Sword Among Us c1-1268

by Black Swordsman Online

  While the players watching from the side wondered how this matter would develop, the people from Life Ending Hall suddenly opened up a path in their ranks. A young man wearing fitting black armor and two swords by his sides walked out. He was tall and well-built, and his footsteps were relaxed and languid. There was a strong heroic presence about him that made others feel pressured just by being around him.

  He probably had quite some confidence and strength!

  That was the first impression he gave to the people of Purple Sun Sect. They watched him enter through the door alone and could not help but tighten their grips around their weapons.

  "Stay where you are!" Phantom Jade took a step forward and shouted to make the person coming forward stop moving. "Whoever you are, tell us your name!"

  The person stopped at the stairs before the headquarters, and with an arrogant look on his face, he swept his gaze over the Purple Sun Sect members. His gaze eventually landed on Phantom Jade, the sect master, and Young White Dragon, who were on the stairs across from him. Then, some of his overbearing demeanor fell away.

  "I am the vice hall chief of Life Ending Hall, Sinless in Light and Dark. Upon orders from my sect master, I have come to retrieve an item from Purple Sun Sect."

  Sinless in Light and Dark!

  Astonishment entered the faces of Phantom Jade and Young White Dragon. They had heard that the strongest player in Life Ending Hall was not their hall chief, Life Ender, but one of his close friends, the vice hall chief Sinless in Light and Dark.

  He had performed several major feats that had great effect near Xuzhou City. Aside from killing the leaders of a few middle-sized and small sects to steal their tributes, he had even killed the sect master of Skeleton Sect, who had also come from Beijing and wanted to reap a large number of rewards in the area near Xuzhou. That sect master had been killed by Sinless in Light and Dark alone outside Xuzhou City and faced the tragic end of his corpse being exposed to the wild.

  Hence, Sinless in Light and Dark, who moved like a phantom, was known as the Enforcer in secret by the players in Xuzhou City. His name was in equal status to Quicksword and North Placating Duke!

  Wherever Light and Dark went, a sect was bound to face misfortune!

  "So, it is Sinless in Light and Dark! I've looked forward to meeting you for a long time now. I do wonder what exactly your hall chief wants, and how it is related to Purple Sun Sect." The sect master of Purple Sun Sect had a gentle smile and spoke with an amiable tone, as if he was not the one who had set out all his people with weapons out in his headquarters.

  Sinless in Light and Dark frowned slightly, and the arrogant look on his face faded away. "Sect master, you must surely be joking. Two days ago, our hall chief personally wrote a letter to you. Have you forgotten about it?"

  He had seen many people fight against them head on, but this was the first time he met someone like the sect master of Purple Sun Sect, who pretended to be ignorant, and he even did this while the hostile atmosphere around them was so thick that a knife could slice through it.

  "Oh, you must be talking about that jade slit ring."

  The sect master of Purple Sun Sect patted his head, as if he had come to a realization. "Yes, that's right. Your hall chief indeed sent a message. My memory fails me…"

  Sinless in Light and Dark spoke his next words in a calm tone. "It's wonderful that you managed to remember it, Purple Sun Sect Master. We are short on time. Our hall chief is still waiting for your reply."

  "Ha ha, we still have some things to say about this." The sect master of Purple Sun Sect waved his hand while speaking in a tone as if he was chatting with an old friend. Without even turning his head around, he asked the person beside him, "Have you heard who has the jade slit ring?"

  His acting skills were practically at the level of an academy award winning actor.

  "It's Leader Huang," Phantom Jade answered after he recovered from his daze. He cast Sinless in Light and Dark a glance while speaking.

  "Oh, where is he now?"

  "I'm here!"

  Leader Huang quickly walked to stand in front of them on the stairs.

  "Very well." The sect master of Purple Sun Sect cast him a glance and asked with a faint smile, "Did you take the jade slit ring Vice hall chief Light and Dark mentioned?"

