Firmament Sword

”Well said…” the virile young man praised. Then, he raised his head, looked at Tang Xiao, and said coldly, ”But this… is not Celestial Brilliance!”

”This is Qingchuan Ancient City!”

”Didn’t your sect elders tell you before you came here not to cause trouble… in Qingchuan Ancient City?”

”Confidence… is a good thing. And pride… isn’t necessarily a pejorative term.”

”But I just want to say one thing. You Heavenly Brilliance Disciples… are you truly fearless? Do you truly maintain the dignity of a Supreme Great Sect disciple at all times?”

Tang Xiao smiled faintly and said, ”Heavenly Brilliance Disciples don’t even fear death. What else is there to be afraid of?”

”Hahaha, not fearing death… That’s the funniest joke I’ve heard in my entire life!” The young man’s virile aura intensified as he sneered, ”Unfortunately for you, I *do* fear death. Since I was a child, the thing I’ve feared most is dying!”

”Because when you’re alive, you can witness so many wonderful things and enjoy the splendors of the world. Only by living… can you have anything.”

”Once you’re dead… there’s nothing left!”

”Even if your death is incredibly noble, it’s still meaningless in my eyes. Because the world after death… is a void!”

”That’s why I’ve always had the most admiration for people like you who don’t fear death!”

As the young man spoke, he clapped his hands. A figure flew in silently, landing beside him.

It was an old man with a well-proportioned figure and a scholarly appearance. He looked to be in his fifties, but his eyes were filled with the vicissitudes of time, as profound as if they contained the stars of the cosmos.

The moment this old man appeared, the young man and the other two elders all bowed to him in salute.

”Greetings, Old Ancestor!”

”Your subordinate greets the Old Ancestor!”

The burly man with the bushy beard, who had collapsed on the floor, now knelt. ”Your slave kowtows to the Old Ancestor!”

THUD! THUD! THUD!

His head slammed against the restaurant floor, making echoing thuds.

The scholarly old man showed little expression. He looked at Tang Xiao and the others, his gaze finally landing on Xu Luo, who remained seated. He said faintly, ”Young man, this is Qingchuan Ancient City. Don’t be so impetuous. It would be in your best interest to restrain yourself.”

”Old Sir, are you trying to teach us how to conduct ourselves?” Xu Luo remained seated with a smile, showing no signs of tension at the old man’s appearance.

”Indeed. This old man has lived a few more years, so I’ll pull rank and say a few words. I trust a young man like you will have the patience to hear me out, won’t you?” the scholarly old man said calmly, not taking offense.

”Then please speak. I’m listening,” Xu Luo said.

”Although you are from Celestial Brilliance, and Celestial Brilliance is a Supreme Great Sect in this Xi Hezhou, there are always recluses in this world. They don’t like to show off, but they possess terrifying strength,” the old man said.

Xu Luo smiled and asked, ”Does that include you, Senior?”

”How insolent!” One of the two elders, angered by Xu Luo’s persistently sarcastic tone, roared at him.

”The adults are talking. What business is it of yours?” Xu Luo’s eyes flashed as he rebuked him harshly.

”You…” The elder was furious, pointing at Xu Luo, his beard trembling with rage.

The scholarly old man gave a soft cough, and the other elder immediately fell silent.

The scholarly old man smiled. ”Seeing you reminds me of myself back in the day. Alas… the years of my youth are gone, never to return.”

Xu Luo chuckled. ”That’s why I must indulge in the wild madness of youth.”

The scholarly old man was taken aback for a moment. He suddenly had a feeling that this young man’s words… made… a whole lot of fucking sense!

He couldn’t help but mutter, ”Why didn’t I think like that when I was young? Instead, as I got older… I kept forcing myself to be low-key and reserved, and in the end, I just became an unhappy person.”

Xu Luo said, ”Exactly. When you’re alive, you should live spontaneously. Why are there so many rules, so many principles? Who made these rules? And who are they for?”

The scholarly old man slapped his thigh as if he had found a kindred spirit. ”That’s right! Goddammit, who made the rules? And who are they for? Hearing you say that is so damn satisfying!”

”So, a senior like yourself should be roaming the Jianghu with a sword, settling grudges with pleasure, and drawing your blade at the sight of injustice! How can you let some worthless juniors destroy your convictions, destroy the faith you’ve held your entire life?”

Xu Luo said with a smile, ”Look, what kind of thing is your junior’s slave? I feel embarrassed just looking at him! He has a dignified appearance and a virile air, yet there he is, kowtowing like a spineless worm! What a waste of that big beard! He’s just a piece of trash! Senior… are you really going to stand up for someone like that?”

A flicker of hesitation crossed the scholarly old man’s profound eyes. Then, he laughed heartily. ”Young man, you’re right! This old man has learned his lesson!”

Everyone was dumbfounded, completely stunned. This was especially true for the scholarly old man’s descendant… the virile young man, who stood there, frozen like a wooden chicken. He wanted to say something but didn’t dare. He was utterly bewildered, unable to understand why such a bizarre thing was suddenly happening.

