Outside Sand City, the Taoist temple stood in deep silence.
The semblance of Confucius—only the Dao did it follow. As for the Dao, it was only hazy and indistinct.
Old Zhang was dozing beneath the eaves, a yellowed ancient book covering his face, blocking out both the daylight and his dreams.
Every now and then, he muttered a line.
In that hazy moment...
A streak of sword light came from the horizon, like thunder ripping through the sky. Wrapped in an aura of destruction, it came crashing down!
"BOOM!"
The Old Daoist did not even have time to react before a devastating Sword Qi struck the temple head-on!
In an instant, the earth shook and the mountains trembled. Tiles and rubble flew everywhere. The main hall, which had stood for a century beneath the protection of a formation, collapsed with a thunderous crash as if it were made of paper, sending dust billowing across the sky.
After a long while.
Old Zhang finally struggled out of the ruins, looking utterly disheveled, his face gray with dust and his Daoist robe in tatters.
Still shaken, the old man looked up at the sky, his beard trembling with rage. "Which damned bastard did this?! Are you trying to kill this old Daoist?!"
Before he had even finished speaking...
"BANG!"
Another black shadow, like a meteor, tore through the air and came hurtling down, landing squarely on top of his head.
The Old Daoist had only just crawled out when the unexpected blow smashed him right back into the pile of rubble, nearly knocking him unconscious.
Furious, he thrust out a palm. The palm wind was fierce, but halfway through, it abruptly halted.
The old man widened his eyes and stared fixedly at the dazed youth lying beside him, looking as though he