Jun Mo Li lay on the ground, while across from him Li Tonghui's flames slowly receded.
All three boys' faces were filled with disbelief, as if they couldn't believe such a thing had happened.
[Ah? Li Tonghui actually obtained a Vision? Earlier it said the difficulty of obtaining one during the Archon War had increased?]
[Reasonable. After all, he's the big brother of the Qingce Sword Immortal and the Sky Phoenix Marshal—having something extraordinary about him is normal.]
[By the way, at this point Second Brother still couldn't fight Vision wielders? The moment Li Tonghui got a Vision, he immediately ended the previous losing streak.]
"Hm… personally, I lean toward Second Brother being able to fight Vision holders at this point."
"But there's also a possibility that Li Tonghui could do the same. The gap between them wasn't actually that big in this regard, so the moment Li Tonghui got a Vision he successfully overtook."
Silver Wolf analyzed and gave her conclusion.
Finally, she added: "The above is just my personal opinion. If you have different views, feel free to leave them in private messages after the stream ends."
"For now, better to focus on the short film."
As Silver Wolf finished speaking, the video screen changed again.
The three boys each held a bowl of clear wine in the bamboo forest, swearing brotherhood under the witness of heaven and earth, reciting their oath:
"We swear—though we bear different surnames, we are willing to become sworn brothers of different families…"
"…We do not seek to be born on the same year, month, and day, but we wish to die on the same year, month, and day."
"Lord Rex Lapis, bear witness to this heart. Those who betray righteousness and forget kindness shall be slain by both heaven and man."
[Jun Bai: I suspect you're targeting me.]
[This oath… isn't it that if little Bai enters the next Nirvana because of his two brothers, or these two share little Bai's lifespan, otherwise it wouldn't hold?]
[By the way, doesn't this count as a kind of contract? Then wouldn't Morax sense little Bai's existence?]
After this oath, the three voices broke off, continuing with only Jun Mo Li's solo narration.
"I know a Vision greatly amplifies a person's combat power, but this kind of amplification is truly astonishing."
"I think I understand how Father became the famous swordsman known far and wide in Qingce Village. A Vision really is very strong."
"After I was defeated by Tonghui, that guy kept saying he wanted a rematch, insisting on giving the big brother position back to me."
"I know he was worried I'd develop a grudge. But he was overthinking—our bond wouldn't be shaken by something like a big brother position."
"I'm not the type who can't afford to lose. I'll just win it back later. Similarly, a big brother position—giving it away is fine."
[Ah… I was being narrow-minded. I thought the relationship between these brothers would change because of this.]
[If they really flipped out over something this small, they would have flipped when little Bai defeated Second Brother earlier.]
[Truly enviable friendship.]
The camera zoomed in. The playful three brothers faded into Jun Mo Li's inner monologue:
"From now on, we are brothers. I have new family again. I must protect my brothers well."
"Absolutely—even if it costs my life."
"So I need to go further. Even if not for Father's last wish, I must become stronger for the people I love."
The youth gripped the dim, lightless Vision in his hand.
"I don't want to experience that helplessness again!"
Gray memories flashed by—the roaring Geoarmored Lawachurl charged at Jun Bai. Jun Mo Li stepped forward with sword drawn.
Yet his hard-practiced swift sword could only leave shallow marks on the Geoarmored Lawachurl.
The enemy extended its claws toward his family, yet he himself was powerless. Such helplessness was not something ordinary people could endure.
[Hiss—this scene appeared before, but I didn't notice this detail then.]
[Earlier it was god's-eye view, with massive information to process. Now it's first-person, only receiving Jun Mo Li's information—so only now do we notice.]
[At this moment, Second Brother must have felt very powerless.]
[Second Brother isn't going to go down the villain path for power, right?]
"My sword is fast—fast enough to hit any target in my line of sight. But speed alone can only do so much. I need power."
"Only with sufficient sword power can I crush all enemies!"
The scene changed. Jun Mo Li appeared in the Jun residence, taking a heavy sword from Jun Bai's hand.
"By the way, Third Brother—have you named this sword yet?"
Jun Bai said no.
"Then… let's call it Mountain Severer."
"Like Big Brother's Rock Breaker—may it one day, in my hand, split mountains and sever peaks."
Jun Mo Li smiled and left. His inner thoughts let the audience know:
"If even the power to split mountains and sever peaks cannot protect the people and things I care about, then I will surpass it—even if it means surpassing the gods!"
[Uh… so Second Brother's 'power' refers to physical power~]
[This is really… easy to misunderstand.]
[A hundred-jin heavy sword swung around casually—as expected of little Bai, his strength is astonishing.]
[By the way, didn't Second Brother ever think of making his father's Vision light up? Wouldn't that power come faster than hard training?]
Jun Mo Li stood beside the waterfall, struggling to begin swinging Mountain Severer.
"Wielding Mountain Severer, I started repeating the basics I practiced before—just to master this heavy sword as quickly as possible."
"A heavy sword is harder to master than a light sword—especially one as heavy as Mountain Severer. During my practice period, the sparring rounds with Big Brother turned into my losing streaks."
"But it didn't matter. Losing in sparring isn't important—everything is for winning in real combat."
Jun Mo Li's gaze was firm as he swung his sword. Behind him, the sky cycled through sunrise and moonrise, day after day. The sword in his hand grew steadier day by day.
"I spent two years making Mountain Severer's power mine."
"Big Brother learned of this, came to congratulate me, and invited me to become an escort in Guili Assembly together."
"I didn't want to go, but Big Brother convinced me with one reason."
"Second Brother, do you want to be confined to Qingce Village your whole life?"
"So I followed Big Brother to Guili Assembly and registered as an escort."
The two boys experiencing Guili Assembly for the first time marveled at the surrounding sights, almost forgetting the real reason they came.
"Guili Assembly is very prosperous—a completely different scene from Qingce Village. It's beautiful."
"What surprised me and Big Brother the most was Fengdeng Lou."
"If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I never would have imagined a place to eat could be described as spectacular."
"And here, Big Brother and I heard the story of the Fengdeng God from the storyteller."
—Side note
Miscalculated—this short film will take another day. (Got carried away writing again.)
I originally planned to finish it in one go, but today the buffs are maxed: physical test ended, Genshin event ended, homework ended—all on the same day.
So I can only rush out two chapters before today ends…