SSEWC Chapter 45

In the peaceful residence,

He Heng finally adjusted his posture and smoothed his disheveled hair. Immediately, he exerted force to pull the long sword that was inserted into the wall.

In that instant, white specks fell like snowflakes from the mottled wall.

“Cough! Cough!”

At this moment, weak coughs echoed in his ears. He Heng lowered his head and saw Yan Qing’an, his steps floating slightly to the side.

The opponent’s haggard face showed no trace of color, and the originally pale lips even had a few streaks of crimson blood. The eyes, partially hidden beneath long lashes, revealed an indescribable weariness.

The moment Yan Qing’an’s ruthless cultivation was disrupted by someone, his previously robust aura instantly began to reverse, causing him to lose all his inner strength and damage his meridians. Moreover, the foundational core of a cultivator, the inner core, was forcibly taken from him. He was then forced to engage in a prolonged battle with those righteous individuals who were besieging him.

At this moment, he was at the end of his strength, and it was no easy feat for him to hold on until now.

Finally, in the next second, Yan Qing’an uncontrollably leaned to one side.

But just as he lost balance, his hand was grasped by someone,

It was a pair of long and powerful palms,

Immediately after, he fell into a warm embrace.

He Heng let him half lean on himself, his tall figure blocking all gazes from the outside world, preventing anyone from witnessing his current disheveled state.

Yan Qing’an’s black hair cascaded down, covering half of his face. He weakly leaned against He Heng’s chest,

At this moment, the true qi in his dantian was in turmoil, stirring all the nerves throughout his body, causing a dull pain. Even his breathing became increasingly unstable, and he couldn’t help but cough with every attempt to take a breath.

So, at the moment of falling, Yan Qing’an’s consciousness became somewhat hazy. He even forgot He Heng’s identity. The sensation of leaning on him didn’t seem unpleasant; in fact, it felt like something he could rely on.

He was like a weary traveler, ultimately collapsing on the rugged path covered in muddy soil. The strong and warm embrace of the other person was his final support.

However, in the next moment, Yan Qing’an’s thoughts began to return. He suddenly realized that the man before him was the one behind all of this.

With this realization, his knuckles pressed against He Heng’s shoulder, struggling to rise. But at that moment, his wrist was once again held by someone.

This time, the other person directly brought him into their arms, reaching for the meridians at his wrist.

Yan Qing’an felt wave after wave of gentle and steady spiritual power being transmitted into him, gradually calming the chaotic breath in his dantian.

“You… cough, cough!”

He wanted to ask He Heng why he was doing this, but as soon as he spoke, another fit of coughing overcame him.

“Master,”

At this moment, the deep voice of the other person came from above,

Yan Qing’an lifted his head and met He Heng’s profound gaze, like an endless and tranquil lake, calm yet unfathomable.

Following this, the man in front of him suddenly spoke with a voice carrying a hint of anger:

“Who broke your Heartless Dao?”

After saying this, he didn’t give Yan Qing’an any time to react. He turned directly to look at the crowd that he had beaten into a mess,

“I’ll go deal with him right away.”

He Heng’s words instantly silenced the atmosphere in the Wang An Ju Residence.

Everyone immediately averted their gazes. Some even went so far as to lie down, lower their heads, close their eyes, and pretend to be unconscious.

In the previous altercation, He Heng had demonstrated a lack of reason. He didn’t even give people time to explain themselves; he went straight to physical confrontation.

Moreover, what reasoning could you have with someone who had fallen into demonic cultivation?

Yan Qing’an had just been beaten by him. If he got angry and randomly accused someone now, would He Heng actually go and deal with that person?

He couldn’t afford to take the risk, so he chose to act like a shrinking turtle.

Seeing that the group had finally quieted down, He Heng turned away, no longer wanting to pay them any attention. As he was about to leave with Yan Qing’an, he felt a force on his hand.

He lowered his head to see that Yan Qing’an was staring at him with an inquisitive expression in his amber eyes.

“What are you really doing?”

To be honest, Yan Qing’an was a bit dizzy from He Heng’s actions. The other’s eccentric and unrestrained behavior had completely shattered his ability to think rationally.

