23: Chapter 23 Red, Like a Witch

Cao Yang tightly gripped the Storage Ring in his hand, a flash of determination in his eyes. Without hesitation, he took off the ring he was originally wearing and carefully put it away.

Next, he quickly transferred the Gale Sword and some precious Spirit Stones from the original ring into the Storage Ring he had just stripped from the immortal corpse and placed it on his finger.

After completing this, Cao Yang once again took out that mysterious rusty sword from the System space. His gaze was focused and expectant, as if waiting for a wonderful change.

Immediately after, he took out over a hundred immortal spirit stones from the newly acquired Storage Ring and placed them together with the rusty sword.

Almost instantly, the dense Immortal Qi within the immortal spirit stones began to be greedily absorbed by the rusty sword.

As time passed, the rust on the surface of the sword gradually peeled off, revealing a stunning color.

Soon, a blood-red immortal sword appeared before his eyes, exuding a mysterious and powerful aura.

However, this blood-red sword didn't seem satisfied and continued to incessantly absorb the Immortal Qi from the immortal spirit stones.

Seeing that the immortal spirit stones were about to be drained, Cao Yang did not hesitate to take out the remaining immortal spirit stones from the Storage Ring to continue supplying the immortal sword.

Just as the immortal spirit stones were nearly exhausted, a plume of red mist emerged from the immortal sword, quickly forming a short-haired young girl dressed in a blood-red dress before Cao Yang's surprised eyes.

“I'm finally out. The long-lost air is truly comfortable,” the red-robed girl took a greedy breath, her face full of pleasure.

Cao Yang also recovered from his surprise and asked, “Who are you?”

Actually, Cao Yang knew she was likely the Sword Spirit; he just wanted to confirm and ask about the sword's origin—whether it had fallen from the Immortal Realm, as the sword's grade was very high, unlike something someone from the Tianxuan Realm could possess.

The red-robed girl looked down and saw Cao Yang, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes because the young man before her had a decent cultivation level despite his young age.

The red-robed girl said coldly, “My name is Hong. I am the master of this sword, and also your master!”

Hearing this, Cao Yang frowned, feeling somewhat dissatisfied. He had thought this sword would be nothing special, but now it seemed it wasn't that simple. He looked at the red-robed girl and asked, “You say you are my master? Why?”

The red-robed girl raised her head, a hint of disdain flashing in her eyes as she said, “Because you obtained this sword, you are my slave.”

Cao Yang's eyes widened, unable to believe what he was hearing. Although he knew this sword might be extraordinary, he hadn't expected this.

He sneered and said, “Hmph, do you think I'll listen to you? I am an upright cultivator and a Mahayana Peak powerhouse. How could I possibly become your slave?”

The red-robed girl's lips curled up slightly into a mocking smile. “You think you can resist me? I am the master of this sword and your master. As long as you are disobedient, I can make your life worse than death.” With that, a blood-red light appeared in her hand and struck toward Cao Yang.

Cao Yang hurriedly dodged, narrowly avoiding the red-robed girl's sneak attack. He looked at her angrily and said, “Fine, in that case, watch how I suppress you, witch!” As he spoke, an immortal sword appeared in his hand and attacked the red-robed girl.

The red-robed girl sneered, and the blood-red light appeared in her hand again, clashing with Cao Yang's immortal sword.

Since Hong had just awakened and hadn't recovered yet, her strength was only at the Mahayana Peak level, and she was suppressed by Cao Yang in just a few moves.

If the Formations of Cao Yang's Immortal Cave hadn't been replaced, they probably would have been destroyed by the two of them in just a few breaths.

Cao Yang pressed the immortal sword in his hand against Hong's forehead and said coldly to the red-robed girl, “I helped you recover and spent quite a few immortal spirit stones, yet you, witch, attacked me as soon as you woke up. This is outrageous.”

