I Stepped on a Bug, and the System Says I Slayed a Dragon? - Chapter 226 - 225: A Bunch of Short-Sighted Fools
He had once again read through every secret manual in the library to his heart’s content.
By the time he walked out of the Library entrance, the sky had completely darkened, and Qin Yang had imprinted all the books in his mind.
He only needed to close his eyes.
And he could flip through them at will.
’The Martial Arts Academy’s collection is as impressive as they say. There’s some real substance here.’
Qin Yang mentally took stock. With the knowledge he’d accumulated over the past three days, he was now incredibly well-read, having memorized everything of value.
He was bursting with knowledge!
Once he got back and found some time, he should be able to integrate it all into a new Martial Art.
Not long after he walked out the door, Qin Yang met the waiting Lin Mofeng and Elder Li, who escorted him all the way to the academy gate.
“Brother Qin.”
“If you ever run into any problems with your cultivation, don’t hesitate to ask me!”
Lin Mofeng stood by the roadside, pulled out a number of parting gifts from his Star Ring, and stuffed them all into Qin Yang’s hands.
“And these… Spiritual Artifacts, Array Maps… they’re just a small token of my appreciation. Take them with you. They might come in handy for self-defense, to protect you from those Cult Demons.”
“This is… far too valuable, Grandmaster Lin.”
Seeing this, Qin Yang waved his hands in refusal. “You’re being too generous. This is too much.”
It wasn’t that he was being pretentious about the gifts.
It was just that they were too low-level, only second or third-tier items. He would have absolutely no use for them!
Besides, his social circle was small, so regifting them was out of the question.
The items he had given Xia He and Li Qinghe before were all fourth or fifth-level.
If he accepted these gifts now only to pass them on to his friends, it would be a downgrade in quality, which wouldn’t be right… They were, frankly, useless to him.
“Please, accept them. Consider it a thank-you gift for Senior Sword God.”
Hearing this, Lin Mofeng assumed Qin Yang was just being modest. Touching his right arm, he said softly,
“During the Jianghai Beast Tide, it was thanks to his aid that I was spared from losing an arm. Even more fortunately, I seem to have comprehended a bit of a Law and have faintly touched the threshold of a breakthrough.”
As he spoke,
Lin Mofeng sighed. “Now that the esteemed Sword God is no longer here, I fear I’ll never be able to repay the debt of his life-saving enlightenment in this lifetime. I can only place my hopes in you.”
As soon as he finished speaking,
Qin Yang froze.
’Enlightenment?’
’That actually happened?’
’Didn’t I just sprinkle a little of the Wood Law to help temper the bodies of the defending soldiers and heal them? I never expected that my casual action would actually lead to Lin Mofeng having an epiphany?’
’Hiss… this kid’s Comprehension is actually quite impressive.’
Qin Yang remained impassive as he glanced at Lin Mofeng, feeling rather surprised. It was a classic case of a happy accident.
“Young Friend Qin, just accept them.”
Elder Li chimed in, helping things along. “The two seniors from your family have shown us great kindness. From now on, the doors to the Martial Arts Academy’s Library will always be open to you.”
“Well… alright, then. Thank you both for your kindness.”
Seeing that it was impossible to refuse their fervent generosity, Qin Yang dropped the pretense and accepted the parting gifts.
It was quite a haul, an unexpected windfall.
Afterward, Elder Li and Lin Mofeng also gave him their contact information.
They promised that as long as he called, barring any special circumstances, they would personally rush over and offer their full support.
’Not bad, not bad.’
As Qin Yang walked home, he opened his phone to look at his contacts, feeling quite satisfied.
Counting the system rewards, plus the gifts from Liu Wushuang, Elder Li, and the others, it was, all things considered, a massive haul.
In a way, blowing the cover of two of his secret identities in exchange for all these resources was definitely worth it.
’Besides!’
’I’m getting rewarded for exposing my *own* identities.’
’Is there a problem with that?!!’
Thinking of it that way, he felt completely justified in everything he had received!
…
…
The wind on the Great Prairie was bitingly cold.
