Translator: Myriea_ActiasLuna Editor: Nou
The blue-clothed bandit didnât tried to force Fang Xing nor persuade him in any way after hearing his answer, and her calm and indifference appearance even implied sheâd expected him to say such a thing. She let out a long sigh. âAlthough your rejection looks extremely foolish to me, it brings me relief for Xiao Mahn as well; it is far better for two people to act foolishly together than for someone to act foolishly alone. Enough, Iâve said everything that needed to be said. Since youâre unwilling to come with me, I shall wait for you in Videha. Good luck!â The blue-clothed bandit placed her hand beneath the mask as though about to take it off, but she eventually let go.
Fang Xing smirked. âSo our alliance has ended?â
The blue-clothed bandit showed a gentle smile. âI am not going to help you against the Huangfu clan. Itâs embarrassing to admit, but I formed an alliance with you for the sole purpose of borrowing your viciousness. Videha is strong, but itâs inconvenient for me to attack others while in this area for Jambu cultivators; if I were too unrestrained, the monks from the Spirit Mountain Temples might come to cause trouble for meâŠ.â She paused for a moment and lowered her voice, âI will take Xu Linyun with me, which can be considered me honoring my promise to you earlier in exchange for the Stellar Grass. As for you, I can only wish you the best of luck and hope you wonât actually go into the depths of the Mysterious Domain to challenge the Huangfu clanâs young masterâŠ.â
Fang Xing waved his hand. âIâll go and chop him up for sure!â
The blue-clothed bandit released a light laugh and shook her head before flying out of the cave.
Before long, Xu Linyun entered the cave to bid her goodbyes. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity and although she was kind-hearted, she wasnât the type to be concerned with each and every small detail, so there were things that didnât need to be said. The fact sheâd stood up for Fang Xing in front of everyone had already caused a great deal of trouble for her, and the Huangfu clan certainly wouldnât overlook her if they intended to capture Fang Xingâit was best that she left now to avoid negatively impacting her sect. When the two were parting, Fang Xing gave her a golden pellet and four Foundation Cleansing Pellets. She didnât refuse these gifts, and rather than giving words of gratitude when she received them, she tightly cupped her hands and left.
Fang Xing was feeling some disappointment and frustration after seeing off the blue-clothed bandit and Xu Linyun. After some thoughts, he walked out and saw Li Ying and Han Ying guarding the entrance of the cave for him, which caused the two of them great surprise. Theyâd believed it would take at least one or two weeks to heal rather than the three short days between then and now, yet not only were all of his wounds healed, the amount of Qi he had seemed to have increased as well and there was the vague impression heâd raised his cultivation level.
The same thought appeared in both of their minds: âWhat a freak!â The two were a bit cautious as well and believed Fang Xing might try to cheat them of the Sword Embryos heâd promised now that his cultivation had improved further, butâto their joyâFang Xing fortunately didnât do so and simply gave them the promised Sword Embryos directly. The action was so straightforwardly the two even began to feel theyâd been unfairly judging this sincere banditâs heart with their own cruel measures.
âWith your abilities, Iâm sure youâll be able to find the Sword Embryos inside their bodies. As for how youâll split the Sword Embryos from them, I donât care; itâll all be up to you. Now that Iâve given them to you, it can be said that Iâve honored my promise!â
Han Ying and Li Ying exchanged glances before picking up the young leaders and placing them into their storage sacks. âUm⊠nn, uh⊠thâ thaâŠ.â Li Ying stuttered out; he wanted to say âthank youâ, but was so utterly inexperienced he couldnât do so. Han Ying, on the other hand, was far more direct and simply asked, âAre you going to challenge the young master of the Huangfu clan at the depths of the Mysterious Domain?â
âThat is certain. Iâve already announced it, after all!â Fang Xing proudly replied.
âI canât help you,â Han Ying responded, before Li Ying also chimed in with, âI canât help you either!â
Fang Xing looked at them in disdain. âItâs merely a young master of the Huangfu clan. Your little grandpa doesnât even need your help!â
The two of them were struck speechless and left unable to respond. Describing the young master of the Huangfu clan with âmerelyâ⊠this person who had enough guts to cover the heavens was perhaps the only one who dared to do so.
Han Ying composed himself and cupped his hands with an extremely solemn expression on his face. âIf you can truly survive through everything, there will be no issue in me calling you my older brother.â
âSince Iâm young anyway, I donât lose out no matter what I do so Iâm the same as him!â Li Ying declared as well, his thoughts the same as the son of the Han clan.
âIn that case, Iâll have two more little brothers soon!â Fang Xing smirked with confidence. âI wouldnât be sharing this secret of mine with you if you hadnât said that today, but it shouldnât be a problem since youâll soon be under my wingsâŠ.â With that, he had the two of them come closer before he whispered the secrets of the Nine-Turn Lucidity Pellet, leaving the pair completely in shock.
