Xingli and Diexin rise from within the crater, their movents swift yet controlled, their expressions tight with tension as the storm howls around them and rain lashes against their energy shields.
Neither of them speaks.
But both understand.
The beast riot was not natural.
The Star Singer Tower is behind it.
That single realisation weighs heavier than the storm itself.
They need to return.
Imdiately.
The news must reach Serpent Island.
Only then can forces from the Polar Sea intervene.
Only then can the tide be stopped.
Without hesitation, they turn toward the direction of the island,
And freeze.
Five figures stand before them.
Star Singer Tower.
Returning.
Both sides are caught off guard.
Only for a mont.
Diexin reacts first.
“Ice Cones.”
Sharp crystals form instantly, launching forward in a storm of killing intent.
Xingli follows.
“Star Snakes.”
Streams of star Qi twist and surge like living serpents.
The five react,
A fraction too slow.
But disciplined.
They move as one.
“Five Elent Star Formation.”
Their auras connect.
rge.
Rise.
In an instant, their combined presence surges to the peak of the Sublimation Stage.
A star shield forms.
Dense.
Layered.
Unbreakable.
The attacks crash against it,
And dissipate.
Xingli and Diexin do not hesitate.
They strike again.
Harder.
Faster.
But the shield holds.
Like a turtle withdrawing into its shell.
Unyielding.
Xingli’s eyes sharpen.
“This won’t work.”
Without another word,
They move.
Both of them shoot forward at once.
Splitting apart.
Passing around the formation from opposite sides.
Escaping.
The five remain still for a heartbeat,
Then disperse their formation.
Giving chase.
Xingli glances back.
Her hand rises.
“Starburst.”
A miniature star forms in her palm.
Condensed.
Brilliant.
She releases it.
It streaks backwards,
And explodes.
A massive detonation tears through the sky, forcing the five to halt montarily as the shockwave spreads.
Xingli turns forward,
Ready to follow Diexin,
Then stops.
Diexin is no longer moving.
She stands still in the air.
Ahead of her,
A figure appears.
One of the n from the cavern.
Blocking her path.
At the sa mont,
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringent.
A voice sounds behind Xingli.
Calm.
Amused.
“Oh… you’ve obtained the inheritance of Elder Frasser.”
Xingli turns.
The woman from the cavern stands there.
Shielding the five mbers who had been caught in the explosion.
Her gaze is sharp.
Calculating.
She looks directly at Xingli.
“Michael, Jackson…”
“You’ve caught a big fish.”
Xingli’s expression tightens.
She understands.
Her identity,
Has been seen through.
Diexin glances toward her briefly.
A question flickers in her eyes.
What identity?
But there is no ti.
Another presence appears.
A man.
Blocking the other direction.
They are surrounded.
All paths closed,
Except one.
To the west.
Beyond the storm.
Across the sea.
In this world, the kingdoms call it the Eastern Ocean.
Because it lies to their east.
But those who live upon its scattered islands divide it differently,
The Eastern Sea.
The North Polar Sea.
The Central Volcanic Sea.
The Western Sea.
The Southern Mirage Sea.
They now stand at the edge,
Where the Polar Sea ets the Volcanic Sea.
Diexin exhales slowly.
Clears her thoughts.
No ti for distraction.
No ti for hesitation.
Before the enemy can make the first move,
She attacks.
Choosing her target instantly,
Diexin’s gaze sharpens, and without hesitation, she lifts her hand as cold gathers violently around her.
“Snow’s Sorrow.”
The air dims.
A suffocating chill spreads as pale frost condenses into a drifting, mournful wave that surges forward like a silent blizzard carrying grief within it.
At the sa mont, the three opponents move.
The man before her raises his hand, starfire erupting outward in a blazing arc, while the other two strike from the sides.
“Star Shield.”
Xingli’s voice cuts through the storm as layers of star Qi weave together, forming a radiant barrier around them just as the flanking attacks crash against it.
Diexin’s attack ets the man’s.
Fire ets ice.
But the result is not balanced.
The star fire falters.
Freezes.
Cracks.
The cold spreads unnaturally fast, devouring the flas as if they were never ant to exist, and in the span of a breath, the frost surges forward and engulfs the man’s arm.
His expression twists as ice crawls up his hand, locking it in place.
He tries to pull back,
Too late.
The cold bites deeper.
Diexin does not stop.
She presses forward, her attacks flowing one after another, each colder than the last.
Xingli shifts beside her.
When Diexin attacks,
She defends.
When Xingli attacks,
Diexin shields.
Their movents synchronise without words.
Perfect rhythm.
Star and ice intertwine.
The battlefield becos a shifting storm of light and frost.
The woman counters with precise control, her star energy bending and reforming, while the other man strikes with bursts of force, trying to break their coordination.
But they fail.
The two won fight as one.
Diexin’s ice surges like an endless winter, freezing space itself, while Xingli’s star Qi flows like constellations, guiding, protecting, striking.
“Star’s Sorrow.”
Xingli suddenly raises her hand.
The air trembles.
A low, haunting resonance spreads outward.
It is not light.
Not form.
But sound.
A sound that carries the collapse of a dying star.
Invisible waves ripple through the storm, distorting space as they surge toward the enemy.
The woman’s eyes narrow.
She answers instantly.
The sa technique.
A mirrored sorrow.
