CHAPTER 250: THE POWER BOOST AFTER AN EXTREME BATTLE

Nantian Wan'er held her sword before Lu Chen as she channeled the spirit qi she had just absorbed into the Heavenly Pool they shared. "Lu-gege, I'll transfer my spirit qi to you. Seize control of the wooden dragon, quickly."

The spirit qi in the Heavenly Pool had barely recovered when the black mist–tainted wooden dragon charged straight at her. Nantian Wan'er didn't dare draw on any more of its spirit qi. Bracing herself against the oncoming strike, she closed her eyes tightly with the Dragon-Slaying Sword before her, ready to face severe injury, or even death.

Lu Chen watched as the corrupted wooden dragon barreled toward her. "Wan'er..."

He channeled the faint trace of spirit qi newly restored within the Heavenly Pool and summoned the Hunyuan Greatsword back to his hand.

A delicate current of qi flowed from his fingertips into the blade, reigniting it. The second button on the sword glowed blue, and Lu Chen traversed space, reappearing right in front of Nantian Wan'er.

He pulled her behind him. "Wan'er, when facing an enemy, never close your eyes. You'll only expose every weakness you have."

As the black mist–corrupted wooden dragon lunged, Lu Chen extended his right hand and lightly tapped its forehead. The massive creature instantly dissolved into a wisp of shadow and vanished.

Hearing his voice, Nantian Wan'er opened her eyes. Seeing him standing before her, her face lit up. "Lu-gege, your spirit qi... has it recovered? Wait. No, there's still very little of it."

Lu Chen gently took her hand and said gently, "It hasn't fully recovered yet. But with the spirit qi you gave me as a catalyst, the Heavenly Pool is restoring itself much faster than before."

"That's a relief... I really thought I was done for this time."

"You were too reckless." He raised his hand and rubbed her head affectionately. "That was far too dangerous. What if I hadn't recovered in time? Don't ever rush in like that again, understand?"

"Hehe

, I was just worried about you." She stuck out her tongue and giggled softly. "But, Lu-gege... what do we do now?"

"Now?" Lu Chen turned, scanning the skeletal giant and his three injured avatars. "Lu Qing and the others are too badly hurt. We'll take them back to the Divine Chamber first."

He cast a cold glance at the skeletal giant. "Filthy thing, I'll deal with you later."

A surge of sword qi, purer and sharper than before, surged forth. Pressing the third blue button on the Hunyuan Greatsword, Lu Chen warped through space with Nantian Wan'er, reappearing beside Lu Qing."

***

At the backyard of the Scripture Hall.

Observing Lu Chen's continuous space traversal, Ancestor Suitian and Daoist Du exchanged tense glances, their frowns deepening.

"Lu Chen isn't using a movement art... That can't be..." Venerable Tian Suo shouted in disbelief. "That's spatial power! One of the highest laws of heaven and earth!"

He quickly contradicted himself. "But how could someone in the Qi Regulation Realm possibly wield spatial power? Even with external aid or enchanted artifacts, his body shouldn't be able to withstand the strain of space traversal."

The venerables exchanged uneasy looks. All of them knew it was spatial law, yet none could explain how a Qi Regulation cultivator could survive it. Even they, as venerables, would struggle to move freely through space.

Ancestor Suitian stared at Lu Chen for a long while, then said solemnly, "Forget it. Keep this to yourselves. Whatever happens next, just watch."

Daoist Du met his gaze. "From today onward, protect Lu Chen at all costs. No matter who his enemy is, we stand with him. That's in our best interest."

The venerables of the Scripture Hall nodded gravely. Lu Chen's overwhelming and unfathomable strength had left none of them bold enough to covet what he possessed.

***

Near the ravine, Lu Qing was lying on the ground, completely weakened. When he saw Lu Chen warp through space without the slightest hint of exhaustion, he tried to sit up, his voice filled with excitement. "Original, your spirit qi... has it recovered? No, wait. The Heavenly Pool is still empty."

"Not fully, but the Spirit Light Chains have loosened. I can control the flow much more precisely now," Lu Chen replied, helping him rest against a boulder. "Stay here. Don't move, or your injuries will worsen."

Lu Qing panted heavily. "What should we do next? We could barely keep up with that skeletal giant before."

He looked toward the creature slowly approaching through the mist and sighed. "The Heavenly Pool's spirit qi is drained. None of us can fight anymore. Even if you can control it better, we still can't win."

