Yin Na saw that the Spirit Budgie he had been protecting in his arms was lying a few meters away. It had tumbled out of his arms, and, weighing much heavier than it usually did, suffered wounds when it fell. It was a mess of feathers and blood, it had died!

The Spirit Budgie, which was supposed to be Yin Na’s first Spirit pet, was lost so quickly.

Yin Na’s eyes began welling up in tears.

His father gently picked him up and flew to the top of the tree again.

“In trying to protect the life of your Spirit Budgie, you wasted time in trying to procure the true goal. In the end, you not only walked away with zero benefits, you even harmed yourself!”

“But the Spirit Budgie is just a dumb beast. It is not a cultivator, it’s not your family, it’s not even another mortal. Why did you try so hard to protect it? In doing so, you almost threw away your own life. The Spirit Budgie is like the lives of other strangers. Righteous Cultivators like to think that because they sacrifice themselves for the well-beings of other living beings, that they’re morally better than those who don’t. In doing so, they waste valuable time and even their own lives during a battle, or say- a rush to gain resources.”

Yin Na’s father looked into his eyes and smiled. “Opportunistic cultivators such as myself look for moments like these.”

Yin Na’s broken bones were slowly healed by his father’s spells. As he stood by himself on the top of the tree, he saw that there were still treasures left!

“Now, what will you do with these treasures?” Yin Na’s father asked.

Yin Na stared at the nest of Spirit Budgie eggs. They were a light blue-green color, and were so small and defenseless.

With this many eggs, he could have a dozen Spirit Budgie pets.

Yin Na slowly reached his hand to collect the treasures.

Then, with a cold look in his eyes, he began refining them one by one into spirit stones!

His father smiled proudly. “Very good! That’s my son!”

…

Tian Ji Han felt a chill as he recalled the story that Yin Na had taught him when they were both kids in the Hidden Sword Sect. He hated hearing about the “lessons” Yin Na’s father had taught him, they were so cruel, so evil!

Yin Na was gaining the upper-hand in battle. Because Tian Ji Han wouldn’t harm his brother in arms, Yin Na was able to land many debilitating shots on Tian Ji Han from behind cover.

The burly cultivator, still suspended by Yin Na by the neck, and who was helpless until now, suddenly shouted.

“I now understand my mistake,” he boomed. “I shall rectify my wrongs and free you from your shackles, Master Tian Ji Han!”

Tian Ji Han’s eyes widened in alarm.

“No! Lingfeng, I forbid you!”

But it was too late. The burly cultivator’s body began to glow brightly. He was initiating a self-destructing technique!

Yin Na clicked his tongue. He tossed the glowing body of the burly cultivator at Tian Ji Han seconds before it exploded in a dazzling expulsion of light and qi.

Tian Ji Han’s eyes were solemn and full of hatred for Yin Na.

Yin Na had already swooped down with his Spicy Oil Boar and grabbed another righteous cultivator by the neck, attempting the same strategy.

“Seeing brother Lingfeng’s courageous sacrifice, I now know what I must do!” the cultivator shouted in Yin Na’s grasp. “My fallen brothers, I shall join you in a few moments!”

He, too, began to glow brightly, about to activate his self-destruction technique! Yin Na quickly discarded his exploding corpse.

Seeing the fate of their comrades, the two remaining righteous cultivators still fighting the Ethereal Hounds mob were absolutely shattered, their morale broken.

“Master Tian Ji Han, you must live on!” The righteous cultivators sobbed, as they got on their mounts and began fleeing.

“That’s what I commanded you two to do earlier, idiots!” Tian Ji Han shouted through moistened eyes.

“It doesn’t matter,” scoffed Yin Na. “They have wasted all their qi, they’re exhausted and my Ethereal Hounds will get them eventually.”

Tian Ji Han was wounded, his immaculate white robes were soaked with blood, while Yin Na’s hair hadn’t even dried from washing himself earlier. Yin Na had landed many vital blows while using the burly cultivator as a living shield.

