Sword Saint's Battle

"Mr. Geralt's death caused a great commotion among adventurers."

"We've already deployed people to investigate, although there's a high probability we won't find the culprit in the end."

Adventurers' Guild, Meeting Room.

Geralt's assistant, Gina, reported to Sid about the series of events that had occurred after Geralt's death, while he tapped the table and looked at Jia Paer across from him.

At this moment, the Sword Saint Gapar was staring at the Image Stone that showed Geralt's death, his face gloomy and his eyes revealing deep thought.

"You know what this kind of death means," Sid said. "They've even brought out their weapons to deal with you."

Jia Paer nodded and reached out to close the Image Stone. "I didn't expect them to be so bold as to activate weapons here. I also bear some responsibility for his death."

"Putting that aside, you really don't need our help? Do you really believe they'll keep their promise to fight one-on-one?"

Facing the silent Jia Paer, Sid said solemnly:

"That's a combination of the bloodlines of a demon king and an evil god, a union of the two most despicable and cunning races in the world. Do you really believe they would have any sense of morality?"

"He's just a descendant of the unified entity. How much of his original bloodline is left? His strength is far inferior to that of his ancestors."

Jia Paer shook his head and insisted:

"This is my battle."

Sid's expression shifted, and he said helplessly:

"Then give me a reason that drives you to fight alone, even a cliché one, like the other side kidnapping thousands of people to force you to fight one-on-one, that way I can convince myself."

Jia Paer smiled and said, "The reason is simple: I'm just cleaning up my master's mess, and only I can do it."

"You really are..."

Sid sighed. "For the sake of our old friendship, if you die, I won't be collecting your body."

"Rest assured."

Jia Paer tapped his powerful pectoral muscles and looked up at the distant sky.

"He was only on par with my master, but I have now far surpassed him."

"Pah, I get angry just looking at your arrogant face."

Sid was so angry he wanted to slap the guy, but he forcibly held back and said in a sullen tone, "You're only carrying this little bit of equipment? Others are pulling out their weapons."

"So what?"

Jia Paer shrugged.

"I think the items in the Zane Dungeon are in no way inferior to weapons."

"Suit yourself," Sid turned his face away, but when he heard Jia Paer get up to say goodbye and his footsteps fade into the distance, he couldn't help but turn back and say:

"Remember to send me a message before you come back so I can prepare to welcome you."

Jia Paer waved casually without turning back.

As he descended the stairs from the Adventurers' Guild, a pegasus was already prepared for him at the entrance, loaded with all his equipment.

A plain black iron armor, Stars Linked Sword, Giant Club Staff, a belt with the inscription "Goddess's Blessing" and some potions, and other miscellaneous items.

There is also a Silver Shield.

He stroked the horse's head, and the Pegasus carried him into the air, heading westward like a Bede City star.

Sid and Gina stood by the window, watching his figure gradually become a small black dot on the horizon.

"Who exactly is Mr. Jia Paer going to fight?" Gina couldn't help but ask.

"His fellow disciple."

Sid slowly said:

"When he was still a student of swordsmanship, he became a disciple of the renowned North Sword Saint, and displayed a swordsmanship talent far exceeding that of others. He climbed all the way to become the number one disciple, and everyone believed that he could inherit the name of the North Sword Saint."

"But then competitors appeared. His junior brother also showed talent that was no less than his, made rapid progress, and was also highly anticipated by people."

"Did the two of them have a fight?" Gina asked.

"No, their relationship was always very good, even closer than brothers," Sid sighed. "But this relationship lasted until Jia Paer went down the mountain to train. When he returned from his journey, he found that his junior brother had slaughtered his master and all his fellow disciples. The reason for this was that the other party's bloodline, which originated from the Demon King and an unknown evil god, required a Blood sacrifice."

"No one knows how he has managed to hide until now; he shows no signs of being inhuman from head to toe."

"From then on, Jia Paer kept hunting down his junior brother, but never succeeded in catching him. Instead, his junior brother kept challenging other people who claimed to be sword saints, killing them all over the country, until no one dared to call themselves sword saints anymore, even if they were strong enough, they chose to remain anonymous."

