Chapter Forty-Four: The Drained Man

Unusual silence. An extraordinary stillness.

This was the main gate of the Hongji Foundation Academy, once lively and bustling, now eerily quiet. Had all the teachers and students gone home for the holidays?

A group of more than a hundred people—none other than Lei Xiang and his companions—had returned. Sima Yan, who had been set ablaze under Senior Mu's control, had already been escorted away by Ma Zhiyuan, while the rest agreed to head back to the academy together.

"Stop!" Lei Xiang raised his hand, and the hundred-strong group halted. Since the battle at Luoxia Mountain, everyone regarded Lei Xiang as their anchor. Even those whose cultivation surpassed his looked to him for guidance.

"Senior Brother Liu, something must have happened at the academy. It would never be this quiet otherwise; it even feels desolate. Take everyone ten miles back and hide. I'll go in and investigate."

Senior Brother Liu pondered briefly, then nodded solemnly. "Take a few people with you. I sense danger lurking in the academy as well."

Lei Xiang flashed a small, tiger-toothed grin. "Too many people will only draw attention. I'll just take Dugu Yixiao."

Under Liu's command, the group quietly retreated, the rear becoming the vanguard as they melted away. Only then did Lei Xiang turn to Dugu Yixiao and say, "The academy may have been attacked, most likely by the Blood Fiend Alliance. They lured us to Luoxia Mountain and struck while we were away. It seems their true target is the entire Hongji Academy. We must be cautious and keep our presence hidden—act according to the situation."

Dugu Yixiao, usually squinting, now opened his eyes wide—a sign he was ready to kill. "Alright," he said, just one word, forming a rapid series of hand seals. Two fingers touched his forehead, and he vanished on the spot.

Lei Xiang could only shake his head with a wry smile. Dugu Yixiao was simply too reclusive; if one word sufficed, he never used two. Trying to chat with him was truly a struggle.

He pulled out a mid-grade Concealment Talisman, activated it with a slap to his chest, and darted into the academy.

No one. Not a soul anywhere.

The two of them made a full circuit around the academy and found not a single person. Dugu Yixiao was about to reveal himself when Lei Xiang stopped him with a whispered message.

Suddenly, a pulse of spiritual energy came from the direction of the library pavilion. Out walked a tall, handsome young man, head always slightly raised as if he looked down on everyone.

Chen Junxi!

Lei Xiang's mind raced. "The whole academy is missing, so why is he here alone?" He signaled Dugu Yixiao, and together they quietly withdrew before daring to confer via whispered messages.

Meanwhile, Chen Junxi scanned his surroundings for a long time before sitting cross-legged and cultivating on the spot.

After the time it took to drink a cup of tea, an ordinary-looking young man ran up from the academy gate. Sensing him, Chen Junxi reached into his storage pouch, alert and ready.

The youth grinned, revealing small tiger teeth. "Young Master Chen, so it's you, standing guard here?"

Chen Junxi started. "Lei Xiang, what do you mean?"

Lei Xiang plopped down on the ground and said something strange: "Blood Fiend's Glory."

Chen Junxi eyed him warily. "You are…?"

Lei Xiang grinned lazily, his tiger teeth showing. "You believe me now, right? I'm an undercover agent for the Blood Fiend Alliance too. At Luoxia Mountain, Senior Brother Mu and I blew up those treasure-hunting fools. The Spirit Gathering Array worked wonders. So, did you succeed on your end?"

Chen Junxi's handsome face flickered with uncertainty, but he asked cautiously, "Why isn't Senior Brother Mu with you?"

---

"He’s… enjoying some private time, you know—Junior Sister Sima Yan. The two of them are probably off ‘hunting in the wild’ right now."

Chen Junxi sighed in relief. "Senior Brother Mu is a bit too impatient…" Now convinced Lei Xiang was on his side, he let his hand drop from his storage pouch.

Suddenly he noticed Lei Xiang’s mischievous tiger-toothed grin. Chen Junxi’s heart skipped a beat and he reached for his storage pouch, but it was too late.

Binding Technique.

Hundreds of blue cubes surged from Lei Xiang’s fingers, instantly locking Chen Junxi in place. The Binding Technique never failed against Qi Refining cultivators, and now, cast by Lei Xiang at the early Foundation Establishment stage, and with the element of surprise, it easily sealed Chen Junxi’s movements.

From behind, Dugu Yixiao emerged from hiding. The long concealment had cost him much spiritual energy, but he said nothing—just gave Lei Xiang a thumbs up.

Lei Xiang, ever cautious, cast several yellow earthen seals, strengthening the bindings with a “Ground as Prison” technique, then added a sound barrier. Only then did he turn to Dugu Yixiao. “Ask him where everyone in the academy is, and how many Blood Fiend Alliance members are here. Interrogation is your specialty.”

Dugu Yixiao’s Golden Serpent Sword shimmered in his hand as a single point of golden light pressed to Chen Junxi’s throat. He spoke just one word: “Talk.”

Chen Junxi was bound, showing no outward change, but inside, his heart quaked. “This guy is ruthless, known for his cruelty…” He didn’t finish the thought before searing pain shot through his shoulders, making him scream.

Lei Xiang saw Dugu Yixiao’s sword pierce Chen Junxi’s shoulder blades and knew those arms were lost. Dugu Yixiao’s eyes, always narrowed, now stared wide. “Talk,” he repeated, as if loath to say a single word more.

“Everyone’s in the library pavilion. The boss is guarding them—he’s the only one inside.”

