Cultivation Online

After killing Liao Tian, Yuan turned to look at the young man, who had been shivering in a corner since the beginning of their fight.

”W-who are you?” He asked Yuan in a fearful voice.

”I’m nobody. Sorry you had to witness that. Unfortunately, your Tower Master was corrupt, so I had to get rid of him.”

”…”

After a moment of silence, the young man asked an unexpected question, ”Is it true? That you crafted that sword?”

”Yes.”

The young man stopped trembling and nodded, ”If the creator of such a pure and beautiful masterpiece says so, who am I to question you? If you say the heavens are corrupt, then the heavens are corrupt.”

Yuan could only chuckle at the young man’s eccentric character.

”Then I’ll take my leave now.”

”What should I do now?” the young man asked.

”Whatever you want,” Yuan said as he activated Shadow Veil, disappearing from the Metal Tower.

The young man stood there in a daze. He silently stared at Liao Tian’s corpse for a moment before sighing and walking away. Soon, the top floor flooded with blacksmiths from the Metal Tower.

News of Liao Tian’s death quickly spread, shocking the world again.

”Tower Master Ma was assassinated recently, and now Tower Master Liao suffered the same fate? What in heaven’s name is going on?”

”More importantly, who is capable of killing two Tower Masters in such a short time? And why? They were both reputable and highly respected men.”

”I wonder what the other Tower Masters are thinking right now.”

”They are probably thinking if they’ll be next.”

Sure enough, after they learned of Liao Tian’s death, the remaining three Tower Masters gathered for a second time to discuss the situation.

”I had a feeling he’d be next, but why am I still shocked that it actually happened?” Tower Master Gao sighed out loud.

”According to the witness who saw the whole incident, the killer was a young man,” said Lord Zi.

”However, when questioned about the killer’s identity, the witness refused to explain further. It’s truly bizarre.”

”Why would the killer spare the witness, anyway? How would that benefit him?” Tower Master Gao asked.

”Maybe he doesn’t care about being caught,” Meng Xuan said, her tone laced with unease. ”This is the Phantom Assassin, after all. He wants us to know he’s coming for us—to make us live in constant fear, cowering and dreading every second of our lives.”

Her words sent a chill through the room, causing Tower Master Gao and Lord Zi to tremble.

”Do you really think this is the work of the Phantom Assassin—that he’s really coming after our lives?” Lord Zi asked Meng Xuan, who nodded with a serious expression.

”Yes, I am almost certain it’s him.”

Lord Zi sighed, ”Then there’s nothing we can do but enjoy what little time we have left.”

”What? You’re not even going to fight back?” Tower Master Gao frowned at such a response.

”Fight back? Do you even know who the Phantom Assassin is? Nobody has ever managed to escape once they enter his hit list. He’s killed true immortals before, much less weaklings like us.”

”I don’t care who he is! I have done nothing to deserve this! I will not lie down and let him take my life!” Tower Master Gao roared.

”If you have truly done nothing wrong, there’s nothing to worry about,” a fourth, unfamiliar voice suddenly echoed through the room.

The unexpected intrusion startled the three Tower Masters, their heads snapping in every direction to locate the source. None of them could sense any other presence besides their own, even now, which made the situation all the more terrifying. It made them feel vulnerable and exposed. ”Who’s there?!” Lord Zi shouted.

After a few moments of tense silence, a shadowy figure began to materialize before them, emerging from the dimness as if he had been there all along.

Yuan deactivated Shadow Veil at that point, revealing his identity to them.

”Y-you’re! Yuan!” Lord Zi exclaimed.

”My successor?!” Meng Xuan followed.

”Who?” Tower Master Gao raised his eyebrows in a puzzled manner.

”Wait… Yuan? You mean the one who stole Tower Master Liao’s treasure?”

Yuan looked at him and smiled, ”That’s what he told you? Well, it’s a lie.”

”What are you doing here, Yuan? How did you manage to get in here?” Meng Xuan asked the next moment.

”And what you said just now… You seem to know the situation…” Lord Zi added.

”Oh, I followed you guys here, so I have been here since the very beginning,” said Yuan. He continued, ”I also know the situation. After all, I am the one responsible for the two Tower Masters’ deaths.”

”You what?!” They exclaimed simultaneously.

”T-there’s no way you could’ve killed those two… Stop joking and tell us the truth.” Meng Xuan said with a stiff smile.

”I am telling you the truth. I killed the Alchemy Tower’s Tower Master by stabbing him in the heart from the back, and Tower Master Liao died after I destroyed his treasure.”

The room fell into a heavy silence as Yuan casually revealed details about the deaths of the Tower Masters—details that had not been made public.

”Why did you kill them?” Tower Master Gao suddenly asked.

”Are you asking me that because you really don’t know, or are you trying to confirm something? You should’ve seen the scene yourself. They committed crimes against humanity, so I punished them.”

”Even if what they did was wrong… who are you to punish them? Are you trying to be a hero or something?”

”A hero? No, I killed them for selfish reasons. I didn’t like what they were doing, so I killed them. Or what? Are you telling me that I shouldn’t have punished them?”

”That’s…” Tower Master Gao became speechless.

”Yuan, you haven’t answered one of my questions. Why are you here? Are you going to kill us, too?” Meng Xuan asked a moment later.

”Who knows?” Yuan shrugged.