Rise of Humanity

by <unknown>

  The raucous sounds of coughing vigorously echoed throughout the summit as the old man’s face turned even more ashen and blanched as he spat out a mouthful of bloody sputum.

  Another elderly man with a thin stature like a dried branch stood behind him and asked in great consternation, “Big brother, how is it that your body has devolved to such a terrible state?”

  “Because I’m dying.”

  The old man smiled bitterly and said, “Two years is the most I have left... that is why I’ve summoned you back so urgently. We’re faced with a time that can end with either our destruction or restoration, the monsters and Xiao Mang Celestial Race have set their sights on us. If I die, the Swords Gate will surely crumble into pieces, and the Great Wilderness will eventually be devoured! I need you back to ease and stabilize the situation.”

  The skinny elderly man kept quiet as his eyes filled with a heavy sadness and sorrow.

  The old man continued babbling to himself, “I can’t die yet, at least not now….”

  Outside of Great Wilderness, the ‘Senior Martial Brother Xiao’ who was flying suddenly stopped down and alighted onto the ground. Without turning his head, he said, “You’ve followed me for so long, what do you want?”

  “Hehehehe….”

  A sinister laughter echoed out, a shadow emerged behind ‘Senior Martial Brother Xiao’ that covered an area of a few hundred miles. Within the shadow, a silhouette leisurely walked over while still remaining in the cover of its darkness. The scenery was strange and eerie as his voice sounded out, “Cousin, you’ve crossed the line.”

  ‘Senior Martial Brother Xiao’ laughed and said, “Little cousin, you are the envoy of humanity whereas I am that of the monster race. We are to mind our own business and stay out of each other’s matters. But as the higher-ups gave the order to us to find the person that escaped from the moon, I’m just purely following the order given. I’ve found out the person that escaped from the moon has returned to Gu Xia City through the volcano at the bottom of Gu Xia City. Initially, I thought that the person belonged to the monster race, but Gu Hongzi told me that there was a human Qi Practitioner that saved Jun Sixie back in the Great Wilderness. Hence, I headed over there to check the traces left behind by this man and found that this man’s footsteps matched those on the moon. He must be one of your Swords Gate Qi Practitioners. Since you’re unable to find out his identity, I’d be happy to lend you my assistance.”

  “The Great Wilderness, is my world!”

  The silhouette within the shadows flared up. One after another, emerged the contours of giant heads which were lit with six faintly glowing flames of a dozen feet in radius – they were the eyes of the silhouette, “Don’t you dare to dip a finger in my territory!”

  “All you want is the thing hidden beneath the Swords Gate of Great Wilderness, whereas I only intend to find that person. You won’t have to worry yourself about me interfering with your matters.”

  ‘Senior Martial Brother Xiao’ smiled and said, “I am here to help you, you should feel happy. You and I both aren’t pure-blood Xiao Mang Celestials, you’re tainted with the blood of humanity while I with that of the monsters. Our status in the celestials isn’t high. Only when we help each other do we stand to mutually benefit. Little cousin, what do you say?”

  “Hmph!”

  The silhouette in the shadows gave a cold sneer and said, “You and I are about the same age, Xiao Chuqing is not your daughter, is she?”

  “Of course not, she is our cousin, child of the temple’s grand elder and a human slave.”

  “Senior Martial Brother Xiao” laughed and said, “Cousin Chuqing is very intelligent, she devoured her mother the moment she was born, the grand elder favors her a lot. That’s why he sent her over. If you neglected the orders given of you, it might just be possible for Xiao Chuqing to replace you.”

  The shadows ebbed and flowed away, “Replace me? Hehe, that little girl is still not fit … you want to find the person from the moon? I won’t stop you. But if I ever find out that you laying your hand on my matters, then don’t you blame me for flipping the table over!”

  “Threatening me?”

  ‘Senior Martial Brother Xiao’ let out a cold sneer and marched towards Gu Xia City. As walked further, his appearance and stature started to change, even the unique air of the celestial race faded away only to be supplanted by a surging monstrous aura!

  The thing underneath Swords Gate, how audacious of you to think of seizing it all for yourself? Too bad you simply aren’t destined for it! It is still too early for you to decide who will get that treasure!

