16: Chapter 16 I am you

Over the past few days, Xiao Ye had been probing around and finally managed to get a general idea of Gu Sanniang's background.

She hadn't always been a bandit; she was once an Outer Sect Disciple of the Hehuan Sect. Something had happened later, and she fled. As for what it was, Gu Sanniang didn't say, and he didn't dare to ask too much.

As for Erya and the other four, they were genuine bandits she had picked up along the way and subdued as her subordinates.

That night, Xiao Ye and Gu Sanniang were like dry wood and a raging fire.

Burning with passion through and through—

Bang!

The door was suddenly slammed open, and Erya was sent flying backward into the room, crashing to the floor and rolling twice.

"What's going on?!"

Gu Sanniang was startled. Just as she was about to get up, Xiao Ye pushed her back down.

"Just a little bit more, hurry!"

Gu Sanniang: "..."

At a time like this, you still have the heart for this?

Erya, lying on the ground, struggled to lift her head. Looking at the two on the bed, her eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

"Wait... we're almost being beaten to death, and you two are still playing?!"

The sounds of fighting outside drew closer, mingled with screams and the sound of furniture shattering.

"Gu Sanniang! Get out here this instant! Otherwise, I'll kill every last one of your subordinates!"

The creaking of the bed continued for a full two minutes before it finally stopped.

Gu Sanniang threw on her clothes and, trembling, leaned against the wall as she walked out.

"Oh, Gu Sanniang, you finally decided to show yourself? You certainly made me look for you!"

In the courtyard, a slick-haired, powdered-faced man stood with his hands behind his back. Behind him stood seven or eight men in black, while Gu Sanniang's subordinates lay scattered across the ground like withered stalks.

When the man saw Gu Sanniang emerge from the room, his eyes immediately turned lewd. He sized up her disheveled appearance and licked his lips.

"It's you—Ji Taixiao!"

Gu Sanniang's pupils constricted as a surge of fury erupted within her.

It was this man. Back in the Hehuan Sect, he had relied on his superior cultivation to try and force her to be his Cauldron. She would rather die than submit, so she fled the Sect and hid in this godforsaken place to live incognito as a bandit.

She never expected that he would still refuse to let her go.

"Jie jie—" Ji Taixiao let out a piercing laugh. "Gu Sanniang, you won't escape this time. Just be a good girl and become my Cauldron!"

Before he had even finished speaking, his figure blurred. His fingers hooked like claws as he lunged straight for Gu Sanniang.

A cold light flashed in Gu Sanniang's eyes. Instead of retreating, she advanced to meet him with a palm strike.

She was no longer the same person who could be easily bullied back then.

After this month of relentless Dual Cultivation with Xiao Ye, her cultivation had soared from the sixth level of Qi Refining to the seventh, and she had now reached the threshold of the eighth level.

Ji Taixiao was only at the eighth level of Qi Refining. Even if she couldn't defeat him, she shouldn't be afraid. She could at least escape.

Boom!

Their palms collided, and Spiritual Qi exploded.

Gu Sanniang's expression changed drastically—an incredibly vast surge of spiritual power poured from the opponent's palm, tearing through her defenses with ease.

*Stomp, stomp, stomp—*

She was forced back over a dozen steps and spat out a mouthful of blood, staining the front of her robes.

"You... you've had a Breakthrough?!" Gu Sanniang's eyes widened as she looked at Ji Taixiao in disbelief.

"Jie jie, didn't expect that, did you?" Ji Taixiao withdrew his hand and slowly rubbed his fingertips. "Ninth level of Qi Refining. I haven't been idle all these years."

His gaze fell on Gu Sanniang and suddenly paused, his eyes becoming even more fervent.

"You've actually reached the seventh level of Qi Refining as well? Haha, good! Excellent! Once I capture you, I'll have hope of reaching Foundation Establishment!"

His face twisted with excitement as his attacks suddenly became more ferocious. His palm winds howled and his spiritual power surged; every move was a killing blow.

Gu Sanniang struggled to defend herself, retreating step by step. With a two-level gap in cultivation, she was simply no match for him.

*Rip—*

A blade of spiritual power sliced through, tearing a hole in the front of her robes and revealing a large expanse of milky-white skin.

"Haha! Gu Sanniang, you'd better just submit to me!"

The lewd light in Ji Taixiao's eyes intensified. He gathered spiritual power into his palm and struck down toward the crown of her head.

Gu Sanniang closed her eyes in despair.

Inside the room, Xiao Ye saw everything clearly through the crack in the door.

His fists were clenched tight, veins bulging on his arms.

To save her, or not?

He had just reached the fourth level of Qi Refining. If he fully activated the Crimson Flame Blood-Burning Technique, with his remaining lifespan, it was possible to briefly boost his cultivation to Qi Refining Perfection.

The question was—was it worth it?

He would be burning his life away.

A muffled groan from Gu Sanniang came from outside, accompanied by the sound of tearing fabric.

Xiao Ye grit his teeth.

Screw it!

I'm going all in!

A day as husband and wife brings a hundred days of gratitude, let alone having done it for an entire month.

He grabbed the chrysanthemum spear rewarded by the System and pushed open the door.

Gu Sanniang had already been backed into a corner, with nowhere left to run.

Ji Taixiao's large palm, carrying fierce spiritual power, struck down toward her—

*Clang!*

A long spear appeared out of nowhere, its tip striking the palm and sending sparks flying in all directions.

Ji Taixiao was forced back three steps. He looked at the newcomer with shock and suspicion.

Xiao Ye stood with his spear, shielding Gu Sanniang, his robes fluttering in the wind.

"Are you okay?" He turned back and smiled.

Gu Sanniang stared blankly at his back and suddenly felt that this little old man—didn't seem so small anymore.

She covered her torn clothes with one hand, and the corners of her mouth slowly curled upward.

"Who are you?" Ji Taixiao frowned as he sized up the thin, sallow old man with sunken eyes before him, his face full of disdain.

Xiao Ye shouldered the spear and looked at him nonchalantly.

"I am your father."

Ji Taixiao: "..."

He didn't understand the slang, but it didn't stop him from sensing that the old man was insulting him.

"You're looking for death!"

Ji Taixiao was enraged. His figure was like a bolt of lightning as he reached Xiao Ye in three seconds.

And then—

*Bang!*

He was sent flying backward in a single second.