It has been three days since I returned to the Gu family estate after the Nine Dragon Assembly.
It has been three days since I found out I can use the Heavenly Horse Demon Art.
I've been trying out the Gu Yan Huo Lun Gong during my training over the past few days, but I haven't felt any demonic energy in my body.
It's certainly a fortunate thing, but I can't help but wonder if the demonic energy is lying dormant in my body without me knowing, so I haven't let my guard down.
"Those damn bastards, making me suffer even after I died and came back to life."
The training ground in one corner of the residence was filled with the heat emanating from his body.
Since he's still only at the 2-star level, the heat isn't particularly threatening.
"...Is my body not ready to reach the 3-star level yet?"
The enlightenment and proficiency in handling internal energy should have long surpassed this level.
However, the amount of internal energy he currently possesses and the physical body that needs to contain it are not yet properly formed.
Ultimately, the only answer is repetitive training.
As a result, he has been suffering from muscle pain for several days...
He opened the door of the training ground, which was filled with heat, and stepped outside.
A spring breeze brushed past, quickly cooling his heated body.
"Hey! There's dust over there, isn't there!"
"Hehehehe…"
"...Hm?"
What's going on here?
Next to the Sword Sage, who was sweeping the courtyard, a familiar figure could be seen. Over six feet tall with broad shoulders, his snow-white hair, which showed his age, contrasted with his bulging muscles that seemed about to burst through his clothes.
There was no need to confirm who it was; the figure was Elder Li.
"Hey, shouldn't you sweep more thoroughly! Look at this, it's full of dust."
"Hehehe…"
...What is that old man doing?
Elder Li was pointing and giving advice as the Sword Sage swept the courtyard.
I never thought I'd see the day when the Sword Sage would be criticized for not cleaning properly...
"Look at this, showing off that you've never swept a broom in your life."
Even the tiniest specks of dust, barely visible without enhancing one's vision with internal energy, were being picked out one by one... How should I put it...
'...This is really annoying to watch.'
The Sword Sage and Elder Li were contemporaries who were at the peak of their powers.
I didn't think they wouldn't know each other.
But what is this scene?
"Elder Li, what are you doing?"
"Ah! Yang Chuan, you're here."
"...Why are you tormenting Senior Wei Ya?"
The Sword Sage had asked to be called by his name, but knowing his true identity, I couldn't bring myself to do it.
"Hey, this old man can't sweep properly. Tsk, tsk, if you're getting paid to do this, you shouldn't be like this."
I can't see any dust at all...
"It looks clean to me..."
"Hey! It's because you do it so carelessly that the residence is in this state!"
What kind of baseless criticism is this?
For the record, the residence looked clean to anyone.
Not only the other servants but even Wei Xue'er paid attention to cleaning.
'Why is Elder Li doing this? Is he teasing the Sword Sage?'
No way, even as an elder of the family, would he play around like this?
'...Is the Sword Sage okay?'
The Sword Sage, with his usual kind smile, didn't seem to mind.
He just continued sweeping silently.
"Hehehehe…"
Indeed, someone called the Sword Sage in the current Central Plains should be able to handle such a storm lightly...
"Hehehehe!"
'No, he's angry.'
Looking closely, I could see veins popping out on his forehead in a cross shape.
I decided I needed to leave the scene quickly and tried to escape, but Elder Li grabbed me.
"Are you coming from your training?"
"Yes, as you can see."
"Hmm…"
"Why are you doing this?"
"It's nothing. I saw your bodyguard waiting for you over there just now."
Elder Li pointed in the direction of the entrance to the residence.
"Wu Lian?"
I told him I was training, so why isn't he looking for me and waiting?
I clearly told him to just come into the training ground and call me if he needed to.
"Thank you. I'll go see him first."
"Leaving...?"
"Yes?"
As I was about to head towards where Wu Lian was, Elder Li grabbed me with a strangely pitiful voice.
"Yang Chuan, are you hungry? This old man has some very delicious..."
"Master has already finished eating."
It was the Sword Sage who interrupted Elder Li.
"Oh, oh! Where do you think you're butting in when a family member is talking!"
"Elder Li, why are you doing this...?"
His urgent appearance made me call out to Elder Li, and at that moment, I felt a chilling sensation.
'What is this coldness...?'
Perhaps because I had just finished training, my enhanced senses picked up on something.
It was the back of the Sword Sage, who was sweeping the ground with his back turned to us.
'...Hmm.'
Although it's unlikely that the Sword Sage would do this, it seemed like he was telling me to leave quickly.
...Then I'll leave quickly.
"Elder Li, I have a very urgent matter."
"Then this old man will go with you..."
"Anyway, thank you for your hard work."
I didn't listen to the rest. I felt that something bad would happen if I stayed any longer.
I dodged Elder Li's hand, which was trying to grab me again, and quickly fled.
******************
After Ouyang Chuan left, only Elder Li and the Sword Sage remained in front of the training ground, leaving an awkward silence.
Even in the midst of this, Elder Li was looking around, checking the surroundings.
'There are too many trees in front of the wall. Should I go over the roof of the residence...?'
...He was planning his escape route.
The playful mood of the Three Great Sages sweeping the ground with a broom didn't match his age.
So he played a bit of a prank. This was Elder Li's nature, acting first and thinking later.
