Portentous clouds, heavy and dark, came bearing from the distance, as waves several dozen meters high crashed upon the shore with the great force of nature.

Fuchen was naked, seated cross-legged on the rocks by the seashore. A determined look was on his face, but there was also hesitation mixed in as he let these waves batter upon him.

“Is this really the only way for me to recover my powers?” Fuchen asked.

“Yes.”

“Unrestricteds like me don’t have eternal life. What if I die as a result?” Fuchen asked again.

“You people do not have immortal life because the Heavens are fair. It’s all because the Unrestricteds are the orthodox Spiritualists, and are more powerful than any other sect. Besides, what you’re afraid of isn’t death, but what happens after your death. To which I can very clearly state, even if you pass, everything will go as normal,” that ancient voice answered.

It was very strange. That person had been speaking with Fuchen the entire time, yet he or she had never revealed themselves, and Fuchen did not seem to care if they showed themselves or not.

Fuchen furrowed his brow. “So you mean to say, even if I die, you’ll still want to see Xia Fei use his Fiendish Blade and challenge the Ten Famed Swords?”

“That’s right. The Alpha Universe is currently in a dry spell when it comes to Soul Weapons, and warriors feel incredible just randomly getting their hands on one. Meanwhile, it is different over in Annihilation. There are countless Soul Weapons out there, and warriors value the quality of their weapons much more, not quantity. I am not sure how Xia Fei managed to get his hands on a Fiendish Blade like Nirvana, but I am interested to find out just what might happen when this sword created off the beaten path goes up against the Orthodox Soul Weapons’ Ten Famed Swords!”

Fuchen smiled, “I’m afraid you’re not just hoping to catch a glimpse of Nirvana going up against the Orthodox Soul Swords, but also in seeing how a devil of a human like Xia Fei contends with the Grand Orthodoxy, right?”

“That’s right. I am indeed looking forward to it! Ever since the Fiends were gone, this world has become extremely boring. Too many warriors behave themselves and staunchly follow the rules. I would of course be interested when the occasional outlier appears!”

Fuchen nodded, “Master once said that you were the disciple of Chu Jingfeng, and Grandmaster Chu Jingfeng was the one who compiled the Soul Weapon Rankings. That is why you’re interested in Xia Fei and his divergent Soul Weapon. I can understand that.

“But what I can’t make sense of is that you’re a Soul Weapon Appraisal master. The best collector of Soul Weapons in the Alpha Universe, Tong Jinliang, once knelt down for forty-nine days straight, just to see you once. That just goes to show the position you hold in your profession, and with your formidable vision, you ought to know that Xia Fei’s Nirvana might not list anywhere near Grandmaster Chu Jingfeng’s Thousand Soul Ranking, not to mention challenging the Ten Famed Swords. There’s no way he could challenge the godlike Soul Weapons like Snowless Billow or Purple Precipice, etc,” Fuchen went on, perplexed.

That old voice seemed to be mildly surprised. “Your master even told you about the Thousand Soul Ranking, Snowless Billow, and Purple Precipice? Looks like he treated you very well.”

There was a pause before the voice continued, “First, your information is outdated. Snowless Billow and Purple Precipice are no longer ranked among the Top Ten Famed Swords.”

Fuchen was startled as he exclaimed, “WHAT?! My master gave me a simple rundown of the unique attributes that those two peerless Soul Weapons had back when, and I have not been able to sleep easily since; that’s just how astounding they were to me! And you’re now telling me that these two powerful Soul Weapons are no longer considered part of the Ten Famed Swords?! Isn’t that just a tad bit too excessive?!”

“Excessive, you say? Why don’t you think about it? How many years has it been since your master died? And what your master learned about those two peerless Soul Weapons is second-hand knowledge from his master, so how many years has it been from then until now?! You’re truly a frog in the well. Had you made a good showing for yourself and managed to transcend to become an Annihilator, you could make the trip up yourself and understand. While the Alpha Universe has not made any progress these past few years, that does not mean Annihilator has not!”

Fuchen’s face went pale, then pink. As someone who had once shown the greatest promise to promote into the Annihilator tier, Fuchen had stagnated for many many years, and his disciples had even chased him out from his sect! Perhaps there would never be an even more useless Sectmaster out there in the history of existence than himself.

“Second, the reason why I have my eye on Xia Fei and his Fiendish Blade Nirvana is precisely because of MY master. The old man had already cataloged Nirvana into his short list, and while it is now just a potential candidate and has yet to officially enter the Thousand Soul Ranking, it isn’t that far off from being one of the most powerful thousand. But this is the Alpha Universe! Being able to see a Soul Weapon that is shortlisted to enter the Thousand Soul Ranking is enough to pique my interest and surprise me.”

Hearing this, Fuchen’s mouth hung agape, as he was rooted to the spot.

*Splash*

A wave came crashing down on him, and the bitter seawater entered his mouth, yet he did not even notice.

Xia Fei had been beside Fuchen for longer than just a day or two, yet he had not the slightest idea that Xia Fei actually carried a powerful weapon that could well be a candidate for the Thousand Soul Ranking!

Ridiculous!

Absolutely ridiculous!

But very soon, that voice said something else that only furthered Fuchen’s astonishment,”Third, Nirvana is not the only Soul Weapon Xia Fei owns that has been shortlisted for the Thousand Soul Ranking. He has quite the eye, picking out three primary Annihilator-grade Soul Weapons when he made Evil Shadow Dragoon: Fiend Scar, Fiend Lock, and Fiend Tear. Due to the betrayal of the Fiends, no matter how powerful their Soul Weapons were, my master would never put them into his rankings, or someone would surely express their displeasure to him.”

Fuchen closed his mouth with a snap, completely shocked as he asked, “So what you mean to tell me is that all three are qualified to enter the Thousand Soul Ranking?!”

