Forge a path to success

Is this a good thing?

It was another ambiguous, vague question. Longyu didn't seem to expect an answer, always asking with an air of "anything goes." So Qingye didn't answer, and a silence followed for a while. She noticed Longyu looking at her knife.

This man is always very interested in knives; he's either staring blankly at his own or observing other people's knives. When a martial arts fanatic reaches this level, perhaps there's no entertainment left.

"This knife..." Qingye tried to start a conversation.

Longyu responded faster than she expected: "It shouldn't be yours."

"Actually, I stole it from my home," Qingye chuckled. "It was originally the sword of a family ancestor. He was someone I admired."

"worship?"

"Yes. Its original owner was a powerful and brave general. In an unexpected encounter, his troops encountered an invincible enemy. The enemy was too strong, and the troops suffered nearly half their losses. If they continued fighting, they would all perish. The general judged the course of the war and decided to stay behind alone to fight the outsiders, thus buying his comrades a chance to retreat."

If he were to lose the duel, he might be corrupted by the heretical forces and cease to be himself. The general was fully aware of this, yet he resolutely decided to remain alone.

Qingye sat up and said earnestly, "He sacrificed his dignity to save the lives of many of his companions; he is a remarkable person with a broken heart. I have always aspired to be like him!"

Deep disappointment was evident in Longyu's cloudy eyes. This was the first time Qingye had seen such clear likes and dislikes in the other person. She didn't know what she had said wrong and was at a loss for words.

"Mr. Longyu...?"

“You’re stupid,” Longyu said. “You completely fail to understand the meaning of the stories your elders told you.”

"how come……"

"If that person is an excellent leader, he should be able to lead his troops to victory against the enemy."

If that person is truly a heartless individual, then he should perish together with the heretics, even at the cost of his own life.

However, he accomplished nothing; as both a leader and a warrior, he failed utterly.

Longyu closed her eyes: "This is a negative example, but you didn't understand it. You've mistaken the object of your worship, and thus established a wrong dream. That's naturally a foolish thing."

“That’s not it…” Qingye whispered, “What Shura Island needs now is someone willing to sacrifice themselves. Only someone like that can lead the broken-hearted ones off the island…”

"Let's talk about it tomorrow," Longyu interrupted her. "You'll understand tomorrow."

They fell silent. That look of disappointment lingered in Longyu's eyes, impossible to shake off.

·

On the third day, they finally emerged from the forest and arrived at the dark, muddy banks of the Shadow River. As this day arrived, Longyu brought forth a white bouquet of flowers from the forest.

Qingye's face was patchy with black and yellow marks, like she was wearing camouflage. She had been attacked by food again due to a series of unfortunate coincidences. She nervously looked around, her heart pounding with fear.

“There will definitely be more bad things,” Qingye said confidently, “and then we’ll find food. I’m afraid that’s the rule of the Misty Forest.”

Longyu shook her head silently and led her across the bridge and into the river. Many faces floated in the river, all with their eyes closed, as if asleep. They walked with their backs to the arena, and after half a day, they arrived at a dark basin.

Qingye shivered, sensing a profound chill. The deathly aura here was so intense that it even permeated the mist, turning it the same black as the earth. In her daze, she tripped. Buried in the soil was a pitch-black hand bone, as if reaching for her ankle.

Qingye's pupils constricted in shock. She swept away the dust and unearthed the skeleton. Not just the arms, but the broken skull, ribs, and so on were all pitch black. It was a color she knew all too well, the "sinful bones" that were the hallmark of the Heartbreakers.

She looked at the dark basin, her weak voice filled with fear.

"Mr. Longyu, this is..."

“These are the bones of sinners,” Longyu said. “This place is stained black by corpses.”

How many people had died here? And what terrifying methods could have caused so many heartless souls to perish simultaneously? Qingye didn't want to delve into these questions; she couldn't allow herself to succumb to imagined terror. The two walked in silence to the center of the black basin, where an unmarked tombstone stood. Longyu placed a bouquet of flowers before the tombstone and silently clasped her hands in prayer. Qingye joined him, clasping her hands in mourning for the souls who had perished in battle long ago.

