I Shall Steal the Heavens 130 Chapter 129: Breaking the Seal

Unfortunately (or fortunately), no one was paying any attention to me breaking the fourth wall. Everyone's attention was completely riveted upon the newcomer. Sighing, I pushed my glasses up as I lowered my head to study her.

The young lady wore a light blue silk dress, her eyebrows resembling jade feathers (wait, why the fuck are we using "jade" to describe her eyebrows? And who the hell has ever heard of "jade feathers"? I've never heard of a bird that has jade feathers) and her skin as white as snow. Apparently she had a narrow waist and wide hips that were supposed to be gorgeous, but I honestly preferred girls who were a bit more rounded. Hourglass figures just looked unnatural. In another world she would be wearing a veil to conceal her face and make her beauty even more mysterious, apparently because she was so beautiful that anyone who saw her exposed face would be driven crazy (come on, that was utter bullshit, don't tell me you actually buy that), but in more liberal times such as the present, her pretty face was in full view of everyone. Her eyes, as clear as spring water, swept across the crowd who were admiring her, causing everyone who looked at her to drown in their depths.

"You've got to be kidding me," I growled in exasperation. "Describing so many details about her and exaggerating her beauty…quite clearly you intend for her to be the heroine, don't you? And fuck that whole jade thing. If any part of a human resembles jade or the color of jade, I'm pretty sure she'll look sickly and not beautiful! And stop indulging in description porn! Yeah, I get it, she's beautiful. Yeah, I get that she's supposed to be the damned heroine who will eventually fall for the protagonist, but giving a description like that is bloody disgusting!"

"What the fuck are you on about?" Zhu Jiao demanded, staring at me after my outburst. "No one said anything about a description?"

"Never mind," I muttered. I pitied the ignorant fools who were trapped within the frame of a story, unable to see the tropes for what they truly were and believing that it was reality. Instead, I gestured toward Bai Ning Xue. "You really love Bai Ning Xue, don't you?"

"Huh? Of course I do."

"Then make sure you stay faithful to her," I told him. "Don't ever betray her."

"Huh? Why the hell would I betray Ning Xue?" Zhu Jiao looked puzzled. I sighed exaggeratedly and shook my head.

"It's the fate of wuxia and xianxia protagonists to have a harem. The moment this girl received such a longwinded description emphasizing her beauty to the high heavens, we already know that she's going to be a main heroine and part of your harem."

"I see." Bai Ning Xue's voice grew cold and she tightened her grip on Zhu Jiao's arm to the point where he winced in pain. "So that's your type of girl, huh, Zhu Jiao?"

"No!" Zhu Jiao shot me a murderous look. "I have no idea what Fei Wu is talking about! He's just spouting his usual nonsense! Don't take him seriously!" trying to loosen her hold on his arm, he hastily changed the subject, no doubt feeling guilty about ogling the new girl despite already officially having a girlfriend. "Who is this girl, anyway?"

Then he ended up ogling her again, watching her gracefully saunter forward as her entourage parted before her.

"Thank you for the praise, Sister Sha Yu. But I have not changed much at all."

Even though the girl's voice was melodious, there was no warmth or gentleness in those crystal-clear eyes. Instead, I ended up shivering when I saw the deep cold that permeated her sapphire pupils. When someone who wielded ice like me could actually feel cold, then you probably could guess just how freezing that glacial gaze could be.

And no, I'm not going to copy Tian Can Tu Dou and describe her as being hot on the outside and cold in the inside. That had to be the lamest and cheesiest description if I had ever heard one. But one thing was for sure, this girl wasn't someone I could deal with. I planned to avoid her at all costs if possible. That would be easy – she was fated to encounter Zhu Jiao and fall for him, not me, so I didn't have to worry about that.

"Ling Qing Zhu," Bai Ning Xue finally said, giving a belated answer to Zhu Jiao's question. "She's the next leader of the demonic sect, the Incendiary Ifrit Sect."

"The Incendiary what now?" I repeated incredulously. Of all the things, an Ifrit?

"A demonic sect!" Zhu Jiao gasped. I rolled my eyes at that when everyone ignored my question to gape in astonishment at Zhu Jiao's statement of the obvious. Like, have none of you been paying attention?

To be fair, I supposed, they were still mired in disbelief that a demonic sect had just shown up in the middle of nowhere, armed to the teeth and loaded for bear, and they were trembling in both fear and outrage. Getting ready to battle, they made to draw their weapons, but Lei Yong Chun quickly intervened and gestured for them to step back.

