Firmament Sword

A flicker of disdain flashed in Xu Luo's eyes. He swung his arm and slapped the young man across the face.

SLAP!

It was a crisp, resounding slap.

The young man clutched his face, his empty eye sockets turned in Xu Luo's direction, as if he couldn't believe what had just happened.

His most practiced sneak attack had failed. Instead, he was the one who got slapped hard across the face!

"You… who the hell are you?" the young man asked, aghast. "What grudge do I have with you that's worth all this? Do you get some kind of sick thrill from bullying a blind man?"

"Heh, I do. In fact, I'm overjoyed," Xu Luo said, smiling cheerfully at the young man.

"Didn't we have such a pleasant conversation? Didn't I personally blind you before shoving you off a cliff? How… could you have forgotten so quickly?" Xu Luo said, looking at the young man with a mocking expression. "Your memory is truly terrible. I always assumed one would remember the voice of their mortal enemy, that it would be etched into their very bones…"

"You… you… you're… Xu Luo?" The young man's mouth twitched violently, and his voice trembled as he spoke.

The entire tavern immediately erupted into an uproar. Nearly everyone who looked at Xu Luo now did so with expressions filled with shock and fear.

It was as if they were looking at a monster.

It was like when people gossip about a famous, continent-shaking figure. They might say whatever they please, with no filter. In their hearts, they all believe such a powerful person would never, ever appear before them.

But the impossible had just become possible.

The shock that rocked them to their core was easy to imagine.

"That's right. I'm the one who did this to you, and it still took you this long to recognize me. Heh. Should I call you slow-witted, or should I say you were just caught red-handed spouting lies?" Xu Luo said, smiling cheerfully at the young man.

"Yes, that's right! It's your voice! It's you! Xu Luo, your voice… Even if I die… I'll never forget it!" The young man suddenly grew agitated, standing defiantly before Xu Luo and shouting, "Today, in front of all these people, I will expose your evil deeds, even if you kill me for it!"

Xu Luo suddenly grinned. "And who told you I was Xu Luo?" he asked lightly.

The tavern hall, holding well over a hundred people, was now completely silent. You could have heard a pin drop.

Only Xu Luo's voice, faint and tinged with mockery, broke the silence. "From the very beginning, did I ever once tell you that I was Xu Luo?"

"You…" By now, the young man knew he'd been played. He was fuming, but he was helpless. Gritting his teeth, he said, "I was just joking with you! Of course I know you're not Xu Luo! Hmph, after what Xu Luo did to me, how could I possibly fail to recognize his voice?"

By now, some in the tavern were thinking the young man was utterly shameless. He could flip-flop on a dime; no matter what happened, he always twisted things to make himself right.

But Xu Luo's next words would show everyone what true treachery looked like…

"Hahaha, I am Xu Luo! Who told you I wasn't?" Xu Luo roared with laughter. His expression then turned icy as he stared at the young man. "I don't even know who you are or what your name is, yet you're here, spreading all these slanderous lies about me, claiming I harmed you? Ptooey!"

Xu Luo spat right in the young man's face and said indifferently, "Are you even worthy?"

"You're courting death!" The young man flew into a rage. He had once been a prodigy of his continent, with his own pride and dignity. Deep down, he didn't hold Xu Luo in such awe.

A prodigy wouldn't just let someone spit in his face and do nothing.

Besides, he had only ever heard legends about Xu Luo; he'd never actually seen him in person.

He had been plotted against by Su Qianqian not long after arriving on the Sect Continent. He was gravely injured and barely escaped with his life. As a result, he hadn't heard many of the rumors about Xu Luo or the great battle on the Endless Ocean, and deep down, he didn't really believe them.

'If Xu Luo is really that powerful, why would he need help from Su Qianqian?'

Therefore, the name Xu Luo didn't inspire much awe in him. He attacked again. This time, a sword shimmering with a cold light appeared in his hand.

Simultaneously, a Dharma Heaven and Earth manifested behind the young man, rising up and straining the tavern's structure to the point of imminent collapse!

"Oh no! Run!"

"The tavern's going to collapse!"

"Quick, run…"

The onlookers in the tavern finally realized how dire the situation had become. This was far beyond their comprehension. Only a dozen or so people, confident in their own strength, remained standing to the side, watching calmly.

The young man lunged with his sword, its light a shimmering ribbon, cold as autumn water. The Dharma Aspect behind him also lunged directly at Xu Luo.

SLAP!

It was another crisp slap!

It landed squarely on the young man's face, which immediately swelled up. A vivid red handprint marked his cheek.

The Dharma Aspect instantly shattered.

SNAP!

With a crisp snap, the shimmering sword held in the young man's hand was broken in two.

