I Have a Sword

In no time, the three of them finished off the entire lamb. Well, it was more accurate to say that two of them did, as Yi Nian and Jing An had practically devoured the entire lamb!

And yet, they were still hungry.

Under the eager gazes of the two women, Ye Guan started roasting another lamb. While he was busy, Jing An took out a stick of candied hawthorn and started licking it, all the while sneaking glances at Ye Guan.

Yi Nian suddenly pinched Jing An, looking displeased. "Stop staring."

Jing An pulled her aside and asked, "Yi Nian, do you like this human?"

Yi Nian's face immediately turned red. "Why are you asking that?"

Seeing her reaction, Jing An put a hand on her forehead and rolled her eyes. "It's over."

Yi Nian licked her candied hawthorn and calmly remarked, "You're saying that they won't agree with this, right?"

"Of course, they won't agree! What's the second law of the Tianxing Civilization's Ten Forbidden Laws?"

"No marriage with any race outside of the Tianxing Civilization."

"You know that, and you still like him?!"

"I'm not afraid."

"Can the two of you defeat the Tianxing Justice Army?"

"Aunt will handle it."

Little Pagoda had no idea what to say.

Jing An felt a pang in her chest from the frustration. She angrily bit into her candied hawthorn and huffed, "You can't bring that woman to our civilization; she's too dangerous."

Yi Nian turned to Jing An and asked, "If they bully me, will you help me or them?"

Jing An fell silent.

Yi Nian scoffed. She extended her hand and said, "You actually have to think about it? Give me back my hawthorn; give me back my lamb, too!"

Jing An quickly scooted further away, on guard. "No way!"

Yi Nian pouted. "And I thought we were supposed to be as close as two peas in a pod. Hmph!"

Jing An licked her candied hawthorn and said in a serious tone, "I'm worried about you, but I'm also worried about our civilization. Our civilization has dominated the universe for so long.

"This has made us extremely arrogant, dismissing other civilizations and powerful beings.

"However, that woman in a plain skirt is different—she's incredibly strong. I've never encountered anyone as powerful as her outside our civilization.

"It's not just her; the white-robed man standing next to her that day and the man in the blue robe are very strong, too…"

Jing An sighed and continued, "What I'm saying is… you can be with him, but we need to find a way to avoid potential conflicts. You don't want our civilization to be in danger, do you?"

Yi Nian nodded slightly. "I'm bringing him to our civilization to introduce him to High Goddess Tianyun. He's so outstanding, so I'm sure she will be pleased with him."

Jing An asked, "But what if the opposite happens?"

"Then, we'll fight. I'll send in Aunt," Yi Nian said calmly.

Little Pagoda had no idea what to say.

Jing An felt overwhelmed. She looked at Yi Nian and said, "You are a rebel at heart."

Yi Nian sighed. "Jing An, think about it from my perspective. I'm bringing him back to show respect first.

"But if they refuse or try to bully either of us, what am I supposed to do? Are we supposed to just die together? No way! I can take a bit of suffering, but I won't allow him to suffer for me.

"If they try to make him suffer or bully him, I'll have him call out his aunt, father, and grandfather…"

Jing An was furious. "Are you trying to destroy our civilization?!"

"That won't necessarily happen. They could just eliminate the Tianxing Ruler and give that position to me. Then, I'll make you the second-in-charge, and together, we'll rule the Tianxing Civilization!"

"The second-in-charge… I like the sound of that!" Jing An exclaimed in excitement.

Little Pagoda was speechless. Both of you are rebels at heart.

Just then, Ye Guan finished roasting the lamb. The two girls wrapped up their conversation and returned to Ye Guan, ready to continue eating.

Ye Guan smiled and asked, "What were you two talking about?"

Yi Nian took a bite out of the lamb leg and casually replied, "Just get ready."

Ye Guan looked confused. "Get ready for what?"

"Get ready to propose to me in the Tianxing Civilization," Yi Nian said casually.

Ye Guan froze on the spot.

Jing An glanced at Yi Nian but said nothing, silently eating her lamb.

Yi Nian added, "There might be a few minor complications, but there should be nothing too serious. Are you worried?"

"None." Ye Guan shook his head. "Once we get there, I'll follow your lead."

He was curious to see the legendary Tianxing Civilization for himself.

A Tier Five civilization!

Up until now, everything he knew about the Tianxing Civilization was based on what other civilizations had described. He was eager to see what it was really like and perhaps learn something new along the way.

Yi Nian could not contain her joy, and her face lit up with a smile.

Ye Guan asked, "Yi Nian, Jing An, why is it that even though there are other Tier Five civilizations, yours is so much stronger?"

Jing An chewed for a moment before saying, "They're not really Tier Five civilizations. That label is something they gave themselves."