"Please trust me, everyone. The demonic sects are not here to fight. I'm sure we can call a truce for now."

He then bowed to Ling Qing Zhu politely.

"I apologize for the hostile reception. But I'm sure no one will raise a hand against you or your sect."

"To be able to cause someone of Lei Yong Chun's stature to be so courteous, this lady definitely is not ordinary," Zhu Jiao muttered under her breath. I nodded in agreement. In other words, she was the perfect kind of heroine and harem member for a protagonist like Zhu Jiao. Only princess-like girls with extraordinary backgrounds had the right to be by his side. If she wasn't at least as impressive as Bai Ning Xue, then she stood no chance of entering his harem.

"It's been a while, Qing Zhu," Nan Ke called out cheerfully and hopped forward to grab her hands. Seeing how friendly she was with Ling Qing Zhu, I guessed that the Red Phoenix Sect might have some connections with the demonic sects. That would be quite the scandal if true though, so I didn't want to think about it.

"Heh…so what business does the demonic sects have if they're not here for a fight?" Jiang Jun Hao asked, after just managing to wipe the drool off his face while staring at Ling Qing Zhu. It was clear that he was drawn by her beauty, and he made no attempt to mask his lustful desire in his heated gaze. It was only natural. In front of such a beautiful lady, any man would be enticed, so he was aware that there was no point in hiding it.

"The same as you so-called orthodox sects," Ling Qing Zhu replied quietly as she turned to look at the tomb. "To explore and look for treasures."

"Yeah, you heard her!" Lei Yong Chun assured everyone. "There will be more demonic sects arriving, not just the Incendiary Ifrit Sect! So I ask of all of you, please do not be impulsive! Don't attack them!"

"How do we know they won't stab us in the back?!" a girl shouted, naturally bearing a much higher resistance to Ling Qing Zhu's charm and beauty than the lecherous guys. "They're demonic sects! There's no guarantee they won't attack us suddenly when we're all in the tomb!"

"The answer is simple." Despite the soft volume, Ling Qing Zhu's melodious voice carried across the entire campsite. "You are all simply not worth the effort."

For a moment, silence reigned throughout the campsite, and the tension grew so dense that I could cut it with my swords.

"Ha ha, Qing Zhu doesn't mean anything by that," Lei Yong Chun forced a laugh and quickly intervened before the crowd could explode.

"There will be traps, formation arrays, seals, barriers, demonic creatures and magical beasts within the tomb that would require our strength and attention to overcome," Ling Qing Zhu said. At first I thought she was backing up Lei Yong Chun, but then she added, "We don't have the time or energy to deal with any of you. Collecting the treasures, artifacts and weapons in the tomb will be our utmost priority."

The atmosphere grew tenser, if possible.

"Ha ha ha! Well said!"

Everyone glanced up when they heard an unfamiliar voice. Above, a small plane soared past, skimming past the canopies at a dangerously low altitude. A small group of dark-robed disciples jumped out, landing gracefully on the ground. While their clothing was mostly black like that of the Incendiary Ifrit Sect, there were a lot of red-blood markings and Spirit Engravings embroidered over the fabric and lining. To be honest, they looked like…Akatsuki from a certain Japanese manga with ninjas in it. At least they weren't trying to be shinobi, nor were they wearing orange jumpsuits.

"Li Xue Wu."

Lei Yong Chun greeted the newcomer faintly, and I could tell from his reticient attitude that he didn't really like the the smug, arrogant-looking young man who had just arrived.

"Oh, Lei Yong Chun…you're here too?"

"I've always been here," Lei Yong Chun grumbled with a sigh. But Li Xue Wu ignored him in favor of approaching Sui Sha Yu and grabbing her hands.

"It's been a while, Sister Sha Yu."

"Um, yeah, Young Master Li…it has indeed…"

Looking uncomfortable, Sui Sha Yu pulled away from him, and then glanced at the small group of disciples who had jumped out of the plane along with Li Xue Wu. Speaking of which, the plane had soared away after dropping off its cargo, leaving its former passengers behind.

"Qing Wu!" Sui Sha Yu's eyes brightened when they rested on one of the robed figures. "You've come too!"

