Tacit Understanding and Unconditional Trust

Buzz—

As the Ten Miles Dragon Roar fit into the sword mark on the boulder, the dragon gems on the hilt began to flicker.

Before Xiao Huai could react, the entire boulder shook at an extremely high frequency. Then, the ground and walls shook!

historical

Outside the Hidden Sword Pavilion, on the watchtower.

Huo Qiyun was still hesitating when he suddenly heard a loud sound. He turned around and saw the black fog that enveloped the Hidden Sword Pavilion begin to roll violently, as if something huge was about to rush out!

“Something happened! Something big happened!”

Huo Qiyun’s expression changed drastically. With a clang, he unsheathed his sword. “Listen to my orders…”

“Wait!”

A low shout suddenly sounded. Huo Qiyun looked down and realized that Lin Ran was actually standing below!

Huo Qiyun looked at Lin Ran and then at the black fog rolling around the Hidden Sword Pavilion. He thought he was hallucinating. He asked in confusion, “Aren’t you inside? When did you come out?”

“I—”

Lin Ran was about to speak when he realized that the guards lying in ambush were all looking at them. He pulled Huo Qiyun a few steps away. “It’s me.”

Huo Qiyun’s eyes widened. “Sister Emperor?!”

“Lin Ran” nodded, and Huo Qiyun’s face turned pale. “Why are you here? It’s too dangerous here. Go back!”

“I came to supervise you.”

The empress lowered her voice and said seriously, “Lin Ran guessed that you would act rashly and specially asked me to keep an eye on you. If I hadn’t arrived in time just now, you would have caused a big trouble!”

Huo Qiyun was unconvinced. “What do you mean? Do you know what’s going on inside the Hidden Sword Pavilion? I’m just playing it safe…”

Before Huo Qiyun could finish, the empress asked calmly, “Did you see his signal?”

Huo Qiyun was speechless. After a few seconds, he said apologetically, “No, but…”

“Did you see his signal?”

Huo Qiyun opened his mouth a few times. In the end, he couldn’t help but ask, “Sister Empress, why do you trust him so much?”

“I don’t know.”

The empress chuckled and shook her head, but her eyes were filled with determination. “But I trust him.”

Huo Qiyun didn’t know what to say.

In the Hidden Sword Pavilion.

A large amount of dust fell down. Xiao Huai immediately summoned a thick fog to cover her head and looked at Lin Ran with hollow eyes. “What did you do?! Why is there such a huge commotion?!”

In this earth-shattering scene, Lin Ran still had his arms crossed in calmness. The smile on his face did not change at all.

“It’s normal for there to be some commotion when such a powerful array formation is activated… Are you really a demon? Why are you so gun-shy?”

Lin Ran replied with disdain, as if he had already forgotten how terrified he was when he first opened the array formation.

Xiao Huai stared at Lin Ran, wanting to determine if he was telling the truth from his expression. However, before she could gain anything, all the vibrations suddenly stopped.

A crack quietly appeared on the boulder. Then, the entire boulder began to split in half, revealing a stone staircase that went straight down.

A surging sword intent swept out.

Unlike Mount Sword or Sword Grave, the sword intent here contained a strong killing intent, but it did not feel violent. After all, in this secret room, there were the swords of famous generals.

Xiao Huai’s hollow eyes lit up. She raised her foot and was about to go down when a hand stopped her.

“Wait a minute.”

Lin Ran grabbed Xiao Huai and said seriously, “You haven’t answered my questions.”

Xiao Huai’s hollow eyes turned cold. The huge sword formed by countless swords easily cut through Lin Ran’s clothes and pressed against his skin. “Are you qualified to negotiate with me now?”

Sensing the bone-piercing coldness on his back, Lin Ran actually smiled. “Let’s not talk about whether you can kill me or not. Even if you can, after you go down, someone will come in and close the array formation.”

Xiao Huai’s expression changed slightly.

The smile on Lin Ran’s face widened. “You don’t want to be trapped down there forever, do you?”

Xiao Huai stared at Lin Ran. “How do I know if you’re playing tricks with me or not?”

“It’s simple. I’ll prove it to you.”

As Lin Ran spoke, he took out a standard sword from the huge sword. Then, with a flip of his wrist, a bright fire attribute sword energy immediately soared into the sky!

Boom!

A crack was cut open on the roof of the Hidden Sword Pavilion. At the same time, the people lying in ambush outside also saw the fire that shot up into the sky!

“There’s a signal!”

Huo Qiyun’s eyes lit up and he was about to make a move, but he hesitated. “Why is there only one signal? Aren’t there supposed to be three signals?”

The empress, who was disguised as Lin Ran, thought for a moment and seemed to understand something. “Try slashing a sword energy first.”

“…Alright.”

Huo Qiyun agreed and jumped up. He slashed in the direction of the Hidden Sword Pavilion. A sword energy rushed into the black fog and disappeared without a trace. The black fog was still rolling, as if it was not affected at all.

Seeing this, Huo Qiyun’s expression immediately turned solemn.

He did not use his full strength in that strike just now, but it was enough to cut open the door of the Hidden Sword Pavilion a mile away. However, this strike was almost ineffective, which meant that the defense of the black fog was far beyond what he could contend with.

If even a peak level Senior Martial Master like him could not do it, let alone the other guards.

Thinking of this, Huo Qiyun couldn’t help but feel gloomy. At the same time, he began to wonder if Lin Ran’s plan was really feasible…

Meanwhile, in the Hidden Sword Pavilion.

Xiao Huai’s hollow eyes suddenly flashed, as if she had sensed something.

Lin Ran smiled and said calmly, “Looks like you’ve already noticed. Can I ask questions now?”

Xiao Huai nodded. Lin Ran’s eyes suddenly turned cold. “How many people have you killed since you broke out of the seal?”

“I can’t remember.”

Xiao Huai shook her head and looked at Lin Ran in confusion. “Why are you asking this?”

Lin Ran had a smile on his face, but his tone was as cold as ice. “I want to know how many people you’ve killed so that I can decide how painful your death should be.”

Xiao Huai nodded and did not seem to take it seriously. After thinking for a moment, she said, “About a thousand?”

“You’re lying!”

Lin Ran’s eyes turned colder and colder, and he couldn’t help but clench his fists. “Sixty years ago, more than 3,000 people were killed by you in the seven villages around Mount Sword alone!”

Facing the murderous Lin Ran, Xiao Huai frowned and asked in confusion, “What villages? What are you talking about?”