  Not long later, ‘Senior Martial Brother Xiao’s appearance changed entirely, eventually turning into Lang Qingyun, the eldest disciple of the Lord of Xian Kong City. With a robust and brawny stature, he donned a black cloak and strode away.

  Swords Gate Inner Hall – the elders from the elder council dispersed whereas the disciples surrounded Shui Qingyan and Xiao Chuqing while peppering them with various kinds of questions. The scenery was lively and bustling with noise.

  Zhong Yue was about to leave when he felt his back shuddering an inexplicable cold sensation, it was as if a venomous serpent had its sinister eyes trained on him. He turned his head to see ‘“Shui Qingyan’ staring right back at him.

  Zhong Yue gave a warm bright smile as he lifted his hand up and gently wiped across his neck.

  ‘Shui Qingyan’s’ countenance stiffened up and she softly felt her neck. An immense killing intent deluged her heart which was sensed by Xiao Chuqing standing beside her. Xiao Chuqing then asked ‘Shui Qingyan’ in a telepathic way through her psyche, “Senior martial sister has some enmity against this man?”

  “He nearly beheaded me.”

  ‘Shui Qingyan’ smiled and answered, “And this Zhong Shan Clan member knows of my identity. The previous messenger ensured me that he would be taken care of, he kept blustering that he would be eradicated without anyone knowing. But who knew that he is still alive!”

  Xiao Chuqing chortled, her beautiful eyes glanced at Zhong Yue, she asked through the psyche again, “Why would we need the messenger to kill him? With our prowess, it’ll be fairly easy to kill him, no?”

  ‘Shui Qingyan’ shook her head and said, “The Zhong Shan Clan member is not someone who can be underestimated, he has gotten the Swords Gate old brat’s sword token and succeeded in cultivating the Great Boundless Sword Qi. Our last confrontation ended up with both of us badly injured. He pushed me precipitously close to forcing me to reveal my true form.”

  “He nearly forced Tian Mother to show your true form?”

  Xiao Chuqing was shocked, then she laughed and responded, “Tian Mother, that was a long time ago, is it? Now you are a Qi Practitioner, your atman is incredibly strong, won’t it be as an apple pie to eradicate a small figure like him? Now this Zhong Shan Clan member is at most a Rebirth Qi Practitioner; not to mention you, even I alone can easily kill him with but a finger.”

  The two young ladies were chatting and laughing, it seemed like as if they were whispering to themselves in innocent gossip, but no one would know that they were actually plotting a scheme to kill Zhong Yue.

  “This Zhong Shan Clan member had just beaten up a few Qi Practitioners a few days ago, and some of them were Rebirth Qi Practitioners. I suppose that he had already cultivated to such a level.”

  ‘Shui Qingyan’ took in a breath of air and said, “This brat, he is getting harder to read. Thankfully he had humiliated so many people from so many different clans. I will just have to slightly instigate them and all these Qi Practitioners would rush over to harass him. But the Swords Gate Qi Practitioners will only duel and refrain from killing. At most, he would be taught some lessons.”

  “He has already cultivated to the level of Rebirth?”

  Xiao Chuqing glanced fixedly at Zhong Yue, her little tongue licked on her lips, a flash of excitement crossed in her saint eyes, “Such an exceptional man … Tian Mother, I want to eat him so
badly!”

  Zhong Yue recollected his sights and walked out. All of a sudden, Xiao Chuqing’s voice came from behind as she shouted, “Senior Martial Brother Zhong Yue of Zhong Shan Clan!”

  Right at this moment, Zhong Yue could feel countless pairs of eyes boring into his back.

  “Senior Martial Brother Zhong Yue of Zhong Shan Clan, just now Senior Martial Sister Shui Qingyan told me that you nearly beheaded her during the Lawless Battles of the upper house, and you have beaten up tens of martial siblings.”

  Xiao Chuqing chuckled and said, “Don’t you owe an apology to Senior Martial Sister Shui and the other martial siblings?”

