Xuanji Sect.
Xie Feng and Sushang went to the back mountain and caught two pheasants, then picked a few lotus leaves from the emerald lake. They wrapped the birds in layer after layer of leaves and set them on the stove, preparing lotus-leaf chicken to eat.
Sushang sat listlessly, her little face pressed against the tabletop, squeezing her cheek into a little lump of flesh.
The flames rose, and soon a wisp of fragrance drifted out through the gaps in the lotus leaves. The little girl's nose twitched, and she promptly sat bolt upright. She stared fixedly at the lotus-leaf chicken, unconsciously nibbling her finger.
"The meat's ready!"
The food soon cooked through. The instant Xie Feng opened the lotus leaves, the rich aroma of chicken mingled with the fresh scent of lotus leaves and wafted out.
Sushang's eyes instantly lit up.
Xie Feng gave her a large drumstick. The little girl took it; it was even bigger than her face.
She bit into the drumstick. The meat was smooth, fresh, and tender in her mouth; a gentle press of her lips was all it took to slide it off the bone. Soft, fragrant, and sweet, it was utterly delicious.
"It's so good!
"Mother used to make roast chicken too. It tasted just as good..."
Sushang poked out her little tongue and licked the grease from the corner of her mouth. The scene seemed to have stirred her feelings. Suddenly, she lowered her head without a word, her lashes falling as she quietly clenched her little fists. On her face, there was actually a trace of...
Sorrow, attachment, and hatred!
Xie Feng caught her change in mood and inwardly frowned. Seeing the little girl bite her lip tightly with her pearly teeth, her eyes darting about in their sockets, he reached out and lightly flicked her forehead.
"Something's weighing on your mind."
"Mm... no..."
"Children aren't allowed to lie."
"I, I..."
Sushang was young, after all. Xie Feng's words sent her thoughts churning even harder. Finally, unable to hold back, she spoke in a soft little voice, tears brimming in her eyes.
"Master, I, I lied to you before. Mother didn't die of illness! She fought someone, lost so much blood, and died!
"Mother was someone very powerful in the Heavenly Sword Holy Land. People called her the Great Venerable, but a few days ago, people suddenly tried to kill her.
"After killing lots of people, she was wounded. She took me and fled the holy land, and we reached a forest. But her wounds were too severe. In the end, she still left me!"
Sushang lowered her head and sobbed, her frail shoulders trembling. Great beads of tears fell, and her eyes grew red and swollen...
Xie Feng's expression turned solemn. The Heavenly Sword Holy Land was so renowned that even he had heard of it.
The Great Venerable Sushang spoke of was named Mo Shoupin. It was said that she was formidable, composed, and decisive, ranked first among the holy land's Eight Venerables for her outstanding swordsmanship.
But...
She had an ordinary constitution and was human, whereas Sushang was a Primordial White Tiger!
How could a human have a Primordial White Tiger offspring?
Moreover, historical records stated that the Primordial White Tiger Clan's bloodline inheritance was extremely fragile. Only the union of a pureblood father and a pureblood mother could produce a pureblood child!
In other words, if Mo Shoupin was not a Primordial White Tiger, Sushang would have inherited her human bloodline in its entirety!
Perhaps there was more to this than met the eye!
"Why did the Heavenly Sword Holy Land hunt your mother down?"
Xie Feng asked.
Sushang wiped her tears. "The last person who fought Mother said something about getting her Sword Source... Master, I have to become stronger. I want revenge!"
"Her Sword Source! That's a swordsman's purest source of Sword Qi. Losing it is the same as having all one's cultivation destroyed! What was his name?"
"I heard Mother call him the Sword Patriarch."
"The Sword Patriarch!"
Xie Feng's eyes gradually grew cold. He was no stranger to that name. Once tenth on the Heavenly Ranking, the master of the Heavenly Sword Holy Land-
Mu. Shuang. Ling!
"Xiao Shang, do you still remember that forest?"
"Yes!"
"Let's go take a look."
"Yes!"
