Singing with a Sword

The following is the main text of the novel "{?$article_title?}" ({?$jieqi_title?}) provided by {?$jieqi_sitename?}. Please enjoy! It turns out that the middle-aged man was Zhong Bugui's master, named Xu Jingyi, and the young man was his junior brother, Xu Zhongwen, who was also Xu Jingyi's son. And this burly man was naturally Zhong Bugui's senior uncle, named Shen Fanba.

Because Zhong Bugui had secretly learned the sect's techniques, he was discovered and fled to avoid punishment. Shen Fanba was ordered to capture him, and after much hardship, he finally found his trail at the Hehuan Sect and rushed there immediately. Zhong Bugui escaped again ahead of time, and this time he was incredibly fast thanks to the "Swift Travel Pill." However, Shen Fanba was powerful and his Yuan energy was vast and boundless, and he eventually caught Zhong Bugui.

As for stealing martial arts techniques, some ordinary sects would cripple a disciple's cultivation. However, for Xu Jingyi's sect, the punishment is much more severe, especially since Zhong Bugui stole their sect's signature technique, making the punishment even harsher!

Even killing them outright wouldn't be too much!

Shen Fanba and Xu Jingyi had always been at odds, disagreeing on certain issues concerning the sect's development, leading to a tense relationship. Furthermore, Shen Fanba was known for his fiery temper. Therefore, Xu Jingyi had come specifically to prevent his outspoken disciple, Zhong Bugui, from provoking Shen Fanba and getting killed, leaving him with no recourse. After all, Shen Fanba was the sect's enforcement elder, with the authority to administer punishments!

"Junior brother, what brings you here?" Shen Fanba saw Xu Jingyi but showed no smile. As usual, he was cold and fierce.

Xu Jingyi chuckled, "Senior Brother Shen, after all, Zhong Bugui is my disciple. There's nothing wrong with me coming to see him." Shen Fanba coldly retorted, "Junior Brother Xu, how dare you acknowledge this rebellious disciple as your own at a time like this?" He glared fiercely at Zhong Bugui and said, "This man has committed a heinous crime by stealing Senior Brother Sect Leader's 'Multiple Illusion Sword Technique'! You still dare to acknowledge him? Do you also intend to betray Senior Brother Sect Leader?"

These words were utterly blunt; this is Shen Fanba's personality! Domineering! Especially towards Xu Jingyi!

Zhong Bugui immediately shouted indignantly, "Shen Fanba, these are all mistakes I made alone, don't go around criticizing my master!" The gray-clad man holding him kicked him in the back of the knee, and Zhong Bugui was caught off guard and knelt on the ground. "How dare you speak to Elder Shen like that, you really have a death wish!"

The first to react was Yi Ranxiao. How could he sit idly by seeing his elder brother being bullied? He was about to rush over when a flash of white light appeared before his eyes, and the white-robed young man suddenly appeared in front of him, smiling as he warned, "Boy, this is a matter within our sect. You'd better not meddle! Otherwise, you'll be in big trouble!"

The man exuded a powerful aura, and Yi Ranxiao clearly sensed that even ten of her own strength wouldn't be a match for him. However, "That man is my elder brother, how can I abandon him?"

The young man in white smiled elegantly, but his words were sharp: "If you have the strength, then go ahead and try! But your strength is far too low! In front of us, you don't even have the qualifications to be cannon fodder. How can you try to manage something with such strength?"

Cannon fodder? This word was Yi Ranxiao's Achilles' heel! Yi Ranxiao's expression changed drastically, and just then, Xu Jingyi said in time, "Nephew Wen, and that young friend, you had no disputes before, don't make enemies because of my disciple."

This young man in white was named Wen Erya, and true to his name, he was gentle and refined, with an elegant demeanor. However, he was actually ruthless and cunning, though incredibly powerful! He was Shen Fanba's eldest disciple, and like his master, he disliked Xu Jingyi, even looking down on him. In their eyes, Xu Jingyi was somewhat weak, so they even warned their disciples not to meddle in other people's business or cause trouble. In their view, this was a sign of weakness!

If he weren't her senior martial uncle, Wen Erya probably wouldn't have listened to him at all. But since their seniority was there, Wen Erya still grunted in agreement. Yi Ranxiao, however, was relentless, because her older brother was still kneeling on the ground!

At this moment, Zhong Bugui turned around and commanded in an unyielding tone, "Brother, stay seated and don't move!" Zhong Bugui understood that if his brother made any rash moves now, he would only face certain death! Because the people in his sect were simply too powerful!

