"Has it begun already?"
Inside the room, Xiao Se stood by the window, quietly looking down at the scene below.
The ground beneath the building was crawling with spiders of all sizes—lesser spider demons that scuttled across walls and rubble. Under the fierce assault of the Little Fire God and several of his companions, the spider demons were quickly slaughtered one after another. Unsatisfied, the Little Fire God even unleashed a wave of flames, burning the corpses to ashes.
However, this act played perfectly into the hands of the spiders' true master—the Poison Master.
As the spider corpses burned, thick clouds of poisonous mist were released, rolling outward and instantly engulfing everyone present.
"This is bad! These corpses are releasing poisonous fog!" one of the Little Fire God's companions, Ximen Chui Sha, shouted in alarm.
"Damn it. If that's the case, then we can only do this—wind—"
Just as Ximen Chui Sha raised his hand, preparing to disperse the poison with a gust of wind, Xiao Se appeared beside him without warning.
Xiao Se stood atop a sword formed entirely from condensed pink flames, lightly gripping Ximen Chui Sha's elbow with two fingers. His expression was calm, almost indifferent, as he spoke.
"If you scatter the poison mist like that, have you considered the consequences?"
Hearing this, both Dongfang Huaizhu and Dongfang Qinlan frowned deeply.
If the poisonous fog were blown in all directions, it would spread across the surrounding land. Within a hundred-li radius, no living being would be able to survive. Humans would perish, birds would fall from the sky, and beasts would vanish entirely. It would turn fertile land into a dead zone.
"T-Then… what should we do?"
Ximen Chui Sha swallowed hard. He was still shocked that Xiao Se had appeared beside him without the slightest warning. Facing this terrifying youth with overwhelming sword intent, he truly did not dare offend him.
"We're already trapped inside the poison mist…"
"It's simple," Xiao Se replied flatly.
"Find the source of the poison—and eliminate it."
"Young Master Xiao Se," Dongfang Huaizhu said as she flew over with Dongfang Qinlan, her voice urgent yet composed. "Do you have a way to deal with this?"
"Before that," Xiao Se said calmly, "let's clear away this poison mist first."
He nodded slightly. Then, before anyone could react, Xiao Se extended his right hand.
In the stunned gazes of everyone present, an overwhelming wave of pink flames erupted outward, centered on Xiao Se. The flames expanded like a blooming sea of fire, instantly enveloping everyone within.
In the next instant, the poisonous fog surrounding them was completely incinerated.
The pink flames did not harm a single person.
After burning away the poison, the flames rapidly contracted, returning to Xiao Se's hand as if they had never existed at all.
Only then did everyone dare to open their eyes.
They stared at Xiao Se in utter shock.
Just moments ago, they had personally felt the terrifying heat of those flames—so intense that the surrounding space itself seemed to twist, blur, and distort, as though it were being scorched into nothingness. Yet despite standing at the very center of such flames, none of them had suffered even the slightest injury.
The level of control required for such a feat was simply unimaginable.
"Hey… hey… this has to be a joke, right?" Dongfang Qinlan muttered in disbelief, staring at the pink flames still dancing in Xiao Se's palm.
"This fire feels even stronger than our Dongfang Spirit Clan's Pure Yang Flame…"
Dongfang Huaizhu was equally shocked. But before she could say anything, her gaze suddenly snapped toward the wooden pillars supporting the building.
"Not good!" she cried out urgently. "There are poisonous spiders hidden inside the pillars as well!"
"So they were hiding that deeply?" the Little Fire God cursed angrily.
"Enough. It's just a minor demon," Xiao Se said dismissively, casting a faintly contemptuous glance at the Little Fire God before turning his gaze toward a collapsed, ruined house nearby.
"Jie jie jie… So I've been discovered?"
A strange, sinister laugh echoed through the rain-soaked night.
"How troublesome…"
From the shadows of the ruined house, a middle-aged man slowly walked out. His hairline was unnaturally high, and his face was covered with eight pairs of eyes that glinted eerily in the firelight.
If it wasn't the Poison Master, then who else could it be?
"Then let's stop making things troublesome," Xiao Se said coldly.
He stepped onto a massive sword formed from Heavenly Flame, hovering in midair. His eyes sharpened, and the pink flames in his right hand instantly condensed into a Heavenly Flame greatsword nearly two meters long.
Raising the blade high, Xiao Se casually swung it toward the Poison Master.