  "I had indeed taken the item from that person's hands back then, sect master."

  "Then return the item to them. It's just a jade slit ring, don't ruin the harmony between our sects for such a small matter." the sect master of Purple Sun Sect ordered lightly.

  "Purple Sun Sect Master, you are indeed magnanimous, I, Light and Dark, am impressed—"

  Before Sinless in Light and Dark could finish speaking, Leader Huang's expression became anguished, and he turned toward the gate.

  "Vice Hall Chief Light and Dark, you will have to be disappointed. While the jade slit ring was indeed on me at that time, I couldn't protect it well. While we escorted a tribute back to the city, we were ambushed by a group of people. Once we died, I lost the jade slit ring."

  "You lost it?"

  Sinless in Light and Dark frowned. It was only then that he was able to tell that Purple Sun Sect could not hand over the jade slit ring.

  "That's right." Leader Huang explained. "After thorough investigation, we discovered that the person who ambushed us was a group from Black Rose. After they made me drop the jade slit ring, I immediately told my sect master, and we surrounded Red Coral, the chief military advisor of Black Rose Clan, who had been the one to take the jade slit ring."

  "What happened then?"

  Sinless in Light and Dark naturally knew how important the jade slit ring was. He knew that there was a great fortuitous event and treasure hidden within it, so once the person who had it died, the item would drop, which was why he patiently listened to Purple Sun Sect's explanation. He did not fly into a rage even when the sect master of Purple Sun Sect put up an act.

  "Today, we finally found Red Coral and blocked her path while she was in an ancient tomb…"

  "... With your sect's ability, you cannot possibly have let a member from a small clan escape from your clutches, right?"

  "Indeed, but if we managed to get it, would we have arranged ourselves right now?" Phantom Jade took over the conversation in an ill-mannered tone. When he noticed Sinless in Light and Dark's gaze switch to himself, he continued explaining. "My young master and I brought around ten Blessed Realm sect members to enter the ancient tomb, but we didn't manage to get the jade slit ring back. Not only did we not get it back, our brothers and even our young master died inside."

  At that moment, faint surprise appeared on the face of Sinless in Light and Dark, who had been listening quietly. He quirked an eyebrow and cast Phantom Jade a glance.

  "Are you saying that the item is currently with Black Rose Clan, and it's in the hands of a woman named Red Coral?"

  "It's in the hands of the person who killed our young master," Phantom Jade corrected him. "After all, you can obtain your answer through a fortune teller. Why don't you go and personally get it back?"

  "Based on your words, you don't seem to want to take revenge for your young master. Why?"

  Sinless in Light and Dark stared at Phantom Jade in doubt. He could tell that Young White Dragon and a few people by his side did indeed appear to have had their abilities reduced.

  There was no way they would have made this sort of sacrifice just to handle Life Ending Hall…

  The only reason for this could be that they had run into a wall!

  Once Phantom Jade earnestly explained that they were not the opponents of the person who killed them, interest lit up in the eyes of Sinless in Light and Dark.

  Chapter 110 - Inconsistency in Information

  In the end, Purple Sun Sect could not hand over the jade slit ring.

  Sinless in Light and Dark faltered for a while, but he did not give the order to attack the headquarters of Purple Sun Sect, because while Purple Sun Sect might not be their op
ponent if they fought at full strength outside the city, the situation would be different if Life Ending Hall attacked them on their home ground.

  They were also in Xuzhou City, Purple Sun Sect's nest. Unless Life Ending Hall mobilized all their forces, the situation would be very difficult for them. Also, the sect master of Purple Sun Sect acted in a very self-assured manner. Surely, he had a backup plan.

  Sinless in Light and Dark did not want to launch a head on attack and take the risk of sacrificing his sect members!

  "Dismissed!" He walked out of the headquarters of Purple Sun Sect. "Immediately locate Happy's current location. Once you find it, send a messenger pigeon to me, pronto."

