Chapter 106: How Many Strikes to Kill Him?

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The enchanting woman sneered upon witnessing the scene. “What’s wrong? Lost for words?”

Shen Yu glanced at her and asked, “What’s your name?”

The woman curled her lips. “Zhao Ji.”

Shen Yu acknowledged with a hum and turned to leave.

The fox demon hesitated for a moment, ignoring the sharp pain in her shoulder, then frowned and asked, “What do you mean by that?”

Without looking back, Shen Yu said, “Though humans and demons walk different paths, there is no rule forbidding love between them. In my eyes, you are not at fault.”

The woman scoffed, “That sounds nice, but let me ask you—if you were that man and your wife and daughter were treated so unjustly, how would you feel?”

“There are no so-called ‘ifs’ in this world,” Shen Yu replied calmly. “Just now, you ambushed those three disciples from the Qingxu Sect within the city. You think that’s right, but if the truth comes out, it would be a devastating blow to the Yang family. Do you think what you did was right or wrong?”

Her face darkened. After a long pause, she said, “I was extremely discreet. The four families and one sect in the city keep each other in check. Without evidence, the Qingxu Sect wouldn’t dare act rashly.”

“Is that so,” Shen Yu responded lightly, neither confirming nor denying.

She narrowed her eyes. “You haven’t answered my question yet.”

Shen Yu stopped and thought seriously before answering, “I can enjoy the most beautiful things in the world, and I can endure the deepest suffering as well.”

She froze.

Shen Yu turned and walked away. Along the way, he gazed at the blooming flowers around him and murmured softly, barely audible to anyone but himself.

...

Back at his courtyard within the Yang family estate, Shen Yu leaned against a chair, lost in thought.

Massacres committed by cultivators are rare in the grand sweep of history, but they happen every century or so.

Having witnessed too many such tragedies, Shen Yu knew all too well the filth, conspiracies, vested interests, helplessness, and innocence hidden beneath.

That was why he didn’t answer her question.

Should a hundred thousand innocents be killed or spared?

Everyone believes their own actions are justified.

From the cultivator’s perspective or the common folk’s, each act seems right.

But the real issue is that such matters cannot be judged simply by right and wrong—this was the very lesson Shen Yu once taught Lu Caiwei.

His thoughts shifted to the three tails he had just seen, and his gaze darkened.

The fox demon clan seemed divided into two extremes: ruthless and devoted.

“Devotion leads to ruin; only ruthlessness leads to enlightenment.”

This phrase was carved on the ancestral altar of the fox demons by the world’s only nine-tailed fox demon, the Demon Emperor himself.

Yet, over the centuries, many female fox demons had chosen devotion, scorning the so-called Great Way.

“Hu Jiu, if only everything in this world could be judged by right and wrong—it would be so simple,” Shen Yu said, looking up at the sky.

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But no one could answer him.

...

The days of a cultivator always pass quickly.

The Spring Trials officially began in Qianliu City.

Cultivators require Immortal Jade just as much as mortals need silver and copper coins, so wealth disparities exist even among cultivators, leading to countless battles over treasures.

This Spring Trial represented the four families and the Qingxu Sect jointly dividing the Immortal Jade mine resources outside the city, naturally drawing many watchful eyes.

At dawn, amid the noisy hustle and bustle converging toward the city, Shen Yu finally stepped out of his manor within the willow forest.

Unlike last time, besides Zhao Ji, now disguised as an old servant, Yang Pan’er and the patriarch Yang Yuanhao accompanied him.

His expression was especially grave.

The outcome of this competition would determine not only control of the Immortal Jade veins but also whether the Yang family could establish itself within the city and across the entire Linshan Kingdom.

If they lost control of the Immortal Jade veins, the Qingxu Sect would undoubtedly seize the opportunity to strike, and eventually, the Yang family’s entire legacy would be slowly eroded by the others.

Old servant Zhao Ji lowered her head slightly, expression calm.

Not only because she knew Shen Yu was a disciple sent by the Dao Sect, but also because she had long resolved that if Shen Yu failed, she would risk everything to kill Yan Nantian and his son Yan Yunyü. Whether her identity was exposed no longer mattered.

