Central Plains One Point Red

Clang!

The Longevity Sword slid back into its scabbard, its blade stained a brilliant crimson.

Shi Guanyin was kneeling on one knee, fear and disbelief flooding her eyes. Her life had already ended. A sword wound marked her throat, yet not a drop of blood had spilled.

Her gaze remained fixed on He Heng until she crashed to the ground. Her Blood Qi rapidly drained away, and her once stunning body shriveled at once, becoming a skeleton.

"Beauty and bones—nothing more." He Heng sighed coldly. He glanced at Hu Tiehua, who had just been jolted awake and was still dazed, then strode out.

"Wait. You can't leave." Chu Liuxiang had arrived and shouted at He Heng.

He Heng turned back silently and smiled. "What, Chu Xiangshuai? Are you inviting me to stay for dinner?"

Chu Liuxiang looked at He Heng and smiled wryly. "If you're in the mood, Brother Bai, I'd be happy to host. But please explain what happened here first..."

As he spoke, Chu Liuxiang looked at Shi Guanyin's shrunken, skeleton-like corpse with some reluctance, as if moved by the sight.

"Explain what?" A cold smile appeared on He Heng's face. He pointed at Shi Guanyin's corpse. "Do you know who she is?"

Chu Liuxiang looked at her. "I truly don't. Though she appeared in Little Hu's bridal chamber, she certainly couldn't be the Princess of Kucha. Her martial arts would already put her among the top in the jianghu. Even counting all the reclusive experts and Martial World Myths, she might not make the top ten, but she certainly wouldn't fall below the top twenty."

"Your eyes are as sharp as ever, Xiangshuai." He Heng smiled, then said solemnly, "Anyone with martial arts like hers is no nobody. She is the infamous great villain of the martial world, Shi Guanyin."

"It was her!" Chu Liuxiang's expression changed. He stared dazedly at the withered corpse on the ground, finding it hard to believe this was the Shi Guanyin who had once been famed for her beauty.

Then he seemed to understand. "That makes sense. Flesh and bones are bound to life and death. How could they remain?"

"Only Shi Guanyin could have possessed such skill in a place like this." Chu Liuxiang sighed and cupped his fist toward He Heng. "But Brother Bai, you're the one who's truly surprised me. Even a villain as renowned as Shi Guanyin, who's been famous for decades, was no match for you. In this day and age, you'd surely have a place among the ten greatest masters under heaven. Given time, you might even claim the title of Number One Under Heaven."

"Heh." He Heng gave Chu Liuxiang a cold look. "Since when did Chu Xiangshuai learn to flatter people?"

"He's always known how to flatter people. He'd just never met anyone worth flattering before."

As Chu Liuxiang awkwardly rubbed his nose, a cold voice rang out. A young man with sharply defined features approached, his eyes as keen as a falcon's.

Laziness, sluggishness, indecision—though these were common failings, no one, at any time, could find even a trace of them on his sharply angular face. He seemed the very embodiment of shrewdness and keen resolve.

"Dead Rooster, you finally showed up!" Hu Tiehua, who had been dazed this whole time, cried out as soon as he saw him. Heaven knew how troubled he was. He had actually gone to bed with a woman as old as Shi Guanyin, and badly needed some comfort.

But Ji Bingyan clearly had no intention of paying him any attention. He shoved Hu Tiehua aside and leaped to Chu Liuxiang's side.

"Two wings, geese and butterflies; Flower Fragrance Fills the Human World. I'm fortunate to see all three of you together today." He Heng cast a cold glance at the three men and smiled, then his gaze abruptly settled behind Ji Bingyan.

Behind Ji Bingyan stood a gaunt man in black, holding an extraordinarily long, pitch-black sword. His face was forever marked by coldness and loneliness, and his pupils seemed filled with endless ash.

The moment he saw He Heng, a different color appeared in those ash-gray pupils: an eerie, blood-red gleam.

"Brother Red, what's wrong?" Chu Liuxiang noticed something amiss and hurriedly tugged at him.

Central Plains One Point Red paid Chu Liuxiang no heed. His gaze remained fixed on He Heng as he suddenly drew his black sword.

"It's you, Green Robe Tower Master. I've been searching for you for five years. At last, I've found you."

His voice was cold, yet tinged with excitement and madness, full of murderous intent and chilling menace.

"You know me?" He Heng paused, then understood. Looking at the long, narrow, crimson-stained black sword in the other man's hand, he smiled. "The Shadowless Soul Searching Sword—Central Plains One Point Red. So you're one of the fish that got away back then. You came looking for me to avenge that person?"

"Exactly." One Point Red's face was ashen and cold. He abruptly raised his sword and, beneath the dark night sky, thrust it swiftly toward He Heng's throat.

Seeing One Point Red strike at He Heng, Chu Liuxiang cried out in alarm and hurried to stop him. "Brother Red, don't! You're no match for him!"

