117: The sword fairy is alive? It's going to change!

"Y-You're Mo Fan?"

Liu Jian looked at Mo Fan with a face full of disbelief.

"Steward Liu, I hope you've been well," Mo Fan said with a smile.

"Y-You're really Mo Fan?" Liu Jian still couldn't believe his eyes.

"W-Was it you who just killed the Holy Envoy?"

Mo Fan looked at Liu Jian quietly, without saying a word.

"I-Impossible! You're just a Utility Disciple—"

"It couldn't have been you who killed the Holy Envoy! Where is the Sword Pavilion's Sword Immortal? Why won't she come out..."

Mo Fan didn't answer his question; instead, he focused his mind and asked, "As a member of the Human Race, why did you defect to the Demon Race and join the Heavenly Demon Cult?"

"Why defect to the Demon Race? Ha, haha, hahahaha..."

Liu Jian's laughter became somewhat maniacal.

"The Human Race is already corrupt! There is no hope for the Human Race! Only by joining the Demon Race can one survive!"

"Twenty years at most, twenty years at most! This world will be in ruins!"

"Everyone must die! Hahaha! Everyone must die! Hahaha! You will die! I will die! Even the Sword Immortal will die!"

"Only the Demon Lord! Only the Demon Lord can grant eternal life! Only the Demon Lord can protect us!"

Mo Fan: "..."

Has this old man gone mad?

Or has he been brainwashed into stupidity?

Then again, anyone who would defect to the Demon Race is likely not a normal person.

"The Demon Lord can protect me, and he can revive my son, my daughter, my beloved... Now tell me, why wouldn't I defect to the Demon Race?"

"You've been bewitched," Mo Fan shook his head.

The Demon Race's greatest skill was bewitching the hearts of men.

"Bewitched? No, no, I haven't been bewitched. It's impossible for me to be bewitched!"

"I am very clear-headed right now. I fought for the Human Race for so many years, and what did I get besides watching my loved ones die one by one?"

Liu Jian clutched his head and rolled on the ground in agony.

His eyes were bloodshot, his expression pained, and his face was so pale it lacked any hint of color.

Mo Fan shook his head and was about to step forward when his expression changed, and he quickly dodged to the side.

With a whoosh, Liu Jian, who had been rolling on the ground a moment ago, suddenly leaped up and struck a fierce palm toward Mo Fan's vital points.

Unfortunately, Mo Fan seemed to have anticipated his move and successfully dodged the strike.

Liu Jian's expression shifted slightly, but he instinctively turned and struck another palm toward Mo Fan.

However, in the next instant, his face changed drastically, and he tried to retreat frantically.

Unfortunately, it was already too late.

A golden fist rapidly enlarged before his eyes, like a falling sun, carrying a world-destroying power as if it were about to punch through the world itself.

Bang!

A muffled thud sounded.

Liu Jian's chest was punched straight through, and he collapsed to the ground with a face full of resentment.

Feeling his life force rapidly fading, Liu Jian suddenly grew quiet.

He looked up at the brilliant starry sky above, his gaze hazy.

"Cough, cough, cough—"

After a couple of coughs, Liu Jian spoke with difficulty:

"W-Why are you so strong?"

Mo Fan shook his head. "I'm not that strong. If you were still at the Extraordinary realm, I would be no match for you."

"Who on earth are you? Why are you hiding your identity in Yuxu Academy?"

"You're overthinking it. I'm just an ordinary Outer Sect Disciple of the academy; I'm not hiding my identity."

"That's not right. Two months ago, your cultivation was only at Body Tempering."

"That was two months ago. People progress."

Liu Jian: "..."

Mo Fan stopped wasting words with Liu Jian and asked directly, "What did you do to Senior Brother Han?"

"H-Han Tang?"

"Yes," Mo Fan nodded.

"He ran away. He disappeared silently at the critical moment."

"I couldn't find him. If I had, I could have restored my Extraordinary body and wouldn't be dying at your hands."

"He ran? That's good then," a smile touched Mo Fan's face.

Senior Brother Han really wouldn't fall so easily.

Perhaps he truly had the Protagonist Fate and might soar to the heavens in the future.

Focusing his mind, Mo Fan asked again, "Did your Junior Brother, Li Xinghe, also defect to the Demon Race?"

While asking, Mo Fan focused his Mental Energy to slightly guide Liu Jian's thoughts.

At this moment, Liu Jian was on the brink of death and his Divine Soul was dissipating. Since Mo Fan's Mental Energy was Extraordinary, it could have some effect.

"Junior Brother? I raised him myself. He goes wherever I go and does whatever I tell him to, cough, cough—"

"Where did he go? Did he leave Yuxu Academy ahead of time?" Mo Fan pressed.

"Cough, cough—" Liu Jian spat out blood, his gaze becoming increasingly scattered.

He controlled himself, stopped speaking, slowly closed his eyes, and waited quietly for death.

Seeing this, Mo Fan shook his head and stopped asking. He crouched down and lightly tapped the center of Liu Jian's forehead.

With a pop, it sounded like something had shattered.

Liu Jian's limbs twitched, his eyes widened, and after a brief struggle, his body finally went stiff, his life force vanishing instantly.

Mo Fan reached out and closed Liu Jian's eyes.

"Rest in peace. In your next life, don't be bewitched by demons again. In my heart, you were always a good teacher."

Mo Fan shook his head, feeling a bit of sorrow.

Then, he stood up and turned to look at Liu Xiyan, who had appeared at some unknown point.

Under the starlight, Liu Xiyan's white hair draped over her shoulders, and her fair face reflected a brilliant radiance.

"I presume the Elder saw what just happened," Mo Fan said, looking at her.

Liu Xiyan nodded and said, "I saw him try to attack you, only to be killed by you in return."

As she spoke, Liu Xiyan glanced at Liu Jian on the ground and focused her mind. "Is he the Steward Liu from the Pill Dao Hall?"

"Yes," Mo Fan nodded.

"I will handle this matter," Liu Xiyan said.

Mo Fan was taken aback, then thanked her. "Thank you, Elder."

"Go back. Xu Jing won't be coming to practice her sword today; I was just guiding her on the seventh floor of the Sword Pavilion to comprehend the Sword Pavilion's Legacy."

"Alright." Mo Fan turned and left decisively.

He wasn't stupid; he naturally knew that Liu Xiyan had come over because she sensed that brilliant blade light.

But since she didn't ask, he wouldn't volunteer any information.

However, this incident made Mo Fan realize one truth: even staying in the academy wasn't absolutely safe.

When an accident happens, it doesn't care where you are.

If not for the blade talisman his father gave him this time...

He would have likely met his end here.

"I still need to become strong myself. I have to hurry and earn Spirit Stones, and strive to reach Foundation Establishment in a short time to challenge the Trial Tower."

With a sigh of emotion, Mo Fan left the back mountain, greeted Chu Qian, and went down the mountain... In a desolate forest several miles away from Yuxu Academy, a faint spatial ripple suddenly appeared.

Then, a figure wrapped in a black robe stepped out from within, looking terrified.

"A Sword Immortal?! The Sword Pavilion has produced another Sword Immortal! How is this possible?!"

With lingering fear, he glanced back at Yuxu Academy, gritted his teeth, and took to the air. He cast a secret technique that consumed his Primordial Spirit, turning into a streak of blood-red light and flying toward the horizon.

"A Peerless Sword Immortal has appeared once again; the world is about to change!"

"I must report this to the Cult Leader immediately!"

"But what exactly is hidden in the back mountain of Hidden Sword Peak?"

"Why did the Demon Race go to such great lengths to have us set up a Magic Array to investigate this place?"