Chapter 10: The Sin of Possessing Treasures

Le Piaopiao was terrified.

As a modern person and a villager of Daqin Village, where cultivating immortality was illegal, she had never witnessed a battle of such magnitude. At this moment, she was too stunned to feel fear, but despair lingered within her. This was a battle they could not win!

Amidst the sea of flames, the figures of Baili Bu, Yan Beitian, and Luo Chengdong flickered in and out of view.

"Arrogant and ignorant children, prepare to meet your end!" The middle-aged man laughed maniacally as he once again channeled his magical power.

"Your Highness, I'll hold them off. You retreat!" Yan Beitian stepped forward with his sword, and although his sword qi was sharp, blocking a cluster of flames, his hair and clothes were singed. Under such an attack, defense was futile; it would soon be broken.

Baili Bu remained silent, his body soaring into the air. Instead of retreating, he grasped his blade and leaped towards the heart of the flames. His cultivation was shallow, and he hadn't reached the realm of man-blade unity, but his aura was naturally formed and unstoppable!

"Wait, I won't lose to you," Luo Chengdong shouted. At this moment, instead of fear, he felt even more excited.

Clutching the snow-white sword with both hands, he almost dove into the blazing flames.

The middle-aged man's heart was shaken once more.

These two young people had brought him too many surprises. Although he was severely injured, his wounds had been suppressed until now, and a Foundation Establishment cultivator was no match for his strength. Yet, they not only resisted but also counterattacked. Like two small wild beasts that had invaded a porcelain shop, they charged around fearlessly, and despite their weakness, they shattered all the porcelain in the shop!

Amidst anger, confusion, puzzlement, and unease, his gaze pierced through the flames and landed on Le Piaopiao. She stood upright, like a slender sapling in the midst of a gale. Though she appeared fragile, she inspired fear within him. A faint golden-red glow hovered over her head, making her seem like a celestial being.

The divine artifact! The divine artifact was on her head. Or rather, inside her skull!

Greed welled up within him, and his anxiety intensified. His injuries could no longer be suppressed, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood, stumbling back several steps.

Baili Bu and Luo Chengdong were young, but one was the prince of Daqin, and the other was the star of Kunlun. Both were prodigies blessed by heaven and had been carefully cultivated by their elders. As such, they had ample opportunities for actual combat. In this fierce battle, even though opportunities were fleeting, they seized them immediately.

A snow-white light and a dark, ominous glow twisted like two dragons in the sea of crimson flames, irresistible. The flames, already weakened, scattered and vanished like kindling blown by the dragons' fierce winds.

The middle-aged man stumbled back two more steps, nearly collapsing without the support of the enlarged token.

"So, that's all a Jin Dan cultivator is capable of," Baili Bu said disdainfully, his demeanor and expression filled with pride.

Meanwhile, Le Piaopiao seemed to see a glimmer of hope, but she couldn't bring herself to feel joy.

She hesitated, wondering whether she should help. Although she didn't know how, in her anxiety, she felt a warmth emanating from her body, a precursor to the golden light. This time, she felt it more distinctly. The source of the heat was just above her left ear, as if something was trying to burst through her skull, skin, and hair.

She didn't even dare to touch it, but she felt the heat connected to her willpower. If she used it properly, perhaps the golden light would attack on its own, just as it had when the middle-aged man tried to harm her.

What was it? The divine artifact? She had no idea. But if Baili Bu saw her like this, he would surely have her head afterward.

Le Piaopiao had no good impression of Baili Bu, as he had almost supervised her execution. However, at this moment, she couldn't help but admire his courage in challenging a master two levels above him. Although she didn't think he was saving her but rather fulfilling his duty as the prince of Daqin to uphold the law, she secretly gave him a thumbs-up.

Daqin was a tyrannical but also a powerful kingdom. It was because of such emperors and heirs that such a nation existed.

The problem was, if she showed any abnormality, she would become a pebble under Daqin's wheel, crushed into dust. But if she didn't help, the middle-aged man would still kill her after winning, right?

Oh well, she thought, let's worry about surviving first. At least Baili Bu wouldn't go to the extreme of dissecting her to find the divine artifact. Instinctively, she knew she couldn't let anyone know about the "divine artifact." That way, the best outcome would be for the middle-aged man to die.

She didn't know how to channel her energy or cast spells. But she knew what intention was, so she desperately focused on the hot spot above her left ear and imagined the golden light flying out to hurt someone.

While she was awkwardly trying to help, the middle-aged Jin Dan cultivator also sensed the danger and waved his hands, forming magical seals. Immediately, a white light shot out from his head.

It was a long sword that split into three in mid-air, swirling and flying with a fierce aura.

"Be careful, he's summoned his natal treasure!" Yan Beitian shouted, his voice filled with concern.

Le Piaopiao's heart skipped a beat.

These days, her three masters had taken turns teaching her about cultivation, so she was well aware of the power of a natal treasure. Unless it was a life-or-death battle, cultivators wouldn't easily use their natal treasures because, although powerful, if damaged, the cultivator themselves would also be harmed or even killed. Furthermore, only Jin Dan cultivators could cultivate natal treasures, marking a dividing line between low-level and high-level cultivators.

Those who formed a Yuan Ying were among the top experts, and those at the Yuan Ying Perfection stage or higher were considered powerhouses.

