Chapter 1960: Reverse

A tall, armor-clad middle-aged man followed behind Huo Jianghe, his eyes conveying a strong sense of authority. Xue Qin, who had been about to leave, stopped immediately upon seeing him, bowing respectfully. "Father! Senior Brother Huo!" she greeted.

It was Xue Qian, the Lord of Xuanjiang City, whom Zhang Xuan had killed with a single strike.

Behind the two were over a dozen young people, all appearing to be sixteen or seventeen years old, each possessing remarkable strength.

They were all young talents who had come to participate in the current assessment.

"Nephew Jianghe..." City Lord Xue Qian looked at him in confusion, seeing that they had arrived and interrupted Xue Chen's ongoing interrogation.

As the City Lord, he was personally overseeing the talent selection in Xuanjiang City. To his bewilderment, Huo Jianghe had insisted on coming here immediately after the preliminary test, even before the retest, leaving him completely puzzled.

"The retest will be conducted right here. With so many people watching, it will better demonstrate fairness and impartiality!" Huo Jianghe nodded, then turned and took a seat in the center of the room.

As he was conducting the assessment on behalf of the Lingyun Sword Sect, even City Lord Xue Qian could only take a subordinate seat.

Xue Chen was utterly bewildered.

He was in the middle of an interrogation, and now an assessment was starting. What was he supposed to do?

"Senior Brother Huo, as a resident of Xuanjiang City, may I participate in the assessment?" Shan Xiaotian asked in a clear voice.

"Naturally, you may!" Huo Jianghe nodded.

"Young Master Huo," Xue Chen interjected anxiously, "this Shan Xiaotian is only at the Saint Realm Sixth Layer; his strength is meager. Furthermore, he colluded with mountain bandits, harmed innocent people, and possesses a despicable character. Allowing him to participate in the assessment would be an insult to the Sword Sect..."

Although he knew that even if this fellow participated in the assessment, he wouldn't be selected, allowing such a person to do so would turn the interrogation into an utter farce.

"You say my strength is low?" Shan Xiaotian looked towards him.

"Precisely!" Xue Chen retorted, raising an eyebrow. "A cripple at the Saint Realm Sixth Layer, worse than an average person—what else would you call that but low?"

"Since you put it that way," Shan Xiaotian said calmly, "I'd like to ask... what is Second Miss Xue Qin's strength like?"

"My young lady is a genius!" Xue Chen declared with a proud expression. "She's only sixteen this year and has already reached the Grand Saint Realm Third Layer Great Perfection, poised to break through at any moment!"

"Heh heh!" Shan Xiaotian suddenly raised an eyebrow.

*Buzz, buzz, buzz!* Streaks of sword qi immediately shot from his fingertips. The iron chains shackled to his wrists instantly shattered into fragments upon contact with the sword qi. As he broke free from his restraints, the aura around the young man continuously surged, stopping at Grand Saint Realm Third Layer Great Perfection in the blink of an eye. His previously hunched back gradually straightened. While he had appeared to be only about 1.6 meters tall moments before, fully extended, he now stood around 1.75 meters, though still not as tall as Zhang Xuan.

Most importantly, as he slowly walked forward, there was no longer any sign of a limp!

Even his appearance seemed to have changed, becoming more resolute and handsome. Compared to him, the dozen or so young men from before all felt a sense of inadequacy.

"This is impossible..." Xue Qin's eyes nearly popped out, and she felt like she was going crazy.

In her mind, this man had always been synonymous with weakness and uselessness. She had never dreamed that he would undergo such a dramatic, earth-shattering transformation, as if he had become a completely different person!

Ignoring the shocked girl, Shan Xiaotian took a few steps and looked at Xue Chen, a smirk playing on his lips. "At the same level, I'm a good-for-nothing, but Second Miss is a genius... Instructor Xue Chen, I wonder what you base your judgments on? Your toes or your backside?"

"You..." Xue Chen took a step back, trembling.

When had this fellow become capable of cultivation? And to such an extent... Grand Saint Realm Third Layer Great Perfection?

It wasn't just them; the surrounding crowd was utterly silent.

Previously, the given reason was that this man couldn't cultivate and had colluded with mountain bandits to protect himself by relying on the City Lord's Mansion, thereby preventing Xue Qin from becoming a Sword Sect disciple. Now... with him possessing such immense strength, that explanation naturally lost all credibility.

"You can all attack me together..." Shan Xiaotian said with a faint smile, looking at the dozen or so young men Senior Brother Huo had brought.

"All of us together?" The crowd was momentarily stunned. Seeing Senior Brother Huo nod in agreement, their eyes flashed, and they all simultaneously thrust their long swords forward.

Shan Xiaotian pressed his fingers together like a sword and reached forward like an eagle's claw, immediately snatching a long sword from one of the young men. He then flicked his wrist, creating a sword flourish.

*Zzzzz!* Over a dozen streaks of sword qi shot out from the sword tip.

Although he had only learned one move, "throwing the sword," from his teacher, his teacher had explained much about the fundamentals of sword arts. Even without employing ultimate techniques, his combat strength was formidable.

It was like Li Xunhuan (Little Li Flying Dagger), who wasn't just skilled at throwing daggers; even without them, he remained one of the world's foremost experts.

*Clang! Clang! Clang!* As the sword qi flew out, long swords clattered to the ground. The dozen or so young men simultaneously clutched their wrists, their eyes wide with terror. The sword move Shan Xiaotian had casually performed had injured all of them in an instant! Fortunately, he had held back his strength; otherwise, their wrists might have been severed.

