153: Hidden traces of the outer heavens

Jun Xiaoyao sat on the cold jade couch, his fingertips lightly tapping the ebony desk in front of him.

Spread across the desk was a map of the continent's power distribution.

The strongholds of The Net, outlined in cinnabar, had already spread to Qingzhou, Xuzhou, and other places, like an invisible spider web, silently devouring scattered fragments of information.

"Zhao Gao."

He did not even lift his head, his voice drifting through the openwork jade screen with a touch of casual laziness.

From the shadows, Zhao Gao bowed and stepped out; his black brocade robe was embroidered with a dark spider web pattern, and the jade pendant at his waist clinked with faint sounds.

"Young Lord, the third stronghold of The Net in Qingzhou has been activated. Just last night, the cleanup of the Iron Sword Sect was completed, and the leader's head has already been hung on the city gate tower."

He placed a blood-stained brocade box in front of the desk; inside was a head with its eyes wide open, blood still slowly seeping out.

Jun Xiaoyao glanced at it and drew a circle on the map over the position of Qingzhou with his fingertip: "What about that batch of mysterious iron privately hidden by the Iron Sword Sect?"

"It has been warehoused," Zhao Gao replied, lowering his eyes, "A total of three hundred jin, with extremely high purity, enough to forge twenty heavy swords. However..."

He paused, his tone slightly heavy, "News has come from the Marshal of the Unruly. During the cleanup, they encountered people from the Heavenly Dao Alliance. Both sides fought, and The Net lost seven skilled members."

Jun Xiaoyao finally looked up, his ink-colored pupils devoid of emotion: "What about the Marshal of the Unruly?"

"The Marshal of the Unruly took action himself and beheaded three Protectors of the Heavenly Dao Alliance, but his left arm was injured by the opponent's 'Heart-Shattering Palm', so he has returned to camp to heal."

Zhao Gao handed over a secret report, "This is a personal letter from the Marshal of the Unruly."

Opening the secret letter, the handwriting was sharp as a blade, mixed with undried blood—"The Heavenly Dao Alliance has intervened in the mysterious iron matter. Their leader, the Blood Hand Butcher, has declared that he will level The Net's Qingzhou stronghold within three days. This Marshal requests the Young Lord's decision."

Jun Xiaoyao held the secret letter to the candle flame, watching the fire lick the paper until it turned to ash before slowly speaking: "Let the Marshal of the Unruly recover from his injuries, and summon someone else."

A flash of understanding crossed Zhao Gao's eyes. He bowed and retreated to the side of the desk, forming hand seals.

Suddenly, the floor beneath the desk split open, revealing a secret chamber about a zhang square. Eerie blue flames flickered in the wall niches, illuminating the summoning array in the center, which was engraved with runes.

At the center of the array, seven diamond-shaped jade pendants floated in mid-air, emitting a gentle luster.

"With blood as the guide, with the soul as the contract—" Zhao Gao sliced his palm with his fingertip and flicked blood droplets into the array's center.

The jade pendants suddenly lit up, and the runes moved like living things, weaving into a curtain of light in the air.

"Please, Young Lord, bestow the name."

Jun Xiaoyao stood up, walked to the front of the array, and his gaze fell on the light curtain.

"Jianghu rumors say, 'Little Lis Flying Dagger, never misses its target.' Since that is the case, let us invite him to put an end to this disturbance."

As his voice fell, the light curtain trembled violently, and a figure stepped out from the light.

The person wore a washed-out blue shirt with a wine gourd hanging at his waist. A Flying Dagger spun in his fingers, and his eyes were as clear as autumn water; it was none other than Li Xunhuan.

As he landed on the ground, he brought with him a scent of wine. He cupped his hands toward Jun Xiaoyao, his voice carrying a touch of free-spirited hoarseness: "Little Lis Flying Dagger, Li Xunhuan, greets the Young Lord."

