Chapter 116: Jing’an Encounters a Major Crisis

Chapter 116: Chapter 116: Jing’an Encounters a Major Crisis

"I think I remember you saying that only I can go to where this Miracle is?"

"Don’t get the wrong idea. It’s not that I’m being stingy. The ruins can only be accessed by a Teleportation Array from our Ten Thousand Beasts Mountain, and anyone below the Nascent Soul Realm doesn’t have enough True Qi to withstand the Power of Heaven and Earth within the array."

"So, you’ve been to these ruins before?"

Yan Jiuxuan nodded. "Everyone in our sect has been there, of course. And don’t think I’m trying to trick you with some worthless ruins. The place isn’t dangerous, but many areas within it can only be entered through serendipity. Besides, just going there and seeing the sights will broaden your horizons considerably. Elder Ye obtained the White Jade Bone Flute and the Ten Thousand Spirits Melody from that very place."

Chu Fan grew excited at her words.

Finding some treasure in the ruins would be great, of course, but what truly excited Chu Fan was Yan Jiuxuan’s claim that simply seeing the sights inside could broaden his horizons.

’A Miracle is a Miracle, after all. What if I can sense the aura of the Great Dao there? If I can comprehend one or two Supreme Daos, then won’t unlocking the third seal of the Juntian Mirror be just around the corner?’

’In other words, even if I don’t get any divine items from the Miracle, won’t I still get plenty of good stuff from breaking the Juntian Mirror’s third seal?’

’Never mind anything else—that Great Returning Pill is a heaven-defying treasure on its own.’

’And looking back at what I got from breaking the second seal—the Juntian Sword, the Illusory Body Technique, the Array, the Array Spirit Jade—which one of those wasn’t priceless?’

’Could the third seal be any worse?’

Treasures were important, of course, but for Chu Fan, what mattered most was his comprehension of the Celestial Dao. That was something that depended on serendipity—an opportunity one might encounter but could never seek.

...

While Chu Fan was on the highest peak of Ten Thousand Beasts Mountain helping Yan Jiuxuan awaken the Chong Ming Bird, the Shuoyue Royal Palace was also receiving some unwelcome guests.

Construction on the new site for the Celestial Heart Hall in the Shuoyue Kingdom was proceeding in an orderly fashion. Jing’an and Jin Chuhong, being newlyweds, were inseparable.

Thus, they returned to the Royal Palace to sleep every night.

Jing’an and Jin Chuhong had an agreement from the start: they wouldn’t interfere in each other’s work. Since Jin Chuhong managed the affairs of the state, Jing’an naturally stayed out of it.

Due to the newly issued decrees being implemented across the Shuoyue Kingdom, state affairs were complicated, and Jin Chuhong was busy late every night.

Before he met Chu Fan, Jing’an had been a fugitive from the Hua Xu Empire, so the old saying about a gentleman staying away from the kitchen meant nothing to him.

While Jin Chuhong was busy with state affairs and reviewing memorials, Jing’an would personally prepare medicinal meals for her. After they ate together, she would continue working on her memorials, and Jing’an would practice his Cultivation by her side.

The Shuoyue Kingdom’s recent major actions, particularly the expansion of its army, had subtly rattled the nerves of the neighboring small kingdoms.

The Xin Yue Monarch, in particular, could no longer sit still.

He had hired assassins to kill Jin Chuhong on her wedding day, but in the end, that assassin organization had refunded the payment to the Xin Yue Monarch.

Recently, spies planted in the Shuoyue Kingdom reported its activities to the Xin Yue Monarch. He immediately contacted that same assassin organization, tripled the payment, and implored them to kill Jin Chuhong at all costs.

As the saying goes, a thief can try for a thousand days, but you can’t guard against one for a thousand days.

The assassin organization figured Jin Chuhong couldn’t possibly have the Dark Night Envoys protecting her forever. Besides, with the Xin Yue Monarch offering such a high payment, wouldn’t refusing the job ruin their reputation?

