Si Ying was clearly furious, her eyes almost spitting fire as a powerful aura surged violently from her. The spacetime around her trembled in an intimidating display.

"Si Ying, he's not bad."

Si Ying retorted angrily, "He's not one of us."

"Si Ying, it's true that he's different from us, but he's not a bad—"

"Tell him to leave!" Si Ying glared at Fu Wu. "Now!"

Fu Wu frowned.

Si Ying's gaze turned icy upon seeing that.

Fu Wu replied firmly, "He's seriously injured. If he leaves now, he might die."

"Fu Wu, I'm sure you know about the Tianxing Laws."

Fu Wu sighed softly, "Si Ying, I need your help."

"Fine, I'll help you, but you have to swear you have no feelings for him."

Fu Wu was irritated. "Si Ying, why are you acting like this?"

"I'm worried you'll stray from the right path! The Tianxing Law forbids marriage with outsiders. I don't want you to go astray."

Fu Wu's face turned icy as she waved her sleeve. "I won't swear. Help me if you want."

Si Ying sneered. "Seems you do have feelings for him."

Fu Wu, now equally angry, shot back, "And what if I do?"

"I'll kill him!"

With that, she lunged forward like a bolt of lightning, rushing toward the tree.

Furious, Fu Wu moved swiftly, blocking Si Ying and throwing a punch.

Boom!

Fu Wu's punch forced Si Ying to halt. Seeing Fu Wu raise a fist against her for an outsider, Si Ying's fury surged, and she retaliated with another punch. Fu Wu's face darkened. She clenched her fists and charged at Si Ying.

The two began to fight fiercely, trading powerful blows that echoed loudly.

After a while, Fu Wu landed a blow, forcing Si Ying back.

Fu Wu glared at Si Ying. "Don't push me."

Truth be told, Fu Wu had been holding back.

However, Si Ying glared back at Fu Wu and declared, "I will kill him today."

Fu Wu yelled, "He hasn't harmed the Tianxing civilization!"

Si Ying snapped, "I'll give you one last chance, Fu Wu. Choose—that outsider or me?"

"You're being unreasonable here!" Fu Wu exclaimed and turned around to help Ye Guan.

Swoosh!

Si Ying disappeared from sight.

Fu Wu's face went cold as she turned around and threw another punch.

Boom!

Si Ying came to a screeching halt once again.

"I'll ask you one more time," Si Ying said, staring at Fu Wu. "Who's more important? Me or that outsider?"

The furious Fu Wu shot back. "He's more important than you! Satisfied?"

With that, she walked over to Ye Guan and disappeared into the horizon.

Under the tree, Si Ying watched them leave with her eyes brimming with tears.

***

Fu Wu took Ye Guan to a remote mountain range, placing him gently by a pond.

Then, she sat next to him in silence.

Ye Guan glanced at her and asked, "Why do you all resent outsiders so much?"

He had overheard their conversation.

Fu Wu lowered her head and murmured, "The Tianxing Law forbids marriage with outsiders."

"Not even friendship?"

Fu Wu looked at him quietly.

"Your friend has quite a temper. I guess you can say she's like a wild beast. Funnily enough, I think I have a relative like that, but I can't remember them."

"She's actually kind," Fu Wu replied, "She's just stubborn, and she has a... peculiar way of thinking."

"She's certainly stubborn."

In truth, he wanted to say the same about Fu Wu, but considering her temper, he refrained from doing so.

This girl will be difficult to handle once infuriated; it'd be best not to provoke her.

"How are you?"

Ye Guan's expression grew grim. "Bad."

There was still some temporal energy within him. His Qingxuan Sword was suppressing it, but its presence made him feel weak.

His soul felt particularly vulnerable, and his memories were still fragmented. Thankfully, the Qingxuan Sword was holding the lingering energy at bay, or he would have died a hundred times over by now.

Above all, he couldn't afford to make any moves yet, as making any move would attract more of that temporal energy. The thought of it alone made his scalp tingle.

Just then, Fu Wu sighed. "

Haaa…

"

Ye Guan turned to her and asked, "What is it?"

"I want to send you back to the Milky Way."