Now, two Foundation Establishment cultivators had forced a Jin Dan cultivator to use his natal treasure. Even though this Jin Dan cultivator was already injured, it was still an extraordinary feat. If word got out, it would surely create a sensation in the cultivation world.

On the other hand, it also indicated that the middle-aged man was at his wit's end, ready to fight to the death!

In the blink of an eye, the sound of something breaking through the air echoed as the three swords forged from the natal treasure attacked from three directions. One targeted Baili Bu, one targeted Luo Chengdong, and the third... unexpectedly headed towards Le Piaopiao!

This was a foolish move by the middle-aged man.

He only thought that the divine artifact was in the hands of that stinky girl. After injuring the Foundation Establishment cultivators before him, he would be exhausted. If the stinky girl ran away and something happened, what if the only divine artifact in the world fell into someone else's hands? After all, although very few people knew about the divine artifact, there were still a handful who did.

But he forgot that when Le Piaopiao faced life and death, the hidden divine artifact within her would suddenly unleash an inexplicable power. Hadn't he himself been severely injured by the divine artifact's weak attack before?

Therefore, as soon as the natal treasure was unleashed, he saw the figure of death. He also saw that the golden light on Le Piaopiao was not pure gold but mixed with a hint of red.

That red was as vibrant as blood but carried an air of nobility, like something ethereal from beyond the heavens.

From a distance, the golden-red glow flashed and disappeared without attacking him directly. However, he felt a violent force ramming through his body, making it impossible for him to control his spiritual energy, magical power, and the essences within his marrow sea, descending fire, and dantian.

This momentary weakness was seized by Baili Bu and Luo Chengdong. In the brief instant of his vulnerability meeting their sudden strength, two of the three swords of the natal treasure were instantly cut off by the white sword and the black blade.

The third sword strike came with a slight delay, yet its power remained unyielding, heading straight towards Le Piaopiao.

It all happened too fast for Le Piaopiao to react to the danger upon her. Yan Beitian, being the closest to her, didn't hesitate for a moment and threw himself at her, rolling several zhang away with her in his arms. However, the sword, being a transformed innate treasure with its own consciousness, turned and struck down again. Yan Beitian swung his sword to meet it, and with a clang, the third sword also broke.

"Puh!"

Le Piaopiao only heard the sound of blood spraying and felt the warmth of liquid on the back of her neck. When she looked up, the middle-aged man's face was pale and gray, resembling that of a dead person. His body fell stiffly backward. With his innate treasure destroyed, there was no chance of survival for him.

Bai Libu and Luo Chengdong were both in a sorry state, spitting blood. The battle of the weak overcoming the strong had taken too much out of them, and they were both injured by sword qi. The worst off was Yan Beitian. Although he had the same cultivation and combat strength as the other two, he lacked Bai Libu's ruthlessness and Luo Chengdong's arrogant confidence. Being gentle by nature, he was inferior in fighting spirit and thus heavily injured, not only internally but also with his entire arm torn and bloody.

"Mr. Yan, how are you?" Le Piaopiao lay face down on the ground, asking Yan Beitian who was on her back.

The man looked thin, but he was heavy, and she couldn't turn over.

Yan Beitian shook his head with a wry smile and struggled to sit up.

"I'm sorry," he said, his face slightly flushed.

A young man with a blushed face is the most adorable. Le Piaopiao thought, feeling touched. She was just an ordinary citizen, yet Yan Beitian, the personal guard of the Crown Prince of the Great Qin Empire and a nobleman himself, had blocked the sword and been injured for her. She didn't think it was because he was captivated by her beauty; rather, she believed Yan Beitian was a kind and good man, a brave warrior who protected his countrymen.

"Who do you think you are, stealing the glory of a hero saving a damsel in distress? I could have done it too!" Luo Chengdong exclaimed.

Before the words were out, another change occurred. Although the three men had collapsed, their three spirit pets suddenly became active. The black-and-white ermine broke free from its frozen state and rushed to the middle-aged man's corpse like an arrow, then quickly fled. It was so fast that it disappeared in an instant.

"No good, the Jin Dan cultivator's Yuan Shen didn't die. It attached itself to the spirit pet and escaped!" Yan Beitian was a little anxious.

"What's there to fear? He's only at the Jin Dan stage, not even at the Yuan Ying stage. With just a bit of Yuan Shen, he can't possess another body or survive independently. Attached to the spirit pet, he'll soon be lost and dissipate," Luo Chengdong shrugged indifferently.

In fact, the abilities of a spirit pet and its master's cultivation complement each other. The black-and-white ermine hadn't expected Luo Chengdong to use ice-based magic, so it was caught off guard momentarily. Now, it had quickly recovered.

"I'm just worried that he might have accomplices who will learn of his death," Yan Beitian was still uneasy.

"So what?" Bai Libu said with a cold face, "In the territory of the Great Qin, one must abide by our laws. It doesn't matter if he's just a Jin Dan cultivator or even a powerful being at the Hua Shen stage; I'm not afraid to fight him." His face was slightly pale, making his eyebrows and eyes appear even darker.

Could there be a human male as handsome as him? Le Piaopiao suddenly thought. Although her three masters were good-looking, and her second master was exceptionally beautiful, there was no one else with such a masculine and handsome face.

Her heart tightened and relaxed, then tightened again as she listened to the three men's conversation. Never before had she hoped for someone's death so intensely. Because if the middle-aged man were still alive or had revealed any information, she would face eternal pursuit and killing.

This was the so-called "crime of possessing a treasure."