Time to Set Out

Gu Sheng had no idea how much time had passed before the burning pain in his cheek woke him. When he opened his eyes, he saw Ling Xiao wiping the blood off his face with a bloodstained sleeve.

"Cough, cough. You bastard, you really hit hard!"

Gu Sheng spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, his left cheek throbbing with burning pain.

He glared at Ling Xiao three paces away. The fellow was shaking out his wrist, wearing an irritatingly smug grin.

Ling Xiao raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? You woke up pretty fast. Looks like I didn't slap you hard enough."

Just as Gu Sheng was about to flare up, his pupils suddenly shrank.

Only then did he notice the scene around him.

The original canyon had become a massive crater hundreds of yards wide. The mountain walls on either side had been sheared flat at their roots, and smoking rubble covered the ground.

Only the Primordial Samsara Bell, riddled with cracks, stood in the middle of the ruins.

"Th-this was caused by that sword qi?"

Gu Sheng's voice trembled.

He clearly remembered the terrifying sword light he had seen before passing out. Its power had absolutely surpassed the Nascent Soul stage.

Ling Xiao kicked aside a charred rock by his foot.

"What else could it be? Those Old Undeads in the Sword Tomb can't rest easy even after dying." As he spoke, he suddenly leaned closer and lowered his voice.

"By the way, where did you get that broken bell of yours? It actually withstood Nirvana Sword Qi."

Alarm bells rang in Gu Sheng's heart. The Primordial Samsara Bell was his greatest secret; even his sect knew nothing of its true nature.

Without changing his expression, he took half a step back.

"A family heirloom. But you..."

His gaze