I Alone Am Enough

It was only after Yu Xiu had walked into the thatched hut that Fang Jiming, Song Yue, and the others strolled over from the distance.

"Senior Brother Fang, Yu Xiu has already entered. Once the Shadow Demon strikes, he will surely perish on the spot," Qin Shu said, stepping forward respectfully with a hint of sycophancy.

Zhao Zheng and Zhang Yun also approached with a degree of trepidation, calling out, "Senior Brother Fang."

Fang Jiming swept his gaze over the three of them and said indifferently, "Well done. Once this matter is settled, the rewards I promised you will not be lacking."

As he spoke, his attention was already fixed on the thatched hut: "Yu Xiu!"

He stepped toward the hut at a leisurely pace.

Having waited for a year, how could he be content without seeing Yu Xiu die with his own eyes?

Song Yue, Yuan Shu, Zhong Yue, and Pang Wei exchanged smiles and followed closely behind: "Let's go see just how pathetic Yu Xiu looks when he's on the verge of death."

"I'm afraid he's already trembling in fear before the Shadow Demon."

Qin Shu quickly caught up, offering a fawning smile: "Yu Xiu is only at the first level of the Qi Sea; I doubt he even has the courage to face the Shadow Demon right now."

The group filed into the thatched hut one after another.

The hut was small, consisting of only three rooms. The entrance led directly into the main hall, which could be taken in at a single glance, with two rooms on either side separated only by hemp curtains.

And right now, a young figure stood in the center of the hall, his back turned to the group.

Yu Xiu?

He didn't go to find the Shadow Demon?

With only three rooms, if the Shadow Demon wasn't in the hall, it would naturally be in one of the side rooms, visible at a glance.

Yet, Yu Xiu stood quietly in the hall, one hand holding a sword and the other behind his back, as if he had been waiting for a long time.

Almost at the same moment Fang Jiming and the others entered the hut, Yu Xiu turned around slowly.

His expression was calm, his gaze sweeping slowly over Qin Shu and the others before finally resting on Fang Jiming: "I've waited for you for a long time; you've finally arrived."

He had never met Fang Jiming, but he had seen Fang Jibai, and the two brothers looked very much alike.

At the same time, as these words left his lips, the expressions of Qin Shu, Zhao Zheng, Zhang Yun, and Ruan Fei changed drastically. They had brought Yu Xiu out from the Inner Court, so why did it sound like this was all part of Yu Xiu's plan?

He knew all along?!

In an instant, a sense of inexplicable unease rose in the hearts of all four!

"He knew I was the one pushing all of this behind the scenes?!" After a moment of shock, Fang Jiming suddenly clapped his hands and laughed: "Impressive. To have gone through such a long detour and still see through all of this."

He paused, then said candidly, "Then, tell me, what gives you the confidence to walk into this trap yourself?"

"Have you already contacted the Law Enforcement seniors in the sect, or have you hooked up with some elder or deacon to wait for me here?"

"The Law Enforcement seniors wouldn't be easily swayed by you, so I recall you've had quite a bit of contact with the Pavilion Elder Liao Jianshu. Is Elder Liao your backing?"

As he finished speaking, Song Yue, Yuan Shu, and the others behind Fang Jiming were all struck with terror.

Inner Court elders were, at their weakest, experts who had reached the middle or final stages of the Four Great Passes. Once they made a move, let alone these Inner Court disciples still stuck at the four stages of Ascending Dragon!

Even Fang Jiming, who had already broken through the four stages of Ascending Dragon and stepped into the first stage of the Four Great Passes, would be killed instantly!

We failed to scheme against Yu Xiu, and now we're going to be killed by his scheme?

Their hearts hammered against their ribs, especially the young disciple Yuan Shu, whose gaze turned cold.

Yu Xiu's expression remained calm: "Elder Liao..."

Before he could finish, Yuan Shu suddenly erupted into action. His figure lunged forward in a flash, his five fingers hooked like steel claws, whistling through the air as he struck toward Yu Xiu's throat: "Capture him, and we still have a chance to live."

If they had Yu Xiu in their hands, even the Inner Court Pavilion Elder Liao Jianshu would have to hesitate.

