***
"At eleven o'clock last night, sword cultivators surnamed Lin and Feng were speeding on their swords, violating traffic regulations. According to the traffic management regulations, the two were sentenced to ten days of detention and fined two thousand spirit coins."
"We understand that all cultivators are anxious to return home and wish to confirm the safety of their relatives and friends, but please be sure to abide by the traffic regulations."
A massive mysterious light mirror hanging upon a building was currently broadcasting the news.
At a glance, it was clear they were sword cultivators of the Sword Sect; in such matters, the Sword Sect had always been relatively strict with its own practitioners.
Zhang Yunlu, dressed in a blue and white school uniform, was biting into a roast cake while her other hand held a cup of soy milk.
Upon hearing this piece of news, she could not help but grumble in her heart.
Having been tormented by that image all through the previous night, she had originally intended to ask her older brother to help her request leave, and she did not even know when she had eventually fallen asleep.
Yet she had not expected that after waking up, she would actually feel quite a bit better.
Her head no longer felt dizzy, her legs no longer felt sore, and even the images that had been repeating constantly within her mind had stopped.
Since she had recovered, she naturally would not remain at home to waste time, and thus, despite her older brother’s attempts to stop her, she insisted on coming to school.
The college entrance examination was approaching, so she could not afford to waste time.
As she walked, she once again thought of that Xu Xing she had encountered yesterday.
Xu Xing... which great authority of the Sword Sect was he exactly?
A great cultivator who had emerged from seclusion had actually been encountered by her, for better or worse; she had only ever seen such things in novels and movies, yet she had not expected that she truly would have a day where she ran into one.
When the protagonists in novels and movies encountered a great authority of this level, they would obtain treasures the authority no longer wanted, if not reaching the heavens in a single step.
As it turned out, not only had she been tricked into revealing a bunch of information, but she had also been forcibly harassed by those two images at night, being tortured to the point of death and back.
Alas—
As expected, it was all a lie; how could it be so easy to obtain benefits?
It was said that the great practitioners of ancient times all placed importance upon a 'fated law'.
That person yesterday had said that if they had the chance to meet again, he would give her a decent small gift.
However, great practitioners came and went without a trace, and Xuanjian City was so large; how could it be so easy to meet?
She kicked a small pebble by the side of the road, and she quickened her pace slightly.
The small pebble rolled all the way forward and finally stopped at the feet of a young man who looked somewhat honest and simple.
He was frowning, seemingly worried about something.
"Alas—"
His two Senior Brothers had been detained for speeding on their swords, and it was Perfected One Xiao Ning himself who had caught them, with the great power of the Taishang Dao Sect present at the scene.
It was impossible for them to come out within these ten days.
"It is better to first go and complete the sect mission as Senior Brother said."
Although he was not clear on what other private plans Senior Brother Lin had, on the surface, the three of them had accepted a sect mission.
Time was limited, and since his two Senior Brothers would not be able to come out for the time being, failing to complete the mission would result in a deduction of contribution points.
However, the requirements for this mission were at least three people, so he would still need to find two more sword cultivators at or above the Nascent Soul stage.
He touched the golden jade plaque at his waist; this golden jade plaque was not the type worn by Sword Sect disciples, but was instead the symbol of Lin Qiuxian’s family.
The Lin family possessed no small amount of influence within the Sword Sect, so the majority of Sword Sect sword cultivators would show them some respect.
"I hope this plaque given by Senior Brother is useful."
Otherwise, for no reason at all, why would other practitioners help you?
"I should first go and take a look at the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall here."
Most of the Nascent Soul sword cultivators contacted through the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall were members of the sect; for a mission within the sect, it was naturally better to act with people from the same sect.
Just as he was thinking, Zhang Yunlu passed by him.
She seemed to be touched by something, and his sword intent flickered slightly.
Hmm?!
A sharp light flashed in his eyes, and he directly saw through Zhang Yunlu’s cultivation base.
The eighth level of the Qi Refining stage was a very ordinary realm, yet it could actually touch his sword intent?!
What was the origin of this little girl?
A trace of curiosity emerged in his heart, and without much hesitation, he followed her directly.
At the entrance of Xuanjian City's Third High School, many students were walking into the school in groups.
Zhang Yunlu also encountered several classmates she was on good terms with, and the group chatted as they walked, looking quite harmonious.
In a secluded corner not far away, the Sword Sect youth looked at Zhang Yunlu’s back, his brows furrowed tightly.
