CHAPTER 40: CHAPTER 40 PRINCELY HEIR

"Dan... how are you..."

Xiao Liu, cradling an arm smashed like a Saqima, crawled forward with one leg like a bloody silkworm.

Tie Dan was riding on the charred corpse of the Commander. Although the flames on his body had gradually been extinguished by the Blood Jade Technique, he was still burned beyond recognition, looking like a piece of charred wood. If it weren’t for his labored breathing, he’d be indistinguishable from a corpse.

"Hey! Dan’er! Hold on..."

Xiao Liu kept calling, and Tie Dan didn’t turn back. He truly had no energy left, didn’t want to move, just wanted to close his eyes and drift off into sleep...

"Pop."

"Hey kid! Quick, while it’s fresh, put your leg back on! Regrowing bones hurts like hell!"

Suddenly, an old man’s shout echoed in his mind, startling Tie Dan. He thought it was another henchman from the Demon Palace.

As he looked around, he only saw a fat-headed catfish that had somehow popped up, glaring at him from his shoulder.

"It’s you again... what exactly are you..."

"It’s me, Xiao Liu! Dan! You don’t even recognize me!"

Xiao Liu was still shouting on the side, how could anyone not see that fatty fish...

The catfish jumped down to Tie Dan’s severed leg, stuck its tongue out, and vigorously rubbed the wound with its salivating mouth, leaving it all sticky. Then the catfish gave a glance and used its fin to point at the leg not far away, which Tie Dan had slashed off with sword light.

While it’s fresh... isn’t it time to attach it while freshly cooked...

In a blink, the catfish vanished, as mysteriously as it appeared.

So Tie Dan mustered the strength to crawl over and attach his leg, using some kind of Golden Cloth Rope to firmly bind the severed limb.

Xiao Liu, seeing this, thought Tie Dan couldn’t bear to lose a part of him, sighed in shared pain, and consoled him,

"It’s alright, it’s alright, you’ll get used to it. We can still refine the Sacrificial Sword."

Tie Dan glanced at the large wound on his shoulder, the muscles and blood vessels still twitching,

"Are you okay?"

Xiao Liu laughed,

"I’m fine! I’m strong, not easy to die! Besides, it’s just a piece of meat, it’ll grow back in a couple of years!"

Seriously just a piece of flesh torn off? That’s some luck, probably because that mage ordered the Iron Beast to capture him alive. But still...

Tie Dan couldn’t help but eye Xiao Liu’s right hand that was smashed into a pulp.

This injury was more difficult, with the bones crushed to mud, the nerves likely ruined, he probably wouldn’t hold a sword again.

Xiao Liu understood, shrugged,

"Why worry, I never expected to live through this, killing one is worth it, killing two is a profit."

True enough, a Golden Core Master ended up like this, with a Qilin and a Huahuai outside fighting fiercely. Not to mention the eagle dogs surely returning soon. We’re probably doomed this time.

Tie Dan was out of strength, so he simply lay down on the ground.

Alright, if it’s death, so be it. No matter how you look at it, he’s killed enough to be worth his life.

Xiao Liu crawled over too, lying next to Tie Dan, looking up at the tower’s ceiling filled with intricately carved flowers, suddenly spoke,

"Hey, Tie Dan, that sword I gave you, it was actually Shen Jianjia’s."

Tie Dan gave him a sidelong glance, "Oh."

Xiao Liu didn’t look over, just kept staring at the ceiling,

"One morning, I was sitting on the cliff at Yanzi Peak. Back then, I was already crippled, seeing fellow sect members die one by one, possessed by demon fire, thinking how treacherous the Immortal Path is, and with no talent, plus being handicapped, why am I even cultivating this damn Immortal Path, why suffer this suffering?

I couldn’t bear it for a moment, wanting to jump off the cliff, but didn’t have the guts, was hesitating... and then guess what happened."

On the edge of Yanzi Peak’s cliff?

Tie Dan couldn’t help but roll his eyes, he already had a rough guess.

"Suddenly Shen Jianjia appeared out of nowhere and beat me up. It was so baffling! It pissed me off!"

Tie Dan, "..."

Xiao Liu shrugged,

"Turns out she was trying to ambush you, but you’re always hard to catch. So she asked me to secretly inform her of your whereabouts. If I could help her get you killed, she’d split the haul of Heavenly Materials Treasures with me 50/50.

I agreed, that sword and elixir were her deposit."

Tie Dan nodded, "Oh."

Xiao Liu turned to look at him,

"So it was me who tipped her off on the mountain path, that’s why she caught you."