At that same moment, Qin Shu and Zhao Zheng reacted with lightning speed, lunging forward as well, moving with extreme velocity from left and right to pounce on Yu Xiu.

In response, Yu Xiu smiled silently, his body inexplicably blurring for a split second.

In that very instant, the sound of a sword ringing out—clang—pierced the air. A sword light flashed by, but it was fast, far too fast. Even with Fang Jiming's strength at the first stage of the Four Great Passes, he could only vaguely see Yu Xiu draw his sword.

But how many strikes were made, or where they were aimed, he could not see at all—he couldn't even see Yu Xiu's figure clearly!

This is Yu Xiu?! Fang Jiming's pupils contracted violently.

Then, he saw Yuan Shu, Qin Shu, and Zhao Zheng, who had lunged forward, suddenly stop in their tracks, frozen in place!

Immediately after, three dull thuds—thump, thump, thump—sounded in unison. When they looked again, the three who had stopped in their tracks had collapsed like falling mountains!

On their necks, a thin red line gradually emerged, growing redder and redder until, finally, blood began to flow uncontrollably.

Dead! Ruan Fei and Zhang Yun felt their scalps go numb and their hearts turn cold.

The Yu Xiu who had been as docile as a sheep the entire way, the man they had already considered a dead person in their minds, now appeared like an ancient beast that had torn through its human skin, its ferocity and fangs fully exposed!

Forget about facing him—even just standing in the same room felt terrifying!

In a single instant, Yu Xiu had killed three people, and Qin Shu, in particular, was an expert at the Life Spring realm of the fourth stage of Ascending Dragon!

But how, by what means, did Yu Xiu do it?

He had only been in the Inner Court for two months; by what right could he cut down a Life Spring cultivator?

It shouldn't be possible, it made no sense!

Yet, Yu Xiu held his sword horizontally before him and flicked the blade lightly. The single drop of blood remaining on the tip scattered into a bloody mist, leaving the blade as clear and gleaming as before.

He sheathed his sword with satisfaction and gestured toward Qin Shu and the other two, who lay collapsed on the ground: "The three of you were a bit too impatient; you didn't even let me finish what I was saying."

His gaze then shifted to Fang Jiming: "There is no Elder Liao. I alone am enough."

"You..." Fang Jiming's expression turned solemn as he looked at Yu Xiu again: "You've entered the Four Great Passes?"

Yu Xiu nodded. As his Sword Heart Hidden Edge dissipated, the aura on his body—which had previously only been at the first level of the Qi Sea—surged, rose again, and then skyrocketed, breaking through the fourth pass of the Ascending Dragon, the Life Spring, to stand firmly within the Four Great Passes.

"The first of the Four Great Passes, the realm of the Five Viscera!" Fang Jiming whispered, his tone heavier than ever before: "What a Yu Xiu!

"I have waited for this day for a year. It seems you... have also waited for a year!"

Yu Xiu spoke calmly: "If you don't make your move now, I fear you will never have another chance to do so."

Fang Jiming pointed to the people behind him: "They have little to do with this matter. How about you let them go?"

Yu Xiu shook his head: "Not a single one of them is leaving."

Fang Jiming looked back at Song Yue, Pang Wei, and Ruan Fei, saying: "You see, if he were to let you go, there would be a risk of the news leaking. No matter how foolish Yu Xiu might be, he would never do such a thing. Therefore...

"It would be better to lend me a hand."

Before his words had even faded, his figure shifted abruptly, appearing behind them. With a casual strike of his palm, a surging force erupted, shoving the five terrified people directly toward Yu Xiu.

At the same moment, Fang Jiming retreated gracefully, exiting the hut in an instant: "Yu Xiu, if I make it out of this door, I will spread the word that you possess a secret treasure capable of helping others reach the Four Great Passes in three years. Tell me, will you ever have a day of peace again?"

By the end of his sentence, Fang Jiming's face was twisted with malice: "If I die, don't think you'll have it any better—"

He didn't finish his sentence; he stopped dead in his tracks, for there stood Yu Xiu, sword in hand, as if he had been there the entire time.

When did he...

Fang Jiming whipped his head around to look back, only to see the hut filled with corpses lying in heaps!

How could he be so fast!