Chapter 197: Trial by Fire

so.But I didn't expect it to be this high.A mighty warrior, having achieved great skill in the art of wielding a spear, was effortlessly defeated with a single glance from a simple twig.What concept...Within the Nine Sacred Mountains, nine towering peaks pierce the heavens.

On the Sixth Sacred Mountain, apart from the Sixth Mountain Master, there lived only Jiu Yan, Su Xin, and A Qi. Compared to other sacred mountains, it was much more serene.

A tall and stunning woman approached the Sixth Sacred Mountain. As she looked upon the towering mountain before her, a hint of complexity flashed in her eyes.

This enchanting figure, naturally, is the fairy Xia.

"Su Xin!"

Xia Xianzi spoke, her voice echoing throughout the entire Sixth Sacred Mountain.

Su Xin, who was practicing swordsmanship in the small library, sensed a shift in his heart and quickly appeared before Xia Xianzi.

"Fairy Xia, are you here to return your battle merit points" Su Xin asked coldly.

At the time, Su Xin had exchanged the Nine Turns Sacred Lotus for this Xia fairy's price of ten million combat points. However, at that time, Xia Fairy only paid one million combat points, and the remaining nine million combat points were promised to be given back after returning to Jiusheng Mountain.

Looking at Su Xin's indifference before her, Fairy Xia felt a myriad of emotions.

She once felt that Su Xin was the only person in Jiusheng Mountain worthy of her. She had also tried to get closer to Su Xin, but because of the path arranged for her by her master, she had to completely draw a line between herself and Su Xin. Later, in order to maintain her future image, she even turned against Su Xin.

I thought that if we had a falling out, it would be just that. I'd try to minimize contact in the future.

But unexpectedly, the subsequent fight for the Nine Transformations Sacred Lotus involved not only owing Su Xin nine million battle merit points, but more importantly, it was Su Xin who arrived in time to save her life.

Whether she was willing to admit it or not, she had undeniably owed Su Xin a favor. But apparently, Su Xin didn't intend for her to repay it.

"Su Xin, within this Cosmos Pouch, there are treasures worth nine million battle merits. Xia Xianzi takes out a Cosmos Pouch and hands it to Su Xin."

Su Xin took it, glanced at it briefly, and nodded. "The number is about right. You and I are clear now. I still need to cultivate. If Miss Xia has nothing else to do, please return."

"Su Xin..."

Xia Xianzi still wanted to say something, but at this time a figure flew out from the Sixth Sacred Mountain and came to Su Xin's side. It was A Qi in plain robes, her eyes clear as crystal. A Qi held a small hoe for weeding in her hand, looking like she had just been weeding in the field.

She stood there... as if she had walked out of a painting, a fairy. There was no trace of aura or pressure about her.

The moment Xia Xianzi saw A Qi, her entire body shuddered uncontrollably. Her right hand, which had already fully recovered, reacted instantly with a piercing pain.

"It's her! It's her!!"

Xia Xianzi stared intently at A Qi, her whole body trembling uncontrollably.

She comes from a privileged background and has had a smooth journey to where she is today, encountering almost no setbacks or hardships.

Only recently, in the Lei Xin Domain, during the struggle for the Nine Turns Holy Lotus, she truly felt the presence of death for the first time.

The other party's strength suffocated her.

If the other party hadn't shown mercy, and if Su Xin hadn't arrived in time, she definitely wouldn't have been able to return to Jiusheng Mountain alive.

Even though she possessed a protective talisman left to her by her master, she was powerless in his hands and couldn't even crush it.

And causing all of this was the innocent-looking girl standing before them.

This girl, in the truest sense, was the first existence to make her feel fear and trembling.

If we disregard her master, she is completely outclassed by this girl in every way!

"Su Xin, isn't this your friend" A Qi looked at Xia Xianzi, her gaze very calm. She had also already recognized the latter.

"Friends I wouldn't say we're friends. I only helped her before because we're both members of the Jiusheng Mountain sect, and I didn't want to lose face for her master, the Fourth Mountain Lord, and her senior brothers and sisters," Su Xin chuckled lightly.

"Is that so" Aqi understood.

"It's almost dusk, A Qi. Come with me and watch the sunset." Su Xin smiled and extended his right hand.

A-Qi glanced at Xia Xianzi ahead, then at Su Xin. It seemed she understood something. A blush appeared on her beautiful face, and after a moment's hesitation, she gently extended her jade hand and placed it in Su Xin's palm.

Let's go.

Su Xinxian took A Qi's hand, and the two turned around, side by side, rushing towards the summit.

Xia Xianzi stood there, listening to the two people's conversation, and watching the two hold hands and leave. Her eyes seemed as if they were about to burst into flames.

……

Inside the cave dwelling.

