https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-401-That-Year-That-Night-That-Storm-That-Person/12981535/
Chapter 402: Out! Out!
Chapter 402: Out! Out!
"Imperial Rank? Just an Imperial Rank was able to block your spear?" Yan Bei Han was shocked. How was this possible?
"Yes," replied Duan Xiyang.
Duan Xiyang slowly explained, "At that time, I aimed my spear at seven people, intending to kill them all with one shot. All seven were severely injured. Just as I was about to strike, one of them suddenly leaped forward and blocked my spear's aura. He blocked it for an immeasurably small moment and then instantly disintegrated into powder!"
"But he still died, so he didn't really block it, did he?" Yan Bei Han asked, perplexed.
"But because of that brief moment, Xue Fuxiao arrived, and the other six survived. So, for that shot, he successfully blocked it!"
Duan Xiyang's eyes were cold, filled with memories, as if he were seeing that person again, leaping from the shattered divine statue in the ruined temple, burning his life and soul.
In Duan Xiyang's eyes at that time, that person's cultivation was not even worth a single ant.
But that insignificant ant managed to protect his six brothers from the Bone Shattering Dream Spear!
Even he himself knew that his action could only delay for a negligible amount of time and might not even be effective.
Yet, he still did it!
This was because of his belief. His belief was that if all his brothers died, he would die in front of them! Because he was the leader!
As the leader, he had the responsibility to protect his brothers.
Only after that day did Duan Xiyang truly understand the meaning of the word 'guardian' in the Guardians' name.
Guardian.
Even if I can only guard for less than a second, I will still guard!
...
After the investigation, Duan Xiyang learned that they were just the lowest-ranked Guardians.
They didn't even have the qualifications to accept missions; they could only take on bounty-hunting tasks.
The one who jumped up to block the spear tip was the leader of the seven, and his name was... Fang Zhi! The Drunken Swordsmaster, Fang Zhi.
Recalling the past, even after so many years of searching, Duan Xiyang couldn't find any news of that person's rebirth. He sighed softly.
Soul Snatching... they wouldn't die, but the loss of their original self made the search more difficult.
Because they were completely severed from their past lives.
Was this person still alive? Who was he? Where was he now? These questions had been Duan Xiyang's greatest concern for years.
In just a short conversation, Duan Xiyang briefly described the incident, but Yan Bei Han could easily imagine the situation.
A mere Imperial Rank facing the Bone Shattering Dream Spear, and the spear had already been unleashed. Was there any chance of survival?
None!
All struggles and resistance were absolutely futile! One could only close their eyes and wait for death.
Putting himself in their shoes, Yan Bei Han felt that if he were in a battle and encountered Xue Fuxiao, and Xue Fuxiao had already struck without mercy, he wouldn't even have the heart to resist or dodge.
Closing his eyes would have been his only choice at that moment.
But at that critical moment, the leader of the seven managed to make a final struggle!
And it was this final struggle, at the cost of his own life, that saved the lives of his six brothers.
Yan Bei Han couldn't help but exclaim, "Impressive!"
It was genuine admiration.
Because he knew he couldn't do the same! Even after hearing about such an incident, he knew he wouldn't be able to do it when faced with a similar situation.
Duan Xiyang reminisced about the past, and his eyes flickered with emotion.
Recalling Fang Zhi and the true meaning of guardianship stirred his heart.
Duan Xiyang took a breath and said, "The most terrifying aspect of the Guardians is their acute awareness of life and death. Even more frightening is their willingness to sacrifice based on this acute awareness. When they believe they are facing certain death but have a chance to take their enemy's life or inflict severe injury, they will not hesitate to trade their own lives for that opportunity."
"Without hesitation!"
"So they will always succeed!"
"That's what makes them truly terrifying."
Duan Xiyang spoke with a heavy tone.
In just a few sentences, he repeated the phrase 'without hesitation' several times.
These four words resonated deeply with his heart.
"I don't understand," Yan Bei Han said, confusion in his eyes.
