Flames, silver sword light, and mountain pressure descended together.
The lower western passage could no longer endure the battle. The moment Yan Chi, Lu Han, and Guo Zhen attacked at the same time, ancient stone walls cracked from top to bottom. Broken formation lines flickered wildly, releasing sparks of black light before dying out.
Fang Lin stood at the center of the storm.
His robe was torn, blood marked his sleeves, and Frost Wind trembled faintly in his hand. Yet his eyes remained calm.
Too calm.
Lu Han's silver sword arrived first. His right shoulder had been shattered, forcing him to hold his sword with his left hand, and his attacks were no longer as smooth as before. But hatred had made each strike more vicious. Silver sword Qi cut toward Fang Lin's neck, sharp enough to leave a thin scream in the air.
Fang Lin shifted sideways.
The blade missed.
But Yan Chi's flame wheel had already arrived from behind. The burning wheel spun violently, its edge bright orange-red, while a black ember ring burned at its center. Heat distorted the air around it. Fang Lin raised Frost Wind, and the flame wheel struck the sword with a burst of fire that shook his arm.
At the same time, Guo Zhen appeared in front of him.
No sword.
No flame.
Only a fist.
Dark-earth aura covered Guo Zhen's arm like heavy stone armor. The fist descended toward Fang Lin's chest, direct and oppressive.
Fang Lin's pupils narrowed. Wind Break Palm formed instantly, and his palm met Guo Zhen's fist.
The entire passage shook.
Fang Lin flew backward, his feet dragging across the ground and leaving two long marks in the stone. Guo Zhen only stepped back once. His expression remained flat, but his eyes changed slightly.
"Strong body."
Fang Lin's left arm trembled. Pain spread from his palm to his shoulder. Guo Zhen's physical strength was far beyond Meng Shi's. He was a true Black Mountain Gate Spirit Foundation genius, and if Fang Lin had not used Nine Nether Phantom Body and Wind Break Palm together, that punch would have broken his arm.
Yan Chi laughed from above a broken pillar. "So you can even take Guo Zhen's fist? No wonder Lu Han almost died."
Fang Lin's Qi reserves were depleting fast, he had become extremely reserved when using the Qi. He cannot be as wasteful as the other three. They were already Spirit Foundation cultivators and had extreme reserves of Qi.
Lu Han's face turned colder. "Speak less. Kill him."
Yan Chi smiled. His dark red robes fluttered in the hot air, and golden flame patterns on his cuffs glowed faintly, marking him as an inner sect genius of Crimson Flame Hall. A flame jade pin held his hair in place, though several loose strands moved like burning threads around his face. His aura was red-orange, bright and aggressive, but black ember light flickered within it.
Fire affinity.
But not ordinary fire.
A flame that wanted to consume.
Yan Chi raised both hands, and three burning wheels spun behind him. "Fine."
The wheels shot out.
Fang Lin moved. Flowing Wind Steps carried him through the broken passage, but Lu Han followed immediately, silver river sword Qi blocking the left path. Guo Zhen stepped into the right path, while Yan Chi's flames sealed the rear.
In only a breath, Fang Lin's space was gone.
The three geniuses had never fought together before, but they were not fools. They all understood one thing: Fang Lin's movement technique was dangerous, his ability to build a battlefield was dangerous, and his strange shadow power was even more dangerous. So they did not give him room.
Lu Han sealed.
Yan Chi burned.
Guo Zhen crushed.
Three paths closed around one prey.
Fang Lin's gaze swept across them.
Lu Han stood in white robes with silver wave patterns, wounded but still sharp. His aura was silver-blue, like a cold river under moonlight. Proud, calculating, and sword-focused.
Yan Chi stood in dark red robes with ember-gold patterns and a flame jade pin, his aura red-orange with black sparks. Aggressive, greedy, cruel, but not careless.
Guo Zhen stood in black-brown armor with stone-patterned bracers and heavy boots, his aura dark earth and iron grey. Silent, direct, and oppressive.
Three different elements.
Three different styles.
All deadly.
Fang Lin exhaled slowly.
Then he stepped forward.
Toward Lu Han.
Lu Han's eyes narrowed. "You still choose me?"
Fang Lin did not answer.
Frost Wind flashed.
Lu Han raised his sword, and the two blades collided. Fang Lin pressed hard. Lu Han's injured shoulder shook, and his face paled slightly. His right arm was useless, and although his left-hand sword was still dangerous, it was weaker.
Fang Lin wanted to break the weakest point first.
Yan Chi saw through it instantly. "He wants to kill you before us, Lu Han."
Flames surged. A flame wheel cut toward Fang Lin's back, but Fang Lin suddenly lowered his body, letting the wheel pass above him and strike the wall. At the same moment, his shadow stretched, and a black needle shot toward Lu Han's ankle again.
