Chapter 92: 88 The Agreement (Bonus Chapter for 500 Subscriptions)

88 The Agreement (Bonus Chapter for 500 Subscriptions)

It was noon, and the Sunlight shone through the half-open window into the study, plating the young man lying by the window in a thin layer of gold.

Under the golden light, the young man's features became soft and warm, his brows relaxed, and the cold, stern aura that never left him dissipated.

"Teacher Si, good noon." Tang Zhao entered with a meal, breaking the quiet of the midday.

Si Liyu lifted his eyelids slightly and gave a hum.

The noon hour was when the Sword Seed's torture was at its lightest, allowing nerves tightened all day to relax slightly; even Si Liyu, who always believed in "seizing the day," could not help but greedily enjoy a moment of ease at this time.

Si Liyu had not expected that his most leisurely moments in several years would be stolen from the days of greatest torture.

Tang Zhao quickly laid out the food, which was quite rich with chicken, duck, fish, and meat. Only at this noon meal did Si Liyu have the heart to taste the flavor; morning and evening, he could only eat liquid food to stave off hunger. Tang Zhao asked if he needed wine, as being drunk could reduce the pain, but Si Liyu refused, saying, "I would rather suffer the pain of bone-scraping than lose control."

"Zhaozi, it is already the third day. My agreement with the Town Guardian is for tonight. Are you ready?" Si Liyu stopped after taking a few bites; although he could eat now, his appetite was never good due to the morning and evening torture.

Tang Zhao said, "I suppose one can never truly say they are ready. But it feels much better than before. The Xiezhi Sword is very powerful, far stronger than an Art Tool. Using it more, I feel exceptionally strong."

Si Liyu said, "How can they be compared? The Xiezhi Sword is the sword of the Judge, and it is second to none even in my Land Inspection Department. If you can exert half the level the Judge had before, you should be no less than..."

He stopped halfway, but Tang Zhao guessed he was talking about Xing Ji.

He did not know if it was his imagination, but he had always felt that Si Liyu did not truly respect Xing Ji.

Tang Zhao asked, "Did you also once follow the Judge?"

Si Liyu said, "I did not have that fortune. I was too young when the Judge was still here; I only heard of his deeds in the Training Camp. But I admire him most in my heart. I joined the Land Inspection Department wanting to become a person like him. Just and selfless, clear and distinct, neither playing games nor compromising, like the red sun Shine, like a towering high mountain."

This time Tang Zhao was certain: Si Liyu really did not respect Xing Ji much.

Si Liyu sighed, "It is a pity that I saw blood in the Training Camp and never had the chance to become a Sword Envoy. I hear that when a Sword Envoy uses the Authority Sword to the extreme, they can even manifest the Phantom of the Sword Guest from before their death. I wonder if I will have the fortune to see him today?"

Tang Zhao said, "I don't know. I haven't fully activated the Authority Sword yet. This sword needs righteous indignation to be triggered; it is hard to be fully invested when there is no enemy in front of me. Perhaps I can do it once I enter the Demon Cave? I also want to see the Judge." He shook his head and smiled, "I am almost looking forward to the Demon Cave descending to end this month of preparation."

This month had been too long, and there were too many things to do. Amidst his tension, there was the exhaustion of being at the end of his rope; he truly wanted to cross this hurdle and start a new life again.

Si Liyu nodded and said, "That is the spirit. It is a pity that I have damaged my vitality this time and cannot use a Dharma Artifact on the battlefield. The Town Guardian told me that I will not be arranged on the front line this time. I will follow the formation with an Art Tool and fight as the situation dictates. When we enter the Demon Cave, stay by my side; I will protect you while you kill a couple of Phantom Fierce Beasts to practice."

Tang Zhao thought: With that Dharma Artifact of yours that uses blood-bursting? Better not to use it. He said, "Good. I will follow you, this veteran. How many times have you entered the Demon Cave? What is it like inside?"

Si Liyu said, "This is my first time entering."

Seeing Tang Zhao's expression, Si Liyu said, "But I was in the reserve camp and have served on the periphery during several Demon Cave battles. I have seen Heavenly Demons and killed Phantoms."

Of course, he would not say that the first time he killed a Phantom was the time Tang Zhao saw him kill the Beast Charm on the spider's back.

But it was true that he had seen a Heavenly Demon.

