"Again the slaughter rises... Purifying the mundane."
The bodies of the mean-looking cultivator and the one with triangular eyes froze simultaneously, before being directly annihilated on the spot by several streaks of sword intent.
Their corpses vanished into the air together, while the aftershocks of the sword intent continued unabated, instantly grinding half of the Great Hall into powder.
Inside the hall, there was a dead silence.
Chen Fan, still on the ground, was slightly dazed.
What did he just... see?
Brother Xuan... recited a line of poetry? And then those two people... were gone.
Fang Xuan acted as if he had just done a trivial task, continuing to hold his sword as he stepped further into the hall.
"Are you alright?"
"N-No, I'm fine.... I'm fine, I'm fine."
Chen Fan snapped back to his senses, scrambled to his feet in a flurry of movement.
He gritted his teeth, barely leaning against a table leg for support as he wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
"Brother Xuan," he scratched his head, forcing a smile onto his face, "I thought... you wouldn't come."
When he sent out that distress signal earlier, he hadn't actually held much hope in his heart.
After all, why would a figure like Fang Xuan make a special trip for a tiny, insignificant emperor of a small kingdom?
He could be emperor, but so could anyone else.
He had only been treating a dead horse as if it were alive, a final desperate gamble.
"It was merely for profit," Fang Xuan said succinctly, his gaze sweeping over Chen Fan's fractured fingers and the wounds on his body.
"Though you, reaching the Qi Refining Realm in half a month and knowing to fight back with your life, aren't bad."
Hearing the word "profit," Chen Fan's heart actually felt a bit more at ease.
A bond of profit was more reliable than illusory sentiments.
He gave a chuckle, but the movement tugged at his wounds, making him gasp in pain. "Ha, haha, it was just luck. Just luck. I was pushed to a dead end; I couldn't exactly let them actually break my legs."
He looked back at the spot where the corpses had completely disappeared and couldn't help but ask, "By the way, Brother Xuan, what is your cultivation level?"
To be able to instantaneously kill two Void Core cultivators so effortlessly—this method was something even the Nascent Soul ancestors he had seen before absolutely could not achieve!
"Transformation Realm," Fang Xuan did not hide it.
As expected... Chen Fan’s heart jolted, followed by a surge of complex emotions.
Awe, yearning, and also a trace of loss.
The Transformation Realm... that was a boundary he had never even dared to dream of before.
The gap was too large, large enough to be despair-inducing.
In this lifetime, even if he worked himself to death, he probably wouldn't even be able to touch Brother Xuan's heels, would he? Any talk of following him was simply a pipe dream.
"Haha, Brother Xuan is amazing!" He suppressed that bit of loss, the smile returning to his face.
"I've been having people search for fine wines everywhere and have stored up quite a lot of good stock. Brother Xuan, want a drink?"
"I thought... it would be a long time before I saw you again."
He knew he and Fang Xuan were people from two different worlds; being able to receive the other's help once was already a stroke of immense luck.
Next time? Who knew if there would even be a next time.
"Sure," Fang Xuan nodded with a smile, his gaze lingering for a moment on Chen Fan's bruised face that was forcing a smile.
It was as if... he saw his former self.
Back when he was still an ordinary person in his past life, that kind of desperate attempt to hold onto something... that forced strength......
.......
Fang Xuan tossed the black sword aside casually and sat down on a nearby chair.
Enduring the pain, Chen Fan also limped with a smile over to a side table.
Then, from his low-grade storage ring, he reverently took out two jars of small wine.
"Sit," Fang Xuan said casually.
"Ah, okay, okay." Chen Fan was overwhelmed by the favor and sat down cautiously, only half his bottom touching the chair, his back held perfectly straight.
......
"The wine is good," Fang Xuan praised.
Chen Fan immediately beamed with joy. "It's good that Brother Xuan likes it."
He also raised his bowl, originally intending to down it in one go like a hero.
As a result, it agitated his internal injuries, causing him to choke and cough. His face turned red, yet his heart was still very happy.
Brother Xuan... really didn't have that kind of high-and-mighty air.
While sipping the wine to suppress his cough, Chen Fan secretly observed him.
He was different from all the cultivators Chen Fan had ever met.
Those cultivators, even if they were only in the Qi Refining Realm, would have their nostrils pointed at the sky when facing mortals.
But Brother Xuan was in the Transformation Realm, yet he was willing to sit and drink as an equal with an insignificant person like him in the Qi Refining Realm.
He even let him call him "Brother" and had never denied it.
This made his heart feel warm, yet also a bit sour......
......
Fang Xuan looked at the palace scenery outside the window, slowly savoring the wine.
No wonder those protagonists liked to show off in front of people, though it was just so-so.