So, the assassin organization accepted the mission on the spot. In addition to the seven Nascent Soul Realm assassins remaining from the last attempt, they added their organization’s most formidable killer. This assassin was well-known in the Eastern Domain’s Assassin Realm, ranked fourteenth on the hit list, just behind Zhou Yi at number thirteen.

Although this assassin was ranked below Zhou Yi, his Cultivation was at the Peak of the Nascent Soul Realm, a Half-step into the Soul Emergence Realm.

With these nine people sent to assassinate the ruler of a small kingdom like Shuoyue, what were the chances of failure?

And so, in the predawn hours, just as the sky began to lighten, they appeared in Jin Chuhong’s bedchamber.

It was a good thing Jing’an had been sleeping there lately; otherwise, Jin Chuhong would have certainly died.

The moment they broke into the Palace City, Jing’an sensed their killing intent. He had Jin Chuhong change into a Palace Maid’s robes, leave the bedchamber, and go into hiding.

Meanwhile, he hugged a pillow and feigned sleep.

The moment the eight men entered the bedchamber, Jing’an struck first. He caught the assassins off guard, heavily wounding one of them with a single slash of his sword.

Once they recovered, six of them simultaneously swarmed Jing’an, while another lunged for the bed.

After all, Jing’an was only at Nascent Soul Realm Tier Three. Faced with seven Nascent Soul Realm assassins and their leader, he was struggling to keep up, even with the Super Celestial Grade Sword Technique the Xiezhi had taught him.

He wasn’t Chu Fan, after all—not someone who was invincible within his own Realm.

He was injured within just a few exchanges. To make matters worse, the assassin who had lunged for the bed found it empty and turned to join the attack on Jing’an.

Seeing this, Jing’an risked taking another hit and charged out of the bedchamber.

The seven assassins gave chase.

Jing’an managed to flee the Palace City, and they couldn’t catch him. But to his surprise, the moment they chased him out, they stopped and returned to the Palace City to search for Jin Chuhong.

Seeing this, Jing’an charged back in. On the way, he hastily pulled out a Communication Jade Scroll and sent a message, hoping anyone from Ying Xiao’s group of seven could come to his aid. Otherwise, both he and Jin Chuhong would surely die today.

As Jing’an charged back, the seven assassins surrounded him once more.

He would run when he couldn’t win, his only goal to lead them away and buy more time.

After this happened a few times, the assassins split into two groups. Three of them pursued Jing’an relentlessly, while the other four searched the Palace City for Jin Chuhong.

The chase was a flurry of earth-shattering clashes. The Palace City’s Imperial Guard spotted the fight but didn’t dare to approach. After all, a battle of this caliber was not something they could possibly join.

Fortunately, the assassins searching for Jin Chuhong had no time to slaughter innocent bystanders.

Jing’an, however, was growing desperate. Facing one Peak Nascent Soul Realm and two Nascent Soul Realm Middle Stage experts, he still had no hope of turning the tables. Even fighting for his life, he couldn’t do a thing to them; instead, his own injuries were just piling up.

"I know you, Hall Master of Celestial Heart Hall. Are you really going to throw your life away for a woman?"

"Ganging up on one person... and you call yourselves assassins? Pathetic," Jing’an spat.

"Heh. All we need to do is complete our mission and get paid. Who cares about some stupid rules? I’ll give you one last chance. Tell me where Jin Chuhong is, and I’ll let you live. After all, it wasn’t easy for you to reach the Nascent Soul Realm."

"Want to know where my wife is? Kill me and find her yourself, if you can," Jing’an roared, brandishing his sword.

"Since you’re so eager to die, I’ll grant you your wish." The masked speaker’s attacks grew even more vicious.

With a single thrust, his sword pierced Jing’an’s chest.

But in that instant, a boundless power erupted from Jing’an’s body. It violently repelled the sword from his chest, and the force of the backlash even injured the swordsman.

The next moment, something even more incredible happened—so suddenly that even Jing’an himself was utterly shocked.

His body, which had been covered in wounds, began to heal at a visible rate, and his Cultivation soared.

Nascent Soul Realm Tier Four, Tier Five... Tier Nine... Peak... He broke through to the Soul Emergence Realm, finally stopping at Soul Emergence Realm Tier Two.