Chapter 73: The World’s Simple Pleasures, an Unwavering Heart

Compared to the upheaval sweeping through the entire ancient martial world, the protagonist at the storm’s eye seemed almost excessively relaxed.

Chengdu, Chunxi Road.

This was the city’s most prosperous commercial hub. Dazzling advertisements played on enormous 3D screens; fashionable men and women streamed past in endless waves, their energy and bustle filling the air with all the vibrancy of a modern metropolis.

Yi Yi and I sat at an outdoor table by a roadside café, appearing just like any ordinary father and daughter, basking in the afternoon sun.

“Dad, do you really think he’ll come?” Yi Yi asked, nibbling at a slice of tiramisu, curiosity in her voice. She could already sense countless spiritual presences, some hidden, others direct, converging from all directions, locking firmly onto this area.

“He will.” I lifted my coffee, took a gentle sip, and watched the passing crowd with tranquil eyes. “A man like him, arrogant beyond measure. My challenge is an insult to him, but also the perfect stage for him to demonstrate his might. He won’t let this opportunity slip by.”

“But why here?” Yi Yi was puzzled. “There are so many ordinary people. If you fight, innocent lives could be caught in the crossfire.”

I set down my cup, looked at her earnestly, and said, “Yi Yi, remember this. We cultivate for transcendence, but our roots are here, among humanity. The reason the Demon Sect is so reviled is because they treat mortals as ants, trampling them at will. Our purpose in opposing them is to protect this human warmth.”

My gaze swept over couples whose faces glowed with happiness, children chasing and laughing, and elderly pairs walking hand in hand despite their unsteady steps.

“To kill him here is to let all those hidden eyes see the truth. Protection is always stronger than destruction. My target is not just Xuan Sha, but the arrogance and evil he embodies—those who place themselves above all others. I want everyone to witness that even legends can be shattered.”

Yi Yi nodded, half-understanding. She looked at the bustling scene before her, then at her calm father, and a sudden clarity dawned in her heart.

Her father’s way was not to avoid the world, but to embrace it.

His heart was already bound tightly to this mortal realm.

For the next two days, I undertook neither cultivation nor preparation. With Yi Yi, I became a true tourist, blending into the city.

We visited the adorable giant pandas; Yi Yi, seeing the descendants of these black-and-white “iron-eaters” for the first time, couldn’t hide her delight.

We wandered through Wide and Narrow Alley, tasting authentic local delicacies: Three Cannonballs, Dan Dan Noodles, Long Wontons, and more.

We attended a Sichuan opera performance; when the magical “face-changing” act unfolded, Yi Yi couldn’t help but send me a whispered message: “Dad, this is far more amusing than the illusory arts of our cultivation.”

Those two days were peaceful, intentionally so—a “tempering of the heart.”

On the eve of battle, I revisited the warmth and beauty of the mortal world, making my resolve even firmer.

I do not kill for the sake of killing.

I draw my sword only to protect this goodness.

The third day, dawn.

Yi Yi and I returned to the intersection at Chunxi Road.

The city still slumbered, but to those who cultivated, the atmosphere here had become unbearably tense.

Above, dark clouds drifted in, obscuring the morning light.

A storm was brewing.

Nine o’clock.

Pedestrians gradually filled Chunxi Road; the city’s clamor revived.

No one knew that a tempest capable of overturning the entire ancient martial world was about to erupt here.

Yi Yi and I sat as before at the café, seeming just two early risers.

Yet at that moment, atop surrounding skyscrapers, in inconspicuous corners of alleyways, and within invisible pockets of space, countless watchers lay in wait.

Tang Ao, Master of the Tang Clan, stood with several elders atop a department-store roof, gazing downward with grave expression.

“Master, do you think… Grandmaster Jiang truly stands a chance?” one elder asked, worry etched across his face. The Demon Lord Xuan Sha’s fearsome reputation had dominated minds for thirty years; now, after three decades, he would be even more terrifying.

“I don’t know.” Tang Ao shook his head, but strange light flickered in his eyes. “But I do know that today, we may witness the dawn of a new era.”

Meanwhile, across the city, several Kunlun cultivators in Taoist robes watched from afar.

“Senior brother, his aura is so calm—he doesn’t seem to bear peerless power.”

“Appearances can be deceiving. To draw Xuan Sha here in person, he cannot be ordinary. Let’s wait and see.”

Time ticked by.

Finally, when the clock’s hand pointed to nine-thirty—

Suddenly, heavens and earth changed!

The clouds, once merely blocking the morning sun, thickened to an inky black, spinning visibly, forming a massive vortex.

A surge of evil, violent, icy energy poured down from the sky like a breached dam, engulfing all of Chunxi Road in an instant.

Ordinary people shopping on the street felt a sudden inexplicable chill and unease, stopping in their tracks, gazing at the sky in confusion and fear.

“He’s here.” I lifted my now-cold coffee and spoke softly.

Yi Yi set aside her book, raising her head, her eyes cold and filled with fighting spirit.

At the heart of the black vortex, a figure slowly descended.

He wore a magnificent black robe embroidered with fierce demonic totems in gold thread. His face was handsome, yet sinister; his dark red eyes carried a detached cruelty, overlooking all living beings.

It was Xuan Sha, Lord of the Demon Sect!

He made no effort to conceal himself, arriving openly in the sky above the modern city—like a god or demon descending to earth.

Behind him followed four powerful Demon Sect Guardians, who took positions at the four corners, sealing the entire area.

“Who dares challenge me, who gave you the courage to issue a battle invitation?” Xuan Sha’s voice was inhuman, filled with a demonic resonance that reverberated in every soul.

Those hidden spectators felt their hearts shaken; the weaker ones coughed blood on the spot.

Ordinary people on the ground could not withstand the demonic pressure—many rolled their eyes and fainted.

Chunxi Road plunged instantly into chaos and silence.

Xuan Sha savored the effect, reveling in the fear of the masses. His gaze swept across the ground like a scanner, finally fixing on the calm man at the café and the girl beside him.

“So it’s you?” He curled his lips into a cruel smile.

I rose slowly, setting my cup gently on the table with a clear “click.”

In that deathly silence, the sound was strikingly sharp.

At that moment, a peaceful yet boundless aura radiated from my body, like a warm sun, instantly dispelling the cold, demonic pressure.

The fainted mortals stirred awake, feeling only a slight dizziness, lost and bewildered. The spectators who had suffered spiritual wounds felt a sudden lightness, returning to normal.

I looked up, meeting Xuan Sha’s gaze in midair, and spoke calmly:

“You’re late.”

“And you frightened them.”