Lei Xiang pressed on: “Our spiritual sense can’t find them. There must be an array here. How do you enter?”

Chen Junxi didn’t dare hesitate. “I have a red token in my robe. Channel spiritual power into it and you can enter the array.”

Lei Xiang fell silent, his face shifting as he pondered Chen Junxi’s confession.

After a long moment, Lei Xiang smiled, a plan taking shape in his mind.

He held the token, injected his power, and a red light shot from the token into the void by the library pavilion, conjuring an enormous screen of light. A half-yard-wide gap opened, and Lei Xiang, cloaked in concealment, slipped inside.

Familiar corridors. Familiar reading rooms.

This was the place Lei Xiang visited most often, yet he remained on high alert, spiritual power flowing through his body, Eight-Treasure Dragon Spear in hand, eyes glowing with blue light.

Even Lei Xiang himself was unaware that his blue gaze was now brighter and deeper than ever, a benefit from the white lightning that had infused him during Foundation Establishment, granting him greater piercing vision.

Suddenly, Lei Xiang halted and slowly backed away. In the main hall, he tossed out a beast-hide shield and layered on Wind Spirit techniques to prevent any spiritual leakage.

He then took out six top-grade spirit stones and arranged a mini Xuantian Fiery Array within a five-meter radius before proceeding.

Time passed slowly as Lei Xiang advanced, barely covering three corridors in all that time. Then he stopped and glanced into a reading room to the left.

Through the half-open door, he saw a small room, only a dozen yards across. The bookshelves were gone. In one empty corner lay a heap of more than a dozen people.

People—how could they be “heaped” together?

Unless they were dead. A sweep of Lei Xiang’s spiritual sense confirmed it—they were lifeless, their bodies drained of all essence, skin shriveled and clinging to bone. Judging by their apricot-yellow robes, they were all from Hongji Foundation Academy.

---

"Pu, pu"—strange sounds came from the next corridor. Spear at the ready, Lei Xiang followed the noise and was stunned.

Inside another reading room, a plain-looking young man sat cross-legged, hands forming a bizarre seal. Opposite him, a cultivator in apricot-yellow robes sat with eyes closed, face deathly pale. Yet from the top of his head, white smoke billowed steadily.

The smoke grew thicker, the cultivator’s face ever paler, nearly translucent like white paper, while the young man greedily inhaled the vapor, making that odd “pu, pu” sound with every breath. The robed cultivator’s body shriveled until every ounce of flesh was gone, yet he sat upright—a newly made corpse.

This grotesque scene nearly shattered Lei Xiang’s composure, and when the young man turned, Lei Xiang almost cried out in shock.

Ma Tao!

This demon was none other than the timid, bullied Ma Tao, who now had false core cultivation—already half a step into the Core Formation stage.

"Who's there? Show yourself!" It was hard to believe the usually meek Ma Tao would roar in such a tone.

Lei Xiang managed a rueful tiger-toothed grin. "Damn, he noticed me." He strode forward, spear in hand.

Ma Tao was even more startled to see Lei Xiang. "You… How… Where’s Old Mu? How did you reach Foundation Establishment?"

Lei Xiang didn’t answer but retorted, “You’re the mastermind behind this, aren’t you, Ma Tao—the ever-timid ‘Young Master Ma’? You really played the pig to eat the tiger. Tell me, what evil art did you use to drain their spiritual power for yourself?”

Ma Tao laughed wildly. "Lei Xiang, you’re too arrogant. I’m about to reach Core Formation. Killing a lowly Foundation Establishment cultivator like you would be as easy as squashing a bug."

Lei Xiang spun his Eight-Treasure Dragon Spear. "Ma Tao, stop boasting. You’ve only absorbed others’ spiritual power, but you haven’t had time to fully integrate it. All kinds of energies must be clashing inside you—you’re not feeling too well, are you? At best, you’re only at late Foundation Establishment level."

Ma Tao’s face twisted. "That’s more than enough to kill you. Tell me where Old Mu is and maybe I’ll let you die whole."

Lei Xiang tossed out a black storage pouch. "Here’s his storage pouch. You tell me where he went."

Ma Tao was shocked. Old Mu’s cultivation was the same as his own, yet he’d been dealt with so easily? Grabbing the pouch, Ma Tao reached to examine it, then sensed something amiss and flung it away, leaping in the opposite direction.

Boom! The storage pouch exploded in blinding white light, blasting a ten-yard crater in the pavilion floor. The pouch was indeed Senior Brother Mu’s, but its contents had already been replaced by Lei Xiang with a Sky Crystal.

Lei Xiang sighed inwardly. "What a pity." Twisting his spear, he lunged at Ma Tao’s brow. Ma Tao sneered, channeling his power. Blood-red energy shrouded his hands as he grabbed straight for the spearhead.

Bang—he caught the spearhead firmly, a first since the Eight-Treasure Dragon Spear had been forged. Lei Xiang knew this was a true foe. Pouring his spiritual power into the spear, he spun it fiercely, the spearhead blooming to the size of a millstone. With another push, a portion of the spearhead transformed into countless Dragon Beard Needles, shooting forth.

Ma Tao was startled and shouted, "Blood Fiend’s Glory, Demonic Desire Overflows!" Instantly, he was enveloped in a cloud of blood mist, thick with a nauseating stench.

The Dragon Beard Needles all pierced the blood mist, but it showed no sign of dispersing. Instead, Ma Tao’s eyes gleamed with greed. "This kid has no shortage of treasures."