The next moment, he heard the man say, word by word:

“I’ll take revenge for you, Master…”

“Whoever bullied you, I’ll twist his head off.”

Yan Qing’an: “…”

He looked at the other person’s earnest expression and for a moment didn’t know what to say. He even began to wonder if He Heng had amnesia or if someone had switched him, as after all, is “twisting one’s own head off” something a person could do?

Seeing the bewildered expression on Yan Qing’an’s face, He Heng could probably guess that the other’s brain was currently buzzing with confusion.

Yes,

Getting him dizzy is good,

The key to overcoming the crematorium plot is to confuse the protagonist’s perception, make him start questioning life, and then gradually break him down…

“Colluding with demonic sects, causing harm to the common people, Yan Qing’an, are you planning to escape like this?”

But at this moment, a stern questioning voice sounded from behind the two.

He Heng turned around to see the gray-robed old man who had been standing at the forefront of the crowd. He was holding his chest and, with one hand on his sword, stood up from his previous position.

At this moment, he fixed his sharp gaze on Yan Qing’an at the other end of the room, portraying a righteous and imposing appearance.

In this cultivation world, the most well-known among practitioners are the Five Schools and Six Sects, and the old man was named “Suigu”. He hailed from the Ling Mountain Sect, one of the Five Schools and Six Sects.

The Ling Mountain Sect, originally known for its advantageous feng shui and exclusive techniques, produced countless talents over the years. It had always been regarded as the leader among the Six Sects, with the only one barely comparable being the Huayang Sword Sect.

However, since the Nine Yang Sword Technique was lost, the strength of the Huayang Sword Sect declined, and they could no longer compete with the Ling Mountain Sect.

Unexpectedly, in recent years, the Huayang Sword Sect produced someone capable of recovering lost secrets, and that was Yan Qing’an.

Since the moment he officially entered the Huayang Sword Sect as an inner disciple, Yan Qing’an almost monopolized all the sect’s competitions. In recent years, he gained even more prominence in the martial world.

No matter where you went, you could hear people mentioning his name.

Under the influence of Yan Qing’an, the Huayang Sword Sect showed a trend of surpassing the Ling Mountain Sect to become the leader among the Six Sects.

Suigu had seen Yan Qing’an in several sect-wide competitions, and the other always had a cold demeanor, perpetually giving off a sense of superiority, as if he were aloof from worldly affairs.

Seeing the admiration of those around Yan Qing’an, Suigu showed no expression on his face, but inwardly, he sneered at it.

In this world, there couldn’t possibly be a saint for whom everything was perfect. The more someone was worshipped, the easier they were to fall from the pedestal and shatter into pieces.

But what kind of person was Yan Qing’an in private?

Recently, a rumor spread through the martial world, claiming that the reason Yan Qing’an was able to master the Nine Yang Sword Technique to its ninth level was because he secretly colluded with the demonic sect, practiced forbidden techniques, and that’s why his strength increased so dramatically.

To break through the tenth level of the Nine Yang Sword Technique, he even went so far as to steal the sect’s sacred items, risking the wrath of the entire world, and released the seals on the monsters in the Cangshan Abyss in exchange for a massive increase in power.

Upon hearing this news, Suigu suddenly had a realization.

Indeed,

Yan Qing’an was just a surface gentleman. Even if he hid it well, there would be a day when his true nature would be exposed.

With this in mind, Suigu hastily summoned the “righteous” members from various sects to converge on the An Ju Residence. They justified their actions by claiming to “denounce and bring justice for the common people”.

At this moment, although there were clearly two people standing in front of Suigu, he didn’t mention He Heng’s name at all. Instead, he directed all accusations squarely at Yan Qing’an.

Because he knew in his heart that Yan Qing’an carried the weighty title of righteousness on his shoulders, and he was bound by the rules and regulations of the sect. It would be impossible for him to do anything contrary to reason in front of everyone.

However, Suigu deliberately avoided mentioning He Heng’s name, and the reason was simple…

He was afraid of getting punched.

Despite He Heng’s young age and handsome appearance, his punches were no joke.

Upon hearing this, Yan Qing’an’s expression darkened, and he was about to speak when He Heng reached out to stop him.

