72: Chapter 72 The Origin of the Black Knife

"Why can't we get out?" Ouyang Qingyun stared at the shattered fragments of the jade talisman on the ground, his Face full of confusion.

"The jade talisman isn't working?" Not far away, an Ouyang Family Disciple saw this, pulled out their own teleportation jade talisman with a puzzled expression, and tried to crush it hard.

The jade talisman shattered upon contact, but the expected teleportation light did not appear.

"My jade talisman has also failed!" he shouted in alarm.

This exclamation instantly triggered a chain reaction.

Others hurriedly took out their own teleportation jade talismans and crushed them.

"Oh no! Mine isn't working either!"

"Mine too!"

"Mine isn't responding either!"

"..."

Panic gradually appeared on everyone's Faces.

"What's going on? If the jade talismans are ineffective, doesn't that mean we'll be trapped here forever?" someone asked with a trembling voice.

Panic began to spread.

Within a moment, almost everyone had tried their own teleportation jade talismans, and the result was the same for all.

No one could be teleported out of the Secret Realm.

"Mine has also failed." After Ouyang Miaomiao took out her jade talisman and crushed it, she frowned, her tone heavy.

Ouyang Yunshan and the others followed suit, and the result was the same.

"How could this happen?" Ouyang Yunshan's initial intention to announce the results completely vanished.

He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the anxiety in his heart.

He could not lose his composure!

Once he panicked, everyone else would inevitably fall into total chaos.

If a riot broke out then, the consequences would be unimaginable.

"Everyone, please remain calm!" Ouyang Yunshan said loudly, attempting to stabilize the crowd.

"This situation should only be temporary. Let's rest here for now and wait for news from the outside."

Right now, someone had to step up and bear the pressure.

Although Ouyang Miaomiao's strength was greater than his, in his view, she was ultimately a woman, so the task of stabilizing the crowd still had to be done by him.

While everyone over there was in a panic, Xiang Tian was completely unconcerned.

With the System at his disposal, if they were really trapped here, he could just negotiate with the System.

He flashed, instantly appearing beside Ouyang Qingyun.

He slowly crouched down and asked in an icy tone: "Ouyang Qingyun, are you giving me your big blade or not?"

"I..." Ouyang Qingyun did not dare to meet Xiang Tian's icy gaze.

He hurriedly lowered his head, his tone stuttering.

"What 'I'? What?" Xiang Tian shouted coldly.

"If you lose a bet, you pay up; that's the rule. Don't you understand?"

No matter what method he had to use, he was determined to get this big blade.

"This is a supreme treasure passed down by the Old Ancestor of my lineage; there is no way I will give it to you!" Ouyang Qingyun gritted his teeth, still refusing to give in.

This Demon Blood Blade held extraordinary significance for him.

"Hmph! In the Secret Realm, you don't have your Family to protect you." Xiang Tian scoffed, warning, "You had better think clearly. Don't force me to use force."

"You dare to act recklessly? This place is full of people from our Ouyang Family!" Ouyang Qingyun shouted while lying on the ground, feeling powerless.

The wounds on his body had just been staunched with medicine, but the Qi inside him was completely exhausted.

If Xiang Tian really wanted to take action, he would have no power to resist at all.

"Is that so?" Xiang Tian sneered, unconcerned.

"I won against you with real skill. The bet was fair and square. Who would dare to stand up for you?"

He wasn't extorting him.

This was the wager he deserved; it was reasonable and fair.

Moreover, his uncle-in-law wouldn't turn a blind eye to this and let Ouyang Qingyun renege on the debt.

"Yunshan, Yunze..." Ouyang Qingyun had no choice but to cast a pleading gaze toward Ouyang Yunshan and the others not far away.

"Don't call me." Ouyang Yunshan turned his head away, avoiding his gaze, and said in a deep voice, "This is a bet between the two of you. If you lose, you pay up. I cannot interfere."

No matter how precious this blade was, since it had been used as a wager, he should honor it if he lost.

If he intervened, it would be against the rules.

"Ouyang Qingyun, you're a grown man. If you lose, you lose. You actually want to renege? Aren't you ashamed?" Ouyang Miaomiao didn't have such a good temper and spoke up to reprimand him directly.

After all, this was something Xiang Tian had won, so she naturally had to side with him.

As soon as she finished speaking, Ouyang Miaomiao walked forward quickly.

Without another word, she kicked Ouyang Qingyun.

"Bang!"

This kick was full of force.

Ouyang Qingyun's wounds, which had just stopped bleeding, instantly split open, and blood gushed out again.

"Ahhh—"

A shrill scream echoed throughout the entire Secret Realm, making people's scalps tingle.

With one foot stepped directly onto Ouyang Qingyun's chest, her phoenix eyes filled with sternness, she shouted coldly: "I'll ask you one last time: are you giving it to me or not?"

"Ouyang Miaomiao, don't forget, you are also from the Ouyang Family!" Ouyang Qingyun roared in anger, enduring the severe pain.

