Law of Temporal Rebound

"Nine Heavenly Lightning Slash! Third Slash—Thunderclap Horizon!"

A sweeping strike with a shockwave of thunder reflected in the eyes of Wang Xiaoyan as it devoured her figure entirely.

Ye Fan instantly tried to save her, but Meng Xian grabbed his hand and shook his head, signaling him to trust her.

Meng Xian murmured inwardly, 'This is a good opportunity to judge how strong she really is! Furthermore, this romantic dimwit doesn't realize he is no match for Ji Changchen. Only Wang Xiaoyan, the strongest among us three, is capable of taking him down.'

Ji Changchen looked at the dust cloud spreading through the air and narrowed his eyes. Even though he couldn't see the outcome, and even though he hadn't taken the initiative to perceive his opponent's condition, just by observing the shape of the flowing dust, he could already guess what had happened.

As the dust settled, Wang Xiaoyan stood within it, breathing heavily. A layer of flowing water formed a barrier around her.

Meng Xian thought, 'So this is the infamous Boundless Tide's first form, Ocean's Embrace! To think she has grasped it so early. I remember this technique supported her until the final battles in the Great Inheritance of Ascendance! No, she hasn't fully mastered it yet. She has only grasped the basics. I can see that the defense isn't perfect. At her peak, she could absorb a Rank 8 late-stage attack without breaking a sweat!'

Boundless Tide was another technique passed down to her by Wang Xueyao. It had three forms: one for defense, one for attack, and one for control.

Ocean's Embrace formed a layered water wall in different shapes and sizes. Like the ocean's depths, it absorbed and deflected energy rather than resisting it head-on. As cultivation deepens, the barrier evolves into a living fortress, shifting and reshaping to counter any assault.

The Boundless Tide technique was on the same level as Ji Changchen's Nine Heavenly Lightning Slash! However, Boundless Tide was an all-around technique, whereas Nine Heavenly Lightning Slash was an attack-specific technique. In terms of sheer offensive power, Nine Heavenly Lightning Slash was far superior.

Ji Changchen muttered, 'A defense on par with my Third Slash! If I unleash the Fourth Slash, it should be enough to take her down.'

Wang Xiaoyan glanced at Ji Changchen deeply. 'Such a strong attack... it nearly penetrated my defensive barrier!'

In reality, Wang Xiaoyan could have created a stronger barrier. However, the attack was so fast that she had to summon it purely on reflex. Even with Crystal Clear, which granted her immense reaction speed, she had to rely on instinct to protect herself. Had she begun forming the barrier the moment Ji Changchen conjured his attack, she could have easily blocked it!

Wang Xiaoyan was about to make another move, but Ye Fan interfered immediately. "Yan-er, you don't have to do this. When I am strong enough, I will take revenge myself!"

Wang Xiaoyan's blue eyes flickered as she glanced at Ye Fan.

Ji Changchen laughed. "So, you two are a lovely couple! Why? Are you still bitter that your ex-girlfriend chose me over you?"

Ye Fan narrowed his eyes at him.

Meng Xian mumbled, "What is a 'girlfriend'? Does it mean lover or something?"

Ji Changchen didn't explain.

Wang Xiaoyan glanced at Ji Changchen with puzzled eyes. With Crystal Clear, she instantly saw through some details. She looked at him and asked slowly, "Didn't you kill his parents?"

Ji Changchen was momentarily stunned. He glanced at Ye Fan and Wang Xiaoyan and immediately began piecing together the details.

He asked inwardly, "System, what's going on? Why does he think I killed his family?"

Ding! On the same day when the host was about to kill Ye Fan, his entire family was massacred.

Meng Xian frowned, sensing a growing crisis. "This bastard… don't tell me he's about to sow discord!"

Ji Changchen narrowed his eyes. He murmured inwardly, "System, what is Wang Xiaoyan's greatest weakness?"

Ding! Revenge. She harbors an intense killing intent toward the Demon King of the South, Li Gang. He massacred her entire family, and now she seeks vengeance.

Ding! Additional information: Meng Xian brought the two of them together to counter the host. Wang Xiaoyan trusts Ye Fan because he promised to kill Li Gang.

Ji Changchen smirked. He turned to Ye Fan and said calmly, "The one who killed your entire family wasn't me—it was Li Gang."

Meng Xian cursed inwardly. "How?! He shouldn't have realized this! At least not this soon!"

This is actually Law of Temporal Rebound!

Imagine this world as a giant river flowing forward in time. Normally, everything in it moves downstream, following the current. To reverse the time, River should move upstream. But in this scenario, everything within the river is moving upstream except for the river itself—meaning everything "appears" to be going in reverse, but the flow of time itself isn't reversing.

Now, after this massive shift, Divine Spirit World has settled 400 years in the past, but the timeline itself is still 400 years ahead. This creates a contradiction—like stretching a rubber band and letting it snap back. The world instinctively tries to restore things to how they were before the shift to resolve this contradiction.

