Bombarding Cultivators with Cluster Artillery

With the Great Achievement-Level Minor Convergence Technique fully activated, Jiang Ding walked silently on the official road.

Scaling the city wall was easy.

A city wall that stretched over ten kilometers couldn’t possibly be heavily guarded at every point, and martial artists with a cultivation base above that of Great Achievement of Inner Qi all possessed this ability, let alone those who are Xiantian.

Successfully trapping such a person would require the right timing, geographical advantage, and obstruction by experts whose skills did not differ too much.

Such mobilization capabilities would often only appear at the beginning of a dynasty.

”Kill them!”

”Liu Dao stole thousands of taels worth of gold notes from the Jinyu Pavilion!”

The chaos within the city had subsided, but the disorder resulting from the fleeing martial artists was only just beginning outside the city.

Martial artists, a group of people whose profession is violence, are inherently restless, and a slight change in the situation can lead to chaos, fighting, and looting.

Nobody noticed the youth in blue clothes who moved silently along the edge of the crowd, allowing him to distance himself.

Without a new disguise to purchase, the disguise of the downcast middle-aged swordsman had been discarded, and his original appearance restored.

”Hand over the treasure map of the Qixuan School’s secret stash!”

Jiang Ding paused in his step, looking toward two swordsmen engaged in a life-and-death struggle.

Could there really be a Qixuan School secret stash as Gong Caiyu mentioned?

What kind of secret stash could last a thousand years?

The two swordsmen, one tall and one short, fought with real ferocity. Within just a few moves, both sustained several wounds. The shorter swordsman was more gravely injured, yet neither dared use their Inner Energy to stem the bleeding. Instead, they poured it all into their arms and the edges of their blades, vying for that sliver of life and death.

”Split Mountain Slash!”

”Wind-Breaking!”

The battle clarified, and it seemed that the shorter swordsman, despite graver injuries, gained the upper hand. His thin blade pierced the heart of the taller martial artist first, causing his rival’s technique to falter, which allowed the shorter man to dodge to the side.

”Ptui! Damn you, daring to steal my treasure map!”

The shorter martial artist, Liu Dao, spat out a mouthful of blood-stained saliva and began searching the body. His face lit up as he pulled out a stack of silver notes and an aged yellow map, tattered at the edges, and seemingly very ancient.

After hurriedly inspecting it and finding no further gains, the shorter swordsman clutched his wound and dashed toward the depths of the woods.

”May I take a look at that treasure map?”

A voice suddenly sounded beside him.

Liu Dao’s scalp tingled, and without thinking, his Inner Energy surged as he swung his blade toward the source of the voice, the blade’s aura fierce.

It was then that he saw the person who had spoken: a youth in blue, wearing a sword, handsome and young with a calm face, his hand already on the hilt of his sword.

”The Dream Eating Sword Demon!”

Liu Dao cried out in fear, showing a look of terror. In this critical moment, he forcibly shifted his blade to the side, which threw off his form and caused him to stagger forward a few steps.

”If the young master desires it, of course I am willing to offer the treasure map.”

He showed a trace of flattery, speaking respectfully.

While speaking, he handed over the aged yellow map he held.

Jiang Ding, who was about to retaliate with righteous indignation, frowned, ”Have you seen me before?”

”I have not,”

Liu Dao said with respect: ”We who tread the Jianghu must remember who we absolutely cannot provoke, who can sometimes be provoked, and who can always be provoked.”

”The top ten on the Dragon and Phoenix List are absolutely not to be messed with.”

”The martial artists who escaped from Dongling City were selling your portrait—you can get one for a tael of silver. They had the portraits of other strong individuals from the Dragon and Phoenix List as well.”

While he had been skeptical about whether someone was impersonating him, now he couldn’t help but believe it—too calm.

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Jiang Ding couldn’t help but develop some malice towards Tianjilou.

Indiscriminate leaking of privacy isn’t something everyone likes, and it’s a wonder how this organization has managed to survive until now.

