I stood near the Xu Estate's lake, watching the swans glide across the water—white, serene, untouched by the world's weight.
A boat drifted toward me, moving without oar or hand. I stepped aboard alone. The scenery unfolded around me—cranes wading through the shallows, fish darting beneath the surface, and clusters of flowers blooming along the banks in quiet splendour.
I stood near the Xu Estate's lake, watching the swans glide across the water—white, serene, untouched by the world's weight.
A boat drifted toward me, moving without oar or hand. I stepped aboard alone.
It carried me gently, as if guided by something unseen.
The scenery unfolded around me—cranes wading through the shallows, fish darting beneath the surface, and clusters of flowers blooming along the banks in quiet splendour.
The air was still. Even the wind seemed to pause.
"Shen, over here."
Someone called my name.
I turned—and saw Xu Yunfei.
Persistent. I'll give her that.
It seemed her talk with her mother was over. She'd come to find me, tracking me all the way to the lake.
She walked across the water—heels rising and falling with graceful precision, each step sending out a faint ripple across the lake's surface.
As she drew closer to where I stood, the ripples softened, as if the lake itself adjusted to her presence.
The birds didn't fly away.
Nor did the fish scatter.
They moved about—preening, gliding, darting—unbothered by her presence as she stepped into the boat beside me.
She smiled.
Xu Yunfei: "You can't get rid of me that easily."
She smirked.
I smirked back at her.
Shen: "You should probably stay away from me for a little while. Your brother doesn't like that I'm getting too close to you."
Xu Yunfei: "You mean Xu Xiao? He's always been… very protective of me. Ever since we were children."
She looked out across the lake, then back at me.
Xu Yunfei: "He never liked it much. He could bear with it—especially when my father wanted me to marry Zhang Lin. My brother protested at first, but eventually allowed it… once Father and Mother convinced him otherwise."
Xu Yunfei: "Funny enough, he seemed pleased when the marriage was cancelled last night at the party gathering. My brother's been… strange of late."
She paused, her gaze drifting toward the water.
Xu Yunfei: "But I love him nonetheless."
I sensed and saw them in an instant—her father and mother, watching from the estate windows.
Their expressions shifted briefly, surprised. But they held their composure—two stoic faces behind glass.
Xu Yunfei: "What is it, Shen? Are you okay? What are you looking at?"
Shen: "Your parents. They're watching us."
Xu Yunfei: "Are they really? How annoying. My parents weren't particularly happy about the cancellation of the marriage—but they understood my feelings."
She let that linger a little longer.
It became quiet for a moment.
Xu Xiao: "Little sister! Shen! Over here!"
She sighed and looked toward her brother.
He was with his wives and friends—laughing, loud, and far too pleased with himself.
She even spotted some of her own friends among them.
How embarrassing, she thought.
She hoped they hadn't heard what she'd been implying.
She jumped off the boat first.
Her body lifted into the air—light, effortless, as if the wind itself carried her.
She landed near the lakeside pavilion, where guests were gathered—drinking, laughing, and sipping from delicate cups.
I looked at them—watching me like I was prey.
Their eyes followed my every movement, curious, calculating, amused.
I sighed inwardly.
Xu Xiao: "Shen! Come over here. My wives and friends wish to get to know you better. After all, you're the number one disciple of the Blackdragon Sect."
I disappeared—vanishing from the boat in a breath.
Then reappeared in front of them all.
Their laughter paused. Eyes turned.
I looked at Xu Yunfei.
She didn't speak aloud, but her voice reached me—transmitted through spiritual intent.
Xu Yunfei: "I'm sorry about this. You don't have to, if you don't want to."
Shen Wuyin: "It's fine. No bother, really."
I stopped speaking to Xu Yunfei and turned to the others.
Shen Wuyin: "My name is Shen Wuyin. It's a pleasure to meet you all."
A man stepped forward, eyes sharp with curiosity.
