Unsheathed

Not only was Feng Qingbai’s flying sword snatched, but he was almost stabbed in the heart by his own weapon as well after Chen Ping’an used his sword kinesis skills. However, Feng Qingbai didn’t feel humiliated by this, nor did he flare up in rage. Instead, a glimmer appeared in his eyes as he finally started to become a little interested in the situation.

It was still necessary to somewhat adhere to the customs of the cultivation world, so Feng Qingbai expressed his gratitude to Lu Fang as he stood behind the extremely renowned pseudo-sword immortal who had saved him.

Feng Qingbai felt slightly envious as he looked at the carefree man whose sleeves were brimming with sword qi. Feng Qingbai had only attained his power and reached such a height thanks to his background and his master. Even though his talent was indeed outstanding, it couldn’t be considered peerless or as rare as one in one hundred years.

However, Lu Fang was different.

Lu Fang would be a top-notch swordsman no matter which world he existed in.

With his back to Feng Qingbai, Lu Fang smiled and said, “You’re welcome. If you want, I can continue to support you from the sidelines. However, the prerequisite is that you have the courage to snatch your flying sword back first.”

Feng Qingbai massaged his left shoulder in slight exasperation before shaking his head and replying, “This naturally wouldn’t be difficult in the outside world. However, it’s impossible for me to snatch my sword back in this world.”

Lu Fang nodded and said, “Then you can observe the battle from nearby in a moment.”

“I’ll definitely repay you for your help,” Feng Qingbai said with a smile.

Feng Qingbai had used up a huge favor someone owed to his master in order to navigate through all kinds of obstacles and enter this blessed land. He was an otherworldly immortal who had regained his memory ten years before.

After abandoning his identity as a sword cultivator, he had possessed the body of someone with passable aptitude and started from the beginning as a pure martial artist and sword practitioner in the cultivation world.

He had challenged elites from all over the world, and this had indeed been very beneficial. However, it was still far from enough to help Feng Qingbai reach the state of so-called “from far to near” that his master had mentioned.

Before entering the blessed land, Feng Qingbai had engaged in a lengthy discussion with his master. Apart from the sword by their waist, sword cultivators also possessed bonded flying swords in order to launch attacks from far away. This was the concept of “far.” They could silently kill people even if their targets were hundreds or thousands of meters away.

Meanwhile, sword practitioners from the cultivation world focused on becoming invincible within a range of one meter. This was the concept of “near.”

Right now, Feng Qingbai was trying to comprehend Sword Dao pertaining to the concept of near.

Fortunately, watching Lu Fang and that young boy in white do battle with their swords was also a form of cultivation.

Feng Qingbai possessed the observation skills and disposition to do this.

As for whether they won or lost today, Feng Qingbai didn’t care too much about this. In reality, the large majority of otherworldly immortals hadn’t come to this world to seek invincibility or dominance. Instead, most of them had come here to temper their minds.

Ya’er was drenched in sweat as she limply rested against the wall, and she had just barely managed to avoid the pitiful fate of having her blood gush out like a fountain. In fact, she didn’t even dare to look down at her wound.

The pipa woman who had been smashed into the wall had her face caked in blood as she struggled hard and finally managed to fall to the ground with much difficulty. She rested her back against the wall, and she summoned her strength to slowly stand up bit by bit.

She glanced at her adored pipa, a companion which had accompanied her through the cultivation world for many years. It was already broken and tattered, and she no longer had the strength to pick it back up.

She didn’t so much as glance at the battle in the alley, and she instead used the wall as a support as she slowly walked forward. The face of the pitiful woman was deathly pale, and it looked as if she were intent on walking to some certain place.

Ma Xuan was still yet to regain consciousness. It was entirely possible that he might never regain consciousness.

Beads of sweat formed on Zhou Shi’s forehead, and just glancing at the young boy in white’s ability to perform sword kinesis out of the corners of his eyes was enough to make him feel a colossal weight on his shoulders. He felt suffocated and barely able to breathe.

Scattering the prayer beads onto the ground and having them take root wasn’t easy. Zhou Shi needed to sever wisps of his vital energy before extracting them from his body and carefully funneling them into the prayer beads.

Afterward, he needed to follow the immortal formation layout that his father, Zhou Fei, had privately taught him. This formation layout was called Dragon Slayer, and the prayer beads needed to be set up as if he were setting up a specific Go formation. Only then would the formation be complete.

