"We..."
"Shall settle this with our blades!"
...
Xu Yujun heard Lu Xiaoluo's stubborn response. Far from showing anger, a smile of even colder contempt appeared on his face.
"Believe it or not, what does that have to do with me?" His transmitted voice was like cold ice scraping past. "Do you think I need to rely on these words to shake your mind and thereby defeat you?"
"You're overthinking it."
His eyes suddenly became sharp as swords, filled with condescending indifference. "I told you these things only because I felt that a poor wretch like you, kept in the dark about the truth of your own origins, dying by my sword without understanding why... would be somewhat... a pity."
"I'm letting you die with understanding. Nothing more."
Before his words faded, the long sword in his arms suddenly rang out with a clear dragon's cry!
"Clang—!"
Sword light flashed like autumn water spreading across a cold pool, bone-chillingly cold!
Xu Yujun's figure instantly vanished from where he stood. In the next moment, he had already appeared before Lu Xiaoluo! His speed was so extreme it seemed to ignore the distance of space!
"So fast!" A chorus of gasps rose from below!
Lu Xiaoluo's pupils contracted sharply, alarm bells ringing in her heart! Almost by instinct, the sword at her waist instantly flashed out, horizontally blocking in front of her!
"Ding—!"
The two swords collided, issuing a piercing metallic clash!
A tremendous force like a mountain flood erupted from the sword body. Lu Xiaoluo felt her arm violently shake, her tiger's mouth going numb. Her feet uncontrollably retreated seven or eight steps before she barely managed to dissipate this force, her internal qi and blood churning!
What powerful strength! What pure sword essence!
She was shocked in her heart. Her opponent's casual sword strike possessed such terrifying might!
However, Xu Yujun's attacks came like a violent storm, giving her no chance to catch her breath! One sword had barely fallen when the second closely followed! Sword light clung like a parasite, precisely striking the weak points in her sword stance!
Lu Xiaoluo clenched her teeth tight, pushing the sword techniques her master had taught her to their limits, sword light flowing as she tried to block and counterattack.
"Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!"
Dense collision sounds rang out like rain on banana leaves, ceaseless!
But after only a few exchanges, the difference was clear!
Lu Xiaoluo's sword techniques were exquisite, and her spiritual energy was extremely deep. But under Xu Yujun's terrifying assault, which seemed to penetrate everything and held absolute advantage in power, speed, and sword intent, she was completely suppressed!
Every one of her blocks appeared extremely labored, every evasion was fraught with danger! Her sword moves were often not yet fully developed before being forcibly interrupted and broken by her opponent's faster sword and stronger power!
She was like a small boat on the sea in a storm, tossed violently by the terrifying waves, in danger of capsizing at any moment!
"Too fast! Can't see clearly at all!"
"Elder Lu seems completely suppressed!"
"This Xu Yujun's sword dao... is too terrifying!"
The audience below watched with hearts in their throats. No one had expected that Lu Xiaoluo, a fellow disciple of yesterday's stunning performers Han Yu and Ji Lingxiu, would be so miserably pressed when facing Xu Yujun, almost powerless to fight back!
Xu Yujun's sword was not only fast, ruthless, and accurate, but carried a coldness and cruelty that disdained everything, as if his purpose was not competition but... slaughter!
Fine beads of sweat had already appeared on Lu Xiaoluo's forehead, and her breathing had become rapid. She was giving her all, yet could only struggle to hold on. Defeat seemed only a matter of time.
A trace of boredom flashed through Xu Yujun's eyes as his transmitted voice once again coldly rang out, like a final judgment:
"Now, do you understand?"
"For me to kill you..."
"Would be as easy as turning my hand."
...
The next morning, the weather was fair. The martial arts arena was already packed with people, the atmosphere lively.
Today's first focus match was between Lu Xiaoluo, the closed-door disciple of Immortal Spirit Holy Land's Ancestor Chen Chang'an, and the mysterious, unbeatable dark horse in sword dao, Xu Yujun.
However, unlike yesterday's somewhat nervous yet still eager state, today Lu Xiaoluo's brow was clearly covered with a layer of lingering haze. She appeared somewhat preoccupied, even a bit indecisive.
"Xiaoluo, what's wrong?" Ji Lingxiu keenly sensed her unusual state and approached with concern. "Are you worried about today's opponent? Don't be too nervous. Just do your best. Victory and defeat are common in battle."
