An oppressive silence hung in the void, making it hard for her to breathe, causing her to focus more on her breath rather than her expression, but thankfully she was not stuck for words.

"Father, I did not mean to betray you." She started, her eyes tearing up as the memories she pushed away resurfaced in her head. She could remember a time, far off, when she and her parents were what people would describe as a happy family. However, things had changed, her mother was dead, and if things turned badly, she would follow her soon.

"Everyone from the Qin Clan - even my siblings - looked down on me, seeing me as the stain in your life. I wished to journey the world, proving that I'm indeed your daughter! As for the killing intent, I was bewitched by a woman captured by the Hidden Ocean Sect; they were not my true feelings."

The Qin Patriarch knit his brows; he was not foolish enough to believe her but knew there was some truth in her words. No one would dare lie in his presence.

"The Hidden Ocean Sect? Zhong Xi?" The patriarch asked clearly not having expected this.

"Yes, father."

"Did they mention you?"

"Yes."

The patriarch thought for a bit longer but did not make any further remarks about the topic, and though she was curious, she could not ask. She was curious about who dared act behind his back, but since they tried to sell her off, they would be enemies regardless.

The Qin Patriarch issued a verdict, saying: "You have awoken the blood of the Qin Clan and know are one of its successors. You must assume your responsibilities and return to the Qin Clan after you finish the trials,"

As his words landed, the heavenly Dao surrounding them seemed to twist at his commands. An intense feeling of being trapped overwhelmed her, causing her to subconsciously resist being controlled.

"Don't struggle; it's okay." Yao Ming's voice sounded, helping her calm down.

Almost instantaneously, she stopped her resistance, allowing the binding strength to wrap around her body, mind and soul. If she were to rely on her methods, there was no way she could break from this enchantment. She felt it was an inevitable ruling, a verdict that could not be fought against, but she had faith in herself and her master.

Despite his confidence, the patriarch felt something was off, though he could not place his finger on it.

"Go on then, have fun." As his words landed, the darkness surrounding her faded away, returning her to where she was before. She was in the same pose as before, except the smile was gone from her face.

"It's your fault!" She shouted, swinging her sword mightily at the lion, managing to knock him back to her surprise.

"Invincible Sword Slash!" She exclaimed, not giving him a chance to catch his breath.

The stunned lion did not manage to block in time, causing new wounds to open up on his body on top of the world. As this was testing the purity of one's bloodline, the noble blood of one of the ruling factions in the kingdom would not lose out to a lion, allowing her to suppress his trump card.

Though they could be considered somewhat equal before either of them activated their bloodline powers, now the lion was definitely the one at a disadvantage.

"Urgh!"

The lion cried out in pain as it heavily landed on his back, causing him to vomit another mouthful of blood. By now, most of his flesh had been turned inside-out, exposing his bones. They formed a striking white amidst all the red of his flesh, fur and blood. Seeing him in such a weakened state did not calm the anger and humiliation she felt in her heart.

Rather than ending him, she continued to slash at his mangled flesh. The lion looked at her with fear and dread, but sadly for him, his vocal cord had already been ripped out, leaving him helpless to even curse back. Without waiting for Xue Yueliang to calm her anger, the lion passed away, angry and humiliated but mostly confused. They did not have such a high grievance; he could not see what he did to deserve this.

Noticing no more flinches at her attacks, Xue Yueliang lowered her sword and stared lost, only awakened when Hei Yu gently rubbed his head on her shin.

"Well," she thought aloud.

Her gaze landed on its exposed heart, outstretching her hand to grab at it.

The lion's heart was large and warm, and it still beat softly, and as soon as she touched it, she felt an irresistible urge overwhelm her. Every cell of her body begged for her to eat it, and in her loss, she did not think much, taking a bite. As his flesh rolled down her throat, a stream of warm energy flowed through her body, and the cries from within her body grew louder, prompting her to take a bigger bite.

She continued to do so until all left in her hand was nothing more than a pool of blood. However, her hurried eating was not in her favour, as the warm energy that flowed through her body turned scalding hut, causing her skin to redden and her sweat to come out as steam.

Feeling the unfavourable changes, Xue Yueliang quickly sat down and operated her cultivation sutra to the maximum extent, controlling the violent energy that burnt her body from the inside. The flesh she ingested ran through her bloodstream and caused havoc, forcing some of the blood in her arm to flow backwards, driving some of her blood vessels to explode, and turning her left arm into a mangled mess.

She guided her red spiritual Qi into the walls of her blood vessels, guiding it and taming the lion's violent blood.

Within the thin walls, the lion's blood violently rebelled, forming an illusory image of a lion that roared out, resisting her with all its strength.

Xue Yueliang's expression turned sombre as she worked trapping the lion's blood first before purifying it. Without her divine sense, it was harder to lock onto it. Thankfully with her fortification, the damage was manageable; it would only be a matter of time until she had everything in control.