She had endured for years and, after finally killing three Qingxu Sect disciples, had made up her mind.

She was ready to die.

Though the Spring Trials were hosted by the Qingxu Sect, the venue was jointly decided by the four families.

The four dismounted their carriage at the city gate. Shen Yu looked up at the sky.

A colossal circular platform hovered in midair above the heart of Qianliu City, casting a vast shadow that blocked the sunlight, plunging the city into gloom.

The competition would take place there, in the sky.

Yang Pan’er stood on tiptoe, shading her eyes with her hand, and said, “There’s a suspended stone at the center of that platform, so it floats in the sky.”

Shen Yu’s expression was indifferent. Though such things were rare, he had seen even larger floating mountains like Feilai Peak in the Abyssal Sage Hall, so this held no surprise for him.

The four entered the city gate and soon reached a high platform in the city center, where a gentle upward pull gradually lifted them into the air.

Shen Yu scanned the surroundings, thinking that Qianliu City truly lived up to its reputation as a major Immortal Jade vein city, with remarkable use of various Immortal Jade and stones.

Beyond the sea of clouds, the roar of countless voices echoed from the platform above—sometimes cheers, sometimes sighs.

The platform was vast, a single smooth plane of azure Qiongzhuo stone, polished like a mirror and seemingly endless.

Countless people were divided into arenas in every direction, while even more spectators gathered to watch some event unfold.

Yang Yuanhao looked up, seemingly spotting something, then snorted coldly.

Yang Pan’er rolled her eyes.

Shen Yu followed their gaze.

A group of men in Daoist robes and wooden crowns stood at the very center of the platform, chest out and heads held high, exuding extraordinary presence, all wearing matching gray robes inscribed with the words “Qingxu.”

Shen Yu frowned slightly, a faint sense of familiarity stirring within him.

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A gaze landed on Shen Yu.

His eyes flicked to meet it.

It came from a young man with delicate features, rosy lips, and a playful smile, his face like a peach blossom.

By his side stood a middle-aged man with a solemn expression, radiating an aura of otherworldly detachment, somewhat resembling Yang Yuanhao.

Their identities were unmistakable: Yan Nantian, leader of the Qingxu Sect, and his son Yan Yunyü.

“That disgusting fellow is Yan Yunyü,” Yang Pan’er whispered into Shen Yu’s ear.

Shen Yu glanced at him, seeing the lecherous gleam in his eyes, and said, “Indeed, disgusting.”

Their voices were low but unhidden, and cultivators’ keen ears easily carried the words to the other side.

Yan Yunyü’s face darkened, his eyes narrowing as he stared at Shen Yu.

Shen Yu paid no heed to the threat, instead turning to study the middle-aged man with the profound aura.

The fifth realm of Daoism is the God-Traveling Realm.

The Heavenly White Jade Capital has twelve towers, five stories each.

Cultivators have long been confused about Daoist realms—originally there was talk of twelve realms, but for some reason, only nine realms are now commonly recognized.

Born of the Dao Sect, Shen Yu was privy to these secrets.

Beyond the nine realms, there are three more, but those three remain too ethereal to grasp.

Shaking off his thoughts, Shen Yu scrutinized the man in the God-Traveling Realm, whose thick aura marked him as someone worthy of his focus.

Shen Yu’s right hand fingers began to make subtle twisting motions.

Yang Pan’er curiously asked, “What are you doing?”

Shen Yu replied calmly, “Calculating how many strikes it would take to kill him.”

“You’re crazy!” Yang Pan’er’s eyes widened. “There are so many people over there, and that annoying fellow is a Golden Core cultivator—very powerful among peers. It’s impossible. Forget it.”

Shen Yu said nothing further and paused his movements. “Then take me to the competition.”

“This Spring Trial has participants from all walks—diviners, poets, strategists, martial tacticians, debaters, and meditators,” Yang Pan’er said, counting on her fingers. “So many people. Shen Yu, which one will you choose?”

Suddenly, the air grew silent.

After a moment’s silence, Shen Yu said, “Let me think about it a little more.”