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"Let me introduce..."

In the dimly lit confines of a narrow thatched hut, five or six sturdy men gathered while the women, clutching their children, had retreated outside early, shivering in the cold wind, but only dared to softly comfort the two children in her arms.

Fortunately, because the two children were well-fed and behaved, they didn’t cry. What she feared most now was disturbing the visitors her husband had invited, for among them was the blacksmith Zhang who had personally killed his own wife.

"This is Zhang Tielong. Though just a common blacksmith in this life, in the dark era of the Black Python, he was a lord reigning over a territory."

"This is Zhou Yunsheng. In this life, he is a scholar unable to pass the exams, but his true predecessor was the fourth-generation leader of the ancient Blue Family; back in the era of the Sorcerer Dynasty, he was one of the four Dukes matched with nobility."

"This is Lin Feng, unremarkable in this life, merely a military drill instructor in the Northern Border, responsible for training non-bloodline soldiers. Yet long ago, he was a swordsman capable of contending with the Dragon Maiden..."

Upon hearing this, the other two men showed a flicker of disdain in their eyes.

Quite the boast he’s got there, standing shoulder to shoulder with the Dragon Maiden? What kind of scrambled identity is this?

We, the other two, were well-known personalities in our past lives, mighty figures recorded in our family’s secrets, and he dares bring up such a thing...

"Brother Li called us to discuss important matters, naturally, we need to know a bit about each other. It isn’t just anyone who can claim titles and join up, right?"

Zhang Tielong spoke with clear displeasure, targeting the middle-aged man who held his iron sword with a stance of aloofness, who, upon hearing this, made no response, not even sparing the other a glance, merely silently staring at the tabletop without uttering a word, causing the atmosphere to suddenly tense up.

Li Yankong, who was responsible for convening the group, gave Lin Feng a brief look but soon said nothing further, instead turning to Chen Qing: "Brother Chen has yet to introduce his own background."

Chen Qing rubbed his fingers, looking towards Lin Feng with a gentle smile.

He knew that cooperating with each other naturally involved prying a bit into each other’s past lives—should there be adversaries among them, the alliance might crumble instantly.

"The swordsman who contended with the Dragon Maiden, that Lin brother, was it the Dragon Maiden from the Western Sea Princess Chang in your past duel?"

Upon these words, Lin Feng’s gaze swung over. What was once an unremarkable slovenly old soldier now flashed eyes sharp as a sword capable of slicing through human flesh, his gaze like a dusty precious sword about to reveal its edge.

Both the previously disdainful Zhang Tielong and Li Yankong, who had been dissatisfied with Lin Feng, now looked at him with a hint of surprise and satisfaction.

As individuals who had lived through several lives, they naturally possessed the insight to recognize genuine capability, and this demeanor alone was proof enough of the man’s authentic reputation.

Chen Qing merely smiled, his fair fingers gently tapping the table, as an aura solid as a mountain engulfed and obliterated the invisible sword energy in an instant.

But that aura appeared only for a moment before vanishing without a trace, seeming so illusory that some might think it a mere hallucination, yet the grandiose sense of weight it conveyed was anything but illusory.

"Oh?" Lin Feng now looked seriously towards Chen Qing, the coldness in his eyes replaced by a peer-like demeanor: "Not bad..."

"To receive such praise from the Dragon Peak Swordsman, I am indeed flattered," Chen Qing continued with a smile.

"Do you know me?" the other asked with curiosity as he surveyed Chen Qing—his past life’s memory held no record of such a person.

"I suppose so..." Chen Qing smiled.

Ao Zhen had told him about encountering a peculiar swordsman once, appearing human yet not quite human, akin to a sword fanatic, reveling in seeking famous swords and masters to challenge, much like herself in loving to confront renowned sword masters.

However, unlike Ao Zhen, who stopped before going too far, each time this man struck, he cruelly aimed to claim the entire family’s lives.

