

With every turn, she narrowly evaded a fatal blow.

With every strike of her sword, she left a deep wound on a puppet.

But she was also getting wounded.

One wound.

Two wounds.

Three wounds.

…

The cuts on her body multiplied, blood dyeing her clothes red.

The deepest gash stretched from her left shoulder all the way to her waist, nearly exposing bone.

But she did not stop.

She could not stop.

The Heavenly Dao Divine Art circulated frantically within her, squeezing out the energy stored in the Thirty-Six Heavenly Dipper Acupoints bit by bit.

It was not enough.

Far from enough.

She needed greater pressure.

An even more extreme line between life and death.

*

The eighty-seventh move.

The thirteenth puppet fell.

Lin Xiaoyu knelt on one knee, gasping for breath.

The Qingfeng Sword was covered in cracks, on the verge of shattering at any moment.

Her vision began to darken.

She had lost too much blood.

Yet, gritting her teeth, she stood up once more.

Twenty-three left.

*

The one hundred and fifty-third move.

The twenty-fourth puppet fell.

Lin Xiaoyu could no longer lift one of her arms.

Her left shoulder had been pierced through, and her right leg bore a deep, bone-deep gash.

But using her remaining hand, she held her sword and continued to fight.

Twelve left.

*

The two hundred and first move.

The thirty-fifth puppet fell.

Lin Xiaoyu knelt on one knee, propping herself up with her sword to keep from collapsing.

Her vision was a blur.

Her entire body trembled.

But looking at the final puppet, she smiled.

“Just… one more…”

She struggled to her feet.

She swayed, looking as if she might collapse at any second.

But she stood.

The last puppet charged at her.

Lin Xiaoyu did not dodge.

She could no longer dodge anyway.

She simply gripped her sword and poured all her remaining strength into one final strike.

Pfft!

The Qingfeng Sword pierced the puppet’s chest, protruding from its back.

At the same time, the puppet’s fist slammed into her abdomen.

Boom!

Lin Xiaoyu was sent flying, crashing heavily into the mountain wall a hundred zhang away.

The rock wall cracked as she was embedded into it, coughing up mouthfuls of blood.

But she did not close her eyes.

She watched the final puppet slowly collapse.

She won.

She had actually won.

*

Outside the tower.

There was absolute silence.

Everyone stood with their mouths agape and eyes wide, as if they had seen a ghost.

Thirty-six seventh-level Golden Core puppets.

Lin Xiaoyu, who was only at the ninth level of Qi Refining.

She won.

She had actually won!

“How… how is this possible…”

someone muttered, their voice trembling.

No one could answer.

Because this scene had completely exceeded their understanding.

Crossing two major realms, fighting thirty-six opponents alone, and fighting back to win while heavily injured.

This was not something a human could achieve.

This was a miracle.

*

Among the crowd, Saint Qingyuan’s expression was grave.

Looking at the blood-drenched figure embedded in the mountain wall on the light screen, he said in a deep voice,

“Chen Ping, get Xiaoyu out of there quickly! She is already heavily injured! If she keeps fighting, she will die!”

Chen Ping cupped his fists, his expression calm.

“Sect Master, Xiaoyu likely intends to continue challenging the levels.”

“Nonsense!” Saint Qingyuan barked angrily.

“Look at her state right now! She can’t even stand! What levels is she going to challenge?!”

Chen Ping did not speak.

He merely stared at the light screen, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes.

He knew that this girl had not yet reached her true moment of life and death.

Was the Heavenly Dao Qi Refining Path really that easy?

Since she had chosen it, she had to press on without looking back.

*

On the light screen.

Lin Xiaoyu struggled, crawling out from the mountain wall.

Covered in blood, she swayed unsteadily.

But she stood up.

She raised her head and looked toward the void.

“Next level.”

Her voice was hoarse, yet incredibly firm.

The entire crowd erupted in an uproar!

“She still wants to fight?!”

“She has a death wish! She really has a death wish!”

“Stop her quickly! She’s going to die!”

But no one could stop her.

Because inside the Cultivation Tower, only Lin Xiaoyu herself could make that decision.

*

The light screen flickered.

The fourth level opened.

Eighty-one figures slowly stepped out from the void.

Ninth-level Golden Core.

Eighty-one puppets.

The entire area fell into a deathly silence.

Then,

Boom!!!

“Ninth-level Golden Core?! Eighty-one puppets?!”

“This is two full major realms! Ninth-level Qi Refining against ninth-level Golden Core!”

“Senior Sister Lin is seeking death! She really is seeking death!”

“How could she possibly win?! This is absolutely impossible!”

Among the crowd, deafening cries of shock rang out.

Saint Qingyuan’s face turned livid.

He regretted it.

He shouldn’t have believed Chen Ping.

If Lin Xiaoyu really died inside the Cultivation Tower…

A Heavenly Dao Divine Physique was a rarity unseen in ten thousand generations.

The Qingyun Sect could not afford such a loss!

“Chen Ping!” he barked angrily.

“Get her out of there immediately! That is an order!”

Chen Ping remained calm and slowly shook his head.

“Sect Master, Xiaoyu chose her own path. She must walk it herself.”

Saint Qingyuan trembled with rage.

He looked toward Li Yuanyi.

Li Yuanyi’s expression was also grave, but as he stared at the swaying yet still upright figure on the light screen, he fell silent for a moment before slowly saying,

“Sect Master, let her try.”

Saint Qingyuan was taken aback.

Li Yuanyi said softly,

“Ninth-level Qi Refining challenging eighty-one ninth-level Golden Core puppets… If she truly survives this, her future will be limitless.”

Saint Qingyuan fell silent.

After a long while, he slowly lowered his hand.

“Fine,” he said in a deep voice.

“I will watch. Let us see how far she can go.”

*

Outside the tower, countless disciples watched the light screen, their palms sweating with anxiety.

No one spoke.

Everyone held their breath, staring fixedly at the blood-drenched figure.

The fourth level.

Eighty-one ninth-level Golden Core puppets.

Could Lin Xiaoyu create another miracle?

*

On the light screen.

Looking at the dense crowd of crimson figures before her, Lin Xiaoyu suddenly smiled.

Her smile was ghastly.

Her face was covered in blood, and her teeth were stained red.

Yet, it was a beautiful smile.

It was a smile of pure, unreserved joy rising from the depths of her heart.

“Master…”

she whispered.

“Your disciple will not disappoint you.”

Gripping the cracked Qingfeng Sword in her hand, she walked step by step toward the eighty-one puppets.

She stumbled, swaying on the verge of collapse.

Yet, she walked steadily.

Every step she took was incredibly firm.

*

Outside the tower.

Watching the delicate yet resolute figure on the light screen, Chen Ping’s hand trembled slightly inside his sleeve.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Then, he opened them.

A golden light flashed and vanished in his eyes.

“Xiaoyu…”

He murmured.

“You can do this.”

*

On the light screen.

Eighty-one puppets moved in unison.

A blood-red light blotted out the sky.

Lin Xiaoyu’s figure was instantly swallowed up.