Duan Xiyang gave an analogy, "Imagine two cultivators with similar cultivation levels and talents. One is a Fifth Rank Monarch, and the other is an Eighth Rank Monarch. When the Fifth Rank Monarch fights for his life against the Eighth Rank Monarch, he won't run. Instead, he'll fight to the death, especially if he's leading others in battle. He'll use his own life to drag the Eighth Rank Monarch to his death. At the very least, he can create an opportunity to severely injure the Eighth Rank Monarch with his own life. Do you understand?"
"I understand," Yan Bei Han replied.
"By doing so, even though he dies, he can create an opportunity for those who should have died to seize the chance to kill the severely injured Eighth Rank Monarch. If the remaining people can't finish the job, someone else will step up without hesitation, sacrificing their own life to create another opportunity.
"So, if a Monarch Rank eighth-level expert from the Only Righteous Sect were to encounter a team led by a Monarch Rank fifth-level expert from the Guardians, the outcome is certain! They would first defeat the opponent, severely injure themselves, and then kill a few more, but in the end, they would also sacrifice their lives!"
"Among those who have faced such battles alone without any backup from the Only Righteous Sect, not a single one has ever returned alive."
"This is the most terrifying aspect of the Guardians. They are always prepared to die. They die for victory, for the greater good, and for their brothers."
"This is the real reason why the Guardians have held us off for so many years, and it's also why you, Chen Yin, and others like Feng Yun and Feng Xing, despite reaching the Monarch Rank, are not allowed to venture out into the martial world."
"Because if you, with your current cultivation, were to encounter the true Guardians, it would be as good as sending you to your deaths!"
"This time, I brought you along, and I understand your grandfather's intentions. He didn't ask me to bring you to kill, but to make you understand what the Guardians truly are! To understand their way of fighting."
"The safest way to deal with the Guardians is to never give them any chance. The moment you see them, cut off their heads, and that's the safest option."
Yan Bei Han listened intently, memorizing every word.
She knew that Duan Xiyang had never been one to cherish words, but he was certainly not a talkative person either.
Today, he had spoken more than usual, which was quite an exception.
The exception surprised even Yan Bei Han.
"If the Guardians dare to die, why wouldn't we, the members of the Only Righteous Sect, dare to die?"
Yan Bei Han asked, "What about our people?"
Duan Xiyang smiled faintly, his smile peculiar.
His eyes held a hint of mockery as he looked ahead, saying, "If our people were like the Guardians... the Guardians would have died out long ago!"
After saying this, his enthusiasm for the conversation suddenly vanished.
He turned around and started walking, "We're entering the Southeast region. You and Hong Yi are similar. Although your cultivation is high and your combat strength is not weak, you both lack experience in fighting the Guardians."
Hong Yi respectfully replied, "You're right, Duan Xiyang. I also lack experience."
Duan Xiyang bluntly said, "Hiding in the headquarters and bullying the weak, what's the point?"
"This is a lesson you all must learn."
"Otherwise, you'll surely meet your end in the future."
"Let's go."
Yan Bei Han and Hong Yi nodded and followed.
Along the way, they endured countless scoldings from Duan Xiyang, their heads becoming covered in lumps, but their hearts were filled with gratitude.
Especially Hong Yi.
This trip was meant to take care of Yan Bei Han, but she had truly benefited from Yan Bei Han's presence.
Duan Xiyang was not known for his patience in teaching others. If not for Yan Bei Han, Hong Yi wouldn't have even been qualified to receive his scoldings, let alone his teachings.
So, she memorized every word, internalized them, and learned from them, striving to comprehend them in the shortest time possible.
Since Duan Xiyang wouldn't always be around to guide Yan Bei Han, it was crucial for Hong Yi to understand these lessons so she could take care of Yan Bei Han and gradually make them her own...
Yan Bei Han was undoubtedly a genius with exceptional talent and understanding. There's an old saying that goes, 'With age comes wisdom.'
At their current age, there are some things they simply can't comprehend.
Whether it's Yan Bei Han or Chen Yin, they are both prodigies, the kind that the entire continent rarely produces.
