Ink-Clad Creator

At dusk on Caixia Island, hundreds of peach blossom lanterns light up one after another.

These lamps, covered with thin jade, contained wicks made of a mixture of fluorite powder and peach petals. When lit, they emitted a warm pink glow, enveloping the entire island in a hazy, dreamlike mist. The banquet was held in an open area in the center of the island, with dozens of long tables arranged in a fan shape, facing a temporary moon-viewing platform.

Li Xian and Xiao Lingshan took their seats according to their assigned numbers, in the middle of the guest seating area. The drones remained hidden in the Qixia Pavilion and did not follow—their presence would have been too conspicuous on this occasion.

As soon as Li Xian sat down, he felt several gazes. To his left, at the Linghan Palace seats, Aunt Xiao was whispering to the woman in white beside her, her gaze seemingly casually sweeping over Xiao Lingshan; to his right, at the black-clad men's seats, Miss Chunmeng was toying with a wine cup, her silver mask gleaming coldly under the lamplight; and directly opposite, at the main guest seats, Peng Shutao, Shen Aonan, and other elites of Peach Blossom Village sat upright, the atmosphere solemn.

"Gentlemen," Clan Chief Peng Huaishan rose and raised his cup, "This Peach Blossom Banquet is not only to entertain our guests from afar, but also to bid farewell to tomorrow's arena fights. I hope everyone will make friends through martial arts, but stop when you've reached your limit and avoid hurting anyone's feelings."

Everyone raised their glasses and drank together. The wine was peach blossom brew, sweet with a hint of intoxication.

After three rounds of banquet, the atmosphere gradually relaxed. A musician from the village began to play the guqin, and young girls dressed in peach-pink dance costumes danced gracefully. Petals fluttered from their sleeves, landing in wine cups and on their clothes, filling the air with an intoxicating fragrance.

Li Xian, however, had no interest in appreciating the music. He stared at the peach blossom lantern on the table, his mind replaying the information Superman had gathered—Xiao Lingshan's mother, Xiao Lingyue, a traitor to Linghan Palace, who disappeared twenty years ago… What secrets lay behind this?

"Young Master Li." A cool voice interrupted my thoughts.

Looking up, I saw Peng Shutao. She had left her seat sometime earlier and was standing in front of the table with a wine cup in her hand.

"Miss Peng." Li stood up first.

"Your sonic-powered technique on the stage today was truly exquisite," Peng Shutao said bluntly. "May I ask who your teacher is?"

"They've arrived." Li Xian sighed inwardly, but remained calm on the surface: "My family's miscellaneous skills are nothing to mention."

"Miscellaneous studies?" Peng Shutao frowned slightly. "That's clearly... never mind." She paused, lowering her voice, "The rules for the second round tomorrow have changed. It's no longer a simple martial arts competition, but a 'Secret Realm Trial'."

"A secret realm?"

"On the west side of Rainbow Island, there is a trial cave left by our ancestors, containing three levels: breaking through formations, solving puzzles, and defending against enemies. Participants must complete the trials within three hours, and will be ranked according to the time taken." Peng Shutao stared at Li Xian. "The cave contains energy mechanisms left by our ancestors, which have a...suppressive effect on non-hereditary cultivation techniques."

She was reminding him. Li bowed and said, "Thank you for informing me, young lady."

"No need to thank me." Peng Shutao shook her head. "I just don't want to see anyone suffer because they're unfamiliar with the rules. After all..." Her gaze drifted towards the Linghan Palace seats, "those who covet the altar this year are no simpletons."

After saying that, she turned and left. As she passed Xiao Lingshan, she paused slightly, as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she only nodded slightly.

Xiao Lingshan watched her walk away and said softly, "She doesn't seem to... dislike us."

"Perhaps it's because of you," Li said. "We are both gifted, and we have a mutual appreciation for each other."

As they were talking, a commotion suddenly broke out in the banquet hall.

At the Linghan Palace seat, the white-clad woman Bing Wei, who had been ruthless during the day, gracefully rose and walked towards the main guest's seat with a wine cup in her hand—her target was Shen Aonan.

