Unsharpened sword

The carrion beetles crawling swarmed toward them, crowding the road.

Yan Dan glanced at the two boys behind her whose faces had turned deathly pale, and smiled gently to comfort them: "It's alright, I'm here, don't be afraid."

Unexpectedly, Shui Xing said with a sob in her voice, "It's precisely because you're standing here now, not Young Master Liu, that I'm afraid..."

Yan Dan was speechless. Did she really seem that unreliable? However, she did seem a bit unreliable in her actions, which was certainly different from Liu Weiyang. Yan Dan raised her hand and made a sweeping motion in the air. A thin barrier formed in front of her, and the corpse beetles that were surging like a tide were blocked by the barrier. They were crowded together and futilely waved their two large claws.

Yan Dan knew that she had learned this trick from Yu Mo, and figured that the barrier wouldn't last long, so she pulled Nan Zhao and Shui Xing, who were still standing there in a daze, and said, "Let's go!"

Pulled by her, the water lily stumbled forward, while the barrier continued to extend, blocking the dense swarm of corpse beetles ahead. Yan Dan calculated the time; with her demonic magic, she could probably maintain the barrier for the time it takes to brew three cups of tea. Returning to Luoyue Village in that time would be quite difficult, but escaping this swarm of corpse beetles shouldn't be too hard, right?

Yan Dan looked at the clumps of corpse beetles huddled together around her, both surprised and puzzled: They had taken this same road to Fuyun Temple yesterday, so why were they fine yesterday, but encountered corpse beetles today?

Nan Zhao asked, his teeth chattering, "This bug... will it bite?"

Yan Dan had a quirk: she liked to ramble on about trivial matters, but when it really came down to it, she lost interest. Right now, she was lacking in enthusiasm, and quickly picked up the conversation: "Generally speaking, they won't." Nan Zhao and Shui Xing paused, their tense faces relaxing slightly, as Yan Dan continued, "But judging from their imposing and majestic appearance, I think they might eat people alive."

Nan Zhao twisted his ankle and almost bumped into the barrier beside him. He saw the corpse beetle attached to the barrier wave its large claws at him twice. The claws were sharp, jet black and shiny, and gleamed in the sunlight.

Yan Dan hurriedly said, "Be careful, don't break the barrier."

She was actually a little embarrassed when she said that. If it were Yu Mo who set up the formation, even ten Nan Zhaos wouldn't be able to break it.

Gradually, Yan Dan's expression changed. She could feel the barrier she had set up beginning to crumble, yet the corpse beetles in front of her refused to disperse. She roughly knew that although these insects were ferocious, they were ultimately incapable of thinking and attacked people based solely on instinct. Why were they so relentlessly chasing after them?

Suddenly, a hissing sound rang out, and a corpse beetle broke through the barrier and scurried towards them. Without thinking, Nan Zhao drew his longsword from his back to block, but his reaction was far from fast enough. The corpse beetle clung firmly to his shoulder, and one of its large claws cleanly pierced his shoulder.

Seeing the corpse beetle about to pierce his neck with its other large claw, Yan Dan quickly drew Yu Mo's short sword and slashed it diagonally. The corpse beetle snapped in two, fell to the ground, twitched, and lay still. As she drew her sword, the scabbard pulled out a blood-stained silk handkerchief. Upon seeing the handkerchief, Yan Dan immediately remembered that it was stained with Liu Weiyang's blood, which she had secretly hidden when treating his wounds.

In a matter of life and death, she naturally wouldn't place all her hopes on this blood-stained handkerchief. In this situation, if she were alone, she could easily escape unscathed. But right now, she had Shui Xing and Nan Zhao with her, and the two of them definitely wouldn't be able to retreat safely.

At this point, she couldn't think of any other way but to try anything as a last resort.

Yan Dan unfolded the silk handkerchief, and the swarms of corpse beetles that were about to surge forward suddenly paused, then scattered and fled in all directions as if they were afraid of not being fast enough, disappearing without a trace in the blink of an eye.