[Character Panel]

Name: Li Xunhuan

From World: sentimental swordsman, ruthless sword

Realm: Mid-stage Grandmaster

Martial Skills/Cultivation Techniques:

1. Little Lis Flying Dagger: Controls the blade with the heart, the blade never misses, specializes in breaking internal Protective Aura, has absolute suppression over Martial Artists below the Heavenly Human Realm.

2. Treading Snow Without a Trace: Footwork is light, excels at concealment and surprise attacks.

3. Shooting Sand and Shadow: Seven fine needles hidden in the sleeves, can be used for follow-up attacks when the Flying Dagger misses, catching the opponent off guard.

Jun Xiaoyao pointed to the headquarters of the Heavenly Dao Alliance on the map: "The Qingzhou Heavenly Dao Alliance, within three days, I want the head of the Blood Hand Butcher."

Li Xunhuan took a swig of wine, and the liquid flowed down the corner of his mouth, but he wiped his face without caring: "Killing is easy, but..."

He raised an eyebrow and looked at Jun Xiaoyao, "I heard The Net lost seven men?"

"Yes."

"Does Beyond Heaven take care of their families?" The Flying Dagger at Li Xunhuan's fingertips stopped in mid-air, his eyes suddenly becoming serious.

Jun Xiaoyao said indifferently: "Once they join The Net, they are people of Beyond Heaven in life and ghosts of Beyond Heaven in death. Their families can receive fifty taels of pension every month, children enter the Beyond Heaven school, and the elderly enter the nursing home."

Li Xunhuan smiled upon hearing this and retracted the Flying Dagger into his sleeve: "In that case, I accept this job."

He turned to leave, but then looked back and said, "By the way, I heard that the Heavenly Dao Alliance's 'Heart-Shattering Palm', when trained to the extreme, can shatter a person's Divine Soul. Does the Young Lord have a solution?"

Zhao Gao immediately stepped forward and handed over a porcelain bottle: "This is the 'Soul Protection Pill'. Taking it can ensure the stability of the Divine Soul."

Li Xunhuan took the porcelain bottle, his figure flickered and disappeared outside the door, leaving only the words "Hear the good news in three days."

Zhao Gao looked in the direction where he disappeared and said in a low voice: "Young Lord, although Li Xunhuan is strong, the Heavenly Dao Alliance has three Elders in the Heavenly Human Realm after all. Might it..."

"Heavenly Human Realm?" Jun Xiaoyao walked to the window and looked at the rolling mountain shadows in the distance. "Then summon another one who can deal with the Heavenly Human Realm."

He tapped his fingertip on the void, and the summoning array lit up again. This time the light was even brighter than before, and the runes condensed into the phantom of a giant sword in the air.

"Invite the 'Sword Demon', Never Seeking Defeat."

A sword chime came from the array, as if traversing a thousand years of time.

A figure wearing a coir raincoat walked out slowly. His hair and beard were all white, but he held a rusty iron sword in his hand. When his gaze swept across the surroundings, even the candle flames froze for a moment.

[Character Panel]

Name: Never Seeking Defeat

From World: the return of the condor heroes

Realm: Earthly Immortal Early-Stage

Martial Skills/Cultivation Techniques:

1. Nine Swords of Dugu: Breaks all martial arts in the world, divided into 'General Formula Style', 'Sword Breaking Style', up to 'Qi Breaking Style', can break all Moves below the Heavenly Human Realm.

2. No Sword is Better Than Having a Sword: Grass, wood, bamboo, and stone can all be used as swords; where the mind reaches, all things are weapons.

3. Clear Sword Heart: The state of mind is clear, undisturbed by illusions, immune to mental attacks.

"This old man has not asked about worldly affairs for many years." Never Seeking Defeat's voice was like the friction of ancient swords, carrying vicissitudes. "If it's just to deal with a few in the Heavenly Human Realm, it's making a mountain out of a molehill."

Jun Xiaoyao handed over a pot of aged Nu'erhong wine: "Senior, do you know about the 'Blood Soul Banner', the treasure of the Heavenly Dao Alliance? It is said to be refined from three thousand living souls, capable of contaminating a person's Spiritual Root and ruining their Dao foundation."