This rapid correction process is called Temporal Rebound—where the universe tries to "fix" the inconsistencies caused by being in a different temporal position than where it naturally should be.

As a result, Ji Changchen's system update, which should have happened centuries later, had already taken place! The Soul Emperor Inheritance, which should have opened decades in the future, had already begun!

Meng Xian had subtly realized this.

Ye Fan was momentarily shaken by Ji Changchen's words. However, for some reason, his heart remained unmoved.

Ji Changchen narrowed his eyes, surprised at Ye Fan's lack of reaction. 'Not bad… such strong mental control.'

Wang Xiaoyan was also unfazed. With Crystal Clear, her emotions were always at their most optimal state.

Ji Changchen said lightly, "How about this? We join forces and deal with that demon. Our Celestial Sect is also against Li Gang. The entire Central Continent is aware of the hostility between Li Gang and Ji Changchen. After all, he became the Holy Son of the Ethereal Sect after defeating me!"

As he spoke, he glanced at Gu Xing with a knowing smirk.

Gu Xing met his gaze coldly. "Ji Changchen, what do you mean? Are you slandering the Holy Son of our Ethereal Sect?"

Ji Changchen smirked. "Then tell me, where was your Holy Son 36 years ago?"

Gu Xing went silent.

Ji Changchen pressed further. "Just tell me—has your Holy Son returned in the last 50 years?"

Gu Xing remained speechless. She knew he was right, and thus, she couldn't come up with a rebuttal.

She said stubbornly, "That doesn't mean he's the culprit. Besides, his name is Zhang Hao, not Li Gang."

Ji Changchen smirked and said with a deep gaze, "Are you really that naïve? Zhang Hao is the fake identity Li Gang used to infiltrate Ethereal Sect! Besides, why do you think Zhang Hao's name isn't on the Genius List when your Sect Leader considered him an even greater genius?"

Wang Xiaoyan said lightly, "Li Gang has the ability to change his appearance. He fooled many with his masks. It's entirely possible that he infiltrated Ethereal Sect using his abilities."

Ji Changchen narrowed his eyes. "Oh? It seems you know quite a lot about him!"

At this moment, Meng Xian knew that if he didn't act, it would be too late.

He said calmly, "You said you have hostility with Li Gang. But from what I know, the Celestial Sect never pursued what Li Gang did to you! You said you have enmity with Li Gang, but you never retaliated."

Ji Changchen smiled. "Only fools would waste their time doing something meaningless. Why should I search for him for so-called revenge? It's better to improve myself, and when I cross paths with him in the future, I can destroy him!"

Meng Xian smiled. "What a great philosophy to hide your incompetence! To be honest, it's not incompetence you're hiding but something else. What could it be?"

Ji Changchen narrowed his eyes.

Meng Xian achieved his goal. He led them to think there was more to Ji Changchen's words than it appeared. He led them to think in another direction.

Despite having a huge grudge, Ji Changchen didn't care, never retaliated, and even the Celestial Sect never retaliated. This meant only one thing—there was some hidden cooperation between them. It also appeared logical when one considered how strong Ji Changchen's talent was. If his talent was deliberately humiliated, then no one would try to harm him.

A genius is only great when he fully utilizes his potential. Ji Changchen was always protected, yet he had faced no fewer than hundreds of assassination attempts in the past few decades.

Ye Fan murmured inwardly, 'He is right. If Ji Changchen wasn't the one who killed my family, Master should have reminded me. Though I doubt that, with his status, he would concern himself with something so trivial. But he wouldn't let me be against the entire Celestial Sect if it wasn't involved. Even if Li Gang is involved, he must have collaborated with Ji Changchen.'

Whether it was Ye Fan, Wang Xiaoyan, or Gu Xing, at this time, they all had the same thought.

Gu Xing said calmly, "Whoever Li Gang is, he has nothing to do with our holy son. You don't have to slander our Ethereal Sect and defame us for your so-called grudges."

Ji Changchen smiled. "Oh! Then let me ask, where is your holy son Zhang Hao? Call him, and we can see if he is Li Gang or not!"

"I didn't expect the Great Holy Son of the Celestial Sect and one of the ten great geniuses to remember someone like me!"

Ji Changchen was surprised at the unfamiliar yet familiar sound. He glanced at the source of the voice and found a familiar face.

"Junior Brother Zhang!" Gu Xing called softly. She nodded at the newcomer.

Zhang Hao glanced at Gu Xing and bowed politely and said, "I have met Senior Sister."

Wang Xiaoyan, Meng Xian, and Ye Fan—the trio—looked at the newcomer, trying to figure out the similarity between Zhang Hao and infamous Li Gang.

Wang Xiaoyan was the most straightforward. She brandished her sword and instantly attacked Zhang Hao.

She thought inwardly, 'No matter who you are, you will reveal yourself under the pressure of battle!'