Chapter 17 - Chapter 17 The Mysteries of the Jade Slip and the Resurgence of the Undercurrent

After settling the woman in white in a cobweb - filled side room of the ancient mansion, Jack watched as the moonlight filtered through the shattered window lattice, casting eerie geometric patterns on the blue - gray brick floor. He held his breath and took out the jade slip of the Mysterious Yin Alliance's secret techniques. The moment his fingers touched it, a bone - chilling cold seeped in, and the dark purple runes seemed to come alive, writhing sinuously under the pale moonlight.​The instant Jack injected his spiritual power into the jade slip, his pupils constricted sharply. Countless golden seal characters burst forth from the void, pouring into his sea of consciousness like a reversed galaxy. The jade slip not only contained the miraculous cultivation method "Mysterious Yin Nine Revolutions," which could temper his meridians and condense the power of yin - cold, but also concealed an earth - shattering secret: the appearance of the Chaos Orb would disrupt the balance of yin and yang, and the inheritance of the Mysterious Yin Alliance was the key to restraining this treasure.​"So it's all connected..." Jack pressed his back tightly against the cold stone wall, his Adam's apple bobbing nervously. The mottled moss on the stone wall quivered gently in the night wind, as if whispering the millennium - old vicissitudes of the ancient mansion. He sat cross - legged on the ground and activated his cultivation technique. As he delved deeper into his cultivation, an ice - blue cyclone gradually formed in his dantian, intertwining with his spiritual power. Each cycle of his cultivation was accompanied by a biting cold, yet it also made him feel his strength steadily rising.​Just then, the rustling sound of fabric rubbing came from the bed. Jack spun around sharply and saw the woman in white propping herself up. The moonlight cast a layer of frosty pallor over her pale cheeks. "You're awake!" Jack rushed forward in one stride, but his heart skipped a beat when he touched her icy fingertips.​The woman coughed lightly, a trace of blood trickling from the corner of her mouth. "To have grasped the essence of the jade slip within three days... No wonder the power of the Mysterious Yin has chosen you," she said. Her eyes flickered with a hint of approval as she looked at the faint cyclone in Jack's dantian, then her expression turned grave. "But each breakthrough in the 'Mysterious Yin Nine Revolutions' is like walking through the Nine Hells. Don't rush it."​Before her words faded, the rapid sound of footsteps mixed with the clanging of metal came from outside the courtyard. Jack's face darkened instantly. As he unsheathed his bronze sword, it let out a clear 龙吟,and the sword qi sent dust swirling into the air. The woman in white struggled to her feet, a faint blue light emanating from her short sword. Standing back - to - back in the hall, they were like two peerless divine weapons ready to be unsheathed.​This time, the Blood Fiend Sect came in full force. A hundred disciples formed a blood - colored battle formation, surrounding the ancient mansion tightly. At the center of the formation, a man in a black robe was shrouded in churning black mist. Every step he took left charred footprints on the blue - gray bricks. "Hand over the jade slip and the jade pendant, and I'll spare your lives," the black - robed man's voice was filled with the wails of countless 冤魂,sending a chill down their spines.​Jack pointed his sword at the sky. The Heavenly Gang Sword Technique and the power of the Mysterious Yin intertwined to form a purple - gold glow on the sword blade. "Come and take them if you dare!" Suddenly, ten bony claws shot out from the black - robed man's sleeves, distorting the air into swirling vortices. With a 娇喝,the woman in white drew an arc with her short sword. Her moves complemented Jack's perfectly, temporarily fending off the black - robed man's attacks.​However, the black - robed man's strength was unfathomable. As time passed, the two gradually fell into a desperate struggle. Jack's clothes were torn by the bony claws, and when his blood dripped onto the ground, it instantly froze into ice. The woman in white's steps became increasingly unsteady, and the light of her short sword dimmed like a candle in the wind.​At the most critical moment, the stone pagoda rumbled violently. Nine golden columns of light shot up into the sky, converging above Jack's head to form an ancient Yin - Yang fish pattern. The "Mysterious Yin Nine Revolutions" cultivation method operated on its own. Jack felt as if his meridians were being hammered by a heavy mallet. Amidst the excruciating pain, a surging power burst forth from within. "Go!" Jack swung a stunning sword strike that merged the power of yin and yang. Where the sword qi passed, the black mist melted away like snow.​The black - robed man let out an inhuman scream, his figure twisting and dissipating in the sword qi. "Mysterious Yin Alliance... The Blood Fiend Sect will never let this go!" When the black mist finally cleared, the area around the ancient mansion was in ruins. Jack collapsed to his knees, exhausted. Blood dripped from the tip of his sword, blooming into strange, demonic red flowers on the ground.​The woman in white forced herself to walk over to him and tore a strip from her skirt to bandage his wound. "You've activated the 本源之力 of the Mysterious Yin, but you've also revealed your whereabouts. The Blood Fiend Sect will surely bring in even stronger reinforcements," she said, looking towards the pale - lightening eastern sky with a worried expression. "We must leave immediately and head to a hidden stronghold of the Mysterious Yin Alliance."​Jack wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and tightly gripped the jade slip. In the distance, a scarlet sun was slowly rising among the mountains, dyeing the clouds blood - red. He knew that this battle with the Blood Fiend Sect had only just begun, and ahead awaited even more dangerous challenges and astonishing truths.​