The Inevitable

Pooh!

That makes no sense whatsoever!

"Get out! Kallen Kaslana! From this day forward, we are no longer friends!"

Meanwhile, the Imaginary Archive within Otto's consciousness was already laughing hysterically.

(If you walk by the river often enough, you're bound to get your shoes wet eventually. But I never thought Otto would be tricked by Kallen! I can't believe it... This is hilarious!)

That's right, the definition of Imaginary Archive is "being tricked" - you can't even fool Liu Bai when you lie, so why do you think you can fool your childhood friend who has now been enhanced in intelligence?

People aren't what they used to be!

"... You two had a falling out?"

Upon hearing Otto's roar, Liu Bai peered out with a strange expression... This shouldn't be the case; there's no reason for these two to have a falling out right now.

"Wait? You two actually started fighting?"

Liu Bai naturally noticed Kallen's neckline.

"Uh..." Kallen shut up when she saw Liu Bai arrive.

"That's right! We're severing all ties! Kallen Kaslana! From today onwards, you go your way and I'll go mine! We'll never see each other again!"

Chapter 270 Destiny

1481

The internal strife in Schicksal came to a peaceful end last year.

After the riots, only Otto remained of the Apocalypse family's direct line. Thus, despite the fact that there was no precedent for a woman to rise to power in the Apocalypse Family, they had no choice but to accept it.

After all, only Apocalypse lacked such a precedent; female heads of households were not unusual for Kaslana and Schariac.

Anyway, the three families are closely related, so it's okay if their traditions are similar, right?

Therefore, Otto did not need to support a puppet to rise to power.

However, due to some dissatisfaction, Otto simply had Kallen temporarily assume the position of Bishop of Schicksal, and then ran away.

"It's still just endless yellow sand here, nothing new at all."

Cheng Lingshuang and Otto rode their horses at a leisurely pace across the desert.

"I think the real problem would be if this desert came up with something new."

Otto waved his hand.

She recently discovered that she seems to get along well with Cheng Lingshuang, since they are both the kind of people who haven't been affected by time.

However, Otto doesn't dare to confide in Cheng Lingshuang right now... If this girl were to say "I want to be your mother" again, Otto would really faint.

"Moreover, the Battle of Kipchak six years ago resulted in a stalemate between the two sides... At least the government did not have the resources to cause trouble in the desert."

Nobody asked you that.

A large part of the reason why Cheng Lingshuang and Otto don't get along is because Cheng Lingshuang feels that Otto is a bit opportunistic; she can analyze something like that from a casual remark she makes.

"There seems to be a settlement ahead, let's go check it out and resupply... Giddy up!"

"Drive!"

Otto, who had received special equestrian training, was able to keep up with Cheng Lingshuang at this point.

Before long, Otto and Cheng Lingshuang arrived at the settlement gate.

However, as they got closer, Otto and Cheng Lingshuang discovered that there were people lying on the ground at the entrance, stretching all the way to a house at the end of the road, from which came a loud male voice.

"Eagle of the Golden Sand Gang? Today, I'm going to beat up a bunch of scum like you! What? Lao Tzu can't even last thirty rounds against me, and you're still not convinced? If you're not convinced, then Lao Tzu up and keep fighting!"

"A gang seeking revenge?" Upon hearing the boisterous male voice inside, Otto raised an eyebrow and looked at Cheng Lingshuang.

"It's gang revenge, I guess. I've only heard my second senior sister mention it before, but I don't think it's unusual in the martial arts world." Cheng Lingshuang also looked inside with some curiosity.

When the Five Swordsmen descended the mountain, she went straight to Vienna with Otto and the others. Therefore, her knowledge of the martial arts world was still based on her second senior sister's oral accounts.

Looking at the crowd of people on the ground, it's clear that this damned Golden Sand Gang has offended some powerful figure and been kicked out.

"... Don't you guys think that voice inside sounds a little familiar?" Liu Bai's expression was slightly strange.

"Sounds familiar?"

Cheng Lingshuang and Otto both showed puzzled expressions when they heard Liu Bai's voice.

A burly man? Does anyone know him?

"I don't know them at all."

Cheng Lingshuang shook her head, "But since you've said so, Ancestor, there's no harm in going in and taking a look."

"Actually, you just wanted to join in the fun, didn't you?"

Liu Bai knew exactly what kind of personality Cheng Lingshuang had.

Although she seems indifferent to everything, Cheng Lingshuang actually enjoys giving those arrogant... well, pretentious guys a good whack on the head.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Lingshuang remained expressionless, indicating that she was being serious, and continued walking inside.

The further they went in, the clearer the conversations became to them.

"... I'm impressed, I'm impressed. May I ask which sect you belong to, sir?"

"Sir? I am Ma Yanqing of the Tai Xu Sword Sect! I am Ma Yanqing, and I do not change my name!"

Cheng Lingshuang: "..."

Is this my junior brother?

"Madman, Madman Ma Yanqing?"

The other voice, which had been beaten, seemed to be in shock.

"It's good that you know Lao Tzu name. Don't say I'm the Lao Tzu's messing with you today; it was your underlings who robbed Lao Tzu first!"

"Ling Shuang, judging by your age, your junior brother is only eighteen this year, right?"

Otto looked at Cheng Lingshuang beside him with a strange expression.

