Chapter 50

Cheng Feng had lost track of what he was doing, and his swordplay had become chaotic. Taking advantage of this, Lan Jueming struck him with a palm.

"How exactly did I teach you? A chaotic mind leads to failure."

Cheng Feng knelt on the ground, having lost all will to live. "Master, just kill me."

Lan Jueming shook his head angrily.

Then Su Mu and Dongfang Jin drew their swords and came over.

"Chengfeng, Qingtang is dead. If you're not here either, how will Jingtao go on living?"

Cheng Feng looked at Jing Tao, who was playing chess with Lan Jueming, in despair, recalling the wonderful times he had spent with Qing Tang and Jing Tao.

"Dongfang Jin, stop talking nonsense and let's protect Jing Tao and get away quickly!"

After saying that, the two joined the battle.

Lan Jueming held his own against Lan Jueming in a three-on-one situation.

Looking at the three people surrounding him, Lan Jueming smiled, flicked his wrist, and the long sword at his waist was drawn in response. With a flash of cold light, it was already pointing straight ahead, the blade sharp and accompanied by the sound of wind being cut.

Jing Tao, who was in the lead, pointed the tip of her knife diagonally at the ground, revealing a murderous intent that could not be ignored.

The moment the moonlight pierced through the dark clouds, the two moved almost simultaneously, their movements as fast as lightning. Their figures intertwined, sword light danced like silver snakes, Lan Jueming's sword moved like a butterfly, and Jing Tao's saber style was fierce and powerful. Each strike was accompanied by a whistling sound as it cut through the wind. The sword shadows were numerous, and only the crisp sound of metal colliding could be heard continuously. The two moved their feet together, and just as Jing Tao revealed an opening, Lan Jueming killed her with a single sword strike.

In the instant the cold light flashed, a tearing pain shot through her right eye. Warm liquid slid down her cheek, and her vision was instantly swallowed by blood. Only a blurry figure could be seen in her left eye. The excruciating pain spread along her nerves to her temple. Jing Tao's knife slipped from her hand and she covered her eyes, retreating repeatedly.

Dongfang Jin leaped up, her longsword slashing down like silver. Lan Jueming, however, remained steady with his sword, each parry precisely deflecting the attack. As the two moved about, dust billowed up from the ground. Lan Jueming then used the tip of his sword to hook Dongfang Jin's wrist with a backhand motion, and a flash of sword light appeared.

Caught off guard, the sword tip pierced Dongfang Jin's left shoulder. She groaned, feeling a sharp, intense pain in her shoulder. Warm blood instantly soaked through her clothes, trickling down her arm. Another palm strike followed, the immense force causing her to lose her balance and fly backward like a kite with a broken string. The sword slipped from her hand, and a metallic taste filled her throat. Dongfang Jin struggled to get up, but even the slightest movement caused her to gasp in pain.

Needless to say, Su Mu's admiration and fear of Lan Jueming prevented him from fully displaying his strength, and he met the same fate as Dongfang Jin in just three moves.

Lan Jueming looked at the three people who had fallen to the ground, pondered for a moment, and then walked towards Dongfang Jin.

"Such exceptional talent, it's just a pity it was misused."

Then he struck the heart with a sword.

Dongfang Jin remained calm under pressure, her eyes showing no fear, and simply said, "Trying to kill me to silence me."

Lan Jueming didn't want Dongfang Jin to continue speaking, but the moment the blade fell, Dongfang Jin didn't feel any pain.

The moment Dongfang Jin saw Jing Tao, she panicked. Her face turned deathly pale, tears streamed down her face uncontrollably, and she gripped Jing Tao tightly with both hands, her shoulders trembling violently. A suppressed and broken voice escaped her throat as she cried out, "Jing Tao!"

Jing Tao's blood instantly stained Dongfang Jin's entire body.

Seeing that Jing Tao was determined to come to her death, Lan Jueming had no choice but to grant her wish. He tightened his grip on the sword, as if he wanted to pierce her heart.

Just as Lan Jueming exerted his strength, an inexplicable force seemed to be hindering him. Then, a pale green power suddenly erupted from Jing Tao's body, so fast that Lan Jueming was caught off guard. The gale brought up by the eruption swept up the surrounding rubble, which was all destroyed in the air by this power.

People around raised their arms to resist this mysterious force, and even Lan Jueming was blasted away by it.

When the dust settled, Su Mu and Cheng Feng were the first to stand up.

Lan Jueming also stood up from the wall, but his black robe was blown off, revealing long black hair. His tiger-shaped mask was also shattered, and his eyes were as sharp as a hawk's, staring intently in the direction of Jing Tao.

Cheng Feng froze on the spot, staggered forward two steps, staring intently at Lan Jueming, his eyes filled with bewilderment and shock, and said incredulously, "Master, your hair..."

Lan Jueming reached out and touched his robe, knowing that it was too late to hide the truth. He simply took off his black robe and removed his mask. Underneath the mask was the face of an adult man, with light stubble on his lips and fine lines at the corners of his eyes, revealing the passage of time.

Honeysuckle also stepped forward in disbelief to examine it. "How is this possible? Lan Jueming must be over fifty years old by now, but why is there such a young face under this mask?"

Cheng Feng looked at the scene before him and walked shakily toward Lan Jueming, his eyes filled with disbelief. He had seen his master's face when he was young, and it was exactly the same as this.

"Master, what exactly is going on?"

Lan Jueming looked at Su Mu and decided to answer their questions: "For the survival of humanity, I must do this."

"Why!" Cheng Feng shouted.

"From the first time I held a sword, I was hailed as a genius swordsman. Since then, I have taken on the mission of slaying demons for humanity. Forty years have passed since then, but people eventually grow old and die. So I began to cultivate a successor. Chengfeng, you are exceptionally talented and the most likely person to succeed me. But now it seems that your worldly desires have not been eradicated. For the sake of two human lives, your Dao heart has already been shattered. How can I feel at ease passing this position on to you?"

"So, you killed Qingtang, is that it?"

"That was an accident!"

"She saw my face; there was nothing I could do about it."

"So what exactly do you want to do?" Ren Dong asked.

"Since there is no one in the world who can rival me, why don't I prolong my life to ensure the safety of humanity?"

Extending lifespan? Su Mu suddenly realized, "So that day you called me to the study to extend my lifespan?"

"I accidentally obtained a treasure that could predict the future. I didn't believe it at first, but the treasure said that a mute girl would soon come to my Lan family. That person could exorcise demons for humans. Later, Jing Tao really came to the manor, and I talked with her, asking who could succeed me. But the treasure said that there was no one like me in the world. Just when I was about to give up, it said that there was a divine sword that could prolong my life. As long as I let Jing Tao go out to travel, I would get my wish in less than a year."

Su Mu stepped forward. "So you sent someone to lure me to the Taotie Sword, is that right?"

"After exorcising the demon, the treasure told me the time was right, so I hurried back to my residence. Sure enough, Jing Tao had already returned. I had hesitated before, but humanity's situation was precarious, and I was too old to exorcise demons anymore. If one day I really... Cheng Feng would be unable to shoulder such a great responsibility."

"So you took it upon yourself to decide the lives of other people!"

"Zhao Sumu, do you think your power can compare to mine? Do you think you can prolong my life by sacrificing your own? No! Humanity is beyond saving. My existence will save millions of humans. Your sacrifice is for the salvation of all humanity!"