Heavenly Star

This was an ordinary town, located in the center of the Great Wind Country. Like most of the areas in the Great Wind Country, the land here was very dry all year round. There were often sand storms. However, they had been staying here for many years so they’ve got used to it. The town was very small and there were very few people living in it. There were at most a few hundred households. But because of the excellent geographical location, there were many people coming here as tourists. The businesses of inns and roadhouses were thus flourishing.

It was the best inn in this town. Although it’s already in the afternoon, the inn was still fully packed. People were eating, drink and chatting loudly. Near to a little window inside the inn, there was a man wearing a large grey robe and a wide-brimmed hat, the hat had been pulled low, and people could not see his face at all. He was alone drinking. Even when he’s drinking, he had not lifted his head. In people’s eyes, this must be someone extraordinary. But no one had tempted to ask where he’s from. Even the waiter had felt something strange when he served the man. And he left quickly after serving him without lingering. In this inn, you’d encounter all kinds of people, no one ever dared to offend a stranger, especially someone who acted differently (except those who are handicapped, of course).

“Have you heard of it yet? The tomb of Emperor Taizu of the Tianlong Kingdom has been invaded. And all the guards were killed. What’s even more bizarre is that the tomb raiders discovered a secret script of Emperor Taizu, inside the sleeve of his yellow imperial robe. On the script, it’s said that he has hidden a treasure map in his iron sword, the one that he’d left behind. Whoever gets hold of the map will have all the wealth in the world!” Near the strange man, a man is talking to another. He didn’t lower his voice deliberately, as he didn’t perceive it as a confidential matter.

There seemed to be nothing weird with the person sitting opposite to him. After he took a sip of his wine, he said, “as this news has already been deliberately publicized, I suppose there are not many people who don’t know about it now? And from the reaction of the palace of Tianlong Kingdom, this doesn’t seem to be fake news. I’m just not sure who this person is, as he seems to know a lot, he even managed to sneak in the tomb of Emperor Taizu. Before him, many people had already tried, but they were all killed by the guards as it was still very secured.”

“I have heard that because of this incident, there have been several times of burglary in the Tianlong Royal Palace, but I’ve also heard that even the Emperor of Tianlong is looking for the iron sword himself. After so long, there hasn’t been any special changes in the Kingdom. I bet they are not in the possession of the mysterious sword either. I wonder who is so fortunate to have gotten hold of the sword.”

“What’s the use of wealth if you aren’t even here to enjoy it? In contrast, I am more interested in the theft of the imperial seal of the Great Wind Country and Kui Shui Country. After more than half a year, it’s still not found. It’s such a shame to our Great Wind Country and Kui Shui Country.”

“I’ve heard that this was done by the Evil Emperor.”

“That’s right, I must say that this evil sect is really a supernatural power, it is a frightening force. Not to mention that they regard the security of the Palace as nothing, every country’s imperial seal is the most important thing, and the place where it is located is also a secret, yet they still managed to take it away silently. I really don’t understand how they did it, maybe they’re really as powerful as what the rumors say. You’d rather offend the Northern and Southern Emperor than the Evil Emperor. Do you still remember the massacre between the Huangpu Family and Baili Family? It’s a bloody lesson for all of us. And the leader of the evil sect…the man who’s called the ‘Evil Emperor’…I am trembling only by mentioning the name.”

“…It’s the same for me. In our Great Wind Country, who would not tremble when the name is mentioned?”

Suddenly, the wooden door of the inn was pushed open violently. A man dressed in white and with a pale face walked in. He was followed by two other men in casual wear, and there were swords strapped on their waists. The man seemed to look very arrogant, as if everyone else in the world was more inferior than him. When he walked in, he happened to hear what the two other people are discussing about, he snorted, “Haha…it’s ridiculous. Look at how you are scared by the Evil Emperor. You guys don’t even feel embarrassed.”

As soon as he said this, the inn, which has been filled with all kinds of conversations, suddenly became quiet. Everyone was looking at him like an idiot. Judging from the way the man was dressed and his demeanor, together with his arrogant manner, one could easily guess that he’s from one of the big families. He must have taken advantage of his family power and never made the effort to respect the others.

The two people who were talking glanced at him vaguely. One of them said with nonchalance, “I’d rather offend the Northern and Southern Emperor, than the Evil Emperor. I’d also rather offend the King of Hell, than the Evil Emperor. I can see that you’re quite young, yet you are talking big.”

