Slaying Red Names

Fake!

They made it all up!

Jiang Xiaobai frowned, and a trace of anger appeared in her usually gentle eyes. She had not been this angry even when the giant lizard's sudden attack had put her in mortal peril.

"These Tianshu Pavilion disciples are like dogskin plasters. They even bribe Shushan's planted informants to lie in wait at the Sword Exchange Pavilion, gather information on where I'm going for missions, follow me around, and then make up stories themselves."

"That time, I was on a mission in Jiangnan. Drunken Moon Tower was so famous, of course I had to go experience it. Who knew I'd run into that Feng Chaoyang on the way? I had clearly booked the whole place, yet he insisted on coming in. For the sake of our sects' reputations, I couldn't exactly drive him out by force, so I had the shop set up another table beside mine for him. My treat."

"Having someone watching beside me while I ate was unbearable! Hmph!"

Jiang Xiaobai was so angry that her nose kept wrinkling.

Chu Liang smiled. He could tell that three parts of her anger came from the rumors, while seven parts came from someone ruining the experience of a perfectly good meal.

Come to think of it, she never forgot to check out famous local eateries even while carrying out missions. This Fairy Jiang probably had something of a foodie streak, though her table manners truly left something to be desired...

She probably could not relax with someone watching her.

After listening, he slowly asked, "But... this is news about Jiang Yue Bai. Senior Sister, aren't you Jiang Xiaobai?"

"..." Jiang Xiaobai fell silent for a moment, then immediately put on a stern face. "I have no idea what you're talking about. If there's nothing else, you should go back first. I still have things to do."

Chu Liang did not dare tease her any further. After all, he was still waiting for her to teach him divine abilities, so he took his leave.

As he left, the White Marsh cub was reluctant to part with him and escorted him all the way out of Pagoda Peak.

After returning to Silver Sword Peak and entering his little cabin, Chu Liang replayed the battle he had witnessed today in his mind.

It left him trembling with fear.

Jiang Yue Bai, at the peak of the Fourth Realm, and the demon beast, at the peak of the Fifth Realm, had exchanged only a few blows, yet any one of them could have killed him in an instant.

He was still far too weak.

Today's encounter also made him realize that even if he stayed on Shushan and never went out, he was not completely safe.

The chances of being attacked by a demon beast on Shushan were very small, but they were not zero.

Only by truly becoming powerful himself could he attain true peace of mind.

Just look at his master. Her carefree, heartless manner was unmatched across Shushan, yet she never had to worry about being in danger.

The ones who needed to worry were always the people who saw her...

Still, growing stronger was not something that could be done overnight. With the White Tower, as long as he kept his feet on the ground and advanced steadily, he believed he would not fall behind anyone else.

It was just that... there was another very real pressure: the upcoming Shushan Summit.

Silver Sword Peak had no senior brothers or sisters, so Chu Liang lacked some understanding of Golden Core realm cultivators. Fang Ting, whom he had seen before, had already seemed incredibly formidable to him. Then he had encountered the man in black robes and felt even more utterly outmatched.

And today, he had seen Jiang Yue Bai...

Was he going to compete with people like this then?

No way, no way.

The strongest contenders for Shushan's chief disciple of this generation were likely Jiang Yue Bai of Azure Sky Peak and Xu Ziyang of Jade Sword Peak.

Jiang Yue Bai was more famous outside the sect, a top-tier celebrity of the martial world. Not only was she a cultivation genius, she was also breathtakingly beautiful, making her far more likely to draw attention.

But within Shushan, the two had always been regarded as equals.

Even if there was a difference in strength, it probably was not much.

Master, if you and the Jade Sword Peak Master had a grudge, the two of you could just fight it out. Why did you have to send your disciples into battle...

When would this cycle of vengeance ever end?

After thinking it over for a while, Chu Liang put those thoughts aside. No matter what, there was still something joyful to do right now.

He had unexpectedly snatched the kill from Jiang Yue Bai earlier and blown that giant lizard to death. Now he could reward himself again!

Rewards had been coming more and more frequently lately. His sense of happiness was truly overflowing.

And besides...

Based on his past experience opening rewards, the type of treasure obtained had a weak correlation with the type of evil creature slain, but the value of the treasure had a strong correlation with the creature's strength.

In other words, the more powerful the evil creature he killed, the stronger the treasure he would receive!

And this was undoubtedly the first time he had killed a demon beast of this level.

What kind of reward would it yield? It was truly something to look forward to.

Chu Liang looked out the window and suddenly felt a little nervous. Maybe he should raise a koi on Silver Sword Peak in the future? He could pay it respects before opening rewards. Perhaps it would have miraculous effects.

After a brief ponder, he quickly entered the White Tower.

The giant lizard's golden phantom floated in the iron cage, its imposing aura unchanged from when it had been alive.

Chu Liang took a deep breath, then stepped forward and pressed the character for "Refine."

Boom—

Red Light flashed. This time, it lasted somewhat longer, only fading after around two breaths.

When the radiance appeared again, it was already before Chu Liang.

He reached out and caught it, only to see an ancient, heavy longsword appear in his hand.

A sword?

Chu Liang was delighted. Was this not exactly what he wanted most?

Then a sensation arose in his mind.

Red Name-Slaying Sword:

This was a sword of justice. When facing enemies steeped in evil, with blood aura clinging to their bodies, it would receive a powerful boost in strength. When facing ordinary enemies, it was no different from an ordinary iron sword. When you felt your condition was poor, try changing to someone else; perhaps your condition would improve.

Huh?

Chu Liang stared at the ancient sword in his hand and fell into thought.

Slowly drawing the sword from its sheath, he saw mottled cracks across the blade, as though it had endured countless battles. The edge did not seem particularly sharp either; it possessed only a plain, weighty solidity.

Slaying red names...

Though it was a treasure sword, it only received a boost when facing enemies steeped in evil, with blood aura clinging to them. Did that mean it only cut down great villains?

Chu Liang roughly understood this so-called blood aura. All living things beneath heaven and earth possessed their own aura. There was not only demonic aura, yin aura, and human aura... one's everyday actions could also affect one's aura.

Those who killed without blinking would have much resentment and blood aura wrapped around them. Killing bad people would not increase resentment; instead, it could accumulate righteous aura. Though it sounded complicated, the principle was simple: a person's aura was like the person themself.

If a cultivator had mastered the Art of Aura Observation, they could judge a person's good or evil from their aura.

Reaching the point where blood aura clung to one's body was not something that could be achieved merely by killing a few people. One had to have slaughtered many innocent living beings.

The condition for this sword's burst of power truly was not easy to meet. Among the enemies Chu Liang had encountered before, only that Soul-Detaining Envoy might possibly qualify.

Which meant that most of the time, it was simply an ordinary iron sword...

Chu Liang returned from the White Tower neither saddened nor delighted, his expression calm. Though this sword of justice had not surprised him, he was not too disappointed either. After the last experience of a trash jade talisman saving his life and proving its worth, he would no longer rashly judge treasures by his own assessment.

It was just that...

He looked out the window.

A fish tank would actually fit there quite well.