Never Seeking Defeat's hand holding the iron sword tightened suddenly, and a fierce look flashed in his eyes: "Such evil objects are disasters if left behind."

He took the wine pot, drank it all in one gulp, and lightly flicked the iron sword in his hand. The rust peeled off, revealing the cold, gleaming sword body inside. "Speak, what do you want me to do?"

"Guard the 'Duan Yun Cliff' outside Qingzhou City." Jun Xiaoyao pointed to a pass on the map. "If the Heavenly Dao Alliance sends reinforcements, Senior, just kill them."

Never Seeking Defeat nodded. His figure turned into a sword light and broke out through the window, leaving only the words "Come to take the evil object in three days."

Zhao Gao looked at the empty window, sweat seeping from his forehead: "Young Lord, summoning two top-tier experts at once, won't it be too..."

"The Net is the claws and teeth of Beyond Heaven. If the claws and teeth are broken, do you expect me to take action myself?"

Jun Xiaoyao sat back on the cold jade couch and picked up the secret report on the desk, which read "The Heavenly Dao Alliance has a secret agreement with Haoran Academy to join forces and suppress The Net."

He sneered and threw the secret report to Zhao Gao, "Have the Shadow Department of The Net investigate the shortcomings of Haoran Academy. I remember that the Dean, 'Kong Xuanli', values his reputation the most."

Zhao Gao took the secret report and was about to retreat when he was stopped by Jun Xiaoyao.

"Wait." Jun Xiaoyao took out a black token from a hidden compartment, with the character 'Heaven' engraved on it. "Tell the Marshal of the Unruly to go to Xuzhou after his injuries heal and take over the branch of The Net there. Here in Qingzhou, having Li Xunhuan and Never Seeking Defeat is enough."

Zhao Gao took the token, and when his fingertips touched the cold metal, he couldn't help but look up at Jun Xiaoyao.

This Young Lord was always like this; he seemed to manage nothing, yet he had already calculated everything clearly—The Net fought in the front, Beyond Heaven reaped the rewards in the back, and the Young Lord only needed to sit on this cold jade couch to make the forces of the entire continent churn with undercurrents.

The night grew deeper, and faint flashes of blades and sword shadows came from the direction of Qingzhou, illuminating half the sky.

Jun Xiaoyao picked up his teacup, watching the tea leaves float and sink in the water, a barely perceptible arc curving at the corners of his mouth.

Three days later, at the Qingzhou city gate.

Li Xunhuan carried a sack and walked slowly to the stronghold of The Net. He threw the sack on the ground, and the head of the Blood Hand Butcher rolled out, its eyes wide open.

"Done." He wiped the blood off his hands, "There are quite a few good things in the Heavenly Dao Alliance's warehouse. Does the Young Lord want them?"

At the same time, a shocking sword chime came from Duan Yun Cliff. Never Seeking Defeat walked through the air holding the 'Blood Soul Banner'. The banner was shrouded in black aura, but it was suppressed tightly by the Sword Intent around him.

"This banner is defiled and should be burned."

Jun Xiaoyao stood in front of the window, watching the raging fire rising in the direction of Qingzhou; that was the burning of the Blood Soul Banner.

He picked up the secret report that Zhao Gao had just delivered, which read "Haoran Academy Dean Kong Xuanli colluded with the Demon Cult, evidence has been obtained."

"Very good." He placed the secret report on the candle flame, "The next step is to let Haoran Academy also taste the price of moving against my Beyond Heaven."

Zhao Gao bowed in agreement and withdrew to make arrangements.

Only the crackling of the candle flame remained in the secret chamber, reflecting in Jun Xiaoyao's deep eyes, as if he could see through every undercurrent on this continent.

Although the name of Beyond Heaven had not yet been revealed to the public, wherever The Net reached, various forces had already vaguely sensed that an invisible hand was manipulating the chessboard.