Chapter 51: Clearing the Field.

"Disgusting to the extreme. I don't care if such filth goes out to disgust others, but if you insist on bringing your nausea to me, then I have no choice but to kill you both."

Even after completely neutralizing the White Phoenix and the Black Feather before him, and severing their murderous intent with a single slash of his sword...

Looking at the two corpses, Yang Le could still hardly conceal the disgust in his eyes.

In fact, after glancing down at their bodies, Yang Le couldn't even be bothered to search their remains for valuables.

To spare himself.

Lest it dirty his own hands.

"In your next life, don't be such repulsive creatures."

With a casual kick, he sent both corpses tumbling into a ditch, then slung his longsword across his back and stepped out toward the direction of Linqing's urban district.

"Come on out. Didn't I give you instructions earlier?"

Pausing near a patch of tall grass along the roadside, Yang Le stopped in his tracks.

Then, he said calmly, "Are you ready to take a beating?"

"Master, you spotted me again..."

"Enough nonsense. Help me find a broom."

"Wait, Master, I have something to say! Let me finish, and it won't be too late to look for a broom then!"

"Heh, I'll give you one minute, or else your master is going to teach you how a broom is used."

Having finished disposing of the corpses of the White Phoenix and the Black Feather, Yang Le smoothly reached into the dense patch of grass beside him and yanked Li Qi'er out by the collar. "Come on, let's hear your excuses."

"Master, the Xue family cannot be targeted."

Though Li Qi'er still couldn't fathom how she had managed to hide so thoroughly this time—even using a breath-concealing talisman—she had still been dragged out by her master.

"It's because your twin tails gave you away."

Yang Le looked at her with the expression of someone waiting to see what kind of creative excuse she would invent next.

"I won't tie my hair like this next time!"

Not wanting to dwell on that point, Li Qi'er hurriedly shook her head and said, "Xue Tianlong, the current head of the Xue family on the surface, already possesses tier-four cultivation. Furthermore, the city of Linqing is heavily guarded by numerous martial cultivators. If Master charges in like this..."

"Do you think your master cannot slay a tier-four cultivator?"

As he spoke, Yang Le casually swept up a handful of bamboo leaves from the ground and used them to wipe the crimson bloodstain from the blade of his longsword.

Glancing up at the now-barren bamboo branches overhead, Yang Le realized he indeed lacked a broom at the moment. However, given the raw materials, crafting one right now would pose no problem at all.

"Of course I believe in Master's strength. Calling you the top prodigy of the Great Qian Dynasty is no exaggeration. But Master, we cannot claim to be absolutely invincible just yet, and standing behind the Xue family is far more than just the Xue family itself."

Seeing that the broom Yang Le was weaving was beginning to take shape, Li Qi'er sped up her speech. "The Xue family of Cizhou is not terrifying; the worst trouble they could possibly throw at Master is perhaps some tier-four or tier-five martial cultivators. But if Master exterminates the Cizhou branch of the Xue family, it will inevitably alert the main clan of the Xue family in Zhongzhou..."

"That could lead to much bigger trouble."

After stating her reasons for stopping Yang Le, she stood quietly to the side and watched him earnestly. "Besides, even if the Zhongzhou main clan doesn't step in, Master marching straight into the city to slaughter people so openly will still alert the Cizhou officials."

"What you say makes a lot of sense."

Hearing her out, Yang Le nodded. "I understand what you mean."

"Then Master isn't going anymore?"

Li Qi'er timidly pressed on, "Considering how worried I am about you, Master—I even washed the bowls before leaving the house—how about we just use that broom for sweeping the floor instead?"

"No, I am still going. Whatever trouble comes after wiping out the Xue family can be dealt with when it arrives."

Yang Le shook his head. "Resolving the trouble right in front of me is what matters most."

"Since Master has made up his mind, I'll tag along too."

"Give me a reason why you should come."

"I need to watch Master's sword more often to learn from it."

"..."

At these words, Yang Le fell silent, casting a profound and searching gaze at her.

Li Qi'er seemed unbothered by his scrutiny and simply followed closely behind his footsteps.

"Surely Master doesn't want my sword-play to remain limited to hacking at vegetable patches?"

This time, her tone was exceptionally serious, and the playful mischief in her eyes was replaced by a trace of genuine dejection.

"Let's go. Tonight, Master will teach you the sword that kills."

Yang Le hadn't intended to bring her along on this trip, but upon catching that fleeting flicker of melancholy in her eyes, he ultimately relented.

After all, having taken her on as a disciple...

He really ought to impart some genuine skills if he was to truly live up to the title of master.

"Watch closely. Don't tell me that after tonight, you're still going to wreak havoc on the vegetables in the backyard."

As he raised his sword and resumed his stride, Yang Le offered one final, rare word of admonition to the girl trailing behind him.

Though he knew that even with her tagging along for practical combat training, she might not necessarily grasp the essence of it...

Still...

Yang Le couldn't help but nag a little.

After all, he couldn't possibly admit that Li Qi'er's failure to learn swordsmanship stemmed from any flaw in his own teaching ability, could he?

Right, it must simply be that Li Qi'er lacked natural talent.

At this thought, Yang Le suddenly felt a sense of release.

If the disciple was a bit dim, so be it; as long as she wasn't completely brainless, it would do.

"Don't worry, Master! Haven't you seen what I'm capable of? This time will definitely be a success."

Compared to Yang Le, who had already made peace with reality, Li Qi'er appeared carefree and buoyant. "Master, don't worry. Once we reach the gates of the Linqing Xue family, the two of us are bound to sweep through like a storm."

Anyway, as far as she was concerned, whether she actually mastered her master's swordsmanship didn't matter as long as she got to watch him in action and avoided a beating.

Having successfully averted the disaster of the broom, she was more than content.

As for learning the sword?

She could always worry about that next year when the backyard vegetables grew back.

"You handle the sweeping like a storm, and I'll do the actual slaughtering?"

Normally, Yang Le wouldn't dignify such remarks with a response, but seeing the pure excitement dancing in her eyes as she skipped along behind him, he couldn't resist asking.

"Of course! Or did Master want me to do the slaughtering?"

Faced with her master's question, Li Qi'er acted as though it were the most natural thing in the world, showing not a shred of embarrassment on her face.

Her master's sword could slay all enemies under the heavens; why would she need to lift a finger?

Naturally, she didn't need to do anything except stand safely behind her master and cheer him on.

"Never mind, I'll just do it myself."

Imagining the scene of himself cheering from the sidelines while Li Qi'er charged bravely into the fray...

Well...

Yang Le felt that the mental picture was far too bizarre for him to pull off.

For him...

Wielding a sword to take lives was a much more fitting endeavor.