Unsheathed

Before Chen Ping’an had thrown his first punch…

The old man above the dark clouds was wearing a Five Mountains Hat decorated with the true appearances of the Five Mountains. The hat was overflowing with dazzling colors, and one could vaguely hear the sound of rustling pine trees, calling cranes, and flowing spring water.

Like a general commanding an army of tens of thousands of troops and horses, the old man confidently commanded the sea of clouds to descend upon the small and insignificant fortress. He suddenly squinted his eyes and looked toward the martial arts training ground in the Flying Eagle Fortress, and what he saw caused him to involuntarily chuckle.

That young and naive child actually dared to challenge him like an ant challenging a towering tree? How utterly impudent! He and his disciple had meticulously plotted for almost forty years to nurture that ghost infant in the heart of the fortress lord’s wife, so they were hellbent on obtaining it no matter what.

They had experienced countless difficulties and challenges, and they had also taken many huge gambles. At the same time, they had also experienced many unexplainably mystical coincidences and fated opportunities. However, all of these things were unknown to outsiders.

The original purpose for building this Flying Eagle Fortress hidden away in the mountain forests had most likely ended up buried in the soil along with the first fortress lord. However, the old man above the dark clouds was keenly aware of the original purpose.

Back then, two earth immortals from Planchette Writing Sect and Peace and Tranquility Mountain, the two most powerful immortal forces in the central region of Parasol Leaf Continent, had gotten into a conflict with each other and ended up engaging in a huge fight.

However, the Golden Core Tier cultivator from Planchette Writing Sect hadn’t imagined that the earth immortal whom he had provoked was actually a paramount Nascent Tier cultivator from Peace and Tranquility Mountain!

The latter knew that his lifespan was nearing an end and he had no hope of breaking through to the next tier, so he had left the mountains and started to travel around the world after arranging his funeral affairs with his descendants.

Even though his body and soul were both approaching death, a Nascent Tier cultivator was still much more powerful than a Golden Core Tier cultivator, after all. Thus, he had pummeled the Golden Core Tier cultivator from Planchette Writing Sect and almost ended up killing him.

The Golden Core Tier cultivator had tried to flee, yet he had ultimately been stopped by the Nascent Tier cultivator in the location that was the Flying Eagle Fortress today. Being in the right, the Nascent Tier cultivator had been unwilling to relent, not caring about the influence of Planchette Writing Sect at all. He had been hellbent on killing the Golden Core Tier cultivator from Planchette Writing Sect.

Understanding that he had nowhere else to flee, the Golden Core Tier cultivator had resolved to drag his opponent to death alongside him. With this in mind, he had channeled a prohibited technique of Planchette Writing Sect. This was because he had already reached his limit and was unable to channel the proper deity-summoning technique of his sect. Indeed, there had been little hope for him to summon a powerful deity.

Thus, the Golden Core Tier cultivator had sacrificed all of his blood essence to summon a primordial demonic being recorded in the secret texts of Planchette Writing Sect. The demonic being had measured over thirty meters in height, with its dark and murderous aura so thick that it was almost tangible. It was as if its aura had been a suit of heavy black armor.

In reality, the Golden Core Tier cultivator had already ceased breathing after summoning this demonic being. His completely hollowed body had transformed into ashes and dissipated into heaven and earth.

With his opponent dead, the Nascent Tier cultivator had indeed possessed the opportunity to retreat. However, he had ultimately chosen to fight to the death with that primordial demonic being. He had summoned all of his immortal treasures, and he had unleashed his mystical abilities at the demonic being as if he were unleashing a torrential downpour.

The old cultivator had fought until his body was riddled with gaping wounds and his soul was wavering in exertion, and he had fought until his golden core was shattered and his yin soul which had left his acupoint to fight alongside him was killed. Even so, the Nascent Tier cultivator had still roared that this was a satisfying battle. In the end, he had perished together with the primordial demonic being that had just arrived in the world.

