CHAPTER 39: SAVING THE PRINCESS

*Boom!*

The punch hit the sword-wielder’s hastily raised guard. The man’s defensive technique shattered.

He flew backward, blood spurting from his mouth, and crashed into a tree. The trunk cracked from the impact.

The dagger-wielder hesitated, shock evident in his body language. How had a Qi Condensation brat just sent an early Golden Core cultivator flying?

Xian Tiandi didn’t give him time to think. He moved forward with explosive speed, appearing beside the dagger-wielder in an instant.

The assassin tried to retreat, but Xian Tiandi was faster. A palm strike hit the man’s chest. More bones cracked. The assassin collapsed, gasping for air.

Two early Golden Core cultivators defeated in seconds.

The remaining two assassins—the mid Golden Core and the late Golden Core leader—both tensed. Their assessment of this situation had been completely wrong.

"You’re not a normal Qi Condensation cultivator," the leader said slowly. "What secret technique are you using? What’s your true cultivation level?"

Xian Tiandi didn’t answer. He simply stood there calmly, his expression unchanged.

Behind the assassins, Princess Yue Lianhua stared in disbelief.

This young man, who appeared to be only about sixteen years old, had just defeated two Golden Core cultivators as if it were nothing.

Who was he?

The leader made a decision. "Forget the boy for now. Kill the princess first. That’s our primary objective."

He and the mid Golden Core assassin both turned back toward the princess, preparing to finish her quickly before dealing with this unexpected interference.

But Xian Tiandi had anticipated this.

He pulled a talisman from his storage ring and crushed it.

The Void Step Talisman activated.

Space twisted around Xian Tiandi. He vanished from his position and reappeared directly between the two assassins and the princess.

Both assassins’ attacks, which had been aimed at the princess, suddenly found Xian Tiandi in their path instead.

"Move!" the leader snarled, trying to redirect his strike.

But it was too late. Xian Tiandi was already acting.

He activated his Supreme Taming authority, reaching out with his spiritual sense toward the attacks coming at him.

Not trying to tame the cultivators themselves, but targeting something more abstract.

The momentum of their attacks. The flow of spiritual energy in their techniques. The connection between their intent and the manifestation of their power.

For a brief moment, those connections recognized Xian Tiandi as their master instead of the assassins.

The leader’s sword strike, which should have cut toward Xian Tiandi, instead curved away at the last moment and struck empty air.

The mid Golden Core assassin’s spear thrust, filled with piercing energy, suddenly lost all its force and stopped harmlessly before reaching its target.

Both assassins stumbled, their techniques betraying them at the critical moment.

"What—?!" the leader gasped.

Xian Tiandi didn’t waste the opening. His counterattack was immediate and brutal.

He struck the mid Golden Core assassin first with a Chaos Qi-enhanced palm strike directly to the man’s dantian. The assassin screamed as his cultivation was damaged. He collapsed, clutching his core.

The late Golden Core leader tried to retreat, finally understanding that this opponent was far more dangerous than his cultivation level suggested.

But Xian Tiandi had one more trump card prepared.

From his storage ring, he pulled out a small vial. Inside was a single pill—the Spirit Burst Pill, a dangerous medicine that temporarily doubled a cultivator’s power for one minute at the cost of severe exhaustion afterward.

He consumed it without hesitation.

Power exploded through his body. His aura surged dramatically. For this one minute, his effective combat power reached the peak of Qi Condensation Realm, approaching Foundation Establishment.

The leader saw the sudden power surge and made a final desperate decision. Instead of fighting, he used a forbidden escape technique.

’Smart,’ Xian Tiandi thought.

*Whoosh!*

His body turned into a shadow and shot away at incredible speed, fleeing into the forest. Within seconds, he had vanished completely.

Xian Tiandi didn’t pursue. The Spirit Burst Pill’s effects would only last one minute, and he needed to conserve his remaining strength. Chasing a late Golden Core expert who was focused solely on fleeing would be pointless.

Instead, he turned to check on the princess.

Princess Yue Lianhua had collapsed against the cliff wall, barely conscious. The poison had progressed significantly during the fight. Her face was deathly pale, and her breathing was shallow.

Xian Tiandi knelt beside her and quickly examined her condition with his spiritual sense. The poison was a sophisticated brew, designed to slowly shut down her spiritual meridians and cultivation. If left untreated, she would die within the hour.

He reached into his storage ring and retrieved an antidote pill he’d prepared during his alchemy studies. It wasn’t specifically designed for this poison, but it was a high-grade neutralizing medicine that should help.

"Swallow this," he said, placing the pill at her lips.

The princess, barely conscious, instinctively obeyed. The pill dissolved on her tongue, and its medicinal effects began working immediately.

Color slowly returned to her face. Her breathing steadied slightly. But she was still very weak and needed proper treatment.

Xian Tiandi lifted her carefully and began carrying her back toward his camp.

The Spirit Burst Pill’s effects were wearing off now, leaving him exhausted. But he couldn’t leave her here.

As he walked, the princess’s eyes opened slightly. She looked up at him with confusion and gratitude.

"Who... are you?" she whispered weakly.

"Just someone who happened to be in the right place at the right time," Xian Tiandi replied.

"Why... save me?" Her voice was barely audible.

"Because," Xian Tiandi said calmly, "I fell in love at first sight, what do you think?"

"You..."

Princess Yue Lianhua’s eyes closed again, unconsciousness claiming her. But a small blush appeared on her cheeks before she faded completely.

Xian Tiandi continued walking, his mind already planning the next steps. He had saved her life, altering the timeline significantly. Now he needed to ensure this investment paid off.

The connection to the royal family had been established. The question was how to leverage it most effectively.

But that was a problem for tomorrow. For now, he needed to get the princess to safety and ensure her full recovery.