Although Sun Bing's residence was quite remote in the Sun Family's main compound, the prolonged fighting had already drawn attention. Moreover, the Sun Family was a prominent noble Family in Luoyun Town, and the Elders, with their strong cultivation, could also detect the sounds of battle.
Before long, new guests appeared in the previously secluded courtyard. Looking at the old man before him, Sun Bing heard the other party calmly ask, "What happened here?"
Sun Bing recognized him; this was the Family's Law Enforcement Elder, Sun Li, who was in charge of the Family's rules and punishments. He held immense power, and most importantly, his strength was formidable, having already reached the Qi Training Stage, Eighth Layer Realm.
Furthermore, while he was quite strict on normal days, as long as one didn't violate Family rules, he wouldn't deliberately cause trouble. He was known to be quite upright and one didn't need to worry about him unjustly framing anyone.
"This Disciple is also unaware. I was sleeping soundly in the house when I suddenly sensed a thief approaching, so I fought with him. Just as I subdued the thief, Elder, you arrived," Sun Bing said without any hesitation, directly stating what he knew.
Anyway, this battle didn't last long, and most of what Sun Bing said was true, with only a small concealment. However, this was harmless; as the saying goes, a lie that is ninety percent truth and ten percent falsehood is the hardest to expose. Moreover, this was basically the truth now; there was no one left to contradict him. Sun Yong couldn't possibly get up now and accuse him of anything, could he?
Regarding Sun Bing's statement, the Elder slowly nodded. After all, the corpse on the ground was dressed in night clothes, clearly indicating that the person didn't want to reveal his identity, which meant he had ulterior motives. In such a situation, no matter who the other party was, Sun Bing's killing of him was still meritorious and not blameworthy.
After all, over the years, there had been traitors in the Family. Even if Sun Yong were to come back to life, he wouldn't be able to clear his suspicion.
Sun Li immediately nodded, "You did very well, you have a bit of your father's style from back then. I hope you can continue to work hard. This is my token. Tomorrow, go to the account office to collect three bottles of Body Tempering Pill as a reward."
"Thank you, Elder." Sun Bing took the token with a smile. He had been worried about not having Cultivation resources, but he didn't expect this Elder to be so kind as to directly give them to him.
At the same time, he also thanked Sun Yong profusely in his heart. Although the other party wasn't a treasure-delivering boy, he was close enough. Not only did he deliver himself to Sun Bing for revenge, but he also allowed Sun Bing to earn merit and even gain three bottles of Body Tempering Pill. He was truly a great person!
Since revenge had been exacted, Sun Bing felt no psychological pressure in praising the other party now, no matter how much.
After understanding the whole matter, Elder Sun Li left directly. As for the corpse on the ground, it was also taken away by the patrolling guards.
As for Sun Bing, he sat cross-legged in his room, quietly pondering. The scenes from just now replayed in his mind, every move and every stance from the first strike of their engagement until the opponent's death, without missing anything.
Just as the Saint said: "Examine oneself three times daily."
Although Sun Bing couldn't achieve that, he needed to quietly reflect after each battle, considering where he fell short and where he made mistakes. These were not minor matters; today's Sun Yong was merely a small figure.
But in true Genius confrontations, one wrong step leads to many wrong steps. Even an insignificant small mistake can cause you to squander a great Opportunity, and ultimately even lead to death.
A person has only one life, and since it concerned his life, Sun Bing was quite serious.
After about half an hour, Sun Bing finally finished digesting today's first battle. Although it was just one battle, his combat power had increased by two layers compared to before, and his understanding of the Longitudinal Sword Manual had deepened.
He let out a long breath. Tonight, he not only fought a battle but also analyzed it in detail, which made Sun Bing's mind a bit tired. He planned to tidy up and then rest.
Suddenly, he saw a refined iron sword on the ground. This seemed to be left behind by Sun Yong and apparently hadn't been taken away, making it Sun Bing's spoils of war.
Although a refined iron sword might seem insignificant, in Luoyun Town, it would cost a full fifty taels of silver to buy, which was equivalent to Sun Bing's entire five months' salary. This was indeed a sky-high price.
Sun Bing's monthly salary used to barely cover his living expenses, so he couldn't save up that much money and couldn't afford an iron sword. Therefore, he could only use a wooden sword when practicing his swordplay.