The earth-shaking battle had caused the yin energy within a radius of fifty kilometers to gather and condense in a manner that was no inferior to an ancient battlefield that was home to hundreds of thousands of corpses.

Even after passing away, the Nascent Tier cultivator from Peace and Tranquility Mountain had still been worried about the detrimental effects of the yin energy, afraid that it would flow into the surroundings and affect the fortune of the mountains and rivers in the nearby five hundred kilometers.

Because of this, his remnant soul had forcefully lived on and found a young woodsman nearby. The Nascent Tier cultivator had then taught the young man a secret subjugation technique as well as a combat technique, one that involved the saber and extreme yang energy.

Afterward, the remnant soul of the Nascent Tier cultivator had also told the young woodsman to construct a fortress here and have his descendants live here for generations after generations. That way, his descendants who would also be pure martial artists could rely on their yang energy to suppress the condensed yin energy in this place.

At the same time, the formless yin energy here would also act as an optimal whetstone for the Huan Clan’s descendants when they practiced that saber technique. As a result, these descendants could often achieve twice the results with half the effort. It was thanks to this that the Flying Eagle Fortress had eventually cemented its status as a dominant martial arts force in the cultivation world, one that produced a plethora of prodigies.

Including Huan Yang’s father, several of the previous fortress lords had liked to travel around the cultivation world after achieving some success in martial arts. On the surface, they were seemingly trying to bring fame and honor to the Flying Eagle Fortress. In reality, however, they were actually traveling to renowned mountains and forces to look for immortals, seeking methods to resolve the Flying Eagle Fortress’ issue with overly powerful yin energy once and for all.

However, the old fortress lord had passed away in a suspicious manner a number of years ago. As a result, Huan Yang, his son who didn’t possess outstanding martial arts talent, had stepped up to the position of fortress lord in a very hasty manner. Shortly afterward, demonic cultivators from Agarwood Nation had also formed an alliance to attack the Flying Eagle Fortress together.

Due to all of these reasons, the history between that Nascent Tier cultivator and the founding ancestor of the Flying Eagle Fortress, as well as his fated immortal opportunities, had ended up lost. Many of the relationships that the ancestors of the Huan Clan had worked extremely hard to forge had also petered out as a result.

For example, Fortress Lord Huan Yang was completely unaware of the relationship between his father and the old Daoist priest, Huang Shang’s master. Because of this, he had instead sought help from his friend in the capital. Not only that, but everyone in the Flying Eagle Fortress was oblivious to the powers of the two stone lions outside the Huan Clan’s ancestral hall as well.

It was a combination of all these things that led to the disastrous events of today.

The old man wearing a tall hat and sitting above the dark clouds was a notorious demonic cultivator from the central region of Parasol Leaf Continent. He had once been a powerful and respected Golden Core Tier cultivator, and he had personally viewed his combat power as strong enough to rival fellow Golden Core Tier cultivators from Planchette Writing Sect and Peace and Tranquility Mountain even though he was only a vagrant cultivator.

However, he had quickly invited a fast and furious response from Peace and Tranquility Mountain after killing two Dragon Gate Tier cultivators from the force. A young Golden Core Tier cultivator from Peace and Tranquility Mountain had left the mountains by themself and hunted him for more than five thousand kilometers, completely depleting the old man of his wealth.

In fact, even his pocket treasure had ended up shattering. In the end, the old man had been forced to sacrifice half of his body and cultivation base to trick the young cultivator who was like a deity from the Heavenly Court. Only then did he manage to flee with his life.

The old man felt intense resentment toward the young cultivator and Peace and Tranquility Mountain, so he was always thinking about how to exact revenge. And thus, a meticulous plan that involved the Flying Eagle Fortress and stretched for several decades was born.

After falling to the Dragon Gate Tier, the old man had secretly shattered the bridge of immortality of the fortress lord’s wife when she was still young, stripping her of the ability to cultivate. However, he had left her bridge of immortality intact even though it was shattered and riddled with hundreds upon thousands of cracks. Only the section of the bridge near her heart was completely unscathed.

