Firmament Sword

The "brick," of course, was the Soul Scripture Stele, which Xu Luo had disguised!

The Vajra Gourd… It lived up to its name—powerful and fearsome. But in front of the Soul Scripture Stele… it was simply no match!

Knocking Huyan Qingshan unconscious was an act of mercy on Xu Luo's part. Otherwise, that single blow could have smashed Huyan Qingshan's head to pulp!

Everyone stared at Xu Luo in horror. Only now did they suddenly realize that this Senior Brother of the Medicine Garden was far, far more powerful than they had ever imagined…

Huyan Qingshan, a Great Saint and a young master from a Heritage Clan, had even brought out his Vajra Gourd. And yet, someone had sent his Vajra Gourd flying with a brick and then smashed his head open with another blow.

This utterly unbelievable event had just unfolded right before their very eyes!

Previously, many had scorned the idea of comparing Luo Tian to Senior Brother Tianhuang, Jin Ming. But now, all who held that view had fallen silent.

Xu Luo put away the Soul Scripture Stele, his expression calm. He walked toward the Vajra Gourd he had sent flying. Some of Huyan Qingshan's followers wanted to stop him, but they had lost their courage. They could only watch as Xu Luo picked up the Huyan Family's clan-guarding treasure from the ground.

Xu Luo examined the palm-sized Vajra Gourd in his hand. It was extremely heavy, feeling just like solid Gold.

But Xu Luo knew very well that this object was countless times more valuable than Gold; the two weren't even comparable.

"This gourd isn't bad. It can hold wine," Xu Luo said.

The people around him nearly fainted. Many looked sympathetically at the unconscious Huyan Qingshan on the ground, thinking, 'It's a good thing Young Master Huyan passed out. If he were awake, he probably would have fainted from rage.'

"If you want this gourd back, have the elders of your Huyan Family come and find me themselves!" Xu Luo said to Huyan Qingshan's followers, brandishing the Vajra Gourd in his hand.

He then casually put the Vajra Gourd away, turned, and clasped his fist to Zhao Hongzhang. "Thank you for speaking out on my behalf today, Shopkeeper Zhao. I will remember this. However, this is a private matter between me and Huyan Qingshan. Please don't trouble yourself over it any longer."

Zhao Hongzhang was touched. He naturally understood that Xu Luo's words were meant to absolve him of any responsibility. He gave a carefree smile and said, "I, Old Zhao, have been the Shopkeeper of this Ancient Dao Pavilion for long enough. As a Heavenly Brilliance Disciple, I must go out and make a name for myself eventually. You need not worry about me, milord!"

Xu Luo nodded. He understood that Zhao Hongzhang must have some backing to dare speak so boldly. He believed it was unlikely that the Huyan Family behind Huyan Qingshan would take their anger out on Zhao Hongzhang.

Glancing at Xie Yurou, Xu Luo smiled and said, "Let's go."

"Mm," Xie Yurou responded, her eyes lowered obediently like a dutiful young wife. It wasn't that she was stunned by Xu Luo's power, but rather that she felt she had wronged him deeply and was blaming herself.

Xie Yurou summoned a warship. The two boarded it, looking like a celestial couple. Many of the onlookers praised them in their hearts, 'Now *that's* a truly fitting pair!'

Looking again at Huyan Qingshan, who lay on the ground like a dead dog, many people shook their heads and turned to leave.

Only then did Huyan Qingshan's retinue of followers dare to rush forward and try to treat their Young Master Huyan.

In truth, Huyan Qingshan had woken up long ago; he had just been feigning unconsciousness.

He couldn't help it. The loss of face today... was simply too great. If a crack were to open in the ground, he probably would have crawled right into it.

News of the incident in the city spread quickly, and Xu Luo's words, in particular, moved everyone who heard them.

"What is a man's dignity? It is constant self-improvement! It is unwavering resilience! It is indomitable perseverance! It is striving ever upward!"

"What a fine definition of a man's dignity!" said a man in his seventies. His full head of white hair was combed neatly back, his long eyebrows were snow-white, and his eyes were full of spirit, not the least bit clouded. He sat there with an imposing air of authority.

"Well said, indeed! Qingshan, what do you think?" the old man said coolly, looking at Huyan Qingshan, who was kneeling below with a white cloth wrapped around the wound on his head.

"Yes, what he said... was right!" A flash of unwillingness flickered in Huyan Qingshan's eyes, but he didn't dare act presumptuously in front of this old man.

"Heh, so unwilling, so resentful. Your Vajra Gourd was even taken from you. Don't you feel disgraced?" The old man's face broke into a smile, showing no sign of anger.

"Patriarch, it's my fault the Vajra Gourd was taken. I will use my own strength... to get it back! Even if I die... I will not bring shame upon the Huyan Family!" Huyan Qingshan's face was filled with hatred. The thought of that heroic young man felt like a thousand insects gnawing at his heart.

"And the woman who was taken from you? Can you get her back too?" the old man asked, a faint smile on his face.

"I don't want a fickle woman like that!" Huyan Qingshan said through clenched teeth. "But the Xie Family and that Luo Tian... I will never let them off!"

SLAP!