"The reason Jia Paer took up the title of Sword Saint was more to attract his junior brother, and to avenge all the innocent people who were killed."

"Now, he has finally gotten what he wanted."

Bede City, Da Er watched Jia Paer leave, and even though he had never had any faith in any god, he couldn't help but pray for him.

"Boss, look at the shooting star!" Malu, who had just come out of the dungeon, excitedly pointed to the horizon, and Leon couldn't help but squint his eyes.

At the Ma Lei Da Magic Item Shop, Gong Qiying waved to Jia Paer's retreating figure.

"Shouldn't we say something of blessing at a time like this? Well then," he muttered to himself, "Long may the sunshine."

A week later, at the border.

The closer one gets to the Western Continent inhabited by the demons, the more desolate the scenery becomes. The green grasslands gradually turn yellow and eventually become cracked earth. The number of creatures encountered along the way becomes increasingly scarce, and their ferocity and danger level rise sharply until finally, all the creatures one encounters turn into demons.

Wherever intelligent beings can be seen to live, they invariably protect themselves by high walls or in strategic locations, the purpose of which is self-evident.

After a week of non-stop travel, with the help of a mount that was no less impressive than a griffin, Jia Paer successfully reached the border in the shortest possible time, where a continuous wall a hundred meters high had appeared on the horizon.

Titan Fortress, a high wall standing between the civilized world and the Western Continent, would be the first line of defense should the demons launch a large-scale invasion. Each nation would be responsible for the Titan Wall located within its own territory.

Numerous barriers exist between the Western Continent and the civilized world: rift valleys, mountains, swamps, and the Titan Fortress Swamp. This should have been an impenetrable fortress, but the daily demon attacks in various places are proclaiming to the world that this Fortress is not so strong.

Not every country cares about this place, nor does every country have the capacity to manage it.

Fortunately, the border guards of the Arnor Kingdom are very responsible; unfortunately, the demons will find loopholes in other countries.

"Someone flew over the Fortress from the sky! Go and report to the general!" Some of the garrison soldiers spotted Jia Paer's trail and rushed to report to their commander, but by the time they reached the city wall, Jia Paer had already vanished.

"I swear I really saw someone."

Jia Paer has now piloted the Pegasus into the rift valley. The purplish-black miasma can be seen overhead. These things remain firmly in the Western Continent, not a single trace leaking out, not even into the rift valley.

This is the place where he agreed to fight to the death.

He originally intended to make some preparations up there, but the Titan Fortress garrison, in order to prevent the demons from invading, completely cleared out the surrounding bushes, thus wiping out these plants that were so hard to grow in such a barren place.

Jia Paer didn't want the fight to be influenced by too many external factors, regardless of whether he won or lost.

Upon entering the rift valley, he sensed a familiar aura that he hadn't felt in a long time. His expression didn't change much; he simply rode his Pegasus to the source of the aura.

There, a tall, slender figure stood with his back to him, the long hem of his robe fluttering slightly in the wind, his long, silver-black hair cascading down like a waterfall.

"Senior brother, you've finally arrived."

A youthful voice came from the figure. He turned to face Jia Paer, revealing a handsome, even bewitching, young face. Two swords, one long and one short, were drawn from their sheaths by an invisible force and floated beside him with a "whoosh".

"I've been waiting for you for so long. If you hadn't come soon, I would have gone and destroyed that Fortress."

An ominous black aura swirled around him, within which distorted human faces flashed, each one a familiar face to Jia Paer.

Beyond this black mist, however, existed the starlight of the universe, its light flickering as if beckoning something from beyond the heavens.

A fierce and eerie aura fused together on his body.

"Kang Luode".

Jia Paer read out the other person's name as if he were talking about a complete stranger, and drew his Stars Linked Sword.

"Oh, very nice weapon. Your collection has grown again, Senior Brother." Kang Luode winked and chuckled, "How about a bet? Like, if you lose, you give me half of your collection—"

The azure sword energy imbued with magic by Stars Linked Sword slashed towards Kang Luode, who dodged to the side, narrowed his eyes, and said, "You haven't changed at all, coming up with such a fierce greeting right from the start, Senior Brother."

Jia Paer stared intently at Kang Luode with the eyes of a lion, his beard and hair held high.