Not a single mistake could be made during the process, and each prayer bead was filled with immortal qi that Zhou Fei had collected from all over the world. Zhou Fei had once asked his son to wield a divine weapon and attack the prayer beads as he pleased, yet Zhou Shi had failed to cause any damage to the prayer beads.

After arriving at the capital of Southern Garden Nation with his father this time, Zhou Shi had initially thought that victory was firmly within their grasp. As such, he had felt like he was here to watch a show. He simply needed to hide behind his father and Old Demon Ding as he watched the others duke it out and fight to the death.

However, Ding Ying hadn’t acted according to Zhou Shi’s expectations, so Zhou Shi had eventually been forced into perilous danger along with Ya’er.

His father still possessed the ability to revive and turn the tables even if he were killed. However, this was not the case for Zhou Shi. If he were killed, then it would be immensely difficult and bordering on impossible for him to regather his soul and return to the outside world as the complete and original Zhou Shi.

Moreover, his father’s temperament was such that he might not even look at his son’s corpse if Zhou Shi were to be killed before their plan came to fruition. Zhou Fei definitely wouldn’t spend any extra effort on his son.

The reason why Chen Ping’an wasn’t driving home his advantage and relentlessly attacking his opponents was partly due to Lu Fang’s interference. In addition, however, he was also familiarizing himself with the weight of his newly obtained flying sword as well as the True Qi he needed to expend in order to control its movements. The more precise his movements the better.

When it came to sword kinesis performed by sword experts, the ability to control one’s sword as if it were an extension of one’s arm was only the most elementary skill. The most important skill was to control one’s sword through tacit understanding, and this was a pseudo ability that emulated the ability of sword cultivators to control their bonded flying swords.

This was similar to copies and rubbings of texts, where the copies and rubbings would also possess some true intent even though they were rough and inferior. The pseudo abilities of sword experts also possessed profound skill and power.

In reality, Lu Fang was feeling very hesitant the entire time.

This was because Old Demon Ding was nearby.

If he chose to face the young boy in white with his full strength, he would completely open himself up to a swift and violent surprise attack from the eccentric Ding Ying. Ding Ying never cared about his identity or the rules of this world when he acted, so it wouldn’t be surprising even if he unleashed his full strength against an unremarkable and low-level martial artist. In addition, Lu Fang was worried about the safety of Zhou Shi.

At this moment, Lu Fang and Chen Ping’an looked toward the same place in unison.

There was a tall and skinny elder in azure Confucian robes walking in a proper and dignified manner. He was clearly one of the most powerful grandmasters in this world, yet he didn’t interfere with Chen Ping’an and Lu Fang’s battle as he turned from the street and walked into an alley. He walked to Chen Ping’an’s temporary residence.

Imperial Preceptor Zhong Qiu was facing off against Ding Ying.

If there were someone in the world who dared to face Old Demon Ding head-on with their fists and were further able to rival his power, willing to fight to the death without retreating, then this person wouldn’t be Immortal Yu Zhenyi, whose power was vaguely superior to the martial arts orthodoxy of this world. This person definitely wouldn’t be Bird’s Eye View Peak’s Lu Fang either. Instead, it could only be Zhong Qiu.

Upon seeing this, Lu Fang knew that he no longer needed to hold back. There was nothing stopping him anymore.

Lu Fang slowly unsheathed his sword, Dachun, with an inch of dazzling light appearing in the world with each inch of his sword that he unsheathed. This light was so blinding that even Smiley Face needed to squint his eyes.

The skinny little girl who dearly hoped that no one would notice her was sitting tucked up on the stool the entire time. When Smiley Face squinted his eyes, however, she instead widened her eyes to carefully observe the dazzling sword light as it grew inch by inch. She didn’t turn away or close her eyes even as tears started to stream down her face.

Only when Dachun was halfway out of its scabbard did she suddenly turn her head, feeling as if she were about to become blind. Even after closing her eyes, her vision was still filled with a vast expanse of snow-white. She raised her little hands which were as skinny as chicken feet and used them to wipe away her tears.

Why had she stared so intently at that person drawing his sword? This was simply because she felt like that scene was very impressive and attractive. As such, she had wanted to grab that scene with both hands.

When she walked along the streets filled with fragrance coming from the breakfast stalls in the morning, she would always look at the various types of delicacies in the steamers with thirst in her eyes and drool in her mouth. She would always want to snatch the food and run, hiding somewhere to stuff her belly before throwing away what she couldn’t finish. It would be best if no one else could eat this food. It would be best if they all died of starvation and pissed off.

