Dying to Show Off

Nine Dragon Continent.

Heavenly Show Manor.

Inside and outside the manor, everything was draped in white mourning cloth. People came and went, most wearing expressions of profound grief.

These were the guests arriving to pay their respects, and occasionally, low murmurs could be heard:

"To think Young Master Shenxiu would pass away in the prime of his life; truly, the heavens are jealous of such talent..."

"I heard this child was astonishingly brilliant, a genius the likes of which the continent hasn't seen in ten thousand years. What a pity, what a tragedy..."

"Even so, to have made a name that shook the world and talent that eclipsed all heroes, he did not walk this earth in vain..."

Heavenly Show Manor! Zhong Shenxiu!

He was a chosen son who arrived with celestial omens at birth, and from childhood to adulthood, he was the "neighbor's kid" in every conceivable sense.

The fact that he could walk at one month and speak at three months—which stunned everyone as a Child Prodigy—was merely the prologue.

As he grew older, this Young Master Zhong Shenxiu became a master of Zither, Go, Calligraphy, and Painting, as well as medicine, divination, and astrology; there was nothing he did not excel at. His Martial Arts, meanwhile, reached the pinnacle of perfection.

Furthermore, his appearance was that of a celestial being, captivating thousands of young maidens.

Because of him, the original Heavenly Sword Villa was renamed "Heavenly Show Manor"!

Ever since he debuted, this Young Master Zhong Shenxiu had been the center of endless storms.

He once shocked the Hundred Sages in the capital with his essays and defeated the Four Talents of Jiangnan and the Eight Masters of Jiangbei using the Six Arts of the Gentleman.

He once drifted on a great lake, and with a single "Ode to the Moon," he helped the world's number one courtesan, Ji Xixi, win the title of Flower Queen. He even stirred the heart of this great beauty, who declared that she dared not ask to be his wife, but would willingly serve as his concubine or maid.

Most sensational of all was when he challenged the heroes of the world atop Mount Yandang. He suppressed the masses, claimed the title of "Number One in Martial Arts," and even compiled the Heaven, Earth, and Human Rankings to judge the heroes of the world.

However... he was dead after all...

Everyone felt that Zhong Shenxiu's death was... utterly speechless.

The martial arts of this world focused primarily on tempering the flesh, blood, and bones of the body. Those who reached the peak possessed the strength of nine bulls and two tigers, a courage capable of defying ten thousand men, yet in reality, if they encountered a true army of thousands, they would still have to kneel!

It was said that after Zhong Shenxiu's martial arts reached the heavens and could progress no further, he even pioneered a path no predecessor had ever imagined—the path of Innate Qi Cultivation!

Yet, on the very day he created the Shenxiu Treasure Tome, the sky turned dark, and lightning descended, striking directly into Heavenly Show Manor.

Hundred Knowledgeable of the Jianghu once said, this was the jealousy of the heavens.

In ancient times, when Cang King created characters, ghosts and gods wept at night, for he had seized the creation of heaven and earth.

Now, with Young Master Shenxiu creating a technique, the heavens sent down a lightning tribulation, which showed just how much the Shenxiu Treasure Tome shocked heaven and earth, moved ghosts and gods, and seized the essence of creation!

Such a divine technique, written by the world's number one martial artist, naturally attracted many covetous eyes.

The next day, night fell.

A cool breeze blew, and the water remained still.

In Heavenly Show Manor, guards and guests alike... suddenly collapsed one by one, falling into a deep, unconscious slumber.

A black-clad figure walked leisurely into the mourning hall. Gazing at the spirit tablet and the coffin behind it, he let out a cold, mocking laugh.

"Senior Duke Tiandu, your poison arts are indeed profound!"

Beside the man in black were several others, each standing with the imposing presence of a mountain. They were rare Great Grandmasters of the Jianghu. One of them, a middle-aged scholar in Confucian robes, smiled, his voice slow and steady.

"Heh heh... what is this old man, a mere recluse from the East Sea, compared to that? I heard that beyond the Heaven, Earth, and Human Rankings, Young Master Shenxiu also authored an 'Alarming List.' Once anyone on this list appears, the world trembles! You, Brother Hundred Knowledgeable, are ranked third, and Young Master Shenxiu commented, 'One word can revive a nation, one word can throw a country into chaos; the one who disrupts the Jianghu must be this man'..."

Duke Tiandu said with a beaming smile.

Hundred Knowledgeable's expression shifted. He looked at the black-faced man nearby, as well as a middle-aged Sword Nun holding a blade, and forced a laugh: "Haha... how could this little brother have the ambition to disrupt the Jianghu? Young Master Shenxiu was overthinking it..."

"Enough idle chatter... Today, we, the Eight Alarms of the World, are all gathered here—counting the one lying in that coffin..."

From beneath the ground, another sinister voice emerged: "This Young Master Shenxiu once forced his way into Mechanism Valley, breaking eighteen of my formations and mechanisms, causing me to lose great face. Heh heh, today he shall pay his debts in full..."