âSwallowing the golden pellet rawâŠ. Youâre not joking, right?â Li Ying was completely dumbstruck. Swallowing the pellet raw sounded utterly absurd. In a way, swallowing a pellet like that was akin to suicide!
Fang Xing simply sneered. âIâve told you my secret; whether you believe it or not and whether you dare try it will be up to you.â
Both Han Ying and Li Ying showed extremely serious expressions. It was obvious in an instant that they couldnât make up their minds, but they didnât dwell on this problem and Fang Xing didnât bother trying to prove it, either. Fang Xing felt he didnât need two subordinates who didnât dare to take any risks, but the fact they would be calling him their older brother in the future meant they were as good as his subordinates in the present, so he naturally had to display some arrogance in front of them.
After some hesitation, the three of them and the golden crow sat down together while Han Ying took out a glass of wine in a white vase. He took a drink from it and placed it on the ground before cupping his hands and jumping onto his Dragon Horse to fly away. His departure was direct and efficient.
Li Ying snatched the wine and took a gulp before cupping his hands. It seemed as though he wanted to say something, but Fang Xing impatiently interrupted to shout, âHurry and get the hell out of here now!â Fang Xing was filled with disgust at the thought of drinking wine from the same vase as someone as ugly as Li Ying, but the wine Han Ying took out simply smelled too good. It was so powerful and smooth, and a single sniff enough to leave someone drunk; rather than drinking it all at once, Fang Xing wanted to savor it as long as he could.
Li Ying became angry at being cursed at by Fang and started cursing right back, but he wound up utterly defeated. He wasnât as good at Fang Xing in verbal spats in the first place, and now that Fang Xing had the golden crow beside him as a helper, Li Ying and his slow tongue was no match. He couldnât deal with even the golden crow alone, so how could he compare to the two of them together? After growing angry with himself, he finally gritted his teeth in indignation and left.
Once everyone had gone, only the golden crow and Fang Xing remained amidst the desolate wind and solemn atmosphere.
âSo youâre going to kill that arrogant young master of the Huangfu clan?â the golden crow asked in a grave manner, but his voice was filled with the will to battle.
The young master of the Huangfu clan was certainly terrifying. Not only was he already in late Foundation Stage despite being only thirty-five years old, he was the leader of Jambuâs hidden royal family who had all the resources they needed along with even more powerful weapons and talismans. It was without question the young master had powerful helpers on top of everything else, and even if Fang Xing had the same cultivation level, it would be difficult to find someone who truly believed Fang Xing could be an opponent for the Huangfu clanâs young master.
The golden crow, however, was also someone who had enough guts to cover the heavens. He was someone who feared a world without enough chaos, and his desire for battle only rose when he heard Fang Xing say something like challenging the Huangfu clan. He couldnât let Fang Xing down at a moment like this! You only live once, so why not go crazy now? By now, his battle lust was ignited completely.
âOf courseââ Fang Xing replied in a solemn manner when he heard the golden crowâs question, ââI wonât f*cking go. You think Iâm an idiot? That bastard is already late Foundation Stage and Iâm only early Foundation Stage. What, do I go and get myself killed? If there were treasures involved, maybe, but if itâs just to leave a name behind⊠whoever wants it can go get it. Iâve already earned plenty of precious treasures. Weâve gotta flee while weâre still under the radar and they havenât realized whatâs happened!â
The golden crow was completely flabbergasted. âWhat? Didnât you say you were going to kill that bastard of the Huangfu clan?â
âJust boastful talk! You really want to kill him? Then just wait until my cultivation surpasses his!â
The golden crow wasnât sure how to respond to this. âBut you know, if we leave now, it just feelsâŠâ he hesitated for a bit, âit doesnât feel like the right time!â
âWeâve killed people from the Huangfu clan, plundered the Sword Mound, and taken advantage over them. If we donât leave now, when do we leave?â Fang Xing disdainfully replied.
The golden crow wasnât able to find an argument against Fang Xingâs rather reasonable-sounding words. After stuttering for a long time, he finally got out, âThen⊠then why did you say those things with so much passion in front of so many people? Even I believed you!â
Fang Xing clicked his tongue. âHow can I scam others if I canât scam even you? While all those bastards think Iâll be going to the depths to kill that bastard of the Huangfu guy, it is exactly the perfect chance for us to flee. Do you really think itâll be that easy to get out of this Mysterious Domain otherwise?â
With that, Fang Xing stopped speaking with the golden crow, folded his hands behind his back, and went back into the valley to prepare for his departure.