Herdsmen cracked their whips, driving migrating herds of cattle and sheep.
RUMBLE—
Deafening thunder reverberated across the Grassland. On a distant snowy peak, an avalanche cascaded down as ominous lightning gathered at the summit, churning the thick, black clouds.
“What? White Tiger Earth Venerable has fallen as well?!”
Inside the gloomy palace, the Nine Celestial Venerables leaned back on his throne, the black mist around him swelling.
Before him stood the Announcer who had just entered.
“Reporting to Lord Celestial Venerable… yes… it is true.”
The force of the furious shout sent a shockwave that made the Announcer below cough up blood. He bowed low, trembling as he replied, “The outside world has been in an uproar over it for days. All the reports are about this matter. I have confirmed it repeatedly.”
“Didn’t I send him to find the culprit who shot down Vermilion Bird?”
The Nine Celestial Venerables gathered the black mist around him, mulled it over for a moment, and asked in a low voice, “Did he find the killer in the end?”
“Reporting, Celestial Venerable! White Tiger Earth Venerable did indeed find the person.”
Kneeling on the floor, the Announcer reported, “The one who did the shooting is famous in Jianghai City, known to the public as the Jianghai Arrow God.
Lord White Tiger then devised a brilliant plan.
He manipulated Liu Wushuang of the Venerable Alliance into leading him to the Jianghai Arrow God, successfully luring him out.
He even managed to pit them against each other in a duel, forcing them to fight to the death!”
“A duel, you say?”
Hearing this, the Nine Celestial Venerables’s brow relaxed slightly, and the black mist around him seemed to swell. “Isn’t that a good thing? I recall White Tiger took the Heavenly Intent Four Symbols Formation with him. Trapping a Venerable Realm expert should have been a simple matter.”
“Indeed, you are correct, Celestial Venerable…”
The Announcer swallowed hard and said in a low voice,
“At that time, after his archery duel with Liu Wushuang, the Jianghai Arrow God was extremely weak. Lord White Tiger seized the opportunity and easily captured him alive!”
“Good.”
Upon hearing this,
the Nine Celestial Venerables was visibly pleased. “Continue,” he said in a deep voice. “What happened next?”
’Once trapped by the Heavenly Intent Four Symbols Formation, victory was ninety percent certain.’
’The Jianghai Arrow God would have no way to escape!’
“Reporting, Celestial Venerable. Later, just as it seemed White Tiger Earth Venerable had victory in his grasp…”
The Announcer, still kneeling with his forehead pressed to the floor, said in a trembling voice, “That Jianghai Arrow God and the Sword God are from the same sect, and they have no martial honor! He grabbed White Tiger and self-detonated!!”
As his words fell,
BUZZ!
The Beast God Hall was suddenly plunged into silence.
The Nine Celestial Venerables fell silent, his mind going blank for a moment as he struggled to process the information.
’Self-detonation?’
’Self-detonation again?!’
’Last time, Vermilion Bird Earth Venerable died after being caught in the Jianghai Sword God’s self-detonation, instantly annihilated!’
’And now it’s happened again?’
“You just said this Jianghai Arrow God and the Sword God from the Beast Tide are martial brothers?!”
The Nine Celestial Venerables asked again, finding it hard to believe.
“Yes… According to the message White Tiger Earth Venerable sent back before he fell, the two of them do seem to have the relationship of martial brothers. One practices Sword Cultivation, the other Archery Practice.”
The Announcer looked at the Nine Celestial Venerables. “Although they use different Artifact Techniques, they are definitely from the same sect!”
“So they really are from the same sect…”
Hearing this, the Nine Celestial Venerables murmured to himself, completely dumbfounded.
’What the hell kind of people are these?’
’Self-detonating at the drop of a hat?!’
’Don’t they have any respect for life?’
’Do they have any idea how hard it is to reach the Venerable Realm through Cultivation? And they just throw it all away and self-detonate?!’
“They’re complete lunatics!”
The Nine Celestial Venerables muttered, rubbing the spot between his eyebrows and letting out a heavy sigh.
