Chapter 036: A Man Should Wield a Heavy Sword

(Accompanying my wife at the hospital as she waits to give birth, so I can only write on my phone for now. If there are any typos in the chapters, I ask for your understanding! I hope more readers will support "Nine Star Battle Sovereign"—please add it to your library and click to support, thank you!)

Unintentionally, Lin Zhan seemed to hear the melody from a Jay Chou song in the real world echoing in his ears: “I’ll send you away, a thousand miles apart—are you still there...”

The mood and scene fit the meaning of this song perfectly, and Lin Zhan felt a deep resonance with these lyrics.

"Ah, oh!" As the melody ended, his backside once again made intimate contact with the ground. If he hadn’t rolled away just in time, he might have been crushed by a giant boulder.

Getting up, Lin Zhan didn’t bother to dust himself off, but hurried toward Zha Shi, his wobbly steps betraying his concern for the situation at the heart of the battle.

From a distance, he heard Zha Shi muttering to himself, “Damn it, yellow-rank strength really is terrifying!”

Drawing closer, Lin Zhan saw that the two old men had been reduced to charred corpses!

First, Zha Shi had used the one-time Ninefold Skill-Stealing Talisman to achieve a temporary yellow-rank state. Although there was a time limit, it was enough for him to unleash that move—Falling Stars.

With Lin Zhan’s secret support, enhancing the edge of the furnace, Zha Shi’s sword blow carried the might of a yellow-rank mid-stage cultivator at its peak.

Meanwhile, the two old men were only at the early yellow rank. Facing such overwhelming power, they never stood a chance. That they were incinerated by Falling Stars was only to be expected.

“Hahaha, Brother Yun, you’re alive!” Lin Zhan rushed over, grabbing his arm and shaking him with all his strength.

It was the joy of surviving a calamity. Considering their previous dire straits, it was clear how precious this moment of survival truly was.

“Phew...” Zha Shi finally regained his composure, letting out a long breath, patting Lin Zhan on the shoulder, and forcing out a smile uglier than a cry. He spat and cursed, “Damn that Taoist, selling me a defective talisman and nearly getting me killed... If I ever catch him again, he’s done for!”

After a moment, he added, “Heh, but, to be fair, the effect of the Ninefold Skill-Stealing Talisman wasn’t bad at all.”

As its power faded, Zha Shi returned to his original human-rank strength.

Lin Zhan, still excited, busied himself searching the bodies and looting the spoils. Apart from making sure Zha Shi was unharmed, this was another source of joy that made him forget his own injuries.

All six members of the Liang family had perished. Their weapons and storage treasures were now ownerless.

Above the two charred corpses floated several storage rings, some belonging to the old men, others to the younger cultivators.

Lin Zhan rubbed his hands expectantly, waiting for Zha Shi to inspect them.

“Tsk, these old men are so poor—all junk.” Zha Shi glanced through the haul, took only a few talismans for himself, and dumped the rest on Lin Zhan.

What Zha Shi dismissed as junk was treasure to Lin Zhan! The little tycoon could afford to be indifferent, but Lin Zhan gathered everything together in delight, savoring his first taste of sudden wealth.

Dozens of bottles and jars contained mostly low-level support pills, for training and healing. The healing pills were of little use to Lin Zhan, as his own Nine Star Diagram already gave him remarkable regenerative power.

Training support pills, such as a bottle of Valley Tranquility Pills, were much more valuable, helping focus the mind during breakthroughs—a truly useful effect.

Besides the pills, there were several martial manuals. Lin Zhan put these away for later study, and also found a fair amount of spirit stones and various other useful odds and ends.

Comparing the value of the storage rings, Lin Zhan couldn’t help but marvel. The resources possessed by the two high-level old men far surpassed those found in the rings of the younger cultivators, whose belongings were mere scraps in comparison. In this world where only the strong survive, one must constantly grow stronger to gain more useful resources—or else, one would not last long.

Most of the loot went straight into Lin Zhan’s own storage ring, leaving only about a dozen weapons of various types still outside.

When Zha Shi saw Lin Zhan picking up and examining the weapons one by one, he said, “Although your boxing skills are starting to look respectable, for any cultivator, mastering a weapon technique and having a suitable weapon is just as important as unarmed forms.”

Lin Zhan nodded. He’d been deeply impressed by the image of Zha Shi wielding a greatsword—so imposing and majestic, it almost inspired a fan’s awe in him.

A greatsword!

Every man should have a greatsword!

Lin Zhan’s gaze settled on a weapon left behind by one of the old men—a greatsword, fittingly enough.

Noticing his interest, Zha Shi picked up the sword and weighed it in his hand. “For your current stage, this one suits you well. At least, until you reach the yellow rank, you won’t need another. And I can even teach you a thing or two about sword techniques.”

“Great! Thank you, Brother Yun—this will be my weapon!”

Lin Zhan took the greatsword, intending to strap it to his back.

“Hey, what’s the rush? Even if it’s ownerless, you need to forge a bond with it. Only then will it serve you as a true companion, not just a lifeless object!” Zha Shi shot him a look reserved for rookies.

“Oh, is it like claiming a storage ring?” Lin Zhan scratched his head sheepishly.

After Zha Shi nodded, he began the blood-bond ritual.

“This world is obsessed with dripping blood—every treasure needs a blood bond. If you get too many at once, could you die from blood loss?” Lin Zhan mused, letting his imagination run wild.

He secretly named his first weapon “Little Yun,” to express his respect and admiration for Brother Yun Zha Shi.

After the ritual, Lin Zhan and “Little Yun” shared a close bond, almost like a blood tie. His consciousness could even enter a mysterious sword space, though, apart from a subtle connection, most of that space was shrouded in chaos.

“It’s time to go. The old man said the Liang family sent several teams after us, and they probably have a way to communicate. Other teams might be on their way as we speak...” Zha Shi was not blinded by their recent victory and had no intention of staying here to court death.

Lin Zhan, fearing for his life, quickly stored “Little Yun” in his ring and prepared to leave.

“Trying to leave? Not so fast—you’ll have to get past me first!”

A thunderous voice cracked the air, and a burly, red-faced man charged out.

Zha Shi jumped in alarm and immediately took off running. “Eleven, run! Use your fastest speed... And I’m not kidding!”

Given the situation, Lin Zhan knew he wasn’t joking. If Zha Shi was first to bolt, Lin Zhan was right behind.

As he ran, Lin Zhan shouted angrily, “Brother Yun, how did the Liang family get here so fast?”

Zha Shi replied with an apologetic look, “Kid, ahem... This isn’t the Liang family...”

“What! So you really do have a lot of enemies, Brother Yun! ‘Little Yun,’ wait for me... Help!”

The cries for help echoed through the Northern Forest as Lin Zhan fled for his life.