"Master, Su Xin's junior brother has now comprehended all three hundred and eighty-one essences of sword intent, and he has fully mastered the domain of sword intent. Within that space of sword dao reincarnation, his strength is already quite good. Now, he is trying to perfect his ultimate skill, Nine Rock Speech."

He was always in charge of overseeing Su Xin's ascetic practices and would report to the Sixth Mountain Master about Su Xin's progress every once in a while.

"The progress is quite good. The Sixth Mountain Master nodded slightly, seemingly satisfied with Su Xin's improvement."

"Where's Aqi" The Sixth Mountain Master asked again.

“That girl…” Jiu Yan narrowed his eyes slightly and said, “That girl is quite extraordinary. Her talent is so high that it's even comparable to Su Xin’s younger brother. Even though she didn't put much effort into cultivation, and according to the Mountain Master's instructions, I didn't deliberately force or pressure her, whenever she came to the small library to contemplate, I could still see her progress was substantial.”

Especially the unique technique you personally created for her, Mountain Master, it seems she has already mastered most of it.

To be honest, I've never seen a girl with such extraordinary talent before. And she's so innocent and pure. If she wasn't already under the Mountain Master's command, I would have taken her as my own disciple.

"Do you want to take her as your disciple" The Sixth Mountain Master seemed to glance at Jiuyuan casually.

Even he, did not dare to take Ah Qi as his disciple.

This Jiuyuan, is really bold to think.

……

Several days later, at an outdoor tavern in a public square.

What did you say

"Do you want me to take Aqi to the battlefield for training, or to the First Realm Su Xin, are you serious"

The Nine Stars Daoist Master looked at Su Xin in astonishment.

"Jiuzhen, I'm being serious when I tell you," Su Xin said with a smile.

To hone his skills on the Qingxuan battlefield, was a suggestion put forth by Aqi himself.

She has already chosen to come to Jiusheng Mountain with Su Xin, and in the future she will have all kinds of experiences. Naturally, she also needs some training to make her heart stronger.

Su Xin originally wanted to go with A Qi, but was rejected by A Qi. Moreover, the sixth mountain master asked him to continue his ascetic practice on Sheng Mountain. There was no other way, so he could only come to ask the Nine Stars Dao Master for help.

"Su Xin, your little girlfriend, if she went to other places to train it would be fine, but that's the First Realm! The entire Qing Xuan Battlefield gathers the most powerful people. Those who dare to venture there are mostly peak five-step experts, and there are even quite a few six-step venerables. Even I, alone, venturing there would have to be extremely careful."

"You want me to take her to the First Realm How dare I If we really encounter danger, I'm not sure if I can protect her," the Nine Star Dao Master said.

"Don't worry, Aqi is very strong and doesn't need your protection. You just need to pass on some experience to her along the way," Su Xin smiled.

"She's very strong" Jiuzhen, the headmaster, couldn't help but glance at Aqi beside him.

He could immediately tell that A Qi was only at the peak of the Fourth Step, and judging by his age, he was probably a few years younger than Su Xin.

How powerful could such a doll be

Jiuchendao's master was very unwilling, but under Su Xin's repeated persuasion, he finally agreed to take Aqi to the First Realm for cultivation.

That day, Su Xin saw off A Qi and the Nine Star Lord as they left together for the First Realm.

As for A-Qi's safety, Su Xin was not actually worried.

Joke!

In terms of pure strength, A-Qi is much stronger than him. Moreover, after his training on the Sixth Holy Mountain for this period of time, his master, the Sixth Mountain Master, even tailored a unique technique specifically for him, and he has already mastered most of it, resulting in a considerable increase in his power.

With her capabilities, going to the Azure Profound Battlefield... Who among those Nirvana Venerables within the Heavenly Palace could be her match

To truly threaten A Qi, even ordinary Transcendent powerhouses wouldn't be qualified. It would have to be the Saint Sovereign himself taking action. However, firstly, a dignified Saint Sovereign would never go to the Qingxuan Battlefield to kill a Nirvana Realm cultivator. After all, once a Saint Sovereign powerhouse interferes, the nature of the situation changes completely.

As he once was, defying heaven and making even the Heavenly Palace fear him, that day the Heavenly Palace only sent the Nirvana Venerable to kill him.

Besides, before leaving, his master, the sixth mountain lord, specially gave her a talisman.

This is something Su Xin never expected.

You have to know, as the only disciple of the sixth mountain master, he had previously received a sword intent talisman from his master within the Su family. After using it up in the fourth world domain, his master never gave him another one.

While A Qi wasn't even his master's disciple yet, his master had specially given A Qi a talisman of protection

This puzzled even Su Xin. How could his master be so fond of A-Qi, a battle against such a top-tier genius, relying solely on defense to outlast the opponent would be an insult to them."Fight on!"Su Xin let out a low growl, instantly unleashing his Thunderfire Swor...