  Chapter 99: Unbendable |

  As soon as Xiao Chuqing finished saying her words, the situation escalated quickly as if someone had just kicked a hornet’s nest. In a split second, Zhong Yue felt that there were at least thousands of people on the Ganoderma Stage staring at him!

  The stage became steeped in a noisy din as people talked about him, “So he is Zhong Yue from the Zhong Shan Clan? According to rumors of the Lawless Battles, his fight with the girl from the Shui Tu Clan was interrupted by the elders in the end. He was stopped by the elders just before he was going to decapitate Shui Qingyan!”

  “They said that he is a man of cruelty, ruthlessness and unapologetic viciousness. He was summoned by the elders to the Sword Valley when they suspected that he was possessed by the Tian Myriad Mother. They tried to seize him by using the suppression from the Ten Malefic Weapons. However, Elder Pu told the elders that this man had managed to learn the【Great Boundless Sword Qi】from the sword token that was given to the Qiu Tan Clan by the headmaster!”

  “Not long ago, there were some disciples that tried to make trouble with him. They intercepted him at his cave dwelling but ended up receiving a thorough beating from this Zhong Yue. Despite there being dozens of them, they were still completely outmatched and beaten up with extreme prejudice. Now, with them getting beaten up, the elders of their clan will definitely try to avenge them. Besides, these guys are from those renowned clans. Something interesting is going to happen next!”

  “But rumors purported this disciple from the Zhong Shan Clan is extremely talented and he has three heads, six arms and is at least eight feet tall. They also said that his eyes were big and his hands are as big as a fan! Well, I guess rumors are called rumors for a reason. This man does indeed appear muscular and solid but not to the extent as was described from the rumors.”

  Suddenly, Ta Wulue walked out while he held the hands of Ta Wuyou and he said, “Junior martial brother Zhong, you owe my clan an apologize for hurting my brother!”

  Huang Luoshi held his sister’s hand and walked out as well before he shouted, “Zhong Shan Clan’s member, my sister was just having a friendly match with you but you dislocated all her joints! Is such cruel action a necessity when having a friendly match with your junior martial sister?”

  Tan Zhen then calmly said, “My younger cousin, Tan Xiao, was beaten so badly that he had to lie on the bed for ten days. My clan leader ordered me to seek an explanation from you. Please don’t blame me.”

  “My cousin knew he is no match for you and he surrendered and backed off. Why did you chase after him and beat him up mercilessly! Zhong Shan Clan’s member, have you no honor?”

  “You hurt my junior martial brother by piercing him with your sword energy. There are at least hundreds of wounds on my junior martial brother’s body! Are you looking down at our Fenglin Clan?”

  A dozen elders from the clans of the beaten disciples approached and voiced out complaints about Zhong Yue, bringing up the incident where Zhong Yue injured the disciples again and demanding an explanation from him. When Xin Huo heard all this, he felt curious and confused so he asked Zhong Yue, “Brat Yue, what have you done to make them want to eat you alive when I was asleep? How dare you do something so evil without me!”

  “Xin Huo, did I not bring you along this time?”

  Zhong Yue casually replied him and looked at Xiao Chuqing, she smiled and a complacent look could be seen in her eyes.

  This Xiao Mang Celestial Race girl is really asking for it, stirring up the situation and inciting such a troublesome matter as soon she took the stage. However, she is still very reckless as compared to Tian Myriad Mother; although Tian Myriad Mother harbors an extreme hatred of me, she is still able to maintain a facade of politeness and amicability. After all, she is a demon that has been around for god knows how many years, cunning and sly.

  He then shifted his sights away from her. He completely failed to realize the strangeness of his dismissal of Xiao Chuqing as still young and inexperienced, despite he himself being only a few years older than her.

  However, he had the experience and the ordeals he had gone through did indeed put him on the same level as those wizened veterans of the world. After all, he had been fighting against the likes of Tian Myriad Mother ever since he met Xin Huo, thus, lending him a unique temperament and mentality as compared to others his age.

  He then looked at the Qi Practitioners whose bodies were littered with bruises and scars and he said expressionlessly, “Senior Martial Brother Ta, didn’t you all say that our friendship wouldn’t be put affected even after we fought?”

