Chapter Twenty-Four: Transformation, Ancient Characters

Huff, huff, huff!

A burst of rapid breathing, and I suddenly opened my eyes, finding myself standing outside Spirit Spring Village. Before me, the village remained shrouded by countless barriers, just as it had always been. In this moment, I could almost see the transformation of every creature within the boundaries—some morphing into terrifying demons, others into enormous beasts. The sight alone was nearly unbearable.

Above Spirit Spring Village hovered a massive blood-stained yin-yang diagram, spinning relentlessly, exuding a menacing aura, as if a giant maw was devouring everything within the village into that blood-soaked image.

"Xiyue, are you alright?"

I stepped forward, supporting Xiyue, who had just coughed up another mouthful of vital blood.

The Xiyue before me no longer possessed that ethereal, celestial grace; instead, she seemed gravely ill, barely clinging to life. I could clearly sense the chaotic yin energy swirling around her, and there was not a trace of vitality left within her body.

Xiyue shook her head and then grasped my right hand. Suddenly, the crystal orb at her brow trembled violently, and in that instant, a blood-red gleam flickered in her once deep, tranquil eyes.

I involuntarily took a step back.

"This little fox is on the verge of soul extinction. I am severely wounded, so I can only use my primordial spirit—The Tear of the Sea—to anchor her soul for now. You must use your own blood daily to refine her, or else I cannot guarantee her soul will remain intact!"

Her words sent a jolt through my heart, and I hurriedly tried to communicate with the Immortal Lady.

"Immortal Lady, Immortal Lady..."

I called out repeatedly in my sea of consciousness.

After a long while, a voice, weary to the extreme, finally responded.

"Xiao Dong, I'm fine, but I need to rest for a while. You must be careful from now on... cough, cough..."

The Immortal Lady coughed twice, then let out a long sigh, and the silence returned.

I called out a few more times, but there was no response. Raising my hand to look at the faint, fox-patterned tattoo on the back of my hand, grief overwhelmed me, and I was filled with self-reproach.

Buzzing!

At that moment, the blood diagram above Spirit Spring Village began to spin and tremble violently. The village before my eyes was already gone—countless houses and fertile fields had vanished in an instant, leaving behind only barren ground.

Yet within that desolate space stood a hulking monster, amidst shimmering light. I could clearly sense its furious howls, as if struggling against invisible chains. This monster was the malformed Azure Dragon that had burst forth from beneath the ancestral hall earlier.

"Get back!"

Seeing the distorted Azure Dragon approaching, Xiyue shouted and darted in front of me. Suddenly, she opened her mouth and spat forth a phantom blood sword. The sword gleamed with a crimson light, and though it was but a shadow, as it shot forth, the spinning blood diagram in the void shuddered abruptly. An aged voice echoed:

"Xiyue, I didn't expect you to awaken so soon. Since that's the case, I shall use the Void Severing Technique to seal this incomplete Azure Dragon directly within your Transformation Sword!"

"Uncle, is that you?"

I stood there, stunned.

Hearing Xiyue's excited voice, I knew that the shadowy hand that had emerged from the spring was her uncle—the mysterious master who had once laid this great array, stolen celestial secrets, and suppressed the evil dragon, the Yin-Yang Sage.

"This is a Five-Element Response Talisman I left behind long ago. It won't last much longer. Summon the sword spirit within your body, and with the last bit of Spirit Spring's power, I shall help awaken it!"

"Thank you, Uncle!"

No further words came from the void. Xiyue stepped back two paces and stood before me, then softly said, "Xiao Dong, stay far away. No matter what happens, do not approach me!"

By now, numbness had set in; everything unfolding before me far exceeded my comprehension. I could not fathom what was happening, but it was not the time for questions.

I nodded and retreated more than ten meters, standing there dazed, watching the scene unfold.

Xiyue stood before me, suddenly reaching back and grasping her own spine. To my astonishment, she pulled her spine straight out—a living extraction. In that moment, I could feel an icy chill along my own spine.

As Xiyue drew out her spine, I saw that it was not the blood-stained bone one would expect, but as her jade-like hand pulled it slowly free, its true form was revealed—a long, snow-white sword, etched with countless cracks. Perhaps due to my Yin Eyes, I could see those fissures with exceptional clarity.

"Out!"

As Xiyue completely extracted the snow-white sword—her own spine—she uttered a single word. Instantly, a phantom hand appeared in the void, shimmering with silvery light in the darkness, and seized the sword, fusing it with the phantom blade that had been circling the blood-stained diagram.

A string of sounds echoed in the void, resembling an ancient incantation, yet beyond my understanding.

Xiyue lay upon the ground, her body bathed in moonlight, still beautiful, but now seeming only a lifeless shell, unable to move.

"Transform!"

From the void, an ancient character soared forth—a simple, archaic symbol for "transform." Don't ask me how I recognized it. I can't say. When I was very young, I could write these characters, knowing exactly what I wrote, though unable to express it. My mother, upon seeing my scribbles, would scold me for drawing nonsense, and after that, I gradually stopped. Yet these characters remain vivid in my consciousness, as if the ability is innate. The last time I encountered such a character was when the Immortal Lady uttered the symbol for "break." I hadn't paid much attention then, but now, as the aged, mysterious shadow pronounced "transform," I felt the entire space bend to his will. That sensation defies explanation, a profound mystery beyond words.