Ling Tian Sword God

”Damn it! Could it be a remnant of the Qingcheng Palace?” Tang Long’s expression turned extremely grim. He then shook his head, dismissing his own speculation. ”The entire Qingcheng Palace was exterminated. It’s too coincidental that a surviving Expert would return at this exact moment.”

Thinking this, his eyes suddenly lit up, and an immense hatred surged through him. ”I understand now! It must be the work of those two! They deliberately lured us away, leaving our base unguarded, and seized the opportunity to abduct Luo Xian’er! Those damn barbarians!”

”But they are just barbarians. Why would they oppose Our Tang Sect?” the woman in black asked, rather puzzled.

Tang Long gritted his teeth in anger. ”Our interrogation of Luo Xian’er must have been overheard by their Puppets! Those two must have gotten greedy. Damn it! We need to return to the Tang Sect quickly and report this to the Elders!”

”Yes!” The woman in black and the others nodded in agreement.

At this point, regardless of whether Ling Chen was responsible, they had no choice but to pin the blame on him. If they admitted they didn’t even know who had taken Luo Xian’er, they would undoubtedly face an even more severe punishment.

「...」

Ling Chen and Ling Yin had already left the territory of Qingcheng Palace and found refuge on a small mountain.

”I didn’t expect we’d offend a power like the Tang Sect right after arriving,” Ling Chen said. ”It seems we’ll have to leave this place as soon as possible. It would be troublesome if we’re targeted by people from the Tang Sect.”

Although Tang Long and his group aren’t particularly formidable, there’s no guarantee they won’t call upon relatives or friends. We’re outnumbered and can’t afford to get bogged down with them.

”Indeed, we’ve really angered them this time.” Ling Yin nodded emphatically, her head bobbing like a sieve, a sly look appearing on her pretty face. ”I bet Tang Long is cursing our ancestors for eighteen generations right now.”

”I spared his life, though,” Ling Chen said, looking a bit surprised as he pondered. ”Although we’ve made an enemy of him, I don’t think it’s reached the point of a fight to the death yet, has it?”

”Oh no, no, no,” Ling Yin shook her head, her tone firm. ”It’s definitely a fight to the death now.”

”Why?” Ling Chen was very perplexed. He was even more puzzled by Ling Yin’s certainty; it seemed this young lady was hiding something from him.

”Because I secretly brought someone out with us.” Ling Yin adopted a mysterious expression. She then clapped her hands. The next moment, two figures emerged from behind a large tree. One appeared lifeless, devoid of any Life Breath, clearly one of Ling Yin’s Puppets. The other was a young girl drenched in blood. She glanced at Ling Chen somewhat fearfully, avoiding his gaze.

”Who is this?” Ling Chen asked, looking at the blood-soaked girl before him, quite perplexed.

”Who is she?” Ling Yin whispered from the side. ”She’s Luo Xian’er, the sole survivor of Qingcheng Palace.”

”What? Luo Xian’er?” Ling Chen was astonished. Ling Yin had already told him everything the Butterfly Puppet had overheard. This Luo Xian’er was indeed the sole survivor of Qingcheng Palace and the very target Tang Long and his group sought when they annihilated the entire Sect.

”When did you...” Ling Chen paused, stunned.

Then he suddenly remembered. He had just been wondering where that coffin-carrying Puppet had gone. It turned out Ling Yin had dispatched it to secretly rescue Luo Xian’er. No wonder Ling Yin had said he and Tang Long were now mortal enemies. Their opponents had gone to great lengths and expended immense effort to wipe out Qingcheng Palace, all to find the Sword Immortal Poetry Fragment on Luo Xian’er. Yet now, Luo Xian’er had fallen into his hands. It would be truly strange if they didn’t come after him, ready to fight to the death.

”You little troublemaker, always acting on your own! I’ll be the death of me because of you one day,” Ling Chen said, his expression darkening slightly, clearly a bit annoyed.

”I just can’t stand that guy,” Ling Yin pouted, sounding entirely justified. ”Always calling people ’barbarian’ and launching sneak attacks. He deserves a taste of his own medicine. It would be best if he just dropped dead from anger!”

”I just don’t know what to do with you.” Ling Chen sighed. He didn’t actually intend to punish Ling Yin; he was just a little upset. His annoyance wasn’t because Ling Yin had brought Luo Xian’er, but because she had acted without telling him anything. This time it wasn’t a major issue, but there was no guarantee she wouldn’t stir up even bigger trouble next time.

”This Miss Luo is so pitiful,” Ling Yin argued, growing more confident as she saw Ling Chen wasn’t truly blaming her. ”Her Sect was destroyed, her entire family murdered. If Tang Long had taken her, that beast would have tormented her. Brother Ling Chen, if you had just stood by and done nothing, that wouldn’t have been very heroic of you.”

”There are countless injustices in this world,” Ling Chen said, laughing and shaking his head. ”Before meddling in other people’s affairs, you must first assess whether you have the capability. Otherwise, you’re just being reckless, not heroic.”

Not intending to argue with Ling Yin further, Ling Chen turned to Luo Xian’er. ”Miss Luo, please come over here.”

Since it was already done, there was no point in regrets. He would play the hero this time, seeing injustice and drawing his sword to help.

Only then did Luo Xian’er hesitantly approach them. She bowed to Ling Chen and Ling Yin, a grateful expression on her pretty face. ”Thank you both for saving my life. Xian’er will never forget this kindness.”

”Miss Luo, there’s no need for such politeness,” Ling Chen said, waving his hand.

Luo Xian’er’s Sect had been wiped out; talk of repaying this favor now wasn’t very realistic. Besides, he hadn’t saved her expecting any reward.

”Why did the people from the Tang Sect exterminate your Qingcheng Palace?” Ling Chen asked. ”And what is this Sword Immortal Poetry that Tang Long mentioned?”

Ling Chen still had many questions about the annihilation of Qingcheng Palace. The Tang Sect would not destroy a Martial Sect without reason, unless there was a deep-seated grudge. However, from Tang Long’s earlier words, he could infer that they hadn’t mobilized to destroy Qingcheng Palace due to some feud, but rather for the Sword Immortal Poetry Fragment. For this Sword Immortal Poetry Fragment to cause such a stir, it must be exceptionally rare.

”The Sword Immortal Poetry is a great secret circulating throughout Yi Zhou, and even the entire Nine Provinces Land,” Luo Xian’er explained, concealing nothing. Many people knew about the Sword Immortal Poetry, so it wasn’t truly a classified secret. And even if it were, there was nothing she couldn’t say now.

”Legend has it that five hundred years ago, the world-renowned Supreme Expert, Taibai Sword Immortal, left a collection of poems to posterity. These poems contain his Cultivation Technique and Sword Techniques. Consequently, the existence of this Sword Immortal Poetry has incited the greed and rivalry of people throughout the world.”

”Taibai Sword Immortal’s homeland was Yi Zhou, which is also where he passed away and, as some say, achieved his final transcendence. Therefore, it’s highly probable that the Sword Immortal Poetry originated and circulated within the Yi Zhou region.”

”I see,” Ling Chen said, finally understanding.

No wonder the Tang Sect members spared no effort, going as far as to eradicate the entire Qingcheng Palace. They were after Taibai Sword Immortal’s peerless Cultivation Technique and Sword Techniques. Even a colossal power like the Tang Sect would covet Treasures left by such Supreme Experts.