Tang Zhao nodded and said, "You have seen a Heavenly Demon? What does it look like?"

The records also wrote about Heavenly Demons, but it always boiled down to one phrase: they are ever-changing and take all kinds of forms, mostly bizarre, leaving people confused.

Si Liyu recalled, "I saw one that looked like a mountain, covered in eyes. Its Eye Beads would burst out. Once, an Eye Bead fell in front of me; it was as big as a human head and could jump around on its own. I wanted to stab it to death, but a brother beside me was faster and poked it until it burst. He was splashed with mucus and poisoned, falling unconscious on the spot. Later, the Town Guardian killed the Heavenly Demon, and the poison was neutralized, so he was fine, except his eyes couldn't see clearly for several months."

Tang Zhao imagined the scene and couldn't help but feel his hair stand on end.

Si Liyu said, "You don't need to worry about not being able to distinguish a Heavenly Demon. In that kind of small Demon Cave, there is only one Heavenly Demon, and they are very large and conspicuous, with strength at least at the Sword Guest level. The rest are servant Phantoms, and even lower are Fierce Beasts and baleful energy. Generally, the Heavenly Demon is for the Town Guardian to deal with; as a Sword Envoy, your strength is qualified. At that time, the Town Guardian might ask you to join the group battle against the Heavenly Demon; try to see if you can land the final blow—the Town Guardian won't mind. If you truly achieve the first merit, your future... your future will be limitless."

As he spoke, his complexion changed again, and his voice became hoarse; clearly, the Sword Seed was torturing him again.

Tang Zhao hurried forward to support him and pressed several of his acupoints. These acupoints were for numbing nerves and had a slight pain-relieving effect.

Si Liyu shook his head and said, "I am fine. There is only half a day left."

Tang Zhao sighed, "Why don't you just sleep for half a day? I will wake you when the time for the agreement comes."

Si Liyu shook his head and said, "The Sunlight is so good; I want to bask in it."

He sat back by the window, enjoying the warmth amidst the pain.

Tang Zhao sat beside him and said, "Creating a Sword Slave, letting a living person suffer such torture—that can be considered utterly devoid of conscience, right? What kind of heaven-defying benefit can it possibly produce to make those people keep on tormenting others?"

Si Liyu closed his eyes slightly and said, "Sword Slave... I heard that at first, they weren't called Sword Slaves. Initially, putting a Sword Seed into the body was to avoid Heavenly Demons. At that time, the fighting on the front line was bitter, and Sword Guests were rare; every Sword Seed was precious. But if a Sword Seed leaked even a little bit of aura, it would attract the covetousness of Heavenly Demons. Loyal and righteous people, in order to escort the Sword Seed back to the Sword Smith, would voluntarily hide the Sword Seed in their Soul and isolate the Heavenly Demon's gaze, sacrificing themselves for it. So at that time, it was respectfully called a sacrifice."

"Later, as it was passed down, it was changed to 'Sword Livestock,' and then later, I don't know where the association with 'beast' came from, and then it was associated with the slaves of the ancients, and finally, it was called Sword Slave."

The more Tang Zhao heard, the angrier he became, saying, "It was clearly a noble act, and now it has become a derogatory term. What kind of bullshit logic is this?!"

Si Liyu curled his lip; he had no strength to be angry, but he was also disdainful, saying, "Later, Strange Stones were discovered that could mask the aura, so sacrifices were no longer needed. But I don't know which Sword Smith discovered that after taking the Sword Seed out of the Soul, it would become purer. Especially the swords of deceased Sword Guests; the earlier Sword Images and Sword Arts had residues, and the personal traces were too heavy, which was disadvantageous for future Sword Guests. Originally, many methods were needed to remove them, but later it was found that one only needed to pass through a person's Inspiration to wash it clean, so they began to intentionally create Sword Slaves."

"Later, it became more and more crazy. They discovered that besides washing the Sword Seed, Inspiration could also wash materials collected from outside the territory or from Demon Caves, washing away the baleful Shadow energy and making the material quality better. There is even a special term for it, called... Soul-Refining Material. Developing to the end, every material had to be put into a Sword Slave's body to be washed."

Tang Zhao said, "Are not all Sword Slaves invaded by a Sword Seed?"

