Fang Xing slowly opened his eyes, unaware of the chaos outside the Thousand Cliff. In the depths of his eyes was the glimmer of a single sword light, and it was at this moment that his mind became one with his body and he knew exactly what had happened within him.

　　The Decapitation’s Portrayal!

　　The moment he’d begun studying the Decapitation’s Portrayal, the two forces of energy it held had left a mark within him. One of them was the flame of wrath within the True Samadhi Fire, the same energy he’d used to purify his Qi and cleanse his physique during his everyday cultivation practice to solidify his own foundation. This was also the same energy that had allowed him to capture the Peng King. No matter how strong the True Samadhi Fire was, however, there was one thing that couldn’t be denied:

　　Its power was nowhere near as strong as that lone sword light!

　　When Fang Xing had seen the illusions from the Decapitation’s Portrayal, and even after Fang Xing had managed to grasp an understanding of the True Samadhi Fire, this sword light had always been the presence that suppressed the True Samadhi Fire.

　　This sword light was the conqueror, while the True Samadhi Fire was the conquered. Although Fang Xing could try to understand and grasp that True Samadhi Fire, he was unfortunately unable to do so with that sword light.

　　In the three years outside the sect, Bai Qianzhang had constantly tried to help Fang Xing grasp that sword light, but he’d failed; despite Bai Qianzhang’s cultivation level and extensive knowledge, not even he could grasp—let alone understand—that sword light. For this reason, there had only been one purpose for this sword light thus far, and that was to help Fang Xing keep the unruly True Samadhi Fire under control.

　　As Fang Xing became more and more proficient in controlling the True Samadhi Fire, the chance of him losing control became lower and lower. As for the sword light, it disappeared, and it had already been two years since its last appearance.

　　Until today.

　　Today, Granny Qian’s attack had caused Fang Xing to feel an immense sense of pressure, and now—during the match against Xiao Jianming—Fang Xing once again felt feelings of hopelessness and resignation.

　　This sword light represented the will of heaven!

　　What is the will of heaven?

　　Inevitability!

　　Fang Xing was clever and normally had all sorts of sly tricks up his sleeves. Whether through cheating or robbing, it was extremely rare for him to be forced to his wit’s end, which was why he wasn’t afraid of angering anyone and why almost nobody received his respect. He hadn’t experienced the futility of being confronted by an absolute power.

　　Today, however, this chain of events had made him feel a sense of helplessness, and it was this feeling that had caused the sword light slumbering within his Sea of Consciousness to stir.

　　Vnnnnn ….

　　The low hum of heaven’s will dispelled all of the force binding Fang Xing, allowing him to regain his freedom. The same sound also intimidated Xiao Jianming, and although his spirit sense was still there, he could no longer move his body. Despite being called “Jianming”[1] ¹ his entire life, it was only now that he finally understood the real power behind a sword’s cry.

　　The elders outside the small realm were all in a chaotic panic as they tried to open up the Thousand Cliff. However, with Tie Rukuang refusing to lend a hand and Chen Xuanhua passive and idle, the speed at which the Thousand Cliff began to open was extremely slow.

　　Fang Xing stood up and looked at Xiao Jianming with a sneer, the Saber of Azure Dragon held firmly in his hand.

　　Xiao Jianming’s eyes were filled with fear, and he struggled to open his mouth; it was only after great effort that he could speak, “Sp… sp… spare me…”

　　“Spare you?” Fang Xing mocked while looking at him. “The ten thousand lives from the Guiyan Valley, how come you didn’t spare them back then?”

　　Xiao Jianming nearly looked to be crying now. “There… there wasn’t… ten thousand….”

　　“I don’t remember the exact number, so let’s just say it was ten thousand!” Fang Xing then showed a hint of viciousness and yelled, “Xiao Jianming, I’m here to collect on your debt. Pay up!”

　　Swish !

　　The Saber of Azure Dragon was swiped out, and Xiao Jianming’s right arm flew up into the air still clutching his iron sword.

　　Outside the Thousand Cliff, Xiao Shanhe’s eyes were so large they seemed about to fall from the sockets. “Little livestock, if you dare hurt even half a strand of Jianming’s hair, I’m going to make sure you are split into a million pieces!” he shouted with all his might.

　　Fang Xing looked at him and smiled. “That is exactly what I’m going to do. If you’re so powerful, why don’t you come in and kill me?” He turned and—with another swipe—Xiao Jianming’s other arm flew up into the sky.

　　“You want to turn me into a human stick? Let me teach you how to be a real human stick!” Fang Xing sneered with hatred in his eyes. He sent Xiao Jianming into the air with a kick, and continuous flickers of metal flashed across until the legs were separated from his body as well—by the time Xiao Jianming dropped heavily to the ground, only his torso remained.

　　“Jianming….” Xiao Shanhe’s voice quivered, his eyes bloodshot. Even Chen Xuanhua and Elder Qin’nyao felt a sense of spine-chilling fear. Qin’nyao in particular was very terrified, as she suddenly realized this boy she hadn’t paid too much attention to earlier was actually quite frightening. She put even more effort into trying to break open the formation over the Thousand Cliff, but it was it no longer for Xiao Jianming, but rather so they could kill off this little devil as soon as possible.

　　Although this little monster was only at the Spirit Stage, they couldn’t leave him alive.

　　Xiao Jianming’s eyes were full of unshed tears from the pain, and regret lingered in his eyes. “Sp… spare me….” He knew that he’d already been completely crippled, but he still wanted to live.

　　“You know I’m not going to spare you. In fact, I want to kill you slowly over a good three days and nights!” Fang Xing kneeled beside Xiao Jianming with a calm expression. “But my nine uncles must be waiting for you in the underworld. I can’t delay too much, or they’d probably laugh at me for having lived too comfortably to take so long to kill just one person. Pay your debt, Xiao Jianming—the debt from when you so impressively killed everyone in Guiyan Valley with nothing but an eagle and a sword….”

