Novels by Author Vellon

The twenty-four remaining participants now stood in their respective positions on the stone stage. Whispers and bustling conversations could be heard among them once more, and once again, a single name dominated the talk: Qing Zilong."That's him.""Qing Zilong? The one who wiped out Luo Ming yesterday without moving much?""Right. I even heard he killed an eighth-rank beast alone in the forest.""Seriously? If that news is real, his strength is clearly far beyond the limits of the 3rd Stage of the Earth Realm."Zilong listened to those whispers without the slightest change in expression. He stood tall, his hands left hanging casually at his sides. At his waist, the ancient black sword rested quietly.On the other side of the arena, Wang Li stood with a gaze full of burning vengeance.The shadow of the mysterious black-robed man's visit last night flashed back in his head, reminding him not to create lethal chaos within the sect territory. Wang Li took a deep breath, clenching his pal

Dawn slowly crept over the region of the Heavenly Sword Sect.The thin mist hanging between the pillars of the stone buildings began to be swept away by the glow of the morning sun. The mountain peaks that previously appeared only as dark silhouettes now revealed their majestic forms, while golden rays pierced through the gaps in the pine foliage, warming the path leading to the main arena.From the row of lodging pavilions, the participants began to step outside. The atmosphere that on the first day was colored by tension now felt much calmer and more focused.Out of a total of forty-four participants who started the preliminary round, only twenty-four managed to survive. Those still standing here were no longer ordinary cultivators; they were selected talents proven to possess above-average endurance and combat capacity.Nevertheless, as Elder Bai Yun had warned previously: Yesterday's victory was not a guaranteed ticket to acceptance. And defeat did not necessarily close off all op

Meanwhile, far away in the real world...The oil lamp in Qing Tian's private study was still burning brightly, accompanying the night as it nearly turned to dawn.The middle-aged man sat alone behind his desk. A cup of warm tea was served before him, but its vapor had long since vanished, leaving behind liquid that cooled without ever being touched.His thoughts drifted back to his secret conversation with King Tianxuan the previous night.Qing Tian raised his hand, massaging his throbbing temples. "Actually... what did Your Majesty see in Zilong to be so certain?"That question kept spinning in his head without a definitive answer.As a father, he should have been the person who knew and understood his own child's condition best. However, lately, reality showed the exact opposite. Qing Tian felt himself becoming increasingly alienated and incapable of guessing the contents of his son's head.He still vividly remembered Zilong's condition two months ago—a body full of severe wounds, d

The aura surrounding Zilong surged drastically. The ninth stage of the Earth Realm vibrated strongly, but the barrier wall still stood firmly, refusing to collapse.Zilong frowned. He gathered all his qi reserves in his dantian, condensing them into a single spear of pure energy, then slammed it forward instantly!BOOM!The barrier wall trembled violently. Fine cracks began to appear on its surface, but it was not yet enough to shatter it.Zilong took another breath. There was not the slightest fear in his heart. He was someone who had lost everything. He had experienced the shattering of all his meridians and had stood right at the brink of death. Compared to all the torture and despair he had passed through, this cultivation barrier wall was nothing at all!Whoosh!Spiritual energy rumbled once more, far more ferocious and dense than before. Zilong's dantian vibrated violently, producing a metallic humming sound.The cracks on the barrier widened further.Crack!The sound of minor b

The night grew deeper and crawled quietly.The moonlight hung silvery above the lodging complex of the Heavenly Sword Sect selection participants. After a full day of testing in fierce, energy-draining battles, most participants had fallen fast asleep in their respective rooms to recover their energy.However, Qing Zilong did not have the slightest intention of closing his eyes yet.He stood tall near his open chamber window. His gaze stared straight through the dense, quiet night sky. There was not a shred of pride or joy on his face, even though a few hours earlier he had just achieved an absolute victory on the arena stage.To Zilong, the victory over Luo Ming was not an achievement worth boasting about.Quite the contrary. That fight further opened his eyes to a bitter reality: The power he displayed before the public today was still far too small compared to the true strength he kept hidden within his body.Zilong lowered his gaze for a moment. His fingers slowly traced the hilt

Wang Li stood rigidly in his place for a very long time. His gaze was empty, fixed on the chair where the man had been sitting. Slowly, his clenched fists hardened once again."Destiny..." he snorted softly, accompanied by a terrifying, cynical smile."If there truly is someone in this world destined to bring down the Wang Clan..."Wang Li's gaze turned extremely cruel and lethal. "...then I, Wang Li, will never let him live long enough to see that day arrive!"Far from the hustle and bustle of the sect's lodgings, inside the simple residence of the Qing Clan...Qing Zilong sat cross-legged quietly near his wide-open chamber window. The blade of his ancient black sword rested obediently beside his sitting spot. The blowing night wind parted strands of his loose black hair. He stared at the night sky expressionlessly.In the corner of the room, Tianyi, the spiritual turtle, slowly raised its head from the floor.Zilong."Hm?" Zilong murmured without shifting his gaze from the moon.The

