âOh look, if it isnât brother Xuanyuan? Youâre back!â The person who spoke was Xingyun. His arm had been fully restored. His contained a smirk and he seemed to very pleased with himself. There was a man standing behind him, he was handsome but without any imposing aura. He seemed to be an ordinary person, and yet mysterious. On his shoulder, there was a silver wolf skin.
For many frozen winters, Xuanyuan had curled up with Guxing and Guyue, but now Guxingâs fur had appeared on the shoulders of this stranger.
Xuanyuan felt his heart sink. He wanted to rip the man to shreds with all of his being. Fung Lie quickly grabbed his arm and stopped Xuanyuan from rushing forward. He asked lowly, âBrother Xuanyuan, regain your composure. He is the First Brother of all True disciples, Jiang Yitian.â
The man descended to the ground, smiling slightly and bowing to the five Xians, âGreetings to the five Xians present.â
The old men nodded, but they also sensed Xuanyuanâs mood.
âBrother Xuanyuan, what is wrong? You seem so angry. Did something happen?â Xingyun snorted. Fung Lie glared at him, so he quickly hid behind Jiang Yitian, but kept on pestering, âBrother Xuanyuan, why donât you speak?â
âGreeting to First True Brother.â Xuanyuanâs heart was bleeding. He glared at Jiang Yitian with his red eyes.
âBrother Xuanyuan was chosen by the five Xians. This is a rare and precious opportunity. You should work hard.â Jiang Yitian said peacefully.
Xuanyuan ignored his comment and demanded, âWhere did you get that wolf skin?â
âXingyun and I were taking a stroll at the Fullmoon cave, arriving at the School of Yuehua when we spotted a lone wolf. Xingyun was itching to hunt and decided to skin the animal alive. I felt like the wolf was good quality and asked him for the skin to wear, but if brother Xuanyuan likes it, I can give it to you.â Jiang Yitian smiled.
âI didnât think brother Xuanyuan would like the skin of such ordinary animal. Iâll give you another one when I find a good wolf.â Xingyun laughed aggressively.
Tears streamed down Xuanyuanâs face. He pointed a finger at Xingyun, âGuxing grew up by my side. I knew it wouldnât be safe in the sect, so I left it in the School of Yuehua. I only wished for it to live a peaceful life away from fighting. You extended the grudge between you and me to Guxing. Guxing was innocent!â
Xingyun also screamed, âYou think you can walk freely after destroying my arm and taking my ring? I was being lenient by only killing a measly wolf. Do you want me to kill Yan Ziyun too? If youâre not happy, why donât you kill me?â
All five of the old men frowned, but they didnât say anything. It was not convenient to get involved in the grudges between disciples. Jiang Yitian was a disciple of an extraordinarily powerful Xian.
âXingyun, how dare you?â Fung Lie released his power as an imperial fighter and attacked Xingyun. He was too quick, it even shocked Jiang Yitian. Xingyun was thrown a dozen metres back from the power of the strike with numerous wounds appearing on his body. Jiang Yitian summoned a soft light onto the wounded Xingyun and began healing him. Fung Lie was provoked to attack him again but Jiang Yitian intervened.
âYou still have a bad temper, brother Fung Lie and since youâve entered the imperial realm, you can control the fighting wind, Wind of the Sky. However, youâre still not powerful enough to fight against me. If you continue being stubborn, I wonât spare you.â Jiang Yitianâs voice was gentle, as if he was an innocent young man that despised violence.
âI donât mind testing the power of an emperor, to see if it can withstand the power of my wind!â Fung Lie snorted. He began to unleash the seal which was placed on his power.
âYou should control your temper, donât do something you would later regret, brother Fung Lie!â Jiang Yitian frowned.
But suddenly, Xuanyuan voiced his opinion, âPlease stop, brother Fung Lie. This is my fight. In three years time, I will fight Xingyun to the death. Do you dare to accept, Xingyun?â
âWell, youâre nothing but an ant to me. Why wouldnât I dare?â Xingyun agreed without hesitation, but he glanced at Fung Lie with a look of fright.
Xuanyuan glared at Xingyun. Then he turned to Jiang Yitian, âI swear, in three years time, Iâll end Jiang Yitianâs life. Please witness my vow, five masters!â
The Xians couldnât contain their shock. Jiang Yitian was an emperor realm fighter. Perhaps he would even break through the barrier to become a Xian within those three years. Yet where would Xuanyuan be? How could he improve by such a large degree in only three years? All the inner disciples were equally shocked. Jiang Yitian was the First True Brother in the sect. He was like a legend to all of the disciples. All the disciples thought Xuanyuan was too brave and stupid for challenging Jiang Yitian in three years time.
âGreat! There was a reason why I picked you, Xuanyuan.â Fung Lie slowly sealed his power, and restrained the suffocating force he was releasing. âIn these three years, if anyone around Xuanyuan is killed, I swear to kill the responsible partyâs entire bloodline!â
âWonderful. I didnât think the sect would have such an inspirational disciple. Iâm very impressed.â Bu Jingsha, the Head of the Inner Hall had only just arrived. He first bowed to the five Xians, then looked at Jiang Yitian, âBrother Jiang, what do you say about this?â
âNaturally, since brother Xuanyuan has challenged me, I can only agree to it.â Jiang replied. His face remained unchanged, he didnât particularly care about Xuanyuan, âBrother Xuanyuan, I hope you wouldnât think that I am disrespecting you, but even if I give you thirty years, or even three hundred years, you still wouldnât be able to defeat me. Since I was born, I was able to practice. Iâve killed many so-called geniuses over these years that I have lost count. Iâll give you a chance, so people cannot say the future sect leader wasnât a fair and just person. In these three years, no one should harm Xuanyuan deliberately. Otherwise, Iâll kill them myself.â
Looking at the wolf skin, Xuanyuan was filled with grief, but he wasnât strong enough. So he could only suppress his anger.
âWell, everyone should goâŚâ The Xian of Fire looked grave. He didnât think the event would unfold this way.
Jiang Yitian carried Xingyun and left.
âThen please take care of brother Xuanyuan, Xians. If he has any needs, he can tell Zhao Manfeng, weâll provide assistance for him as much as possible.â Bu Jingsha was glad to have Xuanyuan as a member of the Inner Hall. A talent like this was quite rare.
As the Xians nodded their heads, a voice travelled from afar, âFung Lie, come to the Mountain.â
It was calling for Fung Lie. He stood in front of Xuanyuan and said heavily, âTake the chance to train yourself while in the Red Mountain. You can only grow with danger. Iâll have to leave you, since my master is calling. I believe you wonât need much of my help to kill Xingyun in three years time.â
Mochou was hiding behind Xuanyuan and had witnessed everything. She was petrified but composed herself well. She tried to comfort Xuanyuan, âDonât be sad. Iâll be by your side.â
Xuanyuanâs heart ached. He carried Mochou, âDonât worry, Mochou. From this day onwards, Iâll protect all the people I care for.â
âI believe in you!â Mochou opened her arms and embraced Xuanyuan, âWhen aunt Mei was unhappy, Iâd hug her like this to cheer her up!â
âThank you Mochou!â Xuanyuan felt her kindness warm his cold heart.
âLetâs go. I didnât think youâd be so reckless. But weâve already picked you as our disciple, so we wonât give up on you. Go to the Red Mountain!â The Xian of Fire said.
Xuanyuan and Mochou sat on the Skysea Bird, and the five Xians also sat on the bird. They had sensed an unusual energy on Xuanyuanâs body when he was angry. Perhaps there was a chance for him to defeat Jiang Yitian within three years.