Firmament Sword

Su Qianqian attacked the young men surrounding her like a raging storm, all while cursing them with great satisfaction.

”You... What nonsense are you spouting!” The old man was normally a master of self-control, but this insolent girl’s tirade had left him seething with rage, almost unable to restrain himself from striking.

”Was I wrong? You just saw that I’m young and beautiful. Hmph, you hypocritical Gentlemen, so sanctimonious on the outside but rotten to the core. You think I haven’t seen your kind before?” Su Qianqian kicked a young man who got too close squarely in the butt, sending him flying, then continued cursing, ”You old fossil! If I were you, I’d have killed myself from shame long ago! Look at you, so old yet so weak, and you’re still preying on a little girl. You have no shame!”

”You, you, you... you little brat! You’re infuriating me! Today, I’ll swallow my pride and teach you a lesson on behalf of your elders, you disrespectful thing!” the old man said, lunging towards her.

Su Qianqian’s large eyes blinked, a glint of cunning flashing in their depths as she sneered, ”Swallow your pride? Ptooey, do you even have any pride to begin with?”

”You’re courting death!” the old man roared in fury, striking at Su Qianqian with his palm.

The old man had originally just wanted his disciples to get some experience. He never intended to get involved himself. After all, given his age and status, if word got out that the great Elder Dubhe had stooped to fighting a little girl, he would lose a tremendous amount of face.

But he never expected the little girl’s mouth to be so venomous. From the moment the fight started, she hadn’t stopped cursing him.

Moreover, for such a cute-looking little girl, her insults were surprisingly sharp, leaving the old man unable to defend against them. He was filled with rage and a desire to teach her a lesson.

”Hmph!” Seeing the old man lunge, Su Qianqian gave a cold snort. She suddenly retracted her sword and thrust it toward the young man she had just kicked in the butt, who was now charging at her, red-faced and furious.

The thrust was incredibly fierce and impossibly fast!

It was clearly a killing blow!

”Ah, how dare you!” The old man’s eyes looked ready to split from rage. He couldn’t believe that even with him approaching, the girl still dared to kill his disciple!

PFFT.

The sword struck the young man right between the eyes, killing him instantly.

The girl’s figure moved like a butterfly flitting through flowers, dazzling the eye. Without the slightest pause, she thrust her sword at another young man!

”Why wouldn’t I dare? What were you all plotting? You really think I didn’t know? Since you had the guts to try, why wouldn’t I have the guts to finish it?” Su Qianqian’s tone was ice-cold.

”Then you can die!” The old man was truly enraged now. The young man who had just been killed was one of his favorite disciples, one he had been carefully grooming for great things in the future. To think he would lose his life here in the Great Marsh.

”Old fossil, you might be a tiny bit stronger than me, but killing me won’t be as easy as you think!” The girl had a stubborn look on her face, completely unafraid of provoking the old man further.

In fact, her actions had already thoroughly infuriated the powerful old man.

”Little girl, today this old ancestor will teach you that there’s always someone stronger out there. In your next life, try not to be so arrogant!” The old man’s face was cold as he ground his teeth. His hands gradually became coated in a layer of blood-red light, emitting a sinister glow.

A solemn expression appeared on Su Qianqian’s delicate face. She raised an eyebrow slightly and said coldly, ”I was wondering how long you could hide your identity, you old fossil. You’ve finally shown your true colors. That’s the Blood Vajra Palm of Dubhe, isn’t it? Just you wait!”

The old man froze for a moment. He hadn’t expected the little girl to recognize his sect’s ultimate technique the moment he used it. His heart skipped a beat, but he quickly covered it with a sneer. ”Very good. I didn’t think a little girl like you would be so knowledgeable as to recognize my ultimate technique. In that case... this old ancestor has even more reason not to let you leave here alive today!”

With that, the old man barked at the remaining young men, ”Fall back!”

The young men were already having a miserable time fending off the girl’s fierce attacks. The death of their companion had filled them with fury, but even more so with fear.

Hearing the old man’s command, the young men quickly retreated.

The old man thrust his pair of blood-red palms directly at the girl’s face.

”Die for this old ancestor!” the old man suddenly bellowed. The shout was like a crack of thunder, loud enough to deafen a person.

”You think you’re worthy of calling yourself an ’old ancestor’?”

A mocking voice suddenly echoed in the air. A figure, moving with incredible speed, appeared, and a black streak of light shot directly toward the old man.

An intense killing intent, so strong it was almost suffocating, instantly exploded in the air and spread everywhere.

A yellow shadow, as fast as the Wind, rushed toward the old man’s side. A sharp claw swiped at his waist.

”You dare!” Ambushed, the old man let out a furious roar. A powerful aura erupted from his wiry body as he instantly pushed his True Essence Protection to its absolute limit.

BANG!

With a sharp sound, Master Mao’s claw struck the old man’s True Essence Protection, creating an ear-piercing screech. It left a deep claw mark on the old man’s solidified Protective True Essence, but it failed to break through!

