Chapter 24: Gong Xuance

“Sister, I’m so glad you’re okay!”

Bai Yunyun knelt on the ground, hugging Lin Ling as snot and tears streamed down her face.

Lin Ling pushed her head away with a look of slight disgust, preventing her from clinging any closer.

Gu Xiao stood with her hands on her hips, clearly letting out a sigh of relief as well.

Lin Ling walked forward and saw Zhao Yuyu, who had finished her dragonification, lying to the side.

She was in a deep sleep, clearly exhausted from overexerting herself.

Lin Ling wrote in her book with concern: “How is she? Is it serious?”

Gu Xiao comforted her, “It’s fine. She has done this before; she just needs to rest for a while.”

Xiu Jiming stepped forward and stood beside Lin Ling.

“Don’t worry about her. Little Yu is of the Dragon Clan; she has her own cultivation inheritance.”

Lin Ling nodded and went to check on the others’ injuries.

Xiu Jiming watched her bustle about, relieved that her kidnapping hadn’t left any lasting trauma.

He instructed the others, “Stay with Ling’er. If you encounter danger, everyone should retreat into the Patrol Office. Don’t let your blood boil and rush out to your deaths like you did this time.”

Gu Xiao nodded, too embarrassed to mention that they had all been waiting outside in formation from the start.

Who could have known that the attacker would be a monster at the Boundary Master Realm?

“Remember, no matter what happens, only by staying alive is there hope.”

Xiu Jiming seemed to recall something, and his eyes dimmed for a moment.

Gu Xiao didn’t catch the expression in his eyes.

She walked over to the limp Zhao Yuyu and let the girl rest her head on her lap.

Xiu Jiming watched for a moment, and once he was sure they could handle the situation, he returned to the Patrol Office.

—

At that moment, the prisoner was sitting casually in the seat Xiu Jiming usually occupied, drinking tea directly from the spout of the teapot.

Xiu Jiming frowned, looking at the teapot in the man’s hand with clear disgust.

“Yo — Junior Brother, you’re back from your date? How’s the progress?” the prisoner said with a grin.

“Senior Brother, are you still practicing the Sword Calamity Scripture?”

Xiu Jiming ignored the teasing and asked his own question.

Seeing him so serious, the prisoner lost interest in joking.

He laughed and said, “No. I couldn’t get past the mental barrier. After reaching the Boundary Master Realm with the help of the Sword Calamity Scripture, I switched to a different technique. I’m not the type to get stuck in a dead end.”

Hearing this, Xiu Jiming frowned and fell into deep thought.

Seeing him like this, the prisoner laughed.

“What? Don’t tell me you still haven’t changed your technique?”

“Yes. As I said before, I have already broken through the mental barrier and reached the Manifestation Realm,” Xiu Jiming said calmly.

“Huh? So you weren’t lying to me?”

The prisoner scratched his head awkwardly.

“I thought you were just trying to save face in front of your subordinates. You actually practiced that trash scripture from beginning to end?”

“Why would I do that?”

Xiu Jiming was baffled.

“Tsk… You’re such a boring person. Has anyone ever told you that you have no sense of humor?”

The prisoner felt helpless.

Xiu Jiming thought about it seriously and nodded.

“Yes, someone has. However, I don’t agree.”

In his mind, he recalled that he could occasionally make Little Ling’er laugh.

Because of that, ‘Wooden Xiu’ felt a surge of self-confidence.

‘Full of himself…’ the prisoner cursed internally when he saw Xiu Jiming’s expression.

Xiu Jiming didn’t hear him.

With his hands behind his back, he said, “I have yet to ask for your name, Senior Brother.”

“Gong Xuance.”

The man looked at Xiu Jiming with a smile, seemingly waiting for his Junior Brother to be shocked by the famous name.

Seeing his expectant look, Xiu Jiming was silent for a moment before saying, “Never heard of it.”

Gong Xuance’s face went dark with embarrassment.

He coughed twice and said, “10 years ago, I broke into the Lingxiao Hall of the Imperial Palace at night, stole all of the paintings and calligraphy of the previous emperor, and turned the entire Yujing City upside down!”

Gong Xuance was incredibly proud, his nose held high.

“At that time, the entire Linxiu Guards were teased by me, and not a single expert in the entire Patrol Office could stop me!”

Xiu Jiming sat in Lin Ling’s usual spot, took a fresh kettle from his storage bag to boil tea, and asked quietly, “Then how were you caught?”

Hearing this, Gong Xuance’s face turned pitch black with embarrassment.

At that time, he had been chased by the Patrol Office and the Linxiu Guards until he had nowhere to run.

In desperation, he had broken into the inner palace.

He had encountered a woman in the Jinxiu Palace.

His lecherous nature took over, and he decided to tease her.

How could he have known that the woman was the current Emperor’s mother?

The Emperor’s mother was young and lovely back then, but she was also a supreme expert.

In a single instant, she had shattered the defense he was so proud of and used an array to trap him.

That sort of thing was hard to say out loud.

Getting caught because he tried to flirt with the Emperor’s mother was a massive blow to his pride.

Seeing that he didn’t answer, Xiu Jiming didn’t press him.

After a moment, he asked again, “Senior Brother, where did you obtain the Sword Calamity Scripture? I still have some lingering doubts. Since you haven’t practiced it, I can only continue my search.”

“Oh? Why don’t you tell me about it? Maybe your Senior Brother can answer them for you,” Gong Xuance said with a grin.

“Very well.”

Xiu Jiming remained expressionless.

“When I crossed the shackles of the realm and reached Witness 1 of the Manifestation Realm, my Calamity True Essence underwent a drastic change.”

Xiu Jiming paused and raised his hand.

His True Essence surged from his body to his palm, emitting bursts of dazzling light.

“This… such pure energy!”

Gong Xuance was shocked.

“Yes. And the circulation path of the Sword Calamity Scripture also changed, becoming more suited to my personal circulation,” Xiu Jiming said in a low voice.

As the True Essence surged within him, pressure spread to the surroundings.

Gong Xuance narrowed his eyes.

“This aura is enough to match an expert at Witness 3 of the Manifestation Realm.”

“Yes, that is the issue I wanted to discuss. I have no idea what happened. I found the Sword Calamity Scripture before the skeletal remains of a senior while traveling in my younger years,” Xiu Jiming said.

“When his remnant soul saw me, he forced this thing upon me.”

Gong Xuance’s expression turned colorful.

He muttered a few words that Xiu Jiming couldn’t hear.

Xiu Jiming closed his palm, and the heart-stopping phenomenon vanished instantly as if it had never existed.

He looked at Gong Xuance with a calm gaze.

“So, does Senior Brother know who that ‘senior’ who gave me the scripture actually was? And what is the secret behind this scripture?”

Gong Xuance hesitated, appearing as if he wanted to say something.

Just then, a sound transmission talisman lit up in front of Xiu Jiming.

An urgent voice came from within.

“Boss, we found the demon’s nest!”

“Is it actually this fast?”

Xiu Jiming thought, a bad feeling rising in his heart.