Ye Guan was puzzled. "A label they gave themselves?"

Jing An nodded. "Yes."

"So, how do you determine the tier of a civilization? Is there a rubric to evaluate the quality of a civilization?"

"Yes."

"Could you tell me about it?"

Jing An held up a single finger and said, "Roast another lamb for me first."

Ye Guan was speechless.

Moments later, however, he roasted another lamb. As he watched the two girls devour it, he suddenly thought that perhaps he could rule the Tianxing Civilization using roasted lamb and candied hawthorns!

After wiping away the oil on her mouth, Jing An explained, "Civilization tiers have strict criteria. The first person to put civilizations into tiers was a mysterious figure who pioneered a brand-new Dao based on the old Dao.

"The brand-new Dao became the foundation of the low-tier civilizations, and it is also known as the existing Great Dao."

Ye Guan fell silent, feeling shocked. He did not expect his earlier guess to be correct. He assumed the existing Great Dao was man-made, and his assumption was correct.

"To qualify as a Tier Five civilization, there are two prerequisites that must be fulfilled. First of all, you must have a thorough understanding of the known vast expanse's laws and principles. Secondly, you must master the Dao of Time."

"The known vast expanse?"

"Yes, the vast expanse as it is currently understood."

"Does the Tianxing Civilization know how large the vast expanse is?"

"No, we don't. The Tianxing Civilization has always been in pursuit of the origin of life, what lies beyond the Great Dao, and the boundaries of the vast expanse. Our exploration has been ongoing since time immemorial."

"Do you guys have a map of the universe?"

"Yes, we do."

"Could you give me a copy?"

"No, it's not something that we can share with other civilizations."

"When we get back, I'll make a copy for you," Yi Nian interjected.

"Yi Nian!" Jing An exclaimed. She glared at Yi Nian, but her puffed cheeks with a mouthful of lamb made her look rather adorable.

Yi Nian ignored her and looked at Ye Guan, saying, "We have many special things back home. If you're interested, I can get them for you."

Jing An fell backward onto the ground, lamenting. "It's over."

Yi Nian glanced at her and asked, "Do you still want to be the second in charge?"

Jing An quickly sat up and said sternly, "You better not go back on your word!"

Yi Nian took a bite of her meat and said, "Depends on how you'll behave."

After a moment of silence, Jing An turned to Ye Guan and asked, "Do you know how powerful your aunt is?"

Ye Guan shook his head. The strength of his plain-skirt aunt had always been a mystery to him.

Jing An said, "Your aunt's strength is abnormal. The Tianxing Flame contains a special kind of law originating from the Great Dao, and if I were to describe it in a way that people of low-tier civilizations would understand…

"That law is equivalent to… a lamb."

What? Ye Guan was completely bewildered.

Jing An continued, "To put it simply, it's like you looking at a lamb. The difference between your world and its world, your power and its power, your understanding and its understanding. Do you get it?"

Ye Guan did not know what to say.

Jing An's analogy was just as odd as Little Pagoda's.

"Think about it, you roasting a lamb to eat is perfectly normal, right? But what if the lamb roasted you instead?" Jing An asked, "Your aunt's power is abnormal. According to the existing laws and rules of our Tianxing Civilization, someone as powerful as her should not exist in a low-tier civilization."

Jing An looked around at the mysterious spacetime around her and added, "This place is also abnormal."

Ye Guan asked, "Lady Jing An, has your Tianxing Civilization encountered any particularly strong opponents over the years?"

"No," Jing An replied.

Yi Nian chimed in, "There was one—the Old Dao."

Jing An frowned but did not deny it.

Ye Guan asked, "Who is this Old Dao?"

Yi Nian explained, "It is a very, very ancient Dao, the predecessor of the current Dao. It once fought against us and even defeated our Chief Enforcement Officer, but for some reason, it disappeared without a trace, and we never found it again. The existing Dao started out strong, but it has been declining for some unknown reason."

"Could you give me ten days?" Ye Guan suddenly asked, "After that, I'll go with you two to the Tianxing Civilization."

Yi Nian smiled and agreed, "That's fine."

Jing An didn't protest.

There was good food to eat and fun things to do here, anyway.

Ye Guan smiled back. After chatting with Yi Nian and Jing An for a while longer, he headed to the Fifth Heaven.

It was time to train and improve his strength! He wanted to have a big fight before leaving for the Tianxing Civilization!

As soon as he entered the Fifth Heaven, however, a gentle voice echoed in his ear. "I didn't know that Young Master Ye has decided to grace us with his presence. Please forgive me for not welcoming you sooner.

"This is a small token of appreciation from me, and I hope you will accept it."

When the voice faded, a storage ring appeared in front of Ye Guan.

Ye Guan was utterly speechless at the sight of it.