Firmament Sword

”What? You want to go with me… to the secular world?” Xu Luo stared at the girl in shock. ”We don’t even know each other…”

”My name is Su Qianqian. Now we do, don’t we?” Su Qianqian said, smiling cheerfully at Xu Luo, her beautiful eyes curving like crescent moons.

”But… if you just follow me around like this, what about your family?” Xu Luo asked, a troubled look on his face.

”Alas… my family… they… they’ve abandoned me. I’m… homeless now!” Su Qianqian said, her voice downcast and on the verge of tears. She looked utterly pitiful.

If the Tiger King, Su Dongling, were to see her like this, his eyes would probably pop out of his head.

”Your family abandoned you?” Xu Luo didn’t know whether to laugh or cry as he looked at the girl before him. ’What a terrible lie,’ he thought. ’Just look at your clothes, your level of power, and that transcendent aura… How could any homeless girl possess all that?’

However, Xu Luo couldn’t be bothered to expose her lie. ”No. You can’t follow me,” he said with a frown.

”Why not?” Su Qianqian’s expression instantly changed. ”I knew you were a liar, you little thief!” she fumed. ”Hmph, I bet you’ve never even seen the secular world yourself! Today, not only did I take the fall for you, I also helped you defeat that wretched old man. After a favor that huge, you can’t do one little thing for me?”

”I really am from the secular world,” Xu Luo said, his expression earnest as he looked at the girl. ”It’s just… there’s too much danger around me, and I don’t want to get you involved. You may be powerful, but it’s far too dangerous to stay by my side!”

”Danger? Danger is the one thing I’m not afraid of! If someone tries to kill you, I’ll just stay far away! And if they target me instead, I’ll be sure to explain things to them clearly!” Su Qianqian declared with a self-righteous air.

Anyone who didn’t know better might have thought she was making a noble pledge to help Xu Luo. To say something so self-serving with such conviction… well, one had to admit, Miss Su was truly one of a kind.

”Fine, then. But when the time comes, if you get dragged into my mess, don’t you dare blame me,” Xu Luo replied with a grave expression. Seeing Su Qianqian’s smug look, Xu Luo nearly burst out laughing.

’This girl is obviously incredibly proud,’ Xu Luo thought. ’Once she’s with me, how could she possibly tolerate being provoked? With her power… where else could I find a free bodyguard like her?’

As for what sect or family Su Qianqian belonged to, Xu Luo didn’t care. Any power capable of cultivating such a young expert was definitely not one to be trifled with!

”Don’t you worry. If I really get dragged into your mess, I absolutely won’t blame you!” Su Qianqian said, looking at Xu Luo while sneering inwardly, ’If you dare drag me down with you on purpose, I’ll deal with you first!’

”Oh, right! You still haven’t told me your name!” Su Qianqian suddenly realized. The guy in front of her hadn’t even introduced himself.

”Xu Luo.”

”Xu Luo? Not a bad name. It’s alright, I guess. Not as good as mine, though!” Su Qianqian said with a smug look. ”Can we leave this place now?”

”Not yet. I have to wait for my companion,” Xu Luo said, shaking his head.

”That cat?” Su Qianqian asked, looking at Xu Luo. ”That cat of yours is surprisingly strong!”

”He’s not a cat,” Xu Luo said, giving Su Qianqian a weary look.

”Of course I know he’s not a cat. Do you think I’m that ignorant?” Su Qianqian rolled her eyes. ”He’s just a Spirit Beast that happens to look like one.”

Seeing that Su Qianqian didn’t press him about Master Mao’s true identity, Xu Luo breathed a sigh of relief. His main concern right now was Master Mao’s safety. Although Xu Su was in that strange pocket dimension, he was probably fine.

Master Mao, on the other hand, was being relentlessly pursued by that crazed old man; he wasn’t sure if the cat had managed to escape.

Just as he was thinking this, a faint shadow flashed across the distant horizon, shooting toward them like a bolt of lightning.

”Your cat is pretty impressive! He actually managed to shake off that wretched old man!” Su Qianqian said, surprised.

”AAAAAH! You brat! You bastard! You made Master Mao face that terrifying old monster all by myself, while you hid here flirting with some little broad! This is outrageous! AAAAAAAH!”

Master Mao’s disgruntled roar echoed from the distance.

Su Qianqian’s eyebrow twitched, and her cheeks flushed pink. ”Who’s flirting, you stupid cat?” she snapped, a mix of anger and embarrassment in her voice.

”Well, well, well, this little broad is surprisingly bashful, isn’t she? Not like all the other girls you used to hang around with!” Master Mao said mischievously.

Even though there was nothing going on between her and Xu Luo, Master Mao’s teasing stirred a flicker of resentment deep inside Su Qianqian. She shot Xu Luo a sideways glance and sneered, ”I didn’t realize you had so many girls around you!”