Shui Xing stared at the silk handkerchief in her hand, speechless for a long time: "Is there anything unusual about it? Why are these insects so afraid of it?"

Yan Dan has a valuable quality: she never takes credit for others' good deeds. Without hesitation, she replied, "The blood on this is Young Master Liu's."

Shui Xing's eyes widened, and she said happily, "I was wondering how you could be so powerful. It turns out you are Young Master Liu. You truly live up to His Highness Xuanxiang's reputation. Even a drop of blood can scare away those annoying insects."

Yan Dan was very frustrated, gritting her teeth and muttering to herself, "What is this? His blood can only repel mosquitoes, is that something to be praised for..."

Having successfully returned to Luoyue Village, Yan Dan was filled with mixed emotions, especially since she had personally heard the voice of that thug.

Tang Zhou was leaning against the fence not far away, as if he knew they would be returning at this time. Yan Dan was in a good mood, and as she approached, she happily said to him, "See, I brought them all back safely, wasn't that great?"

Tang Zhou rested his chin on his hand, a half-smile on his face, and suddenly bent down to brush the dust off her clothes: "It looks alright."

Yan Dan stared at his action in surprise, stammering, "Tang Zhou...you, you..."

Tang Zhou gave a nonchalant "hmm" and looked up at her.

There's a truth in this world: even the most disliked person can become pleasing to the eye after a while, especially since Tang Zhou really does have a handsome appearance. Yan Dan couldn't help but think that Tang Zhou's attitude towards her had been rather strange lately. However, she also knew that she tended to overthink things, and she would never dare to be presumptuous again.

Yu Mo's voice came softly from behind, and he was talking to Nan Zhao: "Could you share a piece of the white sandalwood in your hand with me?"

Nan Zhao responded and tried to take out his longsword to cut off a piece, but Yu Mo stretched out his hand and, without any apparent effort, snapped off a piece with a crack.

Nan Zhao stood there for a moment, then couldn't help but ask, "Could you give me some pointers on my kung fu?"

Yu Mo smiled and said, "You can't learn my skills. You can ask Brother Tang or Brother Liu for guidance. That would be the right approach."

Yan Dan thought with a sense of frustration, "Anyway, no one will want my guidance: Oh right, I also discovered some things during my trip to Fuyun Temple."

"So, you really did hear the assailant's voice?" Liu Weiyang leaned against the table, toying with the jade flute in his hand. "Then, was the assailant male or female?"

Yan Dan pondered for a while, then said uncertainly, "It should be a woman, right?"

"should?"

"The woman spoke in a soft, coquettish tone, as if she were gently scolding or slightly angry. She said, 'Didn't you once have deep feelings for me?' Her tone was completely that of a woman... But," she frowned and said slowly, "that woman's voice was really unpleasant. I got goosebumps all over."

Liu Weiyang lowered his eyes and remained silent.

Tang Zhou poured a cup of tea and pushed it in front of Yan Dan, saying softly, "In any case, things are finally starting to look a little clearer."

Liu Weiyang shook his head, then suddenly stood up and said, "I'm going to Fuyun Temple to take a look." He usually kept to himself, but at least he remembered to say something before he hurriedly left.

Looking at his calm and collected back, Yan Dan couldn't help but ask, "Does he know something?"

Yu Mo said calmly, "This matter still needs to be solved by Brother Liu himself. Among the four of us, only he is the human sacrifice. To escape the demonic realm, Brother Liu must solve the mysteries here one by one."

Yan Dan rested her chin on her hand: "I'm not worried about that. Young Master Liu certainly has that kind of ability, and besides, the Luo Yue clan is very likely his people. Actually, I've wanted to ask for a long time: how did he become the human sacrifice of the Demonic Phase?"