The girl in question was another top-level beauty, her exquisite features a match for Bai Ning Xue. The thin, silky fabric of her black and blood-red dress clung to her gorgeous figure, emphasizing her feminine curves, and I realized that she was second only to Ling Qing Zhu. However, unlike Ling Qing Zhu's frosty gaze and crystal-clear eyes, this girl's eyes were dark and inky black, almost like a black hole that devoured anyone who looked into them. With my Heaven and Earth senses, I could sense the thick yin qi that emanated from them, saturated with murderous intent. If Ling Qing Zhu's eyes were akin to clear ice, this girl's eyes resembled sharp blades that cut anyone who looked directly into them. Good thing I had my glasses to protect my eyes.

"That's…Yan Qing Wu?!" Bai Ning Xue gasped softly. Zhu Jiao and her fellow White Tiger Sect disciples looked at her in bafflement.

"Who?"

"Do you know her, Senior Ning Xue?"

"Who are those people?"

Bai Ning Xue swallowed for a moment before she finally answered.

"They're from the Tian Sha Sect."

There was a pause before everyone gasped collectively. Even I couldn't help but be stunned by her answer.

The Tian Sha Sect – or should I translate it as the Heavenly Fiend Sect? – was one of the most notorious demonic sects in the Middle Continent. Never mind they were the ones who murdered Hao Cai Neng – the character everyone believed was the protagonist until they got to end of the prologue (as for how I knew that, let's just say I had the privilege of being the protagonist of this story), they were responsible for the massacres of entire villages and enjoyed indulging in blood-filled carnage, slaying anyone who got into their way without any hesitation.

If there was any demonic sect that embodied the values and role of the stereotypical villain, it would be the Tian Sha Sect. as a side note, Hao Cai Neng's village was wiped out shortly after his death, with the sect leader, Tian Sha Tian Zun, wanting to use the village as a forward base to launch more attacks on the orthodox martial arts sects.

Well, wiped out might not be the right term. The village chief had noticed something wrong, and had evacuated his village beforehand when he went out to train the next day after Hao Cai Neng rejected him. Thanks to that, the casualties were minimized. The village chief had also gone on record, saying that it was a complete waste -–that if Hao Cai Neng had accepted his offer to train, he wouldn't have died so uselessly at the hands of the demonic sect leader.

Whether that was true or not, I guess you guys will be a better judge of character.

Upon the revelation, all of the orthodox sects had gathered and surrounded the tiny group of the Tian Sha Sect, as well as Ling Qing Zhu and her Incendiary Ifrit Sect. it was to no avail, as more vehicles flew past, or more shadows emerged from the forest surrounding the Heavenly Fire Mountain Range. As Lei Yong Chun warned, there would be more demonic sects joining the fray.

Consequently, there was some sort of standoff where the orthodox sects stood on one side, the demonic sects on the other, and Lei Yong Chun and his friends in the middle.

"We'll end your atrocities today!"

"Yeah? Bring it! I'll wipe out your so-called orthodox sects today!"

"Hah! You think you have the ability to do so?"

"I'm sick and tired of you being all high and mighty and talking about justice when you guys are huge hypocrites!"

The campsite was on the verge of erupting into a full-scale conflict. Already voices were raised and both sides were on the brink of attacking each other.

"Guys, stop!" Lei Yong Chun pleaded as he raised his hands. As powerful as he was, even he wouldn't be able to stop over a few hundred martial artists from clashing against each other. Having seen him fight, though, I had no doubt he would be able to defeat the majority of the people here even if they teamed up against him.

"What foolishness."

At her chilling words, everyone stopped and turned to stare at the ethereal, beautiful Ling Qing Zhu. She was folding her arms and radiating a coldness that seemed to weigh down heavily on everyone present, even the demonic sects. Only a few, such as Yan Qing Wu, remained unaffected, but even Li Xue Wu looked like he was suffocating.

"Are you going to waste your time and energy fighting here? You might have a lot of spare time in your hands, but I'm busy. And I want to conserve my qi for the threats inside the tomb." She turned and approached the shimmering barrier. "You're welcome to kill each other here, but don't drag me into it."

"Hey, wait! Who gave you the right!?" One of the orthodox martial artists shouted out, but a chilling glare from her silenced him and he collapsed, shivering from freezing fear. Without breaking her stride, Ling Qing Zhu continued on, flanked by her fellow Incendiary Ifrit Sect disciples.

"Well, Miss Qing Zhu has a point," Li Xue Wu admitted with a sly grin. "Junior Qing Wu, let's go!"

Yan Qing Wu said nothing, but followed Ling Qing Zhu silently. Li Xue Wu looked annoyed at being brushed off by his junior, but he swept his cloak up and followed her, leading the rest of the small Tian Sha Sect entourage.