Seeing that this person dared to challenge him, the young man sneered and said, “in my eyes, the Evil Emperor is just a thief who like to play hide and seek, he doesn’t even have the nerves to reveal his face. If I see him, I will kill him. Only rubbish like you both would be scared.”

The look on the two men’s faces changed slightly. The other one raised his glass and squinted, “What a good son the Upper Official Pingchuan has raised! Not only has he learnt nothing, he has been nurtured to be such an arrogant person! I’d convince you to act more humbly, as the Evil Emperor is not someone that you can offend. If what you’ve said are heard by the Evil Emperor, no one can will be able to save you. Not your father, neither the whole Shangguan family. Even if the Evil Emperor kills you now, no one in your family will dare to say a word.” Afterwards, he ignored the young man. From the sword that he’s wearing on his back, the young man must be the eldest son from the Shangguan family, one of the five biggest magic force families in the Great Wind Country, and his name was Shangguan Yun. Unfortunately, he’s such a waste. He didn’t even have the interest to talk to him.

“You… how did you know that my father is Shangguan Pingchuan?” The young man, Shangguan Yun, felt very surprised.

The two men ignored him, and even stopped looking at him. Shangguan Yun was not stupid. Seeing that these two people were still acting so calmly after knowing his identity, he knew that they were not ordinary people either. Shangguan Yun tried to suppress his anger, he raised his eyes and glanced at the inn. He frowned, as he was obviously not satisfied with the poor decoration of the place.

He glanced at the window and walked over. Then, he knocked a table with his hilt and said, “so, I am going to sit here. Step aside if you can.”

The person sitting on this table was the one wearing a wide robe and a big hat. He was the one who never revealed his face. After the order of Shangguan Yun, he still didn’t raise his head. Instead, he continued drinking at ease, as if he hadn’t heard anything.

When the waiter saw this, he hurried forward and persuaded him, “gentleman, there are two seats on the upper floor, can you…”

“Shut up.” Shangguan Yun snorted. He had just been offended by the two men and this was the perfect moment for him to vent. He said sullenly, “I already gave you face to step in this disgusting inn. Stop talking, I am sitting here today!”

The waiter knew perfectly that it’s someone he could not offend. He didn’t insist. After looking at the mysterious man, he didn’t dare to persuade him, he had no choice but to say, “so, I will let you both negotiate. Please be calm.” Afterwards, he left in a hurry as he didn’t want to get involved. Shangguan Yun was obviously looking for somebody to vent his anger.

“Hey, we told you to leave. Are you deaf?” Someone following Shangguan Yun also went forward and kicked the table with his legs.

The mysterious man still didn’t react, as if all these people did not exist. Such a reaction made Shangguan Yun even angrier. He laughed, “hey, I know it now. You’re wearing so much on such a hot day, I bet you’re some kind of wanted criminal! If they dare not do anything about you, then you’re unlucky to see me today! Da Bao, take off his hat!”

The guy who was called “Da Bao” answered. He stepped forward and grabbed the hat of the man. Just when he did, he screamed loudly and he sat on the floor immediately. His left hand was holding his right one which had gone numb, and he screamed so loudly that it’s deafening. A lot of blood was flowing out of his hand. One could see that a chopstick was stabbed right through his hand, yet no one had an idea when and how it’d happened.

Everyone around looked at him. The mysterious man didn’t move and he sat still as ever.

Shangguan Yun suddenly felt a stream of cold air all through his body. He couldn’t help but shiver, then he pulled out his inherited Liuyu Sword to stab the mysterious man.

Ping…

It was as if the sword was slammed with a very hard black iron. Another much bigger force was released – making Shangguan Yun scream miserably. He let loose of his Liuyu Sword which was thrown far away. It “landed” a few meters away from him…people were shocked, as this famous sword has now shattered into pieces. What was next to the broken sword was the wooden chopstick which stayed intact.

Everyone’s gaze was on the mysterious man. Although he had not moved from the beginning, everyone believed all these were done by him. To destroy iron with wood is the ability of someone with a superior level…who is this mysterious man indeed?

Shangguan Yun’s hand, which was holding his sword, has now been completely destroyed and it was bleeding heavily. He finally realized that he had offended someone that he shouldn’t have. This mysterious man had used the most common wooden chopstick to break his precious Liuyu Sword, even his grandfather or an ancestor in his family could not compete with him.