SWNOVELXO Chapter 5 - A Thousand-Foot-Deep Chasm Before the Sword Sect
Chapter 5: A Thousand-Foot-Deep Chasm Before the Sword Sect
Drizzling rain fell from the sky over Su City with a slight chill in the air.
Shen Shuchou walked on the damp streets, heading in the direction of his home from memory.
In his recollection, he lived in an old neighborhood in the suburbs and had to take the bus to school every morning.
Shen Shuchou didn’t choose to live on campus but rather commuted, even though for someone living quite far from the school like him, it would have been better to stay in the dorms.
However, Shen Shuchou still chose to commute because he was an orphan and wanted to return to his own little home every time, where he could be alone.
His adoptive parents had taken him from the orphanage and raised him into adulthood.
People have their share of fortune and misfortune; the sky has its unpredictable storms.
In his second year of high school, Shen Shuchou’s adoptive parents died in an incident during a demonic beast rampage.
All that was left to him was a house and some savings.
Since then, Shen Shuchou became reticent. He went from being a boarding student to a commuter student, returning home each time as if his family was still there.
Before he knew it, he arrived at the entrance of the neighborhood, on which three peeling characters were written: Jinbi Garden.
“Little Shen is back.”
An old man poked his head out of the security booth and greeted him.
Shen Shuchou searched his memory for a name and smiled, “I’m back, Grandpa Zhang.”
The residents of Jinbi Garden were mostly elderly people living out their retirement years. The neighbors were very familiar with each other, and everyone was well aware of what happened in each household.
After his adoptive parents passed away, these neighbors often helped Shen Shuchou in his daily life to the best of their abilities.
“You silly boy, you’re not even carrying an umbrella in the rain. Come in quickly and warm up. There’s air conditioning inside,” Grandpa Zhang beckoned with an outstretched hand.
“It’s alright. It’s just a light drizzle. I don’t want to trouble you, Grandpa Zhang. I’ll head home first,” Shen Shuchou politely declined.
“You child, even a light rain can make you catch a cold. Alright, alright, hurry home then.”
Bidding farewell to the security guard Grandpa Zhang, Shen Shuchou walked inside.
He lived in Unit 2, Room 601 of Building 3 in Jinbi Garden. He took the elevator and quickly arrived at his doorstep.
Taking a deep breath, he fished out the key from his pocket and inserted it into the lock, turning it.
Pushing open the door, Shen Shuchou stepped inside. The changes in his home were no different from his memories.
It had a simple layout of three bedrooms, one living room, one kitchen, and one bathroom. The rooms were pitch-dark, appearing a bit desolate.
Turning on the wall lights, a yellowish-brown glow illuminated the living room, dispelling the darkness as if bringing a touch of warmth to the home.
Shen Shuchou opened the refrigerator, took out some milk, and gulped down two mouthfuls.
The icy sensation slid across his taste buds, as if washing away the turmoil in Shen Shuchou’s heart.
Afterward, he walked to a bedroom and paused. This was his adoptive parents’ room.
After lingering for a moment, he turned the handle and entered, turning on the lights. The first thing that caught his eye was a photo hanging on the wall.
The photo was taken on his adoptive parents’ wedding day. The corners of their mouths were upturned, wearing blissful smiles.
Shen Shuchou’s adoptive mother was called Fu Yan, and his adoptive father was Wei Wenming. They both had ordinary jobs.
Shen Shuchou sat down on the bed. There was a small photo album on the bedside table.
With trembling hands, Shen Shuchou picked up the album and slowly opened it. The first photo inside was of his adoptive mother Fu Yan and adoptive father Wei Wenming.
In the middle was a little boy about four or five years old. The boy had an uneasy expression on his face as the three of them stood together hand in hand.
Below the photo album was a line of small text: July 7, 2013, I, Fu Yan, and I, Wei Wenming, on this day, adopted Shen Shuchou as our son.
The name Shen Shuchou was given to him by the vice president of the orphanage. After his adoptive parents took him in, they didn’t change his surname.
The rest of the album was filled with photos of the three of them as a family. There was Shen Shuchou wearing a down jacket, standing in the snow with a snowman beside him.
There were photos of the family of three climbing a mountain together, having meals together, and celebrating Shen Shuchou’s birthday.
Every photo had a line of text below it without exception, recording that beautiful day.
Flipping through the album again and again, before he realized it, Shen Shuchou’s eyes were brimming with tears.
Glistening, bitter teardrops fell onto the album.
Shen Shuchou wiped away the tears, his voice choked with emotion, “Dad! Mom! Shen Shuchou is back.”
After Nine reincarnations, lasting over a thousand years, he had finally returned to the little home he had yearned for.
Seeing his parents’ faces again, no one knew what Shen Shuchou was feeling at this moment.
Sadness, joy, longing, excitement—none of these could describe it.