Two waves collide,
And the sky fractures with a silent scream.
The impact ripples outward, distorting wind, scattering rain, bending lightning itself as the storm above reacts violently.
The battle intensifies.
Explosions of frost and star energy tear through the sky.
The man with the frozen arm struggles to keep up, his movents slowed, his power disrupted.
Diexin presses him harder.
Each strike colder.
Sharper.
Xingli supports her, intercepting attacks from the other two, her star shields forming and breaking in rapid succession.
They have the advantage.
Clearly.
But neither of them relaxes.
Because they both feel it.
More enemies.
More danger.
Ti is against them.
They cannot stay.
Xingli’s eyes flash.
Decision made.
She reaches into her spatial storage,
And pulls out a small, ancient object.
A single-use weapon.
Left behind by Frasser.
“Star Arrow.”
The mont it appears, the air tightens.
The arrow forms instantly.
Condensed star energy compressed into a single, terrifying point.
She releases it.
It vanishes.
Then,
Appears.
Right before the man blocking their path.
No ti to react.
No ti to defend.
It pierces straight through him.
Clean.
Absolute.
His body jerks,
Then falls, lifeless, the power within him extinguished in an instant.
At the sa mont,
“Ice Mist.”
Diexin spreads her power.
A dense, freezing mist erupts outward, swallowing the battlefield, blinding sight, distorting perception, freezing even the flow of energy within it.
Without waiting,
They move.
Both of them shoot forward, diving into the mist, their auras suppressed, their presence hidden.
The storm above aids them.
Lightning cracks violently.
Thunder roars.
No one dares release their spirit recklessly within such chaos, lest they attract the wrath of the heavens.
By the ti the mist begins to thin,
They are gone.
Racing toward Serpent Island.
Leaving only storm, frost, and silence behind.
By noon, the sky clears.
The raging storm fades into drifting clouds, and sunlight breaks through in pale streaks across the vast ocean.
Far ahead,
A small black dot appears.
At first, indistinct.
But as they draw closer, the presence becos undeniable.
Auras.
Hundreds.
Thousands.
Layered.
Dense.
They recognise it imdiately.
Serpent Island.
As they descend, the island reveals its true form.
It coils.
Like a massive serpent resting upon the sea.
The “head” rises at the centre, a towering mountain that dominates the island, its slopes carved and structured into the heart of the sect.
Around it spreads the city.
Serpent City.
It wraps around the island in structured layers.
Three distinct rings.
The Outer Ring, open to all.
Crowded, bustling, filled with traders, wanderers, and minor cultivators.
The Inner Ring is restricted.
Only those with permission may enter.
More refined.
More guarded.
And at the centre,
The Core Ring.
Reserved for the sect.
For its disciples.
Their families.
Their allies.
No one enters without an escort.
Diexin and Xingli do not slow.
They land on the outer platforms beyond the island’s edge, their feet touching down only briefly before they move forward.
No one stops them.
They pass into the Outer Ring.
Then head straight toward the Inner Ring.
Guards glance at them,
Xingli raises her token.
Recognition flashes.
No obstruction.
They pass through.
Without pause, they continue toward the Core Ring.
Still, no one dares stop them.
Until,
They reach the mountain.
The path rises upward in wide stone steps, carved directly into the slope.
Halfway up,
An open area appears.
A plateau carved from the mountain’s side.
A gathering place.
Disciples move about.
Paths branch into different sections.
Stairs lead further upward.
They cross it quickly,
Heading for the next ascent.
Then,
They stop.
Blocked.
Gu Canghai stands before them.
With several disciples behind him.
His posture relaxed.
But deliberate.
Xingli’s expression darkens.
“Gu Canghai, step aside.”
“I have urgent business with the Sect Master.”
“So move.”
He snorts.
“What urgent matter could you possibly have?”
He steps forward.
Closing the distance.
His eyes lock onto her.
“Stop using the Sect Master as an excuse.”
“Tell .”
“Have you accepted my proposal or not?”
Xingli’s voice turns cold.
“I’ve already told you a thousand tis.”
“I am married.”
One of the disciples beside him laughs.
“And now you’re going to say your husband is Duan rin?”
Laughter spreads.
Mocking.
Dismissive.
Gu Canghai smirks.
Neither he nor the others notices,
The subtle tension between the two won.
The tightening of their bodies.
The shift in the air.
Xingli inhales slowly.
Then speaks.
Calm.
Firm.
“Yes.”
“My husband is Duan rin.”
“What can you do about it?”
Diexin’s expression changes.
Subtly.
Strangely.
A flicker of confusion.
Her husband… has another wife.
She knows that.
But,
That na.
Xingli.
Not Star.
Her thoughts pause,
But she says nothing.
Gu Canghai’s gaze shifts.
For the first ti, he truly notices Diexin.
His eyes narrow slightly.
“Who is she?”
Xingli replies without hesitation.
“My friend.”
“Yu Diexin.”
Sothing flickers in his expression.
Calculation.
His gaze lingers on Diexin longer.
Then,
A cold smile forms.
He points at her.
“I think…”
“You’re a spy.”
“Co with to the Law Enforcent Hall.”
Silence.
Heavy.
Sharp.
Both Xingli and Diexin’s expressions change.
The air tightens.
Invisible pressure builds.
Like a spark touching dry powder.
Ready,
To explode.
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