Chapter 9: How Could I Back Down
1288 Words
An Lanxiu!
Ye Xuan froze.
He knew that name. In the entire Jiang Kingdom, there wasn't a soul unfamiliar with An Lanxiu. Her reputation was simply too colossal.
Jiang's Top Genius!
Before even turning eighteen, she'd reached the Aerial Soaring Realm – a level beyond Qi Control Realm. Not just that, she was Jiang's youngest-ever Spear Master. But the most terrifying feat? She'd comprehended Spear Intent!
What did that mean?
It meant she was virtually guaranteed to become a Grandmaster of the Spear Path!
Such talent hadn't appeared in Jiang's records for five centuries!
And her legends piled higher: the first student personally recruited by the Cangmu Academy headmaster; Jiang's youngest National Heroine; the fastest among Jiang's youth to reach the Aerial Soaring Realm...
Chosen Ones? Heaven and Earth Phenomena? Before her, they were nothing!
Ye Xuan never imagined she'd come to this backwater – Qingcheng.
Astride her horse, An Lanxiu leveled her spear at Ye Xuan. No contempt, no arrogance – just calm focus.
Ye Xuan collected himself, shaking his head. "Wrong person."
An Lanxiu's delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly. "Meaning?"
"You seek Ye Lang, who triggered the Heaven and Earth Phenomenon. He's at the Ye Clan."
"You'renot Ye Lang?"
Ye Xuan nodded.
Beside him, Ye Ling chirped: "Big Sister, my brother's strong too!"
Ye Xuan ruffled her hair with a smile. She beamed, clinging to his arm.
An Lanxiu scanned him. "Unexpected. This tiny Qingcheng holds not just a Heaven and Earth Phenomenon talent... but someone who achieved a Hidden Realm. Interesting."
Ye Xuan remained silent, smiling faintly.
"Whether you're Ye Lang or not," An Lanxiu declared, "you've earned one strike from my spear. Accept?"
Ye Xuan hesitated.
Accept?
Fame would follow. He cared little for glory, but knew it could be useful. Yet exposing his strength now? The Grand Elder would move heaven and earth to eliminate him – even target Ye Ling.
But refuse?
How could I back down?
He met An Lanxiu's gaze. "Two days. Then we duel. Agreed?"
"Two days?" She gave a faint, dismissive shake of her head. "Forgive my bluntness, but you lack the standing to make me wait."
She turned her horse.
Clack.
Ye Xuan snatched a wooden sword from a nearby stall. Plucking a hair, he raised the sword – a single, clean diagonal s***h.
The strand parted silently.
An Lanxiu halted. Surprise flickered in her eyes. "My oversight. Not just a Hidden Realm... but a Sword Cultivator. Rare indeed in Jiang."
Ye Xuan held her stare. "Two days. A duel. Not 'one strike' – a true fight."
A playful smile touched An Lanxiu's lips. He dares phrase it as equals?
After another appraising look, she nodded. "Two days it is. Now, to find Ye Lang. Where's Ye Manor?"
Ye Ling grinned. "We live there! Come with us!"
"Young Master of Ye Manor?" An Lanxiu asked Ye Xuan.
"Of sorts."
"Your clan's fortune soars. Two prodigies? A second-tier noble house seems inevitable."
Ye Xuan offered no reply, leading the way to Ye Manor.
An Lanxiu's arrival sent the Ye Clan into an uproar. The Grand Elder rushed out with every elder in tow.
Puffed up the Yes might be, but An Lanxiu hailed from the Imperial Capital. Her backing dwarfed a hundred Ye Clans. Hearing she came to challenge Ye Lang? Ecstasy!
At the gates, the Grand Elder's face soured seeing Ye Xuan and Ye Ling. He ignored them, bowing deeply to An Lanxiu.
"Your presence adds brilliance to our humble house, Lady An! Please, enter!"
An Lanxiu waved a hand. "Unnecessary. Is Ye Lang present?"
"Of course!" The Grand Elder snapped at an elder. "Fetch him!"
