86: Chapter 86 A Sword from His Ex-Girlfriend

The shockwave of the eight-colored fire lotus had scorched his robes to rags, and the bandages on his chest had long since shredded, revealing skin interwoven with fresh wounds and old scars from different Heavenly Flames.

Yet, his eyes remained fixed on Hun Feng; those eyes, tempered by countless battles, held no fear, only a fierce, bone-deep ruthlessness born from being pushed to the brink.

Yun Yun was held by the throat with one hand by Hun Feng. Her moon-white robes were disheveled from the struggle, and her long hair had slipped from her jade hairpin, cascading over her shoulder.

Her toes barely touched the ground, her breathing short and labored due to the pressure on her throat. Her eyes, still clear, looked at Xiao Yan and shook slightly.

She wasn't afraid of death—as the sect leader of the Flower Sect, she had seen too much life and death. She was afraid that Xiao Yan would do something foolish for her.

Because she understood Xiao Yan too well; this man, from the Magical Beast Mountain Range to the Central Plains, had never bowed before any threat.

Even though she knew her throat would be crushed by Hun Feng in the next moment, she did not want Xiao Yan to throw away his last bargaining chip to save her.

Xiao Yan's gaze shifted from Yun Yun's face to Hun Feng, his knuckles gripping the xuan heavy ruler cracking.

Four types of Heavenly Flames burned wildly on the ruler, scorching the surrounding air into twisted ripples.

Only one thought remained in his mind—if he was fated not to leave the Soul Realm today, he would take Hun Feng with him.

He slowly stood up, every step heavy, causing the jade floor beneath his feet to crack inch by inch.

The four Heavenly Flames surged wildly around him: the emerald of the Green Lotus Core Flame, the formless nature of the Fallen Heart Flame, the ghostly white of the Bone Chilling Flame, and the deep blue of the Three Thousand Burning Flame—four-colored flames erupted from his body, no longer under any control, holding nothing back.

He was going to detonate all the Heavenly Flames within him and perish together with Hun Feng.

Hun Feng naturally sensed the turbulence of the Heavenly Flames within Xiao Yan.

His fingers, gripping Yun Yun's throat, tightened slightly, and for the first time, undisguised killing intent appeared in his eyes.

He had given Xiao Yan a chance—three breaths to drop the ruler and leave. But Xiao Yan had chosen a path of mutual destruction.

Since that was the case, he no longer needed to honor any promises.

Eight Heavenly Flames surged simultaneously behind him. The pink of the Purification Lotus Demon Flame and the blue of the Sea Heart Flame merged first, the dark gold lightning arcs of the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame exploded at the core of the fire lotus, and the ink-black wind blades of the Nine Nether Wind Flame tore fine cracks into the surrounding space.

He had developed true murderous intent. With this strike, Xiao Yan would undoubtedly die.

Gu Xun'er stood before the viewing gallery; her expression changed the moment Xiao Yan stood up.

She knew Xiao Yan too well—that look, that reckless way of burning his Heavenly Flames, it wasn't a battle; it was suicide.

Xiao Yan had stood up with a resolve to die. He would rather die than kneel before Hun Feng—this was Xiao Yan, the Xiao Yan who hadn't changed from Wutan City to the Central Plains.

And Hun Feng—she understood him too. She had never seen such pure killing intent in Hun Feng's eyes before; it wasn't calculation, it wasn't testing, it was a true intent to completely erase Xiao Yan from this continent.

She had once begged Hun Feng not to kill Xiao Yan, and he had promised her, but Xiao Yan's actions at this moment had exhausted all of Hun Feng's patience.

She could not watch these two men destroy each other before her eyes. Not because she loved both, but because if one died, the other would bear eternal shackles.

Just as the eight-colored fire lotus in Hun Feng's palm was about to be released, Gu Xun'er turned abruptly.

Her movements were so fast that even Xiao Yi Xian beside her didn't react—she rushed to Medusa's side, her slender fingers gripping the hilt of the silver-white sword, and with a twist of her wrist, she drew the sword from Medusa's waist.

Medusa could have stopped her; at the peak of the six-star level against a late-stage five-star, she only needed a thought to lock the sword firmly in its sheath. But she didn't.

The moment Gu Xun'er gripped the sword, she saw the emotion in the eyes of this young lady of the Gu Clan—it wasn't betrayal; it was salvation. Medusa released her grip on the sheath, letting the sword be drawn by Gu Xun'er.

