Sword Control Art?

Under the dark night.

Torches flickered in the small courtyard, heads crowded together.

A night wind blew, and many suddenly felt a chill.

Celestial Firmament!

That was a grandmaster of the third martial realm.

Across the entire Great Cang Kingdom, such figures stood at the very peak.

And now, a youth had reached this realm—how could anyone not be terrified?

Realizing this, Commander Chen also wisely backed down. He struggled to speak, "Spare... spare me, I... I was only acting on the lord's orders. Please, young hero, let me off this once."

Shen Zhou curled his lip in disdain. "The lord? A man who fears others for being strong enough to scheme against them in the dark—does he even deserve to be called lord? Fine. Since he wants to cripple me, I'll destroy him first!"

Shen Zhou said this lightly, but to the ears of the nearby hall masters, it struck like a thunderbolt.

He wants to kill the lord?

As the crowd gaped in shock, Shen Zhou silently channeled his primal force, directly shattering Commander Chen's qi sea and dantian. The latter immediately spat blood, his spirit wilting.

Shen Zhou then tossed him aside like trash, turned to face the sky, and pointed his wooden sword toward the lord's mansion from afar, barking, "Sword Control Art!"

The wooden sword shot into the air.

The onlookers' eyes went wide again.

Primal force controlling a sword?

Wasn't that the hallmark of a Celestial Firmament expert?

Now everyone was even more convinced that Shen Zhou was a Celestial Firmament Realm powerhouse.

But before their shock could settle, the newly airborne wooden sword suddenly fell with a clatter from midair.

The crowd was dumbfounded: "???"

Shen Zhou froze: "!!!"

Time seemed to stand still.

Shen Zhou's mouth twitched involuntarily.

Damn, got too caught up in the act and forgot I couldn't be without a sword in hand.

He coughed to cover it, then nonchalantly picked up the sword Commander Chen had dropped, gripping it firmly. He swung it through the air at the wooden sword. "Go!"

The fallen wooden sword bounced up again, then transformed into a streak of light, instantly piercing through the sky.

The crowd exchanged glances, finding the scene utterly bizarre.

But none dared to ask!

Deep in the night, the lord's mansion blazed with light.

Inside a pavilion, Lord Wu played chess against himself while awaiting news from the city guard.

He was a scion of the Wu Clan of Flying Bird City, sent here years ago for some mistake. At first, he was reluctant, trying every way to get transferred back. But once he realized being lord was like being a local emperor, he changed his mind.

Especially in recent years, after plundering resources from White Sheep County to refine his strength, he was on the verge of touching the threshold of the Celestial Firmament Realm. He now guarded his lord position like a prized possession.

"No one will take my lord seat. Whoever tries, I'll cripple them!"

Lord Wu's gaze was icy. Under his surging primal force, the chess piece in his hand shattered into powder with a crack.

Swoosh~~~

Just then, a piercingly sharp whistle cut through the night.

Like an arrow splitting the air, piercing wind and force.

"Who dares ambush this lord?!"

Lord Wu shot to his feet, a fierce light blazing in his eyes. The next moment, his primal force surged, wrapping his arm as he raised a single-handed shield before him.

A flash of light slammed into Lord Wu's primal force barrier.

The immense impact destroyed everything in the pavilion, sending airwaves rolling back and wood chips flying.

Stomp stomp stomp...

Under that force, Lord Wu's feet slid as if on oil, unable to stop. The wooden floor beneath him exploded inch by inch, each step leaving a crater.

Lord Wu couldn't hold back and spat blood, his internal organs already severely damaged. But when he saw that the thing attacking him was merely a wooden sword wrapped in primal force, he couldn't believe it. "A wooden sword?!"

Who?

When had he ever offended such a powerhouse?

Before even seeing the person, just a wooden sword had left him helpless.

This was too terrifying!

Feeling the deathly aura emanating from the wooden sword before him, Lord Wu forced down his emotions and struggled to speak, "Who exactly are you, sir? We've never met, yet you strike so ruthlessly—surely that's unreasonable?"

Three li away, in the abandoned house.

With the power of the entry, Shen Zhou's divine sense had already enveloped the entire city. He transmitted his voice, shouting coldly, "Hmph, weren't you the one who wanted to cripple my cultivation and drive me out of the city? Now you don't even recognize me?"

A voice that sounded remarkably youthful suddenly rang out beside Lord Wu's ear.

The moment this voice emerged, it was like a summer thunderclap, instantly jolting Lord Wu awake.

"What, it's him!"

Lord Wu's face was filled with disbelief.

Wooden Sword Guest!

A youth he had intended to eliminate tonight, and yet he was supposedly a 'Celestial Firmament Realm' expert?

