Chu Yang, the Ninth Master of the Nine Tribulations Sword, sacrificed almost everything he had for the sake of improving his martial arts, including the love of his life. After spending three years locating the fifth fragment of the Nine Tribulations Sword, he was ambushed by all sides at that very place. Mortally injured with no means of escape, Chu Yang executed a sacrificial technique by plunging the Nine Tribulations Sword into his very own heart. “With the blood of my heart, ten thousand tribulations will collapse!” After witnessing the death of all his ambushers, Chu Yang’s vision began to darken. At a distance, moments before his death, he saw the mastermind who had plotted his downfall — Mo Tian Ji. With that, his eyes finally closed. However, with a start, Chu Yang once again awoke to find that he had returned to when he was sixteen years of age! Furthermore, the Sword Spirit of the Nine Tribulations Sword now resided within his Dantian, the energy center of his body! From that very moment, Chu Yang would then begin to right all of his past regrets, and carve his very own legend by fulfilling his destiny as the final Master of the Nine Tribulations Sword, and defeating the Heavenly Devils beyond the realm of the Nine Heavens Continent.
Li Jianyin thought as a look of terror appeared on the face of his adversary, "Such a coward. I merely drew my sword and he's already scared to wits." Li Jianyin's worries dissolved and his heroic aura permeated the air once again.
Wu Qianqian's jaws dropped upon witnessing the scene before her and her eyes widened in shock and apprehension. Even though none of his seniors was present, Chu Yang should not be behaving in such manner. He was not just afraid to fight, he was utterly lost and terrified! Compared to moments ago, he seemed like a completely different person!
Before anyone could react, Chu Yang cried, "Someone, please save me!"
The next moment, Chu Yang fell to the ground as though his entire body had frozen in fear. At the same time, one of Li Jianyin's feet suddenly fell into a peculiar hole on the ground. The ground was undoubtedly flat previously. However, for some inexplicable reason, the hole suddenly materialized when Li Jian Yin stepped on that particular spot.
The hole was shaped exactly like Li Jianyin's foot. As soon as he stepped on it, he realised an endless depth within the hole. Furthermore, the hole seemed to lead into a much larger space beneath the surface…
Suddenly, there was a helpless cry! Li Jianyin had exerted all of his energy as he bounded towards Chu Yang. Being confident of his own advantage, he inadvertently let his guard down. With a powerful stride, Li Jianyin's foot got caught in the hole and he fell straight to the ground. A loud crack was heard and his ankle was clearly broken.
From his experienced viewpoint, Chu Yang only required a quick glance to identify all of the weaknesses in Li Jianyin's moves. Even if the trap he conceived was a simple one, the opportunity was perfect. If Li Jianyin had averted the counter-attack, then he would no longer have been Li Jianyin.
"Pow!" Li Jianyin fell forward as his foot got caught in the hole. It was not clear whether it was intended, but Li Jianyin had fallen towards the ground right under Chu Yang's crotch. At that point in time, Chu Yang was also falling towards the ground from his apparent fear and he ended up sitting on Li Jianyin's neck…
Trapped in the awkward position, Li Jianyin cried pitifully. But each time his mouth opened, he ended up gnawing the ground instead.
A normal person would have opened his mouth very wide when crying in pain. However, as an extremely spoilt child who had a low threshold for pain, his mouth opened even wider, exposing every single tooth in it. Moreover, the gravel at the spot was exceptionally hard. If swallowed, it could easily choke him…
Sitting on Li Jianyin's neck, Chu Yang cried out, "Ouch… It hurts! You're biting my butt…"
By now, Li Jianyin was barely conscious. He should be the one crying out in pain but before he could even open his mouth, Chu Yang, who had not sustained any injuries at all, had already voiced out first. Based on the cry alone, an outsider would easily have mistaken that Chu Yang's injuries were a lot more severe than Li Jianyin's!
Mystified and terrified, Wu Qianqian rubbed her eyes. She could not believe the incidents that had just transpired before her. Everything happened so quickly that she did not even have any time to react at all. The outcome was beyond her imagination. Initially forceful and aggressive, Li Jianyin was now pinned helplessly to the ground and barely able to utter a word. On the other hand, Chu Yang who had been terrified and retreating was now sitting on his opponent, screaming in pain.
Even if Wu Qianqian had been more shrewd than she actually was, at a young age of seventeen or eighteen, she would not have been able to understand the situation.
Her jaws just hung open and her eyes remained wide in shock. She pointed at the two with shaking fingers yet her mouth could not form a single word. It was truly beyond imagination. How did all of this happen? How could such flat ground suddenly cave in at such accurate timing? It was simply unbelievable. And how could Li Jianyin step so accurately on the spot where the hole appeared? The hole was not deep. With his abilities, how could Junior Brother Li have fallen to the ground, especially in such a clumsy and uncontrolled manner?