This caused the fortress lord’s wife to become something like a porcelain jar that continued to absorb yin energy from the earth. Moreover, this yin energy would all be funneled to the so-called spring origin located at her heart. Finally, the old man had used a secret technique to create the ghost infant in her heart, one that continued to feed on her vitality and yin energy.

Once the old man succeeded here and saw the ghost infant crawl out of that woman’s heart, he could venture out and search for some small and remote nations that were far from the gazes of those immortals in the mountains. He was still a Dragon Gate Tier cultivator, after all, so he could naturally become an imperial preceptor in these nations with ease. Or perhaps he could make some of the officials become his puppets, or he could even control the rulers in secret.

Afterward, he could incite battle after battle and feed his ghost infant until it was full. After one hundred years, his ghost infant would become a powerful earth immortal that heeded his command. Even though it wouldn’t be strong enough to destroy the incredibly powerful and influential Peace and Tranquility Mountain, it would definitely be strong enough to cause heavy losses for them and wound them to the core.

When it came to grudges between immortals from the mountains, enduring and planning vengeance for one hundred years genuinely couldn’t be considered a long time.

As for whether these acts of vengeance killed mortals from outside the mountains, some people didn’t care about this at all—for example, the old man sitting above the dark clouds. However, there were also some people who did care—for example, the Nascent Tier cultivator from Peace and Tranquility Mountain.

Even so, such a benevolent and compassionate terrestrial immortal had still failed to advance to the Upper Five Tiers. Not only that, but he had also been forced to perish with the primordial demonic being. This was a reflection of the Great Dao’s heartless nature. It didn’t discriminate based on whether a person was good or bad.

In any case, the old man above the dark clouds still found things slightly comical after the young martial artist threw his third punch. If one didn’t have the strength to back up their vigorous aura, then one would be nothing more than a hollow building that merely appeared extravagant on the outside.

However, the old man was genuinely salivating over the dazzling golden Dao robe on the young boy’s body. This was a completely unexpected surprise! This young boy, a novice in the cultivation world, actually possessed such a valuable treasure and didn’t understand how to cherish his own life?

This was indeed a very impressive treasure. In fact, it might even be a genuine immortal treasure.

Perhaps the tides of fortune were finally turning? Perhaps it was his turn to experience riches and power? Perhaps he no longer needed to scurry around like a rat, and perhaps he could return to his former glory earlier than anticipated?

As for whether the young boy wearing the golden robe was a disciple of some immortal force, the old man above the dark clouds couldn’t care less about this. He had already offended Peace and Tranquility Mountain, so what harm could it do to offend one more force?

As the sea of dark clouds descended lower and lower, almost all of the residents in the Flying Eagle Fortress started to feel dizzy and disoriented. Some elders, infants, and women whose bodies were weaker and whose yang energy wasn’t strong enough also started to vomit in their homes. The sound of unceasing crying echoed through the large streets and small alleys and through the tall buildings and low courtyards.

Many young men who practiced martial arts dazedly looked up at the sea of pitch-black clouds bearing down on them, feeling as if they were about to be crushed into smithereens. Some youths with weaker willpower were already devoid of any fight, with their bodies trembling in fear as they gave up on any thought of resistance. Their martial arts future would be severed even if they managed to survive the calamity today.

Following the trail of earthquake-like commotion, some people also noticed the spectacular golden light shining through the flying dust and ashes in the direction of the martial arts training ground. One after another, those bursts of fist auras were filled with vigor as they became increasingly large and powerful, growing from the girth of an arm to the width of a bowl and then to the width of a well. The fist auras continued to grow in size, seemingly unstoppable as they soared toward the sky. It was as if someone were unleashing a barrage of relentless attacks at the sea of clouds.

Some people couldn’t help but think, This person only dares to attack the dark clouds because of his lofty martial arts cultivation base.

