Unsheathed

In the Creation Cave on Reed Flower Island, which was rumored to have a lofty Daoist spiritual master practicing immortal cultivation methods, Zuo You first launched a tentative sword strike at a great demon that was at the pinnacle of the Immortal Tier and had hopes of advancing to the Ascension Tier, gauging its strength. Afterward, Zuo You unleashed another sword strike and forced the great demon to flee from Reed Flower Island, following which he eventually slew the great demon on the sea.

Two flying swords from the Planchette Writing Sect delivered messages to Stalactite Mountain’s Spring Banner Inn when Zuo You and Wang Shizi returned ashore on their swords.

The Golden Core Tier sword cultivator who had traveled to the Parasol Leaf Continent alongside Zuo You tried his best to explain the situation in detail in the messages delivered by the messenger flying swords.

Wang Shizi had only dared to spectate the battle between Zuo You and the great demon from far away, and even though his cultivation base wasn’t very high, his judgment and observation skills were outstanding, especially since he had witnessed the astounding attacks of many great demons on the battlefield in front of the Sword Qi Great Wall before. He could tell that the great demon that had been forced out from the Creation Cave was definitely no ordinary Immortal Tier great demon.

Wang Shizi had been almost one hundred and fifty kilometers away from the battlefield at the time, yet the sea beneath his feet had still been swirling with thunderous and towering waves. In fact, he could clearly sense the sword qi ripples that had exploded outward thanks to the surging sword intent of Zuo You’s attacks.

After slaying the great demon and sheathing his sword, Zuo You had simply met up with Wang Shizi and said that things were over, after which they continued on their journey.

Wang Shizi couldn’t suppress his curiosity no matter what, and he asked the ”old senior” sword immortal, who was ”the same age” and had remained very quiet the entire journey, about the battle.

He naturally asked whether the great demon had already advanced to the Ascension Tier, to which Zuo You shook his head and replied that the great demon had still been a whisker away from advancing. If they had arrived at Reed Flower Island later, from a short few years to a dozen or so years at most, then the great demon stepping out from the Creation Cave would definitely have been an Ascension Tier great demon. And if that were the case, things would have been much more troublesome.

Zuo You then added that, in reality, things wouldn’t be overly troublesome in three to five years as long as he wasn’t carrying any wounds.

He didn’t speak much, but he was always frank when he did, never exaggerating or acting purposely humble.

As for the messenger flying sword that Zuo You had delivered to the Planchette Writing Sect after the battle, the content of the message was one simple sentence: I killed an Immortal Tier demon on my way to the Parasol Leaf Continent, with no corpse left under my sword — the merit can be attributed to Junior Brother Chen Ping’an.

If the Spring Banner Inn and the Sword Qi Great Wall had only received a single messenger flying sword from Zuo You, then perhaps they would truly believe that he had only killed an ordinary Immortal Tier great demon.

Inside the bookkeeping room at the Spring Banner Inn, Yan Ming and Nalan Caihuan were astonished, but they quickly looked at each other and exchanged a smile. As expected of Zuo You.

Meanwhile, this was far beyond Wei Wenlong’s understanding.

”Wenlong,” Mi Yu called with a chuckle.

Wei Wenlong’s skin crawled as he looked up and said, ”Dare I ask, what guidance does Sword Immortal Mi have for me?”

”Do you know who Senior Zuo You’s junior brother is?” Mi Yu asked.

”It should be Lord Hidden Official,” Wei Wenlong guessed.

His cultivation base wasn’t high, but his brain was quite capable.

This was an apt assessment of Wei Wenlong.

Mi Yu looked at the person who was completely killing the conversation.

Wei Wenlong hurriedly rectified the situation by adding, ”Right?”

Mi Yu smiled and nodded in response, saying, ”Your guess is quite accurate. As expected of a talent fancied by the Hidden Official. Wenlong, are there any ladies you’re interested in but can’t get close to? Do you need some tips and tricks from me? Rest assured, I’m talking about sincere methods and not those underhanded tactics.”

Wei Wenlong hurriedly shook his head in response.

Even if he did like someone, he definitely didn’t dare to reveal their identity to Mi Yu.

Mi Yu held a folding fan in his hand and asked with a smile, ”If there’s mutual attraction between you and a lady, but the lady falls for me instead, will she still deserve your love?”