The next moment, Chu Yang, who was still crying in pain, attempted to stand up with much difficulty. Judging from his motion, it seemed his injuries were fairly serious.
"Was he injured during the fight? Why didn't I notice it?" Wu Qianqian was full of doubt, but she ran forward to Chu Yang's aid anyway. "Brother Chu, stop struggling. Let me help you up."
Before Wu Qianqian could reach him, Chu Yang released another pitiful cry, acting as though his waist was hurting so unbearable that he could not get on his feet. Chu Yang raised his body up a little only to drop even harder.
The full weight of Chu Yang fell straight on Li Jianyin's neck again. This time, the fall was more impactful than before!
Li Jianyin was barely able to lift his head for a quick breath when the full weight of the body above fell upon him a second time, crushing his face beneath Chu Yang's bum and suffocating him with a pungent odour.
"Pow!"
What a tragedy! Li Jianyin had only lifted his head inches from the ground and now his face was forced deeper into the ground. There was a loud crack. Although the area had few rocks, Li Jianyin's nose was already broken. One cannot imagine how dire the situation will be if the terrain had been rockier.
Wu Qianqian had just reached out her arm for Chu Yang when she got caught in a daze again. She was in the position to help but she simply froze, her eyes widened and her jaws dropped. What a pity for her. At the moment, her mind seemed to have shut down completely.
What she saw were two persons on the ground. One was sitting on the neck of the other, crying and yelling in apparent pain and at the same time, twisting his behind on Li Jianyin's neck, turning it into a pretzel…
On the other hand, Li Jianyin was laying on the ground, his mouth full of dirt and unable to utter a word. Even with great effort, the only sound he could produce from his dirt-caked throat was a helpless moan, 'Oh… Oh…'
By then, Li Jianyin was already thigh-deep in the pit, his body forming an awkward right angle. His suffering was simply beyond imagination.
Li Jianyin's ankle was swelling up faster than the naked eye could see, as though like a growing balloon… His remaining leg was now trembling so badly that it had become a sight that was unbearable to watch.
After a prolonged hesitation and shock, Wu Qianqian finally went forward to pull Chu Yang up. She saw only a pale white face, and a trembling body soaked in sweat. Chu Yang grumbled resentfully, "Senior Sister Wu, did you see that? Li Jianyin is too much! The sect prohibits disciples from fighting each other. Yet Li Jianyin still wanted to draw his sword and kill me! My life was completely in his hands just now! Fortunately, luck is on my side today. Senior Sister Wu, did you two come here to kill me as well?"
As he finished his words, Chu Yang suddenly became alert, as though he was confronting enemies. With a wary and apprehensive look, he turned towards Wu Qianqian and said anxiously, "Senior Sister Wu, I didn't do anything wrong. You can't… here… in broad daylight. The sun is still up and shining…"
An ominous aura had clearly appeared on Wu Qianqian's pretty face. Chu Yang was speaking as though he were about to be assaulted again.
"Why would I do that? We have received orders from Father to convey a message to Junior Uncle Meng to invite him over to come over for an important discussion…"
Wu Qianqian patted her forehead. She finally remembered the reason for coming here.
"But still, I am scared…" Chu Yang leaned on Wu Qianqian. His entire body seemed to have become limp in fear as he rested his body weight on her. Crying, he said, "I… I have no power or backing, my martial arts cultivation isn't very strong. My position in the sect is the lowest. But the Gathering Clouds Peak and Locking Clouds Peak have many capable and promising disciples. If I meddled in the wrong affairs, I fear I would be forced… I would be forced to leave!"
"Never!" Wu Qianqian responded firmly. "This is not a problem!"
Little did Wu Qianqian know that at this moment, Junior Brother Li was lying on the ground with his legs twisted and bones broken, waiting to be saved…
"If the sect asks one day, Senior Sister Wu, will you stand by my side and be my witness?"
Chu Yang deliberately tried to delay further in order to make Li Jianyin suffer even greater pain. He continued, "You've seen for yourself what has just happened. Li Jianyin insulted my master, right? When I arrived, he called me stupid, right? Afterwards, he wanted to fight me and when I yielded to him, he even tried to kill me, am I right? He drew his sword and slashed brutally, trying to kill me without mercy, right? I was almost killed, right?"
Each time Chu Yang said "right", he sounded increasingly pitiful. Wu Qianqian listened as Chu Yang skillfully evoked her sympathy and manipulated her mind, drawing out each scene that transpired moments ago in her memory. Wu Qianqian nodded repeatedly in agreement. Everything seemed to have happened as Chu Yang had described, without any discrepancy at all.
Wu Qianqian could not help but feel disgruntled, "Li Jianyin was really too preposterous…"