The mob of Ethereal Hounds had fled the scene, off to hunt their two prey. Tian Ji Han on his golden cloud mount, and Yin Na on top of his Spicy Oil Boar mount floated above the bloody forest floor that was their battlefield.

“You’re wounded, while I’m unscathed, do you still insist on fighting to the death, Brother Ji Han?” Yin Na asked.

Tian Ji Han nearly coughed blood in anger. “Come at me with your life!”

“You want a one-on-one fight?” Yin Na said. “Too bad!”

Unexpectedly, Yin Na turned and flew the other way!

Stolen story; please report.

“Where do you think you’re going?!” Tian Ji Han roared.

Tian Ji Han pursued Yin Na throughout the trees of the Green Valley forests, the latter shouting taunts all the while doing so.

“Hoho, you almost got me there, brother Ji Han. But not quite!”

“How long are you going to chase me? Until the Mid-autumn festival?”

“Oho, my Ethereal Hound just reported back to me: he got another!”

“Your righteous brother died like he lived…like a bitch!”

Tian Ji Han felt pain, anguish and fury in his heart as he heard about the deaths of his two remaining comrades. He exerted more qi, hyper-extended his strikes, and was generally inefficient with his attacks because of this.

Every now and then, Yin Na would suddenly attempt a difficult maneuver on top of his mount or appear from an unexpected angle to ambush him.

“Not good, I need to check my emotions or I’ll be done for!” Tian Ji Han recognized Yin Na’s tactic as he regained his senses.

In one aspect, the battle between cultivators could be seen as a battle of attrition, as it can essentially be a long-term battle to see who would run out resources first.

Yin Na was a tactician who strived to ensure that he would never lose in a siege or battle of time. This greedy hoarding trait of his only adds more to his battle strength, especially after having looted the entire treasury of the Yellow Fox Sect’s auxiliary branch.

Keeping this fact in mind, Tian Ji Han began his long-awaited battle with Yin Na at last. Decades of bottled-up emotions came rushing out in torrents, before even the first punch was thrown.

“Yin Na, I shall avenge the Hidden Fist Sect and my comrades who you killed!!”

The cultivators immediately traded their best techniques, starting out with massive firepower and flashy moves. The two exchanged close-ranged blows and huge explosive spells that blew away chunks of the forest like a hurricane. They drew and fired their spell swords, which threw giant ranged attacks at their target with every slash.

Hundred-year old trees were decapitated or uprooted, forest beasts and birds were scattered or killed. Occasionally, the sword light attacks would clash, creating brilliant sparks of light that could have been described as beautiful despite their violent destructive power.

However, Tian Ji Han had deeper experience and higher proficiency with the sword and blade, and was ultimately more skilled at sword techniques. Right in the middle of Yin Na’s attack, Tian Ji Han saw his opportunity!

Swerving in the air at the speed of light, he lunged at Yin Na at the perfect time and disarmed him. Yin Na’s Demon Soul sword was sent flying through the air.

Yin Na made a hasty retreat, and fought with tempered-flesh enhanced palm, finger and claw techniques. He bought time using his unarmed techniques to quickly defend and withdraw more weapons to use.

“No matter what treasure sword or axe you take out,” said Tian Ge Me. “It won’t matter, I will disarm you!”

Yin Yang Mirror Treasure sword. Purple Lightning Cursed blade. Phoenix Bone Cleaver. Blessed Sand Katars. Giant Ogre Warclub.

One by one, slowly but methodically Tian Ji Han defeated the might of these treasures that Yin Na withdrew from his void ring, sending them flying out of his hands or even breaking them!

Yin Na was not fazed, despite having lost such rare weapons. He was simply buying time for his spell formations that he secretly laid out on the floor to assemble. After gathering enough time and having lured Tian Ji Han to the optimal center of the formation, Yin Na activated the formation.