Lei Yong Chun breathed a sigh of relief, then he chased after them, with Sui Sha Yu by his side. When the veteran couple caught up to Ling Qing Zhu and the Incendiary Ifrit Sect disciples, the cold beauty turned to face him.

"Since everyone is here, shall we begin breaking the seal?"

"Of course, of course!" Lei Yong Chun agreed, his gaze gentle. Even though he already had Sui Sha Yu, he still wasn't unaffected by Ling Qing Zhu's beauty. Fortunately, he wasn't as unrestrained or lustful as Jiang Jun Hao, and Sui Sha Yu kept a tight leash on him.

"The seal was set up by a Nascent Stage practitioner," Sui Sha Yu warned. "Even though it has been thousands of years, it is still pretty formidable. But I've analyzed it and found that if we all focus our attacks on a single point, we should be able to penetrate it."

"Sounds good." Lei Yong Chun nodded his head. Jiang Jun Hao and the others reacted similarly, seeing no reason to doubt her.

"Let's do it then!"

Unable to restrain himself, Jiang Jun Hao immediately whipped out his spear. Golden qi began flowing into it and the weapon grew massive and stretched to over a few dozen meters long. Hefting it up, Jiang Jun Hao hurled it. The spear disappeared into a golden streak, the fiery projectile lancing through the air and drilling into the barrier.

"Heavenly Thrust!"

"Why the fuck does the name of his technique sound like some horrible technique from an h-manga or h-anime?" I muttered, trying not to laugh. "And doesn't he feel embarrassed, hollering the name of his technique with such an innuendo like that?"

Nan Ke, thankfully, was not prone to such risqué techniques. Stepping ahead of Feng Tian Yong and the rest of her sect members, she drew both her swords and swung them, unleashing twin waves of raging infernos.

"Incinerate!" she shouted gleefully.

Lei Yong Chun also participated in the attack, raising his hand. Above, thunderclouds gathered, sparking restlessly with living lightning. Electric qi saturated the air so thickly that my hair stood on end and I actually felt numb even though I was such a far distance away. I could only pity Feng Tian Yong and the other non-elite disciples who were suffering the full effects of being in the vicinity of such powerful attacks.

"Divine Tiger Thunder Crash!"

As usual, the silver tiger took form and descended from the thunderclouds, roaring silently as it viciously slashed at the shimmering barrier and adding to the assault of the spear and infernos already present.

Yan Qing Wu stabbed forward with her black sword, and a beam of unholy light surged forward and struck the barrier along with the rest of the attacks. Not to be outdone, Li Xue Wu also raised his palm and sent a dark shockwave at the barrier.

Why the hell is everyone using ranged attacks? I wondered, exasperated. At this rate, we might as well be magicians shooting spells instead of proper martial artists. Shaking my head, I watched as Feng Tian Yong and the other Red Phoenix Sect disciples added their own strength to help Nan Ke in piercing the barrier, as did the other disciples of the Heavenly Fiend Sect and the Heavenly Way Sect. Beside Lei Yong Chun, Sui Sha Yu also added her power.

In contrast to the others' merciless barrage of attacks, Ling Qing Zhu's strike was serene. She gently waved her hand, and a lotus flower that was floating above her glowed before a single petal split off from it. Under her direction, the lotus petal was imbued in a blue light as it floated mildly toward the barrier at the mountaintop.

When the group of elite martial arts practitioners unleashed their techniques, the entire area shuddered, tremors rippling through the mountain range and sending flying magical beasts flapping into the air in a panic. The crowd in the campsite couldn't help but fulfil their roles of admiring the strong, going, "ooooh" and "aaaah."

"Amazing…so this is the power of people who have reached the Qi Fusion Stage and Pure Spirit Stage…"

Zhu Jiao was whispering in amazement, unable to tear his eyes away from his sight. Beside him, despite looking a little upset,

Despite the merciless onslaught, the barrier held strong. True, there were numerous lines and symbols materializing on the surface of the barrier, the patterns of the Spirit Engraving flaring fiercely as the barrier they were carved into resiliently withstood the combined majestic attacks that had slammed into it.

Boom!

Jiang Jun Hao's golden spear was the first to strike the barrier viciously, causing countless circles to ripple outward from the point of impact. The infernos launched by Nan Ke followed, coalescing with the flames from Feng Tian Yong and the other Red Phoenix Sect disciples, and slammed into the same point, washing over the sparking barrier. The Heavenly Way Sect disciples, not to be outdone, also lent their power to their current leader.

