Could I, Bai He, Not Let Go of the Clear Sky Sect When Even Blood Uncles Could Be Abandoned?

Once the two entered the room, the smile on Yang Wudi's face vanished. His hawk-like eyes fixed intently on Bai He.

"What, Old Goat? Do you think I'll hesitate?"

Bai He was not intimidated by Yang Wudi's grim gaze. He merely chuckled and naturally took a seat on a stone stool nearby.

"It can't be helped. The Speed Clan's relationship with the Clear Sky Sect is far from ordinary. For Jian'er's sake, this is something I must do."

Yang Wudi sat opposite Bai He. He appeared relaxed, but his body was actually drawn taut.

"Far from ordinary... Right. If you hadn't brought it up, Old Goat, I nearly forgot that my sister was once the wife of the previous Clear Sky Sect Master, and that I, the patriarch of the Speed Clan, am the blood uncle of the current Clear Sky Sect Master!"

Bai He's voice abruptly rose, and his fists clenched tightly. His increasingly heavy breathing was clearly audible to Yang Wudi.

"It seems you still remember your identity. You should know that you, Old White Bird, share inseparable blood ties with the Clear Sky Sect Master's lineage. If the Breaking Clan truly goes to war with the Clear Sky Sect, can you really cast aside that family bond?"

Yang Wudi could sense Bai He's emotional turmoil, but to be safe, he needed a definite answer from Bai He himself.

"Family?"

"If the Clear Sky Sect had cared about that family bond, the Speed Clan wouldn't have been displaced like the other three affiliated clans."

"If the Clear Sky Sect had cared about that family bond, the Speed Clan wouldn't have been reduced to such poverty that we could barely afford to eat!"

"I haven't forgotten my relationship with the Clear Sky Sect, but I will never forget that when the Speed Clan was too poor to put food on the table, the ones who lent us a hand were not my blood nephew, the Clear Sky Sect Master, but you old friends!"

"You asked whether I was prepared, didn't you? Then I'll answer you now. From the day the Clear Sky Sect abandoned the Speed Clan without hesitation, the Speed Clan has had no blood relationship with the Clear Sky Sect whatsoever. Whether Tang Hao lives or dies, whether the Clear Sky Sect survives or falls, none of it has anything to do with the Speed Clan anymore!"

Bai He stared straight into Yang Wudi's eyes, his voice firm and resounding.

After hearing Bai He's words, Yang Wudi remained silent for so long that Bai He began to think he still did not trust him.

"If you still don't believe me, Old Goat, then I, Bai He, swear upon my Sharp-Tailed Swift Martial Soul: if a single word I said today is false, then let the Sharp-Tailed Swift Martial Soul vanish from the Speed Clan with my generation!"

The instant Bai He spoke those words, the silent Yang Wudi abruptly looked up at him, obvious astonishment appearing in his hawk-like eyes.

As Bai He's old friend of many years, Yang Wudi naturally understood his character.

To Bai He, his Sharp-Tailed Swift Martial Soul was an existence of supreme nobility, enough to be called his faith.

For him to swear upon his Martial Soul, and make such a grave oath, was enough to prove that every word Bai He had spoken was true.

"Good! I believe you, Old White Bird. With those words from you, the Breaking Clan will stand with the Speed Clan through thick and thin. If any of Jian'er and Xiangxiang's descendants awaken the Sharp-Tailed Swift Martial Soul in the future, I can make the decision to let them inherit the Speed Clan's surname."

Yang Wudi reached out and heavily slapped Bai He's shoulder, nearly knocking him off balance. Bai He clearly had not expected Yang Wudi to leap to such a topic, and he stood there frozen for a moment.

However, Bai He was not the only one stunned by Yang Wudi's abrupt train of thought. Bai Chenxiang, who stood at the doorway, was equally rooted to the spot.

She still held her arm out as if she were about to open the door. Her cheeks, which had only just regained their fair color, had turned bright red again. Even from a fist's distance away, Yang Jian could feel the startling heat radiating from Bai Chenxiang's face.

She wasn't going to faint from embarrassment, was she?

Seeing Bai Chenxiang's cheeks grow increasingly flushed, this strange thought suddenly surfaced in Yang Jian's mind.

Why was he looking at me? Did he hear what Grandpa Yang said too? Grandpa Yang really was something else—why did he have to say it so suddenly? We weren't even together yet!

Bai Chenxiang's thoughts churned wildly, yet even she failed to realize that her instinctive reaction was that they were not together yet, rather than how they could possibly be together.

If Ma Hongjun, who had once gone through untold trouble to win Bai Chenxiang over, learned what she was thinking now, he would probably cry himself blind.

After waiting roughly five or six minutes and making sure the two outside had calmed down, Yang Wudi finally opened the door with Bai Chenxiang and walked out.

"Grandpa Bai, I've already taught Miss Chenxiang the mnemonics and inner cultivation methods for Wing Chun and the Eight Cutting Blades. She only needs to practice according to them. Grandpa, these are Baji Fist and the Six Harmonies Great Spear—supremely yang and unyielding, perfectly suited to the Yang Clan."

Yang Jian smiled and said a few words to Bai He, then handed the papers recording Baji Fist and the Six Harmonies Great Spear to Yang Wudi.

"You've worked hard, Jian'er. Take Xiangxiang around the clan for a proper look. Old White Bird will be taking the Speed Clan away tomorrow."

Yang Wudi accepted the papers from Yang Jian with a smile and waved for the two to go explore.

Yang Jian did not refuse. He scooped up Xiaotian, who was sleeping soundly beneath a tree, and the two of them, along with one dog, left Yang Jian's small courtyard.

After spending an afternoon touring the Speed Clan with Bai Chenxiang, the two had grown much closer. At Bai Chenxiang's strong insistence, Yang Jian stopped calling her Miss Chenxiang, which sounded somewhat distant, and began calling her the more intimate Xiangxiang, just as Bai He and the other elders did.

The next day, Yang Jian and his grandfather Yang Wudi saw the Speed Clan off beneath Bai Chenxiang's somewhat reluctant gaze, and life returned to normal once more.

In the days that followed, Yang Jian trained without fail every day while also pondering the beginnings of his second spear technique.

Soon, seven days passed in a flash. That evening, Yang Jian unusually did not continue contemplating his spear technique. Instead, he sat cross-legged on his bed as the Soul Power around him surged and steadily climbed.

At a certain point, Yang Jian's Soul Power began to stagnate, as though it had encountered some sort of bottleneck.

Yet his breathing remained steady, as if he had not been affected at all.

After another half hour or so, Yang Jian, whose eyes had been lowered, suddenly opened them. Golden sharpness shot from his eyes and extended for about ten feet before slowly fading. At the same time, there seemed to be the sound of glass shattering somewhere in the unseen, and the Soul Power that had been stagnant within Yang Jian surged once more.

"I didn't expect my second spear technique to show no progress while my Soul Power broke through to level forty. Combat really does improve strength faster. It's getting late today. I'll tell Grandpa the good news tomorrow, then go hunt my fourth Soul Ring."