After the person who came to report left, Xuanyuan Yufeng asked, âShaoyu, everyoneâs already leaving, so why are you leaving your chicks here?â
âFaction lord.â Gu Shaoyu turned around, and Xuanyuan Yufeng saw how ugly the expression on his face was.
âWhat is it? Why do you look so enraged?â Xuanyuan Yufengâs tone became cold, causing the temperature in the entire Dragonmight Hall to drop. No one dared to utter a single word at that moment.
Gu Shaoyu explained what had just happened and continued, âFaction lord, I suspect that our competitor did this. They used a small fry to bait and ambush us.â
The Dragonmight Hall fell silent. A young man squeezed out of the cloud with his eyes dazing off. His body was trembling as he asked, âMy sister is dead?â
The man was none other than Gu Qingyin.
âYeah. We fell for it,â said Gu Shaoyu.
âNo, that doesnât make sense,â a cold voice sounded. When everyone turned around, they saw Xuanyuan Ganggang, the Vajra Hallâs Hall Lord of the Dragonmight Faction.
âWhatâs the matter?â
âThis Li Tianming came to the Greenmaple Chapter to challenge during the day, and everyone saw how he defeated Gu Qingyin. He was also a Sky Saint. I believe thereâs a possibility that he killed Qingyao by joining forces with Lin Xiaoxiao.â People noticed that Xuanyuan Ganggangâs complexion was dark, and his murderous aura was comparable to Gu Qingyinâs.
âGo into details,â said Xuanyuan Yufeng.
Xuanyuan Ganggang then shared everything about Fu Bo and Fu Yonghuan.
âSomeone that Fu Yonghuan dares not to offend? Who the hell can Fu Yonghuan even offend with his identity? Xuanyuan Ganggang, wouldnât it be fine if youâd killed him long ago?â Gu Shaoyu said.
âYouâre the one who sent Qingyao to kill him, right? Iâve yet to settle this matter with you,â said Xuanyuan Ganggang.
âSheâs my cousin, so who the hell are you to settle this matter with me? Based on what?â Gu Shaoyu questioned.
âOkay, thatâs enough.â Xuanyuan Yufeng waved his hand and continued, âThe two of you head to Li Tianming and Lin Xiaoxiaoâs residences now and bring them to me. Weâll know if they killed Qingyao, or if someone else did it then. The two of you belong to the strongest faction in the Human Branch, so donât mess this up.â
âUnderstood!â Gu Shaoyu and Xuanyuan Ganggang nodded. They were heading to the disciplesâ residence, and not even disciples from the other factions would dare to start a fight there. But they headed toward Tianmingâs residence without hesitation.
âFaction lord, what are we going to do with them after capturing them?â Gu Qingyin asked with tears streaming down his cheeks.
âTheyâre all yours.â It was just the death of a chief and it wouldnât affect the Dragonmight Faction, so he wasnât too bothered about it. However, the incident had ruined the mood of the banquet.
âThen I want to drink his blood and eat his flesh!â Gu Qingyin gnashed his teeth.
âDonât boast,â Xuanyuan Yufeng smiled.
âI wonât!â
âGo ahead. Bring your elder sisterâs corpse back. Donât let it get frostbitten,â said Xuanyuan Yufeng.
His words left everyone stunned. How was the corpse going to get frostbitten when she was already dead?
......
It was almost dawn, and Tianming was standing on a hill looking at Gu Shaoyu along with another man in yellow clothes that had rushed into his residence. They smashed around, but couldnât find who they were looking for.
âWhoâs that?â Tianming asked.
âXuanyuan Xixiâs elder brother, Xuanyuan Ganggang,â said Lin Xiaoxiao.
âIs he trying to be cute with that name?â Tianming asked. He watched as the two hall lords smashed the residence before ultimately leaving empty-handed.
âIt looks like weâre homeless now,â said Lin Xiaoxiao.
âDoesnât matter. Itâs more exciting in the wilderness,â Tianming smiled as he stood up.
âWhere are you going now?â Lin Xiaoxiao asked.
âOldwind Street. The Nine Yang Sword broke, so I need a replacement,â said Tianming.
âDonât you already have a sword? Not to mention that itâs so powerful,â replied Lin Xiaoxiao.
âWhat do you think? I have no intention of revealing it yet. Iâll only reveal it in key moments, catching my opponents by surprise. Furthermore, Iâm rich,â said Tianming.
âWhereâd you get your money from?â
âWhatâs it got to do with you?â How could Tianming possibly tell Lin Xiaoxiao that his wife gave it to him for his monthly salary?
......
The snow stopped when the sun rose into the sky, and Oldwind Street was filled with people.
âBrother, did you hear the news? The Dragonmight Factionâs goddess, Gu Qingyao, died last night. She was killed by a newcomer called Li Tianming, and itâs rumored that the newcomer is only a Sky Saint.â a grey-clothed man said. He even reached out to pat Tianmingâs shoulder when he noticed that he wasnât stopping.
âAnd based on what are you saying that Li Tianming did it? Do you have any evidence?â Tianming asked. He didnât know the man, but he was being overly friendly.
âThere isnât, but itâs probably true since thatâs what they said. Itâs fine as long as they donât blame it on the Swordking Faction,â said the grey-clothed man.
Tianming and Lin Xiaoxiao then arrived at a shop that was larger than the Steadfast Pavilion. It was called the Snowrites Sword Pavilion.
âThatâs a weird name.â Tianming smiled.
âDonât spout nonsense. The lord of the Swordking Faction is Jian Xueyi, and this shop was opened by them. This is the largest artifact shop in Oldwind Street, and I heard there were many tribulation artifacts here,â said Lin Xiaoxiao.