Lu Han's expression changed. He had suffered from this once and would not suffer twice. Silver sword Qi swept downward, cutting the shadow needle apart, but that moment slowed him.
Fang Lin's palm arrived.
Wind Break Palm.
Lu Han gritted his teeth and retreated, but Guo Zhen appeared between them. His arm crossed in front of his body, and Fang Lin's palm struck his stone-covered forearm.
Compressed wind exploded.
Guo Zhen's arm trembled, and a crack appeared across the stone aura, but he did not move. His eyes fixed on Fang Lin.
"You cannot pass."
Then his other fist struck.
Fang Lin twisted his body, Phantom Transformation subtly shifting his shoulder and ribs. The fist grazed his side instead of landing fully, but even that grazing blow sent pain through his body. Fang Lin used the force to retreat.
Yan Chi was waiting.
A flame spear formed in his hand, and he thrust forward with a smile.
"Caught you."
The spear pierced toward Fang Lin's heart.
Fang Lin's eyes became cold. Frost Wind turned, but instead of blocking the spearhead, he struck the shaft. Cold Qi spread along the flame spear, weakening the fire for a fraction of a breath.
Fang Lin stepped through that gap and struck Yan Chi's chest with his shoulder.
Nine Nether Phantom Body erupted.
Yan Chi's protective flame Qi shook, and he slid backward several steps, surprise flashing in his eyes. "You really are only at Qi Conjunction realm?"
Fang Lin's sword followed. Yan Chi raised his hand, forming a flame shield. Frost Wind stabbed into it, and steam exploded.
Behind Fang Lin, Lu Han's sword approached. From the side, Guo Zhen's fist returned.
Fang Lin withdrew instantly, but a silver sword line still cut across his back. Blood sprayed. Guo Zhen's fist struck his shoulder, and bone cracked as Fang Lin flew sideways and crashed into a broken wall.
Dust swallowed him.
Yan Chi laughed. "That one landed."
Lu Han's eyes remained sharp. "Do not relax."
Guo Zhen looked at the dust. "He is not dead."
A faint sound came from inside the broken wall. Stone fragments shifted, and Fang Lin stepped out. His left shoulder hung slightly lower. Blood flowed down his back, and his breathing was heavier now, but beneath his skin, faint white light moved.
Life force.
Slow.
Weak.
Persistent.
His shoulder shifted, and the bone set itself with a muffled crack.
Yan Chi's smile stiffened. "Healing?"
Lu Han's gaze became darker. He had seen this before. "So that is another part of the inheritance?"
Fang Lin wiped blood from the corner of his mouth.
He did not explain.
Let them misunderstand.
The less they knew about the Nine Nether Phantom Body, the better.
At this point, the 'Nine Nether Phantom Body' was extremely important to him.
Yan Chi's greed became brighter. "That legacy is mine."
Lu Han said coldly, "Ours."
Yan Chi glanced at him. "You can still say that with one working arm?"
Silver sword Qi rose around Lu Han. "Try taking it from me."
Guo Zhen stepped forward. "Kill him first."
The two fell silent.
Fang Lin watched them.
Even now, they were not truly united. Greed bound them, but greed also divided them. That was a weakness, though not enough to solve his situation. They were still three Middle Spirit Foundation geniuses, and he was injured.
His thoughts moved rapidly.
He could not defeat all three directly in open combat.
Not here.
Not like this.
He needed terrain.
He needed the ruins.
He needed the little authority he had gained.
His eyes lowered slightly. Beneath his feet, faint black formation lines slept inside the cracked stone. They were old and damaged, but not completely dead. Fang Lin's connection to the ruins was weak, yet he could feel them.
A sealing passage beneath this area.
A collapsed chamber below.
If he could force the battle downward...
His gaze sharpened.
Yan Chi attacked first. Flames surged like a wave. Lu Han followed through the center of the fire, hiding his silver sword inside the red light. Guo Zhen charged behind them, each step making the passage tremble.
Fang Lin raised Frost Wind.
He did not retreat.
He ran forward, straight into the attack.
Yan Chi laughed. "Good! Burn!"
The flame wave swallowed Fang Lin, but the moment it did, Shadow Breath activated fully. Fang Lin's presence thinned, and his figure bent through the fire, not avoiding all of it but passing through the weakest line. Burns appeared on his skin. His robe caught fire.
He ignored it.
Frost Wind struck.
Not at Yan Chi.
Not at Lu Han.
At the ground.
Wind Break Palm followed.
The stone floor cracked.
Lu Han's expression changed. "He is breaking the passage!"
Guo Zhen stomped down, trying to stabilize the ground with earth Qi.
Too late.
Fang Lin's frost marks lit up, and cold Qi entered the cracks. The old formation lines beneath the floor awakened for a brief, violent instant.
