Chapter 2 You, Come Here!

"Unfilial disciple Lin Xuan, repeatedly violating family rules, you are now stripped of the title of Young Master and expelled from Sword Pond Prefecture!"

"Hmph! People like him should have been expelled long ago, keeping him would only disgrace our Sword Pond Prefecture!"

"What use is good understanding if he can't open his spirit veins? He's nothing!"

"Right, a waste who can't open his spirit veins, letting him be the Young Master, what a joke!"

Endless mockery and abuse submerged Lin Xuan like a flooding beast...

"Ah—"

Lin Xuan suddenly opened his eyes and sat up abruptly, his body covered in cold sweat. The morning sunlight shone into the room from outside the window, bringing a hint of warmth that pulled him back to reality.

"Another such nightmare," Lin Xuan said with a bitter smile. From a very young age, he had displayed astonishing martial arts talent; he could master many martial arts techniques just by watching them once, and everyone thought he was a martial arts prodigy with great expectations placed upon him.

But to everyone's surprise, he simply couldn't open his spirit veins.

A martial artist could only gather cultivated spiritual power within the body and unlock the spirit veins to obtain greater strength, yet no matter what Lin Xuan did, he couldn't open his spirit veins.

Thus, Lin Xuan was abandoned by his family.

Rubbing his face, he flipped over the covers, got out of bed, and grabbed the water jug from the table, gulping down two mouthfuls.

The room was a simple, small cabin with only a wooden bed and an old table. Lin Xuan grabbed a coarse linen garment and was just about halfway through dressing when suddenly the door burst open with a bang.

The first to enter was a young man in white, Chen Feng, followed by a dozen others. His posture arrogant, he said, "Kid, come with us."

"What do you want?" Lin Xuan slowly finished putting on his clothes and asked indifferently.

"How dare you, a mere sword slave, be so impolite!" Chen Feng clanged his treasure sword free of its scabbard, the cold blade pointing at Lin Xuan, faintly emitting a murderous aura.

Feeling the killing intent emanating from the longsword, Lin Xuan unconsciously touched the sword-shaped pendant hanging around his neck, a keepsake filled with some spiritual power given by his dying father for the purpose of saving his life.

After touching the pendant on his chest, Lin Xuan calmed down. The opponent was a second-order spirit warrior; if he truly intended to kill him, Lin Xuan was resolved to drag someone down with him!

Seeing Lin Xuan standing without the trembling fear typical of other sword slaves, the white-robed disciples were somewhat surprised, and Chen Feng even more incensed. How could a mere sword slave not fear him? If this got out, how could he continue to mix in their circles?

"Enough, Chen Feng! Don't forget our mission. Are you taking responsibility if we're delayed?" The leading young man, Zhang Bin, stopped the furiously raging Chen Feng.

"Kid, come with us, there's something we need you to do," Zhang Bin said in a cold tone.

Lin Xuan glanced at the sword slaves following behind them and thought to himself, "A wise man does not eat the loss in front of him. Let's follow them for now—I want to see what they're up to."

With an expressionless nod, Lin Xuan walked forward.

Seeing Lin Xuan join the group, Chen Feng coldly scoffed in his heart, "Just wait and see how you die!"

Leading youth Zhang Bin waved his hand grandly, saying, "Everyone, follow me!" and the group quickly headed towards the forest near Xuantian Sect.

Xuantian Sect, being one of the Yunzhou Three Sects, was located on the outskirts of the Taihang Mountain Range. Its disciples often went into the mountains to hunt and gather herbs but ventured only to the outskirts. The Taihang Mountain housed fierce beasts throughout, becoming increasingly dangerous further inward, and without sufficient strength, one could only find death within these vast mountains.

Following the white-robed disciples, Lin Xuan arrived in front of a mountain cave surrounded by overgrown grass and thick vines. At the entrance there was a bright red Lingzhi, looking like a blazing flame.

The eyes of the white-robed disciples greedily gazed at the Fire Ganoderma, their mouths watering. Suppressing the excitement within, Zhang Bin commanded, "All sword slaves listen, there's a small snake inside that cave; lure it out as far as possible."

"If you fail, or if anyone thinks of running away, I will be the first to kill him!" he stated emphatically as his gaze suddenly intensified and a powerful aura burst from him.

A chill sank into Lin Xuan's heart as he cursed inwardly, damned bastards, planning to use them to draw away the fierce beast so they could harvest that Fire Ganoderma. But are fierce beasts that easy to lure away?

The fragrance of the Fire Ganoderma was so potent that he could smell it from a distance—imagine the other wild beasts. Yet not one dared to approach, and even the vicinity was eerily silent, which spoke volumes of the fierce beast lurking inside that cave.

Lin Xuan was no ordinary sword slave; he had once been the Young Master of the Sword Pond Prefecture, far more knowledgeable than others. Clearly, these white-robed disciples wanted to trade the lives of sword slaves for that Fire Ganoderma.

"You, go to the front!" Chen Feng pointed at Lin Xuan with a cold, mocking smile in his eyes.

"Damn it!" Lin Xuan cursed inwardly, extremely unwilling as he moved to the front. He once again experienced the pitiful state of having no power, with his fate held in the hands of others. Only those who have tasted this bitterness would know how miserable it feels!