Under her perseverance, sweat began dripping off her chin, indicating that the blood was no longer causing mayhem. In a few more moments, the lion's blood was fully absorbed, thickening the blood coursing through her veins, improving her power.

This was not the only benefit she received, as she felt the bottleneck between her and the fifth level of the Foundation Establishment Realm loosened, and with a push a fifth platform appeared in her dantian.

Xue Yueliang felt an overwhelming relaxation as if her body became lighter and her Qi upped a level. Xue Yueliang took a moment to admire the platforms in her dantian, and her gaze inevitably landed on the blood lightning. Since the blood lightning helped her upgrade her foundation, it had stayed silent, unmoving. She did not feel comfortable having an unwanted guest residing within her body, but she figured there was not much she could do about it.

Besides, if it could harm me, it would have already.

Concluding her thoughts, Xue Yueliang opened her eyes, meeting with Hei Yu's ever-worried gaze, "Told you, I'm fine," she smiled.

She stretched and could feel the energy coursing through her veins. The power in her body begged to be released, leading her to punch out, purely using her physical strength.

"Pow!"

The force released from her fist led to shockwaves sweeping the place, blowing away the king's corpse and compelling her to smile.

"I'm better than fine," she laughed delighted, storing his corpse in her ring.

Her happiness, however, did not last for long, as she remembered her father's words. The reason he could talk to her must be because she awakened her bloodline, but did that mean he would be able to locate her every time she used it? Did she endanger herself to get such a useless power? The only person she could rely on helping her right now could not because he was dormant.

"Heh, I really miss your nagging," she laughed wryly, rubbing the ring she wore. Though she did not want to admit it, she got used to him being by her side, guiding and protecting her. This is why she would not and could not fail and why she would not allow her father would not get to her.

Her master did say it was going to be okay. She took a look around and cleaned herself off, walking away from the utter destruction surrounding her. Like always, what awaited them behind the door was the same as last time, faintly misty surrounding, a podium holding a jade bottle and a staircase leading upwards.

"I guess this will stay the same from now on," she laughed, storing it.

For the first time, she was not injured while stepping out and heading straight up the staircase but was surprised by who she saw. It was the Lei Clan's, Lei Fu. He stood there silently, giving the unsettling feeling of being separated from the world itself. His gaze looked ahead, and his eyes were blank, making him seem dead inside. Think about it, he had not spoken much when they met earlier, which was surprising to her. The Lei Fu she knew was confident, overbearing and chatty. Even with her coming so close, he did not make any movements, standing there silently.

"Is everything okay, Young Master Lei?" She asked, alerting him of her presence.

"You're Xue Yueliang?" He asked in return, not replying.

"Yes. I have introduced myself earlier."

"Do her a favour, and never kill royalty."

He then stepped into the only door, disappearing before she could burden him with more questions.

"Her?" The only person she could think off was the princess, Yao Niang, but if Lei Fu was relaying messages for her... Xue Yueliang's eyes could not help but widen at the thought, and a happy smile appeared on her lips. Ever since she decided to tie their boats, she felt the princess' increase in power would only benefit her. The fact that she was partially responsible for it was the icing on her cake.

Hei Yu looked at her curiously, causing her smile to only widen, "She's smart, strong and beautiful. What more could I ask for?"

It was a pity she could not be by her side now, but as aspiring immortals, they had a long life ahead of them, and there would always be time.

But why didn't she come here?

While stuck in her daydreams, she heard a different set of footsteps approaching her from behind. It was someone she knew but was not fond of. It was Qin Wen, one of her many elder siblings.

"What's your ranking?" She asked coldly, not recognising her, but if Xue Yueliang was honest with herself, she was too insignificant to be remembered back then.

Flipping through the screen, Xue Yueliang noticed a hundred people on the list, and the first place had changed from Li Hua to Mao Ya, and she had dropped to third. Qin Wen was fourth, and she was ninth.

"Well, I thought I would have done better," she mumbled. She did massacre the entirety of the third stage, not leaving even one being behind.

How did people outdo that? She thought.

"Are you ignoring me?!" Qin Wen snapped angrily, interrupting her from her thoughts.

"I'm ranked ninth, and you must be Qin Wen, placed fourth." Xue Yueliang said politely.

She did not have a grudge against her and saw no reason to argue with her. Back when she was in the Qin Clan, she had been careful to not appear in front of her more famous siblings, which was why she could recognise her steps. A lack of relation was not always a bad one. Besides, she did not want her good mood to be ruined.

"You recognise me?"

"Your name precedes you." She complimented.

With the ego boost she received, Qin Wen ignored the slight from earlier and asked, "What's with the singular door?"

"I don't know. I think we might be near the end." Xue Yueliang replied, entering the door with Hei Yu hopping behind her. Looking at the tiny rabbit that followed Xue Yueliang, a peculiar glint appeared in Qin Wen's eyes before quickly disappearing.

"Woah!"

Entering the room, Xue Yueliang could not help but audibly gasp in amazement.