Unsheathed

Instead of answering Chen Ping’an’s question, Zheng Dafeng raised one of his own.

“You don’t know how gold essence copper coins are forged, right? The primary material required to craft them is the fragments of shattered godly bodies of mountain and river gods. The secondary materials are just as difficult to obtain, and the end result are the three types of gold essence copper coins, Good Fortune Coins, Greeting Spring Coins, and Offering Coins.

“The fortune of the Great Li Empire has always been quite stable, and illegitimate temples have always been extremely rare, and that’s why gold essence copper coins are particularly expensive to purchase. In contrast, it can be very cheap to purchase godly body fragments from other places.

“Many immortal sects and clans will actively hunt down illegitimate mountain and river gods, and if there aren’t enough illegitimate temples for them to eradicate, then they’ll pressure some mortal empires into stripping some legitimate mountain and river gods of their official titles, thereby giving them an illegitimate status so that they can be hunted down.

“Even if certain mortal empires are unwilling to comply, there are still ways to secure godly body fragments. For example, some immortal powers will hire some itinerant cultivators to do their dirty work for them, rewarding them with some mediocre immortal techniques and treasures in exchange for godly body fragments.

“The cost required to produce a gold essence copper coin through such underhanded means may not even be worth as much as a single grain rain coin, but if the emperor of the Great Li Empire were to purchase gold essence copper coins from the outside world, then a single one could set him back as many as seven or eight grain rain coins.”

“Are there currently any more gold essence copper coins left in the world?” Chen Ping’an asked.

“That’s hard to say,” Zheng Dafeng replied. “If anyone were to go around buying gold essence copper coins now, it would immediately be apparent that it’s an integral item for their cultivation, so any prospective sellers would be sure to raise their prices to unprecedented heights.”

Chen Ping’an heaved a faint sigh as he massaged his own temples. He was one of the few people in this day and age who still needed gold essence copper coins. Worse still, he didn’t just need a few; even a few pouches wouldn’t necessarily be enough to satisfy his needs.

The lives of the four picture scroll martial artists, the repairs and enhancements that had to be made on the Golden Sweet Wine robe, and the future refinement of his metal-attribute bonded item were all going to require large numbers of gold essence copper coins, fulfilling a similar function to that of the jade slip in the refinement of the water seal.

“Quit looking so sad! You need to bid farewell to this year with a smile on your face,” Zheng Dafeng scolded.

Chen Ping’an smiled and nodded in response.

Even though this was the final day of the year, there was still no end in sight to the suffering of Parasol Leaf Sect, much to the despair of its disciples.

Zuo You was still roaming through the sect, easily destroying all of the mountain and river fortune that he encountered with his unmatched sword qi.

Wreaking destruction was a very simple matter, but it was extremely difficult for all of the Golden Core and Nascent Tier cultivators trailing along behind him to gather the scattered spiritual energy and repair the damage that he had done.

Only by sacrificing their own cultivation bases could they slightly speed up the recovery process, thereby preventing the spiritual energy from seeping out of the sect. However, if these all-important earth immortals were to sacrifice too much of their cultivation base, then that would also negatively impact the foundation of the sect.

Parasol Leaf Sect was once a blessed land with the most abundant spiritual energy on the entire continent not too long ago. But as Zuo You continued to make the sect suffer the consequences of Du Mao’s actions, even the lowliest of disciples in the sect had come to realize that Parasol Leaf Sect was facing the most dire crisis in its entire history.

What was most perplexing to them was that Du Mao, who was considered a god in the sect, hadn’t appeared even once to confront Zuo You. Up to this point, the only action that had been taken against him was that assassination attempt and the time that the sect leader had approached him to try and deescalate the situation.

This was nothing short of a calamity for the sect, yet Du Mao, the most powerful Qi refiner on the entire continent, seemed to be determined to turn a blind eye.

However, the vast majority of Qi refiners on Parasol Leaf Continent were still of the opinion that as soon as Du Mao made an appearance, he would be able to crush Zuo You with ease, so in their eyes, Zuo You’s days were numbered.

Almost all of the major cultivating powers, empires, and powerful clans on Parasol Leaf Continent were keeping a close eye on the unfolding situation in Parasol Leaf Sect.