Gu Xun'er carried the sword, the hem of her pale gold wedding dress fluttering wildly in the wind as she dashed across the plaza.

She did not hesitate, did not pause, charging straight toward the ruins.

Xiao Yan was gathering all his Heavenly Flames onto the xuan heavy ruler, his entire focus on the standoff with Hun Feng, completely unaware of anyone approaching from the flank.

By the time he sensed the pale gold figure, Gu Xun'er was already standing before him.

Xiao Yan subconsciously checked the xuan heavy ruler he was about to swing—he could swing the ruler at anyone, except her.

In that instant, Gu Xun'er gripped the sword with both hands and slashed horizontally with all her might.

The silver-white blade traced a cold arc in mid-air, precisely striking Xiao Yan's right shoulder.

The sound of the blade entering flesh was extremely light and faint, like cutting paper, or tearing a piece of extremely thin silk.

Blood sprayed out, splashing onto her wedding dress, onto her face, staining her elegant, lotus-like features with a shocking crimson.

Xiao Yan's right arm was severed at the shoulder, the severed arm still clutching the xuan heavy ruler, tumbling twice in the air before hitting the charred jade floor with a heavy thud.

The xuan heavy ruler fell from his grasp, the severed arm hit the ground, and blood gushed from the stump like a fountain, staining the surrounding rubble dark red.

Xiao Yan staggered back two steps, his left hand covering his severed shoulder, blood gushing wildly between his fingers.

He looked in disbelief at the woman before him holding the long sword, her face covered in blood—that was his Xun'er, the Xun'er who had followed behind him in Wutan City calling him "Brother Xiao Yan", the Xun'er who had said "I do not wish to" with red-rimmed eyes at the Ancient Emperor Hall, the Xun'er who had said "Take care" to him for the last time in the bamboo forest of the Starfall Pavilion.

Now she held someone else's sword and had personally severed his arm. The intense physical pain and the mental shock intertwined, leaving his mind blank.

"Xun... er?" His voice was hoarse and trembling, as if confirming whether all of this was real.

Gu Xun'er did not answer him. She lowered the sword, the tip resting on the charred ground, blood from Xiao Yan still dripping from the blade.

She raised those eyes, clear as an ancient well, to look at Xiao Yan. There was no anger, no guilt, only a kind of suppressed, extreme calm.

She spoke, her voice cold and clear, every word sounding as if it had been polished countless times in her heart: "Xiao Yan, this sword stroke, I struck it on behalf of Hun Feng. From now on, I do not owe you anything. I have forgotten you. Go, leave the Soul Realm, and never come back."

Xiao Yan opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but found he couldn't utter a single complete syllable.

It wasn't the pain—the pain of a severed arm meant nothing to him; from the Jia Ma Empire until today, he had suffered wounds far worse than this. It was her words, "I have forgotten you."

Her eyes were too calm, so calm it didn't look like an act. In those eyes, clear as an ancient well, there was no hatred and no love, only a kind of indifference worn thin by time.

Gu Xun'er did not look at him again. She turned around, returned the silver-white sword to Medusa, and then walked step by step toward Hun Feng.

The blood on her pale gold wedding dress had not yet dried, slowly spreading along the folds of the skirt, each step leaving a faint, bloody footprint on the jade floor.

When she reached Hun Feng, she raised her eyes to look at him, a faint smile blooming on her blood-stained face, and then she reached out her arms, wrapped them around Hun Feng's waist, and pressed her face gently against his chest.

The movement was light and soft, as if she were embracing a long-lost treasure.

The entire square was dead silent. The wine bowl Yan Jin had been holding finally slipped from his hand and smashed onto the table, the wine spilling along the edge and soaking his crimson robes, but he didn't notice.

Lei Ying's mouth hung open, forgetting to close it; he had lived for thousands of years and seen countless ruthless people, but he had never seen a woman personally sever her ex-boyfriend's arm, only to turn and embrace another man.

Gu Dao and Gu Qingyang stood up from their seats at the same time, their expressions indescribably complex—the young lady of the Gu Clan had publicly severed the arm of the last descendant of the Xiao Clan; if this news spread, it would be enough to make all the factions on the continent re-evaluate the weight of the alliance between the Gu Clan and the Hun Clan.