Frost Yin Crippling Meridian Trap! A wall of blue, ice-cold light shot up in pillars around the areas where Yin Na had deceptively hovered over. Tian Ji Han tried to retreat in alarm, but from the way the pillars were arranged, he was unable to dodge without being hit by most of the ice energy.

He felt the debilitating Yin qi invading his physical body and attacking his joints and organs, while slowing down his ability to manipulate and use qi in combat.

“You bastard!” Tian Ji Han cursed.

“Come on, brother Ji Han,” taunted Yin Na. “Having known me this long you already knew this is how I fight my battles, right?”

Tian Ji Han was in a tight situation. The only logical thing for him to do was to retreat and to heal or take medicinal pills, as he was losing speed and strength fast.

But Tian Ji Han’s snow-white eyebrows narrowed in determination, as he grit his teeth and pushed forward instead. Defying expectations, he charged forward at Yin Na, who was expecting to see the exposed back of Tian Ji Han trying to escape.

Yin Na cursed and tried to fly back. “The deeper you enter the formation, the faster the Yin qi will enter your bones!”

Tian Ji Han’s eyes flashed, he concentrated and used a huge burst of qi to increase his speed. He had closed the distance.

Yin Na thrusted his White Dragon spear to impale Tian Ji Han, who parried the strike with his Golden Dragon Treasure sword, and forced Yin Na to block instead.

Tian Ji Han summoned tremendous brute strength from his rapidly crystallizing body, while his Golden Dragon sword was still pushing against Yin Na’s White Dragon spear. He forcefully yanked Yin Na towards himself, while bending his body forward as if to whisper in his ear.

“Asura’s 9th Limb!”

CRACK!

A splitting headache ran through Yin Na’s skull, he felt like his brain was quaking, as his face was smashed by Tian Ji Han’s forehead.

“What a primal, but effective technique!” praised Yin Na, as he disappeared fifty meters away via a teleportation technique. “Resorting to bare bone basic body martial arts, Tian Ji Han, only you would have the guts to pull such a desperate move and be successful.”

Yin Na ate a medicinal pill as he hopped on his nearby Spicy Oil Boar mount, while Tian Ji Han flew towards him on his Golden Cloud mount.

“I’m not finished, Yin Na!” Tian Ji Han was eating medicinal pills as well, while using a Yang-Qi boosting body-healing technique to purge his meridians of the Yin Qi. His Golden Core glowed furiously within him, emanating his entire body in a radiant glow, as he tried to close the distance.

Yin Na did not intend to engage in close combat or weapon-clashing with Tian Ji Han again. He fired off seven, eight, nine, a dozen bolts of bird-shaped water projectiles. They flew at Tian Ji Han, who dodged or destroyed them with his sword.

Yin Na flew away, firing more and more Water Sparrow Missiles. They were tenacious, heat-seeking and of great annoyance to Tian Ji Han. He had to put away his Golden Dragon Treasure sword, as his hands made rapid incantation gestures. Pulling from his surroundings, he conjured a shield of mud, roots and stone. The materials formed a sphere so dense that one couldn’t see into the Earth barrier sphere, nor could anyone see out of it.

However, Tian Ji Han’s spiritual sense was so strong that he could simply sense Yin Na’s location with his mind. Thus, he pursued Yin Na while encased in the ball of mud and stone, crashing through countless trees.

The Water sparrows struck the Earth barrier sphere harmlessly. Suddenly, a hole formed in the Earth barrier sphere, which Tian Ji Han used to fire back lightning bolts at Yin Na.

Yin Na quickly flashed his incantation gestures, and conjured a lightning shield which enveloped both him and his mount, and whose shield swallowed up the lightning bolts. He then fired tiny, seed-like projectiles that trailed green light behind them, at the big ball of mud and dirt speeding towards him with the determination and speed of a charging buffalo.

The projectiles burrowed themselves into the Earth shield. Suddenly, the exterior of the Earth shield rapidly sprouted purple-colored roses, which shewn an evil odor and appearance.

“Poison Harlot Rose!”