The wind stirred, and the clouds surged.
A massive golden arrow, nearly twelve feet long and as thick as two fingers, sliced through the sky with a trailing stream of radiant light. It soared high above the coliseum, a loud whistling roar splitting the air.
Standing atop the arrow was a young man—elegant and composed. His long hair fluttered behind him, his robes billowed in the wind. One hand was tucked neatly behind his back, the other twirling a folded fan. A mysterious smile lingered at the corners of his lips.
Every head turned skyward, mouths agape in astonishment.
Few might know the boy, but no one could fail to recognize the arrow.
Even if they'd never seen it before, everyone in the martial world had heard of this legendary weapon. The moment the golden arrow came into view, the name of its master blazed into their minds.
It was the Golden Arrow—the hallmark of one of the Three Killers of the Xiaoyao Villa: Xiao Tianci, the "Golden Arrow and Silver Bow."
Xiao Tianci's famed "Ninety-Nine Arrows of the God-Slaying Style" featured 99 arrows of varying sizes. The largest was the one before them—twelve feet long, two fingers thick. The smallest? Barely the size of a pinky.
Now the golden arrow had arrived, carrying a young man barely into adulthood. The entire assembly immediately guessed who he must be.
How many in the world could stand atop Xiao Tianci's arrow?
And who else could glide down like a feather on the wind but the third young master of the Xiaoyao Villa?
It was him. Qin Ren—the man this entire assembly had come together to condemn.
"He actually came!" Lianzhou Luo'er's eyes sparkled with shock and excitement. She hadn't truly believed he'd dare show. The martial assembly was packed with self-righteous sects and scheming factions—all waiting to pounce. But he came anyway.
"Hmph. Gotta admit—he's got guts." Qin Nie'er's lips curved into an odd smirk, her eyes flashing with rare admiration.
"Oh… and of course, he wouldn't miss a chance to make a dramatic entrance." Zhen Luo covered her mouth, laughing softly. A strange glimmer danced in her gaze.
The arrow hovered over the center of the field, then suddenly seemed to lose all momentum and plummeted downward.
At that very instant, the young master lightly stepped off and descended in what he believed was the most handsome pose of his life.
Sssshunk—The golden arrow embedded itself halfway into the stone slabs below.
Now standing at the very center of the field, surrounded on all sides by black masses of people, Qin Ren dusted off his robes, straightened his hair, and slid the fan into his collar. Then, he casually pointed toward the elevated platform and asked:
"Du Gongfu. Who are you?"
The question was baffling. If he already knew it was Du Gongfu, why ask?
Everyone in the crowd was stunned. Was he mad?
Qin Ren continued, as if speaking to himself. "I clearly remember Du Gongfu being skewered through the chest by my elder brother… dying on the spot. So who are you, wearing his face and sitting on that stage? Strange. Truly strange. Don't tell me the demonic Lord Ximen Wudi really can bring the dead back to life?"
Du Gongfu stood tall, righteous indignation written all over his face. He jabbed a finger at Qin Ren and bellowed, "You wicked little scoundrel! Spouting lies to confuse the people! When have I ever consorted with that demon Ximen Wudi? When have I ever crossed swords with the Starriver Sword Saint? You curse me dead hoping this Assembly falls apart! But it won't! Even if you had killed me, the people of this world would still rise to see you destroyed! You may kill one Du Gongfu, but there are a thousand more who will take my place! Can you kill them all? Silence every mouth?"
Qin Ren snorted. "Tch. Quite the lofty speech. Isn't it curious though? A known hypocrite standing here, denouncing me as base and wicked? Let's be honest—Du Gongfu and I are both rotten in our own ways. But you? Stealing the face of a corpse? That's a whole new level of filth."
Du Gongfu laughed coldly. "If I'm dead, how am I standing here, speaking to you now? You claim to see a ghost? Shall we ask the people here—those who know me well—whether I'm truly Du Gongfu or not?"