His glare returned to Ye Xuan, voice icy. "Why shame us here? Get inside!"
An Lanxiu's brows knitted.
Ye Xuan shot back, "None of your damn business!"
No pretense remained between him and the Grand Elder.
The elder's face darkened. Before he could retort, An Lanxiu cut in, "Explain."
The Grand Elder softened his tone. "Lady An, he wasour heir. But arrogant and tyrannical, with mediocre talent. We rightfully stripped him. Yet he harbors resentment, plotting—"
"Arrogant? No comment," An Lanxiu interrupted. "But mediocre talent?"
"Absolutely! Eighteen years old, still stuck at the 5th Layer: Unceasing Realm. Pathetic progress."
An Lanxiu's expression turned profoundly odd.
Sword Cultivator. Hidden Realm.
Mediocre?
She glanced at Ye Xuan, silent. The clan's internal strife was now glaringly obvious.
The Grand Elder pressed on, "Blinded by jealousy, he dared challenge Ye Lang to a one-month life-and-death agreement! It concludes in two days. Stay, Lady An! Witness justice served!"
An Lanxiu's gaze swept from the elder to Ye Xuan, her look now thoroughly bemused.
Ye Lang arrived, bowing. "Lady An."
An Lanxiu assessed him – and frowned.
Chosen One?
True Chosen Ones were failures who'd reincarnated and recultivated to cling to life. Real talents viewed them with disdain.
She'd come to Qingcheng not for Ye Lang, but for the Heaven and Earth Phenomenon. Thathad intrigued her.
Now? Disappointment.
Ye Lang masked his realm, but it felt unstable, frail – bubbles and illusions. Decent, perhaps, but unworthy of her attention.
Compared to Ye Xuan?
Solid foundations rivaling her own. A Hidden Realm. A Sword Cultivator.
She turned back to Ye Xuan. "Two days. I'll find you."
She vaulted onto her horse.
The Ye Clan stood dumbstruck / rooted in astonishment.
Ye Lang gaped. Leaving? Already?
The Grand Elder scrambled after her. "Lady An! What of your duel with Ye Lang?"
Without turning, her voice carried back:
"He lacks the qualification."
Her horse vanished down the street.
Silence.
The Ye Clan remained rooted, dumbstruck. Ye Lang's face twisted like he'd eaten dung.
Ignored!
His first humiliation since rising to fame. Unbearable!
Before anyone moved, Ye Lang lunged after her! The Grand Elder cried out, too late—
Hssst!
An Lanxiu wheeled her horse, spear snapping level.
Invisible pressure slammed Ye Lang to a halt!
His face paled. Spear Intent!
True Spear Intent!
He stared, shock warring with disbelief. So young?
Seeing him frozen, An Lanxiu retracted her spear. "Had you charged, I might have respected you. But you froze. No wonder you needed reincarnation. Utterly lacking."
Her gaze swept the Ye Clan elders, then lingered on Ye Xuan and Ye Ling, cast aside at the fringe. She shook her head, voice cold:
"The Ye leadership... truly pig-headed idiots."
She spurred her horse away.
Ye Lang stood rigid, fists clenched, face purple with rage.
Ye Xuan simply led Ye Ling back to their courtyard. Ye Lang and the elders? Irrelevant. He focused only on cultivation, protecting his sister, and waiting for the duel. Then – the Imperial Capital!
"Brother," Ye Ling murmured in their room, "that sister was so beautiful."
Ye Xuan smiled. "You'll be even more stunning someday."
True enough. He was handsome; Ye Ling was blossoming into true beauty.
Ye Ling beamed, heart glowing.
After she slept, Ye Xuan entered the Prison of Worlds Tower.
"Senior," he said urgently, "she saw my Hidden Realm! You said no one else achieved it!"
Silence. Then the mysterious woman responded, "Yours is... different."
"How?"
"Others find Hidden Realms easier. For you? Only greater pain awaits."
"Why?"
"Because they temper their realms. You? You temper tendons, bones, internal organs, every part of your body. Understand?"
Ye Xuan: "......"
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