Many years had passed in a flash, and now, even with an iron sword in hand, Sun Bing had no intention of replacing his wooden sword. This was because the wooden sword in his hand was no longer just an ordinary wooden sword.
Ten years of continuous tempering had imbued the wooden sword with Sun Bing's essence, Qi, and spirit. Not only was its exterior hard enough to contend with a refined iron sword, but it was also exceptionally easy to use. If he continued to nurture it like this, it might even undergo a transformation in the end.
Therefore, this refined iron sword was merely a trivial item to Sun Bing, tasteless to eat and regrettable to discard. So, Sun Bing decided to sell it tomorrow, hoping to exchange it for some money and resources, as money was quite important for Cultivators as well.
Immediately, Sun Bing took the iron sword, intending to put it away properly.
However, while casually swinging the refined iron sword a few times, he accidentally touched the small sword case he kept close to his body. Then, something that shocked Sun Bing happened: the iron sword slowly merged into the sword case, disappearing without a trace in an instant.
This situation made Sun Bing quite serious. Ever since the sword case allowed Sun Bing to Cultivate that day, Sun Bing had carefully examined it every day, hoping to discover some other Opportunity. However, the final result was very disappointing.
This sword case was at most a small box that couldn't be opened. But even so, Sun Bing still didn't give up. He didn't believe that a sword case that could make him Transmigrate and grant him a Cultivation Technique would be so simple. He never expected it to finally reveal a clue today.
Overall, the sword case didn't seem to have changed much; its size was still the same. But only Sun Bing noticed that its exterior seemed to have deepened from its original light black color, and it felt heavier in his hand—exactly the weight of the sword from just now.
All of this indicated that the sword case was not that simple. Sun Bing was quite optimistic about its future, but if it kept consuming swords, it would be a bit too much for him to handle.
Time quickly arrived on the second day. Although there was an intrusion last night, considering the possible impact of a traitor, no news was leaked, as if nothing had happened at all. No one in the Family realized that two people had silently disappeared, one after the other.
At this moment, in Sun Long's courtyard, he was constantly losing his temper: "Tell me, what exactly is going on? Why is that good-for-nothing fine, but Sun Yang and Sun Yong have both disappeared?"
Originally, Sun Long didn't care about such trivial matters, but he didn't expect to be called in by the Law Enforcement Elder last night and lectured until morning. Although he was a direct descendant of the Family and the number one Genius, he had no special privileges when it came to the matter of traitors.
The final result was that Sun Yong was a traitor, seemingly involved in some conspiracy, and Sun Yang had fled to avoid punishment. As for Sun Bing, he had actually earned merit. This result left Sun Long dumbfounded, but he couldn't refute anything.
Therefore, he could only swallow his anger and quickly deny any involvement, as he couldn't possibly say, "This was all arranged by me; I sent them to Sun Bing's place to steal his Cultivation Technique."
If he had really said that, even if he was a direct descendant of the Family, he would definitely be investigated. Even if nothing was ultimately found, the image he had painstakingly built for so long would have collapsed, and his authority would be gone.
Just then, Sun Bing had finished washing up and was about to go out. The two met like this. Sun Bing's expression was calm, while Sun Long's face, though as gentle as ever, still held an unhidden rage in his eyes. The two formed a stark contrast.
Especially since Sun Bing's eyes even held a hint of innocence, which made Sun Long's anger grow even more, slowly transforming into a kind of resentment and a faint killing intent.
Although Sun Bing was curious why Sun Long was so angry, ever since he learned that the other party had instigated Sun Yang and others to act, the two were already enemies, and it was even destined that one day, they would draw swords against each other. However, for now, the angrier the enemy, the happier Sun Bing felt.
However, upon sensing the faint killing intent from the other party, Sun Bing also slowly reached for his wooden sword, while thinking to himself: Since you targeted me so much in the past, I will repay you tenfold, even a hundredfold, as I swore.
However, this was the Sun Family, and under the watchful eyes of everyone, Sun Long couldn't attack Sun Bing without reason. Otherwise, the image he had meticulously maintained for so long would be completely ruined.
As for Sun Bing, it was even more impossible for him to take the initiative to attack. His current strength was insufficient, and he still needed enough time to accumulate power. Only with sufficient strength could he ensure his own safety. No matter how many schemes and tricks the other party had, they would crumble like dust before absolute strength.