“Not only are they candidates, one of them has even entered the thousand!”

Fuchen sprang up and exclaimed, “Which one was it?!”

He knew that Xia Fei had always advocated the notion that a warrior should go into any fight armed to the teeth, using everything in their arsenal. But Fuchen had never once imagined that among the many Soul Weapons Xia Fei had hidden in his spatial ring, there were even some that could directly enter the Thousand Soul Ranking!

This would be a top one thousand soul weapon in the Annihilator Universe!

The old voice chuckled with glee and teased him, “You wish to know which one? Well, I’m not going to tell you…”

…

Heavenly Might Spiritualist School…

Anzu Night bit the bullet and entered the backyard where Qiu Yang was being held in seclusion.

While it was called seclusion, this backyard was well over seventeen acres. The place was bursting with vibrant flora and fauna, with water fountains galore. There was nothing lacking, and anyone here would be able to live a life far better than any commoner.

Following along the flagstone bridge into the pavilion at the heart of the lake, he spotted Qiu Yang lying on a stone bench with his two hands behind his head, snoring soundly.

Qiu Yang had originally portrayed himself to be a playboy, humorous and merry. But this was all just an act. Right now, he was not in the mood to chat with the much younger Ye siblings, so he remarked coldly, “What are the two of you doing here?”

Anzu coldly harrumphed back, “Do you think we wish to be here? Zesyr, let’s go!”

Qiu Yang glanced over at them and got up, “Since you’re already here, why leave in a rush? Come sit for a while. There are only four of us left out of the Six Celestial Treasures; every meeting counts.”

…

The Night siblings were young, and were even younger when it came to affairs of the mind. They had no guile to them, so a casual statement from Qiu Yang was enough to strike right at their hearts. Actually, Anzu Night was rather fond of the title of Six Celestial Treasures. It was just the fact that he was ranked last that made him feel rather aggrieved inside.

“What do you mean four, it’s just the three now,” Anzu sighed. But the moment he said that, Zesyr pinched her elder brother hard for his slip of tongue.

Xia Fei had already said that he would kill anyone who spread word of his murder of Xiaoxiao!

Zesyr did not say anything, but she took Xia Fei’s words to heart. When Anzu mentioned that there were only three of the Six Celestial Treasures left, Zesyr immediately freaked out.

But Anzu did not understand what his sister meant by that and actually asked, “What did you pinch me for? Was I wrong? Feng Jianting, Shui Shengsheng and Xiaxiao. These three were all killed by Xia Fei, leaving just me, Qiu Yang, and Ji Tianjing. That’s just three of us that remain.”

*Zing*

The expression on Zesyr’s face changed drastically. She felt a searing pain in her chest. Anzu’s mouth was truly causing the death of him! To actually expressly mention that it was Xia Fei that had killed Xiaoxiao!

An insidious glint flashed in Qiu Yang’s eye as he barked loudly, “Anzu Night, did you just say that Xiaoxiao is dead?!”

Anzu was startled. Cold sweat began beading down his forehead as he hurriedly corrected himself, “No, I mean to say that he’s gone missing.”

“No! I clearly heard you say that Shui Shengsheng, Feng Jianting, and Xiaoxiao have all been killed by Xia Fei’s hands. Don’t you dare deny it!”

With Qiu Yang demanding answers, how could Anzu Night be a match for him. The look of fear and his cold sweat had already betrayed him.

“It’s time we leave, elder brother,” Zesyr interjected, pulling Anzu away as they made to leave.

Anzu lowered his head, not daring to make eye contact with Zesyr or Qiu Yang. His heart was thumping madly in his chest. He knew what Xia Fei was capable of, and his slip of tongue today could very well have Xia Fei hunting him down!

Even now, Anzu Night could not forget how Xia Fei had slain both Feng Jianting and Shui Shengsheng, as well as how he had fought back against the Dark Spiritualists. His pet Furball had even bitten off the nose of the Holy Beast Lonegleam Eagle! That was a very impressive display of his martial prowess! In truth, Anzu was deathly afraid of Xia Fei.

Zesyr Night was fuming next to him. Just her glare alone was enough to kill Anzu!

It was said that women were extroverted, and this was by no means an exaggeration. Though Xia Fei paid no mind to Zesyr, even treating her rather brusquely, Zesyr still could not help but think on behalf of Xia Fei’s well-being.

Watching the Night Siblings leave the backyard in a hurry, Qiu Yang burst into a maniacal laugh. “Shui Shengsheng is from Serene Jadewater, while Feng Jianting is from Fufeng. They are both major clans! Meanwhile, the madwomen from the Xiao Clan are even more fearsome, troubling men and spirits alike! Three major clans… Xia Fei has slain the young masters from three major clans!

“So what if Xia Fei is a Dragoon?! Can he withstand the combined fury from three major clans?!” Qiu Yang was thrilled, almost tearing up from excitement.

…

Zesyr and Anzu Night both returned with plenty on their minds. That was especially true for Anzu, who was sweating profusely, while Zesyr was pouting, fidgeting with the hem of her clothes, and giving Anzu a glare from time to time.

No matter how careless the Old Donkey Cloud Night was, even he could tell that something was off with his precious grandchildren. He bade Qiu Xingbang an early farewell and led the two back to their ship as they began their journey back home.

Once he sent his men away, Cloud Night curiously probed, “What’s with the two of you today, appearing as if you’ve seen a ghost. What exactly happened?”

Zesyr rolled her eyes at Anzu as she sniffed, “Big brother, you’ll be dead meat if you delay this any further!”

*thud*

Anzu Night’s legs went to jelly as he collapsed down onto his knees, “Grandfather, I’ve caused some major trouble for the Venus of Eternal Night, and Xia Fei!”