Si Liyu hummed, "Where would there be so many Sword Seeds? And where would there be such suitable Sword Slaves? Those children who are sold in large numbers mostly only have a little bit of Inspiration; let alone being a Sword Guest, even holding a Heavy Art Tool is a struggle. They simply cannot withstand a Sword Seed. At least one needs the bearing of a Sword Guest, like you and me, to be a Sword Slave for a Sword Seed. If it is just to wash some baleful materials, it might not be as painful, and there are some forced methods to take the materials out and leave a life, but it is still very bad because it hurts the Inspiration. Many children who became Sword Slaves not only had their bodies broken but also had their Inspiration ground away, becoming mediocre."

Tang Zhao was shocked and angry as he listened, and immediately asked, "Then you..."

Si Liyu said, "I am fine; the Sword Seed actually doesn't hurt the Inspiration. Perhaps because the Sword Seed is nurtured by heaven and earth, not an invasion from outside the territory, it adapts to the human Soul. It is just that grinding with the Sword Seed for a long time makes it very easy to shift the direction of one's Inspiration. So, Sword Slaves who can hold on have a chance to become Sword Guests—not because the Sword Seed happened to be suitable for them, but because they eventually accommodated the Sword Seed."

"Actually, whether it is grinding away the traces of the Sword Seed or washing baleful materials, Sword Smiths later had other methods of Sword Washing, and some were even more effective. But because using a Sword Slave has the lowest cost, many people won't let go, and I don't know how many precious Sword Guest seedlings have been wasted. It is clearly destroying natural resources and harming our own foundation. Later, the Sword Heroes of this dynasty came forward, the State Preceptor presided, and they signed an agreement with a group of Sword Smiths to completely abolish Sword Slaves, with death for violators. Those who refused to enter the righteous path all fled into Wangliang Mountain, continuing their shameless deeds under the protection of Wangliang."

Tang Zhao gritted his teeth and said, "Truly heinous and extremely sinful. Why not flatten Wangliang Mountain?"

Si Liyu said, "There have been several expeditions, but firstly, Wangliang is indeed powerful. Secondly... you also understand, our side is not united, and there are always people who do not wish for Wangliang Mountain to be destroyed, secretly causing trouble. One way or another, it always ends in nothing. The Commander has also said that the court is not peaceful, and Wangliang Mountain cannot be flattened. But I believe there will always be a day of Clearing Clouds to See the Sun. We and Wangliang Mountain will have a decisive battle sooner or later. That ghostly place has more than just Sword Slaves; it has all kinds of monsters and ghosts—it is the deepest darkness of the Human World. One day, we must let the sun rise over Wangliang Mountain and drive away all the Shadow."

He smiled slightly and said, "By then, you might already be a Sword Guest and can be a combat force."

Tang Zhao said, "Yes. By then, you will also be a Sword Guest, and we can still fight side by side."

As people who had both been tortured by a Sword Seed, the two had long since developed a sense of shared hatred for the enemy. After setting the agreement to fight side by side in their words, they both felt their blood boiling.

The lunch was finished in a hurry, Si Liyu went back to meditate, and Tang Zhao continued to practice his sword.

The third day's sun hurried down the mountain.

The time had finally arrived.

The time for the Demon Cave to descend was calculated; only by releasing the Sword Seed at the right moment could the advantage be fully utilized. Tang Zhao certainly did not understand the detailed algorithm; he just followed the plan.

Si Liyu fell asleep in advance; this was Tang Zhao's request. He hoped Si Liyu would have no consciousness when the Sword Seed was taken.

"This Sword Seed is for you..."

At the moment of taking out the Sword Seed with practiced ease, that sense of crisis that made one's hair stand on end appeared again!

Tang Zhao quickly placed the sword seed into the box made of Strange Stone, tied it to an arrow, pushed open the window, and shot the arrow out into mid-air.

The arrow was a fire arrow, carving a dazzling arc through the dark night.

Countless gazes focused at this very instant.

Including that one in the sky!

"That's it, Teacher Si, let's bolt—" Tang Zhao blurted out a piece of underworld slang, and carrying Si Liyu on his back, he ran down toward the rockery.

Just as they reached the bottom of the hill, he felt wisps of cold air drifting in from somewhere unknown; this aura is generally called—

Yin energy!

Looking up, besides the bright moon, there was another cyan-white halo of light in the sky.

Calamity Moon!

The Demon Cave was about to descend!