White Xiaochun's face was pale, his heart trembling. The overwhelming sense of danger enveloping his entire body had shaken him to his core. The looming sensation of imminent death caused him to tremble uncontrollably.
He had never been this scared before—not even when lighting incense in his village during thunderstorms, not when Li Qinghou took him to the Valley of Ten Thousand Snakes, nor when facing all the powerful beasts he had seen on this journey.
Back then, although he was nervous, he *knew* he wouldn't die.
But now… he was fully aware:
**He *would* die!!**
As he sprinted, he suddenly noticed that no one was beside him. He froze and quickly looked back—only to see, several hundred zhang away, Du Lingfei and Hou Yunfei being surrounded by seven members of the Chen family.
He saw Du Lingfei coughing up blood—anyone could tell they wouldn't last much longer. They were on the brink of being slain and annihilated.
White Xiaochun came to a sudden halt, standing there trembling as he watched. His body shook even harder, and bloodshot veins spread across his eyes. He could feel it—his body, his soul—screaming at him to **run**.
And he *could*. With his speed, and with Du and Hou acting as obstacles, he had a very real chance of escaping alive.
If he escaped, he would survive. He could continue his cultivation, pursue his dream of immortality. The sect wouldn't punish him—they'd probably reward him.
But… if he ran and watched Du Lingfei and Hou Yunfei die before his eyes, he would carry that guilt for the rest of his life. It felt like his consciousness had split in two—one voice screaming at him to escape or die, the other begging him not to abandon his fellow disciples, or he'd never find peace again.
Breathing heavily, White Xiaochun let out several incoherent roars. The veins on his forehead bulged. His whole body was shaking like a leaf. He wasn't thinking anymore—he couldn't. He clenched his fists tightly.
He only knew one thing:
> "I, White Xiaochun, may fear death… but I **cannot** just leave them like this!"
He suddenly pounded his chest, his eyes now fully bloodshot. He let out a thunderous roar and charged back—straight toward Du Lingfei and Hou Yunfei!
He was so fast that a gale erupted behind him. The sound echoed in all directions. Hou Yunfei trembled when he saw White Xiaochun, his expression a mix of shock and joy. He suddenly smiled, eyes filled with resolve, and stopped defending himself—rushing straight at the Chen family attackers instead.
At that same moment, Du Lingfei—whose body had just been slashed open by a near-fatal sword strike—looked up upon hearing the roar. She saw White Xiaochun charging back like a madman, eyes red, body trembling.
She felt as if she had been struck by lightning. She stood frozen, tears streaming down her face. She didn't even know what emotion overwhelmed her—gratitude, shock, or awe.
She had always known White Xiaochun feared death. But seeing him like this—red-eyed, trembling, still coming back—she couldn't imagine how much **courage** he had to summon just to make that choice.
> "Run, you idiot! Don't come back to die!!" Du Lingfei screamed through her tears.
But she didn't notice a sixth-layer Chen family disciple approaching behind her.
**Boom!** She spat blood again, her vision going blurry. Her body was flung upward as a flying sword, controlled by another enemy, screamed toward her head.
White Xiaochun saw it all.
He let out a roar even louder than before. His speed exploded again, breaking the very air around him. He rocketed forward like a shooting star, reaching Du Lingfei in a flash. Just as the sword was about to strike her, he arrived, grabbed her, spun once, and threw a powerful punch toward the incoming sword.
**Boom!**
The sword trembled, and—shockingly—White Xiaochun's punch sent it flying.
This stunned all the Chen family members. Even Chen Yue's eyes widened in disbelief, though his expression quickly turned cold again.
> "So you were hiding your strength this whole time... I should've noticed you back during the formation battle. Don't bother with the others. **Kill him!**"
With that order, all the surrounding Chen family cultivators, eyes full of murderous intent, charged at White Xiaochun.
