Chapter 19: Thoughts of Life and Death on Goose Lake

Xu Xiaoshou was stunned!

The referee was stunned!

The audience seats, which had just been boiling over with excitement and cries of caution, were also stunned!

Even Xiao Qixiu in the void was somewhat dazed. The battle was clearly over, so he had turned his attention to the other arenas.

He never expected that with one glance back, the situation had become so tragic.

Recalling his own words before the match, the referee felt a moment of distraction. Had he inadvertently jinxed it?

The arena fell into a deadlock!

Wen Chong's mouth twitched, as if he wanted to say something, but only a gush of blood poured out. His eyes bulged wide, and he couldn't manage to utter a single word.

The fierce glint in his eyes hadn't fully faded before it transformed completely into disbelief.

He looked down at Xu Xiaoshou's hand piercing through his heart. Because it had gone straight through, he could only see up to the elbow—the gruesome red, covered in his own blood.

A hand?

Piercing through his chest?

How was that possible...

Wen Chong's temples throbbed with veins, a sign of excruciating pain.

He stared at Xu Xiaoshou, his eyes full of confusion, as if seeking an answer.

Xu Xiaoshou could even feel the steady, rhythmic pressure on his forearm—thump, thump, thump...

“Save him!”

He shouted desperately, unsure whether to pull his hand out or leave it in.

How did it come to this?

Xu Xiaoshou was in a panic. He had never intended to kill anyone, let alone imagined that Wen Chong would really launch a surprise attack on him.

His instinctive counterattack was only because he trusted the passive system's warning. He never thought Wen Chong would charge right into it in his bid to kill him.

“Why did you have to do this!”

Xu Xiaoshou roared, shoving a Chi Jin Dan into Wen Chong's mouth. Wen Chong seemed to be shaking his head, but the movement was so slight it was almost imperceptible.

His lips parted slightly and never closed.

“Swallow it!”

Xu Xiaoshou used his left hand to lift Wen Chong's chin, trying to help him refine the pill's energy. But as soon as he let go, the pill slipped out and fell to the ground.

Thud, thud—

He watched the golden-red pill roll quietly away, realizing that something irreplaceable might have slipped away with it.

The referee stepped forward, pulling Xu Xiaoshou's hand out of Wen Chong's chest, and said flatly, “It's no use. He's dead!”

Xu Xiaoshou trembled all over. Dead?

Even for a Lian Ling Shi, was life really so fragile? One stab and it was over?

Seeing Xu Xiaoshou's expression, the referee sighed and patted his shoulder, as if offering comfort.

“First time killing someone?”

“Get used to it!”

He drew out the dagger that Wen Chong had lodged in Xu Xiaoshou's shoulder and handed him a bottle of pills, as compensation for the Chi Jin Dan he had taken earlier.

“Don't worry, it's not your fault. He attacked first, so if there's any blame, it's on my negligence as referee.”

“You'll be fine. Go back and rest. I'll handle the rest.”

Xu Xiaoshou was still in a daze. He glanced once more at Wen Chong in the referee's arms, said nothing, and quietly left the arena, clutching his shoulder.

The audience watched his dejected figure, and for a moment, no one dared to make a loud commotion.

“Really dead?”

“This has to be the first killing in the outer academy in over a decade!”

“Yeah, before this, referees and contestants were always so careful. No one expected... Wen Chong was way too impulsive!”

“Xu Xiaoshou... oh my god, I feel so bad for him...”

Some supported Xu Xiaoshou, but they were definitely in the minority. Most were against him.

“I can't stand it. How can Xu Xiaoshou act like he's the victim after killing someone?”

“Wen Chong died so unjustly! The referee hadn't called the end of the match yet—he was just fighting within the rules. How dare Xu Xiaoshou be so vicious?”

“We should demand Xu Xiaoshou be disqualified from the tournament. It's disgusting!”

“Exactly, fighting among fellow disciples and going that far—it's barbaric!”

