Book 3, Chapter 296: The Marked Saber

“Windforest School has a rule stating that only the strongest disciple can become the eldest disciple.

“More than a decade ago, Windforest School had picked its next successor, but the then nineteen-year-old Mr. Gongying killed the successor. I heard that the battle ended within three moves.

“Over the past ten years, Mr. Gongying has faced numerous challenges, but he has never lost once.

“He beheads all his opponents, covers their heads in gold paint, turns them into tea sets, and puts them in built-in shelves. I heard that he already has three shelves filled.

“When Mr. Gongying fights, he’s like a ghost. When a regular person sees him, their hearts fill with terror. That’s why he’s known as Phantom Gongying. You don’t want to see how he looks when he draws his saber to fight.”

Upon hearing what the person-in-charge said, the two employees gulped, and fear twisted their faces.

***

Gongying Changxiu was listening to the discussions related to him. A faint smile was present on his face.

“You have a sick sense of humor, Senior Brother,” Guanshang Jing remarked.

“We need to get some entertainment in our lives, right? You’d also feel fulfilled if you heard legends about yourself,” Gongying Changxiu said with a smile.

Guanshang Jing felt a little resigned. His senior brother was fascinated by stories of the champions and great warriors of the old era, and he based all his movements according to theirs. He also had another hobby: Spreading stories about himself.

Pre-fight rituals were of a great importance to him as well because he wanted to make sure that every fight had the right mood. After defeating his opponents, he also had people make up exaggerated stories about the fight.

Whenever he heard those bizarre rumors about himself, he became exceptionally excited.

While the three major schools among the island nations were about the same level, Gongying Changxiu was known by all. Because of it, Windforest School was also the most famous.

His strength matched his reputation, though.

The eldest disciples of the three major schools had never fought before, but regardless of whether it was Yejian Hong of Serene Radiance School or Bianyue Yizhen of Fierce Wave School, they had remained as the eldest disciples of their schools for twenty years.

Meanwhile, Gongying Changxiu had killed the previous eldest disciple. Guanshang Jing had been there when the two fought, and he had been deeply impressed as well as wary of Gongying Changxiu’s strength. That was why while Guanshang Jing was older than Gongying Changxiu by over ten years, he willingly referred to Gongying Changxiu as his senior brother.

“I read the information you sent me about the target. He’s good and a worthy opponent. Where is he right now?” Gongying Changxiu asked languidly.

“Senior Brother Gongying...” Guanshang Jing looked a bit troubled.

“You know that I need to issue a challenge letter before a fight. This is my rule. I hope you understand,” Gongying Changxiu said.

Light was reflecting off Gongying Changxiu’s glasses, so Guanshang Jing was unable to see his senior brother’s eyes, but his heart pounded in fear. If they issued a challenge letter, it would be revealed that Gongying Changxiu had arrived ahead of schedule, but there was no arguing about it, so Guanshang Jing ducked his head.

“I’ll handle it, Senior Brother Gongying.”

Gongying Changxiu stared at him until Guanshang Jing started squirming in unease, then smiled. “You don’t have to. I already have everything ready.”

He put a hand on his Realm Pass. “Hui Shilang, go in my place.”

He then crossed his arms. “We can’t be careless about a great warrior’s entrance. I hope that he’ll be satisfied with my challenge letter.”

“Hui Shilang?”

It had been ten years since Guanshang Jing left Windforest School. He remembered Hui Shilang being just a teenager back then, but earlier, he believed he saw him among the people that exited the airship.

“It’s his honor to deliver the challenge letter in your place. I’ll have someone lead the way for him and make sure the letter reaches the target’s hands,” Guanshang Jing promised.

A few hours later, the sky turned bright, and a foreign martial artist with a long and short saber got out of a car before the Arcane Palace.

When the City Patrol noticed him, they checked him repeatedly. Every time, Hui Shilang stopped politely and showed his school ID and his travel pass from the Department of Administrative Affairs.

Even when the City Patrol warned him, Hui Shilang only respectfully stated that this was his first time here as a foreigner, and he would respect Central City’s rules.

Despite the journey only being one kilometer long, Hui Shilang took an hour to reach the Arcane Palace. Then, he asked to deliver the letter and stood patiently on the square in front of the university.

***

Chen Chuan had returned to the university after helping the trio settle down. While training, he received a message on his Realm Pass telling him that he had a letter.

When he walked out to take it, he found that it was a challenge letter issued by a Gongying Changxiu. The wording was polite. It stated that Gongying Changxiu had heard of Chen Chuan’s fame on the island and longed to fight him, so he traveled across the ocean for a duel, et cetera, et cetera.