The most comfortable thing in the world, of course, was still being with Senior Sister.......
Wait a minute.
Did he... forget something?
He was probably overthinking it. Drink, drink. How delightful, how delightful.
.......
It wasn't until evening.
Chen Fan walked to the hall entrance, looking at the place where Fang Xuan's figure had disappeared, and scratched his head. "Brother Xuan... why did he leave in such a hurry?"
The old eunuch, who had been shrinking in the corner all this time, finally dared to tremble as he approached. Looking at the empty space outside the hall with lingering fear, he asked in a low voice, "Your Majesty, how did you... get to know such a figure?"
A Transformation Realm expert! That was a legendary existence, someone who could move mountains and seas with a gesture! To think he would personally take action for the emperor?
Chen Fan looked in that direction, a smile appearing on his face. "Hahaha, I met him by chance."
"Your Majesty, then... how should the daughter of the Prime Minister be handled?"
"Chop her up and feed her to the dogs......"
.......
Fang Xuan appeared silently in his room, immediately withdrawing all his aura and listening carefully.
He had said he would go and come back quickly, that he would be back in about an hour.
Now... looking at the sky, it was almost evening. He had spent at least another hour drinking with Chen Fan.
He was doomed.
Fang Xuan could already imagine Ning Xian waking up and finding him gone.
That cold little face going from confusion to anger, then to grievance, and finally darkening......
It was very quiet outside, with only the rustling of bamboo leaves in the wind.
Was Senior Sister... still meditating?
He breathed a sigh of relief and tiptoed toward the door, preparing to head out first and pretend he had been practicing his sword in the courtyard the whole time.
Just as his hand touched the latch—
Creak.
The door was pushed open from the outside.
Ning Xian stood at the doorway, looking at him expressionlessly.
She was still wearing those plain white nightclothes, her long hair draped over her shoulders, her feet bare.
Those cold eyes were quietly watching Fang Xuan.
Her gaze swept over him, finally landing on the corners of his mouth where the scent of alcohol hadn't yet completely dissipated.
Fang Xuan's body froze, and his heart skipped a beat.
"S-Senior Sister... you're done meditating?" He gave a dry laugh, hurriedly trying to change the subject. "The weather today is really... hm?"
Ning Xian didn't speak. She only bypassed him, walked into the room, and closed the door behind her.
Click. The door was locked.
Then, she walked to the center of the room, her back toward Fang Xuan.
"Kneel."
Fang Xuan: "......."
There was no escape.
"Okay, Senior Sister." His tone was obedient, his attitude upright.
Only then did Ning Xian slowly turn around, looking at Fang Xuan kneeling before her.
She had her arms crossed over her chest, her little face set sternly, looking very angry.
"Who allowed you to run off alone?"
"Senior Sister, I was wrong." Fang Xuan immediately admitted his mistake with a good attitude.
"You smell like wine all over." Ning Xian interrupted him, leaning in slightly, her small nose twitching gently.
Subsequently, a cold light grew stronger in her aloof eyes. "If I find out you went to some houses of pleasure and touched another woman......."
She paused, speaking each word deliberately:
"I. Will. Kill. Her."
Fang Xuan’s hair stood on end, and he waved his hands hurriedly. "No, no! Absolutely not! Senior Sister, I just went to have a drink with Chen Fan to celebrate him breaking through to the Qi Refining Realm and to ask about the situation while I was at it."
"Hmph."
Ning Xian straightened up, but her eyes remained fixed on him, as if she wanted to see through him inside and out.
This disobedient junior brother, running out on his own for half a day and returning with the scent of alcohol... he had to be severely punished.
She took a deep breath, suppressing the panic and unease in her heart that had only slightly subsided upon seeing his safe return......
.......
"Speak."
Ning Xian tilted her chin up slightly, trying hard to maintain her dignity as a senior sister and her "I am very angry" aura.
"What punishment do you want? Choose it yourself."
Hearing this, Fang Xuan's lowered eyes instantly lit up.
Wow!
Here it comes, Senior Sister's reward phase, and she's even letting him choose it himself.
He suddenly remembered the system notification from before—reaching 10% in the training progress could unlock a milestone reward upgrade.
Being a bit... deviant this time should be enough.
He was really looking forward to what good things the system would give him.
Fang Xuan knelt on the ground with his head lowered, seemingly in deep reflection.
In reality, his mind had already started racing with calculations on how to conduct a hearty, epic-tier training session.
It was simply too delicious.
Should he choose to let Senior Sister step on him with her bare feet... somewhere, or let Senior Sister tie him up, or... something even more stimulating?
He peeked up surreptitiously, glancing at Ning Xian's small face and those eyes that were barely holding onto their sternness.
He had an idea......
Rate on N.U.