Although they have already shown a certain level of maturity in their actions, many aspects still reveal their immaturity.
This is something that can only be achieved when they grow older and gain more experience, allowing them to reach the level of stability and meticulousness that Feng Yun and others possess.
Take, for example, their attempts to win over the Night Demon.
If Yan Bei Han and Chen Yin were just a few years older, their approach would have been different from what it is now.
In the case of Feng Xing, compared to Yan Bei Han and Chen Yin, his method of winning people over is distinct.
Yan Bei Han and Chen Yin tend to offer gifts first and then recruit, valuing sentiment and the process. Feng Xing, on the other hand, recruits first and then offers gifts, prioritizing secure benefits.
The results of their recruitment efforts are like heaven and earth!
...
In the Extreme North Wilderness, the land was covered in ice and snow, with a bone-chilling wind howling as it blew, turning large stones into giant ice balls that rolled about.
Mogainyun's eyebrows had turned white, and he shouted in the midst of the snowstorm, "This place is amazing! How did the higher-ups come up with this idea, damn it, leaving us four here... Pfft..."
But as soon as he opened his mouth, it filled with snow.
"Let me test how deep this snow is." Qiuyuanshang withdrew his spiritual energy and returned to his natural weight, stepping onto the snowy ground.
With a swish, he disappeared, leaving only a hole.
Then, with a whoosh, he emerged from the hole, gritting his teeth, "It's about twice my height... No wonder we can't even see a bear here."
Yuzhongge said, "If Mogainyun can be buried in the snow, what more a bear."
Mogainyun scratched his head, feeling that something was off about that statement.
"This place isn't bad. Red Venerable is quite useful."
Jing Shuanggao tried to find some joy in the misery, "With such heavy snow, Red Venerable's red headscarf becomes our guiding light..."
Mogainyun hummed and grabbed Yuzhongge's shoulder, "Little Rain, it's up to your incredible luck whether I can find the resources to surpass Elder Fang here."
Yuzhongge flew into a rage, "Are you calling me Old Yu? Yu Junior, Yu Junior, damn it! Are you treating me as the team leader or just a treasure-hunting tool?"
"Old Yu?" Mogainyun, Qiuyuanshang, and Jing Shuanggao all smiled simultaneously.
"Puppet Leader! You've worked hard!"
Yuzhongge huffed and puffed, leading the way with his head down, "Damn it, I must surpass him when I return, I must! I swear! I can't take this humiliation..."
"We believe in you!"
The three offered insincere words of encouragement.
"This is the main training ground for our Only Righteous Sect assassins. Be careful."
Qiuyuanshang reminded them.
Then, the four of them realized, "No wonder he's improving so fast, training in such an environment, it's no wonder he's advancing quickly..."
"But those with insufficient strength or weak divine sense would be like deaf and blind in this snowstorm, coming here is just asking for death."
"Sigh... Who gave them so many resources..."
"Puppet Leader, give it your all! We have more resources than them!"
Yuzhongge suddenly stopped.
"What do you mean by Puppet Leader? Which puppet?"
The three of them looked at each other, unsure.
Yuzhongge's anger grew, "A puppet's leader?"
"No, no, no, no..."
The three of them shook their heads, "It's the leader of the leader."
"That's more like it, let's go treasure hunting and get rich!"
Yuzhongge waved his hand with determination.
The three of them followed behind him, their eyes filled with mischief, and they left with a whoosh.
...
Fang Che felt that his divine sense space was almost back to stability.
His divine sense was essentially stable, and he should be waking up soon.
But now, he was trying to figure out one thing: It's fine if I wake up, but what about the Nightmare Demon? The Nightmare Demon entered my divine sense space right before everyone's eyes, how can I eliminate the Nightmare Demon?
If the Nightmare Demon died in my divine sense space, wouldn't I be causing trouble for myself?
I must create the illusion that the Nightmare Demon is still alive and has left my divine sense space.
Let everyone know that the Nightmare Demon is still alive and has left Fang Che's divine sense space. Then, Fang Che woke up.