He also mentioned that he was from Windforest School, one of the three major schools among the island nations. In order to show that he was a worthy opponent, he had sent a junior brother of his to display his saber techniques.

Saber techniques?

Chen Chuan was pretty interested. He went to the window and looked outside. Immediately, he saw the man in black, but he wondered whether he could really bring out the true essence of his saber technique.

Martial artists had a sense that was even greater than their instincts when it came to judging an opponent. Setting aside their skills, a martial artist could immediately determine how good another martial artist was based on their posture and demeanor alone.

As for this one...

Just then, he saw someone heading over. Their presence caught Chen Chuan by surprise. After some thinking, he turned around and walked down.

***

While Hui Shilang was waiting, he heard a voice call out to him. “Mr. Hui Shilang.”

The man turned around and saw a foreign martial artist in a traditional robe standing behind him. Despite going through his memories, he could not recognize the man, and in the common language of the island nations, he asked, “Who might you be?”

The man bowed. “Sancheng Huang of Fierce Wave School.”

“Mr. Sancheng, I see.” Hui Shilang bowed to him politely. “Why are you here?”

Sancheng Huang straightened up. “Are you here to issue a challenge letter to Mr. Chen, sir?”

Hui Shilang’s gaze changed, and he demanded, “What does that have to do with you?”

Sancheng Huang put a hand on his saber and declared loudly, “A lot! I’ve lost to Mr. Chen, and I’ve wholeheartedly admitted defeat. Mr. Hui, if you want to challenge Mr. Chen, you need to go through me first.”

He drew his saber.

Just like Sancheng Huang, Hui Shilang grabbed his saber and turned to face him. With a stern expression, he said, “While the challenger isn’t me, I can’t just overlook what you’re doing.”

Hui Shilang was representing Windforest School, and Sancheng Huang challenged him by drawing his saber before him. He couldn’t just ignore it.

Sancheng Huang held his saber tightly. “Then, allow me to witness Windforest School’s skills.”

“Very well.” Hui Shilang raised his chin. “I’m here to show Senior Brother Gongying’s saber technique to Mr. Chen, anyway. If I fight against you, I believe that Mr. Chen will be able to see those techniques clearly.”

He drew his saber and brought it up high.

Sancheng Huang positioned the saber in front of him. After a brief standoff, they moved forward at the same time. They passed each other and stopped where the other stood a moment ago.

Then, with their backs turned to each other, they stayed still for a while until Hui Shilang’s saber hit the ground, and he fell forward. A second later, blood started pooling under him.

Sancheng Huang exhaled before turning around and wiping his saber with a sleeve. He sheathed his blade and bowed to the corpse on the ground.

“Thank you for the duel.”

Chen Chuan was already downstairs. He reached the entrance in time to see them attack each other and Hui Shilang turn into someone else when he attacked. That caused him to raise an eyebrow.

Once Sancheng Huang bowed to Hui Shilang, he felt a lightness on his chest. The enemy’s saber had cut through the fabric. Just a little more, and the attack would have cut his skin.

Chen Chuan walked over and inspected him. “Are you okay, Mr. Sancheng?”

Sancheng Huang turned around and bowed to him. “I’m fine, Mr. Chen.”

He cast a glance at Hui Shilang’s corpse before lamenting, “That must have been the legendary Marked Saber.”

“Marked Saber?”

Sancheng Huang nodded. “Yes. The folks at Windforest School aren’t like us. They don’t focus on mental training as much, but they do have some mental techniques.

“I heard that they can imprint their saber techniques into another disciple once they’ve merged their minds. Whenever they send a worthy opponent a challenge letter, they can ask a disciple to give a demonstration of their imprinted saber technique.

“This is a show of power and a test. If the opponent can’t block the attack, there’s no need for the duel. If they do it, they have the right to duel.”

His expression turned a little graver. “Instead of saying that Hui Shilang was the one who attacked just now, it’s more accurate to say that it was an attack by Gongying Changxiu of Windforest School. Since it was performed through another person, its essence was not displayed to the fullest. If Gongying Changxiu had been the one to deliver that attack, I might have died.”

Chen Chuan nodded before asking, “What brought you here today?”

“I’ll be frank with you. I just received news that Gongying Changxiu has arrived in Central City. I believe that you’re his target, so I came to warn you. You mustn’t underestimate him. What I did just now was simply a show of my sincerity,” Sancheng Huang answered.

Chen Chuan observed him a little. “You’re going up against Windforest School by doing that. Aren’t you worried about potential trouble?”

“That’s fine. The world is about to descend into chaos. The weak and insignificant need to pick a side if they want to survive, and I have a feeling that siding with you is the right choice!” Sancheng Huang declared sincerely.