No one could withstand the self-detonation of a Venerable Realm expert, let alone White Tiger Earth Venerable.
“What about the other Earth Venerables in the sect?”
The Nine Celestial Venerables sighed. “Cyan Dragon Earth Venerable, Black Tortoise Venerable… tell them both to come see me. Say I have important matters to discuss.”
“Reporting, Lord Celestial Venerable… after those two learned of White Tiger Earth Venerable’s death, they went into secluded cultivation overnight. They also said that you shouldn’t worry about them…”
As his words fell,
the Nine Celestial Venerables’s face darkened. “…”
’Secluded cultivation at a time like this?’
’What a load of crap!’
The Nine Celestial Venerables snorted in fury. “A bunch of lily-livered cowards!!”
“…”
Hearing this, the Announcer below remained silent, not daring to utter another word, though he was complaining internally.
’Self-detonating at the drop of a hat…’
’Who can possibly stand up to that?!’
’Sure, our Beast God Sect is ruthless. Killing and plundering, we do it all. But our opponents don’t even care about their own lives!!’
’When they get pushed, they just blow themselves up. Who would dare to get in their way now?’
’Forget the other Earth Venerables, even a low-level messenger like me is terrified of getting caught in the blast radius. I never want to go back to that godforsaken place, Jianghai City!’
“Fine! So be it!!”
The Nine Celestial Venerables slammed a palm on the arm of his throne and slowly rose. “Since they are unwilling to come out, I won’t force the issue.”
As his words fell, the Announcer breathed a sigh of relief. ’As long as I don’t have to go to Jianghai, anything is fine.’
The next moment, however, he heard the Nine Celestial Venerables give a command.
“Go and prepare for a trip to the Imperial Capital.”
“Yes.”
The Announcer wiped the sweat from his brow and asked, trembling, “Where am I to go from there?”
“To the Venerable Alliance.”
The Nine Celestial Venerables’s eyes flickered, black mist swirling around his fingertips. “Find their Alliance Leader. Tell him that I have matters to discuss and wish to meet with him personally.”
“Understood. I will see to it at once.”
The Announcer replied in a low voice, then quickly turned and left the Beast God Hall.
After the Announcer had gone, the hall grew cold and gloomy once more.
“…”
The Nine Celestial Venerables leaned back against his throne, gazing up at the magnificent painted dome of the hall, with its octagonal carved caisson and patterns of flying apsaras.
His gaze seemed to stretch on, as if it could pierce right through the ceiling.
…all the way to the nine holes in the sky.
“It’s been several hundred years, hasn’t it?”
“…Those short-sighted fools in the Venerable Alliance! They understand nothing, capable only of obstructing the great path of our Divine Sect.”
The Nine Celestial Venerables muttered to himself.
“Little do they know that when the Celestial Beings descend, the entire world will enter an unprecedented golden age!”
…
…
「Nightfall.」
Qin Yang sat on the roof of his villa, gazing out at the distant city nightscape. The colorful headlights of cars blurred into flowing rivers of light, and the din of the city filled his ears.
From inside the house, Xiaobai’s triumphant cry rang out.
“This Fairy has won again!”
Xiaobai had been hopelessly addicted to video games lately.
After some time, Qin Yang suddenly raised his head to look at the bright moon and stretched out his palm.
In the unseen realm, a phantom giant hand materialized, reaching up into the heavens as if to grasp the moon and pluck the stars. But just as it was about to make contact, Qin Yang closed his hand and pulled it back.
’If I had let that palm strike fully, covering the sky… I imagine it would have caused a lunar eclipse, wouldn’t it?’
Qin Yang stared at his palm, lost in thought.
This Palm Technique was a fusion of dozens of Innate Martial Arts from the Library, also drawing inspiration from the essence of the Great Wilderness Heaven-Caging Finger. Even among Grandmaster Martial Arts, it would be considered of the highest caliber.
’Not bad.’
’Raising a hand to cover the sky… I’ll call it the Sky-Covering Palm.’