Crash!

The next moment, the lightning tiger collided with the barrier, causing the symbols and patterns to flicker and almost short out. The liquid shark launched by Sui Sha Yu accompanied the lightning tiger, tearing and biting at the same point.

Then the ominous black beams of the Tian Sha Sect smashed into the barrier, hitting that same point and erasing yet more patterns.

"Come on!" Li Xue Wu growled impatiently. "Just get destroyed already!"

Unfortunately, it wasn't that simple.

Even as the power of the first few attacks gradually scattered, it revealed a still shimmering barrier. Many of the patterns and Spirit Engravings had been obliterated, but many more still remained. A huge portion of the crowd gaped in disbelief.

"You've got to be kidding me…!"

"Even after taking such powerful attacks from so many elite martial artists, the barrier is still unbroken?"

"Is that seal indestructible or something?"

However, the last attack had yet to land.

While everyone was ogling the seemingly indestructible barrier in disbelief, the final and seemingly weakest blue glow slowly drifted over, almost like a feather. A few seconds after the other attacks dissipated, the lotus petal finally landed on the surface of the barrier.

At the moment of contact, the lotus petal instantly transformed into a vast, azure light that rapidly spread across the transparent barrier, devouring many of the remaining symbols and caused several cracks.

Crack!

Even as the azure light throbbed gently, probing the surface of the weakening barrier for more vulnerabilities, the forcefield unexpectedly remained strong, resisting the last of the elite martial artists' attempts to break it.

"Hmm…seems like we might need to attack the seal a few more times before we can finally break through it," Ling Qing Zhu observed, her pretty face crinkling into a frown. Lei Yong Chun chuckled as he shook his head.

"No…as ashamed as we are to admit it, you did more damage to the barrier than the rest of us put together."

"Yeah…" Jiang Jun Hao's shoulders drooped, but he couldn't help but stare at Ling Qing Zhu in amazement. His fellow Heavenly Way Sect discples mostly mirrored his reaction, all of them gaping at Ling Qing Zhu and almost drooling.

"…"

Yan Qing Wu pursed her lips, but didn't say anything. Beside her, Li Xue Wu's eyes were boring into the gorgeous body of Ling Qing Zhu, his crimson pupils filled with fiery passion and decadent desire for her.

Nan Ke narrowed her eyes as well, a little bitter. Feng Tian Yong and the other Red Phoenix Sect disciples seemed to be at a loss, averting their gaze from Ling Qing Zhu's beautiful figure. They knew better than to annoy their head disciple.

"Looks like we'll be relying on you again, Qing Zhu." Sui Sha Yu smiled helplessly. Ling Qing Zhu nodded and reached out to stroke the floating lotus flower behind her.

"I'm just lucky I happen to have the right tool for the job…"

Meanwhile, back at where the rest of the White Tiger Sect was, Zhu Jiao was looking at the solid barrier in amazement.

"Incredible…that barrier took on so many attacks from so many high-level martial artists and remained intact…"

He turned toward me and Bai Ning Xue with a grin.

"Makes you wonder just how godly those Nascent Soul Stage practitioners are, doesn't it?"

Bai Ning Xue nodded, a little subdued. She exhaled and began approaching, her fellow sect disciples following her.

"We can't be left behind. Even though I don't like the idea, we should help out as well."

"Hah! Maybe we'll be able to break the barrier!"

Kuang Hu was enjoying the notion that he and the rest of the White Tiger Sect would be able to accomplish what Lei Yong Chun and the other so-called elite martial artists failed to do.

"No way!"

"You're kidding me!"

The cries of outrage drew out attention back toward the tomb again. To our utmost astonishment, the barrier was repairing itself. The cracks were vanishing, leaving a perfectly smooth surface once more. That wasn't all – the Spirit Engravings were rewriting themselves, the arcane symbols and mystical patterns materializing across the transparent screen before turning invisible. Which was totally different from disappearing, by the way.

"Impossible…"

Even the composed and cold Ling Qing Zhu couldn't help but be surprised at the unexpected turn of events. If this was the case, then no matter how many times they attacked, they wouldn't be able to penetrate the barrier.

Speaking of which, was it my imagination, or was Ling Qing Zhu another clone of Bai Ning Xue? Why were ice queen/princess-type heroines so popular in wuxia/xianxia stories? Actually, wasn't this trope too popular and common in all stories? To the extent that we actually had two almost identical clones of the same heroine?

