Chapter 3: Lawless Beyond All-Lawless Sword Art!

Under that overwhelming suction, the Lawless Sword Venerable was torn apart like paper. His shrieks turned into a streak of light that shot straight into Murray Scurr's body. At the Elixir Field, the Hidden Meridians that had just taken shape flared to life. Power surged in like a flood, rushing through his bloodstream. A Small Sword drifted through his blood as if it had found its rightful river. The first Hidden Meridian opened completely. "Lawless Sword Art!" At the same time, a Battle Technique surfaced in his mind, crisp and complete. It was the work the Lawless Sword Venerable had poured his life into, the very technique he had relied on to slaughter an entire Small World. "Hiss!" Murray snapped his eyes open. A razor-edged Sword Intent burst from his gaze and punched two holes clean through the wall across from him. He rose to his feet, standing like a divine blade drawn into the world. "Sword Intent!" With inner vision, he examined the Small Sword inside his Sword Meridian, his eyes sharp as steel. "Sword Intent is the power every sword cultivator dreams of. Those who grasp the will of the sword cut through anything. Nothing stops them." "So far, I've never even heard of anyone truly possessing Sword Intent. That's how hard it is. If I can control this Sword Intent, I'll be unstoppable." "And I still don't know what rank the Lawless Sword Art is, but the first form, Absolving Sin, already rivals an Earth Rank Battle Technique. The full set has to be far beyond Heavenly Rank." The thought alone made his heart race. From what he knew, Battle Techniques were ranked from strong to weak as Heaven, Earth, Mystic, Yellow. Yet he held something that surpassed Heavenly Rank. How could he not burn with excitement? "If I could devour a few more souls…" "Kid, stop daydreaming," the Mad Immortal Emperor's voice sounded in his head, as if he had seen straight through him. "Hurry up and cultivate. Fill your Sword Meridian first. That's the only way you'll open the second Hidden Meridian." "Fill the Sword Meridian?" He used inner vision again. Aside from that lone Small Sword, the Sword Meridian was empty. "How much power does it take to fill it? When can I actually control Sword Intent?" No answer came. The Mad Immortal Emperor seemed to have fallen back into sleep. "Then I'll figure it out myself." Murray sat down cross-legged and began cultivating. His Elixir Field turned, and he drew in the Origin Energy of Heaven and Earth with reckless hunger. "Hiss!" He jolted out of cultivation, eyes wide with disbelief. "My cultivation speed is more than ten times faster than before!" He had been a genius already. Ten times faster than a genius was terrifying. The Mad Immortal Emperor hadn't exaggerated. A Seventh-grade Life Palace was trash in front of a Sword Meridian. An Acquired Twin Life Palace that invited backlash was trash among trash. And that was only the effect of a single Hidden Meridian. If he opened all forty-nine… Murray didn't dare imagine it. He steadied his breathing and returned to cultivation. Filling the Sword Meridian mattered more than anything. Three days later. "Origin Energy can't fill the Sword Meridian at all. It has to be Origin Liquid." Murray gave a bitter laugh and shook his head. He finally understood, but condensing Origin Liquid was absurdly difficult. After three days, he had only managed to gather half a drop. Of course, that was also because this place was a terrible environment for cultivation. "Eighth-stage Spirit Movement Realm!" Even without a full drop of Origin Liquid, his cultivation hadn't stalled. The Sword Meridian had completely replaced the Elixir Field, and three days of cultivation restored him straight to the Eighth-stage Spirit Movement Realm. "Time to cultivate the Lawless Sword Art." He stood, grabbed an iron rod at random, and used it as a weapon. "Lawless Sword Art, Absolving Sin!" The first form of the Lawless Sword Art, Absolving Sin, cleansed all sins. "Whoosh!" The iron rod moved like a sword. A faint glimmer flashed, and a bowl-sized hole appeared in the wall across from him. "Sword Energy!" Murray swallowed hard. With Sword Intent backing him, he had produced Sword Energy outright. If that strike landed on a person, who could possibly block it? "Lawless Sword Art, Absolving Sin!" He repeated the first form again and again, grinding it into his bones. Sword Intent and the Lawless Sword Art were both things he had forcibly seized from the Lawless Heavenly Venerable. If he wanted to unleash their full power, he had to earn it with his own effort. Clang! In the