Those supporting Xu Xiaoshou immediately got angry and stood up to retort.

“Bullshit!”

“Anyone with eyes can see Wen Chong had already lost. If Xu Xiaoshou had used a spirit sword, could Wen Chong have blocked it? He was already holding back!”

“Wen Chong failed in his sneak attack and got stabbed instead, and Xu Xiaoshou even tried to feed him a pill. That's incredibly noble—can't you see that?”

The supporters of Wen Chong sneered.

“The referee hadn't ended the match, so Wen Chong was just acting within the rules; but Xu Xiaoshou was completely heartless!”

“Screw you! You contrarian, get over here!”

“What, got something to say? Try and bite me?”

“Ugh!”

“Damn it, let go... you bastard, let go!”

E Hu.

The blue sky hid in the water, and plump geese frolicked among the thin clouds.

This was one of the most beautiful spots in the outer academy of Tian Sang Ling Gong, surrounded by weeping willows, with a heart-shaped white jade railing enclosing the lake. The water was extraordinarily clear, infused with spiritual energy.

Swimming in it were the spirit geese raised by Elder Qiao, whose meat was exceptionally tender and flavorful—Xu Xiaoshou had been lucky enough to taste it a few times.

Normally, countless people came to E Hu for cultivation, but lately, because of the "Feng Yun Zheng Ba," it was unusually quiet and serene.

Xu Xiaoshou stood by the railing, a look of melancholy in his eyes.

Instead of returning to his own courtyard, he came to this place where he used to practice swordplay.

For the first time, after winning a fight, he felt no excitement at all, not even bothering to check his passive points.

In a fog, he left the arena, wandered away from Chu Yun Peak, and ended up here.

The sun set in the west, and Xu Xiaoshou had been standing there for a long time.

He tossed a stone into E Hu, creating ripples that soon calmed.

“Maybe this world is the same—life is like this stone. No matter how big, once it sinks into E Hu, it barely makes a splash.”

Xu Xiaoshou exhaled, touching his right forearm as if feeling Wen Chong's final heartbeat once more.

Did he regret it?

No!

Xu Xiaoshou didn't regret accidentally killing Wen Chong—in fact, he had been prepared for it.

In this world, killing was bound to become routine.

It might not be obvious in Tian Sang Ling Gong, but Xu Xiaoshou wasn't naive; this was just the beginning.

What saddened him, what made him melancholic, was his sympathy and reflection on the fragility of life.

Perhaps to people on this continent, life meant little; perhaps even to his future self, it would be the same.

But right now, Xu Xiaoshou couldn't calm down.

In his previous life, enduring endless torment in that white hospital room, he still clung to his desire to live. In a way, Xu Xiaoshou cherished life more than most people in this world.

And now, he had destroyed such a precious life with his own hands.

He had prepared himself mentally, but when it actually happened, who could remain unmoved?

Wen Chong was the boss, but in Xu Xiaoshou's eyes, he was just a talented, somewhat arrogant junior.

Sure, he had ambushed him, but maybe he hadn't meant to kill—after all, the stab only hit his shoulder, right?

Maybe...

He wasn't meant to die?

Xu Xiaoshou shook his head, banishing that ridiculous thought.

If you dare to strike, you have to be ready to face the consequences—no matter how unbearable they are!

These words were for the deceased Wen Chong, and also a warning to his future self.

In the distance, the sun was completely swallowed by the mountains on the horizon, and darkness fell, returning everything to silence.

Suddenly, a surge of spiritual energy rippled at the edge of E Hu, startling the plump geese into flight and making the weeping willows sway gently.

Xu Xiaoshou took a few rapid breaths and unconsciously broke through to the seventh realm of Lian Ling.

“Hah!”

He suddenly grabbed a handful of stones, his killing intent flaring, and hurled them fiercely at the flock of geese.

Splash—the water sprayed up, but he missed.

Xu Xiaoshou let out a soft sigh.

In the end, he had killed someone!