470: Chapter 470 Xu Ruyu, you didn't expect we'd come back, did you?

"Clap, clap, clap."

That crisp applause still echoed in the night sky, one beat after another, unhurried and steady, carrying an indescribable sense of triumph.

Xu Ruyu sat leaning against a rock, lifting his head to watch the two figures emerging from the darkness.

The moonlight spilled onto them, illuminating their faces—an old man with white hair and a gaunt face, wearing the robes of the Tianshu Sword Sect, surrounded by Sword Qi. It was none other than Tian Jianzi.

The other, a middle-aged man with a pale face, covered in wounds and looking utterly wretched, was Zhao Qian.

A bitter smile tugged at the corners of Xu Ruyu's mouth.

He had long guessed that others were hiding in the darkness.

He just hadn't expected it to be these two.

Tian Jianzi walked up to Xu Ruyu and looked down at him from a height.

Under the moonlight, his triangular eyes were filled with malice and triumph, and a faint, mocking smile hung on his lips.

The Sword Qi surrounding him was still sharp, but much more restrained than before—he was deliberately suppressing his aura, not wanting Xu Ruyu to discover him too early.

"Xu Ruyu, didn't expect us to return, did you?"

His voice was old and cold, carrying a playfulness like a cat toying with a mouse.

Zhao Qian stood behind Tian Jianzi, pale-faced and still wounded—these were the scorch marks from the Acetylene Great Array, his robes charred black, his face suffering several burns, and much of his hair singed.

But his eyes were filled with excitement and malice, staring fixedly at Xu Ruyu with a twisted smile on his lips.

"Xu Ruyu, you have your day too!"

Zhao Qian gritted his teeth, his voice filled with vindictive pleasure.

"Weren't you so imposing just a moment ago? With one blast you sent Mo Feng flying, with one Formation you trapped Situ E, and with a few words you scared off the three Grand Elders of the Taihu Clan—how impressive!"

"And now? You can't even stand steadily, sprawled on the ground like a dead dog!"

Xu Ruyu looked at him without speaking.

His face was pale as paper, his forehead covered in cold sweat, his hands trembling slightly, and he looked so weak that he seemed ready to collapse at any moment.

Tian Jianzi walked to Xu Ruyu, crouched down, leaned in, and scrutinized his face. Those triangular eyes were filled with inquiry and greed, as if looking at a priceless treasure.

"Xu Ruyu, this seat has lived for over ten thousand years and has seen countless Geniuses and Prodigies. But someone like you, this is the first time I have seen."

His voice was very soft, so soft that only Xu Ruyu could hear it.

"With the Cultivation of the Qi Refinement Stage, yet able to set up a Formation that even this seat cannot break. A mere Sect Master of Hehuan Sect, yet able to turn the Taihu Clan upside down. A young man in his early twenties, yet more troublesome than those old monsters who have lived for thousands of years—just how many secrets are you hiding?"

Xu Ruyu looked at him, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly to reveal a faint smile.

In that smile, there was no fear, no panic, only an indescribable... mockery.

"Senior wants to know?" His voice was hoarse yet calm, "Then go ahead and guess."

Tian Jianzi's expression changed slightly, then he laughed. The smile was filled with coldness and cruelty.

"Guess? This seat won't guess. This seat has plenty of ways to make you talk."

He stood up, stepped back twice, and gave a look to Zhao Qian.

"Qian'er, go over and capture him. Keep him alive; I want him alive. Take him back and interrogate him properly to see what secrets are hidden on this Xu Ruyu."

Zhao Qian's eyes lit up suddenly, a ferocious smile appearing on his face.

He flexed his wrists, his joints making a "crack, crack" sound, and walked toward Xu Ruyu step by step.

"Xu Ruyu, didn't expect this, did you?" His voice was filled with vindictive pleasure.

"You let me go, thinking I would be grateful? You thought you won? No, you lost. You lost because of your mercy. If you hadn't let me go just now, if you had killed me along with them, you wouldn't have ended up in this state today."

He walked up to Xu Ruyu, looked down at him, his eyes filled with mockery.

"Now, your spiritual power is exhausted, your Divine Sense is depleted, and you can't even stand steadily. What will you use to fight me? Your Formation? Your Spiritual Artifact? Those tricks of yours?"

He raised his foot, stepped on the rock beside Xu Ruyu, leaned down, brought his face close to his, and said word by word, "Xu Ruyu, today, I will make you wish you were dead."

Xu Ruyu looked at him, his gaze calm as water.

There was no fear on his face, no panic, only an indescribable... calmness.

It was as if the person standing before him was not an enemy coming for his life, but an insignificant passerby.

"Zhao Qian," he spoke slowly, his voice hoarse yet clear, "Do you know why I let you go?"

Zhao Qian was stunned, then sneered, "Why? Because you feared my Junior Martial Uncle. Because you didn't dare to offend the Tianshu Sword Sect, because you are just a piece of trash that bullies the weak and fears the strong."

Xu Ruyu shook his head and smiled.

"I let you go, not because I feared anyone, but simply because I did not want to be attacked from both sides."

His voice was very soft, yet every word was incredibly clear.

"And now, Situ E has escaped, and the people of the Taihu Clan have left. Zhao Qian, whatever skills you have, bring them out. It will let me, the Sect Master whom you view as a demonic heretic, see exactly how much true ability a dignified Elder of the Tianshu Sword Sect really has."