I Have a Sword

After watching Jing An leave, High Goddess Tianxuan softly remarked, "That girl has a rebellious nature."

"Yeah." High Goddess Tianyun nodded and smiled. "And that's a good thing."

High Goddess Tianxuan smiled faintly. "Indeed."

High Goddess Tianyun's smile faded as she gazed out of the hall. She had sent Jing An to find Ye Guan, as she knew that Ye Guan harbored no hatred toward Jing An or Yi Nian.

By giving Jing An control of the Dark Hall, High Goddess Tianyun hoped that she could help Ye Guan from behind the scenes. If the Tianxing Civilization wanted to mend its relationship with Ye Guan, it would have to be done through Yi Nian and Jing An.

High Goddess Tianyun recalled something just then and asked, "Where is the Chief Enforcer?"

In a calm tone, High Goddess Tianxuan replied, "She's investigating the First Hall Master, who has yet to appear."

High Goddess Tianyun nodded slightly, and her gaze grew serious. "The Evil Dao Alliance isn't that simple. We cannot underestimate them."

Fury flashed in High Goddess Tianxuan's eyes. "They dared to plot against the Tianxing Civilization. Should we..."

High Goddess Tianyun quickly shook her head. "Not yet. The Evil Spirit God is still deciphering the Wujian Civilization's special spacetime. It's not time for us to break ties with them completely."

High Goddess Tianxuan fell silent, and her face was as cold as ice. She had to vent this boiling anger in her heart somehow

High Goddess Tianyun's voice softened. "We need to reflect on ourselves as well. Our arrogance allowed the Second Hall Master to exploit us, causing conflict between us and Ye Guan.

"The Evil Dao Alliance ended up profiting a ton from our misery."

Without a word, High Goddess Tianxuan turned around and walked away.

High Goddess Tianyun was startled, and she asked, "Where are you going?"

With frost in her eyes, High Goddess Tianxuan replied, "I can't stand this anger. Don't worry, I won't kill him. But I'm going to make sure that the Evil Dao Alliance will pay for what they did."

In the blink of an eye, High Goddess Tianxuan vanished into the sky.

High Goddess Tianyun chuckled faintly. "Great."

Despite her calm demeanor, she was also struggling to contain her own rage.

***

After leaving the Tianxing Civilization, Qiu Baiyi found himself floating in the vast starry sky. Turning back to glance at the Tianxing Civilization, he shook his head and smirked slightly. He had underestimated them.

His plan to pit them against Ye Guan had completely fallen apart.

Qiu Baiyi couldn't help but admire the two High Goddesses—Tianyun and Tianxuan. Despite Ye Guan and Yi Nian killing so many of their people, they were able to let go of their hatred so easily. They were truly impressive.

Just as Qiu Baiyi was preparing to leave, he noticed a lady standing silently ahead of him. She wore a thin, transparent mask that barely concealed her stunning face.

Surprised, Qiu Baiyi murmured, "High Goddess Tianxuan?"

The lady's expression remained icy. "High Goddess Tianxuan? I don't know who you're talking about."

Qiu Baiyi's face darkened.

Just as he was about to respond, the lady threw a punch toward him.

Boom!

The starry sky was set ablaze, seemingly melting under the force of her attack.

Qiu Baiyi's expression changed drastically.

Bang!

Qiu Baiyi was blasted thousands of meters away before he could defend himself.

The lady, not satisfied with just one strike, prepared to attack again when Qiu Baiyi hurriedly yelled, "High Goddess Tianxuan! What are you doing?! You—"

"High Goddess Tianxuan?" the lady said coldly, interrupting him. "You've got the wrong person."

With that, she lunged forward and threw another fierce punch.

Qiu Baiyi had no idea what to say.

***

A tiny pagoda was floating somewhere in a starry region.

Ye Guan was sitting cross-legged inside the tiny pagoda, and he was recovering quickly from his injuries. Yi Nian was next to him. She squatted down with her chin resting on her hands, and she was staring at him with bright eyes.

The recent battle with High Goddess Tianxuan had left Ye Guan severely wounded. Fortunately, he had an abundance of Eternal Crystals as well as the Divine Tree of Nature.

Yi Nian stayed close, protecting him.

After a long while, Ye Guan finally opened his eyes.

Yi Nian grinned at the sight of it.

Ye Guan smiled back and patted her head gently. "Let's go roast some lamb."

Yi Nian's eyes lit up with excitement.

Just then, Jing An appeared and asked, "Did I hear 'lamb'?"

Ye Guan smiled warmly at her. "Join us."

Jing An nodded enthusiastically. Soon, the three of them sat around a crackling fire, and the scent of roasted lamb filled the air around them.

The golden, crispy skin of the lamb gleamed in the firelight, making both Yi Nian and Jing An drool in anticipation.

When the lamb was ready, Ye Guan carefully sprinkled spices from the Milky Way all over it. The girls could hardly wait to eat; their mouths were already watering from the sight of it alone.

Ye Guan tore off two lamb legs and handed them to Yi Nian and Jing An, who immediately began devouring the tender meat.

Watching them eat with relish, Ye Guan chuckled softly.

