Martial Cultivator

Before Chen Chao returned, Yun Jianyue had already left the shattered mountaintop and gone back to Infatuation Daoist Temple.

As for Yu Xiyi, he sat where he was, playing by tossing stones.

The fragments of rock beside him were casually thrown down the mountain, and as he listened to the sound of stones striking the cliffside, this young great sword immortal felt indescribably relieved.

Half a day later, that heavily injured martial artist returned.

Yu Xiyi did not even turn his head. He simply tossed several more stones. Once his hand was empty, he reached for new fragments. Only then did Chen Chao, who had stayed silent until now, smile and say, “Weren’t you talking so much earlier? Why aren’t you saying a single word now?”

Yu Xiyi ignored him, grabbing another handful of broken stones and continuing to toss them down.

Chen Chao also picked up a piece of stone. After throwing it, he asked with a laugh, “Angry?”

Yu Xiyi still did not turn his head, but finally spoke. His voice held no emotional fluctuation; instead, it was extremely calm. “Chen Chao, in your heart, have you never regarded me as a brother to live and die together with?”

Chen Chao glanced at him and scoffed. “Where is this nonsense coming from? If I didn’t treat you as a brother, would I call you to help with something that could cost my head? Don’t you, Great Sword Immortal Yu, know perfectly well this isn’t some random killing, it was someone truly at the level beyond Nepenthe. In this entire world, how many can you even count?”

Yu Xiyi remained silent, only staring straight at Chen Chao.

Chen Chao said helplessly, “Back then, I thought the two of us together definitely couldn’t hold out. So I figured if one less person died, that was one less. Besides, the ones they wanted to kill were always me.”

Yu Xiyi frowned deeply. To him, such reasoning made absolutely no sense. He regarded Chen Chao as a brother precisely because he intended to live and die together.

Chen Chao patted his shoulder and smiled. “Don’t be stupid, Great Sword Immortal Yu. If we did it again, I’d still do the same. As for why? Isn’t it simple? If one person dies, the other should think about avenging him. But going to die together, isn’t that real idiocy?”

Yu Xiyi froze for a moment, then laughed and cursed, “Stinking brat.”

Chen Chao said nothing more, simply tossed stones down the mountainside. Listening to them strike the cliff, this young Lord Warden Commander had many thoughts. This battle was almost certain death; he himself nearly died twice. If not for his sheer toughness, even the Great Liang Emperor’s arrival would have been useless.

But speaking honestly, walking back and forth across the gates of death had happened many times. It no longer surprised him. Ever since he was forced to leave Tianqing County, peaceful days were simply impossible.

After being busy for so long, Chen Chao suddenly wanted to go back and take a look.

Thinking of this, he slowly rose and said, “Let’s go.”

Yu Xiyi asked curiously, “Going back to the Divine Capital already?”

Chen Chao shook his head.

Yu Xiyi said angrily, “Where are you going to cause trouble this time?”

Chen Chao grinned. “I’m going to make a trip to the Heavenly South first. There’s something I haven’t settled yet. After I finish dealing with that, I’m going back to Tianqing County to take a look. You want to come along?”

Yu Xiyi shook his head, pulled out a wine jug from who-knows-where, took a swig, and said, “Your Father won’t be wandering all over the place with you. I’ll just go back to the Divine Capital to recuperate. Oh right, you punk, remember to pay for the medicinal fees. Your Father is dirt poor, this is not a joke.”

Chen Chao nodded. “I’ve already given the word. Once you return to the Divine Capital, if you need any spiritual medicine, just look for Song Lian. He’ll help you with everything.” Ꞧ𝘢𐌽𝐎βΕᶊ

Yu Xiyi was surprised. “When did you change your nature and stop being stingy?”

“I almost lost my life. Getting some spiritual medicine now is a small matter. Besides, if you recover, won’t there be a possibility of you risking your life when I find you again next time?”

Chen Chao narrowed his eyes, looking at Yu Xiyi. At this moment, he appeared like a shrewd, calculating merchant.

Yu Xiyi glanced at him and didn’t say more. He only said, “See you in the Divine Capital,” and prepared to leave.

Chen Chao looked at him, smiling without speaking.

Yu Xiyi paused, feeling irritated again. “I keep feeling that one day you little bastard will secretly go off to die without Your Father.”

Chen Chao did not refute it; he only smiled and said, “I’ll bring you along.”

......

......

Yun Jianyue returned to the mountain alone, his steps heavy.

Though his injuries were not fully healed, regarding the matter of his Great Dao foundation, with that final mote of light from Daoist Wuyang, it was not something completely irreversible. His physical injuries had taken a favorable turn, but what was in his heart made him feel troubled.

Daoist Wuyang appeared, in his final moments, like a dying man whose words were kind, leaving the entirety of his cultivation to Yun Jianyue. But in truth, such an act left Yun Jianyue with a burden: at the very least, his Dao heart would inevitably experience some wavering because of it.

In other words, Daoist Wuyang’s act was no different from planting a seed in Yun Jianyue’s Dao heart. If Yun Jianyue remained unaffected and adhered to his original heart, then his future realm would naturally be higher, and the Great Dao attainable. From Daoist Wuyang’s personal perspective, that meant the junior he had chosen was exceptional. But if that seed took root and grew, eventually becoming a towering tree within Yun Jianyue’s heart, then Yun Jianyue would become the next him.

So in the end, Daoist Wuyang, seemingly without desire and without demand, actually left behind a thoroughly unreasonable move.

Extremely clever.

Yun Jianyue let out a long breath, swept the stray thoughts from his mind, and when he lifted his head, Ye Zhihua was already waiting for him on the mountain path.

”Senior Sister.”

Yun Jianyue smiled at Ye Zhihua standing before him.

There was a shimmer of tears in Ye Zhihua’s eyes, but she quickly forced them down. Thousands of words rose to her throat, but in the end, only one sentence remained: “It’s good that you’re back.”

Yes. In the end, all that mattered was that he came back.

“Where is Martial Uncle?”

Ye Zhihua thought for a moment, then chose to speak.

Yun Jianyue said, “Considered to be killed by Chen Chao. Of course, it was the three of us: me, him, and Yu Xiyi, who killed him.”

Those above Nepenthe weren’t immortal. There was no such thing as true invincibility.

Ye Zhihua fell silent for a moment. She opened her mouth, but still couldn’t say anything.

Originally, she thought that if there was even the slightest possibility, Yun Jianyue might have spared Daoist Wuyang’s life.

Yun Jianyue knew what she was thinking. He only said, “Martial Uncle is too unpredictable. If his heart wouldn’t change, I could only kill him.”

Ye Zhihua nodded. She naturally knew Yun Jianyue was right. In the Infatuation Daoist Temple, for so many years, Daoist Wuyang had been the most remarkable temple master, surely no one in the entire temple would doubt that.

“It’s just... there are still some elders on the mountain waiting for Martial Uncle to return.”

Ye Zhihua looked at Yun Jianyue, a bit worried for him. How was he going to deal with that?

Yun Jianyue glanced at her and said calmly, “I’ll tell them that after returning to the mountain, I’ll be going into seclusion, that I’ve shown signs of breaking through.”

“But before that, I need to go to the back mountain and take a look.”