Firmament Sword

”He deserved to die then, and now... he deserves to die ten thousand times over!” The beautiful girl’s face was so grim it looked like it could drip water as she spoke through clenched teeth.

...

Vermilion Bird Avenue.

The National Guardian General’s Mansion.

Xu Luo sat quietly on a meditation cushion in his room, recovering from his injuries.

Forcing himself to use the Shaking Light Burst hadn’t made him faint like it had in the past, but he still felt awful.

His opponent had been no pushover, but a powerful Sword Venerable!

Xu Luo already had his suspicions about the people who came tonight. He knew that, in all likelihood, they had been sent by the Fengyue Building.

The Fengyue Building of today was not the same as it once was. When Phoenix was in charge, the Fengyue Building had been on his side. But now, its master was Crystal, a beautiful woman with a venomous heart who was capable of anything.

This was especially true given his good relationship with Phoenix; he was certain that Crystal, who probably wished Phoenix dead, would have no favorable impression of him.

Not to mention, on the very day he was enfeoffed as the Seven-Colored Marquis, it was Crystal who had used military heavy crossbows in an attempt to assassinate him. Furthermore, his parents had a significant grudge with Crystal’s master, the current Merak Grand Elder.

’I remember Phoenix saying that the assassins who attacked Father’s messenger back then were sent by the Fengyue Building…’ A glint flashed in Xu Luo’s eyes as he muttered to himself, ’It seems the Grand Elder of the Fengyue Building had a good relationship with Wei Feng back in the day…’

’Since you’ve tried to harm me time and again, don’t blame me for being ruthless and giving you a taste of your own medicine!’

With that, Xu Luo slowly closed his eyes, calming his mind and spirit. He allowed the power released from his Kaiyang Star Soul to continuously mend the wounds in his body.

When his Kaiyang Star Soul first awakened, Xu Luo had been somewhat disappointed because, unlike the Shaking Light Star Soul, it hadn’t directly granted him many powerful cultivation techniques. It wasn’t until his body was transformed by the Kaiyang Star Soul that Xu Luo came to understand its true power.

Especially in a situation like today, when he faced an expert several, or even ten times, stronger than himself. After desperately using Shaking Light Burst, his body had only sustained some injuries, and he hadn’t fallen unconscious.

Before his body was remolded by the Kaiyang Star Soul, such an outcome would have been unimaginable.

Like the sun nourishing all living things, the Kaiyang Star Soul nourished Xu Luo’s internal organs. His recovery speed was astonishing.

At the same time, his Shaking Light Star Soul was also operating automatically, flickering as it absorbed the surrounding Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, converted it into True Essence, and funneled it into Xu Luo’s dantian.

Overnight, Xu Luo’s injuries fully recovered!

At the same time, Xu Luo’s realm broke through from Tier Two Great Sword Master to Tier Four Great Sword Master. The Protective True Essence he could now release was many times stronger than before!

If his state of Void Spirit Realm last night hadn’t been interrupted prematurely, Xu Luo probably could have broken through directly to the Peak Realm of Tier Four Great Sword Master, nearing Tier Five Great Sword Master!

Although Xu Luo felt it was a pity, he wasn’t too dejected. Just as Phoenix had said, even within a sect, very few people could break through at his speed.

Seeing a ray of sunlight shining in from outside, Xu Luo let out a long breath, stood up, and paced around the room for a few steps. He then summoned a servant from the Xu Mansion and gave a few instructions.

An hour later, the entire Imperial Capital grew lively as the early risers began their busy day.

Along with this, a rumor quickly spread throughout the Imperial Capital.

”Did you hear? That thunderous noise last night was someone attacking the National Guardian General’s Mansion!”

”Heavens, who would be so bold? Do they have a death wish? Attacking the National Guardian General’s Mansion?”

”I know, right? I heard the second young master of the National Guardian General’s Mansion, Xu Luo, led the mansion’s guards in a desperate battle and killed all the invading villains!”

”Wow, the Xu Family’s second young master is really that amazing!”

”Of course! They say he took on more than ten experts all by himself!”

”Well, I heard the Xu Family’s second young master was also seriously injured!”

”How could you possibly have heard something like that?”

”Of course I could! My neighbor’s brother-in-law’s older brother is a servant in the Xu Mansion. I know a lot!”

For a time, tales of the Xu Family’s second young master’s heroic deeds spread through every street and alley of the Imperial Capital. At the same time, one particular detail caught the attention of many interested parties.

”Xu Luo is really injured!”

This confirmed the suspicions many people had.

”If he wasn’t injured, there’s no way he would have barred everyone from entry last night. Even the City Guard Army and the Imperial Forest Army couldn’t get into the Xu Mansion, let alone see Xu Luo.”

”His four brothers—the Eldest Prince Huangfu Chongzhi, Xu Jie of the Xu Zhongtian family, Sui Yan of the Sui Wanli family, and Liu Feng—were all blocked outside as well. It seems this Xu Luo is definitely trying to suppress the news of his injury!”

People chattered endlessly, and all sorts of speculation filled the air.

In the Crystal Tower, Crystal sat across from the beautiful girl, who was brewing tea.

”Xu Luo is injured. Do you think this news is reliable?” Crystal asked, looking at the beautiful girl.