  He gave an order to his subordinates and brought them out of Xuzhou City with the momentum of a retreating tidal wave. They left for the ancient tomb outside the city.

  He, too, wanted to know just how powerful was the player who could kill multiple Blessed Realm players from Purple Sun Sect. He had actually managed to make Purple Sun Sect to mobilize their forces to stand against Life Ending Hall regardless of the costs to refute a rumor.

  *****

  At that moment, Happy did not know that the vice hall master of Life Ending Hall had set his sights on him. He continued to fight against the Stone Giant in the main hall of the ancient tomb located between Xuzhou and Yangzhou.

  However, Happy and Thunderous Battle had now moved on from working together to fighting a Stone Giant alone by themselves in different corners.

  Thunderous Battle's understanding toward Stone Giants was naturally not as great as Happy's, his experience was also not as high, but he had an advantage over Happy: his body fortification technique and Infinite Sword Technique was at a higher level. He used Happy's method, and even though he was sometimes too late in reacting to the Stone Giant's attacks, he was not injured badly when hit. Compared to before, when he could only take two-three hits in one minute, it was already a very good improvement.

  And as he grew more familiar with the method to fight against the Stone Giants, the speed at which the level of his martial arts increased became astonishing.

  Thunderous Battle poured his whole heart and soul into training, growing addicted to it.

  Half a day passed, and his Infinite Sword Technique, which was originally in the middle stage of the ninth realm, became infinitesimally close to the tenth realm. With each skill he executed, the sword halo would be so bright that he could not look straight into it. In fact, it was dangerously dazzling.

  Happy's Flowering Knights' Song also moved from the beginning of the seventh realm to its second half.

  There was nothing else he could do about it. Right then, once he got rid of a Stone Giant, the EXP he gained would only be enough to increase one-third of his level, and the further he progressed in his training, the slower his leveling speed became.

  'Hmm?'

  Happy's eyes flashed, and he instinctively jumped backwards. He frowned and quickly swept his gaze over the candle lights attached to the walls of the main hall. They had burned quietly before, but now, they flickered slightly, as if they were dying flames swaying in the wind, about to go out at any moment.

  A thought appeared in his mind.

  A heroic-looking man dressed in a fitting body armor with black robes underneath stood at the entrance of the main hall with arms over his c.h.e.s.t. He stared at Happy with sparkling eyes, and he seemed to have been there for some time. Underneath his calm appearance was a certain presence that signalled danger.

  Happy only cast a faint glance at the heroic man before he lowered his gaze to the two swords at his waist. Then, he looked at the tunnel that led to the exit behind him.

  In truth, the entire process only lasted less than three seconds.

  Happy looked away and regained his usual calm. He went up against the Stone Giant who roared in anger. He suddenly changed the gentle momentum he previously used in his attacks with Hundred-battle Saber and struck Stone Giant's joints with the force of a storm.

  The sounds of air being sliced suddenly rang out in the air. The saber whistles became much more frequent, and Thunderous Battle heard it while in a corner not too far away.

  He cast Happy a surprised glance. Then, he saw the man at the entrance of the main hall in his peripheral vision. Immediately after, he heard concentrated footsteps, along with a faint but tense atmosphere that signalled an incoming storm. It seemed that quite a number of people had entered the ancient tomb and were rushing to the main hall.

  Thunderous Battle could not help but furrow his eyebrows, and he also increased the speed at which he dealt with his Stone Giant.

  Sinless in Light and Dark did not say anything. When he saw that he had alerted Happy, he frowned slightly.

  Sinless in Light and Dark did not expect that once he entered the ancient tomb, he would see two high-grade players who could go up against Stone Giants alone. Their lightness skills had already reached perfection. The young one should be the one who had the jade slit ring, and was the person the sect master of Purple Sun Sect had mentioned. He moved with agility, his blade techniques were sharp and incisive, and his skills were unfathomable.

