Chapter 66: The Death of a Young Man, a Sword of Heaven and Earth (Part 9) (Three Updates) Carefully...

Fifteen-year-old Mingche curled up on the ground, slowly opening his eyes as pain gripped his body.

"Why am I in the library?"

The two men and the ghost on the roof lifted the tiles and peered down, seeing Mingche sitting up and picking up the gourd bottle on the ground.

"This bottle is quite beautiful. It doesn't look like it belongs in the villa." Mingche looked up blankly, glancing around.

The man on the roof stepped back.

Last night, after Ye Mei was released from the gourd by that man, she disappeared extremely quickly and strangely, as if drawn away by something.

Ye Qingzhan had intended to follow Wen Gu in pursuit of Ye Mei, but the sky suddenly brightened. The monks in the academy, seemingly controlled by someone, returned to their rooms like zombies.

Little Mingche, who had been knocked unconscious on the ground, woke up after Ye Mei disappeared. They had no choice but to abandon their pursuit of Ye Mei and remain here to watch over the newly awakened Mingche.

The barrier had broken, and the little ghost Mingche, clinging to the roof, stopped Ye Qingzhan and Wen Gu as they tried to leave, whispering, "Brother and sister, there's no need to chase after them. My memory is almost fully restored."

Mingche looked down at his now-living self, watching him support himself and rise from the ground.

"Hiss—my waist hurts!" Little Mingche rubbed his waist, and the movement caused a bruise on his cheek, causing him to grit his teeth in pain. "Why does my face hurt so much too?"

There was no bronze mirror in the library, so Mingche could not see the injuries on his face.

Mingche on the roof suddenly said, "Since my mother sent me to the academy, I have been often beaten, scolded and bullied by fellow monks because of my stupidity. Only my senior brothers and sisters protected me. Sometimes when Dr. Hu was traveling and passed by the academy, he would punish those monks who bullied me, but as soon as he left, they bullied me even more."

Ye Qingzhan listened, and looked at Wen Gu, then looked down.

Little Mingche had already stood up from the ground, limping and stumbling towards a courtyard. They also knew that courtyard was where swords were forged and trained.

Wen Gu took Mingche by the hand, put one arm around Ye Qingzhan's waist, and took the two of them to climb rooftops and walls, following with light steps.

Little Mingche put the gourd bottle into his sleeve, walked into the Spirit Weapon Pavilion, took out a sword, sat on a stool and slowly wiped it.

"This morning is so strange! Don't the seniors need to practice? Why can't I see anyone?" Little Mingche, though puzzled, muttered only to himself, thinking more about the sword he was going to give to Tian Jin.

After a night, Ye Qingzhan's strength had recovered somewhat. After re-casting the invisibility barrier, he stood in the Spirit Weapon Pavilion with Wen Gu and Mingche, all gazing at the sword in his hand.

The sword was gleaming and sharp, its hilt engraved with meticulously crafted patterns and the word "Jin" carved into the end. The dangling crimson tassel shone brilliantly in the morning light.

Little Mingche smoothed the tassel, muttering to himself, "This is the first sword I ever forged. I wonder if Senior Brother Tian Jin would like it? If he knew the tassel was a coming-of-age gift from Senior Sister Tian Xue, would he faint with joy?"

The barrier allowed sounds from outside to pass through, while shielding the words from within. The voice of the ghost Mingche within the barrier gradually merged with his own voice outside: "On the day I died, the academy was exceptionally quiet, not a single soul was to be seen. Many things puzzled me then, but I was even more anxious to quickly forge the sword my senior brother desired, so I endured the pain and went to the Spirit Weapon Pavilion."

"I can't become a sword cultivator, and I can't wield a sword well. But my ambition was lofty, and I simply wanted to keep my promise and forge a one-of-a-kind, peerless divine sword for Senior Brother Tianjin. It took me three years to finally forge it."

"The senior brothers and sisters in the academy are all geniuses in cultivation, only I—" As Mingche spoke within the barrier, the little Mingche outside the barrier touched the bruises on his face in the reflection of the sword blade. "I'm the only one who's so stupid. If it weren't for my senior brothers and sisters, I would have been expelled from the academy long ago."

The voice of the young man beside him gradually faded. Ye Qingzhan and Wen Gu listened silently: "But, the sword…"

Mingche was halfway through his words when footsteps entered the barrier. The two men and the ghost looked in the direction of the sound. It

was Tianjin. He lowered his head and stepped into the Spirit Weapon Pavilion.

Little Mingche quickly clasped his hands behind his back, hiding his sword behind his back, muttering softly, "Brother, you usually practice in the training grounds at this time of day, but why are you here in the Sword Weapon Pavilion so early today?" "

Junior brother,"

Tian Jin said, his head still lowered. His voice was cold and distant, devoid of his usual warmth and liveliness.

Wen Gu, wondering if Little Mingche had noticed something strange about Tian Jin, suddenly frowned. He spoke to the man and ghost beside him, "Tian Jin has been controlled by Ye Mei."

Ye Mei, formed from resentment, bewitched with voices, invisible and traceless. Others couldn't sense it, but Wen Gu, with his dark and sinister presence, knew it best.

"No wonder,"

Mingche said after Wen Gu finished speaking.

Outside the barrier, Tian Jin raised his head, but the movement of his neck upward was slow and stiff. The look he gave him was also empty and gloomy.

Xiao Mingche, who had never seen his senior brother look like this, stumbled backwards, his grip on the hilt loosening as the forged sword fell to the ground with a resounding clang.

Tian Jin, seemingly drawn to the sound, glanced at the ground behind him.

The longsword fell to the ground, its red tassels scattered across the hilt.

"Is this for me?" Tian Jin asked.