Yi Ranxiao reluctantly sat back down, but he was unwilling to leave, firstly because of his elder brother, and secondly because he couldn't let go of the expert the system had located.

Seeing that things had quieted down, Shen Fanba continued to speak to Xu Jingyi: "Junior Brother Xu, Zhong Bugui is your disciple. How could you not know that he stole the sect leader's swordsmanship? Hmph, so this time, you should also take responsibility for this matter!"

Xu Zhongwen couldn't sit still any longer and retorted, "Uncle-Master, aren't you making baseless accusations against my father?!" Before he could finish speaking, Shen Fanba glared at him fiercely. This glare contained endless pressure, which shut Xu Zhongwen up immediately!

This shows just how powerful Shen Fanba is!

"When did it become your place to interrupt when we elders are speaking?" Shen Fanba snorted angrily. "Junior Brother Xu, is there something wrong with your method of educating your disciples? Why do you always produce some problem cultivators?" Then he changed the subject again and said, "Junior Brother Xu, if you don't speak, does that mean you agree? Fine, as for Zhong Bugui's theft of sword techniques, I hereby declare that you, Junior Brother, will be confined to the Cliff of Repentance for ten years due to your poor teaching!"

Ten years of confinement?

For cultivators, ten years is neither long nor short, but the problem is that being imprisoned on the Cliff of Repentance is a huge loss of face!

Xu Jingyi immediately retorted, "Senior Brother Shen, I truly knew nothing about Bu Gui secretly learning swordsmanship, but..." Shen Fanba interrupted him, saying, "Know nothing? Hmph, you're lying! Even if you knew nothing, you're still protecting your disciple at every turn. You should be punished! You should be locked up on the Cliff of Repentance for ten years!"

Shen Fanba is simply going too far! But Xu Jingyi couldn't do anything about it, since he was in the wrong! His beloved disciple had indeed done something he shouldn't have.

But Gui Buzhong immediately shouted, "Shen Fanba, don't push your luck! My master didn't know I was secretly learning swordsmanship, and he's never protected me! He bears absolutely no responsibility! Your punishment of him is purely settling a personal score—"

"Shut up!" The gray-clad man slapped Zhong Bugui across the face, forcing him to swallow his words.

Yi Ranxiao could no longer sit still! She thrust out her green sword, aiming straight for the gray-robed man!

The Returning Style Swordplay: The Unity of Heaven and Man!

call out!

But then a "clang" was heard, and the green sword was thrown out! Yi Ranxiao was shocked. Just now, it was... it was this young master in white who made the move, but he hadn't seen how he made the move at all!

How is this possible! How can he be so powerful? Which sect do these people belong to?

Before he could even ask, Wen Erya pointed at Yi Ranxiao and asked in surprise, "Boy, how do you know my sect's swordsmanship?"

Sect... Sect? Yi Ranxiao was stunned. Could it be the number one cultivation sect in the Tang Dynasty? Could it be that the giant cultivation sect that stands tall in the East? The sect that is just called a sect?

"Sect... Sect? Which sect?" Yi Ranxiao asked, somewhat stammering. For him, a sect was simply too powerful.

Wen Erya said, "Of course, it's just a sect that's called a sect!"

……

……

After Luo Rongna and his group of cultivators fled in a sorry state, they were all gritting their teeth. Although they were shocked and afraid of the expert's strength, their instincts drove them to seek revenge! It seemed that relying on their own strength was completely impossible to get revenge, so they could only find help.

"Sect Leader Luo, that expert is at least a Transcendent Realm expert. If we want to defeat him, we must ask a Transcendent Realm expert for help!" a cultivator said.

"That's right, we have no choice but to ask a powerhouse at the Transcendent Realm!"

Luo Rong naturally knew this, but were experts at the Transcendent Realm so easy to invite? "Speaking of experts at the Transcendent Realm, we do have one in Su Shui City," Luo Rong said. "However, this expert has been in seclusion and rarely interferes in worldly affairs. Wouldn't it be inappropriate for us to disturb him?"

"Sect Leader Luo, the one you're talking about must be 'Ancestor Miaoshan,' right? Haha, Sect Leader Luo, don't worry, this man is a womanizer. Although he claims to be in seclusion, he often goes out to seek pleasure. So as long as we offer him beautiful women, he will definitely help us!"

"That's only one expert at the Dust Realm! It's not very safe."

"Don't worry, Sect Leader Luo, I can also use some special channels to invite a Transcendent Realm expert!"

"I, Xu, can also find a way to invite a powerful expert at the Dust Realm!"

……

Immediately, these cultivators resorted to unorthodox methods to invite powerful experts.