Tap... tap... tap...Kaelan walked away, leaving the dining room. The sound of the main front door opening wide, then closing again with a heavy thud.The silence left behind in the room felt thousands of times heavier and more suffocating than the verbal altercation just moments before.Evelyn still stood frozen in the exact same spot, her pupils vacant as she stared straight at the now tightly closed door. Her hands hung limply at her sides."I..." she whispered faintly before finally collapsing weakly back into her chair with a hollow, lifeless gaze.Ryan hurried over, gripping his mother's arm. "Mother! Don't let him get into your head! Brother Kaelan has truly become a thorn in our family!"Evelyn gave no response whatsoever. Her mind kept buzzing, replaying the absolute sentence spoken by her son: "Mother always believes strangers... long before she is willing to trust her own flesh and blood."At the same time, Victor Blackwood slowly stood up from his chair. He calmly smoothed

Kaelan turned his attention back to Evelyn."For years, I always convinced myself..." Kaelan's voice weakened, leaving behind a profound pain, "...that one day, Mother would surely learn to trust me.""As it turns out... I was dead wrong."Evelyn gripped the edge of the table with hands trembling violently. "Kaelan... listen—"Kaelan raised his palm, stopping his mother from continuing her defense."Today, let me do the talking."The atmosphere in the dining room felt increasingly suffocating."Does Mother know what the most painful thing in the world is?""It's not the hard slap that landed on my cheek.""Nor is it the harsh insults or the discriminatory treatment you've all put me through."Kaelan took a long breath, calming the raging emotional storm in his chest."The most painful thing is... Mother always chooses to believe strangers and external lies long before she is ever willing to trust her own flesh and blood."That blunt statement struck Evelyn's chest much harder than any

Evelyn swiped her phone screen, bringing up the next batch of photos. Photos of Kaelan and Lyra sitting on a park bench. The second and third photos showed their closeness."This girl..." Evelyn's voice trembled with suppressed anger. "Ever since you met her, you've changed drastically, Kaelan. You come home later, you dare to talk back, you get involved in street fights, and now you openly shame the great name of the Garrison family!"The barrage of harsh accusations poured out without a pause, striking blow after blow.Kaelan listened to it all in silence."That girl is bad luck," Evelyn continued. "She has a mountain of debt, and debt collectors came looking for her on campus. Why on earth must you get dragged down and be friends with trash like that?!"Kaelan finally spoke up in a low yet firm tone. "Because she isn't a bad person."That defense only stoked the fiery rage in Evelyn's chest even higher. "You still have the nerve to defend her?! She is only using your kindness for h

The morning at the Garrison Mansion felt much quieter and stiffer than usual.Morning sunlight forced its way through the large glass windows of the dining room, casting a reddish shimmer across the surface of the long, mahogany-veneered table, which was already laden with a lavish array of breakfast dishes.Evelyn Garrison sat rigidly in the main chair with an expression as cold as ice. Victor Blackwood looked calm as he read the business newspaper on the left without saying much, while Ryan Blackwood sipped his black coffee, occasionally casting anticipatory glances toward the second-floor stairs.The sound of footsteps finally approached.Kaelan walked down the stairs in neat, casual campus attire. The bruises covering his body were completely hidden beneath layers of bandages, while his facial expression was flat and calm once again, as if the terrifying incident of the previous night had never happened at all.He was about to walk right past the dining area."Kaelan."Evelyn's co

Ryan handed over his phone, then played the short recorded video he had manipulated.The family room fell dead silent.On the phone screen, the scene was clearly visible when Kaelan pushed a student until he fell to the ground, followed by the second student who also collapsed. The video duration ended just like that without self-defense context.Evelyn instantly furrowed her brows sharply. "Kaelan... hit people within the campus environment?!"Ryan lowered his head, displaying a fake regret gesture. "One of my friends recorded this incident this afternoon. I was quite shocked myself when I saw it."He then swiped the phone screen to the next batch of photos.Photos of Kaelan and Lyra sitting together in the park. A photo of Lyra smiling warmly at Kaelan.Ryan didn't add any excessive provocative phrasing. He let those manipulative image sequences speak for themselves before the middle-aged woman.Evelyn observed each of the photos and the video with an incredulous gaze.Her memory in

A short while later, Ryan's black sedan stopped at the roadside not far from the campus gates.The twilight sky gradually turned into a dark night. Olivia sat quietly in the front passenger seat, her manicured fingers casually playing with the ends of her hair.Ryan turned on his phone screen, opened the photo gallery, and began playing a thirty-seven-second video.Inside the video recording, Kaelan was seen pushing a college student until he slumped down to the ground. A second student who tried to approach was also pushed back. The video was deliberately cut right at that crucial second.There was no prior threat scene. There was no footage when Lyra's bag was roughly pulled by their hired thugs. There was not a single part showing the background reason for Kaelan acting defensively.Ryan then swiped his screen to the next batch of photos.The first photo showed Kaelan sitting side by side with a female student, Lyra Bennett, on a campus park bench. The second photo displayed Lyra s