“We can’t let them fight!”

Qin Ruqing’s face was serious as she made this declaration, but Ming Ying and Dan Qing couldn’t immediately grasp her reasoning.

“Why not?” they both asked, puzzled.

Qin Ruqing took a deep breath, as if calming herself before explaining slowly and deliberately, “After what we just observed, it’s clear that on the Inheritance Path, the rule trials everyone must undergo, even if interrupted by a fight, don’t actually disappear. Instead, the rule power from those trials accumulates.”

“These gathered rule forces are different from ordinary ones—they carry the properties of a test and are highly aggressive.”

She continued, “Such a large accumulation of aggressive rule power is definitely not a good thing!”

Dan Qing pondered for a moment before speaking, “But we’ve already investigated; the rule power gathering at various points doesn’t show any signs of aggression.”

Qin Ruqing replied, “There’s no aggression because they haven’t reached a critical point yet. But what if all the gathered rule forces combined?”

“Transformation hasn’t occurred because the accumulation isn’t sufficient,” Qin Ruqing’s voice was calm yet forceful.

Ming Ying began to understand Qin Ruqing’s concern, “So you think that the fight between Feng Mingyue and Fifth Lingyu might be the tipping point that triggers this transformation?”

She was still confused, though. “But why?”

Qin Ruqing suddenly smiled. “Because from the beginning until now, nearly everyone on our Inheritance Path has already fought at least one or two rounds. This means that most of our rule trials have been interrupted, leading to this accumulation.”

“But there’s one person whose trial hasn’t been interrupted yet…”

As if a fog had been lifted, Ming Ying and Dan Qing’s eyes widened in realization, and they spoke in unison:

“It’s Fifth Lingyu!”

“Yes!” Qin Ruqing’s smile deepened.

Fifth Lingyu, though an important figure as the son of a former clan leader, didn’t have the same presence as the other geniuses like Fifth Youlin or Feng Mingyue.

He had spent years in a remote region, far from the prestigious circles of Penglai. Even after returning, few remembered him when speaking of top talents.

Qin Ruqing quickened her explanation. “My instinct tells me we can’t let this highly aggressive rule power continue to gather. We must do everything we can to prevent this last fight from happening—though it would be ideal if nothing comes of it.”

Ming Ying nodded, “With instincts like yours, we can’t ignore this. Let’s go!”

If they weren’t in such a hurry, Qin Ruqing might have asked what kind of person Ming Ying thought she was.

Dan Qing pointed out their destination. “They’re at the forefront of the Xuanming Dao’s territory, under the red pillar of light!”

The three of them immediately set off toward the red pillar.

---

Meanwhile, Feng Mingyue and Fifth Lingyu stood face to face, preparing to duel.

This fight was initiated by Feng Mingyue herself.

She had sensed Fifth Lingyu’s presence and was surprised that someone had managed to catch up to her—especially someone she recognized, the son of the former leader of the Fifth family.

Among the few people who made her feel uneasy, Fifth Lingyu was one of them.

In her mind, Feng Mingyue had categorized the people she saw as threats: Lu Zhiyao was a fated enemy, linked by the destiny of their families and Dao lineages.

But Fifth Lingyu and Qin Ruqing were different—they were simply powerful enough to make her feel threatened.

Now that she had encountered Fifth Lingyu, Feng Mingyue, being the spontaneous person she was, thought, Why not have a fight?

Feng Mingyue thought about it and decided to act on it.

When she invited Fifth Lingyu, he surprisingly agreed, though the reason was unclear.

This led to the current confrontation.

People began to gather from afar to watch.

Although Fifth Lingyu wasn’t very noticeable, Feng Mingyue was.

This battle between two top geniuses was something people had to see.

By the time Qin Ruqing arrived, the two were already fighting.

From a distance, she could only see various magical fragments flying around, and it was hard to spot the actual figures.

The battle was so intense that it showed no signs of stopping anytime soon.