“If I weren't afraid of destroying my Immortal Cave by using my full strength, I could have killed you in one move. For the sake of your true form being an immortal sword, I'll give you another chance. Apologize for your behavior just now, or I will wipe out your sentience.” Cao Yang was determined; an immortal sword without an Artifact Spirit would be much less powerful, but it was better than having one that wanted to kill him.

Cao Yang knew Hong was no ordinary immortal sword because after encountering her, he had a vague feeling that recognizing her as his own would bring trouble; otherwise, he would have forced her to recognize him as master long ago.

If he truly wiped her out, he might never know the source of the trouble. Cao Yang didn't like things being out of his control, which is why he kept Hong, intending to slowly find the trouble behind her once he became stronger.

But if she truly remained stubborn, he would have no choice but to wipe out her sentience.

As Cao Yang spoke, he communicated with the System. “System, can you wipe out Hong's sentience?”

“Ding! Yes. Does the Host confirm the erasure of Hong's sentience?”

“I'll give you three seconds,” Cao Yang gave his final warning!

“Three!”

“Two!”

“I apologize! I admit my mistake!”

“I admit my mistake. I shouldn't have attacked you as soon as I woke up. Please forgive me.”

Hong originally didn't believe Cao Yang could hurt her. After all, no matter how weak she was, she wouldn't be killed by an ant; if she couldn't win, she could hide, believing the other party would have no way to deal with her.

But when Cao Yang gave the warning, Hong suddenly had a feeling of impending doom that was incredibly real. She didn't dare to gamble, so she admitted her mistake and lowered her noble head.

Seeing Hong admit her mistake, Cao Yang thought to himself, “System, if Hong attacks me again, wipe out her sentience directly without confirming with me.”

System: ...

Cao Yang withdrew the sword in his hand and said disdainfully, “Do you think just because you're an immortal sword, I must have you? Don't think too highly of yourself.”

“Originally, while you were sleeping, I could have forced you to recognize me as your master, but out of respect for you, I did not do so.”

Hong remained silent, falling into deep thought, as if considering the truth of Cao Yang's words.

“Now that you've admitted your mistake, if you want to leave, then go; I won't stop you. Of course, if you have nowhere to go, you can also choose to temporarily follow by my side.”

In reality, if Hong really dared to leave, Cao Yang was determined to wipe out her sentience.

“Is everything you said true? If I don't need to recognize you as my master, then following you temporarily isn't out of the question.”

Hearing Cao Yang's words, the coldness on Hong's face gradually faded, and she seemed to develop an interest in his proposal.

“Of course. I, Cao Yang, am a dignified young Mahayana powerhouse, a man of my word. Why would I deceive you?” Cao Yang said with a serious face, but he muttered to himself, “Hmph! A little immortal sword, I don't believe I can't handle you.”

Looking at Cao Yang's expression, Hong seemed to sense his inner thoughts, and her lips curled up slightly in an imperceptible smile. She thought, “Although this youth is a bit arrogant, he seems quite interesting.” Thus, she decided to give Cao Yang a chance to see if he was truly worthy of her following.

However, Cao Yang had not forgotten that he still had an important question unanswered. He looked at Hong and continued, “Hong, you haven't answered my previous question. If it's convenient, can you tell me something about your origin?”

Hong was silent for a moment, appearing to recall past events. After a while, she slowly spoke, “My original master was the Young Sect Leader of an immortal sect in the Immortal Realm. During an exploration of some ruins, we were betrayed by his friend. After being besieged, he eventually fell. As for me, because of my heavy injuries, I fell into a slumber until I met you and woke up.” At this point, a flash of sadness and anger appeared in Hong's eyes.

Cao Yang listened quietly to Hong's story, not knowing if what she said was true or false. He comforted her with a sympathetic look, “Don't worry, Hong. Those who hurt you will eventually be punished. In the future, while you are following me, I will do my best to protect you.”

Regardless of whether Cao Yang's words were true or false, Hong showed a look of being moved and nodded to express her thanks.