Chapter 5
The Sword Dao World shifted as if it were alive. One moment the path stretched endlessly through broken steel plains, the next it twisted into a jagged valley carved from shattered blades. Sword intent howled through the fissures like wind screaming against the edges of knives.
Nyxen walked with his hands tucked loosely into his sleeves, crimson eyes glimmering with boredom. To his side, Liuying stepped as though the very earth bowed beneath her—calm, precise, every motion a reflection of her inner sword.
Yet they weren't alone anymore.
Shadows flickered along the ridges. Voices echoed between the canyon walls.
"Did you see that woman? Like snow incarnate."
"And the man with her… his qi is foul. Demonic."
"Perfect prey."
Nyxen smirked, his ears sharp. "Looks like we've drawn attention."
Liuying's fingers brushed her hilt. "Attention we don't need."
"Oh, but I love attention." Nyxen's smile widened, wolfish. "Especially when it comes from those who think they're hunters."
They didn't have to wait long.
A group of cultivators stepped into the open ahead—five in total, robes marked with a crimson phoenix crest. Their leader, a tall youth with golden eyes and a wickedly curved saber, sneered the moment he saw Nyxen and Liuying.
"Outsiders," he declared, his voice sharp as steel on stone. "This canyon belongs to the Scarlet Flame Sect. Leave your treasures behind, and maybe we'll let you crawl away alive."
Nyxen tilted his head, amused. "Scarlet Flame, hm? Heard of you. Your sect is famous for burning fast, then dying faster."
Laughter rippled from the four disciples behind the leader, but their leader's face darkened. He stepped forward, saber humming with fire qi. "Careful, stranger. My name is Feng Jinhai. I've slain more arrogant men than I can count."
Nyxen clapped mockingly. "Oh, a name. Wonderful. Engrave it on your grave for me, would you?"
Before Jinhai could respond, Liuying spoke, her voice cold as frost. "We're not here for petty conflict. The Sword Dao World tests cultivators, not bandits. Move aside."
Her words hung like a blade in the air. For a moment, silence stretched. Then Jinhai laughed, the sound raw and cruel.
"A righteous little snow flower, aren't you? Too bad purity shatters quickest." His eyes slid to Nyxen. "And you—you reek of corruption. Perhaps I'll kill you first, then take her as a trophy."
Nyxen's smile sharpened. His qi stirred, black smoke curling at the edges of his robes.
But before blood was drawn, another voice interrupted from the canyon's opposite side.
"Scarlet Flame barking again?"
A second group emerged, their robes jet-black, embroidered with silver crescents. They moved like shadows—silent, precise, every step calculated. The one who spoke was slender, with hair like ink falling past his shoulders and eyes half-closed as though the world bored him. He carried no weapon, yet the air itself trembled faintly around his fingers.
"The Moon-Severing Sect," Liuying murmured under her breath.
Nyxen's smirk deepened. "Oh, this gets better and better."
The newcomer inclined his head lazily toward Nyxen and Liuying. "We have no quarrel with you. But these fools…" His gaze slid to Jinhai. "…owe us blood."
Jinhai snarled, fire qi igniting around him. "Shen Wu! You dare interfere?"
Shen Wu's lips curved faintly. "Dare? No. I simply don't care for noise in sacred places."
The canyon grew heavy with tension. Three factions now stood locked in a triangle of blades.
And Nyxen, ever the outsider, chuckled softly. "What a delightful mess."
The clash erupted in a heartbeat.
Jinhai roared, saber blazing, lunging at Shen Wu with fire that seared the canyon walls. The Moon-Severing disciples moved like phantoms, weaving through the flames, their hands forming arcs of silver light that cut like crescent moons.
Steel clashed, qi boomed, the air split apart.
Nyxen stood still, watching the carnage with faint amusement. Liuying, however, had already drawn her sword, her eyes narrowing.
"We should leave."
"Leave?" Nyxen's grin widened. "When the stage is this entertaining?"
Her sword trembled faintly, as though even it urged her forward. "This chaos has nothing to do with us."
"Doesn't it?" Nyxen's gaze glimmered with calculation. "Every corpse here is a stepping stone. Let them bleed, and when the dust clears—we take everything."
Her eyes snapped to him, sharp as a blade. "You would profit from their deaths?"
"Of course," Nyxen said simply. "That's survival. Let fools cut each other down; I'll reap the harvest."
Liuying's lips pressed into a thin line. "That is not the way of the sword."
Nyxen leaned close, his whisper curling like poison. "Then perhaps the sword is a fool."
The battle raged. Jinhai's flames roared, clashing against Shen Wu's crescent arcs. Their disciples fell one by one, bodies torn by sword