’The Old Ancestor seems clear-headed and lucid, not at all like he’s being controlled. And that seated Heavenly Brilliance Disciple couldn’t possibly have the power to control the Old Ancestor’s mind!’

’Didn’t we agree on this beforehand? We were supposed to embarrass these Heavenly Brilliance Disciples and slap them in the face, and in return, the Jin Family promised our family huge benefits… Why did everything suddenly change?’

The young man was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, but the problem, of all things, lay with his own Old Ancestor.

Ming Youyue and the others were also completely bewildered. Just moments ago, this scholarly old man had been saying: ’This old man has lived a few more years, so I’ll pull rank and say a few words. I trust a young man like you will have the patience to hear me out, won’t you…’

How had it turned into Senior Brother Luo Tian speaking while the old man listened like a little child?

Although what Senior Brother Luo Tian said seemed to make some sense, it wasn’t so profound that this scholarly old man should adopt it as his life’s creed, was it?

’What… What in the world is going on?’

Just then, a shocking scene unfolded. The scholarly old man turned around and slapped the head of the kowtowing man with the bushy beard.

CRACK!

The bearded man’s head… exploded like a rotten watermelon, his brains splattering everywhere!

He didn’t even have time to make a sound before he collapsed to the ground, dead.

Then, the old man glared at the young man and the two stunned elders, roaring, ”In this life, whatever you do, you must be true to your own heart! Am I, your ancestor, someone who can be bought with such paltry benefits? You worthless juniors, if you’re going to be failures, don’t drag me down with you to share the disgrace!”

With that, the old man flickered and vanished into thin air, leaving behind a corpse and three people staring at each other in dismay.

The restaurant’s waiter had been completely terrified. He had just come to his senses when he saw the corpse with its shattered head. He let out a gasp and fainted again.

Over here, Yu Tianying and the others all stared at Xu Luo, undisguised shock in their eyes.

Those who had previously crossed swords with Xu Luo felt a chill run down their spines. A sense of relief even washed over them. ’Thank goodness… we’re fellow disciples. He wouldn’t use such methods on us.’

These Heavenly Brilliance Disciples might be inexperienced in the ways of the world, but every one of them was a true genius—a top-tier genius!

If they still couldn’t tell that Luo Tian had used some kind of trick by now, they wouldn’t deserve to be called the top geniuses of Xi Hezhou.

The virile young man had lost his virile aura; his spirit had wilted. The two elders were in a similar state. To this moment, they still hadn’t figured out what had just happened.

’Everything was going fine. Why did it all suddenly change?’

Xu Luo remained seated and spoke faintly, looking at the young man. ”What are you still standing there for? Take that corpse with you. It’s ruining my appetite.”

BLEGH!

Beside him, Ming Youyue let out a dry heave, nearly vomiting. She shot Xu Luo a fierce glare.

’After all this, you still have the nerve to even mention appetite… Are you even human?!’

It wasn’t that they hadn’t seen life-or-death battles in Celestial Brilliance, but seeing a vibrant life extinguished right before their eyes was still a huge shock to these young people who had rarely ventured outside the sect.

Forget Ming Youyue; even Yu Tianying, Yu Tianjie, and the others had lost their appetite for food. Hearing Xu Luo’s words, they couldn’t help but look at him with a newfound sense of admiration.

Zhong Jiuyan said in a low voice, ”As expected of our captain. I’m impressed!”

Xu Luo shook his head. ”This is nothing. If you’d ever experienced a scene of corpse mountains and blood seas, if you’d ever eaten while sitting on your enemy’s corpse, you’d understand that this is just a trivial matter.”

UGH!

The image flooded Ming Youyue’s mind, and she couldn’t help but gag again. She glared at Xu Luo angrily. ”Can you just stop talking?!”

Xu Luo grinned, baring his teeth. ”Alright, I’ll stop. Let’s eat then!”

”…” Everyone was speechless.

Including the young man and the two elders across from them.

Tang Xiao fought back his nausea and glared at the young man. ”Aren’t you going to get lost?! Or do you think not enough people have died?”

The young man finally snapped out of it, realizing the situation was beyond repair. He grabbed the corpse of the bearded man his own Old Ancestor had killed and scrambled out of the restaurant in a few quick movements.

On the floor, only a pool of blood remained—red and white… mixed together, a shocking sight to behold.

Tang Xiao took a deep breath, pursed his lips, and tried to convince himself: ’It’s nothing! It’s nothing! It’s just one dead person. Master Tang will have to kill plenty of enemies with his own hands in the future!’

Then, finally unable to contain his curiosity, he looked at Xu Luo and asked, ”Captain, Senior Brother… how on earth did you do that?”

The others also looked at Xu Luo with curiosity. That scene just now had been truly unbelievable to them.

Although the scholarly old man hadn’t unleashed his aura, he was clearly a great power of the Venerable Realm.

He might even be beyond an Initial Tier Ultimate Venerable.

How could such a powerful expert be swayed by just a few words from their Senior Brother? It was simply too bizarre!

Xu Luo chuckled. ”I call it persuasive education.”