"You want me, the Young Master, to court death? Then I'll make sure you can't get your hands on the Fire Ganoderma!" Lin Xuan constantly looked around, contemplating how to ruin their plans.

"Brother Feng, that kid wouldn't mess things up, would he?" a disciple asked.

"Don't worry, a mere Little Sword Slave couldn't make much of a splash. Let's just focus on harvesting the Fire Ganoderma!" Chen Feng said with a smile.

Eleven Sword Slaves cautiously approached the cave. The closer they got to the cave, the stronger the sense of danger became, causing all the hairs on Lin Xuan's back to stand up.

The medicinal scent of the Fire Ganoderma grew stronger, and at the same time, a foul stench wafted from the cave. When they were five meters away from the cave, Lin Xuan's heart suddenly trembled. His natural instinct made him sense a tremendous crisis, and he instantly leapt to the side.

In the instant Lin Xuan leapt away, a rainbow shadow flew out like lightning, piercing through several people ahead, their blood scattering in the air.

A massive head emerged from the cave, as big as a table, with green eyes larger than a human head, eerily shining with a cold light.

"Shit! Is this supposed to be a small snake?" Lin Xuan exclaimed, his hatred for Chen Feng and the others reaching its peak.

Without waiting for instructions, the Sword Slaves turned and ran, fleeing toward the distance like the wind. The Green-eyed Giant Snake slid its body out of the cave, and its crimson-tinted tongue, sharp as a sword, instantly pierced through the nearest Sword Slave.

Lin Xuan didn't stay either; he turned and ran, not toward the open space but diving into the forest instead. Zhang Bin and the others didn't care about him, focusing only on the Fire Ganoderma—they had already quietly approached the cave.

The Green-eyed Giant Snake slid out of the cave, its body tens of meters long, and quickly slithered toward the Sword Slaves in front, its huge mouth already wide open.

Seeing the giant snake move away from the cave, Zhang Bin and the others rushed toward the Fire Ganoderma. Their figures moved swiftly, soon reaching the entrance of the cave.

Lin Xuan didn't leave but found a safe spot to secretly watch and think about the future. He was sure Zhang Bin and the others would come after him once they returned, and he wouldn't be able to fend them off.

Before he could ponder further, there was a sudden change at the cave. The Green-eyed Giant Snake sensed someone was targeting the Fire Ganoderma, its thick tail lashing out fiercely and abandoning the fleeing Sword Slaves. Its green eyes zeroed in on Zhang Bin and the others.

Bang!

The thick tail struck the ground, shattering it completely. Zhang Bin and the others scrambled to dodge, and the Fire Ganoderma was flung into the air.

"This creature's gone mad!" Zhang Bin, pale as a ghost, kept retreating, while another disciple grabbed the falling Fire Ganoderma.

"Bin, we've got it!" the disciple yelled.

Just as he finished speaking, a shadow flashed by, and the tail of the Green-eyed Giant Snake directly struck the disciple, sending him flying.

"Run!" Zhang Bin shouted, and the white-robed disciples rushed into the forest, wishing they had wings.

Lin Xuan was close to the disciple that got hit. Eyeing the Fire Ganoderma in the disciple's hand, he bit down hard and ran to grab it.

"Crap! It's that Sword Slave! Kid, hand over the Fire Ganoderma!" Chen Feng shouted from behind.

Boom!

Rows of trees fell as the massive body of the Green-eyed Giant Snake crashed into the forest, furiously chasing after Zhang Bin, Chen Feng, and the others.

Lin Xuan didn't hesitate, he tucked the Fire Ganoderma into his chest and turned to run. They had first sent him to his death, and now they wanted to kill him; there was no way he was giving them the Fire Ganoderma!

He had earlier scrutinized the surrounding terrain and decided on an escape route. Now with the Fire Ganoderma in hand, Lin Xuan ran even faster, weaving through the forest, almost losing his pursuers several times.

"Hmph!" A cold glint flashed in Zhang Bin's eyes as he drew his longsword, slashing toward Lin Xuan. The other disciples also shone with light as they charged at him.

Lin Xuan urgently activated his sword-shaped pendant, using the Spiritual Power inside to further boost his speed. To everyone's surprise, a Spirit Apprentice Third Rank Sword Slave was moving incredibly fast.

"Violent Air Slash!" Zhang Bin shouted, and with his longsword, he created a roaring blast. Lin Xuan felt a force hit his back, sending him flying.

He tumbled on the ground a few times before stabilizing himself, but Zhang Bin and the others were less than two meters away, their sword's cold gleam enveloping him.

Gritting his teeth, Lin Xuan took out the Fire Ganoderma, swallowed it, and frantically powered up his sword-shaped pendant, ready to fight to the death.

"Kid, you're seeking death!" Seeing Lin Xuan swallow the Fire Ganoderma, Zhang Bin and the others were furious to the point of madness, wishing they could tear him apart right then.

As the Green-eyed Giant Snake witnessed this scene, it let out an angry hiss and charged like a small mountain at a breakneck speed, smashing through the trees ahead. Zhang Bin and the others were knocked away, and even Lin Xuan was tossed into the air by the tremendous force.