"No matter... It's just a beast. No matter how high its cultivation is, it can't match human wisdom."

Lu Chen swallowed two Heaven Restoration Pills to accelerate his spirit qi recovery, then looked at his powerless avatars. "You've exhausted yourselves too much just now. Lu Quing, you and the other two must return to the Divine Chamber to recover."

He glanced once more at the skeletal giant, then waved to his three avatars. They began to blur and fade.

Lu Qing struggled, forming hand seals to resist Lu Chen's control. "No... Original."

His body flickered between solidity and fading. "We can't let you face the skeletal giant alone. Even at your peak, you can't contend with it by yourself."

He tried to rise, but Lu Chen pressed him back down. "You're already unable to fight. If you stay here, I'll have even less chance of defeating it. Go back. I've already thought of a solution."

"Original..."

Lu Chen ignored his plea. "Return now."

With that, he sent Lu Qing and the other two unconscious avatars back into the Divine Chamber.

Lu Qing shouted from inside. "Original... even if our spirit bodies dissipate, we still want to fight alongside you!"

The Divine Psyche Incarnation outside the Divine Chamber merely waved in response, and Lu Qing immediately collapsed, lying unconscious on the floor.

Within his mind's secluded island, Lu Chen's Divine Psyche Incarnation began inscribing formations inside the Divine Chamber, channeling the power of the chaos sphere to gradually restore the three avatars.

After sending them to safety, Lu Chen stood and looked gently at Nantian Wan'er, forcing strength into his weakened body. "Wan'er, you should go too. Stay close to Red Fox. Red Fox may be trapped for now, but you'll be safer there than with me."

"Lu-gege..." Fearing he might be planning to sacrifice himself to defeat the skeletal giant, Nantian Wan'er clutched his arm desperately. "No! I'll stay with you. Even if it costs my life, I won't leave you."

"Silly girl, what are you thinking?" Lu Chen ruffled her hair, smiling indulgently. "My plan is for you to go rescue Red Fox. Besides me and Wind Dragon, you're the only one who can wield the Hunyuan Greatsword now."

"Ah... I thought you were planning to go down together with the giant," she said, then let out a small laugh. "But that skeletal giant... It's so strong. Are you sure you can handle it?"

"You're so silly when you think like that, Wan'er. My life is precious. How could I throw it away this easily?" Lu Chen laughed at her innocent expression. "I wasn't fully confident earlier, but the Green Sovereign bloodline has incredibly strong recovery."

He turned to the skeletal giant and gripped the Hunyuan Greatsword tightly. "By now, my spirit qi has recovered halfway, and my control is much more precise. With the Spirit Light Chains loosening, I can use far more of my power."

"That's good..." Nantian Wan'er buried her head in his chest and smiled. "I knew it. I always knew you were the strongest."

Lu Chen patted her head with a light laugh. "Ha, that's right. Now go to Red Fox. I'm going to deal with this beast."

Seeing the skeletal giant charging behind him, he lightly tapped Nantian Wan'er, signaling her to leave quickly.

"Be careful, Lu-gege. I'll wait for your good news," she said, giving him a mischievous smile before darting toward Red Fox's location.

Lu Chen watched her weave through the gray, withered trees like a drifting wisp. He sagged, then planted the Hunyuan Greatsword firmly into the ground.

Halfway through, Nantian Wan'er felt a sudden pang of worry and turned to wave. Sensing her gaze, Lu Chen immediately straightened, smiled, and waved back, urging her to leave.

Once she left, Lu Chen could no longer hold on. He spat a mouthful of blood and collapsed to his knees. "Damn... this was way too close. I didn't expect my first battle against a Sunken Core Realm beast to nearly wipe us out."

Seeing him fall and bleed, the skeletal giant gathered a surge of black mist in its eyes. It slammed its fists and charged forward.

Lu Chen felt the ground tremble beneath him. A wolfish ferocity shone in his eyes. "Trying to take advantage of me? The trial ends here."

Spitting out the blood in his mouth, he placed his right hand on the Hunyuan Greatsword and slowly rose. "That intense battle just now has greatly improved my control over spirit qi. With my current skill, I can easily rescue Wind Dragon."

Standing tall in the open, Lu Chen watched the skeletal giant approach. He said coldly, "It's just a Sunken Core Realm beast. Prepare to die."

He wiped the blood from his mouth with his thumb and smeared it across the blade of the Hunyuan Greatsword.