”Let’s talk about this Qixuan School treasure map. Master Qixuan has been dead for over a thousand years. They say there’s a treasure map, and you all really believe that, fighting to the death over it?”

He asked.

”At first, we didn’t believe it,”

Liu Dao said respectfully, ”It was said that the Qixuan School has survived for a thousand years, while many martial arts sanctuaries and imperial families of the past have perished. Only it remains well and alive, because the Qixuan School left behind a Qixuan Secret Cave at a secret location in Yuezhou, where Yuejing is situated.”

”Whenever the Qixuan School was destroyed, there would always be descendants to reopen the secret cave, creating a master with Internal Qi Perfection, to re-establish the sect.”

”Not many people believed this, but as the news spread wider and wider, some really did believe.”

”This person, named Zhou Weitu, a somewhat famous swordsman in Yuezhou with the moniker ’Meteor Electric Sword,’ followed the guidance of the treasure map and successfully entered the secret cave somewhere in Yuezhou. Originally at the stage of Great Achievement of Inner Qi, he came out with Internal Qi Perfection.”

”After he came out, he frantically looked for the treasure map, and subsequently, a continuous stream of items were sold. Precious swords, precious sabers, the sect’s sacred weapons were all sold off one by one.”

Fire gleamed in the eyes of the swordsman.

”That saber was named the Dragon Swallowing Sword, which, once infused with Inner Energy, would see its blade qi surge with the sound of a dragon’s chant. It was acquired by Wei Xian of the Jindao School, ranked seventh on the Dragon and Phoenix List, and known as the ’Sea Splitting Saber,’ in exchange for a precious Elixir that aids in advancing to Xiantian.”

”After that, the news couldn’t be contained. The whole of Yuejing was searching for Zhou Weitu, but not a hair was found.”

”However, with so many people going crazy, the ins and outs were eventually figured out.”

He swallowed his saliva.

”There’s no knowing how many copies of this treasure map exist, but as long as you have one and come near the location depicted, those fated will receive guidance to enter the secret cave. After completing the challenge, they are bestowed with Level-breaking Pills, divine weapons, or Cultivation Methods, among other things. Several major forces within Yuejing have already succeeded.”

”However, once they receive the treasure, regardless of the height of their cultivation base, they lose their senses, stumble out of the secret cave in a daze, and forget the path they took. The only way to enter again is to obtain another treasure map.”

”As more and more people enter, some have vaguely seen at the highest point of the treasure house a supreme elixir called the Golden Stone Foundation Building Pill, which can make one a master in a single step!”

Liu Dao’s tone rose sharply, almost losing his sanity and cutting down the youth in blue clothes standing in front of him with a strike of his sword.

”Golden Stone Foundation Building Pill?”

Jiang Ding asked again.

”Yes.”

He barely managed to suppress the flames of greed in his heart and regained his sanity, ”Those who entered only saw this name; the usage of the Elixir was speculated by the medical experts inside Yuejing.”

”This treasure map was originally intended to be auctioned by Jinyu Pavilion. Secret manuals, Elixirs, anything of value could be exchanged for it, and they do not accept silver, due to some changes... it ended up in your hands.”

Liu Dao looked at the treasure map in his hands with reluctance.

To his surprise, the youth in blue clothes in front of him showed no sign of excitement, scanned the treasure map a few times, and returned it to him.

He froze, almost unable to believe his eyes.

Clang!

”Not good!”

Liu Dao’s face changed dramatically, he gripped the treasure map tightly, rolled backwards, and frantically fled deep into the forest.

There was no anticipated pursuit.

After a moment, a freshly carved Wooden Book was deeply nailed into a big tree in front of him, blocking his path.

”’Apprentice of the Thirteen Style,’ a cultivation method that’s barely acceptable, consider it compensation for viewing the treasure map.”

A voice reached his ears with precision and then there was silence.

He waited for a long time, but still no one came after him.

Clinging to the treasure map, Liu Dao was completely stunned. After being in a daze for a while, he quickly left the place.