Gu Yuan sat upright in the main seat, not having moved from beginning to end, only his fingers holding the teacup tightening slightly, and a trace of faint complexity flashed through those brown eyes that had seen a thousand years of wind and clouds—he finally understood what his daughter meant when she said "I have figured it out" last time she returned to the Ancient World.

She hadn't figured out that she wanted to marry Hun Feng; she had figured out what kind of person she wanted to become.

Hun Feng looked down at the blood-stained woman in his arms. Her eyelashes were trembling slightly, and her body pressed against his chest was also trembling—she was afraid, not that he would push her away, but that he wouldn't understand why she did it.

He knew that her severing Xiao Yan's right arm was to save Xiao Yan's life. If Xiao Yan were allowed to detonate all the Heavenly Flames, Hun Feng's next strike would undoubtedly be the eight-colored fire lotus unleashed with full force, at which point Xiao Yan would surely die.

She had struck first to sever Xiao Yan's right arm, using the most cruel method to interrupt Xiao Yan's self-detonation, and also to interrupt Hun Feng's killing move. She was using her own way to pay the ransom for Xiao Yan's life.

But he did not expose her. He just raised his hand to gently stroke the back of her head, pressing her against his chest, and lowered his head to plant a light kiss on the top of her hair.

He didn't ask, "Why did you do this," nor did he say, "You didn't have to do this." He just held her, with a force that was neither light nor heavy, like a husband comforting a wife who had just done something very difficult.

Xiao Yan knelt in the ruins, the blood from his severed arm still flowing, but he seemed unable to feel it anymore.

His gaze was fixed on the front—fixed on the pale gold figure leaning in Hun Feng's arms.

She had just held a sword to sever his arm, saying she didn't owe him anything, that she had forgotten him. Now she was leaning against Hun Feng's chest, holding Hun Feng's waist, her movements as gentle as when she used to tug at his sleeve in the backyard of the Xiao Family in Wutan City.

He wanted to find a trace of coercion in her eyes, but he couldn't. The way she held Hun Feng wasn't forced, it wasn't acting. It was real.

Hun Feng raised his head, his gaze crossing over Gu Xun'er's shoulder, landing on the man with the severed arm in the ruins.

Xiao Yan knelt there, the blood from his severed arm still flowing, but his eyes had changed—no longer the unyielding resolve from before, but a kind of emptiness, as if all his strength had been drained from his bones.

He had come here to bring Xun'er and Xiao Yi Xian home, but Xun'er had personally severed his arm, and Xiao Yi Xian hadn't said a word from beginning to end. He suddenly felt like a clown.

He had brought dozens of factions into the Soul Realm, thinking he could turn the tide as he had countless times before, but in the end, he couldn't even protect the people he wanted to protect most.

Xun'er, to protect him, had personally cut off his arm and lied to him, saying she had forgotten him. He was too familiar with the way she lied—since childhood, every time she lied, her eyelashes would tremble slightly.

But he didn't expose her; he didn't even have the courage to expose her. Because she was right—if he didn't leave, Hun Feng would kill him. He had already lost an arm; continuing to fight would only lead to death. And Xun'er had paid the ransom for his life with her own hands. This debt, he would never be able to repay in his lifetime.

"Go." Hun Feng's voice was not loud, but it clearly spread throughout the entire square, "Xiao Yan, this is the last time she will save you. The next time you step into the Soul Realm, I will not show anyone any respect."

Xiao Yan slowly stood up. The blood from his severed arm was still dripping, tracing down his left fingers and falling onto the charred jade floor.

He bent down to pick up the severed arm that was still twitching slightly on the ground—that hand had once gripped the xuan heavy ruler and fought against countless powerful enemies; now it was just a part of his body, severed by Xun'er and left here.

He didn't pick up the xuan heavy ruler, just held the severed arm in his hand, turned, and walked toward the gate.

The various experts who had come with him looked at each other, eventually one by one lowering their heads and following behind him as they retreated from the Soul Realm.

Cao Ying was held down in her chair by Yao Yao, and Yun Yun was held with her hands twisted behind her back by Medusa; neither could leave.

Xiao Yan did not look back. He knew he couldn't take them away, just as he couldn't take Xun'er and Xiao Yi Xian away back then.

The only thing he could do was leave here alive, and then spend the rest of his life repaying the debt Xun'er had paid for him.