middle of his practice, the iron door suddenly swung open. A slender figure stumbled in, nearly collapsing as she crossed the threshold. "Young Master!" "Melody?" Murray had thought Xander Scurr had come. When he focused, he recognized the maid the Great Elder had assigned to him. "Melody, what happened to you?" She was covered in wounds, blood spilling from her mouth. Murray rushed forward and caught her, pain tightening his chest. He didn't need to ask who did it. The guards who watched the dungeon had beaten her. "Young Master… I finally found you." Melody looked up at him, weak but smiling, joy filling her battered face. It only made his heart ache more. "How did you find this place?" "After you disappeared, the Great Elder kept sending people to search. He believed in you, Young Master. He believed you would never do something so monstrous." "The Great Elder…" Warmth slid through Murray's chest. In the entire family, the Great Elder had treated him best. Otherwise, after he had handed all resources over to Marcus Scurr and his son, there was no way he could have still become the top of the younger generation. "Young Master, when I rushed in, I heard them saying your Elixir Field had been dug out…" "It's fine," Murray said gently, forcing a smile when he saw her panic. "My Elixir Field recovered." Melody finally exhaled, then her eyes flared with fury. If it recovered, that meant it really had been dug out. "The Family Head is worse than an animal. Young Master, all these years you've done so much for them…" Before she could finish, several people stormed in. "So it was you, you filthy bitch!" A cold roar shook the room. Murray turned. A young man about his age led the group inside. The boy's features resembled Marcus Scurr in places. It was Marcus Scurr's second son, Xander Scurr. "You filthy bitch," Xander snarled, eyes full of ice. "You actually found this place, and you even dealt with all the guards watching the dungeon. I really underestimated you." But after he sized Melody up, that coldness shifted into something hot and hungry. He licked his lips, excitement twisting his face. "I can't believe I never paid attention to her before. Not bad strength, not bad looks either. Murray, you useless trash, you've had quite the luck with women." "Too bad your fiancée went crazy. You can't enjoy her, and neither can I. But your little maid? I bet she tastes just fine." "Xander Scurr, you're courting death!" Murray rose, his face turning to pure frost. Killing intent flickered in his eyes like a drawn blade. "Young Master, I'll hold them off," Melody said, forcing herself upright. She gripped a sword and planted herself in front of him, stubborn as a shield. "Find a chance to escape!" She had suffered through hell to find him. She would not let them hurt him again, not even a little. "Tch… overestimating yourself." Xander sneered. Did she think the men he brought were like the guards outside? "Grab that bitch," he ordered lazily. "After I'm done, she's yours." "Murray, I'm doing you a favor. Before you die, you'll get to watch a scene this beautiful!" Fire surged through Murray's blood. They came to dig out his Elixir Field, to take his life, and they still wanted to defile Melody. They deserved death a thousand times over. "Young Master, run!" Before Murray could move, Melody shoved him back and charged forward, sword raised. Xander only tilted his chin. A burly man stepped out from behind him, his aura heavy. Peak of the Spirit Movement Realm. Clang! In a single exchange, Melody's sword flew from her hand. "Hmph!" The burly man seized her by the throat. Melody was only Sixth-stage Spirit Movement Realm. She couldn't resist at all. "Rip off her clothes," Xander said, grinning. "Let him get a good look…" Thwack! Xander's words died in his throat. His grin froze. Melody staggered back, and an arm hit the floor with a wet thud. "Aaaah!" A scream tore through the dungeon. The burly man clutched his severed arm, blood pouring between his fingers. "I ever give you permission to touch her?" Murray said. He pulled Melody into his arms and stared at the burly man with glacial calm. In his hand, the iron rod dripped blood, drop by drop. Xander and the others turned pale. Their pupils shrank. No blade. No sword. Just an iron rod, and an arm had been cut off. Worse, none of them had even seen when Murray struck. Fast. Clean. Decisive. "You… how did you-" Thwack! Xander's voice cut off again. The blood-slick iron rod burst out through the burly brute's chest, piercing straight through his heart. "Touch my people," Murray said, eyes like cold steel, "and you die."