I Have a Sword

Ye Guan's face darkened immediately afterward. Sometimes, words were more harmful than swords.

"That's not what I meant!" Yi Nian hurriedly explained, "Really... I don't think you're stupid. I'm serious..."

Yi Nian was so flustered that tears formed in her eyelids.

Ye Guan. "..."

"Pfft!" Little Pagoda burst out into laughter. It's rare to see this little rascal at a loss for words.

Seeing the tears in Yi Nian's eyelids, Ye Guan sighed and chuckled. "A brain transplant? Can you really do that?"

Upon seeing that Ye Guan wasn't angry at her, Yi Nian hurriedly nodded. "Yes."

Ye Guan stared wordlessly at her.

"Do you want one?"

"If I were to do that, would I still be myself?" Ye Guan asked, "I'm not perfect, but this is who I am; this is the real me. I just want to be myself."

Yi Nian pondered briefly before muttering, "The true self..."

"'The true self'?" Ye Guan asked.

Yi Nian smiled slightly without saying anything.

Ye Guan shook his head and smiled, deciding not to ask more questions. He was afraid of getting indirectly insulted once again.

"Help me take a look at this," Ye Guan said and took Yi Nian with him outside the pagoda.

Outside, Ye Guan opened his palm, and a blood-red coffin appeared in front of them.

Ye Guan had always been curious about this blood-red coffin. What exactly is inside? Why did that mysterious figure entrust this coffin to me?

At first, he wanted to pry it open with the Qingxuan Sword, but his intuition told him that Yi Nian could probably unlock it.

Yi Nian carefully examined the blood-red coffin. Then, she placed her right hand on it and pressed gently.

The mysterious runes on the blood-red coffin trembled violently before disintegrating into countless fragments that fell to the ground.

It's open! Ye Guan looked at Yi Nian.

Yi Nian merely smiled at him in response.

After a moment of silence, Ye Guan took out a hawthorn candy and placed it in Yi Nian's hand.

"Best friends forever!" exclaimed Ye Guan.

Little Pagoda. "..."

Yi Nian blinked and accepted the hawthorn candy.

Ye Guan approached the blood-red coffin. He was about to open it when Yi Nian raised her hand to stop him.

Ye Guan looked at Yi Nian.

Yi Nian shook her head gently.

"Is there something dangerous inside?" Ye Guan asked in a deep voice.

Yi Nian shook her head, making Ye Guan puzzled.

Yi Nian blinked but remained silent.

"It's dangerous for me but not for you. Is that right?"

Yi Nian grinned without saying anything.

Ye Guan felt a chill run down his spine. Unspoken arrogance was the deadliest!

Just then, the blood-red coffin trembled slightly.

Ye Guan turned to look at it with a wary gaze.

Soon, the lid cracked open, and a bloody hand emerged from it.

Ye Guan's eyes narrowed.

"Ahem~" Yi Nian coughed softly, and the bloody hand froze. Moments later, it retreated into the coffin, and the coffin closed by itself.

Ye Guan stared at Yi Nian.

Yi Nian revealed an innocent, child-like smile.

Ye Guan was speechless. He walked up to the coffin and asked, "Want to come out and talk?"

There was no response.

Ye Guan pondered briefly over what he ought to do next. Then, he decided to pry open the lid.

He reached out for the lid, but the same bloody hand from earlier popped out and held the lid firmly in place.

Ye Guan had no idea what to say, so he could only turn to Yi Nian.

"It seems to be afraid of you." Ye Guan pointed out.

Yi Nian licked her hawthorn candy and remained silent with her head down.

Ye Guan wanted to say more, but Little Pagoda chimed in, "It's for your own good. What's inside that coffin is definitely beyond what you can handle right now."

Ye Guan stared wordlessly at the blood-red coffin.

Indeed, the mere sight of the bloody hand earlier filled him with a sense of crisis.

Ye Guan sighed to himself. Despite his significant increase in strength, the vast expanse still had many mountains higher than his current summit.

Cultivation was indeed an endless journey.

Ye Guan smiled, pushing those thoughts aside. He decided to focus on getting stronger rather than worrying about the unknown.

He glanced at the blood-red coffin before turning to Yi Nian.

"Wanna go explore the Asura Civilization?" asked Ye Guan.

Yi Nian smiled slightly. "Sure."

Ye Guan laughed heartily and led Yi Nian away. He took out the badge that the Supreme Scholar had given to him and activated it.

Soon, a starry region map appeared in front of him.

Ye Guan's face darkened immediately.

The Asura Civilization was incredibly far away. Even with his strength, it would take decades for him to reach it.

Rumble!

A radiant green light suddenly shot out of the badge, forming a teleportation array on the ground.

Ye Guan was stunned, and then he smiled. "There's a teleportation array in it? The Supreme Scholar is very thoughtful indeed."

Yi Nian cast a deep gaze at the starry region map.

Once the teleportation array was made, Ye Guan led Yi Nian and walked into it.

The teleportation array trembled slightly, whisking them away.

***

Guyan Civilization.

Elder Mo was standing quietly in a hall somewhere.