"What do we do now?" Jiang Jun Hao wailed.

"Fuck!" Li Xue Wu gnashed his teeth in frustration and stomped his foot like a spoilt brat. Actually, he was a spoilt brat, but I wasn't going to learn about that until later.

"Calm down and don't panic, guys." Lei Yong Chun was holding up both hands in a placating manner. "Why don't we get everyone to help? If more people attack together at the same time, we might be able to muster enough force to break through the seal and destroy the barrier."

"Sounds like a good idea," Sui Sha Yu agreed.

"I don't like relying on others, but I guess there's no choice," Jiang Jun Hao grumbled.

"Fine by me," Nan Ke voiced her piece. "The sooner we get this done, the better."

Yan Qing Wu snorted as she glanced at the crowd, her gaze as sharp as a blade. "The so-called Orthodox Sects…they call themselves righteous and just, yet most of them didn't even bother to lift a finger to help."

"The same can be said of the demonic sects," I pointed out as I walked past, jabbing a thumb toward the huge proportion of demonic sect disciples who were idling at the edge of the campsite.

"Who the hell are you?" Yan Qing Wu demanded, her eyes narrowing murderously. Zhu Jiao chased after me.

"Hey! Wu! What are you doing?!"

"Figuring out how to switch off the barrier."

"Yeah, well…" Lei Yong Chun seemed to recognize me, and he inclined his head with a friendly smile. "I'll appreciate it if you lend us your strength as well, Mr. Heaven and Earth Sect Disciple."

There was a murmur from the people present, especially the demonic sects, when they heard that, and I reacted quickly to rectify that.

"I'm from the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect," I corrected firmly. That was the truth, after all, and I didn't deny it, though what sort of conclusions the people around me drew based on my vehement tone, I couldn't be bothered to take responsibility for. Then I turned around and tapped the barrier with my knuckles. "And that's the problem with you martial artists. Always relying on brute force. You think you can have everything your way just because you have strength?"

"Huh? Who do you think you are?!" Li Xue Wu growled and made to lunge at me, only for Lei Yong Chun to haul him back.

"Oi, Wu, are you sure you know what you're doing?!" Zhu Jiao hissed. I nodded.

"Sure as sure."

"Do you have an alternative then?" the White Tiger Sect head disciple asked as he glanced at me.

"I believe in Fei Wu," Bai Ning Xue declared as she stepped forward. Following her example, the rest of the White Tiger Sect disciples stepped between me and the rest of the sects – particularly the aggressive Heavenly Fiends Sect, as if to protect me.

"Thanks," I muttered. It was unfortunate, but I wasn't some godlike Mary Sue who could pull off the cracking and analysis of the complex Spirit Engraved patterns on the barrier while fending off a bunch of ruffians at the same time.

"No worries," Kuang Hu told me, a fierce grin on his face. The dude was actually looking forward to a fight with the demonic sects. "Leave those bastards to us. Go do your job."

"Wait…!" Jiang Hun Hao hollered angrily. "You can't possibly think…!"

"If Ning Xue and my juniors say they believe in him, then I'll believe in him too." Lei Yong Chun also intervened and stepped between me and my erstwhile assailants. Lighting crackled around his body, a warning to those who overstepped their boundaries. "Anyway, why not allow him a chance? We already had ours and we failed. Even if he fails, we can just try attacking the barrier afterward. It shouldn't take that much time, right?"

He glanced at me as he said that last sentence, and after a few seconds, I realized that he was looking for an estimate.

"Give me a few minutes," I replied, already tapping and rearranging the symbols with my fingers. Almost as if I was orchestrating a band, my hands danced across the surface, shuffling the Spirit Engravings and reshaping the patterns according to my intention. Sweeping my eyes from side to side and relying on my glasses to help me in analyzing, spotting and breaking down the mass of information that would otherwise overload my senses, I cracked the code, so to speak, and reprogrammed the Spirit Engraving.

"…that should do it."

Stepping back in satisfaction, I swung my hand almost casually and struck a single Spirit Engraved pattern. The seal glowed, and then just like that, the entire barrier vanished. Even though it was invisible, everyone could somehow tell that it was gone because of their qi senses. Even those with the most rudimentary of qi sense could detect the total absence of the forcefield that had blocked off everything within the space of the mountainpeak.

"…what the?!"

"How?!"

As the so-called elite martial artists gaped and murmured in astonishment, I turned back to stare at them with a smirk.

"I told you that not everything has to be solved by brute force."

Chapter end