Chapter 10 Changes
Lu Bai calmed down and continued forward.
He knew the Phantom Demon would appear again, so he gripped his magic sword tightly and stayed highly alert.
Sure enough.
After walking another seven or eight steps, the Phantom Demon attacked again.
This time, there was only one!
However, in terms of strength, it was even more powerful than the three combined earlier.
Ji Fuyao's wrist twitched slightly, and she instinctively wanted to strike it down. But then, she remembered Lu Bai's request and forcefully suppressed the urge.
Nevertheless, she kept a close eye on the situation, ready to intervene immediately if Lu Bai was overwhelmed.
Lu Bai had been ready for a long time. Seeing the Phantom Demon rush towards him, a cold glint flashed in his eyes.
Then, his magic sword, seemingly slow but actually fast, swept upwards diagonally. The Phantom Demon seemed to deliberately collide with the tip of the sword, getting impaled through and through.
Gurgle!
It let out a few strange cries and slowly fell down.
The demons in the Phantom Demon Hall were all illusions; though they had offensive power, they had no physical form. Once killed, they would immediately vanish into thin air.
Ji Fuyao was a bit stunned. She wondered if a Phantom Demon had even appeared just now?
This was too easy!
Could she have done this when she was at the Qi Training Stage first level?
The answer seemed to be… no!
She took a deep look at Lu Bai, and her impression of him changed slightly!
"Ding! Detected Ji Fuyao's favorability towards the host +22 points. One step closer to removing the first black heart!"
The system prompt sounded in Lu Bai's mind, pulling him back to reality.
After wielding that sword, Lu Bai rediscovered the feeling he had that night while observing the figure dancing with the sword—magical and profound!
So, was the sword Move he instinctively used just now 'Rainy Life'?
Lu Bai recalled carefully.
The figure didn't seem to make that movement. All of his Moves were spontaneous. But the aura he exuded was very consistent.
Clearly, it was about the spirit, not the form!
Lu Bai felt that he had just managed to grasp a tiny bit of that essence, but when he tried to grasp more, he couldn't find it.
This feeling was extremely frustrating!
Shaking his head, Lu Bai's thoughts returned to the system prompt.
He sighed inwardly, Senior Sister and the demoness were indeed different. The demoness had 'Affection Points,' while Senior Sister had 'Favorability Points.'
The numbers increasing were also vastly different!
It seemed that before generating 'Affection Points,' he needed to max out 'Favorability Points' first.
Additionally, the demoness's goal was to light up red hearts, while Senior Sister's was to remove black hearts.
At this thought, Lu Bai felt a bit resentful!
Conquering Senior Sister was a much more arduous task than conquering the demoness!
After slaying the Phantom Demon, Lu Bai felt he still had energy and could go further.
So, he started moving again.
After walking another dozen steps, his elemental power was exhausted.
Lu Bai closed his eyes, waiting quietly.
Indeed!
Another warm current flowed from his Spiritual Bone.
However, this time the effect was much worse than last time; he only recovered about seventy percent of his elemental power.
Lu Bai didn't dwell on it and continued to push forward under pressure.
Ji Fuyao was a bit confused.
Why did he always seem to recover just when she thought he was done for?
His endurance was terrifying!
Thump, thump, thump!
Lu Bai's steps were firm and strong.
Forty-eight, forty-nine… fifty, he gritted his teeth and counted out this number.
After entering the Phantom Demon Hall, Lu Bai had walked a total of fifty steps.
At this point, he was truly exhausted!
His Spiritual Bone no longer showed any reaction; clearly, it had been drained.
Lu Bai turned and looked back. Many of those who had mocked him at the hall entrance were now far behind. Whether they could ultimately reach his current position was still a question mark.
Slap!
Lu Bai delivered a resounding slap to that group of people!
They all lowered their heads, utterly mortified!
"Senior Sister, I'm going out first," Lu Bai said, turning to Ji Fuyao, preparing to crush the jade token.
Ji Fuyao came back to her senses and nodded.
Whoosh!
Lu Bai's figure vanished, accompanied by a system prompt in his mind.
"Ding! Detected Ji Fuyao's favorability towards the host +66 points. One step closer to removing the first black heart!"
Outside the hall, Lu Bai revealed a slight smile.
Heh heh! He had found the right path. Senior Sister's impression of him had greatly changed.
As long as he continued to work hard, removing the black heart and even lighting up the red heart were just around the corner!
…
In the following days.
Lu Bai was very diligent, going to the Phantom Demon Hall every day.
But he always made sure to enter with Ji Fuyao. If she was late sometimes, Lu Bai would wait.
Except for the first day, when Ji Fuyao was worried and stayed by his side to protect him, she later let him challenge it on his own.
Lu Bai went further and further!
Then, the next day, he would report his achievements to Senior Sister.
And Ji Fuyao would always respond indifferently, "Not bad!"
In truth, her heart was turbulent. How could he improve so quickly?
Lu Bai had long seen through her disguise!
Because every time he reported his achievements, he would hear a 'ding' in his mind, receiving Senior Sister's favorability points.
Moreover, the numbers were getting larger and larger!
Lu Bai wanted to laugh inwardly. He truly looked forward to the moment she accidentally broke her composure, with wide, dazed eyes!
…
In the evening.
Lu Bai still slept very little, spending most of his time Cultivating the Xuanqing Skill.
He wanted to enter that mysterious space again.
But unfortunately, he never succeeded.
However, with his diligent practice, the aura of the Nine Absolute Sword's first Move, 'Rainy Life,' was becoming increasingly strong.
If he could observe it one more time, he was confident he could fully grasp it.
No rush!
There would definitely be another chance.
…
Beside the entrance of the Phantom Demon Hall stood a stone tablet.
Engraved on it were the best scores of challengers from the Qi Training Stage first level to the Golden Core Peak for each Realm.
Among them, Ji Fuyao held several records, truly worthy of being Xuanqing Sect's Heavenly Genius!
The spot corresponding to the Qi Training Stage first level originally had 'Le Feiyang's' name engraved.
But today, it had changed!
It was replaced by… Lu Bai.
This detail immediately caught the attention of many people.
"Is this Lu Bai the Lu Bai we know?"
"Nonsense! Who else could it be?"
Hiss! Sounds of gasping!
"If I remember correctly, he just advanced to the Qi Training Stage first level, right? And he's already broken the Sect record?"
"Is he a Trash? Or a Genius?"
"Fu Ziming, who is equally famous as him, probably doesn't even have the courage to step into the Phantom Demon Hall now. What's the difference between the two?"
"The difference lies in the method of advancing to the Qi Training Stage!"
"Oh?"
"One relies on Bone Setter, the other relies on grinding!"
"If you say that, how will those 'Bone Setters' who look down on everyone else feel?"
"And those who sold everything to ask for their help, haven't they all become idiots? With those resources, it's better to find a Dao Companion in Yu Xiang Sect!"
"Pfft! Do you think everyone can find someone like You Lianruo?"
"That's true!"
"Damn it! Did Lu Bai, that bastard, have his ancestral grave smoke green? I have both looks and talent, plus a special skill, why don't I have such luck?"
"Ugh!" Everyone couldn't stand it anymore.
However, they also had similar doubts in their hearts.