Just then, Yi Nian asked, "Jing An, why are you here?"

Still chewing, Jing An proudly placed a token in front of them. "From now on, you two should call me Hall Master Jing An."

Ye Guan was speechless.

Yi Nian blinked in confusion. "Hall Master Jing An?"

Jing An nodded with a smug look. "Yes, I'm now in charge of the Dark Hall of the Tianxing Civilization. I lead the entire intelligence network."

Ye Guan glanced at Jing An but said nothing.

Yi Nia took another bite of the lamb before asking, "Did Teacher send you here?"

Jing An nodded frankly.

Yi Nian turned to Ye Guan, who simply smiled without speaking.

Jing An took a large bite of lamb and said, "I'm here to deliver two news. First, the Evil Dao Alliance is plotting against you. They've joined forces with the Existing Dao, and the Parting Sorrows Sect has sent their top experts to hunt you down."

She went on to describe how Shen Ze had left for the Great Zhou to capture Zhou Fan.

Ye Guan listened with a frown. He had been so focused on the Tianxing Civilization that he had forgotten about the Second Hall Master moving in the shadows.

"The Second Hall Master has been recruiting powerful figures to join their cause. I'm still investigating those people," Jing An remarked.

Ye Guan asked, "What about the Tianxing Civilization?"

Jing An fell silent, setting her food down for a moment. Then, she looked at Ye Guan and said, "After Prime Minister Mu's death, my teacher is now in charge of the Cabinet Hall. She wants to deal with the Evil Dao Alliance first."

Ye Guan quietly tore off another piece of the lamb to eat.

Jing An added, "I'm investigating the First Hall Master. She's an extremely mysterious individual, and we don't have that much information about her[1].

"Anyway, you must be wary of the Second Hall Master. He's both dangerous and cunning. Moreover, he's been plotting your death."

"Got it."

Jing An glanced at him but said nothing more, returning to her meal. Once they were done eating, Ye Guan stood up and said, "You two stay here and enjoy yourselves. I have something to take care of."

With that, Ye Guan left the tiny pagoda, and his gaze was sharp as he stared into the distant sky. A cold glint of killing intent flickered in his eyes. "If you want to play, then let's play, Second Hall Master."

Swoosh!

Ye Guan turned into a streak of sword light, vanishing into the distance.

Meanwhile, Jing An nudged Yi Nian and asked, "Is the Tianxing Fruit tasty?"

Without hesitation, Yi Nian handed her a fresh Tianxing Fruit straight from the Tianxing Tree living within the tiny pagoda.

However, Jing An didn't take it. Instead, she sighed softly.

Yi Nian tilted her head in confusion. "What's wrong?"

Jing An gently placed the bone in her hand on the table, her expression calm but her voice tinged with sorrow. "I understand why Teacher made me the Hall Master of the Dark Hall and why she sent me to find you.

"She hopes that we can mend the deep rift between our Tianxing Civilization and Ye Guan through me, but I know that if I were to persuade you to do so, it'd feel like a betrayal of our relationship.

"After all, the Tianxing Civilization has almost killed the both of you.

"However, I truly don't want this fight to continue."

Jing An's words were full of emotions as she sighed. Then, she looked down and stared at the ground.

Yi Nian grabbed Jing An's hand, and her touch was full of warmth in Jing An's eyes.

Yi Nian's gaze was full of tenderness as she said, "Don't burden yourself with such thoughts. No matter what's going to happen in the future, you and I will always remain the best of friends."

When the entire Tianxing Civilization had turned on her, only Jing An had the courage to stand by her side. Yi Nian no longer had any feelings for the Tianxing Civilization, but it was a different case for Jing An and High Goddess Tianyun.

Jing An and High Goddess Tianyun were one of the closest people in Yi Nian's heart.

Just then, Jing An lifted her head, and her eyes burned with resolve as she exclaimed, "Yi Nian, let's take over the Tianxing Civilization together!"

Surprised, Yi Nian turned to face her.

Jing An's expression was serious, and her voice was unwavering as she said, "I don't like the current Tianxing Civilization. I want to change it. To do that, I need to take control of it first. Will you join me?"

Yi Nian's brows furrowed in thought. After a few moments of silence, she nodded slightly and replied, "I'll help you... but I won't go back to that place."

Jing An smiled gently and nodded. "That's fine."

Jing An didn't care whether control of the Tianxing Civilization was in her hands or in Yi Nian's hands, and it was all because, in her heart, the two of them were one.

Jing An was certain that once she had taken control of the Tianxing Civilization, Yi Nian and Ye Guan would no longer harbor any resentment toward it.

Jing An was already imagining that day. On that day, she'd stand before the entire and abolish the archaic divine laws forbidding marriage with outsiders.

She would then organize the grandest wedding in the history of the Tianxing Civilization. She'd make sure that Yi Nian would become the brightest star in the vast expanse—she wanted her to shine brighter than anyone else.

The tables would be laden with the finest Tianxing fruits, offered to honored guests from across the universe. Then, Jing An would pass down a decree. The lambs and hawthorns in the civilizations that the Tianxing Civilization would destroy had to be spared.

1. The First Hall Master is a girl, finally confirmed ☜