He believed that only in this way could he force the opponent to unleash their maximum potential and execute their most perfect swordsmanship.

At first, she fought him because she thought he was a person, only to find out after their battle that he was a demon.

A demon transformed from a sword...

Because his true form, the sword blade, emitted a dragon’s chant when struck, he was known as the Dragon Peak Swordsman outside.

After battling Ao Zhen for seven days and nights, he was sealed by Ao Zhen using the Seven Extremes Sword Intent, and unexpectedly became a middle-aged veteran in this life.

"Brother Chen, haven’t you mentioned your identity yet?" Li Yankong asked with a smile as he looked at Chen Qing.

Only at this moment did he truly acknowledge the other party. Among the crowd, Lin Feng had the longest experience from his previous life during the era of the Dragon Palace, being a powerful figure then, and Chen Qing, from the same era, must also have been a significant figure.

But Chen Qing just shook his head: "My memories are a bit confused, many lifetimes of memories are mixed together, it’s hard to distinguish day from night, let alone which one I am, I only remember some more important matters."

The four others exchanged glances upon hearing this, showing no further doubts, as they too experienced the same when their memories first awakened; dozens of reincarnations worth of memories mixed together, really making it hard to discern who they truly were.

The other party probably hasn’t completely recovered yet, which was normal.

"Let’s discuss the important matters." Li Yankong turned to Chen Qing: "You asked me to gather so many fellow practitioners, you must have some plan, right?"

Chen Qing nodded: "I have some ideas, but they are not foolproof, everyone please listen patiently to what I have to say...."

All four nodded, since reaching this place, they too did not dare to get close to the Buddhist Temple lightly.

Like Chen Qing thought, as beings who were relatively powerful in their previous lives, they would approach all things more rationally, at least they wouldn’t frivolously become fanatical believers.

"That Buddhist temple gathered us here, there must be a way to unlock the powers from our past lives, everyone must have some memories of this, right?"

"Brother Chen, there’s no need for probing.

" Zhang Tielong waved his hand impatiently: "In the memories of each life, there’s a vague memory of a Buddhist Swastika, and at the time of our death, it seems that something was stored somewhere preemptively, those things must be related to this Buddhist temple. "

"It seems indeed the same..." Chen Qing sighed: "Since that’s the case, it’s troublesome.

Everyone must know the affairs of the ancient times, this kind of power that awakens memories from several lifetimes, hidden in the ancient past is definitely not simple, its status and foundation, I fear might far surpass that of the Dragon Palace, going unprepared might just be the flesh of ancient revival. "

"Right now, we are all ordinary people, in terms of strength, even a single Northern Demon Wolf could claim our lives, wouldn’t it be easy for them to take our flesh?" Zhang Tielong grimaced.

"That’s only the surface, but who knows the real situation?" Chen Qing gazed deeply towards the Buddha Light position: "This ancient being hidden for who knows how many ages, who knows what exactly is inside? Maybe they have a way to quickly restore us to our previous powers?"

"Isn’t that a good thing?" Li Yankong frowned.

"How many good things are there under heaven?" Chen Qing coldly smirked: "What if it is just to fatten the pig before slaughter, feeding it a bit beforehand?"

"Is that really necessary?" Zhou Yunsheng, looking like a down-and-out scholar, skeptically asked: "Help us back to our peak, then use us for our flesh? Is it that complicated?"

"Exactly!" Zhang Tielong snorted coldly: "Never mind whether it has that capability, what makes it think we’d just let it slaughter us? If I return to my peak, if it wants my flesh, I’d skin it first!"

Chen Qing glanced at him, this rough-looking Zhang was the one Chen Qing was most satisfied with, those who showed such irreverence for deities are better at resisting the temptations of the Buddha Light.

"So we need to let someone try it out..." Chen Qing spoke up.

"Try it out?" Everyone suddenly fell silent, turning their gaze to Chen Qing.

Chen Qing naturally understood the others’ meaning; under these circumstances, who should go and try?