Chapter 30

It wasn't surprising that Zihuan Zhenjun hesitated, for the Dao-Union ancient demon had gone from screaming to complete silence in just a few seconds.

This was a Dao-Union cultivator—one of the pillars even within the Xian Sect.

At this moment, Zihuan Zhenjun suddenly recalled the words Zhenjun Zixuan had urged him with, words he had originally dismissed.

Could this returned ancient cultivator truly be one of the Four Elders of the Sword Sect—or some elder of the Supreme Level? But if he were truly such a being, how could the Dao-Union demon have escaped him? Still, he must go and see.

A faint purple glow flashed, and Zihuan Zhenjun vanished from above the clouds.

I followed the rules— even if he truly were such a sword cultivator elder, would he dare lay a hand on me?

From the Xuan Yue Tower, the young master and his two subordinates stepped out the door.

They were about to turn themselves in; what they had done wasn't truly serious—worst case, they'd be thrown in prison.

And with voluntary surrender, they might even get a few days off their sentence.

Sigh~ I hope after getting out of Silutang's prison, I'll be luckier.

"Three demon brats—you managed to slip past me before."

Amid a faint streak of purple qi, Zihuan Zhenjun's figure materialized.

No way? Again?!

Is this ever going to end?!

The young master screamed inwardly, but his movements were swift—he didn't care who was watching.

Thud! As he dropped to his knees, he blurted out: "Elder, spare my life! We three have already been taught a lesson—we're just now heading to Silutang to surrender!"

Already been taught a lesson? Zihuan Zhenjun's heart stirred: "Who did you encounter before?"

"It was…" The young master opened his mouth, but his mind went utterly blank.

All he remembered were two indistinct silhouettes—he couldn't recall who they were or what had happened at all.

"I don't remember."

Hmm? Vast spiritual power coalesced into fine threads, piercing directly into the three men's souls to search their memories.

After searching, he found only scattered fragments: fabricated soul cultivation, resentment-forged swords, and other random detritus—but none of the scenes he truly wanted to see.

Their memories were damaged.

"You may go."

Though these three were from the demonic path, they had not yet committed any heinous acts; Zihuan Zhenjun had no intention of tormenting three Nascent Soul juniors.

After the three left, Zihuan Zhenjun stepped forward, and as a purple glow flared, he entered the vast underground laboratory beneath the Xuan Yue Tower.

…………

Minutes later, Zihuan Zhenjun returned to the surface empty-handed, turning into a streak of purple light that shot toward the horizon.

Meanwhile, within the school.

Zhang Yunlu finally faced her next opponent—Fang Lin, holding a black battle blade.

"I admit I underestimated you before—you're certainly not like those fragile students, as defenseless as lambs."

His voice carried loud enough that many students heard it and glared at him angrily.

Fang Lin drew his battle blade and tossed the scabbard straight off the arena—the pitch-black blade looked unnaturally heavy.

"So, I'll defeat you with my full strength."

Zhang Yunlu blinked, puzzled: Why was this guy saying such bizarre things right off the bat? "So much nonsense—if it were me, I'd just swing right away!" muttered Chi Jiuyu from the spectator seats.

Threatening before even winning? Either he's got a screw loose, or he can't see his own limits.

"Almost forgot!" She slapped her forehead and quickly pulled out her phone.

【You have 5 unread messages】

The sender was "My Most Revered Master," who had just been set to silent mode, so she hadn't heard.

"How did you run into another Dao-Union again?"

"Your uncle should've noticed—wait right where you are."

The next message came half a minute later.

"How's it going? Has your uncle arrived yet?"

"Reply immediately!"

"/angry"

Chi Jiuyu: "..."

Why don't you care about me like this normally? "Uncle, doesn't my master know what's happening here?"

"Yes, my current state is unusual—so your sister can't divine my position, and it's affecting you too."

Oh!!

So that's why.

Chi Jiuyu's eyes lit up—no wonder her master kept sending messages.

This was a rare opportunity—she quickly typed.

"I'm still being chased, Master."

The moment she sent it, an immediate reply came back.

"Bullshit! Can those two trashlings really chase you? And since I can't see your situation, your uncle must be right beside you—how dare you lie to me? You're asking for a beating."

Her typing speed was terrifying.

Ah... this this this!

She'd been exposed instantly—her scalp prickled. Her master meant it when she said she'd hit her. She should never have played around like this.

"I'll speak to your sister." Xu Xing took the phone from her hand. "Just watch the test."

"I was just joking, Uncle—you've got to explain this to my master!"

"Don't worry about it."

I'll definitely tell her, but whether she listens is another matter entirely.

And upon hearing Xu Xing agree, Chi Jiuyu finally felt a little more at ease.

Looking up toward the central arena, Zhang Yunlu had already engaged Fang Lin in combat.

Because of those words Fang Lin had said at the start, she was still being very cautious, but after testing him with two moves she discovered… he seemed to be just so-so? Compared to the previous challengers, he was naturally a bit stronger, and his bladework was rather fierce, but compared to the phantom in that trial it wasn't even worth comparing! Emm…

Enough, better knock him down quickly. If she dragged this out any longer, this arena was bound to give some nasty evaluation.

This sweet-tongued arena—Zhang Yunlu really couldn't bring herself to trust it.

"As expected, you're different from those others! But it ends here!" Fang Lin growled.

He was seen slightly bending forward, gripping his blade with both hands.

Step— Slash! A streak of Bai Mang shot from the blade's edge, charging straight toward Zhang Yunlu.

Blade-light! From childhood to now, he had always been first.

On the Starry Sky Battlefield, he had famous masters to teach him, could still hunt and slaughter captured alien-star creatures to train his bladework, and was never short on all manner of pills!

This time too, he should be first!

This Zhang Yunlu was nothing more than a stepping stone for him to climb higher!

Watching the incoming blade-light, Zhang Yunlu tilted her body slightly, dodging it in an extremely close-call fashion.

"It's not over yet!"

Another two streaks of blade-light tore through the air!

Three streaks of blade-light—bladework at minor completion! Fang Lin's figure rushed toward Zhang Yunlu along with those two streaks of blade-light, clearly intending to decide the victor with this one strike.

Zhang Yunlu neither dodged nor evaded, raising her sword to meet it head-on; the sword body vanished the instant it was swung.

By the time it reappeared, two streaks of sword-light collided with the blade-light and dissolved into nothingness, while the remaining five streaks of sword-light shot straight toward Fang Lin.

Seven streaks of sword-light—swordsmanship at perfection! This was an all-out strike. In the trial she had died several times because of carelessness, so she knew very well that holding back was being irresponsible with her own life!

The sword-light drew closer and closer; Fang Lin could no longer dodge.

Soon, white light flared in his vision. By the time his sight recovered, he found himself already standing outside the arena.

He lost?

Fang Lin's expression was somewhat dazed.

In the spectator stands, Chi Jiuyu yawned.

That swordsmanship really isn't bad, quite insidious—especially that sudden vanishing move.

【Arena Defender, Evaluated as Excellent】

That really is simple—is it because you've said it too many times and run out of words? 【Challenger, Piled with resources yet smug over a minor-completion blade art—truly a frog at the bottom of a well, a clown leaping on the beam】

This time the scolding wasn't actually too excessive, after all his performance was indeed a bit better than the others.

Fang Lin listened in a daze. After quite a while he slowly stepped forward, retrieved his scabbard, then silently retreated back.

Begging for favorites, begging to follow!! (End of chapter)