Zhong Qiu arrived outside Chen Ping’an’s temporary residence. The gate to the courtyard wasn’t closed, so he decided to directly walk inside.

Upon seeing the strongest martial artist in the world, one who had cultivated the fist techniques of external martial arts to a pinnacle state, Ding Ying smiled faintly and said, “It’s been sixty years since we last met. If we take this into account, just how old are you this year, Zhong Qiu? Seventy something?”

Zhong Qiu glanced at the scenes outside the window, and he observed the commotion coming from the side room. He furrowed his brows.

Ding Ying stood on the steps, and he didn’t feel any frustration toward Zhong Qiu’s silence. He continued to speak, asking, “You didn’t believe me back then, but do you believe me now?”

Ding Ying had seen everything in the world after traveling through the cultivation world for more than one hundred years. Few people were worthy in his eyes, and of this measly number of people, several had already died.

Zhong Qiu was one of these worthy people.

Everyone in the world held Yu Zhenyi in extremely high regard. Even though Imperial Preceptor Zhong Qiu of Southern Garden Nation was also very lofty in their eyes, he was still slightly inferior to Immortal Yu Zhenyi who was at the peak of the mountains and close to the sea of clouds.

However, Ding Ying had always looked down on Yu Zhenyi. He only appreciated and acknowledged Zhong Qiu.

Ding Ying had been a key member of the chaotic battle in Southern Garden Nation sixty years ago, while Yu Zhenyi and Zhong Qiu had merely been youths who had obtained fated opportunities by chance during that time. After the chaotic battle finished, Ding Ying had coincidentally come across the two good friends who were always by each other’s side one time and remarked that Zhong Qiu would definitely become the grandmaster of a region in the future.

Standing in Chen Ping’an’s temporary residence, Zhong Qiu asked Ding Ying two questions.

“What are you planning to do?

“What are we doing right now?”

“Let’s sit down and have a chat,” Ding Ying said as he sat down on a small stool. He casually waved his hand and made another small stool hover over to Zhong Qiu’s side. After Zhong Qiu took a seat, Ding Ying slowly said, “Before answering your two questions, let me ask you this first. Do you know where we are right now?”

“A world exists beyond our world,” Zhong Qiu replied with a solemn expression.

Ding Ying nodded and explained, “Compared to the clues and traces about otherworldly immortals that you people have discovered in the secret texts, my understanding of them is relatively more direct. I’ve killed quite a few otherworldly immortals during the past sixty years, some of them already aware of their identities and some of them still yet to regain their memories. I obtained many answers and much information from them.”

He stomped his foot on the ground and continued, “The world we live in is called the Lotus Flower Blessed Land, one of the seventy-two blessed lands. We feel like the territory of the four nations and the undeveloped desolate lands is extremely vast, yet the otherworldly immortals who descend into our world all find it incredibly small.

“According to them, the Lotus Flower Blessed Land can only be considered a medium-grade blessed land. When they determine the grade of a blessed land, the abundance of spiritual energy in the world is naturally very important. However, the population of the world is also very important.

“In reality, the Lotus Flower Blessed Land isn’t very big in terms of land size. However, martial arts prodigies appear in abundance in this world, so this is therefore a very ideal location for otherworldly immortals to temper their minds.”

Even though Zhong Qiu had sought the truth for many years and already had some speculations, his impervious mind as a grandmaster was still affected when he heard Ding Ying personally reveal the truth. A hint of fury spread across his face.

It was only at this moment that Zhong Qiu finally started to understand the immense pressure on Yu Zhenyi.

After cultivating immortal techniques, Yu Zhenyi was able to stand higher and see further than anyone else apart from Ding Ying. Thus, he felt a sense of complete indifference toward the conflicts in the cultivation world and even the tumultuous changes in the imperial courts of the four nations. This was a sense of indifference that other people couldn’t fathom or understand.

Ding Ying smiled and continued, “However, the truly strange thing about this Lotus Flower Blessed Land is the existence of…”

Ding Ying couldn’t help but chuckle at this point, looking up at the sky and saying, “A person? An immortal?”

He continued to explain the situation, saying, “I’ve heard that entering our blessed land is far more difficult than entering the other blessed lands. If someone wants to enter, they need to rely on that person’s mood or that person’s first impression of them. In the world of those otherworldly immortals, Parasol Leaf Continent’s Lotus Flower Blessed Land isn’t very famous compared to the Cloud Cave Blessed Land controlled by a sect called Jade Tablet Sect. There are few legends about our blessed land.

