Chapter 58: The Grassland Sword Saint and Disciple Arrive! The Soul-devouring Insect Returns

Inside the Martial Arts Space.

Qin Yang was refining the finer details of the "Soul-Cutting Sword."

He soon completed its preliminary form.

This cultivation technique, named the "Soul-Cutting Sword," was just as its name implied.

It was essentially a sword condensed from Spiritual Power, imbued with Qin Yang’s Sword Intent, making it incomparably sharp!

Qin Yang could transform his Spiritual Power into a three-foot-long sword and effortlessly annihilate a living being’s soul.

’Sword of the Soul.’

Qin Yang reviewed the technique in his mind and was very pleased.

Now that he had the Soul-Cutting Sword, he had shored up another one of his weaknesses in cultivation.

The next time he encountered an attack from a Soul-devouring Insect, he wouldn’t be so passive.

’Not bad. Time to get back to work.’

Qin Yang yawned, pulled out his phone to check the time, and waved to Xiaobai in the distance. "Come back, Xiaobai."

"Oh, okay! Coming, Master!"

Hearing him, Xiaobai immediately stopped playing. Barefoot, she trotted toward Qin Yang through the gaps between the bookshelves.

With a light tap of her toes on the floor, her small frame shimmered and transformed back into her true form as a white fox, then she deftly climbed onto Qin Yang’s shoulder and curled up.

Then, the man and the fox leisurely departed.

After coming down from the second floor, Qin Yang returned to his designated circulation area, pushed the same small cart as before, and continued his daily routine of numbering and shelving books.

But just then, a rustling sound suddenly appeared within Qin Yang’s Spiritual Domain.

SKITTER SKITTER—

It was the sound of an insect crawling, coming from inside a nearby wall. It moved continuously through the pipes, and he could faintly hear the soft scraping of antennae.

’Cockroaches!?’

Qin Yang froze for a moment.

He quickly put down the book in his hand and expanded his Spiritual Power to sense the cockroaches’ locations.

In an instant, his Spiritual Power enveloped the entire library.

He soon locked onto seventeen weak spiritual sources, all of them pests inside the walls.

These cockroaches lurked behind the labyrinthine walls, scurrying through the pipes year-round and reproducing rapidly.

They would periodically lay their fine, white oothecae, and pesticides were useless against them.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say they had become spirits.

The steward in charge had a constant headache over it.

Moreover, due to the interference from the walls, every extermination attempt would miss one or two, which would then breed a new nest.

’Why not just wipe them all out? Am I supposed to keep them around for New Year’s?’

At this thought, Qin Yang no longer hesitated and unleashed his Spiritual Power right where he stood.

His immense Spiritual Power surged out of his body like a flood, quickly locking onto the cockroaches, not even sparing the unformed nymphs inside the oothecae.

Then, he unreservedly unleashed the Soul-Cutting Sword, striking at the consciousness of every single cockroach.

The next moment, the Spiritual Power gathered above the cockroaches’ heads instantly condensed, forming sharp swords that descended upon them.

BZZZT!

Death arrived in silence.

Quiet. Stillness.

It was a silent slaughter targeting their souls.

All the previously scurrying cockroaches dropped to the ground. Their bodies were still alive, but they showed no signs of movement, as if they had become puppets with their strings cut.

After that, it fell quiet behind the walls.

Before long, these soulless bodies would truly die from a lack of sustenance.

’Alright, all done.’

Seeing this, Qin Yang looked relieved.

The only good bug is a dead bug.

’The next time I run into that Soul-devouring Insect, I’ll definitely take it down!’

...

「At dusk, Jianghai International Airport.」

Under the twilight sun, a private charter descended through the clouds. After slowing and taxiing for a distance on the ground, it came to a steady stop at a remote stand.

CLICK!

The cabin door opened, and the airstairs were lowered.

Yu Wenxuan and Huyan Sword appeared at the door of the aircraft.

"We’ve finally arrived in Jianghai City, Teacher."

Huyan Sword breathed in the fresh air, his brow relaxing as he spotted the shuttle van approaching in the distance.

Ning Chuan had already notified the Jianghai City Government of their arrival, so people had been sent to pick them up.

The government would be responsible for all the master and disciple’s accommodations and travel arrangements.

After all, this challenge was of great importance. It was no longer just an ordinary match, but a matter of the officials’ reputation.

Thus, everyone in Jianghai City, from top to bottom, was on high alert.

"Teacher, when are we going to find that Jianghai Sword God?"

Huyan Sword asked Yu Wenxuan beside him as he slowly descended the airstairs.

"There’s no rush. You should rest first and get yourself into peak mental condition."

Yu Wenxuan smiled, the wrinkles on his face crinkling together, making him look like a rugged old herdsman.

"When the time comes, I will personally go and issue the challenge to the Jianghai Martial Arts Academy on your behalf."

...

「Time flew by.」

Night fell.

A gentle, cool breeze swept through the streets, which were bustling with an endless stream of pedestrians.

Cars sped down the center of the road, their taillights blurring into brilliant streams of light under the changing traffic signals.

"Over here, driver!"

A well-dressed couple stood by the roadside, waving at a taxi in the distance to come closer.

Once the taxi pulled up and stopped, the two opened the door and got in.

"Where to, you two?"

"Broken Peak Mountain, driver."

The girl placed the designer bag she was carrying on the seat beside her.

"Alrighty. From your accents, you two must not be from around here, right?"

The driver asked casually as he turned the steering wheel, pointing the car into the lane.

"That’s right, driver. We just got off the plane not long ago."

The boy smiled as he looked out the window. "When we were leaving the airport just now, we even ran into the Grassland Sword God himself. He looked pretty unremarkable, just like an old farmer."

"You young people don’t get it. Masters always look like that."

The driver chuckled and shook his head. "In a few more days, this Jianghai City is going to be buzzing. The Sword Saint’s disciple challenging the Jianghai Martial Arts Academy... tsk tsk, just thinking about it gets you excited!"

"That’s why we’re here, driver."

The boy looked down, scrolling through his phone. "It’s all over the internet right now. Tickets to Jianghai City sold out a long time ago.

We almost couldn’t even book this flight; we had to pay extra to get tickets from a scalper."

As they spoke, the traffic light at the intersection ahead turned green, and the pedestrians on either side stopped.

The driver held the steering wheel, stepped on the gas, and drove across the crosswalk, saying somewhat distractedly:

"I’ve been in this line of work for over ten years, and I haven’t seen Jianghai City this lively in a long time... It’s all thanks to the Sword God that we’re getting all this traffic."

Hearing this, the boy’s eyes lit up. "Can’t be helped, the Jianghai Sword God is just so cool. It would be amazing if I could see him in person."

Then, he couldn’t help but ask, "Driver, have you ever seen the Jianghai Sword God in person?"

"I..."

Just as the driver was about to answer, his face suddenly turned deathly pale, as if he were enduring immense pain.

The next second, his head slammed down onto the steering wheel.

"Driver!"

"Hey, hey, wake up! We’re gonna crash! AHHH!!!"

BANG!

Following a deafening crash, the car rear-ended a heavy truck. The immense force of the impact knocked the couple unconscious instantly.

In an instant, the road descended into chaos.

Traffic came to a standstill, and the sound of blaring horns filled the air.

And at the same time, atop the traffic light, a transparent insect squirmed and crawled, looking down upon the scene below as if it were digesting something...