"Young Master Shen," Bingwei said softly, a stark contrast to her daytime demeanor, "Your 'Frosty Pool Sword Technique' on the arena today left me in awe. I've come to offer you a toast."

She bent down to pour the wine, her blouse slightly open, revealing a section of her snow-white neck. A faint, sweet fragrance emanated from her, like peach blossoms or sandalwood, a scent that stirred the heart.

Shen Aonan said indifferently, "It's just a friendly sparring match, you flatter me, young lady." Even so, he still raised his cup and drank it all.

Bingwei didn't leave. Instead, she sat down beside Shen Aonan, smiling radiantly: "Young Master, are you aware that our Linghan Palace is also skilled in water-based techniques? We have a 'Dual Cultivation Technique of Ice Soul,' which, if practiced by both men and women, can yield twice the results with half the effort..."

Before he could finish speaking, Peng Shutao slammed the wine cup in his hand onto the table with a loud thud.

All eyes in the room instantly became focused.

Shen Aonan's face darkened: "Please have some self-respect, young lady."

Bingwei covered her mouth and chuckled, "It was my rudeness. However..." Her gaze swept across the entire room, finally settling on Li Xian, "This Peach Blossom Festival is a grand event for finding a husband, isn't it perfect for discussing cultivation techniques and marriage?"

The atmosphere became subtle.

Miss Chunmeng chuckled softly from her seat in black: "Well said. In that case, I'll join in the fun too."

She stood up and, surprisingly, also carried a wine cup, walked towards Mr. Li!

The silver mask gleamed under the lights as she swayed with each step, her black outfit outlining her breathtaking curves. Wherever she went, men and women alike were mesmerized—by an almost eerie allure.

"Young Master Li." She stopped in front of Li Xian's desk and bent down. "That palm strike on the arena during the day was truly...exciting."

Her voice was languid and husky, like a feather brushing against his ear. Li Xian felt an invisible mental fluctuation trying to invade his consciousness—it was a bewitching technique!

[Psychological interference detected. Intensity: Medium. Building a defensive barrier.] The administrator intervened coldly.

Li Xian's eyes cleared, and he said calmly, "You flatter me, young lady."

A hint of surprise flashed in Miss Chunmeng's eyes, then her smile grew even more alluring: "Young master has good composure. However..." She lightly traced the edge of the table with her fingertips, "Tomorrow's trial in the secret realm is extremely dangerous. If young master is willing, my men can secretly assist you. The condition... is very simple: I must receive 30% of what is obtained from the altar."

"What if I don't want to?"

"Then you must be careful, young master." Miss Chunmeng straightened up, her voice still smiling but tinged with coldness. "The secret realm is full of traps and mechanisms. If you encounter a few more 'accidents,' it may be difficult to escape unscathed."

A naked threat.

Xiao Lingshan gripped the silk cord hidden in her sleeve tightly.

Just then—

"Boom!"

A muffled thud came from the direction of Qihuang Island! Immediately afterwards, a blinding blue light burst forth from the direction of Jianxin Pavilion in the center of the island!

"Enemy attack?!" someone exclaimed.

Clan Chief Peng Huaishan abruptly stood up: "Don't panic! It's an energy network alarm—someone is forcibly breaking into the secret chamber of Qihuang Island!"

As soon as the words were spoken, several figures rushed out from their seats! Peng Shutao, Shen Aonan, Shen Jiaonan and other elites of Peach Blossom Village rushed to the dock first, and Aunt Xiao of Linghan Palace also led her disciples to follow. Miss Chunmeng sneered and led the men in black to retreat quickly - but not towards Qihuang Island, but instead disappeared into the darkness at the edge of the island.

"What should we do?" Xiao Lingshan asked Li Xian.

Li Xian quickly weighed the options in his mind. The alarm on Qihuang Island was likely a diversionary tactic—if the target was the Star-Picking Island altar, then now was the perfect opportunity.

"Superman!" he cried out in his mind, "Immediately scout the direction of Star Island!"