"The allied forces assembled at the front-line base of Halvira are mostly Discipline Knights and Heartbreakers," Long Yu said, as if in a dream. "The city-states of the Ancient Dragons and the Divine Tree have their own marching routes. At that time, we had not yet made any progress and were more like a detached force supported by the Discipline Knight Kingdom."

In those days, we were a group that faced much skepticism. Many considered us a new heresy, and numerous forces resisted our arrival. Each time, Chongming would personally go and defeat them. But we all felt we couldn't do that; we needed to prove something…

"Status, reputation, goodwill. All of these must be earned by ourselves... proven by ourselves... and then we respond to the call to gather here, wanting to launch the first great battle against the heretics. We are a group of brave but reckless warriors."

"Then the Nightmare King descended in ecstasy, and he bestowed trials upon every warrior, hoping that we could demonstrate true courage."

Longyu turned around and met her gaze. His eyes were as cloudy as mud.

“Everyone regrets it,” he said.

"……What's the meaning?"

“Regret. Deep remorse. Madness, betrayal, begging for mercy. Kneeling on the ground, praying for divine mercy. Shouldn’t have dared to rebel. Shouldn’t have gone looking for trouble. If they had just stayed in their own territory, they wouldn’t have ended up in this hell.” Longyu said, “Not a single one passed the test of Vansalal. They wept bitterly, made a complete fool of themselves, accomplished nothing, and died in the most cowardly manner.”

"This is the future you envision." Long Yu's voice pierced the girl's heart like a needle. "Leaving Shura Island and fighting to the death against the heretics. Behind this statement is not any meaning or belief, but fear and meaningless death."

"I'll ask you one more time."

Longyu's expression became just as terrifying as Chongming's.

Why did you leave Shura Island?

Qingye did not lower her head; she pursed her bloodless lips.

"I cannot tolerate the infighting on Shura Island. I want to find the Lord of the Broken Heart and unite the forces within the island... so that we can once again stand on the front line against the heretics!"

"It seems that words are meaningless to you."

Longyu covered her face with her hand, the emotionless silver mask concealing her pale features.

The murky gaze was gone; the man's eyes were as chilling as a shadow. He silently drew his dagger.

"Now, let the trial begin for the Heartbreaker, Light and Night," said Longyu, no, Nightwalker of Fear. "Victory, or death."

Chapter 192 The Art of Seeking the Dao with a Broken Heart (End)

His aura was extremely fierce, and there was no hesitation in his stance. Behind the mask, his eyes contained a dark killing intent.

This is the gaze of someone with a broken heart, the aura of someone who steps onto the battlefield with resolve. Just like the elders in a family when they are angry, just like the patriarch when he used to practice martial arts.

That powerful entity now stands opposite him, brandishing a knife.

“Mr. Longyu…?” Qingye said blankly, “Why…”

Genuine killing intent. Just being angry wouldn't evoke this much. Something must have gone wrong. Think carefully. Mr. Longyu's earlier words must have a hidden meaning. He said all the Heartbreakers were dead, yet he could still mourn his former comrades. Why was he the only one who survived? That's because he was…

"...The messenger of fear!"

Then, the first strike came.

A swift, fluid sword slash, its trajectory from the lower left pointing straight for the shoulder, aimed to sever the enemy's arms. Qingye dodged with a series of backward leaps. Yexing slashed at her neck with his blade, but Qingye nimbly flipped backward to avoid it. Then, she mustered all her strength and sprinted away from Yexing.

Start running away!

Even Ye Xing was stunned. Rushing forward, Qing Ye clasped his hands together and cried out desperately, "Mr. Long Yu, please spare my life for the sake of us both being people with broken hearts! Please!"

What a joke! We absolutely can't win. There's no hope of victory at all. The difference in swordsmanship between us is like heaven and earth. Hoping to turn the tide with some kind of improvisation or a sudden breakthrough is just a pipe dream! To use four ounces to move a thousand pounds, you need at least four ounces. Right now, a mere point 2 doesn't even have one ounce. What are you going to do? Escape is the priority!