Qin Ren didn't bother replying. He knew better than to argue with the shameless—cheap imitations had always held more sway than the real thing. These days, the thief blames the victim for not having enough to steal, and the victim? Better keep your mouth shut or they'll cut your head off.
"Qin Ren!" roared a voice.
It was Dugu Hongjian, slamming his table and rising. "Your crimes are too many to count! Even if I cared nothing for personal vengeance, I would rise for the good of the realm. You dare show your face here? Then you'll not leave Tianping Villa alive!"
Qin Ren laughed heartily. "My legs are mine to command. If I wish to walk, I walk. What can you do?"
"You arrogant pup!" Dugu Hongjian shouted. "Do you think us all beneath you?"
"Finally, someone who gets it." Qin Ren smirked. "All these so-called 'heroes'... who decided you get that title? You? Him? Since when did 'hero' become so worthless?"
Du Gongfu thundered, "So you truly intend to stand against the entire martial world?"
Qin Ren scoffed. "The 'entire martial world'? I don't even see you all as worth my notice! What, you think numbers make you righteous? I could gather ten thousand beggars, dress them decently, and call them the martial world too. Would you buy that? Try a little originality."
Then he raised his hand, slowly pointing toward each of the three sides of the stadium.
"You lot. Anyone with a problem, come at me. Let's see if you're worthy of the word 'hero'—and whether I'm truly unworthy to ignore you."
"You… you…" Dugu Hongjian was trembling with fury. Normally short-tempered, he now boiled over, shouting, "Bring me my Crying Sun Blade! I'll teach this arrogant brat a lesson!"
"Fetch my Heaven-Piercer Sword!" others joined in, their rage boiling over. After all, Qin Ren had pointed at everyone.
"Damn it! Bring me my Dragon-Slaying Saber! I'll carve him up!"
"Where the hell's my Golden Serpent Sword? I'm gonna chop this bastard in half!"
"Rip him apart! First with Little Li Flying Daggers, then a pack of muscular men to... do unspeakable things before killing him again!" someone shouted with disturbing enthusiasm.
Chaos erupted. Those "righteous and dignified" martial elites were suddenly rolling up sleeves and grabbing weapons like common street brawlers.
And from among the crowd flew a flurry of improvised projectiles—banana peels, tomatoes, rice balls, eggs, sandals, underpants, bras, sanitary pads, and even embroidered needles.
Qin Ren sighed. "Really? Is that the best you've got? At least try to throw something dangerous. Give me a reason to kill you! I can't be bothered over a flying bra, can I?"
Du Gongfu grinned. "Well then—who among the heroes shall seize Qin Ren?!"
"I will!" came a cry.
From the northern platform, a devilishly handsome and painfully serious young man leapt down. A gleam of steel flashed as he slashed toward Qin Ren. "I am Hua Youque, third-generation disciple of the Northern Blade Alliance! I come to rid the wor—"
BOOM!
His body exploded into pieces, blood and flesh raining down before he could even finish his line.
"Don't give extras that many lines," Qin Ren muttered, tossing aside a spent Thunderfire Bomb. "It's a waste of time."
"You bastard! You killed my brother! I, Hua Wuque, swear to avenge—"
BOOM!
He exploded too.
"I said: no lines for minor characters. Seriously."
"ENOUGH!"
A thunderous roar silenced the crowd, louder than anything else so far.
Everyone turned to look. A short, elderly man slowly rose from the southern platform, radiating immense, oppressive power.
"It's Master Qingxia of the Hollow Void Sect!" someone gasped.
"Master Qingxia's Five Drought Palms are legendary. With him here, that arrogant lecher is finished!" another whispered.
"Bah, that's nothing! They say he's mastered the Seven Wounds Fist too. If he combines them—Five Droughts and Seven Wounds—Qin Ren doesn't stand a chance!"
Qin Ren tilted his head toward the old man and asked lazily, "And your name is…?"
The old master replied solemnly, "Lin."
Qin Ren chuckled...