The thought of this put Wei Wenlong in a slightly bad mood.

Nalan Caihuan was extremely annoyed at this womanizer, and she fumed, ”What are you showing off for? All you have is a stinky sack of flesh and bones.”

Mi Yu gracefully closed his folding fan and replied, ”Everyone loves beauty, and the least I can do is prevent women from feeling repulsed when they encounter me.”

Nalan Caihuan chuckled coldly and said, ”I feel like your appearance is as repulsive as can be.”

Mi Yu opened his folding fan again, covering his face and replying, ”I’m willing to do more for Miss Nalan.”

This was an eye-opener for Wei Wenlong.

————

Atop Hanging Garment Mountain on the ancestral mountain of the Planchette Writing Sect, Sect Leader Ji Hai had already rejected Zhong Kui’s suggestion, given that the secret technique being discussed was the foundation of Ji Hai’s Great Dao and a technique that would only be passed down to the sect leaders of each generation.

Moreover, Ji Hai already had a candidate in mind for the next sect leader of the Planchette Writing Sect, and this candidate was none other than the young child who had inadvertently exposed the hidden great demon back then. There was a preordained fate between this child and the Planchette Writing Sect, and karmic fate was most important when it came to cultivating in the mountains.

Ji Hai planned to officially take that child as a closing disciple once he returned from his studies in the Great Subduing Academy. The child hadn’t offered incense and paid respects to the portrait in the ancestral hall before, so Ji Hai hadn’t technically taken him as a closing disciple yet.

Zhong Kui also understood that it would be very difficult to get Ji Hai to make an exception relying on just two secret letters, one from a teacher of the Confucian academy and one from Peace and Tranquility Mountain’s elderly Heavenly Lord. Moreover, it was indeed the reasonable thing to do to reject his suggestion.

In any case, Zhong Kui wouldn’t have been willing to ask for so much either if it weren’t for his master shooing him over and saying that he needed to complete this task. Zhong Kui couldn’t go against his master’s instructions, however, so he shamelessly stayed behind and occasionally visited Sect Leader Ji Hai to drink tea and have heart-to-heart conversations with him.

Ji Hai couldn’t stand the pestering, so he could only make up an excuse and enter seclusion. Yet, Zhong Kui set up a tea table and placed a mountain of books at the entrance of the Planchette Writing Sect’s immortal abode, saying that he was going to stand guard for Sect Leader Ji Hai. He sat there and read every single day.

Ji Hai completely ignored him.

They could discuss any other matter apart from this one. To say nothing of the words of Peace and Tranquility Mountain and Great Subduing Academy being useless, even the words of the Jade Tablet Sect’s Former Sect Leader Xun Yuan and Sect Leader Jiang Shangzhen would be ignored.

Huang Ting wasn’t as shameless as Zhong Kui, so she left by herself and embarked on a distant journey.

Huang Ting’s master, Song Mao, and her old ancestor, the elderly Heavenly Lord, had been especially anxious about her cultivation barrier before, but for some unknown reason, they were now telling her to take things slowly and not worry about overcoming the barrier of the Nascent Tier.

It was most important for cultivators to go with the flow of nature, so why be so anxious and rushed? The elderly Heavenly Lord had further expounded a whole heap of nonsensical reasons to her in a sincere and heartfelt manner, even making the bastardly remark that women with high cultivation bases would struggle to find Dao partners.

While Zhong Kui and Ji Hai were competing to see who was more patient, Zuo You and Wang Shizi traveled across the seas from afar and arrived at the Planchette Writing Sect, forcing Ji Hai to exit cultivation.

Ji Hai then heard the Golden Core Tier Wang Shizi, who hailed from the Parasol Leaf Continent, recount Senior Zuo You’s act of killing the Immortal Tier great demon at sea. And now, they needed to deliver a message to Stalactite Mountain using a messenger flying sword.

Sect Leader Ji Hai already had an extremely good impression of Zuo You, who had left the Parasol Leaf Sect in disarray after challenging the sect with his sword. In fact, it could be said that Ji Hai viewed Zuo You as his benefactor.

Right now, Ji Hai was definitely one of the people who held the strongest resentment for great demons in the Parasol Leaf Continent. This was because his Dao partner had died at the hands of a great demon in the past, and the great demon had frenziedly fled and distanced itself from dry land.