Following Jiang Shangzhen’s visit, more and more earth immortals had begun arriving at Parasol Leaf Sect, doing their best to conceal their own auras while observing the unfolding scene from afar.

They were all unleashing their immortal abilities to examine the changing fortunes of Parasol Leaf Sect, and initially, no one dared to believe that a single swordsman would be able to inflict such severe wounds on the monolithic beast that was Parasol Leaf Sect.

In a battle between two empires in the mortal world, if one side were to suffer as much damage as Parasol Leaf Sect already had, then that could already be considered a crushing defeat.

This entire time, Zuo You didn’t take a single life. In fact, he barely even used his sword unless it was to break through barriers or strike down certain obstacles.

However, it was apparent to everyone that the disciples of Parasol Leaf Sect were having their spirits crushed more and more by the day.

Over the past one thousand years, all of the disciples of Parasol Leaf Sect had a sense of unmatched confidence that bolstered their Dao Hearts. This confidence stemmed from the untouchable position that the sect had established for itself over its long history, and that was why the disciples of Parasol Leaf Sect were able to make far faster progress in their cultivation compared with other Qi refiners.

If a disciple of Parasol Leaf Sect ever encountered an opponent that they couldn’t defeat, then all they had to do was declare that they were from Parasol Leaf Sect, and they would be able to insult their opponent to their heart’s content without any fear of retaliation.

If any Parasol Leaf Sect disciple were ever wronged by someone else, then their fellow disciples would immediately band together to confront the culprits and claim their heads without any qualms.

Over time, the disciples of Parasol Leaf Sect had all developed very headstrong and unyielding personalities, willing to fight enemies to the death, and countless disciples in the history of the sect had met their demise with smiles on their faces.

If Du Mao or even the sect leader had rallied the sect’s disciples against Zuo You on the first day that he had descended upon Parasol Leaf Sect, then at the very least, half of the sect’s disciples would’ve been willing to lay down their lives to confront him. Of course, they would’ve only been throwing their lives away in futility, but nevertheless, they would’ve done so without any hesitation.

However, at this point, everyone’s mindset had completely changed.

All they could do was pray that Du Mao would be able to finally make an appearance to strike down Zuo You, and at the same time, they couldn’t help but wonder what exactly their sect had done to incur the wrath of such an almighty swordsman. Why was it that Du Mao had shut himself in Parasol Leaf Small World like a cowardly turtle?

What had Parasol Leaf Sect done to deserve such a catastrophic calamity?

In the past, the disciples of Parasol Leaf Sect were accustomed to being domineering and unreasonable with others, employing a policy of “might is right.” Only now that they were getting a taste of their own medicine did they come to realize just how bitter a pill it was to swallow.

In reality, Jiang Shangzhen had never left. Instead, he was on the summit of a mountain hundreds of kilometers away, enjoying some fine wine with a Nascent Tier swordsman that he was on very good terms with.

The swordsman shook his head with a smile as he remarked, “Most of Parasol Leaf Sect’s foundation has already collapsed.”

“Don’t say that. Du Mao is an Ascension Tier cultivator, so if he can defeat this sword immortal, then the sect still has a chance of surviving this ordeal. On top of that, if he can defeat such a formidable foe, then the sect’s reputation would also be elevated to unprecedented heights,”Jiang Shangzhen chuckled, playing devil’s advocate.

However, he then burst into laughter as he chortled, “That’s what I would say if I was delusional! Du Mao is completely screwed! Our sect leader just informed me that Du Mao’s bonded celestial weapon, his Sword Devouring Ark, was smashed into pieces over in Old Dragon City, and his yang soul avatar was also claimed by someone else! Right now, he’s nothing more than an Immortal Tier cultivator, and even then, his cultivation base is shaky at best.

“Our sect leader is ecstatic, and he says that the sect is going to take ten percent less of a cut from the Cloud Cave Blessed Land for the next five hundred years. Sword Immortal Zuo You, Esteemed Immortal Chen, you two really are my lucky stars! If you two were here right now, I would kneel down and kowtow five hundred times in a row to you without any hesitation, and even that won’t be enough to express my gratitude!”

Jiang Shangzhen was pounding the stone table with his fist while chortling with glee, putting on a display of epitomic schadenfreude.