"Roger that!" Superman's voice came through the mind link, "Mobilizing all drones—wait! Qixia Pavilion has been hacked! Someone has triggered our security network!"

"Who is it?"

"Unidentified, but carrying high-intensity energy shielding devices; our sensors can only detect blurry outlines... Three people, no, five! They're heading... towards Moon Reflection Island!"

Reflecting Moon Island? Cold Pool? Li Xian's heart skipped a beat—there was residual energy from the "holy water" he had created during the day, and the Cold Pool was a natural energy well!

"Their target might be the energy of the Cold Pool!" Li Xian pulled Xiao Lingshan up. "We have to go!"

Taking advantage of the chaos, the two left their seats and ran towards the dock. In the darkness, the peach blossom lanterns flickered, and amidst the bustling crowd, no one noticed them.

Upon arriving at the dock, they saw a small boat about to leave the shore—Peng Shitao and Shen Qing were standing on the boat.

"Brother Li! Sister Lingshan!" Peng Shitao cried out urgently, "Quick, get on the boat! Someone has trespassed into the forbidden area of ​​Yingyue Island's Cold Pool. Father sent Shen Qing and me to investigate!"

The four of them shared a boat, and Shen Qing rowed with all his might. The small boat pierced the lake's surface in the night like an arrow.

"What exactly happened?" Li asked.

"I don't know." Shen Qing's expression was solemn. "But before the alarm was triggered, the elder on duty said he detected three different hacking signals attacking the energy network simultaneously. One came from the Linghan Palace's residence, one from the black-clad men's residence, and the other... came from inside our Peach Blossom Village."

"Inside?" Xiao Lingshan asked in surprise.

"I suspect there's an inside man," Peng Shitao bit her lip. "And the target is very clear—not the secret chamber on Qihuang Island, but the icy pool on Yingyue Island and the altar on Xiexing Island. They want to destroy both energy nodes simultaneously, paralyzing the entire Peach Blossom Village's energy network!"

Li Xian felt an even deeper chill. Were the three forces outwardly vying for power at the banquet, but secretly joining forces? No, more likely—someone was using the actions of the other two as cover to carry out their own plan.

"arrive!"

The outline of Moon Reflection Island appeared ahead. From the direction of the icy pool at the heart of the island, an abnormal, eerie blue light was emanating, illuminating half of the island as if it were a ghostly realm.

The four abandoned their boat and rushed ashore, heading towards the cold pool.

Passing through the peach grove, the sight before them made everyone gasp in astonishment—

At the edge of the icy pool, five dark figures formed a circle. Each held a black crystal, the beams of light emanating from them intertwining in the air to form an inverted bowl-shaped barrier, enveloping the entire pool. Inside the barrier, the pool water churned violently, the white, frigid air tinged with an eerie deep blue.

Even more terrifying, three drops of crystal-clear liquid were suspended in the center of the icy pool—the remnants of the "holy water" created by Li Xianbai! Guided by the beam of light, they were slowly flying toward a vortex-shaped gap at the top of the barrier!

"They're extracting the holy water's energy!" Li exclaimed in disbelief.

"Not only that." Shen Qing's face turned deathly pale. "They're also using holy water as a 'key' to break the energy seal of the Cold Pool in reverse! Once the seal is broken, the vacuum zero-point energy well at the bottom of the Cold Pool will explode out of control! The entire Moon Reflection Island will be blown to smithereens!"

Peng Shitao was so anxious that tears were about to well up in her eyes: "What should we do? Father and the elders are all on Qihuang Island, we won't make it in time!"

Li Xian's mind raced. The five opponents were all masked, but judging from their movements, they were at least at the early stage of the Heavenly Origin realm. A direct confrontation offered no chance of victory.

[Analyze the barrier structure.] The administrator's voice rang out, [Energy attribute: A variant of the Yin-cold water system, mixed with mental interference frequencies. Weakness: Sensitive to high-frequency sound wave resonance.]

Sound waves! Li Xian's eyes lit up.

