C9 Senior Sister Was Furious!

The mine was filled with a bone-chilling cold, and fissures spread rapidly like a spider's web, threatening to collapse at any moment. Qiao Gao huddled in a corner, coughing up blood in great heaves, his chest searing with pain. Agony washed over him like a tidal wave, his spine nearly snapping under the strain.

The wrathful strike from a Soul Connecting Stage master was devastating. A One-vein Connection martial artist wouldn't stand a chance, and even a Nine-vein Connection warrior would be overwhelmed.

Such was the vast chasm between the Vein Connecting Stage and the Soul Connecting Stage—it was like comparing the earth to the sky! That Qiao Gao had survived such a blow was nothing short of miraculous.

Hwang Ningxue's essence energy roared within her, her presence as majestic as a rainbow. With all nine of her Essence Veins unlocked, the echoes of a phoenix's cry seemed to fill the desolate mine shaft. Qiao Gao looked up, utterly astonished.

"Nine Essence Veins, and every single one is a Heaven Rank Essence Vein!" He swallowed a mouthful of blood, his mind reeling with awe. What kind of prodigious talent did she possess? What was the story behind this senior sister?

To think that he harbored a Rank Five toad within him was one thing, but for her to have all nine Essence Veins at Heaven Rank was extraordinary. From whence did this celestial favorite hail?

Outside, Bai Jutian, also with nine meridians unlocked, was considered among the top three prodigies in Great Flame City, yet he boasted only a single Heaven Rank Essence Vein.

Qiao Gao's mind buzzed with questions, quickly followed by a surge of concern. He had provoked this unparalleled maiden of the heavens and needed to douse her fury fast, or face a brutal end. The wrath of a Soul Connecting Stage master was not to be taken lightly by anyone, Qiao Gao included.

Before he could ponder any further, another slap came his way. Women always held their own bodies in the highest regard, and Hwang Ningxue, a proud daughter of a secretive and powerful family, was no exception.

"Is this how I meet my end, at the hands of a goddess?" Qiao Gao was sent flying, crashing into the mine's walls with such force that three beams snapped. Anger twisted his features, his nose now askew. "I expended my divine soul power for her sake, and yet, here I am—beaten to the brink of death..."

"Death isn't the frightening part. It's the burden of carrying the stigma of dishonoring the goddess and bringing shame to my family that's truly daunting!"

Qiao Gao was pummeled to the point of a hazy consciousness. Instinctively, he engaged the Thousand-hammer Vein Connecting Technique. A torrent of potent and piercing essence energy was absorbed through his skin, which then cleared his obstructed meridians...

"Who knew the Thousand-hammer Vein Connecting Technique could be used like this? It not only detoxifies but also clears the meridians through enduring beatings. Astonishing!" At that moment, Qiao Gao fully regained his senses, the oppression in his heart vanishing as he cast a sly smile at the enraged Hwang Ningxue.

"Well then, I'll use your essence energy to clear my meridians, considering it interest on the soul force I'm reclaiming," Qiao Gao mused silently.

However, it was only recently that he had employed this technique on Bai Tianyu, and now it was his turn to experience the cycle of fate... He hadn't expected to resort to this secret method so soon. Undoubtedly, the process was excruciating—anyone could imagine the agony of clearing meridians through beatings!

"You... you scoundrel!" Hwang Ningxue's face was a mask of frost. This rogue had compromised her purity, yet remained oblivious to his wrongdoing, even daring to flash that insidious grin. Her chest rose and fell with fury, accentuating her captivating curves as her icy, bone-chilling essence energy cascaded out like a waterfall, engulfing Qiao Gao.

Amidst the pain and pleasure, Qiao Gao persisted with the Thousand-hammer Vein Connecting Technique, enduring the agony of absorbing the Origin Energy while relishing the sensation of his meridians being unblocked.

The relentless, frigid Origin Energy was drawn in through his skin, opening up the fine meridians until the Essence Vein within his spine burst forth in a flash, like a dragon awakening from an eon-long slumber, suddenly opening its eyes.

