Mission: Seduce the Master!

The ten-legged elephant was definitely not characterized by the slowness typical of its kind. It seemed that its heavy and large body could be fatal for it, especially in a battle with such an agile swordsman as Xie Qing.

However, the elephant had no problems. It moved quickly, and it felt as if it was teleporting.

Its ten legs had terrifying strength. During their brief exchange of blows, Xie Qing was nearly crushed by the horrifying power of those legs.

Moreover, it was extremely difficult to withstand attacks on the soul. Xie Qing was sweating profusely.

"Soul Integration! A stage where the cultivator merges their soul and body, creating something beautiful and becoming a being of a new order!"

In addition to great strength and enormous endurance, it was notable that beings at this level already had advanced soul attack techniques.

Xie Qing could only spend a large amount of his Qi on defense. After all, if he received a soul injury, his future path would become difficult!

However, the elephant did not get off lightly either. Numerous small and shallow wounds appeared on its body, from which gray, thick blood oozed.

Moreover, the wounds were enveloped in the glow of the Sword Aura, which prevented the elephant's regeneration from quickly dealing with the wounds.

"TUUUUUU!"

With an angry roar... A scream... Something like that, the elephant's body shone very brightly. Xie Qing was blinded, but this effect lasted only a second.

However, sighing, he discovered that his body had become heavy.

"This..."

Xie Qing frowned. It felt as if something was restraining him, but his active search for his Qi did not show any results.

Dum! Dum!

Loud sounds of footsteps rang in Xie Qing's ears. He turned to the elephant and narrowed his eyes.

"Ah, you bitch..."

Xie Qing already understood what had happened. The elephant had not used a curse, as he initially thought. His opponent had secretly attacked his soul!

"Qi has become heavier to gather... The effect, presumably, will last about three minutes. But in that time, I'll be crushed to hell" Xie Qing frowned.

Due to the strange, unfamiliar attack, the amount and quality of Qi he could use was limited.

However, Xie Qing did not panic. He used a special technique, "Rising Legend," which allowed him to temporarily strengthen his characteristics.

And the young man, taking advantage of this temporary enhancement, quickly took action.

Bright and piercing flashes of the Sword Aura stretched across the black and gloomy space. Xie Qing confidently swung his sword.

"I need to weaken him a bit!"

Boom!

A powerful attack landed directly on the elephant's torso. It loudly reacted to its wounds.

However, while Xie Qing was dodging the chaotic attacks of the trunk and legs, he took advantage of the opportunity.

Vshhh!

"Finally! Now..."

With a sharp movement of his hand, a thin layer of the Sword Aura detached from the blade of the sword.

"TUUUUUUUU!"

The elephant desperately howled. Its eyes were bleeding. Xie Qing's attack would have been useless if he had directed it at the elephant's torso. However, the eyes were the weak spot of most beings.

"Excellent!" Xie Qing licked his lips and jumped back, dodging the attack of the trunk. A satisfied smile shone on his face: "I did it!"

Having temporarily lost its vision, the elephant could only fight by feeling against Xie Qing. It could be said that it was successful.

However, the accuracy of the attacks had noticeably decreased. Therefore, Xie Qing did not miss his chance. He confidently swung his sword, using the sword technique:

"Lord of the Nine Realms and Heavens - Sword God Strike!"

BOOM!

A loud, piercing explosion deafened both the elephant and Xie Qing. However, the young man was in good condition. As for the elephant, that was not the case.

It lay on the ground, writhing in apparent convulsions and howling pitifully. Its large and heavy body was bleeding, and countless glows of the Sword Aura interfered with its regeneration.

Although one could admire this sight for a long time, Xie Qing preferred to end everything as quickly as possible. Therefore, he swung his sword, and after ten attacks, he was able to cut off the elephant's head.

And before he could rest, the king suddenly appeared again. He looked at the young man and emotionlessly said,

"The first test has been passed. Participant 1 has defeated their opponent. Passed. Participant 2..." The king was silent for a while, and then continued, "Hm. A draw."

"A draw?" Xie Qing was surprised, "It seems she has good skills."

The fact that Lyu Lyu had lasted so long and managed to end in a draw was already something significant.

Her cultivation technique was ancient and even Xie Qing could not fully understand how it was created.