"Batman!" he called out in his mind. "I need a 377.5 Hz sawtooth wave superimposed with an 883 Hz square wave, modulation mode: pulse sequence! Transmit it to me immediately!"

"Received! Generating acoustic wave codes—transmission initiated!"

A complex stream of sound wave frequency data flooded into Li Xian's mind. He raised his hands, and dark red energy surged in his palms, beginning to vibrate in a specific rhythm.

"Brother Li, you..." Peng Shitao's eyes widened.

"Step back!" Li shouted, gathering his energy to its maximum, and then thrusting his palms forward with a sudden burst of power!

There was no loud noise, only a sharp whistling sound that almost tore your eardrums apart!

The sound seemed to materialize, crashing into the black barrier! The barrier's surface rippled violently instantly, and the five masked men groaned simultaneously, the black crystals in their hands flashing erratically!

"It works!" Shen Qing was overjoyed and drew his sword to step forward.

"Wait!" Xiao Lingshan grabbed him. "Look!"

At the top of the barrier, the three drops of holy water began to tremble violently under the interference of the sound waves. One of the drops suddenly broke free from the beam of light and fell down—

It landed squarely in Li Xian's outstretched palm!

As the holy water entered his body, a cool and powerful energy instantly surged throughout his entire being! In his consciousness space, the dark red crystal spun wildly, and the pointer jumped rapidly:

Energy value: 42 → 48 → 53!

He jumped three levels in a row!

[Energy absorption efficiency exceeded expectations.] The administrator's voice carried satisfaction. [Continue to interfere with the barrier; I can try to reverse the flow of holy water energy.]

Li gritted his teeth and continued to output sound waves. The remaining two drops of holy water surged left and right within the barrier, stirring up the energy flow into chaos.

The five masked men were clearly caught off guard. The leader shouted, "Take care of that kid first!"

The two withdrew from the formation that was maintaining the barrier and rushed towards Li Xian! Their figures were like ghosts, and black Xuan Qi rose from their palms—the aura was cold and filthy, the same as the black-clothed man's technique, but even more pure and vicious!

"Watch out! It's the Demonic Sect's 'Bone-Corroding Yin Qi Palm'!" Shen Qing swung his sword to meet it, and the sword light collided with the black energy, producing a "sizzling" corrosive sound!

Xiao Lingshan's silk-wrapping rope flew out and wrapped around another person's wrist. However, the opponent's internal strength was profound, and with a jolt, the silk-wrapping rope was broken several inches apart!

Li Xian maintained his sonic output while retreating, veins bulging on his forehead. Multitasking was extremely taxing.

At that very moment—

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Three pink beams of light descended from the sky! Daya, Erya, and Superman arrived!

"You dare to bully our Master Li? Have you even asked this machine first?!" The Big Girl machine opened its belly, and countless steel needles rained down on the masked man!

Er Ya silently circled around to the side, her mechanical arm ejecting a high-frequency vibrating blade that slashed straight at the enemy's ankle.

Superman hovered above the barrier, firing a precise laser beam from his belly, which struck the core node of the vortex at the top of the barrier!

"Snap!"

The barrier finally shattered! Black light fragments scattered everywhere!

The remaining two drops of holy water were freed from their restraints. One of them flew back to the cold pool, while the other, as if sensing something, flew straight towards Xiao Lingshan!

She instinctively reached out and caught it. The holy water merged into her palm, transforming into warm energy that flowed into her meridians. Her pale complexion visibly regained its rosy hue, and her depleted internal energy was instantly replenished by 30%!

"This..." She stared blankly at her palm.

Seeing that the situation was hopeless, the masked leader roared, "Retreat!"

The five people threw smoke bombs at the same time, billowing black smoke. When the smoke cleared, the figures had vanished without a trace.

The cold pool gradually returned to calm, but the water still had a faint blue tint, indicating that the energy seal had been partially damaged.

Shen Qing leaned on his sword, panting, and Peng Shitao supported him; both of them were still shaken.