Ji Hai had been severely wounded at the time, preventing him from giving chase. Three other people from the Parasol Leaf Continent had pursued the great demon, and they were Peace and Tranquility Mountain’s Mountain Master Song Mao, the Parasol Leaf Sect’s disciplinary elder at the time, and the Jade Tablet Sect’s Jiang Shangzhen.

Unfortunately for the Immortal Tier great demon, it had come across Zuo You at sea, and in the words of Jiang Shangzhen, the great demon had refused to take a detour after mysteriously feeling a dislike toward Senior Zuo You. It had charged toward him headfirst, after which it was mysteriously hit by a sword strike and killed without mercy.

Now that Zuo You had returned from the sea, the first piece of news he delivered was of killing another Immortal Tier great demon at Reed Flower Island.

Moreover, looking at Sword Cultivator Wang Shizi’s hesitation, wanting to speak but not daring to say too much, it was clear that Zuo You had definitely experienced many things at the Sword Qi Great Wall over the past few years.

How could Ji Hai not feel delighted?

However, Zuo You paid little heed to the overly enthusiastic sect leader.

Out of all the immortal forces in the Parasol Leaf Continent, he only had a slightly good impression of Peace and Tranquility Mountain.

Thus, before leaving the mountains, Zuo You had actively asked Zhong Kui, ”Do you plan to drag things out and get away with keeping the Wind and Snow Awl that my junior brother lent you? Do you not plan to return it?”

Tears of emotion almost welled up in Zhong Kui’s eyes.

Temporarily disregarding the matter of the Wind and Snow Awl, this senior sword immortal was essentially family now!

Chen Ping’an was quite capable, huh? He had actually managed to become Zuo You’s junior brother. And Zhong Kui was brothers with Chen Ping’an, so that essentially meant Zuo You was his senior brother as well, no?

Was this not the most reasonable deduction in the world?

Zhong Kui didn’t hold back against his own senior brother, appearing aggrieved as he walked down the mountain and describing his miserable experiences at the Planchette Writing Sect to Zuo You. He was given the cold shoulder, treated like an unwelcome guest, had many people roll their eyes at him, and so on and so forth...

Sect Leader Ji Hai of the Planchette Writing Sect became livid, and the slight sense of guilt he initially had in his heart immediately vanished without a trace.

Zuo You thought about this for a moment and asked both Zhong Kui and Ji Hai some questions using his mind’s lake, one after another. In the end, he said, ”Ji Hai, you can tell Zhong Kui to make a vow that he’ll never teach that secret technique to outsiders. And since he’s no longer a Confucian disciple, he can also become a guest elder of the Planchette Writing Sect at the same time. Of course, this is only a suggestion from an outsider.”

Ji Hai sighed and surprisingly nodded in agreement to this proposal.

Zhong Kui didn’t have any complaints.

Ji Hai saw Zuo You off at the entrance of the sect. Thinking back to his treatment when climbing this mountain with Huang Ting, Zhong Kui thought that it truly paled in comparison to the treatment his senior brother was receiving right now.

Zuo You was coincidentally traveling the same route as Zhong Kui, also making his way to Peace and Tranquility Mountain.

”Senior Zuo, how did you become Chen Ping’an’s senior brother?” Zhong Kui asked.

Zuo You smiled and replied, ”I reluctantly accepted the junior brother that my master forcefully pushed onto me.”

Zhong Kui could only chuckle in speechlessness.

Even the kitchen knives placed next to the chopping boards in the kitchens of the mortal world would deform and grow increasingly blunt after months and years of chopping vegetables and cutting meat.

And blunt knives needed to be sharpened.

However, the Savage World unleashed unending waves of attacks, not only sacrificing countless demons for the sake of destroying flying swords and killing sword cultivators from the Sword Qi Great Wall, but most importantly, it didn’t give the sword immortals on the city wall any opportunity to sharpen their blades and nurture their swords. If the sword immortals wanted to retreat for a brief moment to do this, then they would need to pay with the lives and flying swords of other Middle Five Tier sword cultivators.

The offensives launched by the Savage World had largely been haphazard and intermittent before, leading to many unexpected circumstances. There would frequently be pauses between deploying troops, summoning armies from other regions, and offensive and defensive actions from the two sides, thereby giving the sword cultivators and demons weeks or even months to rest and recuperate. They would bask in the sun and enjoy the moonlight as they waited for the battle to erupt again.