Black light flashed.
The entire passage collapsed.
All four dropped.
Yan Chi cursed. Lu Han swung his sword, cutting falling stone. Guo Zhen punched upward, shattering a massive slab that was falling down.
Fang Lin fell silently through the darkness.
Below was a vast collapsed chamber filled with broken chains and black mist. Fang Lin landed first, Flowing Wind Steps softening the impact. Pain shot through his wounds, but he endured it.
The three Spirit Foundation geniuses landed moments later. Yan Chi's flames lit up the chamber. Lu Han's silver sword Qi spread. Guo Zhen's heavy body cracked the ground beneath his feet.
The chamber was larger than the passage.
More space.
But also more shadows.
More broken pillars.
More old formation lines.
More parts of the ruin Fang Lin could sense.
Yan Chi looked around and smiled. "You chose your grave?"
Fang Lin stood among the shadows. His burned robe slowly darkened under Shadow Breath, and Frost Wind pointed toward the ground. His aura remained at Late Qi Conjunction, but his eyes were deeper than before.
Lu Han frowned. "Be careful."
Guo Zhen nodded slightly. "This place responds to him."
Yan Chi's smile faded a little. Then he laughed again. "So what? He is bleeding. He is tired. He is still Qi Conjunction."
He raised both hands, and nine flame spears formed behind him.
"Whatever legacy he has, he has not mastered it yet."
That was true.
Fang Lin had not mastered it. The Nine Abyss Shadow Scripture was only at the beginning. The life and death forces were only seeds. His control over the ruins was only a fragment. His body was injured, his soul was strained, and his Qi was being consumed quickly.
But his will did not shake.
He thought of the grey stone.
He thought of Uncle Wei.
He thought of the unanswered questions buried behind years of silence.
He thought of parents he could not even remember clearly, yet whose existence had begun to feel like a distant pressure pulling him forward.
If he died here, everything ended.
If he lost the legacy, the path closed.
If he ran blindly, the three sects would hunt him until the ruins ejected everyone. Then Core Formation cultivators would wait outside.
There was no easy path.
So Fang Lin chose the only one left.
That is, he had to cut a path open for himself.
His soul perception spread through the chamber.
There.
A damaged chain formation.
There.
A corpse beast nest sealed behind a cracked wall.
There.
A shadowed blind spot where Yan Chi's flames could not fully reach.
Fang Lin's eyes turned cold.
The three geniuses came for the legacy. They were determined, ruthless, and willing to massacre everyone to obtain it.
Good.
Then they would have to pay a price worthy of their greed.
Fang Lin lifted his left hand. A faint black thread appeared around his fingers, while faint white light moved under his skin.
Life and death.
Still weak.
Still unstable.
But not his will to live.
Yan Chi's flame spears shot forward. Lu Han moved with his sword. Guo Zhen charged from the side.
Fang Lin stepped into the shadowed blind spot.
His figure disappeared for one breath.
Only one.
But in that one breath, the broken chain formation beneath the chamber lit up.
Black chains rose from the ground. Not many. Not strong. But enough to change the battle.
Yan Chi's eyes widened. "What?"
A chain wrapped around one flame spear and crushed it. Another snapped toward Lu Han's ankle. Guo Zhen punched one apart.
The three geniuses reacted instantly.
But Fang Lin had already appeared behind Yan Chi.
Frost Wind descended toward his neck.
Yan Chi's face changed.
For the first time, his smile vanished completely.
Flames erupted from his back.
Fang Lin's sword cut through the flames.
Blood flew.
Yan Chi roared and turned violently, but a deep wound had already opened across his shoulder.
Not fatal.
But real.
Yan Chi staggered backward, then slowly touched the blood. His eyes became terrifying.
"You cut me."
Fang Lin landed several steps away. His own body swayed slightly. The forced activation of the ruin formation had drained him more than expected.
Lu Han noticed. "He cannot use that freely."
Guo Zhen's gaze became heavy. "Then pressure him."
Yan Chi laughed, but this time, the laugh was filled with rage. His red-orange aura erupted, black ember sparks bursting around him. The suppressing talisman on his chest cracked, and the ruin trembled.
Yan Chi no longer cared.
"I will burn this chamber with him inside it!"
Flames surged upward like a furnace opening.
Lu Han raised his silver sword.
Guo Zhen's body darkened like iron stone.
The three geniuses pressed forward again.
Fang Lin stood alone in the collapsing chamber, surrounded by fire, sword light, and mountain pressure. Blood ran down his fingers. The dark flame in his spiritual sea burned brighter. The grey stone pulsed.
And somewhere deep in the Demon Sealing Ruins, something old seemed to watch.
Fang Lin tightened his grip on Frost Wind.
The battle had only truly begun.
-