A beautiful lady in a large robe was sitting nearby, and there was a chessboard in front of her.

A white piece was in her hand, and she was staring at the chessboard without making a move.

Elder Mo remained quiet, patiently waiting for the beautiful lady to speak.

The beautiful lady finally made a move, and a black piece appeared on the board as soon as she made her move.

The beautiful lady's delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly, and she fell into deep thought once again.

Elder Mo stayed silent, patiently waiting for the beautiful lady's response to his report.

"A Tier Three civilization?" asked the beautiful lady.

"Yes."

The beautiful lady picked up a chess piece and said, "Tell me more about those ruins of a Tier Four civilization."

Elder Mo bowed respectfully and recounted.

After a while, the beautiful lady calmly asked, "So that young man acquired a blood-red coffin from the ruins of the Arcanist Civilization?"

"Yes."

The beautiful lady glanced at Elder Mo and asked, "What do you think we should do?"

"I will follow your instructions."

The beautiful lady chuckled, "Elder Mo, you've always been very cautious, not seeking merit and avoiding any mistakes. Caution is important in cultivation, but too much of it can lead to stagnation. On the path of the Dao, one must be bold."

Elder Mo quickly said, "Your words are wise indeed."

The beautiful lady placed a piece on the board and said, "That young man's origins are unclear. It would be unwise to make an enemy out of him, but we can't ignore him either. After all, even if my son was not up to par, he was still my son."

Elder Mo remained silent.

The beautiful lady continued, "Spread the word that he has the inheritance of a Tier Four civilization. I also want you to activate the Eye of the Universe and use it to monitor his movements. Then, I want you to report his movements to the other civilizations."

Using others to do their dirty work! Elder Mo's eyes narrowed slightly

"Understood," he said, bowing deeply before walking away.

The beautiful lady picked up a white chess piece. After a long time, she smiled lightly and tossed the piece aside. "I've lost again."

The beautiful lady then stood up and walked out of the hall. She looked up at the starry sky, and her eyes narrowed slightly as she muttered, "The Arcanist Civilization...”

A fallen Tier Four civilization.

Naturally, she had her own plans about it, but there was no need for her to explore or plunder the ruins of the Arcanist Civilization alone.

It was better to be prudent when dealing with a high-tier civilization. After all, she knew the terror of such a powerful civilization.

The Guyan Civilization was a Tier Three civilization, and it'd be easy for them to destroy a Tier Two civilization.

The beautiful lady was really interested in what the young swordsman had obtained from the Arcanist Civilization.

As for her deceased son... what was a son before the Great Dao?

If she wanted, she could easily have a myriad of sons.

***

Dai Zong was sitting cross-legged somewhere in the Junlin Civilization.

A terrifying and grotesque-looking phantom was hovering above him, and it was exuding an aura so powerful that the nearby spacetime had become illusory beneath it.

After a while, Dai Zong finally opened his eyes.

Boom!

The nearby spacetime collapsed at once. He had just accumulated a hundred percent divinity, which meant he was now a full divinity cultivator.

Dai Zong's eyes quivered in excitement. He was so excited that he had to take a deep breath to calm himself down.

He had been stuck at ninety percent divinity for centuries despite the abundant resources of the Junlin Civilization.

However, he actually reached full divinity using the methods of the Arcanist Civilization, and he did all that in just three days, to boot!

The deal he had made with the mysterious figure had allowed him to realize that becoming a full divinity expert wasn't really that big of a deal.

Soon, he'd be able to open his own unique path.

Dai Zong's breakthrough brought him not only excitement but dread as well.

The threat of a Tier Four civilization was beyond the imagination of a Tier Three civilization.

Dai Zong's expression grew serious as he thought of the challenges up ahead.

All of a sudden, he remembered something and called out, "Elder Qi."

Swoosh!

An old man appeared behind Dai Zong.

The old man bowed respectfully and said, "Congratulations on becoming a full divinity expert, Young Master."

"Tell me any information about that young swordsman if you have some," Dai Zong said.

"It's been reported that the young man has inherited a Tier Four civilization's inheritance."

Dai Zong chuckled. The civilization behind that man in black sure is smart... I didn't expect them to use others to do their dirty work."

"Young Master, the blood-red coffin that he obtained..." Elder Qi trailed off, hesitating.

Dai Zong's eyes narrowed, but he remained silent. Of course, he was tempted as well.

Seeing Dai Zong's expression, Elder Qi asked, "Should we?"

"Let's wait," Dai Zong said, shaking his head.

"He's heading to the Asura Civilization as we speak," said Elder Qi. "If we act now, we can intercept him. Otherwise, if he reaches the Asura Civilization, what he carries might fall into their hands..."

Dai Zong was silent.

"Opportunities don't come twice. We should—"

"How come he dares to go to the Asura Civilization?" Dai Zong interrupted, staring straight at Elder Qi.

Elder Qi's eyes widened in shock. Dai Zong hadn't said anything explicitly, but the implications were unmistakable!

Coca and Corlumbus's Thoughts

What do you think aws the deal offered to Dai Zong? What did he have to give up? Any thoughts readers?