The beautiful girl nodded lightly. ”It’s actually quite normal. Of the people we sent last night, the strongest was Senior Sister Miao, a Tier Three Sword Venerable. With her strength as a Sword Venerable, she could have swept through the entire Xu Mansion! But now, Senior Sister Miao’s whereabouts are unknown; we’ve completely lost contact. And they say no one who entered the Xu Mansion last night made it out. I suspect they’ve all perished.”

As she spoke, her expression turned sorrowful. ”They paid with their lives. If that wasn’t even enough to heavily injure that little bastard Xu Luo... then their deaths would have been completely in vain!”

”You’re right. I’m sure Xu Luo’s injuries are very severe!” Crystal said coldly.

”You... you’re not thinking of making a move... tonight, are you?” the beautiful girl asked, surprised. ”We don’t have many people left here now...”

”Of course not. In the next few days, Xu Luo should choose to leave the Imperial Capital for his fiefdom. Him being injured, doesn’t that give us the perfect opportunity?” Crystal sneered. ”This time, I absolutely will not let him get away!”

...

「Three days later.」

Huangfu Chongzhi, Xu Jie, Sui Yan, and Liu Feng arrived early at the National Guardian General’s Mansion. Along with them were a dozen fully-loaded carriages and one exceptionally large and luxurious one.

The large, luxurious carriage went directly into the Xu Mansion. Soon after, the procession quietly set off. The giant, black-striped tiger followed the convoy from a distance, and no one dared to approach.

The four, Huangfu Chongzhi and his friends, rode on horseback, but Xu Luo was nowhere to be seen.

This further confirmed the rumors that Xu Luo was injured.

Other than the servants of the Xu Mansion, there was no one else to see them off. After the group departed, the gates of the Xu Mansion were shut tight.

Outside the Imperial Capital City, Huangfu Chongzhi glanced back at the towering city walls behind them and sighed, ”We’ve finally left this place of conflict!”

”The journey ahead won’t be peaceful either,” said Xu Jie.

”I hope those people are smart enough not to mess with us. I’m in a terrible mood right now,” the Little Fatty said with a gloomy look.

”What’s wrong? Did Lan Xin kick you out of bed last night?” Sui Yan said with a deadpan expression.

”Screw you! We’re innocent!” the Little Fatty cursed.

Sui Yan pursed his lips and also glanced back. He suddenly said, ”I broke through. I’m a Tier Seven Sword Master now!”

”For real?” The others were all a little surprised, not expecting Sui Yan to have broken through so quickly.

The Little Fatty was even more disbelieving. ”Sui Xiaoshi, you’re bluffing, right?”

”Don’t believe me? Let’s have a match,” Sui Yan said flatly.

”A match it is! You think I’m afraid of you?” the Little Fatty shot back, not showing any weakness.

”You two save your energy. There’ll be plenty of chances for you to show off on this journey,” Xu Jie said, glaring at them. He then added, ”I’m already a Tier Nine Sword Master!”

Everyone stared at him in astonishment. Xu Jie shook his head and said, ”It’s not that fast. I’ve been deliberately suppressing my cultivation speed for years, accumulating power for a sudden burst. I thought I’d be able to break through to the Great Sword Master Realm, but I still fell a step short.”

”And here I thought breaking through to Tier Five Sword Master... was already fast. You guys are all freaks!” The Little Fatty suddenly realized he was now the weakest among his brothers and felt a sense of injustice. He turned his gaze to the ever-gently-smiling Huangfu Chongzhi. ”Boss, what about you?”

”I just broke through to Tier One Great Sword Master. It was quite risky; I almost failed.” The gentle smile on Huangfu Chongzhi’s face was the same as always, as if he were talking about something trivial.

But that very smile made the Little Fatty want to go crazy. He cried out in disbelief, ”What? Th-that’s impossible! You... how can you all be so fast?”

”When I returned this time, my father, the Emperor, bestowed an elixir upon me. It was said to have come from a sect. I only managed to break through to this realm after taking it,” Huangfu Chongzhi said gently. ”So, I relied on external help to advance. You don’t need to be envious.”

”Ahhh! How can I not be envious! With something so good, how could you not think of your fourth brother, me?” the Little Fatty whined. It was expected that everyone would improve significantly during their time back in the Imperial Capital.

After all, they had all gained a great deal of experience and insight on the Southern battlefield. It would have been strange if they hadn’t improved at all. But after returning, this Little Fatty had spent most of his time getting cozy with the little princess of the Lan Meng Clan, Lan Xin. For him, even reaching Tier Five Sword Master was a huge breakthrough.

”Before I took that elixir, I more or less figured out its composition. Later on, as long as we have a suitable pill furnace and medicinal herbs, I should be able to refine it myself. Then, everyone can break through to the Great Sword Master Realm!” Huangfu Chongzhi said with great confidence.

”That would be fantastic!” Xu Jie and the others beamed with joy.

The Little Fatty sucked up to him, saying, ”I knew the Boss was the best!”

Just then, Xu Luo’s voice came from the carriage beside them: ”Relying on elixirs to advance is fine, but you’d better solidify your foundations. Otherwise, when you reach higher realms, you’ll hit a huge bottleneck due to an unstable foundation. At that point, trying to go back and rebuild your base will be incredibly difficult!”

”Number Three is right. I also don’t approve of you relying too much on elixirs. After all, they are external objects,” Huangfu Chongzhi said.