  Ta Wuyou face turned red and he argued back, “I meant that only if I hurt you, then it will not affect our friendship. But if you hurt me, then that will affect our friendship.”

  The Huang Zhang Clan girl said cowardly, “We didn’t know we will be defeated previously….”

  “So is this how the Taba Clan’s logic works?”

  Zhong Yue was momentarily put at a loss at their undisguised shamelessness. He laughed and insulted, “What great and wonderful logic you have there! You thought you would be able to bend my will if you were to beat me up? Too bad though … you picked the wrong target!”

  “What a wanton rascal! Ta Wulue from Ta Ba Clan, now challenge you for a duel!”

  “Such arrogance! I, Huang Luoshi from Huo Zhang Clan, challenge you for a duel!”

  “Han Tan Clan’s Tan Xiao, challenging you for a duel!”

  “Huang Yang Clan’s Yang Zhan, challenging you for a duel!”

  ….

  Shouts could be heard as they eventually filled the space of the inner hall, drawing the attention of the hall masters of the inner hall. They stood at a distance from the Ganoderma Stage and looked over towards Zhong Yue and the others in curiosity.

  “The inner hall has not been so lively for a very long time!”

  The hall master of the Hall of Heart of Swords said with mixed emotions, “The last time the inner hall was this lively was the year when the brat, Fang Jiange, challenged everyone daily. However, he was a candidate on the list of the Dragon and Tiger Challenger Board. Anyone have any idea as to what the little one over there had done that made him the target of so many challenges?”

  “That little one over there is a tough nut, his name is Zhong Yue.”

  The Slithering Dragon hall master laughed and replied, “He has been a tough nut to crack ever since he entered the upper house. He intruded in the female house at night and beat up disciples of the Tian Feng Clan and the Shui Tu Clan, thus, simultaneously offending two behemoths of the Swords Gate. He also almost beheaded the pearl of the Shui Tu Clan, Shui Qingyan, during the Lawless Battles. The situation continued to escalate even after he entered the inner hall. I thought that he would have reined in his recklessness once he entered the inner hall but who knew that he would cause such a ruckus after only three months! He had severely beaten up thirteen Qi Practitioners and the elders of their respective clans are now openly seeking to redress their grievances against him. This time, he might not end well with the presence of Tan Zhen, Ta Wuyou and the others!”

  The Array Carving hall master nodded and said, “Ta Wuyou was the champion during the Lawless Battles last year and he even obtained the Feng Clan’s totem carving heritage in the Ethereal Palace. Tan Zhen was the champion for the year before T
a Wuyou and he received the heritage of Yu Clan’s fish dragon totem spirit. These two heritages may not be as great as the sword spirit and god spirit heritage but they are still among the best of the Swords Gate!”

  “The number of Qi Practitioners that challenges the little one from the Zhong Shan Clan member seems to be more than expected.”

  The shield wall hall master frowned and said, “Thirteen clans, which means there should only be thirteen Qi Practitioners that would challenge him but there seems to be more than thirty of them! What happened?”

  The other hall masters immediately looked at Zhong Yue and this was when a voice could suddenly be heard saying, “Seems like it was because of Zhong Yue having almost beheaded Shui Qingyan. Others seem to be using this as a way to please her. Hmmm, perhaps this is the vaunted femme fatale.”

  The eight hall masters looked at the direction of the voice and saw a skinny old man standing behind them quietly. As soon as they saw the old man, they quickly bowed and greeted him, “Elder Feng!”

  Borned in the Feng Clan, this old man’s name is Feng Shouzhu, he is the man delegated as the warden of the inner hall and the man who called the headmaster of Swords Gate, 'Brother'. Feng Shouzhu was the immediate brother of the headmaster. The Feng Clan had always been sparsely populated but each and everyone of them was incredibly talented. Although Feng Shouzhu held no official post in the Elder Councils, he still had a major role in the Swords Gate as he was in charge of the eight halls.

  There had always been a consensus that Feng Shouzhu was the strongest in the Swords Gate after the headmaster. However, there were some saying that Shui Zian was stronger and rumors said that they once fought together but the outcome of that battle remained a mystery.