"To break the ancient seal on the inkstone, besides needing a person with a pure soul, another person with profound cultivation is needed to smear the seal with their own blood. After that, they can be offered as a sacrifice to enter the center of the demonic realm. The reason why the inkstone has consciousness now is because Brother Liu nourished it with his own blood. My two trips to the Divine Firmament Palace were also because of this matter."

"He really spares no expense. Actually, there's nothing wrong with Young Master Liu being like this now. The imperial court can't control the southwest region, so he's practically like an emperor, yet he insists on making things difficult for himself. In Buddhist terms, he's committed anger and attachment."

Yu Mo glanced at her: "You're supposed to be a demon, how come you're spouting Zen philosophy all the time?"

"Because—"

"The ocean embraces all rivers, and its greatness lies in its capacity to tolerate. Is that what you meant?" Tang Zhou asked with a smile in his eyes.

Yan Dan immediately grasped Tang Zhou's hand in return: "A true friend!"

Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, casting dappled patterns on the ground, while cicadas chirped incessantly from the trees.

Yan Dan sat comfortably under the shade of a tree, watching the two boys' agile martial arts movements. They were truly young and full of energy. If it were her, she could only be described as having a burst of vitality before death.

Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of a young man in purple robes strolling over; judging from his appearance, it was clearly Yi Lan. Yan Dan straightened up, her gaze fixed intently on him. She had indeed been too idle these past few days, and she was just hoping someone would come looking for trouble to make her less free.

Yi Lan glanced at her, curled her lip in disdain, and walked past, finally stopping just beside Nan Zhao. She raised her voice and said, "Tsk tsk, you call this martial arts?"

Yan Dan was greatly shocked. Did this Luo Yue person think she was not even as good as Nan Zhao?

Yi Lan bent down, picked up a sword, and weighed it in his hand: "Put the sword down and let me experience your superior skills."

Shui Xing naturally sided with Nan Zhao, shouting, "My father said we can't fight in private, or he'll definitely punish us!"

A flash of anger appeared in Yi Lan's eyes. He smiled and raised his chin at Nan Zhao: "I heard you used to be a martial arts talent. How come you're so useless now? It doesn't matter if you don't dare to spar. Anyway, a bastard like you is just a coward."

Nan Zhao suddenly bent down and picked up a long sword, gritting his teeth slightly: "Whether I'm a coward or not is not for you to decide, and my father is not someone you can insult!"

Yan Dan greatly admired his courage, so she sat down there, ready to secretly help Nan Zhao at the last minute.

However, the scene of those two swordsmen sparring could only be described with one word: utterly pathetic. She had seen Tang Zhou wield a sword before; his strength lay in the sword's aura, each move exuding elegance and grace. Later, she had seen Liu Weiyang wield a sword, excelling in fluidity and grace; his swordplay was so fast that only a flash of cold light could be seen. Having witnessed so much of this, even as a layman, she had grasped some of the basics.

With a shout, Yi Lan swung his long sword straight at Nan Zhao's shoulder. Yan Dan quickly flipped her hand over and flicked her finger, sending the sword flying from Yi Lan's grasp. Had he landed a solid blow, he might have severed Nan Zhao's arm.

Yan Dan watched as the longsword flew straight into the air. With another flick of her sleeve, the sword seemed to come alive, hurtling towards her with incredible speed. She caught it steadily, examined the spine of the blade, and breathed a sigh of relief: this sword appeared to be used only for ordinary martial arts practice, and hadn't been sharpened at all. If it were lightly scratched a few times, it wouldn't even break the skin.

She turned the sword hilt over and saw a faint red glow on the blade. She closed her eyes and sniffed it; it was clearly the smell of blood.

A sword that has never been sharpened...

Liu Weiyang once said that the sword used as the murder weapon was very dull, almost like it had never been sharpened.

The wounds on the three dead bodies were uneven in depth, and a closer look would reveal that they were caused by blunt instruments.

Yan Dan's hand trembled, and the longsword fell to the ground.

She has probably already found the key.