"Wait, there's one more thing..." Xie Feng pointed at the tears clinging to Sushang's round little face. "A brave girl wipes her tears dry before setting out."
"Yes!"
Sushang lifted her chin and answered loudly, then raised her arm and fiercely wiped the tears from her face.
The Three Thousand Worlds had over a hundred continents. Aside from regions where the powerful gathered, such as the Eastern Continent, Heavenly Continent, Spirit Continent, Central Continent, and Sacred Continent, there were many ordinary regions as well.
The Xuanji Sect lay in the angle between the Southern Continent and Yuan Continent. This had once been an ancient sea battlefield. Later, as seas turned to mulberry fields, it became a boundlessly vast, desolate land.
At the southernmost end of the Southern Continent lay an expansive forest, its woods deep and grasses lush. Red mist hung above it like a heavy crimson cloud pressing overhead. Eerie, mysterious, and sinister!
The Land of Blood Slaughter!
The place where an ancient demonic dragon had fallen!
A forbidden land that had existed for a hundred thousand years!
Space twisted slightly, and two figures stepped out of the void, appearing outside the forest.
The ethereal figure in green was Xie Feng. The charming, adorable girl wearing a white vest and dark orange balloon trousers was Sushang.
Xie Feng looked straight ahead. He raised his palm and half-closed his handsome eyes, sending his probing soul sense surging out in all directions like rolling waves.
Soon, his soul sense detected a faint trace of power!
Residual Sword Source power!
When a person lost their life, their vitality would quickly dissipate, but their intent could linger for a short time!
The stronger their consciousness, the longer it remained!
The strongest could remain for over a hundred years, and could even revive through another person's body!
Anyone who reached that level was at least in the Ascension Realm!
His soul sense tracked the residual power and conveyed this intent to Xie Feng. Within his mind, a blood-veiled scene gradually emerged!
A woman in blood-soaked clothes came staggering from afar, her face pale, a trail of blood stretching endlessly behind her.
She held a sword.
A sword dripping with blood.
She had used this sword to kill countless people.
"I, Mo Shoupin, slaughtered all your enemies for you, protected your Mu family's realm, and served loyally all my life.
"To sustain your Grand Mysterious Sword Physique, you slaughtered several venerables with powerful sword physiques. Now, has your sword finally turned on me...
"When the birds are gone, the fine bow is put away; when the cunning hare is dead, the hunting hound is boiled!
"Hahaha!
"Only that poor little girl..."
Mo Shoupin sneered soundlessly, then suddenly began vomiting blood wildly. She propped herself up with her sword, refusing to fall!
"Mother!"
A girl cried out and ran over.
"Xiao Qiu, you must remember. Sushang is your true name..."
Mo Shoupin said.
Thud...
With a soft sound, her body fell. The bloodied sword in her hand shattered into nothing in an instant!
Her Sword Source shattered!
Her body shattered as well!
Xiao Qiu?
Xie Feng had learned an important piece of information.
Why did Mo Shoupin call her Xiao Qiu, yet say just before dying that the little girl's true name was Sushang?
What did this name mean?
The little girl knew little of the world and had said that Mo Shoupin had protected her very well. It was easy to imagine that she had experienced few hardships over these twelve years. She was also hazy about her own origins...
Xie Feng's thoughts drifted.
Suddenly!
His mind stirred slightly. He had detected fluctuations of a considerable presence!
A hundred meters away...
Two figures appeared: Mu Shuangling and Liu Zhen!
"I, the Sword Patriarch, was born deficient and resorted to forceful means to obtain the Grand Mysterious Sword Physique.
"Over the past thirty years, I spared no effort in hollowing out more than a dozen sites rich in Sword Qi, and even took the Sword Sources of countless swordsmen, merely to keep this physique functioning.
"When the Heavenly Ranking descended upon the world, I obtained the Spirit-Shaking Heavenly Sword. But to wield it, my Sword Qi is still insufficient!"
Mu Shuangling spoke through gritted teeth, greed and viciousness gradually emerging in his eyes.