Chapter 4: Blood Boiling in the Heart

  His mind was in turmoil, like the collision between a flood and a dam, thundering through the sky. All his thoughts at this moment had no meaning whatsoever. His brain was a complete blank. The purple sword energy within him also became violent with the change in emotions. The majestic and powerful yet sharp sword energy completely lost its guidance, and Lu Yun didn't want to guide anything either.

  The surging of the sword's energy caused the meridians to continuously expand, and the sword master's energy was already quite thick. Such uncontrolled flow would undoubtedly cause great damage to the meridians. Thin streams of blood flowed from the corners of his mouth, and his pupils were severely dilated. His right hand grasped the purple-red hilt, and with a hiss, the scorching flames instantly charred his palm. Fresh red blood suddenly covered the entire hilt, and strangely, except for being instantly evaporated, the entire hilt turned into a brilliant red color in an instant. The intense red glow almost pushed away half of the golden smoke that filled the room.

  It was as if there was no pain at all, and he simply let his palm be crippled. The white bones almost came out in an instant, and then they quickly turned black due to the intense heat. His gaze fixed on the sword hilt emitting a strong red glow. Lu Yun's heart seemed to be stirred by something, and Hanzi's muscles slowly tensed up, with the veins on his arm bulging out. His eyes rapidly turned bloodshot, and he couldn't help but let out a long howl towards the sky. The sound of his howling was like a raging river bursting through the roof, even the golden mist above Lu's house trembled for an instant.

  What happened? The people of Chaoyang Town couldn't help but look at each other in dismay, why did that whistle carry such a sense of despair. At this moment, no one thought about the profound cultivation contained in that whistle, only feeling as if a heavy boulder had been pressed onto their hearts, an overwhelming sense of depression causing many people to cry uncontrollably. The entire Chaoyang Town, originally bustling with noise, became eerily quiet in an instant, and even many sentimental women had already used more than one handkerchief to wipe away their tears.

  On the mountain waist of Zixia Peak, a slender old man in a light purple long gown walked slowly, his sleeves blown by the mountain wind making a rustling sound, but the old man seemed to be completely unaware, his expression natural. With one step forward, his short seven-inch-long foot suddenly appeared three zhang (about 10 meters) ahead, yet it felt perfectly normal.

  Suddenly, the old man's footsteps paused, and at this moment, Lu Yun's long whistle sounded. Feeling the unusual meaning in the whistling sound, the old man's calm expression changed for the first time. "Lu Xiazi, what do you want to do?" he muttered. Without hesitation, a strong purple light flashed across his body, and he instantly transformed into a brilliant stream of light, shooting towards the town of Chaoyang ten miles away, crossing the air.

  Inside the stone house, his intact left hand formed a sword finger, slowly extending a sharp purple sword energy. A smile that was a hundred times uglier than crying appeared, and Lu Yun looked back at the familiar object outside the door, as well as the faintly lingering figure that had long since left. His left hand turned around, and the purple sword energy silently broke into the position of his left chest heart room. The sword energy pierced through, making no sound as it emerged from his back, and he let out a low hum, with fresh blood ceaselessly flowing out of his mouth. "Everything is over..."

  With a wave of his hand, the left chest that was torn open by the sword energy suddenly shot out a stream of bright red blood. The blood flow broke through the golden and crimson smoke, striking the purple-red sword body with precision, and spreading rapidly throughout the entire divine sword like a maggot in the heel bone. And the originally majestic and overbearing purple-red flame seemed to have lost all its power at this moment, allowing the thick blood plasma to completely engulf it, as if it had been pulled away. The long sword floated into the air, trembling out of Lu Yun's control.

  Cloud

  "Dad———"

  At the moment when they heard the whistle, Yan Ruyu and Lu Qing, who had just woken up, felt a sudden twitch in their right eye, and it was as if a huge stone weighing ten thousand catties was pressed on their chest, making it hard to breathe. The strong ominous feeling made Yan Ruyu forget about her previous anger, and the two quickly rushed from the back room to the central sword-casting chamber, only to see the surging red blood flowing out.

  Quickly helping Lu Yun up, the pale purple sword energy on her hand rapidly waved, but unfortunately, Lu Yun's previous sword energy had already completely shattered his heart meridian, taking out that one strand of vital blood that maintained his life. Without the peripheral meridians to hold it in place, how could the surging blood be stopped by Yan Ruyi's few strands of sword energy? Seeing that there was no effect, Yan Ruyi's gentle face also instantly lost its color. In a flurry, she tore off a piece of her sleeve to block the wound, but the snow-white sleeve quickly turned red, deepening into a dark crimson.

  "Father——, what's wrong with you? Weren't you fine just now?" Lu Qing's eyes were red-rimmed as he spoke in a trembling tone. As the only descendant of the Lu family's current generation, he had a clear understanding of Lu Yun's current condition. The through-and-through blood hole on his left chest clearly indicated that the heart chamber located there had been completely penetrated. Even the top pharmacists on the continent would be powerless against this situation, so how could their mother's casual few sword moves possibly save him?