"Don't interfere. Today, I'll settle this with him once and for all. Die!" One Point Red slipped free of Chu Liuxiang's grasp. His black-and-crimson long sword flashed out with a rasp, like a venomous snake hissing as it lunged.

Across from him, He Heng showed no hint of panic. He smiled cruelly. "A paltry trick like that dares to show its face here?"

The Longevity Sword rang as it left its scabbard. With a crisp, clear chime, countless cold glints lit up the area for miles around. Sword Qi surged in every direction, sweeping toward One Point Red.

"Don't!"

Chu Liuxiang, Hu Tiehua, and Ji Bingyan attacked He Heng from three directions at once, trying to relieve One Point Red by striking at He Heng's flank.

"You think the likes of you can stand against me? You're asking for death!" He Heng sneered and leaped forward, kicking twice. Hu Tiehua and Ji Bingyan flew away like broken arrows.

Only Chu Liuxiang, with his unbelievably exquisite Lightness Skill, darted into the range of He Heng's Sword Momentum. He pushed out with both palms, sending his inner energy surging toward the hilt of the Longevity Sword.

Clang!

A ringing sound echoed as He Heng's sword clashed with One Point Red's. The fearsome Sword Momentum knocked One Point Red back several steps, shaking his internal organs. He Heng immediately struck again, aiming straight for One Point Red's chest.

If that sword landed, He Heng's Sword Qi would tear One Point Red's internal organs to pieces in an instant, leaving him no chance of survival.

The strike came so fast it defied description. Like lightning, it had already engulfed One Point Red's chest in a thousandth of a second. He had no chance to raise his sword to block it or dodge. It was already too late.

Only then did One Point Red realize that the swift sword he had always been proud of was nothing before He Heng. He Heng's sword was ten times faster than his. He had no hope of fighting back. His so-called revenge was nothing but a joke.

One Point Red gave a forlorn smile. He didn't even have time to close his eyes and accept his fate before that terrifying sword descended, about to destroy everything he had.

At that critical moment, Chu Liuxiang's figure suddenly appeared to He Heng's right. He cut through layers of Sword Momentum, his palms wrapped in powerful inner energy, and struck hard at the tip of the Longevity Sword.

The blow knocked the Longevity Sword sharply aside. Its Sword Momentum faltered for an instant, and One Point Red shifted his body slightly.

The sword had been deflected by no more than an inch or two, and One Point Red had moved by no more than an inch or two. Yet those few inches were the distance between life and death.

The Longevity Sword missed One Point Red's chest and struck only his right arm. Its keen edge severed the entire arm in an instant.

"Brother Red!" Chu Liuxiang cried out and hurried to One Point Red's side. He stared at the severed arm on the ground, his expression frozen.

What was an assassin who lived by killing to do after losing the arm he depended on for his livelihood—and the peerless swift sword that came with it?

"Don't worry. I'm fine. It's only an arm." One Point Red waved his remaining arm at Chu Liuxiang. His eyes were still ashen, as if they had never changed at all. Then he continued, "Besides, even if I still had my arm, could my sword ever be faster than his?"

One Point Red looked at He Heng, then at Chu Liuxiang. Chu Liuxiang shook his head silently. One Point Red's sword was fast, but beside He Heng's, the two were worlds apart. They could not be compared.

"If that's the case, I can't use it to get revenge anyway. What use is it to me?" An eerie light filled One Point Red's eyes, bright crimson illuminating his dark, ashen pupils.

Chu Liuxiang fell silent. He looked at One Point Red, then abruptly stood and faced He Heng. "Brother Bai, this is the third time we've met, isn't it? Each time, you've surprised me. Last time, you killed Wu Hua. This time, you killed Shi Guanyin and crippled One Point Red. I don't understand what you're trying to accomplish."

He Heng looked at Chu Liuxiang coldly and returned the Longevity Sword to its scabbard. "You'll understand my purpose in time. Chu Xiangshuai, step aside now and let me settle things with my enemy."

A bone-chilling aura surrounded He Heng. A vast, earth-shaking force surged toward Chu Liuxiang from every direction, making it hard for him to breathe.

But Chu Liuxiang still stood firmly in front of One Point Red. "I don't know what enmity you have with Brother Red, but he's already crippled. Why keep pressing him, Brother Bai? Let him live."

"Once you enter the jianghu, you're no longer in control of your fate. You know that, don't you, Chu Xiangshuai?" He Heng gazed at Chu Liuxiang, his voice icy. "If you don't pull up the roots, they'll grow again when the spring breeze blows. In this world, only the dead are truly safe and trustworthy. Step aside, Xiangshuai, or else..."

"There's no need. I only know that Brother Red is my friend." Chu Liuxiang met He Heng's gaze without fear.

At that moment, One Point Red suddenly grabbed Chu Liuxiang's hand and said coldly, "You don't need to do this for me. It isn't worth it."

"Don't try to talk me out of it, Brother Red. I may die, but I will never betray a friend." Chu Liuxiang declared, staring at He Heng with unwavering resolve and conviction.