Misery: There is a pawn shop here

Chapter 124 The Horn of Hope
In a pawnshop, the dim candlelight flickered, making the rare treasures on the wooden shelves seem to float and sink. Qiu Daitian stood before the table, his gaze sharp as a knife, staring intently at the contract that gleamed with a faint blood-red light. The words on the pages seemed alive, faintly flowing in the candlelight, each stroke as if etched into his very bones, stirring up that unbearable past.

The pleading eyes of the survivors in Wangsha City, the bloody battle with his friend Yue Yuntian, and the loneliness of the underground caves over the long years surged through Qiu Daitian's mind like a tide. The swordsman clenched his fists, his knuckles white, a fire burning in his throat. Countless days and nights, he gritted his teeth in the darkness, hating the deception of death, hating his own powerlessness. Now, this contract, though a transaction, was his only hope for revenge.

"If my request is not limited to this, may I exchange it for something else?" Qiu Daitian asked in a deep voice, a slight tremor in his voice. He raised his eyes, his gaze meeting Li Xuanxiao's, his eyes filled with resentment and determination.

Li Xuanxiao raised an eyebrow, scrutinizing Qiu Daitian from head to toe with interest. His fingertips lightly traced the patterns on his cuff, as if pondering his words. "Oh? What else do you wish to trade?" He smiled slightly, his tone laced with a hint of mockery, yet also concealing a deeper meaning.

"I will take the life of the God of Death!" Qiu Daitian shouted coldly, his aura suddenly freezing, and the dust sealed in the cave was slightly raised under this aura.

The upheaval in Wangsha City caused him to turn against his friend, suffer the pain of killing his friend with his own hands, and endure the humiliation of living in darkness, all because of that Grim Reaper.

The hatred in his heart burned like subterranean fire, and he wished he could tear the Grim Reaper to pieces immediately.

"The Grim Reaper?" Li Xuanxiao chuckled, shaking his head and sighing, "Even if you gave up everything and traded with a pawnshop, you still wouldn't be able to obtain the power to kill the Grim Reaper. How naive of you to think you can use something belonging to the Grim Reaper to turn against its master, hoping that the rule-makers will self-destruct!"

His words were like a bucket of cold water poured over Qiu Daitian's burning heart.

"You!" Qiu Daitian was speechless.

How did Li Xuanxiao know about his plans?

After calming down a bit, Qiu Daitian had to admit that Li Xuanxiao made sense. The Horn of Death belonged to the God of Death, and hoping that the God of Death's creation would kill him seemed absurd at the moment, but it was the only way he could think of.

"Okay, I'll sign, I'll sign!"

Without further hesitation, Qiu Daitian raised his hand and wrote his name on the contract. As the contract burst into flames and turned to ashes, a red light entered Qiu Daitian's body.

"The one who destroyed Wangsha City was Fang Chengzi, now known as the Three-Sided Great Wall Yu Yangjun. He is currently serving as a military advisor in the Western Regions Holy Lion Dynasty. As for your soul, the pawnshop will collect it on the day you die."

As soon as he finished speaking, the scene before Qiu Daitian changed again. Everything in the pawnshop vanished as if from thin air. When he came to his senses, the two of them were still inside that underground cave, but—

"I!"

Qiu Daitian looked at his lower body and trembled. So many years had passed, so long that he couldn't even remember. He thought that this was the only ending for his life. Even if someone were to descend from the heavens, he would at most entrust his last wishes and life's work to them, but he would never see the light of day again. After all, who could reverse the power of death?

"Hahaha!" Qiu Daitian laughed loudly, his laughter filled with both ecstasy and bitterness. He looked up at the cave ceiling, sunlight streaming in from the cave entrance, illuminating his weathered face and seemingly brightening the shadows in his heart.

"Heavens above, you have been so kind to me, even though I am my sworn enemy!" he murmured to himself, a tear welling up in his eyes.

"Alright, young man, thank you. Qiu Daitian owes you a favor. Even if our relationship is a transaction, without you, Qiu Daitian would never have seen the light of day again. If you ever need anything in the future, just send me a message. Qiu Daitian will definitely help, no matter how far away you are."

Hearing what Qiu Daitian said, Li Xuanxiao smiled inwardly. Should he say it or not, he truly deserves to be one of the two sharp swords of Haoran.
But thinking about it, it makes sense. If he didn't have a chivalrous spirit, he wouldn't still be so attached to the commission from Wangsha City all these years later, and his soul wouldn't still have such extraordinary value.

Li Xuanxiao raised his hand, and a pawn token flew into Qiu Daitian's palm. "What is this?" Qiu Daitian asked, looking at the pawn token with a puzzled expression.

"The transaction receipt from the pawnshop can buy you some time in a critical moment; consider it a reward for your chivalrous heart."

"what."

Qiu Daitian chuckled, and with a wave of his hand, a bronze giant sword that had long been buried in dust suddenly broke free from its seal and fell into Qiu Daitian's palm on the other side of the cave, emitting bursts of sword sounds, as if it were also celebrating the rebirth of its master.

"Lone Sword, old friend, it's been a long time."

After patting the Lonely Cry Sword, Qiu Daitian looked at Li Xuanxiao and said, "The Horn of Hope you want is right there. You have the power to break the curse that the Grim Reaper left on me, so your ability is quite extraordinary. I won't say anything more. Be careful. That thing is indescribably evil. Since you have this ability, you should no longer need it."

"Don't worry, in the martial arts world today, no one should know the dangers of the Horn of Hope better than me. You should be more careful."

"rest assured!"

With the Lonely Cry Sword casually slung over his back, Qiu Daitian strode to the entrance of the cave. "A promise made long ago has been made. For the sake of the name of the Haoran Twin Blades, Qiu Daitian will surely punish the culprit. Yu Yangjun? Qiu Daitian will surely behead him to comfort the people of Wangsha City and the spirits of my friends in heaven!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he channeled his true energy and leaped out of the cave, breaking free of his cage and stepping into the human world.

"In the past, the fierce blade roared across the sky, blood and bones buried in dust, hatred hard to move; a promise made in the face of death to repay a friend, a solitary cry echoes again to prove the vastness of the heavens."

Qiu Daitian leaped out, and Li Xuanxiao watched his figure recede into the distance, shaking his head.

Whether it will be a resounding echo or a final, solitary cry remains to be seen...

Although the Death God Sword Technique is extraordinary, Qiu Daitian's abilities were already insufficient to contend with Yue Yuntian, who was once one of the two Haoran Twins. Let alone against Yu Yangjun, who has many trump cards. Moreover, Yu Yangjun is now the strategist of the Holy Lion Dynasty, second only to the emperor.

After a brief sigh, Li Xuanxiao arrived at the place Qiu Daitian pointed out and smashed the stone wall with a palm. Inside the stone wall, a pitch-black horn was quietly placed. At first glance, it looked unremarkable, but as he sensed its aura, an indescribable profound power enveloped Li Xuanxiao.

Upon hearing this horn, Li Xuanxiao also clearly sensed an aura quite similar to his own system.

"So this is why the system is pointing to this place, the Horn of Hope."

Li Xuanxiao reached out and grabbed it, looking at this strange object that had caused countless storms in the martial arts world.

"So, what surprise do you have in store for you?"

(End of this chapter)