Man: "Tell me, Shen Wuyin—is it true what they say? That you barely needed to lift a finger to earn your title?"
Shen Wuyin: "It is. If you'd like, we can face off—you'll find out for yourself."
He laughed.
Man: "Why not?"
We moved to a better place to fight.
Everyone was watching—me and him, centre of the gathering.
Xu Yunfei: "Big brother… did you tell him to challenge Shen Wuyin?"
Xu Xiao: "I did, yes. What's so wrong with that?"
Xu Yunfei: "There's nothing wrong with it. I was just enjoying his company—with just the two of us alone, that's all."
Xu Xiao: "Really? Were you?"
It didn't take long to beat him.
One moment we were standing.
The next—he was on the ground, unconscious.
No one saw what happened.
I stayed where I was, waiting to see if anyone else wished to face me.
Xu Xiao: "You're a strange one, Shen—I must admit."
He started clapping.
Then laughing.
Xu Xiao: "No wonder you earned your title. How about facing me next? Let's make this interesting."
He stepped forward, voice sharp with challenge.
Xu Xiao: "If you win, you may continue interacting with my sister. But if you lose—you're no longer allowed near her. Ever again. Do you understand, Shen? How about it?"
Xu Yunfei: "Big brother, what are you doing? We can decide that for ourselves. Stop this—this is ridiculous! You always do this!"
She was stopped by one of her friends, who gently shook her head.
Xu Yunfei looked at me, her expression tight with frustration.
She transmitted her voice to me.
Xu Yunfei: "Don't listen to my brother. He's just being a fool. Overprotective of me."
Shen Wuyin: "I'm not interested, Xu Xiao. Xu Yunfei and I can decide that for ourselves. You should listen to her—she has a point, doesn't she?"
But he ignored me.
Without warning, he activated a technique.
His voice rang out, sharp and ceremonial.
Xu Xiao: "Repent and Kneel."
Behind him, a vast astral figure of himself unfolded—armoured, helmeted, masked.
Its arms were crossed, gaze heavy, looming above me like a silent judge.
It tried to force me to kneel.
I didn't move.
Then, without hesitation, I mirrored the technique.
I had never used it before, but I already understood its shape, its weight, its will.
I spoke the same words he had.
Shen Wuyin: "Repent and Kneel."
He dropped instantly—kneeling, spine bowed, breath stolen.
I walked toward him, slow and deliberate.
He looked up only when I lifted his chin.
And then he saw it.
My true form.
A towering shadow-dragon figure loomed behind me—armoured in blackened scales, crowned in silence.
My astral self. My essence.
Its eyes burned with black-red light, staring down at him without mercy.
His astral figure knelt just as he did—mirroring his defeat.
My own astral form followed my movements, still holding his chin.
I let go.
Then summoned my Blackdragon Sword.
It rose into the air, ablaze with dark shadow-flames—silent, devouring, absolute.
I brought it down.
He kept his eyes open as the massive astral blade descended.
But I stopped.
The sword vanished.
So did my astral form.
I turned and looked at them all.
They stared at me in silence.
Then I saw them—Xu Yunfei's and Xu Xiao's parents, standing among the crowd.
Her father, Xu Tianren, watched with quiet intrigue.
Then his voice rang out, sharp and commanding.
Xu Tianren: "Is that all, Xu Xiao? Get up and face him like a man. You wanted this—so face him. Don't disappoint me, boy."
Xu Xiao couldn't move—until I released the pressure.
He rose slowly, then laughed.
Xu Xiao: "You truly are the number one disciple of your sect. Even your astral form embodies the Blackdragon."
He shook his head, half in awe, half in disbelief.
Xu Xiao: "You copied my technique. That move took me three hundred years to master. No one else has ever used it—I never taught it to anyone. Yet you did it like it was nothing."
He stepped closer, eyes narrowing.
Xu Xiao: "You're more intriguing than I thought, Shen. Who are you, really? I tried to find out. Sent people to dig into your past. But there's barely anything. Just fragments. You came out of nowhere."