Li Xian withdrew his energy, feeling utterly exhausted. But the numerical values ​​in his consciousness space invigorated him:

Energy value: 55

Remaining time: 7 days 12 hours

Halfway done.

"Who exactly are those people?" Xiao Lingshan walked to the edge of the pool, looking at their reflection in the water. "Their martial arts style resembles that of the Demonic Sect, but it's not quite the same..."

"It is the orthodox lineage of the Demonic Cult." A weary voice came from the forest.

Everyone turned around and saw that Chief Peng Huaishan had rushed over with several elders. The old man's clothes were disheveled, clearly indicating that he had been through a fierce battle.

"The attack from Qihuang Island was a feint." Peng Huaishan looked at the damaged Cold Pool and sighed. "Their real target is the seal on the Cold Pool. Because... only by breaking the seal can they open the final door to the Star-Picking Island altar."

He looked at Li Xian with a complicated expression: "Young Master Li, the 'holy water' you created today has inadvertently become the key to breaking the seal. Those people... have probably been eyeing you for a long time."

The night grew deeper.

The peach blossom banquet ended hastily, and people with their own thoughts dispersed.

Inside Qixia Pavilion, Li Xian closed his eyes to regulate his breathing. The administrator was analyzing the data acquired that night:

[Confirmed: The attackers' techniques are of the same origin as those used by "Miss Spring Dream," but are more refined. Inference: A legitimate branch exists within the remnants of the demonic cult, and their target is also the altar's energy.]

[New discovery: The Cold Pool seal and the Star-Picking Island altar are quantum entangled. Breaking the seal will cause the altar's defense system to enter a 72-hour vulnerable period. This explains why the attack was chosen tonight—three days from now, precisely the time when the secret realm trial ends and the top player enters the altar.]

[Recommendation: Take advantage of the vulnerable period to enter the altar early. However, you must first win first place to gain legitimate access.]

A knock came at the door.

Xiao Lingshan pushed open the door and came in, carrying a bowl of calming soup. She put down the bowl but did not leave.

"Mr. Li," she said softly, "there's something... I want to ask you."

"you say."

"Tonight, Aunt Xiao... spoke to me privately."

Li Xian's heart tightened: "What did she say?"

Xiao Lingshan remained silent for a long time, the moonlight shining through the window onto her face, casting a thin shadow under her eyelashes.

She said... I look like my mother.

The voice was very soft, with an uncertain tremor.

"She also said that if I wanted, she could take me back to Linghan Palace and teach me the complete wood-type cultivation technique. She said... my mother betrayed her sect back then because she fell in love with someone she shouldn't have. And she still regrets not stopping my mother."

Li took her hand in his. His palm was icy cold.

Do you want to go?

Xiao Lingshan shook her head, then nodded, and finally gave a bitter smile: "I don't know. Father never mentioned Mother's past. I only know she passed away... But what if she were still alive? What if Linghan Palace knew something?"

Mr. Li could not answer this question.

Outside the window, scattered river lanterns drift across the lake, like lost stars.

In a corner of Peach Blossom Village, Miss Chunmeng removed her mask and combed her long hair in front of the mirror. The mirror reflected a stunningly beautiful face, but a small scar marked the corner of her eye.

"Holy water... the power of creation..." she murmured to herself, "Li Xian, Li Xian, how many secrets are you still hiding?"

She traced the scar with her fingertips, a cold light flashing in her eyes.

"I'm going to take the energy of the altar. As for you... if you can't be used by me, then destroy you."

At the same time, at the Linghan Palace residence.

Aunt Xiao knelt before a portrait. The painting depicted a woman in green, with gentle features, who bore a striking resemblance to Xiao Lingshan.

"Junior Sister Lingyue..." Aunt Xiao gently stroked the portrait, "Your daughter has grown up. Don't worry, this time, your senior sister will never let the tragedy repeat itself."

"No matter the cost."

The night wind blew through Peach Blossom Village, and the lights on the seven islands gradually went out.

Only in the direction of Star-Picking Island, the ancient altar faintly emitted an ominous glow in the night.

As if waiting for something.

Or... it's warning something.