Thanks to this, he felt a sense of danger he hadn't felt in years.
'...I went too far.'
Although the Sword Sage, Wei Xiaojun, now acts like a kind old man, Elder Li, who knew his past and personality, found it chilling.
'The sword demon who would draw his sword first when dealing with evil.'
The man called a symbol of the righteous faction was, from the perspective of the evil faction, a killer and a sword demon.
The Sword Sage was the one who never hesitated to punish evil.
"Jiulun."
When the Sword Sage called Elder Li's name, he felt a chill down his spine. It was a sensation he hadn't felt in a long time.
"Hmm... Senior, are you angry? I was just playing a prank. Thanks to me, Ouyang Chuan didn't have any unnecessary suspicions..."
"That child, he's a truly amazing child."
"...Hm?"
"He's different from the day before yesterday, different from yesterday, and different again today."
While Elder Li was thinking about where to run, the Sword Sage suddenly said something unexpected.
The Sword Sage was thinking about Ouyang Chuan.
'He's changing every day.'
When the Sword Sage first met Ouyang Chuan, he thought he was just a member of the Gu family.
Ouyang Chuan gave the Sword Sage, who had judged his character based on rumors and appearances, a significant insight, but that was all.
The fire energy he possessed was nothing special compared to other members of the Gu family, and his talent was far behind that of children from other families and sects.
Just a child of the Gu family, that's all.
That was what the Sword Sage thought about Ouyang Chuan.
'But how is he now?'
He thought about the brief glimpse of Ouyang Chuan he had just seen.
Unlike the first time, the fire energy in his dantian hadn't become hotter or noticeably increased.
It was just stable.
Among the cultivation methods of the righteous faction, the Gu family's method is said to be the most violent when combined with the Pang family's method.
Stably circulating such a rough force in the dantian is not an easy task.
It requires a sense, which is a matter of time and talent.
Considering Ouyang Chuan's age, it couldn't be a matter of time.
This was clearly a matter of talent.
"I can't feel anything special, but the energy he possesses is not something someone his age should have."
"I was also surprised when I saw him after a long time."
"...You didn't feel that way the last time you saw him?"
"About three months ago. He tried a bit of magic treasure but ran away because he couldn't handle it."
That child had suddenly changed in just a few months.
Just looking at the intensity of his current training, it was incomparable to before.
According to his bodyguards and servants, he used the remaining time for training except for eating, sleeping, and taking very short breaks.
And it was intense training.
The Sword Sage, who had been observing Ouyang Chuan closely, knew this best.
"What woke that child up so suddenly?"
People change over time, but sudden changes have reasons.
This was an unchanging law.
What had changed Ouyang Chuan so much? The Sword Sage was suddenly curious.
"Senior, you always think too much."
Elder Li clicked his tongue, seeing the Sword Sage's contemplative expression. It seemed he had become more thoughtful with age.
"Good is good, why do you always make things so complicated?"
Elder Li felt a weight lifted off his chest, thinking about his biggest concern.
'What will Elder Li think if he finds out?'
The face of the old man, who opposed Ouyang Chuan becoming the family head due to his character and talent, flashed through his mind.
It felt good to have this off his chest.
"Senior, don't think so much, whatever it is."
The heart demon the Sword Sage harbored couldn't be solved by Elder Li's words.
Especially when it came to family matters.
"Thank you."
The Sword Sage, who understood that Elder Li was concerned for him, expressed his gratitude.
"Hmm... Well, I've seen your face, so that's enough. I'll be going now..."
"Where are you going?"
"Well, I've seen your face and Ouyang Chuan's, so I need to go do my work..."
"Jiulun, haven't we finished our important conversation yet?"
"What do you mean...?"
Elder Li stopped speaking, feeling a chilling aura.
There was an indescribable energy in the Sword Sage's kind smile.
"Didn't you want to teach me about sweeping? I'm still curious about that."
Only then did he remember the prank he had just played. He thought the Sword Sage had let it go when the conversation turned to Ouyang Chuan, but that wasn't the case.
'This narrow-minded person...'
The moment the Sword Sage took a step, Elder Li leaped onto the roof behind him.
It was the escape route he had calculated earlier.
******************
-Boom-Boom!
"Is there construction going on? Why is it so noisy?"
"I heard yesterday that one of the family's buildings is under construction, so it might be that."
"Is that so? They must be doing a large-scale renovation for it to be heard from here."
I felt a strangely familiar energy but ignored it.
What I needed to focus on now wasn't the construction.
As I approached the entrance, Wu Lian was fidgeting, clearly holding something important.
When I asked him why, he handed me a letter.
A few lines of text contained the message I wanted to hear.
[I will accept the commission.]
I smiled at the words.
There was no need to think too much.
The letter was from the Hao Gate.
******************
-Boom-Boom!
"Is there construction going on? Why is it so noisy?"
"I heard yesterday that one of the family's buildings is under construction, so it might be that."
"Is that so? They must be doing a large-scale renovation for it to be heard from here."
I felt a strangely familiar energy but ignored it.
What I needed to focus on now wasn't the construction.
As I approached the entrance, Wu Lian was fidgeting, clearly holding something important.
When I asked him why, he handed me a letter.
A few lines of text contained the message I wanted to hear.