“People like Zhou Fei and Lu Fang are descendants from influential clans who are working as officials outside the city, and they’re advancing their political careers step by step in a relatively conventional manner. However, these people are the minority, and those who accidentally wandered into our blessed land make up the majority. It’s down to luck whether the latter group of people can make it back out.

Zhong Qiu pointed at the sky and asked, “In other words, the world beyond our world is called Parasol Leaf Continent?”

There was an amused and meaningful smile on Ding Ying’s face as he replied, “Who told you that it’s definitely above us?”

Zhong Qiu mulled over this in silence.

It was rare for Ding Ying to come across someone worth talking to, so he didn’t radiate with the unruly pride and haughtiness of the number one grandmaster of this world at this moment. Instead, he appeared like an extremely patient old teacher educating his disciple and answering his disciple’s questions.

“I can answer your second question now. What are we doing right now? Every sixty years, those who become Upper Ten Elites and survive until the end will be chosen by that person and be allowed to leave this world. Not only that, but these people will all receive huge fated opportunities, with a high-level fated opportunity allowing them to ascend with their complete physical body and soul. On the other hand, those who receive a low-level fated opportunity can only ascend with their soul.”

“Is this why the Reverence Pagoda does everything in its ability to determine the genuine Upper Ten Elites even if it means going to extremes?” Zhong Qiu asked. “Are they trying to prevent people from falsifying their powers to undeservedly enter the rankings? At the same time, they’re also preventing people from hiding their powers too much?

“Because of this, those rare treasures that can help one’s cultivation base advance in leaps and bounds have been purposely added to this world. Not only that, but there’s also the rule stating that one can obtain a divine weapon as long as one manages to kill an otherworldly immortal. Perhaps the purpose of all this is to draw the top twenty elites together and have them battle and kill each other?”

“In terms of the Reverence Pagoda that’s inciting trouble and creating confusion, there are far more internal secrets than we can imagine. The world wouldn’t be so chaotic if it weren’t for the Reverence Pagoda’s so-called warning once every twenty years.”[1]

Ding Ying chuckled and continued, “However, there are actually loopholes that we can take advantage of.”

Zhong Qiu lived up to his name as the imperial preceptor of Southern Garden Nation, and he immediately understood Ding Ying’s implicature, saying, “The strong get stronger, and they gather together to take advantage of their strength. They strive to work together such that they can reap all of the rewards and share the spoils in the end.

“Yu Zhenyi is doing exactly this right now. He’s trying to win over members of the Upper Ten Elites and Lower Ten Elites irrespective of whether these people are good or evil. His aim is to target you as well as those otherworldly immortals.”

Zhong Qiu frowned after saying this, and he looked at Ding Ying as if slightly puzzled.

Ding Ying laughed heartily and said, “Your line of thought is correct. The safest and most reliable method is for the Upper Ten Elites to understand the situation and side with me, seeking my protection. The world can enjoy peace for at least the current sixty years if I leave the demonic force, treat everyone with fairness, act in a cautious and conscientious manner, and establish a set of rules for everyone.

“That way, everyone can compete according to their own abilities and talents, with me being the final judge on where everyone should rank. For example, I’ll determine your ranking, and I’ll also determine whether Yu Zhenyi has entered the top three. If this is the case, then there’s naturally no need for everyone to fight to the death and spill so much blood. Just sparring with each other would be enough.”

Zhong Qiu carefully pondered over this, eventually confirming that Ding Ying wasn’t overestimating his abilities and spouting nonsense.

Ding Ying lightly tapped his knees with his fingers, appearing especially relaxed and carefree as he added, “However, I felt like this would be very uninteresting.”

“What are you planning to do?” Zhong Qiu asked, repeating his first question again.

Ding Ying waved his hand and ignored this question again, changing the topic and saying, “You have to understand that the situation is different this time. The concept of Upper Ten Elites and Lower Ten Elites doesn’t exist anymore, and the three people who survive until the end and ascend from this world will be able to bring five people, three people, and one person from this world with them, respectively.”

“Anyone can be brought from this world,” Ding Ying emphasized.

Zhong Qiu was unfazed.

1. The warning refers to the list of Upper Ten Elites that the Reverence Pagoda releases once every twenty years. ☜