”You bet! You have no idea, this little bastard is always surrounded by a sea of beauties!” Master Mao, still annoyed that Xu Luo hadn’t helped him, was now just spouting nonsense to make him look bad.

Xu Luo, however, was completely unfazed. ’Master Mao is just spouting nonsense,’ he thought, ’but even if it were true, so what? I have nothing to do with Su Qianqian. If this annoys her enough to leave, I’ll have to give Master Mao a big thank you.’

”Is that so? In that case, I’m even more eager to see for myself,” Su Qianqian said with a playful smile, her gaze flickering toward Xu Luo.

”Go get my brother out first,” Xu Luo said to Master Mao, his voice grave. ”That old man could come back at any moment.”

The thought of that terrifying, crazed old man cast a shadow over Master Mao’s heart. He nodded, and his body abruptly vanished into thin air.

”Huh? Where did he go?” Su Qianqian looked at Xu Luo in astonishment. After a moment of thought, her eyes lit up. ”Don’t tell me… you’ve completely mastered these Ancient Ruins?”

”If we’d really mastered these Ancient Ruins, would we have needed to flee just now?” Xu Luo asked, giving Su Qianqian a weary look. ’This woman is too clever,’ he thought. ’I’ll have to be more careful what I say around her from now on.’

A moment later, Master Mao and Xu Su appeared out of thin air. Su Qianqian watched with keen interest, her eyes sparkling, but she said nothing.

When Xu Su appeared, he was slightly taken aback to see such a pure and beautiful young woman standing next to his younger brother.

”Brother, this is… Su Qianqian, Miss Su,” Xu Luo said, then turned to her. ”This is my older brother, Xu Su.”

”Hello,” Su Qianqian said, nodding at Xu Su in greeting.

Xu Luo quickly explained what had happened to Xu Su, who couldn’t help but sigh. ”It’s a good thing I didn’t come out. I would have just been a burden.”

Xu Luo said earnestly, ”Don’t give up, Brother. One day, you’ll become a true expert!”

”Mm, I believe that day will come!” At his core, Xu Su was a determined person. For someone born in the secular world to possess such strength at his age was already an extraordinary achievement.

It was just that his achievements paled in comparison to his suddenly ascendant younger brother. But Xu Su wasn’t discouraged. He was mostly happy for Xu Luo and wasn’t upset about being surpassed by his brother.

Su Qianqian followed the brothers Xu Luo and Xu Su out of the Great Marsh. Along the way, she was like an innocent child, full of questions about everything.

Eventually, Su Qianqian came to believe that the Xu brothers were indeed from the secular world, but many questions still lingered in her mind.

For instance, how could people born in the secular world, who had never joined a sect, possess such immense power? And what was the deal with that powerful, cat-like Spirit Beast that spent all day perched on Xu Luo’s shoulder bickering with him, yet clearly shared an incredibly close bond with him?

People from the sects had failed to contest an Ancient Ruins against these two young men from the secular world. Su Qianqian would never believe they didn’t have any secrets.

She had lived within her family her whole life and had almost never seen the outside world. She had no idea what this sort of curiosity toward Xu Luo might mean for a young woman.

In any case, Su Qianqian found herself enjoying this time immensely. Her daily squabbles with Xu Luo and Master Mao had become her favorite pastime.

From Su Qianqian, Xu Luo also learned many secrets about the Hidden Sects and their families.

”Most of the major sects have ancient histories,” Su Qianqian explained. ”The youngest of them probably have legacies stretching back several thousand years, far longer than any secular nation. Because of this, these sects have all developed their own complete systems for development and management. They are self-contained, isolated from the world…”

”Isolated from the world? I’ve seen plenty of sects that are deeply involved with the secular world!” Xu Luo said. ”The ones I know of all have ties to it. They need to earn money from the secular world for their food, clothing, and other expenses…”

”Heh. The ones you’re talking about aren’t truly powerful sects. They’re merely their peripheral forces,” Su Qianqian said with a dismissive air. ”The *real* Hidden Sects are almost completely cut off from the secular world. A disciple might enter the world as part of their training, but they would never readily reveal their identity! Moreover, the truly powerful sects share one other distinct characteristic: while they might approach or avoid certain people based on personal preference, they… will never interfere in major secular events!”

”So according to you, only a sect that’s completely cut off from the world can be considered a true sect?” Xu Luo looked at Su Qianqian. ”But what’s the point of being completely isolated?”

A smile flashed in Su Qianqian’s eyes. ”Now I finally believe you have nothing to do with any sect,” she said softly. ”Let me explain it this way: you were born in the secular world, so you should know what it is that secular people pursue, right?”

Xu Luo answered, ”Nothing more than fame and fortune.”

”Mm, that’s right. Chasing fame and fortune is just human nature,” Su Qianqian said with a nod.