I Have A Sword

The thin old man hesitated, "Hall Master, will anyone really believe this?"

The Eighth Hall Master chuckled, "Do you know what lies are the easiest to believe? Lies that are half-truths."

"I am in utter awe of your wisdom, Hall Master!"

"Puahahaha!" The Eighth Hall Master laughed heartily. "That is such an obvious flattery."

"I'm not flattering you, Hall Master. I can see the bigger picture that you are drawing. If we make Ye Guan's background too weak, the world will think that our Evil Dao Alliance is trying to use everyone as our borrowed knives to do our dirty work. If we praise Ye Guan and make his backers appear stronger than they really are, those experts will believe that Ye Guan truly has the inheritance of a Tier Five civilization," the thin old man explained. He hesitated briefly before asking, "What if they get afraid of that lady in a plain skirt and dare not to act?"

The Eighth Hall Master sneered, "That is exactly why we must emphasize that she's severely injured and can only make a move twice every one hundred years."

"I see," the thin old man said, bowing deeply. He turned around to leave, but the Eighth Hall Master said, "Wait."

The Eighth Hall Master opened his palm, and a storage ring suddenly flew from across the distant hall.

The storage ring contained thirty Eternal Crystals.

The Eighth Hall Master said calmly, "Whoever kills Ye Guan will own these thirty Eternal Crystals. If they bring me his head, they'll get the remaining seventy Eternal Crystals. The Evil Dao Alliance never breaks its word. May the Great Dao destroy us if we lie."

The thin old man glanced at the storage ring, and his eyes burned with desire.

Thirty Eternal Crystals! It was such a tempting offer that even he wanted to kill Ye Guan himself.

Eternal Crystals were incredibly valuable to those in the Path Creation Realm. However, he remained clear-headed. Even if he managed to kill Ye Guan, those thirty Eternal Crystals wouldn't go to him at all.

Having followed the Eighth Hall Master for so many years, he knew exactly what kind of person the Eighth Hall Master was.

The thin old man calmed himself down and retreated.

The Eighth Hall Master leaned back on the stone steps and closed his eyes. A sinister smile spread across his lips as he muttered, "I really want to see whether anyone can resist this temptation."

***

The news about Ye Guan's background spread like wildfire, and it was all thanks to the Evil Dao actively disseminating the information.

Of course, a huge chunk of the information was a bunch of nonsense.

"Big Brother!" A middle-aged in black robes exclaimed. He rushed to the man in luxurious robes and exclaimed, "Ye Guan has the inheritance of a Tier Five civilization!"

"Oh," the man in luxurious robes replied calmly.

The man in luxurious robes' nonchalant reaction surprised the middle-aged man in black robes.

"The inheritance of a Tier Five civilization!" the middle-aged man in black robes repeated.

"Are you tempted?"

"Of course, I'm tempted."

The man in luxurious robes sighed.

The middle-aged man in black robes hesitated before asking, "Big Brother, do you think it's a trap?"

"What else did the Evil Dao Alliance reveal?"

"Ye Guan apparently has a backer, but she's severely injured. She's apparently from a Tier Five civilization, but she can only make a move twice in a hundred years. She's already made a move in this century, so she can only make one more move." A fierce light flashed in the middle-aged man in black robes' eyes as he exclaimed, "Big Brother, let's make a move! I surely can't defeat that lady in a plain skirt, but I can definitely hold her back for a while."

"Shi Chun!" the man in luxurious robes snapped. His brows were knitted tightly as he said, "I know you want to obtain those Eternal Crystals to make another breakthrough, but can you use your head for once?"

"I know that there's something fishy here, Big Brother," Shi Chun said, "There must be a trap here, but you must understand that I only have less than a thousand years left to live. Without Eternal Crystals, I'll surely die. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me, and perhaps it's the final opportunity to extend my life."

Even Path Creation Realm experts didn't have eternal life, and they could still die a natural death.

Natural treasures capable of extending life weren't that effective on Path Creation Realm experts, and only Eternal Crystals could extend their lifespan.

However, Eternal Crystals were extremely rare, and they were only found in Tier Five civilizations. Unfortunately, Tier Five civilizations possessed power beyond comprehension.

Who'd dare rob Eternal Crystals from the Tianxing Civilization?

However, killing Ye Guan would actually allow them to obtain those rare crystals.

This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for every cultivator in the Path Creation Realm not just for Shi Chun.

The man in luxurious robes was silent for a moment before saying, "Let's wait... We wait until Ye Guan comes out of seclusion."

Shi Chun was silent, but his hands clenched into a fist.

Meanwhile, the lady in white glanced at Shi Chun but said nothing.

