"Do you want this sword?" The Water Official's tone was indifferent, as if discussing a trivial matter. "I can give it to you."
Su Muyu extended his left hand: "Then give it to me."
"Use your sword hand to receive it. This time is different from the last. Once you take this sword, you must hold onto it forever," the Water Official said softly.
Su Muyu shook his head: "Since Su Jinhui did not take the sword, I will return it to The Head. What happens next is for him to decide."
"As The Head said, you are a man of principle. But setting principles aside, do you truly despise being an assassin in your heart?" the Water Official asked with a smile.
Su Muyu did not answer the question, merely bowing slightly: "It seems the Water Official has no intention of returning the Sleeping Dragon Sword to me."
"You can try to take it," the Water Official held the Sleeping Dragon Sword horizontally before him. "If you can."
"Very well." Su Muyu leaped forward, thrusting his Drizzle Sword past the Water Official in a flash. The strike was so swift that Bai Hehuai didn't even see it clearly, nor did she notice Su Muyu had left her side.
"Instant Kill Sword Technique?" The Water Official nodded approvingly. "Impressive. It seems you returned to Swordless City and recovered those lost sword manuals from years ago. I wonder if you've also mastered your father's technique?"
Su Muyu looked at his Drizzle Sword—no bloodstains, only raindrops.
"Pity there's one thing in this world no sword, no matter how fast, can cut through: water." The Water Official raised his hand slightly, and the falling rain gradually coalesced into his palm. With a flick of his finger, the gathered water shot toward Bai Hehuai.
"Stop!" Su Muyu shouted, immediately swinging his sword to block Bai Hehuai's path. But halfway through its flight, the water dispersed into mist. When Su Muyu turned back, the Water Official had vanished.
In the Spider Nest.
The Head sat in the bamboo pavilion in the courtyard, watching the rain curtain as he murmured, "So it's you who came."
"Heaven Official bestows blessings, Earth Official grants absolution, Water Official dispels calamity. With Dark River in such chaos, naturally, it falls to me to avert disaster." The Water Official had appeared atop the bamboo pavilion without warning.
The Head's voice deepened: "Who issued the mission to kill Second Master Tang?"
The Water Official toyed with the Sleeping Dragon Sword in his hand: "The one you know, of course."
The Head sighed softly: "Is everything now unfolding as he predicted?"
The Water Official flicked the Sleeping Dragon Sword downward, sending it piercing through the pavilion to embed itself before The Head: "He's no saint—how could he foresee so much? What's happening now has already exceeded his expectations. But he's curious to see what kind of new Dark River will emerge from this."
The Head nodded: "No matter what Dark River becomes..."
The Water Official smiled: "You shouldn't be part of it."
The Head stepped forward and grasped the Sleeping Dragon Sword: "I can go to Homeland."
"Ha! Homeland. The legendary only pure land of Dark River, where one can truly lay down arms and live an ordinary life. But you're The Head. You should know Homeland never existed! It's a lie." The Water Official's expression twisted strangely, as if he'd heard something particularly absurd."I have been The Head for thirty years, longer than any of my predecessors, so I have accomplished many things they could not." The Head pulled the Sleeping Dragon Sword from the ground, and the dragon's eyes at the hilt opened once more.
The Water Official flicked his sleeves, his figure vanishing instantly, melting into the rain.
"Do you dare defy the Three Officials? Do you dare fight me?" The Water Official's figure disappeared, but his voice lingered.
The Head laughed heartily, "In my thirty years as The Head, the one thing I have never done is admit defeat. You wish to use my death to cleanse Dark River with blood and forge a new path, but I believe only your deaths can bring Dark River a new future."
"Dark River was never yours, nor does it belong to us, the Three Officials of the Soul Extraction Hall. It is merely a blade held in someone else's hand. We have no right to decide its fate—only the one who wields the blade does." The Water Official suddenly landed, slamming his palm heavily onto the ground, sending a column of water rushing toward The Head.
The Head swung the Sleeping Dragon Sword, slashing at the water column. But as the Water Official had said, water cannot be severed. The column passed straight through the sword, surging toward The Head's face. With a cold laugh, The Head extended a finger, lightly tapping the water column. Instantly, the entire column froze into a long icicle, which The Head then cleaved into shards with a horizontal slash.
"I almost forgot. Though your original surname was Mu, you lived with the Su Family before becoming The Head." The Water Official's expression shifted slightly. "I didn’t expect you to have mastered Su Jinhui's Frosty Sword Qi as well."
"Not mastered. Surpassed—far surpassed!" The Head gripped the Sleeping Dragon Sword with both hands and drove it into the ground. "For example, this move—he could never do it!"
In an instant, the entire courtyard was engulfed in frost. The rain turned into large hailstones that pelted down, far faster and more ferocious than the technique Su Jinhui had once used against Mu Ci Ling in the Su Family courtyard. Even more terrifying, the icy winds and hailstones all converged toward the Water Official standing there.
"Extreme Cold of Heaven and Earth, Wind Blades and Frost Swords!" The Water Official spread his arms, releasing an invisible force that held the icy onslaught at bay three feet away.
"Even with my hair turned white, even if you believe I am no longer fit for this position, I remain the strongest in Dark River." The Head roared in fury.
Watching as the frost and hail inched closer, the Water Official frowned slightly and sneered, "So the poison of Snow Falling on a Plum Branch can truly be cured. I should have killed that girl earlier. Leaving her alive will be a disaster." With a sudden spin, he barely managed to repel the frost and hail for a moment before leaping away, attempting to flee.
"Stay where you are!" The Head raised his sword and slashed upward. A wave of frost instantly froze the entire courtyard wall. A trace of frost clung to the Water Official's ankle, but his figure dissolved into rain, vanishing beyond the wall. The Head lowered his sword, breathing heavily.
Su Muyu and Bai Hehuai arrived just then. Stunned by the sight of the frozen courtyard, Su Muyu reached down to touch the frost on the ground and murmured, "This is even more domineering than the Su Family elder's Frosty Sword Qi."
The Head turned to them. "Did you encounter the Water Official of the Soul Extraction Hall just now?"Su Muyu nodded. "Yes, but it seems he's not here to help us."
The Head sneered. "He's not here to help anyone."
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