In the next moment, He Heng turned towards the old man and raised an eyebrow, “Oh,”

This “Oh” was drawn out by He Heng’s tone, carrying a significant meaning,

“You’re saying my Master secretly colluded with the demonic sect. Where’s the evidence?”

Upon hearing this, Suigu was initially stunned, thinking, isn’t this clear as day?

The artifact used to break the seal on the Cangshan Abyss demons has always been in the possession of your Huayang Sword Sect, and in recent years, it has been under the care of Yan Qing’an.

Now that the seal has been lifted, who else but him could have done it?

As Suigu regained his composure, he immediately looked at He Heng with righteous indignation and said:

“The artifact that broke the seal is under the control of your Huayang Sword Sect. For these past few years, your Master Yan Qing’an has been in charge of it. Besides him, who else could have gotten hold of it?”

“Moreover, rumors have long circulated outside that your Master secretly practiced forbidden techniques from the demonic sect to break through the tenth level of the Nine Yang Sword Technique. Now it has caused an uproar everywhere. If he hadn’t actually done such deeds in private, why would there be such an empty accusation?”

At this point, Suigu looked at Yan Qing’an’s pale face and raised his voice even higher,

“According to the ancestral teachings of your Huayang Sword Sect, this is an act of betrayal, breaking the rules, and going against the principles! Aren’t you supposed to face some punishment for what you’ve done?”

At this moment, Suigu just wanted to pull the other down from the pedestal and see if the so-called pride of heaven would still show on his face after falling into the muddy pit.

“Yan Qing’an, can it be that as a sword cultivator of the Huayang Sword Sect, you get special treatment? Don’t you have to pay the price for your actions? Is this the style of your Huayang Sword Sect? I’ve never seen…”

But at that moment, a deep male voice abruptly interrupted him,

“It was me.”

At the same time, He Heng reached out and lightly brushed the blade of his sword, sweeping away the remaining white specks. Then, he took a few steps forward, directly standing in front of Suigu, looking down on him from a higher position.

Suigu: “…”

A shadow suddenly cast over him, and he instinctively took a step back.

“What did you say?”

“I said,” He Heng looked at him and raised his voice several notches,

“I stole the artifact,”

“I released the monsters,”

“Do you understand now?”

As soon as he spoke, the entire room fell silent again. Everyone stared at each other, wide-eyed, but no one dared to take a step closer.

It wasn’t that they were shocked,

It was just that, altogether, they couldn’t beat He Heng.

If they launched an attack now, it would be called overestimating their abilities.

After hearing this, Yan Qing’an became even more puzzled. He originally thought that the reason the other broke his heartlessness, stole the sect’s artifact, and released the seal was because he harbored resentment towards him. He didn’t expect everything to be a set-up, framing and blaming him.

What aspect is He Heng trying to act out now?

Could it be…

Is this the rumored mental disorder in the martial world?

The reaction of the crowd hit He Heng’s intentions precisely.

Since he is now the proud dragon of the cultivation world, how can he waste his position as such?

Thinking of this, a sarcastic smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. He looked at Suigu, who had turned into a mute figure in front of him.

“Aren’t you going to punish me? I’m right here…”

“Come on, then.”

As the words fell, He Heng was suddenly surrounded by eerie black mist, layer after layer of it swirling around him. At the same time, the mark between his eyebrows started turning red. Just standing there motionless sent shivers down everyone’s spine.

Perhaps due to the mutual restraint between Yan Qing’an’s inner core and the demonic soul, He Heng could now freely use the power of the demonic soul inside him without worrying about being controlled by it.

As he gradually released the increasing demonic energy from within, his eyes also darkened. Thorns-like blood-red demonic patterns spread across his exposed arms and neck. His voice became deep and terrifying,

“Ah.”

After speaking, He Heng took another step towards Suigu. At this point, there was barely a trace of the other person in his eyes.

He looked up, only to find the hall almost empty. It had a desolate feeling, reminiscent of autumn winds sweeping away fallen leaves. Everyone had long fled the hall, trembling outside while cautiously observing.

He gazed at He Heng, enveloped by demonic energy in the center of the hall.

Who would dare to approach?

 

 

 

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