But that's just one problem.
The other problem lies in: What did the Nightmare Demon do in your divine sense? Since the Nightmare Demon entered your divine sense space, why didn't you die?
You're a Guardian, and the Nightmare Demon is from the Only Righteous Sect.
So, the Nightmare Demon showed mercy and let you go? This is so bizarre! Fang Che felt his head was about to explode, and he didn't know what to do.
He himself felt confused, why did this happen all of a sudden? There was already suspicion, and Dong Fang Si Wu was helping to suppress it. Now, there's an even bigger suspicion, and he was at a loss.
This situation was speechless.
But the urgent task was to create a Nightmare Demon soul.
So, he had been researching this intensely during this time.
However, no matter what, he couldn't create a divine soul to attract attention.
This was simply ridiculous!
This isn't my specialty!
Moreover, the Nightmare Demon disappeared without a trace, and even the memories in his mind were untouched, only leaving behind extremely pure energy.
The Nightmare Demon must have the solution in its mind.
After all, it could create soul fragments.
But... I didn't get the memories.
Fang Che sighed.
He somewhat regretted not negotiating with the Nightmare Demon, asking for some benefits before killing it.
But he knew that was unrealistic. First, his divine sense space was in danger; second, would the Nightmare Demon really teach him something? To be honest, even if the Nightmare Demon had given him a cultivation technique at that time, Fang Che wouldn't dare to practice it now.
That old devil, how could he be so obedient?
The Nightmare Demon must come out, or even the Only Righteous Sect would suspect.
But Fang Che was at a loss.
As his divine sense sea was about to return to calm, he couldn't stay unconscious for long...
Fang Che sighed.
Then, he turned and saw the pitiful Golden Horned Dragon.
Suddenly, an idea flashed in his mind.
"Little Dragon, come..."
Fang Che waved, a friendly smile on his face, "I'll help you create a new look..."
The Golden Horned Dragon's miserable wails filled the divine sense space for an entire day and night.
It was just a dragon, and a soul body, not yet at the stage of freely changing forms.
But Fang Che couldn't wait any longer.
Because, apart from this method, he would only face suspicion from both the Only Righteous Sect and the Guardians.
So, the Golden Horned Dragon had to do it, whether it liked it or not!
Anyway, it's up to you!
...
Fang Che had been unconscious for sixteen days.
On this day, Meng Chengzheng, Li Changkong, Bing Shangxue, and others from the White Cloud Martial Academy arrived. Dong Fang Si Wu, who had been secretly observing, was about to cry from keeping his eyes open for so long, but he hadn't found anything unusual.
Could it be that my experience in the martial world has declined?
What was Dong Fang Si Wu's plan by sending me here?
He made it so mysterious, and in the end, I only monitored boredom.
Song Yidao also arrived, accompanying Meng Chengzheng and the others. Fang Qingyun was practicing his swordplay in the Scholar's Residence's courtyard. Seeing them, he hurriedly greeted them.
Then, Ye Meng also came out from the room.
"How is he?"
"He's still unconscious."
The group sighed in unison.
Entering the bedroom, they looked at Fang Che, who still appeared to be in a deep slumber, each feeling a heavy weight in their hearts.
The Nightmare Guardian had entered Fang Che's soul, but no one could predict what would happen next.
After sitting in the bedroom for a while, just as they were about to speak...
"Look... This..."
Bing Shangxue let out a startled cry, her finger trembling as she pointed at Fang Che on the bed.
Everyone turned around.
In an instant, their eyes widened in surprise.
Li Changkong, Duan Zhongliu, and Song Yidao exclaimed in unison, "It's out! It's out!"
Even Dong Fang Siwu, who was secretly monitoring from the shadows, was startled, his eyes widening, almost blurting out a curse.)
Under the watchful eyes of the group...
A surge of divine sense power rippled, and on Fang Che's unconscious body, a strand of golden light began to shine.
It seemed like something was struggling to break free.
Ye Meng exclaimed, covering her mouth with a look of joy and tears in her eyes.