A crisp sound echoed, and a bright red handprint appeared on Huyan Qingshan's pale face.

Although there was no third person in the room, Huyan Qingshan was still overcome with unbearable shame. In comparison, the fiery sting on his face wasn't so painful.

"Foolish!"

The old man hadn't moved from his seat; he had slapped Huyan Qingshan from across the room. He looked at him and said, "I just praised that Luo Tian. Did you think I was being sarcastic?"

"Was he wrong? That is what a man's dignity should be! It's not about fighting over women out of jealousy! Was he wrong about that?"

"What right do you have to call that little girl from the Xie Family fickle? Do you think those of us who chose a marriage partner for you are all blind and deaf... that we would choose a woman like that to be your wife?"

"And by what ability will you 'not let the Xie Family off'?"

"With your 'great' strength that got you knocked out by a single brick?"

"Not bring shame to the family... When you utter those words, *that* is the greatest shame you could bring upon our family!"

"A powerful family is powerful precisely because every one of its scions has their own self-respect, their own dignity, and their own ambitions!"

"It is only when they unite that they make the family truly formidable!"

"That is what makes people revere us and tremble before us!"

"And you… You can't even defeat a single Luo Tian. He left you battered and bleeding, your head split open. If he hadn't spared you out of consideration for the Huyan name, your head would have been shattered with that one blow. On what grounds do you dare say you won't let him or the Xie Family off?"

"What right do you have to say such things!"

The old man's words were like arrows, each one piercing Huyan Qingshan's heart. He felt as if he could barely breathe, completely forgetting the fiery sting that still lingered on his cheek.

"When you say you won't let the Xie Family off, you're just thinking that since we're both Heritage Clans, the Xie Family's overall strength is no match for the Huyan Family's. If the Huyan Family were to mobilize its full strength, destroying them would be the work of a moment. Am I right or am I wrong?"

"And when you say you won't let Luo Tian off, you mean you'll find a group of powerful allies and rely on them to besiege and cripple him? Am I right or am I wrong?"

Huyan Qingshan's mouth twitched, and he was at a loss for words.

The old man shot Huyan Qingshan a sidelong glance and said, "This is why I called you foolish and why I had to slap you!"

"Did you think... that your personal honor represents the honor of the family? That if you lose face, the family must step in to reclaim it for you?"

"You're dreaming! The Huyan Family would never do such a thing!"

"That kind of thing... is what those self-righteous, reckless families do... It's what elders who spoil their children to the extreme do on a whim!"

"To spoil a child is to ruin him!"

"And you, Huyan Qingshan, are a spoiled child!"

"The Vajra Gourd was *taken*. Listen closely—taken, not stolen. He had no intention of robbing you! It was taken, and he openly told you to have an elder retrieve it. Do you know what losing face is? *That* is true loss of face!"

"It means that in his eyes... you, Huyan Qingshan, are less than nothing!"

"That girl from the Xie Family has good taste! She recognized such an outstanding man at a glance. If this old man were a young girl of a suitable age, I too would prefer a man like Luo Tian, not someone like you!"

"What do you have besides the family behind you?"

"What do you have left besides the Huyan name?"

This torrent of words drained all the color from Huyan Qingshan's face. It was a good thing there was no one else in the room; otherwise, he might have been driven to suicide.

He was the proud young master of a Heritage Clan. Since childhood, wherever he went, he was revered, adored, and served with the utmost care, with everyone terrified of displeasing him.

The Huyan name had always been his greatest source of pride. Because of that name, he was met with looks of reverence wherever he went!

When had he ever been stripped of every last shred of his dignity like this, to the point that he wished he could take a knife and cut his own head off?

And the one who had shattered and peeled away every layer of his dignity was the Patriarch of the Huyan Family!

His own great-grandfather!

"When they gave you the Vajra Gourd for protection, I disagreed. But at the time, your mother and your maternal grandfather's family all insisted that if you weren't given the Vajra Gourd, it would mean the Huyan Family didn't value you or see you as an heir!"

"An heir... Heh. Thinking back on it now, it's a complete joke. With a temperament like yours, what... what do you have to support the future of the Huyan Family?"

"Tell me, Huyan Qingshan! In your current state, what do you have to support the future of the Huyan Family?" As he finished, the old man slammed his palm on the table beside him.

The cups and plates on the table jumped and rattled, letting out a series of sharp clatters.

Huyan Qingshan's kneeling body trembled slightly. He slowly raised his head, looked at the old man with a dazed expression, and murmured, "I have been foolish. I beg the Patriarch... to enlighten me!"

"Heh, you're begging me to enlighten you? In your heart... you're probably cursing this old fossil in every way imaginable. But no matter. If you truly wish to change, then I'll give you a piece of advice. Whether you listen or not is entirely up to you!"

"Our Huyan Family has been a Heritage Clan for many years. We are powerful, yet we don't attract envy and hatred, precisely because we are sufficiently low-key!"

"We don't provoke others without reason, but neither do we fear being bullied. The Xie Family... although their strength is somewhat lacking, they operate on the same principle!"

"The scions of the Huyan Family must rely on themselves for everything. The trouble you cause is your own to solve!"

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