With a flick of his finger, the long sword instantly pierced the ground diagonally in front of Xue Qin, quivering continuously and emitting a soft, whistling sound. Shan Xiaotian, brimming with pride, stood like a poplar tree swaying in the wind. "I wonder... can Second Miss, as a genius, do what I, a mere good-for-nothing, have just accomplished?"

A stunned silence fell over the room.

Over a dozen people attacking him simultaneously, yet he casually disarmed one, stood still, and injured everyone's wrists with a single sword strike... this level of strength and swordsmanship was simply astounding!

If a person like this was considered a good-for-nothing... then what were they?

Xue Qin's pretty face paled, and her delicate body trembled.

Although she was also at Grand Saint Realm Third Layer Great Perfection, she absolutely could not achieve that!

If she were to rush forward, she would likely suffer the same instant defeat as the others.

"Even if you're not a good-for-nothing..." Xue Chen gritted his teeth, "your collusion with mountain bandits is a fact. Your neighbors can all testify that mountain bandits were seen at your residence late at night..."

Not answering him, Shan Xiaotian turned to look at the two witnesses who had just come out. "Did you both personally see mountain bandits entering my residence?"

"Yes... absolutely true!" "We truly... saw them!" Under his gaze, both of them simultaneously recoiled. If the other party had remained unable to cultivate, it would have been one thing, but now that he could cultivate, and with such high talent, recalling the past prestige of the Shan family... they were instantly filled with dread, and their words were no longer as confident as before.

Just as they were trembling with fear, Shan Xiaotian's voice rang out: "Seeing them is correct... it means you're telling the truth!"

"Huh?" Both witnesses froze.

Correct? Did he know what he was saying? This would be tantamount to admitting collusion with mountain bandits. Even with high talent and great strength, compromised morals would ensure the Lingyun Sword Sect would never accept him as a disciple.

Everyone else was also in an uproar.

"Haha, it's good that he admitted it. Since he admitted it, there's nothing more to say!" Xue Chen was momentarily stunned, then his face filled with wild joy. "Guards, seize this fellow who colluded with mountain bandits..."

He had expected the other party, upon revealing his strength, to vehemently deny everything, which would put his plan in a very passive position. He never dreamed that this fellow, as if lacking common sense, would simply admit it directly!

And in front of so many people!

Now, there was no room for maneuver... It was like having a huge charge placed on his head, surely condemning him to death!

"Seize him?" Shan Xiaotian gave a cold laugh, then suddenly bowed and cupped his fists. "Senior Brother Huo, I wish to summon a witness now. I hope you will permit it!"

"Hmm!" Huo Jianghe nodded.

"Come in!" Shan Xiaotian called out, looking towards the outside.

Following his words, a figure clad in a black robe and wearing a straw hat walked in from outside. He came before the crowd and slowly removed his hat.

"It's Cao Chengli!" "That mountain bandit leader..." "He actually dares to come to the City Lord's Mansion! Kill him..." "Shan Xiaotian called him in; it looks like they really did collude..." As they clearly saw the figure's appearance, the crowd below immediately burst into an uproar.

It was none other than Cao Chengli, the leader of the mountain bandits!

This fellow had always hidden in the deep mountains and dense forests, and the City Lord's Mansion had attempted to encircle and suppress him several times, all to no avail. Yet now he dared to come here; his audacity was truly astounding!

"Did everyone see that?" Xue Chen was so excited he almost jumped. "This Cao Chengli actually listens to him; clearly, they've been colluding for a long time..."

All the previous accusations lacked concrete proof, at most being some fabricated evidence. Now this fellow had actually brought the mountain bandit leader here...

He definitely couldn't clear his name now!

"Collusion?" Shan Xiaotian sneered, looking at the black-robed bandit leader before him. "Who exactly colluded with you... I'd like Fortress Lord Cao to answer that himself!"

"It was him..." Cao Chengli stepped forward, pointing at Xue Chen and Xue Qin. "And her..."

"What nonsense are you spouting? Don't slander others with baseless accusations!" Xue Chen retorted, raising an eyebrow.

"Slandering others?" Cao Chengli clenched his fist and took a step forward. "Yesterday, this Xue Chen specifically came to see me and commissioned me to kill someone. If successful, the reward was fifty thousand Divine Coins! I made some inquiries and learned that the person to be killed had no strength, was a good-for-nothing, so I immediately agreed..."

"Murder?" "Good-for-nothing?" Among the crowd, the clever ones had already guessed who was being referred to and all looked in unison at Shan Xiaotian, who was standing not far away.

For all these years, only he had carried that reputation.

"Precisely, it was Young Master Shan Xiaotian!" Cao Chengli continued, "I went to set an ambush that night, but... Young Master Xiaotian's strength was beyond imagination, so naturally, I couldn't succeed! Therefore, my entire force was annihilated; they were all killed by him..."

"I was lucky to escape with my life and found Xue Chen again, but he only gave me five hundred Divine Coins..." Cao Chengli paused. "I was furious then, and I wanted to see who he truly was, so I secretly followed them. I discovered that the two of them entered the City Lord's Mansion, and I happened to witness this scene recorded by this jade crystal..."

With a flick of his wrist, Cao Chengli released the image he had recorded last night.

The crowd immediately saw an image: inside the solemn City Lord's Mansion, Xue Chen stood in front of a group of people, instructing numerous guards to change into mountain bandit attire, and solemnly ordering them to kill Shan Xiaotian's entire family!