Xu Tianren spoke again, voice cutting through the silence like steel.
Xu Tianren: "Does that really matter, boy? Unsheath your sword and fight! Your patriarch commands it. You haven't lost yet, have you, son?"
Xu Xiao didn't look at his father.
I looked at his hand.
It was clenched so tightly, the skin had split—blood seeping between his fingers.
He must have done that often.
That's why his blade bore that colour—deep crimson, stained by his own blood… and the blood of his enemies.
Or his victims.
He threw the sword at me.
I caught it easily.
The moment I looked up, he lunged—an uppercut aimed at my jaw.
To me, his movement was slow. Predictable.
But to the others, he moved faster than human capability—blurring through the air like a phantom.
He was in the Demigod Realm.
I was in the Divine Realm.
But I had concealed it.
No one could see it—unless I allowed them to.
I merged into his shadow—and reappeared behind him.
This time, I used a different technique.
Eternal Damnation.
As my sword descended, ready to cleave him in two, he deflected it—without turning.
His blade met mine with perfect timing.
He looked at me, face serious. Unshaken.
Our swords collided.
The impact was immense—raw, thunderous, divine.
Only a battlefield forged for cultivators like us could endure such brutality
As our swords kept colliding, each impact unleashed massive pressure—like hurricanes crashing in mid-air.
The battlefield trembled beneath us.
The weather began to shift—growing more intense, more volatile.
Clouds churned. Winds howled. The sky darkened.
Even nature seemed to recoil from the force of our clash.
My movements were gaining velocity—each strike faster, sharper, more relentless.
The impact of my sword grew heavier, more brutal.
It became violent. Diabolical.
A rhythm of destruction, forged in divine fury.
Xu Xiao blocked it, but his sword flew in the air because he couldn't handle me putting more effort into my strikes.
Xu Tianren: "This boy is making my son look like such a fool. How disappointing. I'll have to make him train harder, it seems."
His wife spoke up, her voice calm but concerned.
Lady Yanshi: "Daughter… what even happened here?"
"It's just big brother being overprotective as usual," Xu Yunfei said. "He dislikes it when I'm near people. He can bear it when I tell him it's fine, that he doesn't need to worry—but he seems particularly threatened by Shen for some reason. I don't know why."
Her father spoke, voice calm but piercing.
Xu Tianren: "Daughter… how about marrying that boy instead?"
She didn't hesitate.
Xu Yunfei: "Really, Father? I would love to marry Shen."
She stopped mid-step.
Her parents were staring at her—giving her that look.
The look that said, So he's the one. The boy you mentioned.
Xu Tianren: "That boy is unpredictable. Dangerous. But he'd make an outstanding son-in-law—especially for my eldest daughter. Since you clearly agree, we'll speak to his parents about this, then."
Xu Yunfei: "Father… Shen told me he has no parents. No siblings. He said they passed long ago."
Xu Tianren fell silent for a moment.
Then he nodded.
Xu Tianren: "I see. Then I'll speak to him directly—and see if he agrees."
"This ends here. Final turn."
I spoke the words—and brought my sword down.
Shadow. Darkness. Flame.
They erupted in unison, roaring from the blade as it cleaved through the air—absolute and final
Xu Xiao screamed with fury, facing the strike head-on.
He tried to block it—but one side was engulfed in shadow and flame, the other clear as glass.
From the crowd's perspective, one half was black fire, the other translucent—you could see his figure through it.
It looked as if he'd been cleaved in two.
The impact was chaotic. Disruptive. Absolute.
Everyone stepped back—even the Patriarch.
He noticed it. And instinctively… he stepped away in fear.
Xu Yunfei spoke aloud to herself, eyes fixed on Shen Wuyin.
Xu Yunfei: "So you're still holding back on me… I see. Then I'll just have to try harder. Get stronger. You're my inspiration, Shen Wuyin."