Nightwalker doubted his own hearing: "What did you say?"

"Yes!" Qingye repeated loudly, "I am very sorry for my previous offense. Please spare my life!"

Then, a rage even more terrifying than murderous intent erupted behind Qingye.

A weapon imbued with intense emotion was drawn, and rage swelled violently, spreading in all directions like a tsunami roaring in a storm. Nightwalker stood atop that wave, like a raging silver dragon.

Qingye went from desperately running away to sprinting for her life, her scarf billowing behind her like a mouse's tail. "Why are you so angry?!"

Night Walker glared angrily: "On the battlefield, how can we beg for the enemy's mercy? How can we abandon our dignity for our lives!"

"But I think life is more important than dignity!" Qingye shouted. "If I'm alive, I can always find a way later, but dying for dignity won't change anything! If I just lay here and give up, my family will be heartbroken, and the village will lose its fighting strength, but if I run back, at least I can still help with the hunt!"

"Enough," Nightwalker said in a deep voice. "You really... disappoint me!"

As the words fell, the blade tore through the air. The distance created by their rapid movement was bridged in a single step. Nightwalker drew his blade with one hand, the short knife piercing Nightwalker's head and snapping his spine. The immense force crushed the flesh into a pulp, his blade like a long nail pinning a living human to the ground.

Immediately afterward, the blood and mud vanished without a trace, turning into mist and dissipating. That was a clone created using the mist!

Nightwalker swung her blade behind her. The blade sliced ​​through two shadow shuriken and tore through the invisible misty robe—the very mist concealment technique that Nightwalker relied on to hide. Instead of fleeing, she secretly approached Nightwalker, attempting a surprise attack.

Qingye forcefully tilted her head back, kneeling on the ground, her supple body almost folded in half, using the momentum of her charge to glide forward. A short sword grazed her nose, and she successfully dodged the approaching attack. In that instant, her long sword was drawn from its sheath, unleashing a strike as bright as day.

The two were less than half a meter apart. The short sword was too late to defend, but Ye Xing pressed down with two fingers together, using his fingers as a sword to block the sword light. The moment the gleaming blade touched his fingers, his spirit erupted from his fingertips, shattering the entire long sword into shimmering fragments.

However, Ye Xing did not press his advantage; instead, he drew his sword to defend. The sensation between his fingers spoke volumes; the slash was essentially a "reverse-blade draw," a technique that Tian Qingye had mastered using light elements to mimic in just a few days.

She feinted, using the opportunity to slip back into the mist. Tap tap. Tap tap. Faint footsteps echoed from the depths of the gray mist. A clever trick to deceive.

Nightwalker shook his head in disappointment. "The same trick won't work a second time."

"Then I will try my best to think of new methods."

"Weren't you trying to run away?"

"If only I could escape!" Qingye said, both amused and exasperated.

“Now I finally understand reality,” Nightwalker said in a deep voice. “So what have I been doing until now? Leaving my base camp, wandering with a powerful person I met by chance, hoping to gain power through this fortuitous encounter to prove myself!”

Qingye, having his thoughts exposed, could only remain silent. Yexing showed no mercy; his anger was somewhat reminiscent of Chongming's.

"It's all wishful thinking, just like your self-righteous decision to leave home. You don't understand reality, you don't know what's happening outside the greenhouse, and you make decisions based on your own delusions, which will ultimately become poison that harms yourself and those around you."

You are now just like those skeletons of those who joined the army without knowing the dangers of the battlefield. What right does a fool like you have to call yourself a heartless person!

Nightwalker raised his short sword overhead with both hands, unleashing his true "technique" for the first time in this sudden encounter. He unlocked the "locks" located inside his arms, allowing the blocked power to flow into the blades, forming a transparent "wind." The moment the short swords were thrust out, the battlefield was instantly cleared; his sword intent swept across the earth like a true hurricane, dispelling the fog of history!

Wuxiang Nixin Liu · Dufeng Sha. In his youth, Ye Xing used this demonic sword to shatter an army with a single strike, establishing his invincible reputation.