As a Nascent Soul sword cultivator, Zhang Yunlu naturally could not discover him.
However, after following and watching her all the way, he surprisingly failed to see anything amiss.
'Forget it; I should go to the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall to handle official business first, and wait until the mission is finished before returning to observe.'
Inside the school, there were deans at the Nascent Soul stage and a principal at the Divine Transformation stage; if he continued to follow her inside, he might be discovered, so he could only stop here for now.
He turned to leave, originally intending to go directly to the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, but when he passed a hidden alleyway, he ducked inside with a flash.
There was no one inside the alleyway, and it was very quiet.
A black cat leaped onto the top of a wall and let out a cry at him.
Meow~
Subsequently, it jumped down from the wall and vanished.
"Friend, there is no one here; you can come out now."
His voice echoed within the alleyway, yet he received no response.
Not long after he had come out from the vicinity of the school, he had discovered that someone was following him.
Heh!
In broad daylight, someone actually dared to stalk a sword cultivator of the Sword Sect; did they truly think his sword was not sharp?
Suddenly, a wave of numbness hit his back, and the hairs all over his body stood on end.
Without the slightest hesitation, he turned and struck out with a slash.
Ceng!
A bright, crescent-shaped purple sword light was slashed out diagonally.
The radiance illuminated a masked person who had appeared at some unknown time.
The person wore an ordinary tracksuit and a face mask, and their eyes held an undisguised killing intent.
Crack!
The purple sword light was easily crushed, and the person’s movements were as swift as a bolt of thunder.
In an instant, the person arrived before him, grabbed him by the neck, and slammed him against the wall, giving him absolutely no chance to unleash a second sword strike.
Violent and scorching magical power surged into his body, and a strength so powerful that it was difficult to shake deathly gripped his qi vessels, sealing away the magical power of his entire body.
A body cultivator!
And their cultivation was even higher than his own!
Why would a body cultivator of this level be detected by him?
Damn it!
He had been baited!
This person had intentionally allowed him to detect them.
Under the pressure of the powerful aura, he only felt the images before his eyes begin to become somewhat blurred.
On the surrounding walls were pasted several talismans, and a semi-circular area formed by a hazy, faint light sealed off all the commotion within this place.
This person did not want to blow the matter out of proportion!
No wonder they used such thunderous methods right from the start.
"Can you group of damned scoundrels not stay honest for a period of time?!"
The voice was neutral, sounding as though many voices were blended together, making it impossible for one to distinguish it clearly, yet the suppressed anger within it could still be felt.
"I f***ing..."
Bang!
A fist had already greeted his face, directly beating him until his head was spinning and bursts of black appeared before his eyes.
"I didn't...!"
Bang!
"Listen to me...!"
Bang! Bang!
A round of old fists directly beat him until he was unable to even speak.
He wondered where the hell he had offended this person!
Ding!
A golden jade plaque fell to the ground and produced a crisp sound, and the continuous rain of fists finally came to a halt.
The masked person picked up the jade plaque and seemed to be startled for a moment.
"You actually still dare to take action against the people of the Lin family?"
The youth’s consciousness was already somewhat blurred, but upon hearing those words, he still roared out.
"That f***ing belongs to my Senior Brother!"
His voice was somewhat muffled and unclear.
"..."
There was silence for a while.
"You are a member of the Sword Sect?"
"Nonsense! Hiss—"
Perhaps because he had pulled at a wound, half of a shattered tooth fell out, and the pain caused him to suck in a breath of cold air.
He suppressed the grievance and anger in his heart and mobilized a wisp of magical power to alleviate the pain.
"I am Li Fengping of the Sword Sect. Who are you, and why did you beat me for no reason?"
"Then why did you run into the alley?"
He had f***ing wanted to counter-kill the person; the heavens only knew that the person's realm was even higher than his own.
"You were following me all along; of course I had to lead you out."
"...Sorry, I mistook you for someone else."
Mistook him for someone else?!
For heaven's sake...!
Before he could curse out loud, a pill was forcibly stuffed into his mouth.
The pill took effect very quickly, and a trace of numbness came from the wounds on his face.
By the time his vision cleared up a bit, the masked person and the talismans pasted around them had all vanished.
Meow~
The black cat jumped down from above his head and landed in front of him.
Through the amber cat pupils, he saw his own swollen head.
After that black cat walked a circle around him, it turned its head and left.
Staring at the empty alleyway, Li Fengping could no longer suppress the grievance in his heart at this moment.
Who the hell did he provoke?!