Proud Sword Soaring Clouds

The moment Ling Xiao finished speaking, the tea, which had just thawed, SPLASHED all over Lie Suixue.

Ling Xiao shot to his feet, a look of sincere apology on his face as he looked at Lie Suixue. "Oh my, Elder Lie, I’m so sorry, so terribly sorry! Someone! Hurry and bring a new robe for the Elder of the Lie Family! Remember, I want one made by Wang’s! The Elder of the Lie Family is a guest of honor, do you hear me?"

Ling Xiao’s voice was loud enough for everyone who was already paying attention to the private room to hear him clearly. Although they didn’t know exactly what had happened, the news that an elder from the Lie Family needed a change of clothes spread almost instantly.

Appealing to a certain dark part of human nature, there were plenty of people who wanted to see an elder from the Lie Family get embarrassed. Many bowed their heads and snickered. Though Lie Suixue couldn’t see them, his old face flushed crimson in an instant!

Lie Suifeng and Lie Suitian’s faces were ashen. Deep in Lie Yang’s eyes, however, there was a hint of excitement; he probably never expected this Ling Xiao fellow to be so outrageously arrogant as to proactively provoke a Sword Venerable of the Lie Family. Lie Que’s eyes, on the other hand, revealed deep worry.

Gongsun Jian was momentarily stunned, but his expression quickly turned peculiar. His gaze toward Ling Xiao was now filled with nothing but deep admiration. Clearly, Gongsun Jian had also figured out who the "important person" Ling Xiao was talking about.

Shangguan Yutong’s eyes showed a trace of nervousness. She knew Ling Xiao would never act so recklessly without a reason. After all, even if Ling Xiao currently possessed the strength to kill a Sword Venerable on his own, a day like today was truly not one for drawing weapons.

Leng Qianqian’s face, however, had become completely calm. She said nothing, simply turning and sitting back down in her original seat. She had already made up her mind. ’If the Lie Family dares to make a move against Ling Xiao, then even if I have to die, I will die before he does!’

’Don’t assume all women are cowards who cling to life and fear death. At the very least, I, Leng Qianqian, am not!’

Lie Suixue’s expression was incredibly foul. After being famous for so many years, a Tier Four Sword Venerable like him had been thoroughly humiliated by a junior. Everyone in this room had sharp eyes, so Ling Xiao’s move was tantamount to a vicious slap across Lie Suifeng’s face.

Lie Suixue laughed in his extreme anger. At this moment, he actually calmed down. ’Ling Xiao, oh, Ling Xiao, do you really think the wrath of a Mid-Tier Sword Venerable is so easily extinguished? I was just looking for an excuse to deal with you, and you delivered it yourself!’

"Oh? What important person could be worth Sect Leader Lingxiao losing his composure like that? Hehe, this old man would quite like to see for himself!" Lie Suixue said with a slight smile. He straightened his robes, and a cloud of mist rose from the damp spots as he forcefully steamed them dry with his energy!

This display from Lie Suixue left the others somewhat moved. This Sword Venerable Powerhouse from the Lie Family was no pushover! Just now, he had frozen the tea with his aura alone, and now he had used it again to steam his clothes dry. This instantaneous demonstration of mastery over two different elemental forces was enough to make sure no one dared to underestimate him in the slightest.

A smile hung on Ling Xiao’s face. In fact, just as Lie Suixue was speaking, a voice had echoed in his ear: ’Kid, I’m here for you. Made a special trip back from the Sea Race! How about that? A true friend, am I not?’

Ling Xiao was overjoyed. ’Gongsun Huang is back!’

’And who was Gongsun Huang? He was a powerhouse on the verge of breaking through to the Saint Tier! At the Peak Realm of a Tier Six Sword Venerable, he alone was a match for all three of the Lie Family’s Sword Venerables! Never mind just the three of them; even if you added the two from the East Sea Qin Family, Gongsun Huang would not be defeated!’

’With someone like that backing him up, it would be a disservice to himself if Ling Xiao didn’t take this chance to humiliate these old geezers from the Lie Family!’

That was just Ling Xiao’s personality. He had always lived by the principle of ’respect me an inch, and I’ll respect you a yard.’ But the Lie Family? Needless to say, they had sent people to assassinate him more than three years ago. If he hadn’t had a few decent magical artifacts on him—if he were still the penniless Ling Xiao from his past life—he likely would have been killed on the spot by that Tier Five Sword Emperor.

After that, the Lie Family had provoked him repeatedly, and two of their Sword Emperor Powerhouses had been trapped and killed in his Mist Array. It was safe to say the feud had been forged long ago. Therefore, even if Ling Xiao got on his knees and begged these old bastards from the Lie Family for mercy, they would never accept it. For them to come here this time with three Sword Venerables in tow... to say they had no ulterior motives was something not even a three-year-old would believe.

’Since that’s the case, why bother saving face for them?’

Ling Xiao laughed. "The elder from the Lie Family is truly magnanimous and broad-minded to forgive my unintentional act. Hehe, as for that important person... he’s here."

As he spoke, the door to the room opened, and an old man with a white beard and hair and a kind, benevolent face walked in. He wore coarse cloth robes and a pair of straw sandals. The moment this elder stepped into the room, the three Sword Venerables from the Zhe Family all shot to their feet with a WHOOSH.

The two Sword Venerables from the East Sea Qin Family also stood up, forcing down their astonishment.

Gongsun Jian’s eyes grew moist, the rims turning a little red as he called out, "Grandfather!"

At that, Ling Xiao vacated the seat of honor. A maid had already brought in another chair. The table was quite large, so even adding another three or five people wouldn’t make it feel crowded.