"Goodbye."
"Not good!"
The instinct to survive screamed within the Poison Master's mind. He desperately tried to tear open his clothing, preparing to use the countless eyes on his body to release a blinding light attack.
But it was already too late.
He realized, in utter horror, that he could no longer move.
Worse still—his vision split cleanly down the middle.
His body had been severed into two perfect halves.
The cut was smooth and flawless, as if sliced by an invisible line.
Pink flames surged forward, engulfing the remains of his body. In the blink of an eye, the Poison Master was reduced entirely to ashes, disappearing from existence as though he had never been there at all.
Silence fell.
Everyone present stood frozen, mouths agape, eyes wide with disbelief.
Especially the group of cultivators led by the Little Fire God.
They had always prided themselves on being geniuses. Yet compared to the youth before them, they were nothing more than flickering fireflies—dim and insignificant.
"H-Hey… Xiao Se, aren't you a bit too strong?!" Dongfang Qinlan couldn't help exclaiming.
"Thank you, Young Master Xiao Se, for saving those innocent people," Dongfang Huaizhu said solemnly. She bowed slightly, her gratitude sincere.
She knew very well that if Xiao Se had not intervened earlier—if Ximen Chui Sha had truly dispersed the poison—this entire region would have become a lifeless wasteland.
"As long as one is born human," Xiao Se replied with a faint smile, "one should do what a human ought to do."
Hearing this, the Little Fire God and his companions flushed deeply. It felt like a slap to the face.
Earlier, in their eagerness to show off, they had paid no attention at all to the lives of ordinary people.
"Alright," Xiao Se continued, turning away.
"The demon has been dealt with. Everyone should return and rest. But stay alert—this area may still attract other demons."
As he spoke, Xiao Se flew back into his room.
Dongfang Huaizhu, Dongfang Qinlan, and the others also gradually returned to their respective rooms, the night finally growing quiet again.
—
"How enviable…" Xiao Se muttered as he lay down on his bed the moment he returned to his room.
"They clearly don't have particularly high cultivation, yet they can ride swords through the air. Some of them can even remain suspended in midair without using a sword at all."
"Brother, do you want to learn sword control?"
A streak of red light suddenly floated out from the demonic sword pattern on Xiao Se's right hand. It landed gently on the floor, transforming into a graceful, full-figured red-clad girl—Hongkui.
"Of course I do," Xiao Se replied without hesitation.
"That thing is ridiculously cool."
"Hehe," Hongkui giggled.
"I once killed a disciple from Mount Shu and obtained the cultivation method for sword control from him. I originally planned to give it to you, Brother. But back then, you already had a flying Dou Technique, so I didn't want to waste your time."
"Then teach me now," Xiao Se said eagerly.
In his understanding, sword control techniques were deeply connected to the soul realm. In Sword Dao Supreme, Ye Chen had been able to rely on powerful soul strength during the Spirit Sea Realm to use sword control to instantly kill opponents of similar strength.
The enemy wouldn't even have time to make a move—the sword would already be there.
"Mm."
Hongkui nodded. Red light surged from her right hand and pressed against Xiao Se's forehead.
In an instant, a complete method for cultivating sword control appeared in Xiao Se's mind.
—
The next morning.
Sunlight poured down warmly from the sky.
"So this is sword control…"
Xiao Se murmured as he slowly opened his eyes.
Just as he was about to try cultivating it, a series of urgent knocks sounded at the door.
Creak.
The door swung open, revealing the familiar figures of Dongfang Huaizhu and Dongfang Qinlan.
"What's wrong?" Xiao Se asked, puzzled. "Miss Huaizhu?"
Dongfang Huaizhu's expression was anxious.
"When we went out last night to deal with the spider demon, our attendant and the old man who had been taking care of everyone were captured. We only discovered it early this morning."
"The ones who took them even left behind a letter," she continued.
"It specifically names you and demands that you go."
As she spoke, she handed the letter to Xiao Se.
Taking the letter and looking at the crooked, childish handwriting, Xiao Se felt a wave of annoyance rise in his heart. At the same time, the corner of his mouth twitched helplessly.
He had actually forgotten about those two minor characters.
And as for who had captured them—there was no need to guess.
It could only be that troublesome little girl…
The Southern Nation's princess—Huandu Luolan.
"Then we shouldn't waste any time," Xiao Se said, folding the letter.
"Let's set out."
(End of Chapter)
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