With a single step, he appeared before the enemy in the blink of an eye, his robes fluttering as he revealed black armor that could enhance his physical strength.

"Bang--"

The crisp sound of steel clashing echoed through the rift valley as Kang Luode blocked the attack with his short sword.

The two remained in the same position. A second later, two powerful gusts of wind erupted from opposite directions. The surging sword energy slashed hundreds of cracks in the mountain wall, and the flying dust even shot into the sky.

"General, there's something going on over there!" The Fortress garrison noticed something amiss in the valley and quickly reported, "Should we send someone to check it out?"

"No, whatever you do, don't go!" The general, his fierce face now contorted with fear, clutched his head and cried out, "It must be some unknown powerhouse dueling again! Quickly order everyone to stay away, let's pretend we didn't see anything!"

Every few months, powerful wild creatures would randomly spawn and fight in this area, driving him to the brink of collapse. Do powerful creatures like to fight in such desolate places?

While the general was giving the order, Jia Paer and Kang Luode had already exchanged countless blows, and Kang Luode even had the mind to keep talking.

"You start a war without even saying hello, how heartless, senior brother. It's been so many years since I last thought of seeing you, aren't you even curious about what I want to do?"

His response was a flying kick from the Sword Saint.

"Why are you even using your feet? Has your swordsmanship deteriorated?" He shrugged, quickly retreating while using the black light of his sword to force back Jia Paer who was pursuing him.

Jia Paer stopped in his tracks, choosing silence as the best policy, perhaps indicating that he and the other person had nothing to say to each other.

"It's been so many years since we last met. I don't think I've ever spoken to you since then. You don't know why I did that back then, do you? Did you think I was deliberately going into hiding?"

Kang Luode stroked the blade. "Actually, I only found out about my background that day. I'm actually a descendant of a demon king and an evil god. Hehe, sounds impressive, right? But I don't even know the names of that demon king and evil god. Their bloodline was so diluted that it was almost invisible when it flowed into my body. I still have more human blood in my body. I always thought I was human."

"That was the day I suddenly heard a revelation from beyond the heavens: offering enough blood would unleash my potential. How could I not do something so wonderful?"

"Do you think I hesitated for a long time before killing my fellow disciples? No, no, the moment I heard the sound, I pushed my junior brother next to me off the cliff. I have never regretted it."

"By the way, you don't know why I contacted you, do you? Actually, I have a grand plan."

A sword aura flashed, and the mountain wall behind Kang Luode broke, but he was unharmed.

"You talk too much."

Jia Paer uttered his first words, his speed suddenly increased, and he disappeared from Kang Luode's sight in the blink of an eye.

"Huh?"

For the first time, Kang Luode showed surprise, turning to raise his sword to meet the impending strike, but when Jia Paer's strike truly came—

His sword was knocked away!

What happened? How did the opponent's strength suddenly increase so dramatically? Just a moment ago, they were evenly matched, or even weaker than me.

Wait a minute, this old man is hiding his true abilities!

While Kang Luode was still in shock, the Sword Saint had already slashed down with his sword, cutting him in two from shoulder to thigh!

The sound of someone falling to the ground was heard, but Jia Paer did not sheath his knife; instead, he quickly distanced himself.

"Pfft. You're still so cautious, I actually managed to fool you."

Black energy surged from Kang Luode's body, writhing and taking on a new form. He spread his hands and said:

"This is the power that God has given me. No sword technique can work on me anymore. Even the sword saints of the past would despair if they saw me like this."

He raised the corners of his mouth and said, "Alright, let me tell you why I came to you. I haven't spoken to anyone in a long time, so please don't think I'm being nosy."

He stared at Jia Paer's expression, trying to see the emotions he wanted to see on his senior's face, such as panic, fear, or anger.

He had been rambling on and on, trying to elicit negative emotions from the other person. Once those negative emotions were present, his power would be amplified.

Just then, Jia Paer suddenly put away the Stars Linked Sword.

"What, giving up the fight?" Kang Luode teased.

No, the Sword Saint didn't give up the fight; he just changed his approach.

Jia Paer picked up the Giant Club Staff from the ground, patting it as he said:

"Let's begin the second round."