Du Lingfei, still in his arms, was frozen. Before she could react, White Xiaochun set her down and, without hesitation, dashed toward the incoming attackers.
His bloodshot eyes were locked onto them. He had completely forgotten about death. Nothing remained in his mind but one thought:
**Save Hou Yunfei. Save Du Lingfei. Kill every last one of them.**
He closed in on a sixth-layer cultivator in a flash. That enemy formed a hand seal, summoning a glowing hammer to smash at White Xiaochun.
> "Get lost!" White Xiaochun roared, raising his hand and slapping forward.
With a **whoosh**, the hammer shook and—at the moment it clashed with White Xiaochun's hand—it disintegrated and was knocked flying.
The sixth-layer cultivator gasped in horror. As he tried to retreat, White Xiaochun pointed with a hand seal. His wooden sword shot out like lightning, appearing before the stunned enemy. Before he could dodge, it pierced right between his eyebrows.
A scream rang out. Blood exploded from his head as the wooden sword curved midair and shot toward the next enemy.
At the same time, a seventh-layer cultivator appeared and used a mist technique to cloak himself inside a giant fog construct. He tried to sneak up on White Xiaochun, but White Xiaochun's body twitched—and his left hand, thumb and forefinger glowing black, suddenly pierced right through the mist.
**Crack!**
It was the *Soul-Locking Grip*! The fog dissolved, and the attacker stared in horror at the hand gripping his throat. A moment later, his neck snapped.
It all happened in mere seconds.
From the moment White Xiaochun turned back to now, only a few breaths had passed—and already two Chen family members lay dead!
This left Hou Yunfei—now by Du Lingfei's side—completely shocked, eyes wide, breath stolen away by the scene.
Du Lingfei was utterly stunned. The White Xiaochun in front of her bore no resemblance to the one in her memories. Her breath quickened, her disbelief overwhelming.
And just then, the remaining Chen family cultivators finally attacked. These three all looked panicked. They unleashed their deadliest attacks—a flying sword, a glowing orb, and a small cauldron—hurtling toward White Xiaochun.
They were fighting as one. Two were sixth-layer, one was seventh. They spared no effort, knowing this was the only chance to kill him.
White Xiaochun's eyes glowed crimson. As the attacks neared, he suddenly curled into a ball. From his back, what had always seemed like a ridiculous oversized black pot to Du Lingfei, now emerged fully—shielding his entire body.
**BOOM!**
The small cauldron struck the pot, sending shockwaves everywhere. Cracks webbed across the surface, but the pot did **not** break—it blocked the strike!
Next came the glowing orb, slamming down again.
**BOOM!**
This time, the black pot couldn't hold. It shattered into countless black shards.
But from within the debris, White Xiaochun burst forth—slamming straight into the seventh-layer cultivator who had attacked.
The man, a middle-aged cultivator, was horrified. He tried to retreat—but it was too late. White Xiaochun crashed into him like a meteor.
No protective treasure could stop it. Every barrier shattered. **Crack! Crack!** Bones broke.
White Xiaochun grabbed the man and slammed his head into him repeatedly.
**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**
> "No!!" The man coughed blood, his eyes full of despair. He couldn't break free.
The two sixth-layer Chen family members nearby were so terrified they froze. One shakily controlled a flying sword and launched it at White Xiaochun.
But White Xiaochun didn't even try to dodge. The sword struck his body—yet didn't pierce it. It simply *bounced off*, leaving not even a scratch.
White Xiaochun roared again. With one last crushing blow, the man he held let out a final scream—then died.
The two nearby sixth-layer cultivators stared, eyes wide, at the blood-drenched, red-eyed, hair-disheveled **beast** that was White Xiaochun.
Their scalps went numb.
When White Xiaochun looked at them—
They didn't hesitate.
They **turned and fled**.
Not far away, Chen Yue watched it all, his mind reeling in utter disbelief. His thoughts thundered with shock and confusion, unable to comprehend what he was witnessing.