The fog dissipated, leaving Qingye nowhere to hide. Her figure appeared 300 meters away. Qingye held a huge shuriken, which she had previously intended to use for a surprise attack. Seeing that her concealment had been broken, Qingye unhesitatingly threw away the shuriken. She gripped her sword with both hands and stood in the stance of a master and disciple sparring in a dojo.

It looked like a desperate struggle to maintain the last shred of dignity after accepting defeat, but the girl's eyes conveyed a different kind of emotion.

Refusing to admit defeat. Hating it? Rebelling? Or—

"Please don't say that," Qingye said softly. "What do you know?"

"I've seen countless idiots like you before!"

"I'm telling you!" Qingye raised her voice, "You have absolutely no idea what Shura Island is like now!!"

Nightwalker couldn't possibly know. He was a messenger of fear, trapped on this land before the war ended, unaware of the outside world except for snippets of information from outsiders. But she understood; it was the land that nurtured her, and every scene from her childhood taught her what Shura Island was like.

To cultivate one's own power. Children told this become fascinated from a young age with the foolish game of power. Those without power eagerly curry favor, using their skills to beg for rewards from those in power. On that small island, a natural hierarchy exists, the differences between people even greater than the differences between people and outsiders.

Because the children of those in positions of power are born with superior strength.

There are countless young people who have reached the level of a mere 3, and many are born having already crossed the first abyss. Birth and social standing, in a literal sense, determine a person's future. She was called a recognized "genius" in such an environment because she endured suffering befitting that title.

—Guang Shi Qingye is the only one in the prestigious family who did not inherit the power of his elders.

While everyone else was born with innate skills, she alone honed her Flash Finger technique. While everyone else discussed crossing the First Abyss, she alone tempered her Sinful Bones. Therefore, she is the genius with a broken heart, therefore, she is a one-of-a-kind genius.

She grew up in this environment, witnessing the alienation that power brought to the same people. She watched the poisoning and murder happening around her, and saw different families and sects fighting openly and covertly for their interests, with innocent civilians being harmed like expendable resources.

She trained alongside the weakest children, listening to their ambitions and dreams for the future. She had experienced Dongsha's betrayal, met dozens of similar "Dongshas," understood their aspirations, and comprehended the unwavering determination in those children's eyes.

They are destined to rise to a high position in the future.

In the future, I will definitely seize status and wealth.

One day, I will surely trample those in power under my feet...

Instead!

"Power struggles, deceit, and profiteering by stepping on the corpses of one's own kind—even the air is suffocating. What's so good about that Dust Island?" Qingye roared. "What's wrong with leaving such a place!"

A short sword thrust towards her brow, but Qingye swung her crown to parry, the two swords clashing and sparking. Qingye took a step back, her toes sinking deep into the sand, then she stepped forward and swung her sword, a fierce strike aimed at the hilt of the short sword. Nightwalker's defense was impenetrable, yet the clash of the two swords never ceased.

"Look at the skeletons beneath your feet!" Nightwalker roared. "Is it your dream to let your compatriots die here meaninglessly?!"

"That's right!"

Ignoring victory or defeat, life or death, Guang Shi Qing Ye's slash fell like a roar.

Fueled by the same rage, they responded with a desperate, life-or-death strike.

Even if it means dying a miserable death on the battlefield! Even if it means making a fool of yourself before you die, and regretting it too late!

That's a million times better than indulging in the vanity created by such infighting!

The moment the words left her lips, the force of her sword vanished completely.

It was as if the rust on the blade had been wiped away, as if the barrier between man and sword had been broken down. Intense emotions rushed into Mian Sheng, and for the first time since the transformation, her sword contained no confusion.

Yes, that's not some kind of well-intentioned act of thinking of everyone.

This is a vicious act, a delusion of war maniacs, intent on driving their compatriots to their deaths.

She was very happy when she left Shura Island; every day she spent traveling with her companions was worth remembering. Just as Chongming had said, she was completely absorbed in the journey and captivated by it.

Only at this moment did Guang Shi Qing Ye embark on the path he had longed for.