Longyuan 3

To be honest, when I saw our Master place the Longyuan Sword neatly on the sword sacrificial altar—a spot that had been left vacant for years and occupied the most prominent position in the entire Sword Collection Pavilion—my heart completely collapsed...

The prime spot that I, Danzhu, and Pojun had fought openly and covertly for over all these years without success was snatched just like that by some random iron sword popping out of nowhere?!!!

I glared fiercely as Master carefully placed Longyuan onto the sword sacrificial altar we usually used for gambling, gazing at it with eyes as gentle as water, as if looking at a newlywed wife. I felt an overwhelming urge to pluck off all seven stars on Longyuan's body... What's so good about that broken iron sword? It's heavy, long, and rusts easily, and besides, isn't it my defeated opponent?!

Just look at that brat, not saying a word. Master strokes him so gently, and he doesn't even make a peep. Seeing our huge family of swords, he doesn't even bother to greet us?!

Does he have any manners?!

I looked up and saw Danzhu and Pojun wearing expressions that looked like they wanted to bite Longyuan to death, and I knew they shared my exact feelings. Our eyes met, and for the first time in over ten years, we felt such a mutual appreciation and regret at not having aligned sooner.

Master finally looked his fill, cleared his throat, and glanced around. "Longyuan has just arrived at the Shushan Sect. Take good care of him. And stop gambling."

The swords hastily voiced their assent. He nodded and left, looking as light as the breeze and clouds, with the transcendent bearing of an immortal.

As soon as he left, Danzhu, Pojun, and I transformed into human forms and surrounded Longyuan. The other swords remained silent, but I knew they were tense and expectant, waiting to see us gang up on this little bitch of a sword.

The human forms of us three swords were entirely different. I won't say much about myself—this divine sword is named Ya Jiu. I wear a black robe and a mask that covers half my face with crow feathers. I might not be the tallest or strongest, but I am definitely the coolest of the three. Danzhu has a feminine name and looks like a woman, too, with peach-blossom eyes tinged with red at the corners; when he goes crazy, he is just as terrifying as a woman. Pojun is the tallest, most robust, and manliest of us three, but he's actually the most brainless and extremely lovestruck—he can't even walk straight when he sees Master.

The three of us looked down at Longyuan from above. I cleared my throat, "Hey, you with the stars, do you have any manners? You're new here, shouldn't you come out and say hello?"

Longyuan remained motionless, just like an ordinary iron sword without a sword spirit.

This was simply the greatest contempt toward the three of us...

Danzhu and I exchanged a glance and smirked at each other.

I said, "Danzhu, what should we do if the great Longyuan Sword disdains speaking to us?"

Danzhu threw a coquettish wink. "The differences between us swords can be as vast as heaven and earth. However, no matter how different we are, there is still one thing we have in common." Saying this, he pointed a finger at the place where Longyuan's gold-threaded dragon-patterned hilt met the blade. "This one inch of space is equally sensitive for all of us~ Since it rarely gets touched in daily life, even the slightest brush makes it unbearably ticklish."

I curled the corners of my mouth in a wicked smile, plucked a black feather from my mask, and played with it in my hand. "So you're saying, if I use this feather to touch him here, Lord Longyuan will finally acknowledge us?"

"No sword with spiritual consciousness can withstand it. That is simply torture~"

Pojun, the big lummox, shouted from the side, "I'll hold him down and let him taste the terror of the crow feather punishment!"

So I brought the feather closer and closer, but the sword still showed no reaction. Little punk, you're pretty good at pretending. Thus, steeling my resolve, I scratched that one inch of space with the crow feather. At that exact moment, the sword suddenly erupted with blue light and flew into mid-air, dodging my tickle attack. Our trick having succeeded, Danzhu and I laughed so hard we bent backward and forward. "He actually believed that! Turns out he's the same type as Pojun?!"

Hearing this, Pojun realized he had also been played by the two of us. His rough face turned red with anger as he pointed at our noses. "You two are full of dirty tricks!"

Suspended in mid-air, Longyuan suddenly transformed into his human form, spinning as he descended. His bluish-green robes were like a newly blooming green lotus, and his long hair flew freely like splashed ink. On his cold, sharply defined face, seven small moles formed the pattern of the Big Dipper between his brows. His deep blue gemstone-like eyes, dark as lacquer, stared at us sharply.

Oh? He's quite handsome? Damn it, he's actually slightly more handsome than me?!

And so, I hated him even more.

Longyuan still didn't speak. He just hugged his true form, leaped up onto the crossbeams of the Sword Collection Pavilion, and sat down right there.

Danzhu and I were ignored once again, our irritation soaring to the maximum. Since I arrived, so many swords had entered the Sword Collection Pavilion, but not a single one had disrespected me, Ya Jiu, like this. Right now, every sword in the pavilion was watching us; if I didn't teach him a lesson, how could I ever show my face in the Shushan Sect sword circles again?

I let out a loud shout: "Jiao Ling! Bai Li! Hurry up and get him down for me!"

My two little lackeys hanging on the wall immediately flew out, shrieking as they charged at Longyuan. Amidst flashing lightning and a flickering green shadow, my two little lackeys fell down screaming. I hurriedly dodged out of the way to avoid being crushed.

Although these two swords couldn't compare to this divine sword, they were still famous swords in the martial world. How could they be taken out so easily? I patted my two lackeys, who were now sitting on the ground wiping their tears. "Don't cry, don't cry, your big bro will avenge you."