The only thing he knew was that this technique was good in most cases for a support role. However, a cultivator with such a cultivation technique also had their tricks in battle.

The king did not particularly try to fit into the atmosphere, so after a short silence, he continued,

"The second test will be a test of your heart. Prove that you are worthy."

Xie Qing did not have time to react before his mind was caught in a whirlwind, and he lost consciousness.

The same scene was repeated with Lyu Lyu.

***

A bright, sunny day. Xie Qing narrowed his eyes, gazing at the boundless expanse of the field.

He was dressed in tattered clothes, which were worn exclusively by the poor.

However, it seemed that even in such cheap and unattractive clothes, he had a certain charm.

His beautiful appearance was the wet dream of almost every village girl and even women.

In the village of Xianshen, he was popular and loved by all.

However, Xie Qing was unhappy. He sighed bitterly, looking around.

"And again, this sad everyday life," he thought angrily.

He was a young man with a fiery temperament. He always wanted fun, liveliness, and an active life.

However, the village could only offer wheat fields and mud. The only thing that could entertain the young man was flirting with young ladies.

Xie Qing was one of those boys who, having heard stories about immortals, wanted to become one of them.

However, reality was cruel. Where would an ordinary village family get the finances and connections to raise a cultivator?

Therefore, everything was limited only to their own fantasies.

"Ah, if only I could become an immortal. I would have a harem of beautiful fairies. The girls from the village are nice, but they're too ordinary..."

He lacked romance! Interesting and captivating romance! What young man wouldn't want to meet a beautiful princess and become her beloved?

But, one way or another, fantasies are just fantasies. Xie Qing sighed again.

Thus, weeks passed. He lived an ordinary life - working in the fields, taking care of the livestock, and spending time with friends.

It seemed like an ordinary, mortal life. But one day...

"Wailing! I'm wailing! Help me..."

"Aaaa!"

"Nooo! My Xiao Yue!"

Xie Qing was in shock as he looked at his native village. It was engulfed in flames.

"How could this be..."

Out of helplessness and despair, he fell to his knees. His hands were trembling.

Five minutes ago... He had seen the sky catch fire. Something round and fiery had fallen from the clouds.

And in that moment, everything was destroyed. Toxic and extremely dangerous energy, along with inexplicable phenomena, created a terrifying flame that claimed more than a dozen lives.

"This... Mama! Papa!"

Xie Qing seemed to finally come to his senses. He ran toward the village, ignoring the villagers who were begging for help. He tirelessly moved through the burning houses and beams.

But when he reached his home, he could only sigh deeply out of helplessness and despair.

"It's all over..."

***

Years had passed. The once charming and attractive young man had become a gloomy adventurer.

He tirelessly traveled across the continent and completed tasks.

He did not possess any particular strength, judging by the cultivator ranking. However, for a mortal, he was strong and sturdy.

A deep night. Xie Qing scratched his stubble.

The bonfire was crackling. Behind the young man was a portable tent, which had cost him dearly.

"I'm tired..." he thought with a sigh, "What a terrible day..."

Today, he had taken on a task to kill some fugitive from a merchant organization. The target was an ordinary person, but he was good at hiding and changing his identity.

However, Xie Qing had managed to see the cultivator from a distance. He looked stately, and many beauties were swirling around him. Even the legendary beauty, the daughter of the city leader, was smiling brightly at him and swirling around him.

"Who would have thought that this high-and-mighty woman would behave so coquettishly..." Xie Qing thought, recalling her behavior on other days. He crookedly smiled, "Even the city leader himself behaved more obediently than any trained dog. I suppose this is the true power of cultivators."

Hearing one thing was one thing, but seeing it was quite another impression. Xie Qing was only more convinced that without sufficient strength, one would never be able to gain a good attitude toward themselves.

"Mind... Beauty... Erudition... All of this is meaningless if you are weak."

He bitterly smiled. It seemed that the life he had lived was no better than that of a yard dog.

"I have neither a wife nor children. Not even a permanent place to live," Xie Qing thought, looking up at the stars, "The starry sky and a tent. That's my home..."

After the incident with the village, he had to grow up quickly. Most of his relatives and friends had been killed in the sudden disaster.

And those who had survived either became madmen or closed themselves off.