Jun Mo Li took the family heirloom. One hand gripped the scabbard, the other the hilt, then he exerted force with both hands.
Since his brothers had already demonstrated, Jun Mo Li went all out from the start—at the very least, he wanted to draw out as much as Jun Bai had.
Clang——
To everyone's surprise, Jun Mo Li very easily drew... two-thirds of the long sword.
"Eh? Can't draw it all the way out?"
Jun Mo Li kept exerting force, but the tip of the long sword still refused to come out completely.
"This is... meaning it doesn't meet the conditions?" Jun Bai pondered aloud.
"Doesn't meet the conditions?" Li Tonghui hesitated. "You mean second brother still isn't the greatest swordmaster in the world?"
"But when we were out escorting and wandering the jianghu, I never saw anyone's swordsmanship surpass second brother's."
Jun Mo Li's gaze fell on the long sword that still couldn't be fully drawn. He gave a light chuckle, then pushed the drawn portion back into the scabbard:
"Looks like my level is still insufficient. I haven't reached the standard that this sword recognizes as befitting the greatest in the world."
"Since this method doesn't work, let's give up on it."
Jun Mo Li said calmly.
Jun Bai looked at Jun Mo Li, then nodded: "Alright, I understand. For the next while, I'll have people keep an eye on news from the Guili Assembly."
"The moment there's word of Rex Lapis and Guizhong, I'll head to the Guili Assembly and round up help."
Hearing this, Li Tonghui turned to Little Flame: "Little Flame, will you train fists with me for a while? I don't want to fall asleep again next time we run into that thing."
"Roar——" Little Flame nodded.
"Then I'm going to the waterfall to practice swordsmanship. Don't come find me unless it's important." Jun Mo Li said, picking up his light sword and Mountain Severer before walking out of the basement.
The moment he stepped out of the basement, Jun Mo Li's expression turned melancholic.
Still not the greatest in the world?
With this thought in his mind, Jun Mo Li arrived at the waterfall where he usually practiced.
Jun Mo Li lifted the dimmed Vision he carried like a talisman: "Dad, my swordsmanship has already surpassed yours back then, but the distance to being the greatest in the world still seems so vast."
"My little brother is a god. Right now he needs me to draw that sword. As an older brother, I want to help him."
"But... I'm not the greatest in the world!"
Jun Mo Li clenched the Vision tightly. A deep sense of powerlessness surged through his heart.
He had wanted to hold back the Dream God's remnant so Jun Bai could escape safely. Even though Jun Mo Li knew Jun Bai would likely come back, he had still chosen to face the remnant head-on.
He and Li Tonghui had chosen to hold back the remnant both to eliminate the threat for Jun Bai and to avenge the child who had lost his memories back then.
But they had failed—even become a burden to Jun Bai.
How many of those wounds across his body had come from protecting two sleeping burdens?
Jun Mo Li didn't know, but he knew one thing: if Jun Bai could fight the Dream God's remnant to a standstill, he absolutely had the ability to retreat unscathed.
The guilt was already heavy. Finally discovering one thing he could help with, only to fall short at the very last step.
That sword—drawn almost completely, just missing that final bit—had burned itself deeply into Jun Mo Li's heart, impossible to forget.
He drew his light sword and unleashed slash after slash at the distant waterfall as if venting.
Sharp sword qi erupted, cleaving the waterfall again and again.
Only when he saw the platform beneath the waterfall did Jun Mo Li stop this futile effort.
That platform—he had built it together with Li Tonghui. It was where he usually stood under the waterfall to swing Mountain Severer.
"If I can't draw it, then I'll train until I can!"
Jun Mo Li shouldered Mountain Severer, leaped across the pool, and landed on the platform beneath the waterfall.
Water poured down from above, pounding against Jun Mo Li's body.
Jun Mo Li ignored the pain of the water striking him. Compared to the powerlessness in his heart, this pain was nothing.
The youth gripped Mountain Severer tightly and began swinging the heavy sword beneath the waterfall.
Speed, power—his sword already possessed both. Even with that, he still wasn't considered the greatest swordmaster in the world? What was his sword still missing?
With this thought, Jun Mo Li entered the state he had achieved as a youth when he comprehended fast swordsmanship, practicing beneath the waterfall for three full days.
He only came out to eat or rest. Otherwise he stayed under the waterfall—sometimes swinging the heavy sword, sometimes the light sword, sometimes dual-wielding both at once.
During this time a storm came, and the waterfall's flow turned violently fierce. Yet even then, Jun Mo Li never once thought of leaving.
The swordmaster swung Mountain Severer beneath the waterfall in the pouring rain, letting the water scour his body.
Jun Mo Li practiced as if possessed, relentlessly training his sword beneath the waterfall.
Until...
Heavy footsteps sounded. Little Flame burst out from the woods and arrived at the pool, roaring toward the figure under the waterfall.
Seeing it was Little Flame, Jun Mo Li leaped straight out from beneath the waterfall and landed in front of her.
"Something wrong?"
Little Flame paced anxiously back and forth, but whatever she was saying, Jun Mo Li couldn't understand.
In the end, Little Flame could only bite the hem of Jun Mo Li's clothes and gesture for him to follow.
Jun Mo Li frowned. He didn't want to waste his sword training time, but because it was Little Flame—and out of consideration for eldest brother Li Tonghui—he followed her anyway.
Jun Mo Li followed Little Flame to the outskirts of Qingce Village. The next moment, his eyes widened.
Monsters surged from all directions in overwhelming numbers, flooding toward Qingce Village.
The sun was blocked by dark clouds. The sky was shrouded by monsters.
(Referencing episode 27 of Wangyang Sentai TV: The Wrath of God)
Jun Mo Li could clearly sense the aura of the Dream God's remnant on these monsters. The god remnant's presence had even manifested visibly on their bodies.
Who was responsible was obvious.
The Vision holders of Qingce Village—led by Li Tonghui—were resisting the monster invasion.
But with a monster tide of this scale, even if individual monsters weren't particularly strong, their combined force still had the power to overwhelm any defense.
"It's that thing doing this! He's controlling monsters with his authority to form an army again, just like before. Third brother already went to find him—said he wants to settle things once and for all!"
"I can't leave right now. Go keep an eye on him—don't let third brother do anything stupid!" Li Tonghui shouted loudly to Jun Mo Li.
"Got it!" Jun Mo Li nodded, then picked a direction and fought his way into Qingce Village.
"Not that way..." Suddenly, Li Tonghui's pupils contracted sharply. "Don't tell me you're planning to..."
Without any explanation, Jun Mo Li—covered in monster blood—charged into his own home and straight to the basement.
He violently shoved open the basement door, grabbed that "heirloom" sword, and pulled with all his strength.
Under Jun Mo Li's bloodshot gaze, the tip of the sword still remained firmly in the scabbard.