Wielding the Seven Star Sword, Xu Luo thrust toward the old man’s brow. Amidst the overwhelming killing intent, the sight of Xu Luo’s youthful face made the old man’s heart tremble. This young but incredibly powerful girl was already terrifying enough; he had no idea where this equally powerful young man had come from.

”You were in the ruins!” The old man’s figure shot backward, dodging Xu Luo’s thrust. He then shouted, ”Little girl, let’s take this kid down together and split whatever he got from the ruins! I won’t hold you accountable for killing my disciple!”

Su Qianqian was also startled to see Xu Luo. She didn’t know this young man at all and had no idea why he was helping her. But then she saw the yellow shadow and began to understand.

That Spirit Beast had appeared for an instant just before, and the old man had almost succeeded in a sneak attack against it.

Hearing the old man’s proposal now, Su Qianqian couldn’t help but be impressed by his shamelessness. It had reached a whole new level.

’I might be a highway robber, but at least I don’t kill. And you, you old bastard, are trying to team up with your enemy?’ Su Qianqian thrust her sword toward the old man’s shoulder and sneered, ”Do you think I’m a fool? Work with an old fossil like you?”

”Since you refuse to see reason, don’t blame me for what happens next!” the old man snarled, his figure flashing like lightning as he charged the girl. He pushed his two blood-red palms toward her...

RUMBLE!

A red light, the color of blood, appeared in mid-air. It carried the pressure of a mountain, threatening to crush the girl completely!

Xu Luo used the Shaking Light Step, wielded his Seven Star Sword, and circled directly behind the old man, stabbing toward his back.

The old man’s reaction was also extremely fast. Although his movement wasn’t as good as Xu Luo’s Shaking Light Step, he still managed to catch the Seven Star Sword with his two blood-red palms at the very instant it was about to strike him.

CLANG!

It actually produced the crisp sound of metal striking metal!

The old man’s palms, like a Divine Weapon, had clamped down directly on the Seven Star Sword in Xu Luo’s hand!

”A fine prize! From the ruins? It belongs to this old ancestor now!” The old man laughed boisterously, looking at Xu Luo with contempt. ”With your meager skills, you dare to ambush this old ancestor? Your Body Technique is decent, but your strength is pathetic!”

Xu Luo, however, just looked at the old man with a mocking smile on his face and said calmly, ”Shaking Light Burst!”

BANG!

An incomparably powerful force suddenly erupted from the Seven Star Sword, instantly blasting the old man’s pair of blood-red hands into a mangled mess of flesh and blood!

This time, it was real blood... not just a bloody color.

The old man let out a shrill, terrified roar. A second roar immediately followed, this one because the girl, who had been watching him intently, had stabbed him in the left shoulder. A spray of fresh blood flew out.

The old man was both shocked and enraged. He instantly retreated several hundred meters, staring in disbelief at his own mangled hands. He couldn’t believe that his Blood Vajra Palm, which he had cultivated to a level approaching the Grandmaster Realm, had been broken by a mere youth!

’This is impossible! It must be that sword!’ the old man roared internally. His eyes were glued to the Seven Star Sword in Xu Luo’s hand, shining with intense greed.

”Hey, kid, you’re not half bad!” Su Qianqian said to Xu Luo with a radiant smile. Her eyes, however, were fixed on the Seven Star Sword in his hand.

Xu Luo smiled bitterly to himself. He knew that the moment he took out this sword, anyone who knew anything about weapons would recognize it as a true treasure.

But this wasn’t the time to worry about that. Xu Luo gave Su Qianqian a shy smile. ”You’re pretty amazing too!”

”Hee hee, what sect are you from? Why are you so shy? You’re not just pretending, are you?” Su Qianqian’s lovely face was as radiant as a peach blossom, so beautiful it was breathtaking.

Xu Luo looked at Su Qianqian calmly. ”Shouldn’t we deal with this old fossil first and talk later?”

”That’s what I was thinking, too!” Su Qianqian chuckled, but her movements were incredibly fast as she charged directly at the old man.

Exploit their weakness, take their life!

This was a principle that everyone who roamed the Jianghu understood. If you don’t kill a snake, it will come back to bite you—a truth known to all.

The old man was extremely powerful. If Xu Luo hadn’t injured him in such an unexpected way, it was unlikely that even Xu Luo and Su Qianqian, fighting together with Master Mao, would have been able to defeat him.

This old man was no ordinary Tier Nine Sword Venerable. His power had definitely reached the Peak Realm of a Tier Nine Sword Venerable. He was likely only half a step away from that door!

On any other day, the old man would have disdained a young man and woman like Xu Luo and Su Qianqian, not even giving them a second glance.

But here and now, he, a mighty Martial Artist, had been utterly humiliated by this pair of youths. The destruction of his Blood Vajra Palm, in particular, was something he had never anticipated.

His expression flickered uncertainly. Watching the girl charge at him, he desperately wanted to slap her to death, but he was wary of the youth with the bizarre Body Technique and the black sword.

Just then, several screams suddenly rang out.

The old man flew into a rage and roared, ”You beast! You dare kill my disciples! I’ll rip out your tendons, flay your bones... and tear you to a million pieces!”