Before the sword even reached where I was standing, I had already teleported to the square before the academy's main hall with the immortal crane.
This place wasn't exactly teeming with people, but several dozen had gathered to watch.
I casually summoned a massive bronze cauldron. The moment I tossed the immortal crane, whose feathers had nearly been burned off, into the furnace, everyone was utterly dumbfounded.
"Big Brother Xia!? You really mean to boil the crane?"
Qin Yun had thought I was joking, but now that she saw this, it seemed I was actually serious.
"This flat-feathered beast has red eyes and a black tongue. It clearly isn't anything good. Might as well boil it." After saying that, I placed the lid on the bronze cauldron.
Clang.
The instant the lid closed, a pair of fair hands pushed it back up.
I lowered my head and saw a dirt-covered boy with a pale face, red lips, scarlet eyes, and a black tongue, panicking as he shouted, "Fellow Daoist, how dare you!? Don't you know who I am?"
"Heh, I don't care who you are. I've always hated the likes of Immortal Crane Boys and Immortal Crane True Persons!" I gave him a grim smile, pressed down with one finger, and slammed the lid shut again.
The immortal crane had still been wailing inside the bronze cauldron, but now only the faint sound of wings—or hands—beating against the inside could be heard.
"Return Brother Cloud Crane to me!" the old man roared. He raised his divine sword high, gathered a beam of formidable law power, and hacked at me with a single sword strike!
Sss!
The sound of the sword splitting the air seemed capable of tearing heaven and earth apart at any moment. Yet halfway through the strike, the