I slowly stood up, fierce sword qi churning around me, my ink-black robe billowing. I curled the corner of my mouth in disdain. "A defeated opponent dares to act so aloof?"

Longyuan finally gave me a glance, his emotionless eyes revealing nothing. He said, "I am merely taking temporary shelter here. I don't care about your Master. Do not annoy me."

What the hell?! Who mentioned Master to you? Who brought up Master?!

In my excitement, I wanted to charge up and fight him for three hundred rounds, but Danzhu held me back. Danzhu gave me a look, and I saw Pojun behind us. His bright, wide eyes were glaring at Longyuan, his face flushed bright red, and the veins on his forehead bulging out in a state of absolute fury.

Danzhu whispered in my ear, "Wouldn't it be more entertaining to watch the lovestruck Pojun beat up this pretentious sword?"

I gave him a sidelong glance. This guy's dirty tricks really weren't just the usual amount... I'd better be careful around him in the future...

Pojun's sword qi was steady and domineering. Even though he was usually silly and foolish, when he lost his temper, it was quite a spectacle. Not angering Pojun was basic survival knowledge in the Sword Collection Pavilion. In fact, angering him wasn't easy, given his honest and good-natured temperament. But it was also extremely easy to anger him—all you had to do was say a single bad word about Master.

Yes, don't let his majestic and imposing appearance fool you; this guy was actually a die-hard Master-con.

Longyuan was bringing about his own destruction... Excuse me, let me revel in his misfortune for a moment.

I watched as Pojun's domineering aura erupted, his feet sinking an inch into the ground. His true form in his hands was heavy, simple, and unadorned, displaying great skill disguised as clumsiness, faintly exuding the aura of a conqueror. With a swing of his longsword, amidst a terrifying howl, formless and surging sword qi swept toward the crossbeam. Longyuan's face, however, showed no sign of fright. He leaped up like a swimming dragon, and the sword qi struck the crossbeam head-on. Shortly after, the crossbeam broke with a resounding crack.

At this moment, the entire building let out a groan.

My face changed color. "Oh no! Pojun broke the main beam!"

All the swords also changed their expressions. If the main beam broke, wouldn't the building collapse?! So the swords scattered in all directions, screaming, and Danzhu disappeared in the blink of an eye. Dust was already falling from the roof, and the entire Sword Pavilion began to shake as if it had been built on sand. Trembling with anger, I glared at Longyuan and yelled at Pojun, "Hurry up and help hold up the main beam!"

With that said, I transformed back into my sword form, horizontally pressing against the break in the main beam to temporarily prop it up. I channeled all my cultivation base. This main beam was incredibly heavy... My small frame was really struggling, and it felt like my back was going to snap... Pojun quickly pressed up next to me to help, making it slightly more bearable. But a stalemate like this wouldn't do. If Master came back and saw we'd trashed the main beam like this, he'd undoubtedly age ten years out of anger.

I nudged Pojun. "Big lummox, you're the one who caused this disaster, what do you suggest we do!"

Pojun sulked, looking at Longyuan who was still on the ground watching us. "Hmph... At worst, I'll just keep propping it up here forever."

"Are you stupid?! When Master sees us like this, he'll definitely ask, 'Why did the crossbeam break?' Are we supposed to tell him that it was because we tried to bully that kid Longyuan, only to lose more than we gained?"

Pojun still had a furious look on his face. "He doesn't like Master, why can't I hit him?!"

"...Don't you think your logic is a bit weird? Why do we have to hit people who don't like Master? Master isn't silver, of course there will be people who don't like him."

"Master is so great, anyone who doesn't like him is definitely just jealous!"

Damn... There's really no communicating with a mindless fanboy.

At this time, Longyuan, idling below, finally spoke: "Aren't you two going to run? The building is about to collapse."

I glared at him. "Collapse my foot! I'm warning you, when Master asks you later, you better not talk nonsense, or I'll strip you of your scabbard!"

Longyuan walked out without another word. Could it be that he went to tattle on us...

I racked my brains but couldn't think of a solution. Master could come in at any time. How would we explain it then...

Moreover, if the Sword Collection Pavilion collapsed... where would all of us swords live? Would we have to squeeze in with Master Qingyuan's swords... Ew—how disgusting... Those swords don't bathe for ten years or half a month at a time. The place they live in must be covered in spider webs...

Just as my head was full of worries, the main doors suddenly opened. Longyuan walked in, single-handedly dragging an elm log that was a good fifty feet long.

He really just walked in carrying it single-handedly like a little chick. Is this guy a monster of brute strength? I had no idea where he chopped down such a huge elm log. He couldn't have used his true form to chop it down, right...

We watched as he swish-swish-swished a few times, whittling away at both ends of the crossbeam, and then said to us: "Get out of the way."

Pojun and I were already intimidated by his carpentry skills and hastily moved aside obediently. As soon as we stepped away, he immediately jabbed the elm log into the ground. It actually sank right into the floor, while its top perfectly connected with the crack in the main beam. The shape he had carved out with his blade matched the shape of the main beam seamlessly, firmly supporting the break in the middle.

Pojun and I stared, dumbfounded... Was this sword specially used for carpentry in the past?

Longyuan's face remained cold. He clapped his hands to dust them off, hugged his sword once again, and sat back on the crossbeam, closing his eyes to doze off.

This time, Pojun and I didn't dare provoke him anymore... Well, there would be plenty of time in the future anyway... I'd have plenty of opportunities to make him bow down at this divine sword's feet!