Xiao Mingche came to his senses, scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, and quickly picked up the sword from the ground with both hands. He smiled and said, "It's for my senior brother. I wanted to give it to him at his coming-of-age ceremony tomorrow, but I didn't expect him to see it today—" "

Can you show me a glimpse?" Tian Jin interrupted before Xiao Mingche could finish, his eyes, like two deep pools, a strange light illuminating.

He was so impatient.

Ye Qingzhan, within the barrier, looked worriedly at the innocent-looking boy from outside the realm.

Xiao Mingche interpreted Tian Jin's enthusiastic gaze as a sign of his fondness for the sword in his hand. Without a second thought, he handed the sword to him and turned to pick up the tattered sword tassels.

"What should I do? Senior Sister Tian Xue would be so heartbroken if she knew. It's all my fault..."

Xiao Mingche suddenly lost his words. His pupils dilated. He tried to turn back, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't. He finally collapsed to the ground.

Someone behind him approached him.

"Yes, it's all your fault."

Tian Jin aimed his sword at one of Xiao Mingche's eyes and stepped on his already stiff shoulder.

The young man at his feet couldn't believe what was happening. He felt a dampness seeping from his brow, something running down his nose, and his internal organs felt as if they were about to burst. Ye Qingzhan,

witnessing everything from within the barrier, also covered his mouth and nose in fear.

Just then, the moment Xiao Mingche turned to pick up the sword tassels, Tian Jin raised his sword and slashed at him. Gathering all her strength, she delivered a fatal blow.

The sword's edge didn't pierce her body, but the sword's energy had already penetrated her lungs.

Mingqing, the swordsmith, was the first person to die by the sword after it was sharpened.

"How could this happen?" Ye Qingzhan grabbed Wen Gu's arm at her side. "Aren't they close friends?"

Wen Gu held her hand in return and said, "Go to his sea of consciousness."

Mingche, within the barrier, looked at himself lying in a pool of blood. His expression was indescribable, a mixture of sadness and shock. Perhaps, more likely, it was the same bewilderment he felt as he struggled to look at Tianjin.

"You said Ye Mei's voice seduces people," Mingche whispered softly, looking beyond the barrier. "Brother, is the secret Ye Mei evoked in your heart related to me? Does he dislike me too and want to kill me?"

Ye Qingzhan and Wen Gu were unable to answer. Just then, another person ran into the Spirit Weapon Pavilion.

Tianxue held her hand to her forehead, her face pale. After taking in the tragic scene, she struggled to move forward and spoke in a hoarse voice, "Tianjin, what did you do?"

Hearing this, Tianjin slowly lowered his foot from Mingche's shoulder, turned around, and replied with a smile, "Sister, the sword my junior brother forged was so powerful that I accidentally killed him." The

young man, whose smile was usually as bright as the sun, now looked like a demon in human skin.

Tianxue was stunned for a moment, suppressing the sadness in her expression and pulling a long whip from her sleeve.

"Junior brother, you've been possessed."

The icy blue whip was raised high, swift and fierce, but before it reached the person, it was severed by the sword energy.

"Junior brother is truly a swordsmith," Tian Jin sheathed his sword and looked at the broken whip, his eyes filled with excitement. "It's a pity he can't see it himself."

Blood seeping from his brow blurred his eyes, which he couldn't close no matter what.

Ye Qingzhan looked at him, remembering the crack that ran down the center of Mingche's forehead when he first met him.

It turned out to be the result of sword energy.

Gui Mingche, who had been silent since Tianxue appeared, looked at the two people at loggerheads and said in a deep voice, "Stop him quickly, he will massacre the academy."

As he spoke, Tian Jin, longsword in hand, advanced on the severely damaged Tianxue outside the barrier.

Tian Jin was already a prodigy in swordsmanship, and now that he had obtained a precious sword, his skills surged as if he had broken through. Blood streamed from the corner of Tianxue's lip, and she fell back, leaning against the door.

"Tian, Tianjin, wake up!" His eyelids became heavier, and before he closed them, Tianxue reached out to Tianjin.

His beloved leaned against the door wall, and slowly slid to the ground like a dead leaf. Tianjin, who was walking towards her, suddenly had a splitting headache, and the hand that was not holding the sword slapped his head desperately.

"What am I doing? What did I do?"

His pupils bulged, and his eyes were as red as a wildfire burning the wasteland. Tianjin swayed his body and walked towards Tianxue step by step. With a plop, he knelt down in front of her.

"Senior sister, senior sister!" He gently shook the woman in his arms, "Tianxue, Tianxue!"

He stared at the wound on Tianxue's face, the blood on her lips, and then looked at the hilt of the sword against her back. In his peripheral vision, Mingche, who was lying in a pool of blood, appeared. He finally realized something belatedly and threw the sword away.

"What the hell did I do!"

With bloodshot eyes and disheveled hair, Tian Jin looked like a demon from hell, howling to the heavens, "Why is this happening? Why!"

"I... I, I killed Senior Sister, I killed Mingche..."

Tian Jin's head tilted to the side as he roared.

Even through the barrier, Wen Gu could feel the hatred and regret rising from his internal organs, gathering in his heart, gradually blurring into resentment and anger.

Without waiting, Wen Gu wrapped one arm around Ye Qingzhan's waist, and with the other, an icy blade materialized from his palm, breaking the barrier.

At the same time, the cries of killing rang out.

"Kill!"

A riot of wits and tricks broke through the academy's gates, brandishing long swords and treading blood.

Tian Jin suddenly raised his head, his eyes dark, without a trace of light.

This was just like when Wen Gu lost control that night. Ye Qingzhan was the first to notice his abnormality. After he carefully placed Tianxue aside, he said to Wen Gu, "Be careful, he's out of control." Mingche

, standing behind them, carefully picked up the red spike that was scattered in the blood for his dead self.