âThe leader of the second strongest faction is a woman?â Tianming asked.
âIs that a problem?â
âThatâs not it. Iâm just not used to snatching things from a woman...â said Tianming.
âThen did you show tenderness for the fairer gender last night?â
âI donât think so....â Tianmingâs heart finally cleared up and he stepped into the Snowrites Sword Pavilion. Weapons were different from battle arts. Battle arts required the sectâs approval, while weapons could be freely circulated. That was why the Snowrites Sword Pavilion had such a large inventory, and the items were all placed right in the hall for selection.
âHello, Iâm here to buy tribulation artifacts. Iâm just an errand boy, so please donât look down on me,â Tianming directly said to the staff the moment he went in after learning his lesson previously.
âWho are you running errands for?â a black-clothed youth asked.
âCan you not ask about it?â Tianming felt a headache building. It seemed that he would be looked down on as long as he wasnât in the Empyrean Saint stage.
âSure, you can just call me Lu,â the black-clothed youth said. It appeared that his attitude was somewhat different from the Dragonmight Faction. Everyone from the Dragonmight Faction was used to being arrogant. It was just like Xuanyuan Xixi relying on her family and elder brother to become an overlord junior in the Oldwind Street.
âBring me to look at the tribulation artifacts,â said Tianming.
âCome with me.â Lu led the way in. He brought Tianming deep into the Snowrites Sword Pavilion and opened a secret chamber to reveal a long passage filled with many other rooms.
âEvery room here represents a tribulation artifact, and the prices are all marked. You can look at them yourself,â said Lu.
âAccording to this display, doesnât it mean that the one at the end is the best tribulation artifact available?â Tianming asked.
âThatâs right. Thatâs the best tribulation artifact available in the Human Branch,â replied Lu.
âStraightforward!â Tianming widened his steps and strode toward the last room.
âDo you have enough tribulation crystals?â Lu asked.
âDonât worry about it. Just that you might have a tough time going through them,â Tianming smiled.
His words made Lu depressed. How hard could counting money be? Just as he was feeling depressed, Tianming had already arrived at the last room, which was overflowing with sword ki.
When Tianming took a closer look, he didnât think that there would be a sword ki pool here, with a total of thirty thousand strands of sword ki! The grades werenât high, but the quantity was much higher than the sword ki pool in the Decimo Dao Palace.
âWhat sword is it that requires a sword ki pool to nurture it?â Tianming took a step forth and looked at the bottom of the pool. It was a meter-long white sword that was as thin as a cicadaâs wing. Just looking at it made Tianming feel a stinging pain in his eyes.
He then read the introduction, âBrightnight has one tribulation pattern and was forged with meteoric iron. Sharpness is its biggest feature, and it can cut through regular iron like mud. It also contains the âSolar Radiance,â which can light up the night as if it was the day when used.â It cost six hundred and ninety-nine tribulation crystals and was the most expensive item on Oldwind Street.
Tribulation artifacts could have dozens of tribulation patterns at most, and empyreans could only use tribulation artifacts with one or two of them.
Tianming smiled when he read through the introduction. The introduction is really casual. But are they trying to empty my pockets with this price?
If he converted all of his saint crystals into tribulation crystals, he would only have about 700 tribulation crystals remaining, leaving him broke after buying the sword. Well, itâs okay. Money is my least concern, with my wife around. Iâll just go for it then! This sword is good enough. At the very least, itâs stronger than the Frost Yang Sword and it should be enough for me to use in the Human Branch.
It wasnât that he didnât want to use the Grand-Orient Sword, but he wanted to keep it hidden away as his trump card to catch his opponents by surprise. After making his decision, he noticed another smaller note beneath the introduction, âBrightnight and Darkdawn are a pair. Theyâre made with the same materials and were forged together. But they have different effects, and are inseparable. Theyâre a match made in heaven.â
Tianming called Lu over and said, âThereâs another sword that goes by the name of Darkdawn? Iâll take it. But I have a condition.â
âPlease go ahead and say it!â Lu said emotionally. This was probably the biggest transaction on Oldwind Street.
âI want the sword ki pool and a voidspace stone that I can bring the sword ki away with,â said Tianming.
âDeal!â Lu laughed.
âHoly shit, did I just suffer a loss?â Tianming suspected that he didnât have a talent for bargaining.
âLet me see your tribulation crystals. Please donât toy with me,â said Lu.
âSure. Open your eyes wide!â Ten breaths later, Lu was buried in seven hundred million saint crystals.
âHoly shit, isnât it just spending all my money? Why do I have the feeling Iâve been hollowed out?â Tianming muttered in a depressed tone.
Lu happily dealt with the sword ki pool and even threw in a scabbard.
âBoss, have a safe trip!â Lu chuckled. Just by looking at the smile on his face, anyone could tell that he would receive a high commission for the transaction.
âDonât call me that. Iâm just an errand boy,â Tianming said humbly while he observed the sword, Brightnight.
âStop teasing me. I know you. Your name is Li Tianming, and youâre the one who killed Gu Qingyao last night,â Lu suddenly smiled.
Tianming turned around to look at Lu, and he asked, âYou know me?â
âThe Swordking Pavilion has a mature intelligence network,â Lu smiled.
âAnd?â
âSenior Sister Xueyi wishes to meet you, and Iâm responsible for leading you to the Swordking Hall. You coming?â Lu asked.
âWhy not? The point is, why didnât you tell me before I bought the sword?â Tianming asked.
âBrother, I wanted to get a commission.â
Tianming was left speechless by the reply. The scheming in the âcityâ ran deep, and he wanted to return to the âvillageâ now.