Chapter 87: Black and White Xuanjian
"System, begin stealing," Zu Zong called out in his mind.
[Ding, stealing in progress]
[Ding, congratulations to the host for stealing a revolver from an underground weapons cache in the Hero world. Ownerless item. No hatred value generated.]
Reaching into the void, he pulled out a silver revolver and a box of bullets. A helpless smile appeared on Zu Zong's face.
"Yen Shuangying again. What a waste of a steal. If I really wanted this stuff, I would've just crossed over and emptied that entire cache myself."
"System, continue stealing."
[Ding, congratulations to the host for stealing the White Sword of Black and White Xuanjian from the Qin's Moon world.]
"Black and White Xuanjian? Could it be the part from Heavenly Song of the Nine Swords when that old bastard Wei Yong betrayed Xuanjian, and even his daughter Wei Qianqian ended up dead?"
Speaking of Wei Qianqian, Zu Zong had a deep impression of her. He recalled, back on Blue Star, every time he saw her die to save Xuanjian, he always felt great pity.
Wei Qianqian was the daughter of Wei Yong, the Grand Minister of Works of Wei. She was also Xuanjian's wife.
By chance, she saved a severely wounded Xuanjian. The two pledged themselves to each other and she became pregnant. However, the child was taken by a maid of the Wei family and used by Wei Yong as leverage against Xuanjian.
Later, Xuanjian was forced by Wei Yong to hand over the White Sword. Under Dian Qing's assault, he fell into disadvantage. At that moment, Wei Qianqian defied her father, seized the White Sword, and threw it to Xuanjian. With it, Xuanjian repelled Dian Qing.
As she leapt from the city wall, Xuanjian caught her. She told Dian Qing that Xuanjian was not the one who had killed the general. Dian Qing, upon hearing this, ceased his attack and pressed for the real culprit.
Enraged, Wei Yong ordered archers to release flaming arrows to kill them both. Wei Qianqian then told Xuanjian how to open the city gates. When Xuanjian was unable to fend off Dian Qing's attack while disabling the trap mechanism, she stepped in and took the blow for him with her life.
Such a kind-hearted woman, sacrificed by her own father for political gain.
Xuanjian sank her body along with himself into the lake, intending to die. But upon seeing the Black Sword that had fallen into the lake earlier, the fire of vengeance reignited within him. He picked up the killing sword once again and swore to avenge Qianqian!
From then on, Xuanjian fully descended into darkness.
[Ding, Wei Yong, the guardian of Black and White Xuanjian, has discovered the theft of the famed sword. He now harbors killing intent toward the host. Hatred level has risen to 100%. Hatred points +10,000. Host, prepare for battle. In ten seconds, you will be randomly teleported within one kilometer of Wei Manor's guards. Duration: one hour. Countdown: 10, 9, 8…]
As the childish female system voice echoed in his mind, Zu Zong let out a long sigh.
"So be it. I'll take this as an act of compassion. Hopefully, I'm not too late."
[3… 2… 1… Initiating teleportation.]
As the words fell, with space around him twisting, Zu Zong vanished from his room.
At that same moment, in the capital of Wei—
Beneath the city tower, Xuanjian was locked in fierce combat with Dian Qing.
Without the White Sword, and with the Black Sword also missing, he was no match for Dian Qing, whose armored body technique had been trained to perfection. He quickly fell into a perilous situation.
Atop the tower, Wei Qianqian pleaded earnestly, but Wei Yong, driven by power, remained heartless and resolute in his plan to eliminate Xuanjian.
Just as Wei Qianqian was about to steal the White Sword to save Xuanjian, it suddenly vanished in full view of everyone.
Seeing the sword disappear from his hands, Wei Yong nearly went mad with fury. If the White Sword returned to Xuanjian, he might escape the siege—and that would have disastrous consequences. Xuanjian's revenge was one thing, but if the truth came to light, Wei Yong would lose everything: power, position, and influence.
Wei Yong roared, "Who was it? Who stole the White Sword? I'll kill them!"
He then turned his gaze to Wei Qianqian, eyes blazing. "Was it you? Were you planning to save Xuanjian, you unfilial daughter?!"
Wei Qianqian's face turned pale. She had indeed planned to steal the sword to save him, but before she could, it had already vanished.
As Wei Yong continued to press her, she instinctively backed away—only to find herself at the very edge of the city tower.
"Ah!" A shriek rang out.
As expected, Wei Qianqian fell.
The cry drew everyone's attention.
Xuanjian, distracted by the scream, was caught off guard. Dian Qing struck him down.
Lying on the ground, he watched Wei Qianqian fall, despair filling his eyes.
But in the next moment, a shocking scene unfolded.
Just as Wei Qianqian was about to hit the ground, a blue-silver plant suddenly appeared out of nowhere and caught her, gently placing her beside Xuanjian.
"So you really are that ruthless, huh? Old man Wei—even your own daughter wasn't spared."
As a crisp voice rang out, everyone turned toward its source.
A blue-haired youth, clad in black battle gear and wearing a fire-fox mask, appeared atop the city wall opposite Wei Yong. This was none other than Zu Zong, who had arrived just in time. After being teleported, he had landed not far from the scene. Upon witnessing Wei Qianqian forced off the city wall by Wei Yong, he rushed over immediately and prevented a tragedy from unfolding.
Wei Yong narrowed his eyes and said coldly, "Who are you, and why are you meddling in matters that don't concern you?"
Zu Zong couldn't be bothered to answer. Speaking with a pure politician like him was a waste of time. With soul power gathering beneath his feet, he vanished in an instant movement, appearing before Wei Qianqian and Xuanjian.
This move shocked everyone present—an expert, without a doubt.
Even top-tier warriors like Xuanjian and Dian Qing couldn't fully track his movement with their eyes.
Seeing Wei Qianqian unharmed, Xuanjian endured his pain and, with her support, stood up. He knew the man before him had saved his wife.
Xuanjian cupped his fists and bowed. "Thank you for rescuing Qianqian. If not for you—"
Wei Qianqian also bowed. "Thank you for saving me."
Zu Zong waved his hand. "No need for thanks. I simply didn't want to see this tragedy happen. Miss Wei is kind-hearted, and Xuanjian, you were willing to abandon the world of martial arts for her. If she had died, you would've been consumed by hatred, becoming a slave to vengeance. That would've been the real tragedy."
His words left Xuanjian and Wei Qianqian in silence. Their fingers interlaced, holding tightly to one another.
Zu Zong then turned toward Dian Qing, standing off to the side. Based on the current timeline, this was still early in the reign of Zheng-ge. It would be another three to four years before he visited Han Fei in Korea. The Qin dynasty had not yet unified China, the Six Kingdoms still stood, and Dian Qing's eyesight remained intact.
Zu Zong looked at him and said plainly, "Do you really think Xuanjian killed your master? Miss Wei, what do you say?"
"It wasn't Xuanjian who killed your master," said Wei Qianqian.
As she spoke, her expression dimmed, for she knew the real killer was none other than her father, Wei Yong.
Zu Zong caught a glimpse of Wei Yong atop the tower out of the corner of his eye.
Sure enough, Wei Yong's expression changed dramatically—from cautious and grave to pure, unrestrained killing intent.
"Dian Qing, kill them now!" Wei Yong roared. "That man is Xuanjian's accomplice—he must have had a hand in your master's death too!"
Though Dian Qing had a muscular frame, his mind was anything but simple. In fact, he was quite meticulous. He may not trust others easily, but since even Wei Qianqian had spoken, the matter clearly warranted further thought.
"Who exactly killed my master?" Dian Qing asked.
[End of Chapter]
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