　　Xiao Jianming’s eyes rounded, filled with extreme fear as tears began to flow down the edges of his eyes.

　　He was crying.

　　The number one core disciple of the Qing-Yun Sect—one of the most talented youths of the Chufung Kingdom—was actually crying. Two streams of tears filled his eyes, and no one could tell whether these were tears from fear, or even from regret for what he’d done.

　　A trace of disappointment crossed Fang Xing’s expression. “I thought you would show anger. When you killed so many people from Guiyan Valley, you appeared so proud and cold, as high and mighty as the gods. But when it’s your turn, all you can do is cry….” Fang Xing slowly lifted his fist and hatred filled his voice. “You are not even worth being compared to my uncles who fought back against you with their anger!”

　　As he finished his sentence, Fang Xing smashed his fist downward.

　　Xiao Jianming screamed out in terror, his wide eyes filled with regret.

　　When some people come face to face with the threat of death, they feel anger.

　　When some people come face to face with the threat of death, they feel unresigned.

　　Yet for Xiao Jianming, it was regret.

　　If only he hadn’t ignored his uncle’s advice to not battle this brat in the tournament….

　　If only he hadn’t been so overly arrogant and killed the numerous bandits within Guiyan Valley….

　　If only he hadn’t listened to his uncle when he said to search for the treasure dropped from the nine coffins onto the Chufung Kingdom….

　　Then, perhaps, he could still be alive and well.

　　Except no matter how much regret he had, it wouldn’t stop Fang Xing’s fist from drawing downward.

　　Splurt ….

　　There was a splatter of fresh blood.

　　“No!” Xiao Shanhe madly screamed. “I’ll make sure to split you into a million piece, you little livestock!”

　　Fang Xing seemed not to hear Xiao Shanhe’s yell. He threw his Saber of Azure Dragon to the side and brought both of his fists down at once, venting all of the hatred he had hidden so well these past five years. Fist after fist, Fang Xing punched against Xiao Jianming’s head until it looked like a rotten watermelon, and yet he still didn’t stop; he continued until there was a large pit in the ground beneath Xiao Jianming’s corpse….

　　Once all of his hatred had been vented, Fang Xing kneaded into his own lower back before finally standing up and letting out a long sigh. “I’ve finally avenged you all….” His great enmity had been satisfied, and the whole world now seemed much more pleasing to the eye.

　　BOOM ….

　　Outside the Thousand Cliff, the formation was being opened and Xiao Shanhe would all too soon break inside. Xiao Shanhe was terribly enraged, so much so that he wanted to tear Fang Xing into pieces, drink his blood, tear apart his bones, and eat his flesh. Never would he have imagined that just as his Xiao family was about to rise to power, his nephew… would be beaten down into minced meat right in front of his eyes.

　　Without a successor, what did it matter that he had the Ancient technique? Such hatred and pain was impossible to put into words!

　　While it seemed everyone had nearly gone insane, there were only two people who appeared calm—one was Tie Rukuang, and the other was Fang Xing.

　　Fang Xing bowed towards Tie Rukuang from afar without saying a single word, for nothing needed to be said. He straightened up his back, settled his hands at his waist, then pointed towards the Thousand Cliff’s formation—towards Xiao Shanhe and Elder Qin’nyao who would soon break inside. “You two old turtle-egg bastards, one of you sold out my eleventh uncle, and the other sold out Xiao Mahn. These debts, I’ve noted them all down, and I promise I’ll be back to clear them up with you in the future, plus interest….”

　　Xiao Shanhe didn’t listen to what Fang Xing had said at all. “I’m going to kill you now, you little livestock!” he angrily screamed, doing everything he could to assault the final layer of the Thousand Cliff.

　　Qin’nyao was also doing everything she could to break open the Thousand Cliff’s formation. Fang Xing’s words had caused fear to rise in her heart, and she couldn’t leave him alive—he had to be killed. The final barrier of the Thousand Cliff would be opened soon, and then they could catch that little devil….

　　Right at that moment, loud noises could be heard from not far away. Two pillars of flame shot up into the sky, each accompanied by the thunderous clamor of lightning and the shaking of the earth. Stones fell and mountains collapsed, as though the Qing-Yun Sect was going through a very powerful earthquake.

　　As everyone looked around, they were surprised to see that the flames and smoke that stretched into the sky were in the direction of the Danxia and Shanhe Valleys. The fires were extremely violent, and—after stretching so high as to touch the heavens—they began to spread into the forests, as though trying to burn the entirety of the Qing-Yun Sect.

　　When Fang Xing saw the flames, he knew the golden crow must have already succeeded and was overjoyed with laughter, “Hahahaha, today is just collecting some interest; I’ll be sure to come back later and square away the actual debt you all owe!” Once he’d finished, he pulled out a jade talisman.

　　“What… what did you do?” Elder Qin’nyao turned and yelled at Fang Xing in anger.

　　“You’ll know when you go back and have a look, haha…” Fang Xing laughed before pouring what was left of his Qi into the jade talisman. The atmosphere around him suddenly distorted as countless symbols flew out from the talisman and lined up in the air, as if forming themselves into a formation.

　　After only a few short moments later, Fang Xing disappeared. All of the elders who were preparing to rush into the Thousand Cliff were left in a state of shock by such a strange sight.

　　—

　　Notes

　　[1] Jianming : The name “Jianming” in Xiao Jianming is separated into 剑 (jian4) meaning sword, and 鸣 (ming2) meaning the sound or cry of (usually) a bird. Together, it references the cry/hum of a sword.