And when the battle did erupt again, it would be as merciless as always, with mountains of mangled flesh, seas of flowing blood, and piles of shattered flying swords covering the battlefield. The sudden clashes between great demons and sword immortals would be even more astounding and eye-catching, with victory and defeat in these battles potentially able to influence the momentum in one area of the battlefield or even the entire battlefield.

However, none of the previous large-scale battles had been as solemn and stifling as the current one.

It felt as if no one was able to make a decisive move, not the mystical abilities unleashed by the great demons, and not the incisive sword strikes launched by the sword immortals. The lives and deaths, and the victories and defeats, were all buried by the chaos sweeping through the battlefield.

The most intense and heart-stopping battle involved Great Demon Zhong Guang moving the Five Mountains to the battlefield. Great Demon Yang Zhi, who possessed one of the twelve thrones, had guarded one of the Five Mountains. Li Tuimi and two other sword immortals had fought with their lives to defend against this offensive, after which Zuo You had entered the battle as well.

Only then did several great demons in hiding jump forward to surround and attack Zuo You. Seeing this, Sword Immortal Dong Sangeng had left the city wall to provide reinforcement for Zuo You, and the battle had finally concluded with Zuo You being heavily wounded by a sneak attack from Hidden Official Xiao Xun.

The Savage World had sixty military tents, an endless supply of soldiers, and numerous stages of offensives that followed one after another without reprieve. It was evident that they weren’t going to give the Sword Qi Great Wall any opportunity to rest or recuperate, especially those Upper Five Tier sword immortals.

This was a dangerous situation that put huge pressure on the Sword Qi Great Wall. At the same time, however, the rules implemented by the lineage of the Hidden Official — wherein the sword immortals were inhibited in their sword strikes and felt incredibly stifled as a result — gradually started to yield results.

Before this, the sword immortals on the city wall had appeared extraordinarily powerful and deadly as individuals, but following the implementation of the rules, this notion of individual power was formlessly diluted and reduced as a necessary price. The outcome, then, was the destructive power of the sword formation becoming stronger as a whole.

Because of this, the drawbacks caused by a sword immortal leaving the battlefield to rest and nurture their swords were also minimized.

The lineage of the Hidden Official was continuing to deepen its research and understanding into sword formations, and to say nothing of just Upper Five Tier sword immortals, it was also familiar with the flying swords and bonded mystical abilities of each Nascent Tier and Golden Core Tier sword cultivator. And now, it was also disgustingly familiar with the bonded flying swords of sword cultivators from three other cultivation tiers.

Water had no permanent form, just as warfare had no constant conditions. The sword cultivators on the city wall continued to change their formations and positions, even going as far as to improve their cooperation with unfamiliar sword cultivators whom they had perhaps never come across before.

They coordinated with their flying swords, and they would even use dozens of flying swords to build formations and layer their mystical abilities together. Once they overcame the initial friction and improved their chemistry, it was possible for their combat prowess to increase significantly.

Right now, the Sword Qi Great Wall had an impressive thirty-one sword formations that were made up of flying swords and mystical abilities of the Five Elements.

The Sword Qi Great Wall had been like a large and wealthy clan in the past, perhaps unsure of how many resources it actually owned.

Now, however, the Sword Qi Great Wall would record everything in the account books, even going as far as to pick up and record a single copper coin stuck in a crack on the wall.

Everyone belonging to the lineage of the Hidden Official had played a critical part in this transformation.

Among them, Chou Miao’s understanding of sword immortals’ flying swords and mystical abilities, Lin Junbi’s strategic vision and ability to see the bigger picture, and Guo Zhujiu’s bizarre ideas and sudden strokes of genius made the biggest contributions.

Even so, oversights and even mistakes had been made during the deployment of troops and formations by the lineage of the Hidden Official, deadly issues that sword cultivators on the battlefield needed to overcome using their flying swords and lives.

Sword cultivators from the lineage of the Hidden Official weren’t immune to big arguments and mutual resentment that damaged harmony either, especially since clashing ideas would often appear in the same sections of the battlefield.

Before being used in battle, however, no one dared to say for certain which idea would be more reliable and would give them a stronger chance at victory. Things would be okay if the battles played out according to their expectations, but huge troubles would arise if something went wrong. The party in the wrong would feel inconsolably remorseful, while the party in the right would also feel very stifled.