The group stood frozen, staring in disbelief. They saw the golden light struggling to burst out, but something within seemed to be pulling it back...
But the golden light persisted, gradually increasing in intensity, until it formed a head.
Although the features were somewhat indistinct, everyone understood. It was the Nightmare Guardian! It had to be the Nightmare Guardian!
As for why... wasn't it obvious? Because it didn't look like Fang Che, and Fang Che wouldn't struggle so desperately to break free from his own body... Besides, Fang Che's soul power couldn't reach this level.
The golden light was dazzling!
Could Fang Che's soul be this powerful?
Under the stunned gaze of the group, the Nightmare Guardian struggled, constantly changing forms, seemingly in pain.
The Golden Horned Jiao was indeed suffering.
Forcing a physical transformation was bound to be painful.
The group watched, wide-eyed, as the Nightmare Guardian's head emerged, followed by its neck, shoulders, and arms...
Its form shifted constantly.
Long and slender, humanoid, serpentine, spiral...
Finally, with a whoosh, it burst out from Fang Che's crown, but it seemed to be missing a leg, or perhaps its two legs had transformed into a tail...
But everyone understood. After all, the tail was tapered, sleek, and streamlined, perfect for pulling out.
Moreover, everyone realized that the Nightmare Guardian seemed to have sustained injuries, and its lower half appeared somewhat illusory, and the golden light there had also faded...
The Nightmare Guardian finally broke free and turned its head. The group's hearts skipped a beat. They saw two fierce and menacing eyes staring at them...
Then, the Nightmare Guardian spiraled and, with a whoosh, it pierced through the wall and disappeared into the air outside... Then, a shadow flashed in the air and vanished without a trace!
The Nightmare Guardian was out! It had escaped!
The group's hearts leaped in that instant.
This news was simply too good to be true!
Because it proved that Fang Che was about to wake up!
"It's out! It's out! It's really out!" Song Yidao exclaimed, dancing with joy. Li Changkong's eyes welled up with tears.
Ye Meng almost cried out of sheer joy.
Dong Fang Si Wu, hidden in the shadows, grimaced, cursing under his breath. The Nightmare Guardian was indeed this powerful!
Fortunately, it escaped, or else... this would have been the end for him.
However, the Nightmare Guardian didn't seem to be having an easy time inside either.
This thought was a consensus among the group—the Nightmare Guardian had emerged, but it seemed to be injured. But why and how it was injured, and what Fang Che had done, no one knew.
The group stood there, dumbfounded, staring at the motionless Fang Che, like a bunch of dazed geese.
Bing Shangxue was the quickest to react. She immediately sat by the bed, grabbing Fang Che's wrist, and her spiritual power and divine sense activated simultaneously.
"The meridians are naturally circulating spiritual power, and the dantian is full," Bing Shangxue said, carefully probing. "It's truly effective. Now that the Nightmare Guardian is out, Fang Che's condition is much better than before. In the past few days, his meridians were stagnant, and his dantian was nearly depleted. Now, spiritual power flows within him, and his face is less tense."
"Moreover, the divine sense power is no longer chaotic and unruly. Although it's still turbulent, it's gradually stabilizing."
"Fang Che's complexion is also improving. In the past few days, his face was tense and lifeless, but now, his divine sense is calming down."
Bing Shangxue heaved a long sigh of relief, a smile of relief on her face. "Thank heavens, Fang Che is finally saved!"
Ye Meng sat down on the ground, suddenly covering her face and sobbing quietly.
Tears streamed from her eyes, flowing through her fingers.
While Fang Che was completely immobile, she didn't cry. Because she knew that everyone could collapse, but she couldn't!
She had to make their home even more orderly and comfortable, providing a stable environment for Fang Che's soul.
If she were to fall apart, Fang Che would lose his last pillar of support.
She could only be strong.
Stronger.
But at this moment, hearing the news of Fang Che's recovery, she couldn't control herself.
The pillar of our family is back!
In your absence, I realized how difficult it is to hold up a family.
(End of Chapter)
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