"Precisely because I am from the Ouyang Family, I must abide by the rules even more!" Ouyang Miaomiao's tone was cold.

She paused and added, "What's more, Xiang Tian is the man this Young Miss has taken a fancy to. You won't even give me Face; are you not taking me seriously?"

As soon as these words were spoken, Ouyang Qingyun was instantly speechless.

If it were a matter of public duty, he might have been able to argue a few points.

But since Ouyang Miaomiao had directly treated Xiang Tian as one of her own, he had no way to refute it.

"Qingyun, give the big blade to Xiang Tian first," Ouyang Yunshan said after much thought.

"If it really doesn't work out, after we get out, you can just trade items of equal value to get it back."

Doing this would both honor the bet and avoid damaging relations.

It was the safest method for now.

"Of course, that is on the condition that Xiang Tian is willing to agree to the exchange," Ouyang Yunshan added, handing the decision-making power to Xiang Tian.

After saying this, he said nothing more; this was all he could do regarding this matter.

"Hmm, Ouyang Yunshan's suggestion is not bad." Xiang Tian nodded.

He didn't need to make the relationship too rigid.

After all, the Ouyang Family was his aunt's Family.

"Bring the big blade here."

Matters having reached this point, Ouyang Qingyun no longer had any room to resist.

He could only unwillingly take the black big blade from his storage ring and hand it over.

Seeing him give in, Ouyang Miaomiao finally slowly moved her foot off his chest.

"Cough, cough..." Ouyang Qingyun finally caught his breath and began to cough violently, his Face as pale as paper.

Xiang Tian took the black big blade, and his brows instantly furrowed.

Observing it at close range, the blade was pitch black, and a strange aura lingered on its surface, making people feel very uncomfortable.

"Master, the aura of this blade is so strange; I really don't like it." Beside him, Bai Yu also knitted her delicate brows.

Subconsciously, she took a few steps back, increasing the distance between her and Xiang Tian.

Just as Xiang Tian lowered his head to stroke the blade, feeling that strange aura, a shout of anger suddenly rang out: "Xiang Tian, you scoundrel!"

Ouyang Yunyan appeared with a Face full of fury, waving her palm and striking towards Xiang Tian.

"Is your reaction time as a woman too long?" Xiang Tian rolled his eyes.

Unhurriedly, he raised his hand to meet the attack.

"Bang!"

The palms collided.

Xiang Tian took the opportunity to pull, directly pulling Ouyang Yunyan into his arms.

"You lecher, let me go!" Ouyang Yunyan was both embarrassed and angry, struggling desperately in Xiang Tian's arms.

But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't break free from Xiang Tian's restraint.

Xiang Tian didn't pay any attention to her struggles.

He continued to stroke the blade to himself, while simultaneously contacting You Lingqing in his Sea of Consciousness: "Senior, this blade is a fake, but why does it have that woman's aura?"

"That woman's aura is very faint; it should be that this blade was once kept together with her treasure for a long time and became contaminated by it," You Lingqing said after thinking for a moment.

"If you want to find her treasure, you must find out the origin of this blade."

"Senior, this blade was found by Ouyang Qingyun's Old Ancestor. It's hard to say if his Old Ancestor is still alive, so where am I supposed to investigate its origin?" Xiang Tian was immediately troubled.

This was no different from looking for a needle in a haystack.

"This blade is passed down by their clan as a supreme treasure; it must be a top-tier event within the clan," You Lingqing analyzed.

"For an event of this level, there is a high probability that there are records in the clan. If you follow this clue, you will definitely be able to find some traces."

Upon hearing this, Xiang Tian's eyes lit up immediately: "Senior makes sense. Since that's the case, why don't I use this blade to trade with them for information about its origin? What do you think?"

"Hmm, if you are willing to part with it, this is naturally the best method," You Lingqing nodded in agreement.

"Senior, I've been working so hard to help you, and I haven't gained any benefits yet," Xiang Tian changed the subject, starting to bargain.

"Back then, you forcibly opened my Sea of Consciousness, which hurt me excruciatingly. Shouldn't you give me some consolatory reward?"

"You brat, you haven't even accomplished the task yet, and you dare to ask me for benefits?" You Lingqing teased.

"Be careful, or I will directly perform Possession on your body."

"Senior, don't scare me," Xiang Tian said solemnly.

"I know you are a kind-hearted woman and definitely wouldn't lay a hand on me."

Just as Xiang Tian was conversing with You Lingqing in his Sea of Consciousness, the entire Secret Realm suddenly trembled violently.

"Boom—"

A deafening roar came, directly startling Xiang Tian's consciousness back from his Sea of Consciousness.

"Damn, what happened?" Xiang Tian suddenly looked up, scanning his surroundings with a vigilant gaze.

At this moment, Ouyang Yunshan and the others had also entered a state of readiness, drawing their weapons one after another and observing the movements around them vigilantly.