Chapter 108: The Meaning of Our Survival (Part 2)
Most of the people in the streets and alleys around the inn were cultivators at the Tongyou realm, with a few having already achieved the Gathering Stars realm. In the world of cultivation, they could be considered strong experts, and to ordinary people, they were lofty beings high above. But if this were the past, these people would be nothing more than ants to Su Li. Yet now, facing the arrogance of these ants, he could no longer make any response, only lowering his head in the rain.
Su Li silently watched the blood water dripping from the corner of his brow down to his chest. His face, washed clean by the rain, was somewhat pale—that was due to his injuries, or perhaps also related to his emotions. A feeling of desolation spread through the raindrops falling on the ruins of the inn.
As Chen Changsheng had said, if it weren't for fighting against the demons, how could he have been so severely wounded? After leaving the Snow Plain, he had been relentlessly pursued until now, finally trapped in Xunyang City. How could he not be subjected to humiliation by these people, and even die at their hands later? How could this fact not stir grief and indignation, even to the point of desolation?
At the far end of the long street, Xue He raised an eyebrow slightly, displeased with the words and actions of that Star Mechanism Sect leader. The Fire Cloud Qilin he held by the reins lowered its head, letting the rain drip down from its fiery-colored mane, as if unwilling to witness the scene about to unfold.
Xiao Zhang and Liang Wangsun remained silent. Xunyang City's chief priest, Hua Jiefu, signaled with his eyes, and a cleric walked into the crowd, approaching the Star Mechanism Sect leader Lin Canghai, whispering a few words.
The laughter tinged with resentment and glee stopped. Lin Canghai looked at the people on the second floor of the inn and sneered, "If you can kill, then kill. What's wrong with me humiliating him a bit? How hypocritical."
He was the leader of the Star Mechanism Sect, his family a powerful force in the northern lands, and his cultivation realm high, having reached the middle stage of Gathering Stars. Thus, he had developed an arrogant and domineering nature, fearing no one, and was unwilling to miss the chance to humiliate Su Li.
Su Li looked up toward the bottom of the inn, brushing back his rain-soaked hair. His expression was calm, seemingly unaffected by the flying stone in the rain and the earlier insults. "Who are you?"
"Heh heh... If this were the past, your attitude might indeed be a kind of insult, but now, you're not even as good as a drowned dog. Why force yourself? You're just adding to the joke."
Lin Canghai looked at the inn's upper floor and sneered, "A few days ago by the roadside, you killed my Lin family's eldest son and dozens of our elite. Today, you'll have to pay back this life!"
Su Li glanced at Chen Changsheng.
Chen Changsheng then realized that this person was a relative of Lin Pingyuan, the northern tycoon. On the journey south, he had fought under Su Li's guidance and killed some people. Only when killing Lin Pingyuan did he have no psychological barrier, because Lin Pingyuan was a bandit who committed every evil, a thief whose hands were stained with the blood of innocents.
He said, "I killed Lin Pingyuan."
Lin Canghai was momentarily stunned.
Before he could say anything, Chen Changsheng continued, "If you want revenge, you should come to kill me."
Lin Canghai's expression shifted slightly.
Still not giving him a chance to speak, Chen Changsheng stared into his eyes and added, "But I know you don't dare to kill me, because I am the dean of the National Academy. How could you dare to touch me?"
Lin Canghai's heart tightened.
Chen Changsheng finally said, "So if I survive today, I will definitely find a way to kill you."
He was truly angry at this moment, so he spoke very seriously.
A chill surged through Lin Canghai's body.
He held considerable status in the cultivation world, especially in the northern continent, but how could that compare to the National Religion? Given Chen Changsheng's position and status within the National Religion, if he truly set his mind on dealing with Lin Canghai, how could he and his sect withstand it? He suddenly felt deep regret and, in confusion, shouted to the surroundings, "Can the National Religion bully others just because of its power?"
After shouting this, he thought he might gain some support. After all, everyone had come to kill Su Li; they should be on the same side. But he didn't expect that no one in the streets and alleys would pay him any attention. He then realized that while everyone was there to kill Su Li, no one dared to offend the Li Palace, and thus no one dared to offend Chen Changsheng.
"How are you like a child, saying such childish things?"
Su Li didn't even bother to look at Lin Canghai on the street. He looked at Chen Changsheng beside him and said, "When it comes to killing, just do it directly. There's no need to announce it in advance."
Chen Changsheng didn't speak. He took a handkerchief from his sleeve and carefully wiped the rain and blood from Su Li's face.