Gongsun Huang first nodded to Ling Xiao and said with a smile, "Little Friend Ling Xiao, we meet again. I’ve come uninvited. I hope I’m not disturbing you?"

Ling Xiao quickly shook his head. He and Gongsun Jian were sworn brothers, so it was only natural for him to treat Gongsun Huang with the courtesy due a grandson. He bowed deeply to Gongsun Huang. "Grandmaster Gongsun, you honor this junior too greatly. This junior could only dream of inviting you. For you to grace this junior’s humble place with your presence, my home shines with splendor. I, Ling Xiao, am overjoyed!"

"Haha."

Gongsun Huang let out a hearty laugh, patted Ling Xiao’s shoulder, and said, "You’ve done well, kid!" It was unclear if he was referring to what Ling Xiao had just done, or something else entirely.

Gongsun Huang didn’t stand on ceremony and sat down in the offered seat. Only then did he give a slight nod to the Sword Venerables of the Lie and Qin Families, but he said nothing more. That faint air of pride he carried was enough to make even Ling Xiao’s blood boil with excitement. ’Is this what it’s like to reach Gongsun Huang’s realm,’ he wondered, ’to be able to truly look down upon all living things?’

Gongsun Huang’s gaze finally fell upon his excited grandson. "Jian’Er," he said, "you are doing very well. Very good."

Though it was just a few words, Gongsun Jian felt a wave of comfort wash over his entire body, as if he had just consumed an Immortal Pill. From childhood to now, over so many years, he could count the number of times his grandfather had praised him like this on one hand. The last time he’d been praised seemed to be several years ago. He never expected to be praised again today, in front of so many people. In that moment, Gongsun Jian’s heart felt sweeter than honey.

Gongsun Huang’s arrival made Gongsun Jian instinctively want to excuse himself, as he had never sat at the same table with his grandfather in a public setting before. Gongsun Huang said calmly, "We are here today to celebrate for Little Friend Ling Xiao. You may remain seated."

Only then did Gongsun Jian sit back down, though he only perched on the edge of his chair, no longer daring to be as casual as before.

When Gongsun Huang’s sharp eyes had swept over them just now, the backs of the two Qin Family Sword Venerables had been drenched in cold sweat. Those old eyes were as sharp as an eagle’s, so piercing it felt as if they could see right into a person’s soul. Fortunately, it seemed Gongsun Huang had no intention of deliberately targeting them.

The three Lie Family Sword Venerables were also shaken to their core. They never would have imagined that the establishment of the tiny Shushan Sword Sect would actually draw out this old monster!

As a super-family, the Jingwu Family’s advantage lay in their sheer number of powerhouses at the Sword Venerable Realm! They even had more than three of the highest, Tier Five Sword Venerables!

But as for the Gongsun Family, anyone who truly knew the inside story was well aware that while they didn’t have many Sword Venerables, their one iconic figure, Gongsun Huang, was an absolute idol to all Martial Artists!

If Yun Zilan from three hundred years ago was a stunning, peerless prodigy who might only appear once in ten million years, then Gongsun Huang could be called the next great genius Martial Artist after him! Although he couldn’t be compared to Yun Zilan, there was almost no Martial Artist on the continent today who could surpass Gongsun Huang!

A Tier Six Sword Venerable who was not yet six hundred years old and could break through to the Saint Tier and enter the Holy Sanctuary at any moment—no matter how arrogant the Lie Family’s Sword Venerables were to others, they wouldn’t dare show even a shred of that arrogance to Gongsun Huang.

"So it is Elder Gongsun. Lie Suifeng, Lie Suixue, and Lie Suitian of the Lie Family... we greet Elder Gongsun!" The three Sword Venerables of the Lie Family stood up again to bow formally to Gongsun Huang. Lie Yang and Lie Que also stood and bowed, not daring to utter a single word.

A Tier Six Sword Venerable... in the hearts of many Martial Artists, such a being was practically equivalent to a Demigod!

Members of the great families and sects absolutely believed in the existence of the Holy Sanctuary, because they, or their ancestors, had all more or less received decrees from—or witnessed visitations by—beings from the Holy Sanctuary.

And cultivating to the level of a Tier Six Sword Venerable was as good as having one foot in the gate of the Holy Sanctuary. What could possibly draw more attention from a Martial Artist than that?

The two Sword Venerables from the Qin Family also rose, accompanied by Qin Zhaoran and Qin Feng. Patriarch Li Fei of the Western Li Family and Leng Qianqian also followed suit, bowing to Gongsun Huang.

Gongsun Huang waved his hand and said with a laugh, "No need, no need. This old man isn’t the main character today. I’m just here to support Little Friend Ling Xiao. Please, be at ease, hehe. Don’t mind me!"

These words landed differently in everyone’s ears. For Shangguan Yutong, Leng Qianqian, and Patriarch Li Fei of the Western Li Family, their feelings could only be described as ecstatic. Even a woman as pure and aloof as Leng Qianqian couldn’t help but steal a few more glances at Gongsun Huang before her gaze flickered over to Ling Xiao, her thoughts a mystery.

As for the East Sea Qin Family and the Jingwu Family, with the exception of Lie Que, who was inwardly chuckling, everyone else felt a bitter taste in their mouths, especially the three Sword Venerable Powerhouses from the Lie Family.

They had originally thought they would be the most powerful people to come to the Shushan Sword Sect today! They had believed that even if they brazenly threatened Ling Xiao to hand over his secrets, no one would dare to say a word.

But they never expected that there was always a higher mountain.

It turned out that above Tier Five, there was a Tier Six.

Lie Suixue, in particular, had suffered a major loss at Ling Xiao’s hands, yet he was completely unable to retaliate. His old face swelled to a shade of purple.