  However, when he turned to the other corner and watched the man who only staggered slightly after he received multiple blows from the Stone Giant, Sinless in Light and Dark instantly felt pressure. He could also see the very bright sword halo enveloping the man's sword, and it looked like it would not fade away anytime soon. It was very difficult for him to see the skills he executed, and the realm of the man's sword technique might even be above his!

  Two powerful players!

  Sinless in Light and Dark s.u.c.k.e.d in a faint breath and hesitated.

  He originally thought that there would only be one high-grade player who would be like him, and he wanted to forcefully retrieve the jade slit ring, but by the looks of it now, their target had a companion who was slightly stronger than he was in the main hall. Based on their reaction and actions, his hopes of them not knowing each other were only a dream. His absolute confidence in winning the fight wavered.

  "Vice hall master!"

  "Vice hall master…"

  Whooshing sounds rose. A large group of people appeared behind Sinless in Light and Dark, and with gazes filled with respect and admiration, they stared at him, who had entered the main hall alone.

  Even though they had destroyed quite a number of Stone Giants and Dirt Puppets, who were very difficult to deal with, it would have been very difficult for them to pass if they had not relied on the advantage of numbers. They would not have been able to get through as easily as Sinless in Light and Dark, who even did so in a relaxed manner.

  When he saw Thunderous Battle and Happy finish their fights, Sinless in Light and Dark felt a slight pang of disappointment, but he still asked without turning his head around, "Was anyone injured?"

  "No," someone answered.

  "Vice hall master, that person is our target this time. Hmph! He has guts! He actually stayed here and did not leave."

  There were quite a number of people from Life Ending Hall who had heard the descriptions of the sect master of Purple Sun Sect about the person with the jade slit ring, and they cast thoughtful gazes at the young man who was collecting his loot in the corner.

  "These two people are not to be trifled with."

  Sinless in Light and Dark s.u.c.k.e.d in a deep breath. When he spoke, caution and surprise entered the faces of the people around him. It was the first time they heard their vice hall master use such a solemn tone to describe a player.

  Immediately, their gazes aimed at Happy and Thunderous Battle were no longer as relaxed as before.

  Happy did not seem to have noticed it.

  He cast a faint glance at the group which blocked the entrance to the main hall and was so numerous he could not tell just how many people were there. A light crease appeared between his eyebrows, and he walked toward Thunderous Battle.

  "Big brother Thunder, why don't you log off to rest a bit?"<
br />
  Thunderous Battle had his doubts about the situation at first, but once he heard Happy's words, he immediately became certain of his guess. His gaze focused.

  "What now? Do you think that I'm someone who's afraid of trouble, or that I'm going to hold you back?"

  While he spoke, he sat down cross-legged and circulated his qi cultivation technique from Wudang Sect. Wisps of white fog rose from his Dantian region to surround his body, and he swiftly restored the qi he had lost when he fought against the Stone Giant.

  When Happy saw that Thunderous Battle had made up his mind, he felt slightly touched. He then cast a cold glance at the entrance before returning to his corner and sitting down cross-legged to activate Complete Reality Qi Cultivation Technique.

  He breathed in and out, and white fog swirled up, surrounding his body. It made him look like an immortal. After practicing hard for the past few days, his Complete Reality Qi Cultivation Technique had long since entered Grandmaster Realm.

  The people in the distance s.u.c.k.e.d in a sharp breath and stared at each other aghast.

  They had long since learned online that those who had pushed their qi cultivation techniques to Grandmaster Realm were all insanely powerful players. And apparently, two of them had hidden in the ancient tomb!

  Chapter 111 - Black Rose Clan

  A group of people lay in ambush in the forest outside the ancient tomb. They were dressed in tight-fitting black clothes, and their faces were covered. However, from their curvaceous and exquisite figures, it was clear that they were all women.

  The masked women in black who were at the front of the group stuck close to each other. They kept a close watch over the dozen people from Life Ending Hall from behind the bushes with their bright big eyes.