  The view in front of him gradually became blurred, and he felt the familiar warmth on his face. "Is it, is it Ruyue?" The man struggled to open his increasingly heavy eyelids, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't see the figure in front of him clearly.

  "I'm in... I'm in..." The urgent and rapid breathing, Yan Ruyu grasped Lu Yun's already cold right hand, her fingers touching the black finger bones that made people's hair stand on end, Yan Ruyu couldn't help but shed tears.

  "I originally thought - I thought it could be changed - the refining method of this thousand-year-old fire gold, after casting the sword, I would - I would wash my hands in a golden basin, at that time - at that time -"

  "Needless to say, I know, I know everything," Yan Ruyu choked out, her mouth tightly pursed and her hair falling down from her temples, leaving deep teeth marks on her lower lip. The woman's face had already lost its beauty.

  The corners of his mouth struggled to reveal a wry smile, "Unfortunately, I still failed—"

  Just as the words had fallen, Yan Ruyi and Lu Qing only felt a flash of purple light in front of their eyes, and a purple figure appeared before them. The newcomer wore a pale purple long gown, with a thin face and furrowed brow, but it was precisely Xuan Qing, who had rushed over quickly upon hearing the sound of Lu Yun's voice. Yan Ruyi apparently knew him well, and looked at the suddenly appearing Xuan Qing as if she had seen a lifeline, urgently saying: "Elder Xuan, I beg of you, please save Yun!"

  Xuan Qing furrowed his brow, and with a glance, he could see that Lu Yun's vital energy had been exhausted, leaving only one last breath. However, seeing Yan Ruyi's sorrowful expression and Lu Qing's pleading gaze beside her, Xuan Qing's heart softened despite knowing there was no hope. He waved his hand, releasing a purple sword energy that tore through the air, forming a bridge-like connection to Lu Yun's chest. Meanwhile, Yan Ruyi and Lu Qing watched Xuan Qing's actions intently, as at this moment, his appearance had become their only hope.

  There has never been a moment when Lu Qing felt so lost. In his memory, his father was always a robust man obsessed with casting swords. From childhood, he grew up listening to the sound of hammering and the rhythm of the furnace in Lu Yun's mouth. In his eyes, his father was full of confidence, especially when he was casting swords, the rhythmic melody deeply fascinated him. He never thought that one day, his father would leave him.

  Feeling the pure and refined power of Xuan Yuan, Lu Yun seemed to be much better all at once. His eyes, which had been almost closed, slowly opened, "Xuan, Elder Xuan..."

  Seeing Lu Yun's left hand struggling to lift up, Xuan Qing felt a pang in his heart and stepped forward two steps, grasping it, "Is there anything else you want to say? I'll help you finish."

  "Help me—help me teach Qing'er, grown-ups—"

  He nodded solemnly: "Don't worry, I will treat him like my own grandson. You can rest assured and go now——" With a sigh, Xuan Qing stopped talking, and Lu Yun also closed his eyes after this brief moment of clarity.

  Staring blankly at the hand that had let go, Yan Ruyu finally couldn't hold on and fainted, while at this moment, Lu Qing still had tears in his eyes, but his pupils revealed an unusual determination. Supporting Yan Ruyu who had fainted, Lu Qing and Xuanqing simultaneously looked up at the divine sword floating above their heads.

  At this moment, the divine sword was entirely crimson, as if cast from fresh blood. The crimson color flowed back and forth like water, seemingly sensing the gazes of the two individuals. With a clear and melodious dragon's cry, the blood that had been attached to the sword body rapidly seeped into the divine sword, and the divine sword itself emerged. At this moment, the divine sword no longer had its previous sharpness revealed, and the purple-red light flames that had enveloped it had vanished. Thus, a longsword emitting a faint golden glow appeared before the two individuals, finally revealing the refined edge of the gold-grade divine sword.

  At the same time, as the divine sword shed its blood and was tempered to perfection, the people of Chao Yang Town were shocked to discover that the sky had suddenly darkened. A thousand feet above the Lu Manor, a massive black cloud covering an area of about 100 square meters condensed in an instant. A loud thunderclap was heard as a purple lightning bolt flashed rapidly across the surface of the cloud, its majestic power spreading across the sky and pointing directly at the golden cloud below.

  The Lu Mansion's Sword Forging Chamber, Xuan Qing and Lu Qing's expressions changed almost simultaneously. Compared to Xuan Qing's solemnity, a clear pain appeared on Lu Qing's face. Under the divine sword, the pressure they faced was second only to the divine sword itself. With Xuan Qing's cultivation, it was naturally nothing to be concerned about, but Lu Qing was different. As a Sword Servant at the first boundary of the Sword Dao, he was still unable to face such heavenly might.