"But you're right to be angry. Throwing stones is too childish, too petty, and meaningless."
Su Li let him wipe the blood, speaking somewhat indistinctly.
Xiao Zhang said from the side, "Indeed, it's very meaningless."
Su Li said, "Then move aside."
Xiao Zhang remained silent but unhesitatingly made way.
A path opened from the ruins of the inn's second floor down to the street.
Many noticed this and were puzzled. Lin Canghai was even more so, sneering at Su Li, "You old dog who can't even crawl, what can you do now?"
Su Li looked at him expressionlessly. His left hand, holding the yellow paper umbrella, suddenly moved.
His left thumb pushed toward the umbrella handle. With a scraping sound, the handle slid out a short distance.
The umbrella handle was the sword hilt.
Inside the yellow paper umbrella was the Sky-Covering Sword.
The sword was half-drawn.
At this moment, Lin Canghai was still on the street, cursing with filthy words like "dead dog."
Suddenly, his voice stopped abruptly.
A very fine sword mark appeared on his throat, and blood slowly seeped out from it.
The few people closest to him saw this scene, their faces instantly turning pale, stunned into silence.
But Lin Canghai seemed completely unaware that his throat had been cut. He continued pointing at the inn's second floor and cursing, but no sound could come out. The scene was eerily terrifying.
After a moment, he finally realized.
He instinctively touched his throat, pulled his hand back to see it covered in bright red, and then felt the sharp pain.
His face turned pale, his eyes filled with fear and confusion. He let out a painful howl, but no sound emerged.
He turned to flee the inn, but as soon as he took a step, he found that both his legs had been severed at the knees.
Lin Canghai crashed heavily into a pool of blood, clutching his throat, making gurgling sounds, his legs severed at the knees.
Seeing this, the crowd scattered in terror, moving far away from him.
Not long after, Lin Canghai stopped struggling and died. But even after breathing his last, his eyes remained open, filled with fear and confusion. He couldn't understand what had just happened.
Su Li was gravely wounded and near death, a dog that couldn't even crawl—how could he still kill him with a single sword strike?
Many others shared the same shock, fear, and confusion.
The streets and alleys fell into dead silence once more. People looked up at the ruins of the inn's second floor, at the man in the chair, filled with awe and unease. Truly, he was the greatest sword master in centuries. Even on the verge of death, a single sword intent could possess such immense power, enough to slay a Gathering Stars realm expert.
Chen Changsheng was somewhat stunned, then relieved, feeling a surge of satisfaction.
The senior was right—when it comes to killing, you just do it. No need for announcements.
The umbrella handle slowly returned. Su Li's sharpness gradually faded, and he became an ordinary middle-aged man again.
Sitting in his chair, he looked at Lin Canghai's corpse lying on the long street and said expressionlessly, "Though I can't crawl anymore, killing a nobody like you is still easy."
Liang Wangsun's expression was extremely grave.
Behind the white paper, Xiao Zhang's eyes grew increasingly fervent.
That sword strike was truly powerful.
Truly worthy of Su Li.
Su Li was indeed worthy of the sword.
"This is the sword."
Xiao Zhang looked at him, not hiding his admiration, even worship, and said, "That sword strike of yours could have severely wounded one of us. Why waste it on such a worthless piece of trash?"
"Because I hate these flies the most. They're annoying, so I killed them and got it over with. As for you and Liang Wangsun, I don't dislike you much, so why kill you? Of course, the key point is that over these past few dozen days, I've only managed to save up that one sword strike."
Su Li said, "If I could have saved up two strikes and killed both of you at once, I would naturally have been more frugal."
Liang Wangsun was silent for a moment before saying, "I won't accept your favor."
Xiao Zhang, on the other hand, said, "Admirable, admirable."
People at this level don't speak nonsense. Two "admirables" naturally meant admiration for two things.
He admired Su Li's sword.
Even more, he admired Su Li for using that sword strike to kill Lin Canghai instead of them.
This meant that, to Su Li, satisfaction was always more important than grudges.
Living like that was truly interesting.
(Today is the first day of quitting smoking. It's all kinds of uncomfortable. It definitely affects my writing. I've been writing for twelve years. Old readers probably remember how many times I've tried to quit smoking. Every time I was serious, but it often ended in failure. Still, I refuse to give up. I still want to win. Lose again and again, fight again and again—that's life. I hope this time I can succeed, because I think challenging myself is the greatest meaning of living. Let's encourage each other. Please support me and bear with me if my writing is a bit rough lately. Starting the day after tomorrow, I'll resume two updates.)