She thought her junior sister had been affected by yesterday's dangerous experiences of Han Yu and herself, developing fear of powerful enemies.
Lu Xiaoluo raised her head and forced a smile. "Thank you, Senior Sister. I'm fine."
Ji Lingxiu patted her shoulder, her tone turning serious. "Remember, no matter what your opponent says, do not let your mind be shaken. Yesterday's experience between Senior Brother Han and myself is a lesson. People from the Upper Realm excel at techniques that attack the heart—impossible to defend against."
These words were like a wake-up call, instantly alerting Lu Xiaoluo!
That's right! Last night that mysterious person came suspiciously, and his words were even more inconceivable! Could it be... it was simply a heart-attacking scheme set by the other side? Deliberately fabricating an "older brother" identity to disturb her state of mind? That Xu Yujun might have nothing to do with her at all!
Thinking of this, the heaviness and confusion in her heart immediately dissipated by more than half, and her eyes became determined again. She nodded firmly. "Rest assured, Senior Sister! I remember!"
The martial arts bell rang.
Lu Xiaoluo took a deep breath, suppressed her distracting thoughts, and flew up onto the arena.
Her opponent, Xu Yujun, was already standing quietly on the stage. He wore azure robes, his figure straight as a pine, his face handsome but carrying a trace of aloof coldness. He held his sword in his arms, his temperament extraordinary.
The two paid their respects according to etiquette, bowing to each other.
However, just as Lu Xiaoluo straightened up, an ice-cold voice full of undisguised malice and contempt, like a venomous snake, drilled into her ears through sound transmission:
"You are that bastard child abandoned at the foot of Kunlun Mountain?"
The words "bastard child" were like a red-hot branding iron, ruthlessly searing Lu Xiaoluo's heart!
She suddenly raised her head, glaring furiously at Xu Yujun! Though mild-tempered and not prone to arguing with others, she was by no means without temper! This naked insult instantly ignited her anger!
Seeing Lu Xiaoluo's furious yet seemingly unable to rebut appearance, a mocking cold smile curved Xu Yujun's lips. He continued transmitting, his voice flowing like venom:
"Haha, angered into shame? Don't worry, although there is indeed some nauseating blood relationship between us, I won't show you any mercy because of it."
His words were vicious and precise, as if rehearsed countless times:
"Because you and I have never been the same."
"I was sent by father himself onto the flying boat leaving Kunlun, together with my mother."
"But you... are nothing more than an unimportant abandoned child who was chosen to be left behind, a pitiful... sacrifice to placate people's hearts."
Lu Xiaoluo's pupils contracted sharply, her fingers on the sword hilt suddenly tightening.
Xu Yujun seemed very satisfied with her reaction and continued to torture her mind with words:
"When the heavenly tribulation approached years ago, the Kunlun Mountain Guardian knew he would certainly die. Guess why I could leave, but you were kept behind?"
"Heh... though I didn't experience it personally, I can guess. Although you luckily survived until now, what you went through... must have been nine deaths and one life, filled with endless suffering, right?"
These words, like the sharpest ice pick, precisely pierced into the deepest memories in Lu Xiaoluo's heart!
Kunlun Mountain... wind and snow... hopeless waiting... those "villagers" who gradually became strange, trying to assimilate her... the cold stone house... endless fear and loneliness...
That childhood memory she had deeply buried in her heart, unwilling to easily touch, instantly surged up! It was indeed a dark time with almost no hope in sight. If Han Yu and Senior Brother Jiang Che hadn't accidentally discovered her while patrolling the mountains, her fate would have been unthinkable...
The other side... actually guessed most of it correctly?
Could it be... what he said... is true?
A chill climbed up her spine to the back of her head.
But just then, the family letter her master had given her, written in her father's handsome hand, full of reluctance and helplessness yet every word filled with love for her, surfaced in her mind... that deep, absolutely impossible to fake love...
She shook her head violently, forcefully suppressing those wavering thoughts!
She might not be skilled with words, but she trusted her own feelings, trusted her master's judgment!
She raised her head, her gaze once again becoming clear and determined, looking straight into Xu Yujun's eyes full of malice and mockery. Using all her strength to keep her voice calm, she clearly responded:
"I won't believe anything you say."
[
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