Ye Guan smiled wryly. "That won't happen anytime soon."

Fu Wu glanced at him but said nothing. Ye Guan looked up at the sky, his expression grave. The burly man had told him that he didn't belong to this world, and if he made a move, the Dao would suppress him.

Ye Guan's brows drew together in a frown. Once his wounds healed completely, he'd confront the Temporal Dao Seal. His instincts were telling him that the Qingxuan Sword could take down that seal.

Just then, Fu Wu stood up and walked to a nearby pond.

Ye Guan watched as Fu Wu stretched out her right hand. Then, she clasped her fingers, and from dozens of meters away, a tree branch flew into her hand. The next moment, she swept the branch forward with elegance.

Swish!

A brilliant arc of sword light sliced through the pond, dividing the water as though severing earth from the heavens. With the smallest flick of her wrist, Fu Wu lifted the branch.

Shwing!

An endless rift split the sky above her, stretching for miles as though the world itself had cracked open.

Ye Guan's eyes widened, and his heart pounded wildly against his chest at the sight. The girl had stupefied him once again.

Is she really not a swordsman? Can such a prodigy really exist in the world? No, something doesn't add up here.

Ye Guan sat up and stared intently at Fu Wu. Then, he was struck by enlightenment. Fu Wu had used her Martial Dao to forge her Sword Dao, creating her own Sword Dao using her Martial Dao as the foundation.

Just then, Fu Wu turned to him. "Show me your sword intent."

Ye Guan glanced at her and opened his palm.

A thin strand of sword intent unfurled, drifting slowly from his hand and settling before her.

Fu Wu opened her palm to catch it. Then, she closed her eyes and stood quietly, feeling its presence.

Ye Guan watched, perplexed.

After a while, Fu Wu finally opened her eyes. "I see now. It's purity."

Ye Guan wordlessly stared at Fu Wu.

Fu Wu returned Ye Guan's sword intent before opening her own hand. A flicker of sword intent formed, and then it condensed into a sword. She looked down at it, her voice a soft murmur. "Sword intent demands purity—a heart without distraction, clear and unwavering. To hold only the sword in your heart…"

With that, she transformed into a streak of sword light and shot across the sky.

Schwing!

A rift appeared in the heavens, stretching across the horizon.

A resonant sword hum reverberated as well.

Ye Guan looked up in awe. He finally understood. Fu Wu's strength was terrifying not just because of her talent but because of her deep foundation in the Martial Dao. Her foundation was so deep that she could effortlessly adapt it to her sword.

She was not mimicking Ye Guan's sword intent; she was creating her own Sword Dao.

A prodigy!

A small smile of approval played on Ye Guan's lips. There was no denying it—Fu Wu had the makings of a peerless swordsman. Given time, she would grow into one of the greatest.

In the sky, Fu Wu stood with her sword intent glowing like a flame around her. The spacetime around her trembled from the sheer presence of her sword intent.

Moments later, she slashed out with her sword. With a single stroke, the spacetime before her shattered layer by layer, and a torrent of sword intent flooded the heavens.

Ye Guan extended his palm, feeling the sword intent swirling around him.

It wasn't as refined as his own yet, but it was a powerful Sword Dao.

Just then, Fu Wu's figure flickered, and she teleported before him. "May I see your sword?"

Ye Guan chuckled. "Of course."

He moved to draw the Qingxuan Sword, but Fu Wu shook her head. "No need to unsheathe it—just give me your hand."

Puzzled, Ye Guan extended his hand.

Fu Wu grasped it gently and closed her eyes.

Just then, the Qingxuan Sword within him quivered. Ye Guan knew what she was trying to do. She was trying to sense the presence of the Qingxuan Sword.

When Fu Wu opened her eyes again, her gaze became solemn. "This sword… it holds a feeling within it."

"A feeling?"

"An emotion, to be exact. The Sword Dao of Emotions. Beyond emotions is an invincible will. That will surpasses your own by leagues. Its strength is beyond comprehension."

Fu Wu's eyes took on a fierce gleam. "This is the Sword Dao I seek…"

Buzz!

The Qingxuan Sword shuddered violently as if resonating with her words.