One photo album, one hundred and twenty photos. Shen Shuchou spent a full hour looking at them.
Closing the album, Shen Shuchou walked out of the bedroom and gently shut the door.
Outside the window, the raindrops from the gloomy sky gradually turned into a heavy downpour.
Boom!
Lightning flashed and rolled within the distant dark clouds.
Shen Shuchou walked around the house, looking at this and that. Right now, he was filled with a deep sense of nostalgia for everything in this home.
After a good while, he finally pushed open the door to his own bedroom.
As soon as the door opened, Shen Shuchou furrowed his brows. The room was like a dog’s den, with clothes strewn all over the floor.
Was he really this messy in his previous life?
Shen Shuchou smiled helplessly.
A boy’s room was always in a state of chaos, accompanied by a strange odor. If someone’s room was as tidy as a girl’s room, that would be truly impressive.
After spending half an hour tidying up the room and taking off his clothes, he finally lay down on the bed.
With his nine-life cultivation, Shen Shuchou could have easily cleaned the room using his mental intent, but he wanted to do it himself.
Now, Shen Shuchou was equivalent to an immortal being. He didn’t need to sleep or eat, and no one in this world could harm him.
Shen Shuchou wouldn’t recklessly use his cultivation to do anything. He just wanted to be an ordinary person.
He was already tired of all the battles, killing, and everything else from his nine reincarnations.
Now, being alone was just fine.
…
Profound Realm Continent.
Heavenly Sword Sect.
“Qin Hongyi, don’t go too far. Don’t think that just because you’re an Emperor Realm expert now, there’s no way to deal with you.”
Jian Xiao looked at the devastatingly beautiful woman in a red dress not far away with apprehension.
“If my memory serves me right, back in the Youming Valley, you once launched a sneak attack on my master,” Qin Hongyi said, her beautiful eyes filled with killing intent, her entire body emanating a murderous aura.
“Qin Hongyi, what are you up to this time? I admit I did ambush your master back then, but haven’t you already slain your master now? What’s the point of putting on this false act of righteousness?” Jian Xiao mocked.
Jian Xiao’s words reached Qin Hongyi’s ears, causing an intense pain to surge in her heart.
That’s right! She had personally slain her master in front of the entire world, the master who had always cherished and loved her for fifty years was killed by her own hands.
These past few days, Qin Hongyi had been consumed by a thought. With her master gone, what was the point of living? She wanted to find her master and atone for her sins. But before that, she would settle the score with everyone who had ever harmed Shen Shuchou one by one.
“Since you admit it, that’s enough. Everyone who has ever harmed my master must die.” Qin Hongyi’s beautiful eyes flashed with murderous intent.
A sword with a snow-white body appeared in her hand. This was Shen Shuchou’s sword, Cold Fragrance.
Now, she would personally use this sword to kill those who had harmed him in the past.
In the next moment, Qin Hongyi slowly raised her hand, and Cold Fragrance slashed down at the person in front of her.
With this slash, the world changed color.
The laws of the universe revolved around the sword’s body.
A dazzling sword light lit up the sky, like a falling meteor striking down.
The terrifying sword qi dragged a rainbow behind it. Sword qi from all directions gathered like thousands of soldiers and horses, leaving no corpse intact beneath their iron hooves.
“You’ve really gone mad.”
Beads of cold sweat dripped down Jian Xiao’s forehead.
He didn’t expect this crazy woman to actually make a move. Wasn’t she afraid of provoking an attack from all the sects?
Without time to think further, he hurriedly moved to defend.
Under Qin Hongyi’s Shattered Galaxy Sword strike, his defense was like an ant trying to shake a tree, overestimating his own abilities.
In just an instant, he was shredded by the vast sword qi surging toward him.
“No!”
Jian Xiao’s pupils dilated, filled with sword qi.
The next moment, Jian Xiao’s body was annihilated by the sword qi.
A thousand-foot-deep chasm of sword marks appeared in front of the Heavenly Sword Sect, with a freezing storm of sword qi raging within.
“From now on, the disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect are not allowed to take half a step outside. Otherwise, they will be killed without exception.”
After killing Jian Xiao, Qin Hongyi coldly left these words behind and soared into the clouds.
A clamor of voices erupted within the Heavenly Sword Sect.
The Great Mahayana Realm Sect Master of the Heavenly Sword Sect couldn’t even block a single sword strike before dying.
And Qin Hongyi’s words directly put the entire Heavenly Sword Sect under confinement.
Of course, there were disciples who expressed defiance. As soon as they stepped half a foot outside the main gate, a sword qi shot out from the chasm of sword marks with lightning speed, instantly tearing apart those disciple’s body.
Blood mist exploded in the air, and all the disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect felt a chill down their spines and retreated.
From then on, the disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect could only sneak out like mice through the back door.