Chapter 61: Sword Saint? Sword Demon?

「The next morning.」

In the first-floor lounge of the library.

The patrons were reading quietly, heads bowed, the soft rustle of turning pages filling the air. A few books that hadn’t been put away were strewn haphazardly across a table.

"Tsk. Have a little decency, would you?"

On duty, Qin Yang frowned.

He slowly approached the table, picked up the two books, and checked their classification numbers, preparing to reshelve them.

WHOOSH—

The soft, faint sound of a snore came from his shoulder.

Xiaobai was curled into a ball, eyes shut tight. Her eyelashes trembled with each breath, a clear sign she had drifted off to sleep.

’She fell asleep again.’

Qin Yang glanced at Xiaobai, a smile playing on his lips.

He and Xiaobai had really gone at it last night.

She’d gotten so angry she’d thrown every Illusion Technique she knew at him.

And the result?

They’d gone at it until the dead of night.

Qin Yang’s Spiritual Power showed no signs of depletion.

Instead, it was Xiaobai whose Spiritual Power had been exhausted first. Her eyes rolled back into her head, her little tongue lolled out, and she passed out...

And that led to the scene this morning.

Qin Yang checked on Xiaobai’s spiritual state.

It was nothing serious, but he figured she’d be groggy and listless for the rest of the day.

’Such weak Spiritual Power...’

’How could she ever hope to fight me?’

Qin Yang gloated internally. Feeling pleased with himself, he walked to the shelves and put the books away.

His Spiritual Power was now far more formidable than before. Enveloping the entire library was a simple task.

He had only to close his eyes for a moment.

And every stir within the library would be transmitted into his mind.

The rustle of turning pages, the patrons’ whispered conversations, a spider crawling beneath a table... He could perceive every detail.

After reshelving the books, Qin Yang walked on, listening to the conversations around him.

Just then,

a discussion in the southeast section of the first floor caught his attention.

"I heard the Grassland Sword Saint and his disciple have arrived in Jianghai City."

"They just got off the plane yesterday. I wonder when they’ll come to challenge our academy..."

"That Huyan Sword looks so fierce. I wonder if Senior Sister Li is a match for him..."

"..."

"I heard the main reason the Sword Saint came all the way to Jianghai was to challenge the Sword God..."

The bits and pieces of their conversation reached him.

Qin Yang was taken aback. He hadn’t expected this news at all.

’The Grassland Sword Saint is already in Jianghai City?’

’This early?’

’I was so busy taking out that Soul-devouring Insect last night, I didn’t pay any attention to the news.’

At that thought,

Qin Yang quickly pulled out his phone, unlocked the screen, and started searching for today’s news.

The moment he opened a browser, eye-catching headlines flooded the page.

[A Warm Welcome to Jianghai for the Grassland Sword Saint and His Disciple...]

The entire page was filled with news about the Sword Saint. Qin Yang clicked on a random link and immediately saw a photo from the event.

The photo was set against the backdrop of an airplane’s boarding stairs.

Leaders from all levels of Jianghai City’s government were there, faces plastered with smiles. They crowded around a dark-skinned old herdsman, surrounding him like stars around the moon.

And beside this old herdsman,

stood a young man cradling a longsword. His expression was arrogant and wild, radiating a fierce aura.

Qin Yang zoomed in with two fingers, focusing on the figures in the center.

The old man and the young one.

Without a doubt, this was the Grassland Sword Saint and his disciple.

’He looks pretty old.’

Qin Yang studied the old herdsman in the photo. His face was weathered by the harsh plateau climate, making his true age impossible to guess.

’Yu Wenxuan, Huyan Sword.’

Qin Yang glanced at their names and silently committed them to memory.

’This Sword Saint is at the Peak of the Grandmaster Realm. He can’t be underestimated.’

’I’m only at the Mid Stage. It’s best to play it safe.’

’Know your enemy and know yourself, and you can fight a hundred battles without defeat.’

After a quick look, Qin Yang exited the webpage, ready to get back to "working"—that is, slacking off.

But just then.

"Ding! Emperor Level Powerhouse, the Sword Demon, has been detected. Host is advised to flee immediately!"

The system’s alert sounded once more.

It was like an urgent Soul Summoning Bell, instantly freezing his next move.

’Huh?’

’Sword Demon?’

’The system’s giving me another risk alert?’

At this, Qin Yang froze for a second, then looked back at his phone, scrutinizing the photo of the old herdsman.

’Any being that can survive for five hundred years is a top-tier existence.’

’And this Grassland Sword Saint, after centuries have passed...’

’...actually becomes a Sword Demon who rules over a whole region?!’

’Wait, that’s not right...’

A thought struck Qin Yang, and he realized he couldn’t jump to conclusions.

’After all, the photo shows two people: a master and a disciple!’

’This Sword Demon from five hundred years in the future... does it mean the current Sword Saint...’

’...or his disciple?’

’So, which one is it?’

The thought made Qin Yang curse the damn system internally.

’It could be either of them. A fifty-fifty chance. It’s impossible to tell.’

But,

it wasn’t a huge problem.

He’d been through this enough times to figure out the system’s whole deal.

’This so-called Sword Demon can’t possibly be at the Emperor Level right now.’

’The one I need to watch out for right now is Yu Wenxuan, the one at the Peak of the Grandmaster Level.’

’Better to strike them down while they’re still weak.’

’Even if he’s at the Peak of Grandmaster...’

’...if I play all my cards right, I can still take down someone at the Peak of Grandmaster.’

’If I can defeat him now, I’ll definitely get another huge reward!’

’Alright, old man, young man... I don’t care which one of you is the Sword Demon...’

Qin Yang looked down at the master and disciple in the photo, his eyes glinting as he thought, ’I’m claiming that reward, no matter what!’

He hadn’t planned on paying any attention to this Grassland Sword Saint.

But now that they had triggered a system alert, he had no choice but to get involved.

At that thought, Qin Yang scrolled through his phone, recalling the conversation he’d just overheard.

In a few days,

the Sword Saint’s disciple would be challenging Li Zixuan.

It would be a major event, so the Grassland Sword Saint was bound to be there in person.

’When the time comes, I’ll have to make a trip over there and get a good look at this Grassland Sword Saint’s true power.’

’Once I eliminate this threat at the Peak of Grandmaster...’

’...the reward for the Sword Demon will be mine for the taking, right?’

...

...

「Meanwhile, inside the Sword Valley.」

Towering cliffs rose on both sides, scarred with a crisscrossing web of sword marks. A fierce wind whipped through the canyon, and a terrifying Sword Intent permeated most of the Sword Valley.

Two figures strode through the valley floor, pressing on against the raging Sword Intent as the wind howled around them.

"Master, how strong is this Sword God?"

Huyan Sword asked in a low voice, following behind the Sword Saint.

Under the pressure of the Sword Intent, his face was pale and his breathing was labored. He looked utterly exhausted.

"Very strong, my disciple."

Yu Wenxuan’s expression was grave. He tilted his head back, closed his eyes, and perceived every wisp of Sword Intent in the valley.

"In all my years wielding a sword, it’s been a long time since I’ve felt a Sword Intent of this caliber."

After a long moment,

he slowly opened his eyes. For the first time, his stoic face showed a fervent zeal, tinged with a hint of madness.

"Excellent..."

"This person’s strength is no less than my own."