As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions of the other six turned ugly.

Some were leaders of great sects, others were solitary giants. They had always considered themselves superior, not even deigning to look at the Heaven, Earth, and Human Rankings of the Jianghu.

Yet, there was a Zhong Shenxiu in the Jianghu who had come knocking on their doors one by one, teaching them all a harsh lesson.

The Alarming List stated: Of the Eight Alarms, Shenxiu is first!

"Why waste so much breath? Let me be the first to grind this brat into dust!"

The Sword Nun let out a cold snort, her long sword trembling as she struck first.

Her temper was usually gentle, and she would rarely go to such lengths against people in the Jianghu, but Young Master Shenxiu was different because he was... simply too insulting!

Looking back at his path of growth, every step was taken by trampling on the faces of famous experts. The higher the master, the harder he stepped, and he always chose occasions where all eyes were on them, even turning it into stories to be sung!

The Sword Nun was originally the head of a hidden sect, a sect composed mostly of women practicing in seclusion, only sending disciples into the world to support a ruler when the world was in chaos, vaguely holding the reins of the Orthodox Path.

But Young Master Shenxiu not only seduced the contemporary Saintess into betraying the sect, but he also leaked the location of their mountain gate. He even brought a group of old, middle-aged, and young knights who claimed to have been wronged by past Saintesses to demand an explanation. He shattered the Thirty-Six Heavenly Dipper Sword Formation, suppressed the sect, and presided over weddings for the many aggrieved couples on the spot. It made the Sword Nun vomit a mouthful of old blood right there, so ashamed and furious she nearly died, her Dao Heart falling into demonic obsession.

Striking now, she was naturally venomous and merciless.

Crack!

The high-quality coffin shattered into pieces, revealing a figure in white robes within.

He was in his twenties, his face as handsome as polished jade, possessing an unparalleled beauty as if the spiritual energy of heaven and earth had gathered upon him—it was indeed Zhong Shenxiu!

"Hahaha... you are finally dead..." Sword Nun laughed wildly.

Just then, Zhong Shenxiu's sword-like brows twitched. He actually opened his eyes, revealing dull, lifeless pupils, and his mouth stiffened into a strange, eerie smile.

"Good heavens... Young Master Shenxiu has risen from the dead!"

Sword Nun shrieked, and the Seven Alarming Ones immediately retreated in terror...

Several days later, a shocking piece of news spread throughout the martial arts world.

At Heavenly Show Manor, a terrifying incident occurred at the funeral hall of Young Master Shenxiu, where he wiped out the Seven Alarming Ones in a single battle!

"Hey! Have you heard? Young Master Shenxiu faked his death! It was all to wipe out these seven scourges in one fell swoop!"

"Nonsense! I have a bit of a reputation in the martial arts world, and I went to Heavenly Show Manor to pay my respects. Young Master Shenxiu was truly dead, but he refined himself into a zombie, gaining immense power, which allowed him to kill those seven peerless experts in one go..."

"No, I heard it was because of a deadly poison, the world's number one strange poison, Life-Severing Powder..."

"In any case, after this battle, even if Young Master Shenxiu is no longer around, no one dares to provoke Heavenly Show Manor!"

"Heh heh, who would dare provoke Heavenly Show Manor? The world is in chaos now. Four of the original Seven Alarming Ones had defected to the Imperial Court, and now that they have all been lured to their deaths by Young Master Shenxiu, the world is in total upheaval. Seventeen rebel kings have risen, and in this humble Daoist's opinion, Heavenly Show Manor might even have the potential to produce a true dragon..."

"Why did I hear that the battle was so dark and intense that only six people died, and in the end, Mechanism King managed to escape by using a unique earth-tunneling technique?"

The martial arts world was in turmoil, needless to say, but Heavenly Show Manor, relying on the arrangements made by Young Master Shenxiu beforehand, eventually seized the entire world and established a dynasty that lasted five hundred years, bringing blessings that stretched on for generations—but those are stories for another time.

In a quiet valley, inside a certain cave.

"Hahaha... Zhong Shenxiu, you really are dead!"

Mechanism King, the only survivor of the Seven Alarming Ones, had blood leaking from his nose and mouth. Still trembling with lingering fear, he pulled out the Shenxiu Treasure Tome he had luckily snatched and flipped to the first page: "To practice this divine art, one must first cripple their own martial arts?"

He looked at his own body, a hint of joy appearing on his face: "I am severely injured, and my martial arts are already crippled. Good, good, it seems Heaven itself wants me to succeed..."

Mechanism King licked his lips and impatiently flipped to the second page, only to see it written: "If you do not cripple your martial arts, you may also practice."

"The brat is mocking me!" Mechanism King's face turned a bruised purple, and a sense of foreboding filled his heart. He flipped to the third page, where the black and white text clearly read: "Even if you have crippled your martial arts, success is not guaranteed..."

"Ah!"

Mechanism King let out a roar of rage, and black blood flowed from his seven orifices.

A legendary figure of his generation, thus passed away...

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