Qin Ruqing immediately used her spiritual vision to check the surrounding rules of power and realized it was quite alarming.

They were close to the depths of the Legacy Path.

The deeper you go, the harder the trials and the more rules of power are required.

Now, with Feng Mingyue and Fifth Lingyu fighting, the amount of rules of power they had accumulated was enormous.

In Qin Ruqing’s eyes, it was like a storm brewing, creating a terrifying force.

She shouted through telepathy, “Stop!”

Her shout didn’t stop the fight but did catch the attention of the spectators.

Everyone turned their focus to Qin Ruqing.

Her bright, striking appearance, dressed in vivid red and wielding a terrifying golden flame weapon, made her easy to recognize.

The onlookers had mixed feelings.

They wondered why this “monster” or “prodigy” had arrived.

Hadn’t she just defeated Fang Zhejun?

Was she here to challenge Feng Mingyue?

They found it hard to believe that someone from a smaller, lesser-known family like the Qin could achieve such greatness.

Yet, they couldn’t deny Qin Ruqing’s talents.

She had set many records and achieved remarkable feats, including being the top performer in the Hundred Clans Conference and making significant progress in the Legacy Path trials.

These achievements left a deep impression on them.

Although they didn’t want to admit it, they couldn’t ignore Qin Ruqing’s superiority.

They reluctantly gave her a nickname in their minds, reflecting their complex feelings toward her.

“She’s a monster, not like us geniuses. We are normal geniuses, which means people can understand us. But she’s unpredictable and impossible to figure out. It’s better to exclude her from our standards—it makes us feel better.”

Now, when Qin Ruqing shouted for them to stop, the first reaction of those around was, “The monster is here to cause trouble or maybe to make a name for herself by challenging Feng Mingyue.” Everyone held their breath, wide-eyed, and excited to watch.

Qin Ruqing saw that the two people she was addressing weren’t stopping at all. She shouted again, “Your fight is causing the power of the rules to gather dangerously. It might lead to chaos!”

The battle in the air only intensified.

In fact, because Qin Ruqing tried to interfere, some fragments of magic flew toward her, as if telling her to mind her own business.

Qin Ruqing’s face darkened.

Ming Ying, standing nearby, asked, “What should we do? They aren’t listening!”

Dan Qing looked at Qin Ruqing silently before asking, “Fairy Ruqing, should the three of us step in to stop them?”

Qin Ruqing’s eyes flashed green as she used her spiritual vision to check the concentration of rules in the area.

After two breaths, she coldly said, “No need. It’s too late.”

Suddenly, she became very calm.

On the way here, Qin Ruqing had rushed over, thinking only of stopping them. But now, after seeing the situation, she realized something important: she couldn’t stop it.

She had guessed correctly before—this might be the final step of a great transformation.

But she had forgotten one thing: even if this wasn’t the final step, another one would follow.

The build-up of power had already reached a critical point.

The explosion of rules was inevitable—it was just a matter of time.

Qin Ruqing stood there quietly, suddenly feeling at peace. “Fine,” she thought, “If I can’t stop it, why should I stress myself out trying?”

She smiled to herself and turned to the two people who came with her, saying, “The power of the rules has gathered too much here. Even if they stop now, it’s useless. The explosion of the rules is only a matter of time. Make sure to protect yourselves.”

Ming Ying gasped, “Then what should we do?”

Dan Qing seemed to understand something. His eyes flickered as he asked, “Fairy Ruqing, do you have something in mind?”

Qin Ruqing smiled mysteriously and said, “I’m going to find some fun.”

With that, Qin Ruqing began to create a fireball—actually, it was the most powerful version, the explosive Golden Lotus.

Even after finishing the Golden Lotus, she wasn’t satisfied.

Moving slowly, she bit her tongue to draw three drops of blood to power it further.

After the blood sacrifice, the lotus petals began to move, becoming even more lifelike, making Qin Ruqing’s face appear almost divine.

She gently pushed the small explosive lotus forward and casually said, “Go!”