The man in luxurious robes calmly added, "If you trust me, then wait."

After a moment of silence, Shi Chun unclenched his fists and said, "I trust you, Big Brother."

The man in luxurious robes nodded slightly. He looked around and said, "More and more people are coming."

Truth be told, he was also tempted, but he knew very well that if Ye Guan truly had the inheritance of a Tier Five civilization, the Evil Dao Alliance wouldn't give it up to others.

Even if the Evil Dao Alliance were telling the truth, obtaining that inheritance from Ye Guan might not necessarily be a good thing.

It was best to exercise caution and observe for now.

The man in luxurious robes closed his eyes.

Shi Chun's expression became grim, and he fell into deep contemplation with his thoughts unknown.

***

Dao Jun walked up to Zhou Fan and said, "The Evil Dao Alliance is up to something again."

He handed a scroll over to Zhou Fan.

Zhou Fan accepted it and gave it a quick skim before chuckling. "A Tier Five civilization's inheritance... that's interesting."

Dao Jun's face darkened. "The number of inscrutable auras around the Great Zhou has increased."

Zhou Fan pinched the scroll with her right hand, turning it to ashes. She then stared at the distant pool of lightning and said, "Master Pagoda."

Swoosh!

A tiny pagoda suddenly appeared in front of Zhou Fan.

"Master Pagoda, may I borrow the Tianxing Flame?"

"Of course."

The Tianxing Flame appeared before Zhou Fan.

The expressions of those present grew serious at the sight of it.

It looked like an ordinary flame, but no one dared to underestimate it.

Zhou Fan opened her palm, and the Tianxing Flame vanished in a flash, reappearing in the starry sky above the Great Zhou Imperial City.

Ci Tian was surprised. "Your Highness, what was that?"

"The Evil Dao Alliance has claimed that we have the inheritance of a Tier Five civilization. I decided to show them that we really do."

Ci Tian put his hands together and said, "I see."

Zhou Fan closed her eyes. The Tianxing Flame would certainly deter some people from making a move.

They weren't afraid of powerful enemies, but it would be great to have fewer of them.

The people outside were stupefied to see the Tianxing Flame in the starry sky above the Great Zhou Imperial City.

As Path Creation Realm experts, they were familiar with the Tianxing Flame, as it was from a Tier Five civilization and could instantly wipe out an entire civilization.

The Tianxing Flame's appearance meant that the Evil Dao Alliance wasn't lying.

Ye Guan truly had the inheritance of a Tier Five civilization—the Tianxing Civilization's inheritance.

The majority of them immediately turned around and left at the sight of it.

A Tier Five civilization was far too strong for them to handle. The inscrutable auras around the Great Zhou Imperial City decreased by at least eighty percent.

When Shi Chun and his two companions saw the Tianxing Flame, their expressions became serious.

The man in luxurious robes muttered, "The Tianxing Flame..."

Shi Chun stared intently at the Tianxing Flame.

The lady in white's brows were furrowed deeply at the sight.

They hadn't expected to see a lick of the Tianxing Flame here.

The man in luxurious robes said, "The Great Zhou has decided to announce that they have the inheritance of a Tier Five civilization."

"Big Brother, that Tianxing Flame is emitting no energy at all," Shi Chun remarked.

"Yeah, I can see that," the man in luxurious robes replied before asking, "Are you saying that they are using the Tianxing Flame to scare us?"

"That's right." Shi Chun nodded. "Those who are truly wealthy never show off their wealth. The fact that they brought that out in the open probably means that they are scared."

Shi Chun stared at the distant Tianxing Flame with excitement in his eyes. "Big Brother, this is a rare opportunity that we must take. If we succeed, we'll never have to worry about anything again. It's risky, but it's worth it. The three of us can definitely kill Ye Guan. Once he's dead, we can just escape. That lady in a plain skirt can't possibly catch us."

Just then, the man in luxurious robes brought his two fingers together.

The lady in white behind Shi Chun drew her sword.

Shi Chun's face changed dramatically. He turned around and raised his arms to defend himself, but the man in luxurious robes suddenly punched him in the head.

Boom!

Shi Chun's fleshly body exploded, reducing him to his soul form.

The man in luxurious robes grabbed Shi Chun's soul.

Shi Chun was shocked and furious. "Xiu Wu, you...!"

Xiu Wu squeezed hard with his right hand.

Boom!

Shi Chun's soul exploded, and the death of his soul meant that he was truly dead.

Xiu Wu put away Shi Chun's storage ring and shook his head. "I did not want to kill you, but I had no choice. You were just too dumb—too dumb for me to tolerate any longer."

Coca and Corlumbus's Thoughts

HAHAHAH what a turn of events!