C6 He Had Made a Breakthrough!

At the Ouyang residence, Patriarch Ouyang Shan stood by the bedside of his son, Ouyang Tian, who lay in an unyielding coma. His anxiety was palpable, like an ant skittering across a heated pan.

"What in the world is happening? Why won't my son wake up?" Ouyang Shan's anger filled the room.

"Patriarch, it's been said that the young master had a confrontation with that good-for-nothing from the Zhang family today, and he was injured. Could it be that he..." an Ouyang family servant cautiously suggested.

"Impossible! My son is a cultivator at the Foundation Stage, while that nobody is merely at the Transcendence Stage, Layer Three. How could he possibly harm my son? Even if he concealed his true power, there's no way he could leap from Transcendence to Foundation Stage!" Ouyang Shan declared with unwavering confidence.

If Zhang Bufan were truly not the weakling they thought, why would the Zhang family keep it a secret? The reason the Saintess of the Exquisite Sect called off her engagement was precisely because of this, wasn't it? If Zhang Bufan could become the Saintess's Dao Companion, the Zhang family's status would skyrocket. With the Exquisite Sect's support, not a soul in Vertville City would dare cross the Zhangs. They would become the preeminent family in the city. No one would be foolish enough to squander such an opportunity.

"I must invite the Saintess over," Ouyang Shan resolved, seeing no other recourse.

The Exquisite Sect had arrived in Vertville City discreetly and were staying with the Ouyang family. Before long, Murong Yu, accompanied by several elders, arrived.

Murong Yu hadn't intended to come; as a disciple of the Exquisite Sect, Ouyang Tian's care could have been managed by the guardian elders. Yet, upon hearing that her former fiancé might be involved, she felt compelled to appear.

The guardian elders examined Ouyang Tian and their faces turned grave.

"Was Ouyang Tian truly harmed by Zhang Bufan?" one elder inquired.

Ouyang Shan nodded, recounting the events. The incident was common knowledge in Vertville City; anyone could confirm the details.

"That's inconceivable!" the elder exclaimed, furrowing his brow.

Ouyang Shan agreed, his worry evident. "Elder, what has befallen my son? He remains in this deep slumber without end."

"His dantian is destroyed, and his meridians are nearly severed. Even if he survives, he'll be a cripple for life, unable to cultivate ever again!" declared the guardian elder.

"What? What?!" Ouyang Shan's complexion drained of color as he dropped to his knees, pleading, "Saintess, I beg you, save my son! He's a disciple of the Exquisite Sect, too!"

The guardian elder shook his head.

"We're not just standing by idly. Ouyang Tian's injuries are too severe; he's on a path to certain death."

Ouyang Shan collapsed to the ground as the elder finished speaking.

"I, I... Zhang Bufan, I, Ouyang Shan, will kill you now!"

Enraged, Ouyang Shan, a second-layer Golden Core Stage cultivator, was ready to exact vengeance on the Zhang family.

"Insolence!"

A cold huff from the guardian elder sent Ouyang Shan spitting blood.

"Elder, why? Shouldn't I seek revenge?" demanded Ouyang Shan, his anger boiling over.

The guardian elder replied icily, "Tomorrow, the Saintess is set to annul her engagement with that waste. If you kill him now, she'll never be free of the contract. If you desire his life, wait until after the matter is settled."

Ouyang Shan, seething yet silenced, could only nod in agreement.

"Here is a Qi Gathering Pill, to enhance your Golden Core Stage cultivation—a token of compensation from the Exquisite Sect." The elder presented a brocade box to Ouyang Shan.

Ouyang Shan's heart leapt with joy. Qi Gathering Pills were treasures for Golden Core Stage Qi Refining cultivators, worth a thousand middle-grade spirit stones and hard to come by.

"Thank you, elder, thank you, Saintess," Ouyang Shan bowed deeply in gratitude. The Zhang family wouldn't get away. Once the Saintess broke off the engagement, he vowed to annihilate them!

Even as they left the Ouyang family hall, Murong Yu's brows remained furrowed with concern.

"Is something troubling you, Saintess?" inquired the guardian elder.

"The injury Ouyang Tian suffered was deliberately inflicted to be non-fatal by his adversary. Had they wanted to, they could have taken his life right then and there, and Ouyang Tian wouldn't have survived this long," Murong Yu explained calmly.