"Did I just open the second Essence Vein?" Qiao Gao exclaimed in delight. "I'm brimming with power. What rank is this Essence Vein?"

The abrupt upheaval caught Hwang Ningxue off guard, her nine Heaven Rank Essence Veins suddenly suppressed. Her vital energy solidified, her Origin Energy unable to flow, as if it were a dead, rippleless pool.

Qiao Gao rose to his feet, his posture ramrod straight, his entire demeanor transformed. His eyes were unfathomably deep. Hwang Ningxue's eyes locked onto his spine, and she was spellbound.

His spine shone like a celestial dragon, radiating a blinding, sacred light.

"This is... a Holy Rank Origin Vein!" Astonishment painted Hwang Ningxue's flawless face. Most martial artists' Origin Veins reached only the triad of Heaven, Earth, and Man, and that was the norm for the average person.

During her time with the secretive great family, she had pored over numerous arcane texts, which spoke of true paragons possessing Essence Veins beyond the Heaven Rank — the Holy Rank Essence Veins!

Such paragons were innately exceptional, fated to ascend and become the revered dragons and phoenixes of the land!

"How could a prodigy with a Holy Rank Essence Vein possibly exist in a backwater like Great Flame City?" Hwang Ningxue was baffled, especially by Qiao Gao, a man riddled with nefarious schemes. He seemed utterly disconnected from the legendary paragons.

Yet, the harsh reality was just that.

"Could he be some royal prodigy, forgotten in this desolate place?" Hwang Ningxue could only entertain such a possibility.

In that instant!

Qiao Gao made his move, toppling the goddess, overpowering Hwang Ningxue with a rush of his scent and the sensation of her supple body against his.

Pinned down, Hwang Ningxue was a mix of humiliation and fury. She was immobilized, her Essence Vein completely dominated by Qiao Gao's Holy Rank Essence Vein, leaving her powerless to summon her elemental energy.

"Stand up!" Hwang Ningxue demanded.

"I won't!" Qiao Gao retorted.

"Stand up!"

"Why should I? To let you thrash me again? I'm not that foolish!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Qiao Gao pulled Hwang Ningxue in closer, savoring the softness and warmth of her presence. He had no desire to endure another round of self-inflicted torture with the Thousand-hammer Vein Connecting Technique. Effective as it was, the pain was excruciating.

Overwhelmed by a sense of powerlessness, Hwang Ningxue's emotions were a tumultuous mix of shame, anger, and deep-seated grievance. Memories of her lifelong illness, which made death seem preferable, flooded back. She had come to this forsaken place, Great Flame City, to await her inevitable demise, only to face the indignities heaped upon her by the local yokels...

Lost in her thoughts, Hwang Ningxue's dam of restraint finally burst, and she wept uncontrollably, her tears cascading down like a torrential downpour, soaking Qiao Gao's face.

Embarrassed and at a loss, Qiao Gao was especially uneasy with women's tears. "Stop!" he exclaimed, "Senior, your body harbors a sealed toad. I was merely reinforcing the seal; it's only your soul power that's weakened."

"You haven't wronged me in any way?" Hwang Ningxue asked, a surge of relief in her voice.

"Considering my soul power is completely drained, do you really think I have the energy to misbehave?" Qiao Gao replied, his irritation barely contained.

"You're lying. I've already undressed, and I refuse to believe you haven't harbored a single inappropriate thought," Hwang Ningxue declared with conviction.

Qiao Gao rolled his eyes. What was he dealing with here? He was trying to maintain his composure, and yet here she was, questioning his allure.

"Senior, you've got more than just a toad on you. Actually, it's a Three-eye Ice Toad! It's not your average creature; it must hold a significant grudge to be sealed within you," Qiao Gao said, standing up and deftly steering the conversation elsewhere.

Hwang Ningxue was taken aback. She hailed from a secretive clan, and not even their most skilled members could help her. Everyone had written her off, convinced she wouldn't see her twentieth year, which led her to this desolate Great Flame City, abandoned by her family. She was a walking time bomb, and without an exceptionally powerful Soul Master, defusing it was out of the question.