Volume One: The Menial of Changshui County Chapter 113: Unable to Bear It

The Blade of the Frost Sky unleashed a bone-chilling cold. Bian Yuan attempted to dodge in haste, but he was a step too late. As a sharp pain flared across his back, his expression shifted drastically. "Outside these ruins, I am the Deputy Commander of the Anxi Prefecture Demon Suppression Office, and within them, I am the Vice Sect Master of the Blazing Flame Sect! Do you dare to kill me?"

"Die!"

Zhong Zhengming responded to Bian Yuan’s fierce shout only with an unrelenting, lethal onslaught.

...

Half an hour later, the large black dog slowly regained consciousness. The ground was stained with blood, and nearby stood a tombstone, crookedly carved with the words: "Tomb of Xue Wuyuan." This was the true name of the late Commander Xue, a fact known to very few.

"Let’s go," Zhong Zhengming said coldly.

Lu Jiuzhang nodded, casting one last glance into the distance. Bian Yuan lay in a pool of blood, thoroughly dead.

"Damn it, why didn’t you wait for me to join the fray?" the black dog grumbled. "That’s not fair; I was hoping to get an assist."

Lu Jiuzhang patted the black dog’s head. "Let’s go."

The two men and the dog slowly departed, their silhouettes fading into the distance.

...

"I have found a way to leave," Lu Jiuzhang said on the path back to the Li Sword Villa.

Zhong Zhengming merely nodded, offering no further words.

"Master Jiu is amazing! Master Jiu is a genius!" the black dog chimed in with flattery.

"However, we cannot take too many people out with us. The formation here has already collapsed. If we take too many, or those with high cultivation levels, it could trigger a catastrophic failure that would kill us all," Lu Jiuzhang said gravely. "The resulting chain reaction would cause this entire sub-spatial ruin to disintegrate."

He spoke with such gravity because even he was unsure if Zhong Zhengming’s cultivation level would be considered "high." To Lu Jiuzhang, a Seventh-Grade martial artist was certainly formidable, but in the face of the ruin’s ancient arrays—which made a Seventh-Grade expert look like an ant before the Treading Heaven Sect—it was a different story. The danger was that the ruin was already fractured, and Lu Jiuzhang could not be certain if the formation would hold.

"You two should leave; I will remain here," Zhong Zhengming said, glancing back at the ancient tower. "I still have three chances left; perhaps I can grow stronger. The spiritual energy here is dense; it is not a bad place for cultivation."

What would there be for him outside, anyway? Perhaps only further pursuit and death. After eliminating Commander Song and the great demon, Zhong Zhengming was safe within the ruin world. This place was a perfect sanctuary for deep cultivation.

"Very well," Lu Jiuzhang agreed.

...

The group soon returned to the Li Sword Villa. Upon entering, they found the inhabitants on high alert. Some even glared at them with visible hostility.

"Master Lu!" Feng Wanqing waved to them from a distance.

"Miss Feng!" Lu Jiuzhang walked over with a smile. "You returned quite early. What has happened?" He had assumed she had returned immediately after seeing them off to the tower.

"Master Lu, there are rumors that the Blazing Flame Sect is about to attack the Li Sword Villa, so everyone is preparing," Feng Wanqing said, glancing cautiously at him. "Many people are even saying that it is because of you that the Blazing Flame Sect is targeting us."

"Nonsense!" the black dog interrupted before Lu Jiuzhang could speak. "I’d like to see which bastard dares to blame us for the Blazing Flame Sect’s actions. Even without us, do you think the Blazing Flame Sect would have remained your peaceful neighbors forever? The strong prey upon the weak—that is the law of nature. Your weakness is the reason for your plight. Dare to blame us again, and I’ll bite you to death!"

The dog’s words were crude but true. Even if Lu Jiuzhang and his companions had never arrived, the Li Sword Villa would still have faced the inevitable fate of annexation. The black dog’s barking drew a crowd, and everyone stared at them. Some lowered their heads in shame, while others continued to glare at Zhong Zhengming and Lu Jiuzhang, clearly hoping to capture them and hand them over to the Blazing Flame Sect to earn favor.

"Ahem... everyone!" A cough sounded from behind the crowd as the Villa Master approached. "Everyone, this is not Master Lu’s fault. Even without Master Lu, I had already been seeking ways for the Li Sword Villa to merge with the Blazing Flame Sect. Without fresh blood, our villa would eventually wither away on its own."

The Villa Master sighed. "The survival of our sect is at stake, and this is my failure. Over these many years, our numbers have dwindled, and today, the younger generation is pitifully small. Do we have a future? I see none. I have read the journals left behind by other sects that entered this place; most simply vanished naturally, leaving no descendants behind. Only endless loneliness remains."

"Merging with the Blazing Flame Sect is merely an attempt to preserve the lineage of the Li Sword Villa!" Perhaps, after tonight, the Li Sword Villa would cease to exist entirely.

"Not necessarily," Lu Jiuzhang said, looking at the Villa Master. "I have a plan to eliminate the Master of the Blazing Flame Sect. If the two sects were to merge, we could ensure the Li Sword Villa takes the lead."

"Oh?" The Villa Master looked at him intently.

"There is a broken formation here. If we lure the Blazing Flame Sect Master to it, we can utilize the power of the array to slay him," Lu Jiuzhang explained. The Blazing Flame Sect Master was a Sixth-Grade martial artist, which was the main reason the Li Sword Villa was no match for them. But if he were dead, the combination of the Villa Master and Zhong Zhengming would instantly surpass the strength of the Blazing Flame Sect. At that point, the Li Sword Villa would hold the advantage and could swallow the Blazing Flame Sect instead.

"May I ask, Master Lu, how you intend to command the formation?" the Villa Master asked.

"I can talk big, too. We’ve been here for decades and don't understand it; how could a newcomer like you possibly know?" Before Lu Jiuzhang could answer, a man with a sharp, monkey-like face stepped forward to mock him. He was a Ninth-Grade martial artist of the younger generation. The Li Sword Villa was small, and the youth were even scarcer. He had been trying to court Feng Wanqing, considering her the greatest beauty in the villa, and seeing her constantly in the company of Lu Jiuzhang had filled him with jealousy.

"Oh? And who are you?" Lu Jiuzhang’s gaze turned sharp as he fixed his eyes on the man.

"I am Wu Fei, a Ninth-Grade martial artist," the man sneered. "Aren’t you also Ninth-Grade? What are you acting so arrogant for? Let me tell you, the ruin world is not like the outside. Because of the abundance of cultivation techniques, people here are far stronger than those in the outside world. Don't think that just because I’m Ninth-Grade, I can't take you down—two of you wouldn't be a problem." He shook his fist threateningly.

"Damn it, Master Jiu, I can't take this anymore. This brat is too arrogant; let me kill him!" The black dog glared ferociously at the man.

"Master Lu, please show some restraint," the Villa Master urged. "Our villa is already short on people; if he dies, we will have even fewer. Wu Fei, slap yourself twice and apologize to Master Lu!" The Villa Master turned and barked at the man.