On the martial arts training ground…

Chen Ping’an wasn’t standing still as he threw punches at the sky. Instead, he would quickly change his position after throwing each punch, performing the six-step walking meditation of the Mountain Shaking Guide and channeling his Qi according to the Eighteen Stops Technique. Only after doing this would he throw another punch using the fist stance of the Rain Evaporation Technique and the fist intent of the Deity Drumming Technique.

After throwing ten punches, the might of his fists were already far greater than the might of his stomps.

The young boy’s fist aura blasted toward the sky, carrying with it the howling of wind and the rumbling of thunder. Near the martial arts training ground, the ceramic tiles on the roofs of the houses started to violently explode layer by layer.

With Chen Ping’an as the epicenter, the walls of the courtyards and houses in the surroundings also started to crack in a chaotic manner.

The bluestone slabs on the martial arts training ground had suffered immense punishment as well, with ten pits of varying depths now decorating its surface.

Even though the first nine punches had each been more powerful than the last, all of them had simply blasted through the dark clouds and nothing else. However, the tenth punch directly rushed toward the red straw mat that the old man wearing a tall hat was sitting cross-legged on.

Even though the old man was already feeling a slight sense of apprehension—marking the young boy as someone whom he definitely needed to kill and moreover someone whom he needed to kill first—he was still relatively unfazed by Chen Ping’an’s powerful tenth punch. Instead, he felt a little competitive.

The old man chuckled coldly before extending a hand and summoning a large orb of dark green light which suddenly unleashed its radiance. He then turned his palm and pressed down, blocking the path of the fist aura that was tearing through the dark clouds.

There was a deafening boom, and the old man’s straw mat swayed slightly as the sea of dark clouds beneath him shuddered in a violent manner.

The fist aura from the martial arts training ground and the dazzling green light around the old man’s palm exploded together, transforming into countless specks of light. The shattered fist aura dissipated into the nearby sea of clouds, causing a smattering of golden shards to seep into the pitch-black clouds that were initially ink-like and radiating with the aura of death. There was the crackling sound of burning as the golden shards attacked the dark clouds.

The old man shook his wrist and looked through the gaping hole that had been torn through the dark clouds by that beam of radiant fist aura. He peered down at the martial arts training ground that was only ninety meters away, and he said with a menacing smile, “How impressive! With your young age, you can be considered a martial arts grandmaster of a region in the cultivation world outside the mountains. However, you’re unwilling to enjoy your life in the cultivation world, and you insist on standing here and opposing me instead? How naive and impudent!”

As he spoke, the old man raised a hand and held two fingers together, bringing them near his tall hat decorated with the true appearances of the Five Mountains. With a gentle swipe, he retrieved the true intent of some Eastern Mountain from the ancient past and sent it hurtling down through the hole in the clouds.

The first of the Five Mountains to leave his tall hat was a miniature mountain the size of a thumb. However, it had already grown to a size no smaller than the old man’s straw mat when it reached his feet. After sliding through the hole in the clouds, it had already become as large as a table.

The old man cackled with wanton laughter and exclaimed in an extremely delighted voice, “I’ve endured and hidden myself like a turtle for so many years, but the heavens ultimately don’t betray those who fight through hardships! It’s finally my turn to enjoy good fortunes! If I pulverize the essence of your blood and flesh and feed it to the ghost infant, it’s entirely possible that it might shoot to the Sea Observation Tier the instant that it breaks free from that woman’s heart!”

Standing on the martial arts training ground, Chen Ping’an was completely unafraid as he looked at the mountain crashing down from the sky. When staying in the Sun Clan’s ancestral residence in Old Dragon City, the might of the golden flood dragons swooping down at him from the clouds hadn’t been any weaker than this. However, had he not swung his fists at them all the same?

His aura grew to a mighty and majestic level.

His fist intent was vigorous and overflowing, and he firmly believed that his fist could shatter all techniques.

Chen Ping’an’s dazzling golden robe billowed in the air, making the young boy from Clay Vase Alley seem that much like an immortal from the mountains for the first time in his life.