The tavern, which had been on the verge of collapse, instantly fell still.

Xu Luo glanced at the young man. "You've damaged their tavern. Can you afford to pay for the repairs? This is a hundred-year-old establishment, you know," he said mildly.

With that, Xu Luo grabbed the young man by the collar and hoisted him up. "I have questions for you. Tell me the truth, and I'll spare your worthless life. Tell me a single lie, and I'll kill you."

Only then did the young man, a so-called prodigy from the Ancient Race Continent, truly understand that the rumors about Beidou's Eighth Star… were all true.

Had he known, he wouldn't have dared to spout such nonsense, not even if he had a hundred times the courage. But alas, there are no 'what ifs' in this world.

Under the dumbfounded stares of the crowd, Xu Luo swaggered out of the tavern, hauling the young man behind him, and left Tianya City.

「On a mountain thirty li outside the city.」

Xu Luo threw the young man to the ground. "There's no ten-thousand-zhang cliff here, only a hundred-zhang one," he said lightly. "You'll have to make do."

"You… what do you mean by that?" the young man stammered, trying to scramble up, but he was powerless. Xu Luo had sealed all of his power; he was now weaker than a common mortal.

"Nothing special. Don't you like jumping off cliffs? If you lie to me, I'll throw you off this one. It's not that high, only a hundred zhang. Much shorter than the ten-thousand-zhang cliff from before."

Xu Luo glanced down at the gentle slope below them. "Besides," he added mildly, "this 'cliff' is covered in trees. With your luck, you'll probably get snagged by one again."

"No… don't! Don't kill me! I'll tell you whatever you want to know! Please, spare me!" The young man managed to get to his knees and tried to crawl over to hug Xu Luo's legs and beg for his life.

"First, tell me your name. I don't even know it," Xu Luo said, taking a few steps back and looking at the young man with disgust.

"I… my name is Cai Pan…" the young man stammered.

"Cai Pan? Sounds like 'Saucepan.' Might as well call yourself 'Garbage Pail'," Xu Luo muttered, his mouth twitching.

"It's Pan, as in 'solid as bedrock'…" Cai Pan explained timidly, terrified he would anger Xu Luo and be kicked off the hundred-zhang cliff. He quickly added, "But if it pleases Master Xu, you can call this lowly one Saucepan… no, Garbage Pail is fine too!"

Xu Luo looked at the trembling, kneeling Cai Pan and couldn't help but sigh. 'This is a prodigy?'

'So arrogant and domineering when they have power, but worse than a dog when they lose it. A groveling mutt will at least snarl if you kick it, but this so-called prodigy… he just grovels even harder!'

"So, tell me what really happened," Xu Luo said. "Why were you spreading lies about me? Why did you insult Qian… the Su Celestial Maiden?"

"You… you really know the Su Celestial Maiden?" Cai Pan dared to ask, before letting out a self-deprecating laugh. "Then again, of course you do. If you didn't, she never would have publicly sided with you. It seems you two knew each other from back on the Central Plains Star Continent. If I'd known that, I never would have pursued her. I'm sure… things wouldn't have ended like this for me!"

Xu Luo watched Cai Pan with a stoic expression. 'You reap what you sow,' he thought. 'Who else can you blame?'

"This is what happened…" Cai Pan collected himself and began to recount the true story.

"In Tianya City, she and I had a dispute. But back then, everyone's attention… was mostly… mostly on you, so the matter was temporarily dropped."

"After we reached the Sect Continent, the rivalry between Ding Fengyi and Bai Zhihai grew more intense. They had a few small clashes. But then, for some reason, the Su Celestial Maiden… she suddenly got very close to Bai Zhihai. At first… I thought she had taken a liking to him."

"But then I found out the truth. The Su Celestial Maiden used Bai Zhihai to kill Ding Fengyi, and then she wanted to kill me…"

"I figured it out too late, but I managed to escape with my life. My eyes, though… they were blinded. It was one of Bai Zhihai's experts who did it."

"I despise Bai Zhihai, but I hate the Su Celestial Maiden even more… I wanted to ruin her reputation, and drag his down with it!"

Having said all this, Cai Pan turned his empty eye sockets in Xu Luo's direction and said in a fawning tone, "That Bai Zhihai is no simple character either. The Su Celestial Maiden used him to eliminate Ding Fengyi and almost killed me. Many other prodigies from the Ancient Race died by his hand. But Bai Zhihai didn't come away with nothing. I don't know how, but he managed to contact his family and then went to the Su Family to propose marriage. I heard… the Su Family's Patriarch and the Elder Council… have already agreed to it!"

"What?" Xu Luo's brow furrowed slightly. 'Qianqian is going to marry that Bai Zhihai?'

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