The guardian elder nodded, "Indeed, the injury was caused by tremendous force, indicative of a Foundation Stage cultivator's handiwork. Moreover, the force was meticulously controlled, acting like a slow-acting poison, gradually sapping Ouyang Tian's vitality."

Murong Yu fell silent, a single name surfacing in her thoughts — Zhang Bufan.

Could it truly be him?

Yet, everyone in Vertville City was aware that Zhang Bufan of the Zhang family was considered worthless, with a cultivation level inferior to even that of a servant. In his confrontations with Ouyang Tian, he had consistently been at the Transcendence Stage Layer Three.

How could he have inflicted such grave injuries on Ouyang Tian, to the point of nearly ending his life?

"Ouyang Tian is utterly foolish. Knowing full well that the Saintess is set to annul the engagement with the Zhang family tomorrow, he still harbored intentions of murdering Zhang Bufan!" the guardian elder remarked.

Should Ouyang Tian have succeeded in killing Zhang Bufan, the Ouyang family would have been erased from Vertville City.

"A son like Ouyang Tian is no surprise, given a father like Ouyang Shan," Murong Yu commented.

The guardian elder agreed, "You speak the truth, Saintess. If Ouyang Tian had indeed killed Zhang Bufan, we could easily dismiss the Ouyang family. But if Ouyang Shan were to kill Zhang Bufan now, people would surely suspect the Exquisite Sect's involvement."

Murong Yu refrained from further discussion about Ouyang Shan and his son, her mind still occupied with thoughts of Zhang Bufan.

The events of today left her with a nagging sense of doubt. Was Zhang Bufan not the waste everyone claimed him to be?

...

Upon returning home, Zhang Bufan made a beeline for his room.

"Good, I'm not too late. It appears that Ouyang Tian, the idiot, still has some fight in him; he's not dead yet."

Little did Ouyang Tian know that his plot to kill Zhang Bufan, which would have plunged the Zhang family into disarray and posed no threat to the Ouyang family, was mirrored by Zhang Bufan's own designs. Zhang Bufan, too, harbored the ambition to eliminate Ouyang Tian, aiming to elevate the Zhang family to the ranks of the Three Great Families in the future.

This venture was fraught with danger.

Should Ouyang Tian perish on the spot, a breakthrough to the Golden Core Stage was inevitable. With the impending heavenly thunder, survival was uncertain, yet Ouyang Tian's death was essential.

Despite the risks, it was a path he was compelled to take.

It was, in a way, a repayment to Zhang Xiaotian, the man he called father, albeit not by blood.

"The battle laid bare my weaknesses: a lack of combat experience and martial skills. Had Ouyang Tian's cultivation not been significantly lower than mine, the outcome of today's fight would be anyone's guess."

Zhang Bufan reflected on the day's battle, weighing his victories and losses.

"I need to acquire a martial skill," Zhang Bufan murmured to himself, intending to check the system's marketplace for any available skills.

However, accessing the marketplace required reaching the Golden Core Stage in his cultivation.

"No, I must accelerate my understanding of the second transformation of the Heavenly Dragon Nine Transformations, to enhance my physical strength before the thunder arrives!"

Zhang Bufan was acutely aware of Ouyang Tian's impending doom.

With the promised double experience, his breakthrough to the Golden Core Stage was all but assured.

Today's battle had been immensely instructive, aiding significantly in his grasp of the Heavenly Dragon Nine Transformations. Without delay, Zhang Bufan immersed himself, intent on mastering the second transformation.

The Heavenly Dragon Nine Transformations, a body refining technique, treated the body as iron, to be tempered over and over. The nine transformations signified nine levels, each marking a stage in the metamorphosis of the body's limbs and sinews.

In that moment, Zhang Bufan's insight into his physical form ascended to a new level.

As time ticked away, impatience crept into Zhang Bufan's mind. If he failed to grasp the transformation before his breakthrough, his life would hang in the balance.

Yet, as the hours passed, he found serenity, a calm that even he failed to recognize within himself.

Ouyang Shan, desperate to save his son Ouyang Tian's life, had exhausted every avenue.

Under the full moon, Zhang Bufan's eyes fluttered open to reveal his body, glowing a deep crimson, as if it had been tempered by fire, a sight both bizarre and awe-inspiring.

"The second transformation of the Heavenly Dragon Nine Transformations!"

With a low growl, Zhang Bufan's body instantly took on a faint silver hue, as though he had become encased in steel!

"I've successfully broken through the second transformation!"