The most intense argument had taken place between Xu Ning and Cao Gun, with the two of them becoming bright red with anger and almost wanting to challenge each other to a sword duel.

The summer palace had once formulated a strategy that led to the deaths of two earth immortal sword cultivators along with thirty-one Middle Five Tier sword cultivators, with their swords also being destroyed.

Everyone had felt great pain, and Xuan Can, who had been responsible for formulating the strategy, had felt complete and utter remorse. Xu Ning had only grumbled in dissatisfaction, but this was ultimately adding fuel to the fire. Xuan Can’s expression had been disconsolate, with guilt eating away at his heart, so he hadn’t said anything in retort.

However, Cao Gun, who had an extremely good relationship with Xuan Can, hadn’t been able to suppress his emotions, and he had directly started to scold Xu Ning, telling him to clean his mouth and stop being a hindsight critic.

Hearing this, Xu Ning had directly cursed all of Xuan Can’s family and ancestors.

Xuan Can was skilled at Go, or else he wouldn’t have played Go with Lin Junbi so frequently and even enjoyed a decent number of wins. He was even more skilled at scolding people, and he scolded Xu Ning until the latter became livid and was just about to draw his sword for a duel.

The atmosphere in the main hall had been incredibly heavy at the time, given that there would be no winner for the lineage of the Hidden Official if a sword duel were to take place, regardless of the outcome.

However, Luo Zhenyi had spoken up for Xu Ning, saying that the losses wouldn’t have been so severe if his strategy had been adopted instead. If she remembered correctly, it was Xuan Can and the others who had rejected Xu Ning’s strategy. That being the case, how was Xu Ning being a hindsight critic?

Chang Taiqing, Xu Ning, and Luo Zhenyi were a so-called small mountain to begin with, and Chang Taiqing was even life-and-death friends with Xu Ning. Thus, he had taken things a step further, calling Xuan Can and the others stupid for coming up with their failed strategy, and even more stupid for shirking responsibility after being slapped in the face by reality.

Outsider Sword Cultivator Song Gaoyuan was usually closer to Luo Zhenyi and her companions, but when it came to this matter, he had clearly taken the side of Cao Gun and Xuan Can. Thus, he had directly launched into a shouting match with Chang Taiqing.

Lin Junbi had attempted to mediate, yet he had ended up drawing the ire of both sides. It wouldn’t have seemed right for Dong Bude to criticize Xu Ning or Xuan Can, so she had instead scolded Lin Junbi for being irresponsible.

Guo Zhujiu had never witnessed a chaotic argument like this before, so she had felt slightly lost in an uncharacteristic display. It felt as if anything she said would be wrong.

If it weren’t for Chen Ping’an and Chou Miao being able to maintain their composure, a fracture might have thus appeared between the local sword cultivators and the outsider sword cultivators, two relatively hidden mountains.

Sword Immortal Chou Miao exchanged a glance with Chen Ping’an, after which he told Xu Ning to shut up first.

Chen Ping’an then asked them whether they wanted to speak reason or vent their emotions. If they wanted to speak reason, then such significant losses on the battlefield would suggest a failure in strategy that the entire lineage of the Hidden Official needed to take responsibility for. Meanwhile, his mistake was the greatest, since he had established the rules as the Hidden Official.

The selection of strategies was based on these rules, and they could seek accountability after implementing them on the battlefield. In fact, it was necessary to keep everyone accountable. However, this didn’t then imply going on a witch-hunt and vigorously targeting a single person or group of people. The lineage of the Hidden Official wouldn’t tolerate anyone who dared to engage in such behavior.

Everyone had a temper, so there was no issue with throwing a few curses to vent one’s emotions. In fact, they could even have their way and engage in a three-on-three sword duel if they wanted. Deng Liang could face Luo Zhenyi, Cao Gun could face Chang Taiqing, and Xuan Can could face Xu Ning. They could treat this as a belated trial, and they could regard the matter as closed after they finished the three duels. However, Chen Ping’an would need to record some additional ”feats” of these sword cultivators in his account books.

Everyone in the main hall fell silent.

Only then did Chen Ping’an start to review the battle with Chou Miao and Lin Junbi, analyzing in detail the successes and failures of Cao Gun’s strategy. They didn’t reject the strategy outright because of the disastrous outcome.