She wasn't forgetful; she could easily forget who Ma Yanqing was—the youngest disciple of the Tai Xu Sword Sect, the sixth oldest in the sect, even more shy than the seventh oldest Qin Suyi, and the kind of well-behaved boy who never caused trouble.

"... Does a boy change a lot as he grows up?"

Cheng Lingshuang's eye twitched. "But perhaps some blind fool is using Little Ma's name."

At this moment, the sounds behind the door gradually subsided.

"Don't say Lao Tzu 'm bullying you. I'm taking these things. If you're not happy, you can come find Lao Tzu on Tai Xu Mountain!"

After he finished speaking, the door was about to be pushed open.

"... Madman Ma Yanqing? What a prestigious name."

"Hey! Who's up to their old tricks again, wanting to test their mettle..."

Ma Yanqing, carrying a cloth bag and strutting with an air of indifference, pushed open the door and instinctively responded to the provocative voice.

However, halfway through his sentence, Ma Yanqing suddenly realized that something seemed amiss.

Why does this voice sound so familiar?

Ma Yanqing, who usually looked down on people, cautiously lowered her gaze.

"Old what? Go on."

A rare smile appeared on Cheng Lingshuang's usually cold face.

She recognized Ma Yanqing immediately. Although he had grown much taller and his hair was thicker than that of an eighteen-year-old, and he even had a scar on his face, Cheng Lingshuang, as the senior sister who had watched him grow up, still recognized him.

"Your sister Otto, me, and our grandmaster are all watching... You, Uncle Ma, are quite imposing. Even our master doesn't have your imposing presence. Are you going to beat me to death right here?"

"... Fifth Senior Sister, what are you saying..."

When Ma Yanqing saw who it was, his knees buckled and he almost knelt down.

Why is his fifth senior sister back?! In terms of how terrifying she is, his fifth senior sister, who doesn't give anyone a kind look, ranks in the top three in his mind.

"I... I..."

Ma Yanqing's mind was a little muddled, and she didn't know where to begin.

"Judging from how imposing Grandpa Ma is, he must have already reached the pinnacle of the Sword God realm in our Tai Xu Sword Sect, right? Would you mind giving Senior Sister a few pointers?"

Cheng Lingshuang raised her sword with a smile on her face.

"The Supreme Tai Xu Sword God? Master, Grandmaster, save me! Fifth Senior Sister is really going to kill someone—!"

"Tell me, you scoundrel, haven't you ruined the reputation of our Tai Xu Sword Sect?"

In the wilderness campsite, Cheng Lingshuang looked at Ma Yanqing, who was like a dead dog, and asked him with exasperation.

You can embarrass yourself like this in front of our ancestor, even I, as his senior sister, feel ashamed to look at him!

"Well... it's not exactly bad. Anyway, in all the years I've been out of the mountains, I've never met anyone who could beat me," Ma Yanqing said awkwardly.

"Isn't your senior sister going to do anything about you?"

Cheng Lingshuang was somewhat displeased.

Although she beat up Ma Yanqing mainly because he was showing off too much in front of her, she was also genuinely disappointed in him.

In addition, there's something else that's hard to believe.

"Senior Sister... I didn't dare let Second Sister and the others know either."

As he said this, Ma Yanqing's tone suddenly became strange.

"... What happened to Senior Sister?"

Cheng Lingshuang immediately noticed the strangeness in Ma Yanqing's tone, and her brows furrowed involuntarily.

"Um... it's nothing, it's just that our eldest senior sister has gone into seclusion, and our second senior sister has come back to manage our sect." Ma Yanqing's tone became even more embarrassed.

"Alright, Grandpa Ma has really gotten more capable. He even dares to fool Senior Sister. Fine, I'll call Grandmaster over, and you can go and fool the old man!"

"No, no, no!" Ma Yanqing hurriedly tried to stop him.

"What do you want?"

Their campsite wasn't very big, so Liu Bai naturally overheard Ma Yanqing and Cheng Lingshuang's conversation.

"N-nothing... it's nothing." Ma Yanqing tried to cover it up.

"Little horse, you're not good at lying."

Liu Bai patted Ma Yanqing on the shoulder, which immediately made the young man, who looked to be in his thirties or forties but was actually only eighteen, blush.

"Tell me, did the Seven Swords fall out or what?"

Liu Bai also had a vague sense of unease at this moment.

"... No, it's Senior Sister and Master..."

Ma Yanqing scratched his head, looking somewhat conflicted.

"It can't be said that they broke up; the problem actually stemmed from Fourth Senior Sister."

"Didn't Third Senior Sister and Fourth Senior Sister say they were going to live in seclusion? Didn't they go?" Cheng Lingshuang asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Third and fourth senior sisters went to live in seclusion on the East Sea Coast, but some damned person claimed to have seen someone possessed by demons on the East Sea Coast..."

"It's our senior sister who's fallen into demonic possession?" Cheng Lingshuang couldn't help but frown.

"Yes, Fourth Senior Sister." Ma Yanqing scratched her head in annoyance. "Third Senior Sister had already written to Eldest Senior Sister to ask for a solution, but... the news still reached our Master's ears."

At this point in Ma Yanqing's speech, Cheng Lingshuang's expression turned somewhat pale.

How could they not know what kind of person their master was?

Those who fall into demonic possession shall be killed without mercy!

"What about the third and fourth senior sisters..."

"...Hmm." Ma Yanqing nodded with a bitter expression.