If you want revenge, while there’s still a chance, you better act.

Tie Dan lay there, not wanting to move at all.

"Let it be."

Xiao Liu immediately sat up,

"Hey, you said to let it be. I saved you just now too, so now I’m not in debt to you."

Tie Dan, "Mm."

So Xiao Liu lay back down,

"I wonder how senior brother is doing, but such a big iron cage shouldn’t kill him..."

"Who knows..."

"Ah, ah, ah ah! Ah ah ah ah ah!!"

Tie Dan and Xiao Liu frowned at each other, then turned to look.

Hmm, that Princely Heir wasn’t dead after all.

Well, it was a frenzied fight earlier, blood and flame entwined, bone and flesh entangled, slashing and chopping, even Tie Dan got too heavily injured, almost fainted, and he almost forgot about the damn main player, nearly letting him escape.

Could this too be some kind of near-death Royal Decree...

"Ah—! Ah—! My! My! My... King’s assistant! King’s assistant!!"

The Princely Heir too, still not finished, instead rummaging in agony at the crotch...

Xiao Liu scrutinized and frowned,

"Why did you cut there, chop off the head?"

Tie Dan was speechless,

"Really not my doing!"

"You, you evil demon! You harm me! Harm me!"

The Princely Heir screamed frantically, heartbroken,

"Die, die, die! I want you dead!"

The Princely Heir, madly screaming, charged over.

Well, barely recovered, and the fight’s on again.

Tie Dan struggled to sit up but couldn’t get up for a moment.

"Dan’er! You don’t have to mind this, leave it to me!"

Xiao Liu actually sprang up, seemed to be alright, rolled up his sleeves, hopped up, and hooked his left hand.

"No balls! Come! I’ll let you use one hand and one foot, still beat you up so bad your mom won’t recognize you!"

"Ah ah ah!"

So the Princely Heir gestured, summons a Jade Pendant from the rubble, and as it landed in his hand, it magically pulled out a seven-foot-long treasure sword glowing with gold!

The sword had a long blade, a central ridge, a sharp edge, a curved inward point, with a dragon scale-like hilt, rhino horn crossguard, jade pommel, gold and silver bands, reins of fairy silk, Mountain Mysterious Jade pendants, five-story-long body, nine cents weight. Inscribed with twelve seal characters,

Top Grade, Treasure Sword, Emperor’s Treasure.

"I’ll kill you!!"

With the king’s sword in hand! The Princely Heir roars! A leaping split aimed directly at Xiao Liu’s head!

Xiao Liu gathered energy and jumped!

But didn’t jump!

Because the seven-foot treasure sword shone with light, immobilizing Xiao Liu on the spot!

Xiao Liu, "Damn, isn’t this cheating..."

"Tch!"

Seeing Xiao Liu couldn’t handle it, Tie Dan directed his newly formed Refining, wrapping the sword in his belly and spit it out.

’Ding’ A silver flash, striking the long blade off course, then swirled around the sword’s stem, neatly severing the Princely Heir’s hands.

"Ah ah ah ah—! Mother! Mother save me! Save—!"

The Princely Heir’s woeful screams, arms held aloft, rolling on the ground, tears and snot mixing.

Yeah, joking around with swordsmanship in front of him...

The Princely Heir was so pathetically weak that even the king’s sword was helpless, merely sweeping past Xiao Liu and clattering to the ground.

"Damn, scared the hell out of me... Mad, you think you’re something?!"

Egg rolled over, picked up the treasure sword glowing brightly, and with one swing!

"Ah ah ah!"

Blood splattered! The treasure sword split into the shoulder, the Princely Heir’s face twisted, screaming and wailing, indescribably gruesome.

"Princely Heir, right! Impressive, right! Call me a cripple! Go eat shit, you ball-less bastard!"

Xiao Liu cursed angrily while wildly swinging the treasure sword, splattering blood and flesh everywhere, the scene was simply brutal!

Tie Dan watched for a while, slowly furrowed his brow...

"Xiao Liu... have you never killed anyone before?"

Xiao Liu looked at the Princely Heir, hacked five times by him, bleeding everywhere, amazingly not dead yet, still half-connected by a strip of flesh and bone at the neck, twitching and groaning in agony, unable to bear the sight of such a death, blushed,

"...Um, it’s my first time."

Well, everyone’s got a first time.

Tie Dan advised him,

"Stop wildly swinging, your wrist strength is insufficient, hacking like that won’t cut through bone.

Aim the sword blade at the crown of the head, make it quick and pierce it in."

"Okay."

Finally, the Princely Heir rolled his eyes, died unwilling to close them.