If he had known the other party possessed such strength, why would he have gone to provoke him in the first place!

Lord Wu gritted his teeth in regret, while also nursing a secret resentment: You, a great Celestial Firmament Realm master with such power, go around kicking down the signs of third-rate martial arts schools—isn't that just bullying the weak?

"This senior, I am from the Wu Clan of Flying Bird City. There were many misunderstandings before. If I have offended you, please give me a chance to make amends!"

In Lord Wu's eyes, Shen Zhou was clearly a lofty figure amusing himself in the mortal world. His 'youthful' appearance was merely a facade; his true identity must be that of an adult expert, perhaps even an old man.

And by mentioning the Wu Clan of Flying Bird City, he also hoped to make Shen Zhou think twice, to dare not strike a killing blow.

Shen Zhou saw through his intention at a glance and sneered coldly, "What does the Wu Clan matter? Offend me, and even the Heavenly King himself would be useless!"

The sword light suddenly turned fierce.

The wooden sword instantly shattered the Yuan Qi barrier, and then a flash of sword light.

Lord Wu's body stiffened, feeling a chill spreading through his chest.

He widened his eyes and looked down. A bloody hole had appeared at the position of his heart, piercing through front and back. Blood gushed out, impossible to staunch no matter how he pressed.

"You... you..."

Lord Wu finally collapsed to the ground, struggling for only a moment before going still.

The wooden sword returned.

Its blade was blood-red, with drops of blood falling.

The people in the abandoned house stared at the hovering wooden sword in shock for a moment, then their pupils contracted sharply.

Because they all realized one thing.

The wooden sword had gone forth with killing intent, and now it returned stained with blood. The city lord was likely already...

For a moment, the crowd's gaze at Shen Zhou grew even more terrified and reverent!

Meanwhile, Shen Zhou looked at the intact wooden sword and nodded with satisfaction. Ever since he realized that holding the sword in his left hand made him 'invincible,' he had unlocked another use for the wooden sword: when activating an entry, he could wrap the wooden sword in his power, preventing it from shattering under the strain.

This was also one of the reasons he had stopped rushing to buy a new sword.

"Alright, now it's your turn..."

Turning around, just as Shen Zhou intended to punish the school masters, he saw that Wu Chang'an and the others had already knelt in unison on the ground, speaking respectfully: "We beg the young master for mercy. We were also threatened by the city lord into coming after you. Please, young master, be magnanimous and spare us this once..."

"We beg the young master for leniency!"

"We beg the young master to forgive our sins!"

"..."

Seeing these people so sensible, Shen Zhou found himself somewhat reluctant to strike.

Especially from his impressions during the earlier school challenges, these masters were mostly rough men. Their conduct wasn't exactly good, but it wasn't outright evil either.

When it came to grievances, Shen Zhou was actually the one somewhat in the wrong.

After all, he had gone to challenge their schools to make money.

And earlier, when Shen Zhou had falsely claimed to be 'Shen Zhou,' some among them might have suspected, yet they didn't speak up. This showed they had indeed harbored goodwill toward him.

Shen Zhou had always been a man who distinguished clearly between kindness and enmity. Thinking of this, he made his decision: "You people may not be the chief culprits, but you are accomplices. Originally, I planned to teach you a lesson, but considering we had some connection before, I'll let it slide this time. But if you provoke me again, don't blame me for settling old and new scores together!"

"We wouldn't dare, we wouldn't dare..."

"Take these people and get lost!"

Hearing Shen Zhou's command, Wu Chang'an and the others, having escaped disaster, helped up the fallen city guard soldiers and hurriedly fled the abandoned house, as if afraid that Shen Zhou might change his mind if they lingered.

Once the crowd had completely withdrawn, the abandoned house fell silent again.

Shen Zhou let out a breath of relief, but immediately tensed up again: "Let's go, we have to leave quickly. I must learn martial arts. Not knowing martial arts is too terrifying—I almost got killed by a sneak attack!"

Just thinking about it sent chills down his spine!

If he didn't have his golden finger, that would be one thing. But now that he did, and such an overpowered ability as 'invincible with a sword,' if he were killed in his sleep, wouldn't that be like holding two kings and four twos, only to lose without playing a single card? How infuriating would that be!

So Shen Zhou was now desperate to start training in martial arts, wishing he could reach Flying Bird City immediately.

The three little ones were also badly shaken. They packed their things overnight and left the city as soon as dawn broke.

On the road, Shen Zhou never let the sword leave his hand—while eating, sleeping... even when going to the outhouse, he kept the wooden sword clutched in his grip. He even wondered: "I wonder if drawing a sword on my palm with ink would count?"

A wooden sword is a sword—wouldn't an 'ink sword' still be a sword?