“What do you think the Parasol Leaf Sect is going to do next?” the Nascent Tier swordsman asked.

“Hold on, let me laugh for a bit longer. I can’t stop now,” Jiang Shangzhen replied as he wiped away the tears that were flowing from his eyes.

The old swordsman could only give a resigned smile.

Jiang Shangzhen, Lu Fang, and the old swordsman were old friends who had known one another for a very long time.

After finally reining in his laughter, Jiang Shangzhen replied, “What else can they do? Du Mao had no choice but to make a desperate final roll of the dice. He’s the one at fault, so he can’t reason with Zuo You, and he certainly won’t be able to defeat Zuo You even with the help of all of the Unpolished Jade Tier cultivators of the sect.

“If Zuo You is determined not to let Parasol Leaf Sect off the hook, then by my estimates, it will only take him a year to completely raze the sect to the ground. Under normal circumstances, the Confucian academy would’ve already intervened long before things got this bad, but they haven’t done that, so what does that tell us?

“It tells us that Parasol Leaf Sect is at fault. Even though Zuo You forced his way into Parasol Leaf Sect’s territory, he hasn’t taken a single life, and all of his actions are justified, so the academy on Parasol Leaf Continent and even the Confucian schools on Middle Earth Divine Continent are powerless to do anything to him.”

“It’s always said that an intellectual kills without incurring any bloodshed. This is a perfect demonstration of that,” the old swordsman mused.

Jiang Shangzhen cast his gaze toward Parasol Leaf Sect, and even from hundreds of kilometers away, he could see that the mountain and water fortune of the sect were beginning to display signs of murkiness. Even though Jiang Shangzhen was more than happy to see Parasol Leaf Sect suffer such a terrible fate, he still couldn’t help but feel a sense of melancholy at the self-inflicted tragedy that had befallen Du Mao.

“There’s no way out for Du Mao aside from depleting all of the spiritual energy in the Parasol Leaf Small World in one fell swoop to help himself forcibly ascend. If he can successfully ascend, then he’ll have earned himself a spot in the heavens, and according to the rules laid down by the Etiquette Sage, the Confucian academy will have to look after Parasol Leaf Sect in his stead for a very long time.

“If that happens, then unless Zuo You is willing to pit himself against the entire Confucian orthodoxy, he’ll have no choice but to relent.”

Jiang Shangzhen joined his palms together, then raised them high above his own head as he closed his eyes and prayed, “Please, please, please, Great Sword Immortal Zuo, please make sure you don’t let Du Mao survive this ordeal!”

The Nascent Tier swordsman stroked his own beard with a look of schadenfreude in his eyes.

You always like to look down on swordsmen, don’t you, Du Mao? You’re always going around insulting all of the swordsmen who’ve fallen by your hands, so how does it feel to be reduced to a cowardly turtle by a swordsman? Why don’t you come out of your shell if you dare?

On the final day of the year, at around dusk, Parasol Leaf Small World that had been under the control of Parasol Leaf Sect for countless years was partially revealed on the summit of the ancestral mountain.

It was like a spectacular mirage, but it quickly began to waver before shattering altogether. The fragments of the small world flew away to all parts of Majestic World like radiant asteroids, and some of them faded away into nothingness, while others pierced into space, flying to unknown destinations.

After that, Du Mao’s physical body began to gradually fade away on the mountain summit.

All that remained was his yin soul, which had transformed into a Golden Dao Manifestation. After absorbing the vast majority of the spiritual energy in Parasol Leaf Small World, the Golden Dao Manifestation had become enormous, standing at tens of thousands of meters tall atop the summit of the ancestral mountain.

Even though it was still technically a Qi refiner’s Golden Dao Manifestation, it was giving off radiant five-colored light. The Golden Dao Manifestation reached up into the sky with both hands, then abruptly brought his hands apart outward, as if it were tearing apart the very heavens of the Majestic World.

A massive rift appeared in the sky, within which arcs of purple lightning were flashing incessantly, and a series of mountainous figures flashed past in an instant. There was what appeared to be a skeletal flood dragon soaring through the purple lightning, a giant set of golden remains that was seated with its legs crossed, a giant red claw attempting to tear the rift in the sky open even wider…

All of them were horrific sights that couldn’t be seen anywhere in the Majestic World.

Zuo You was holding his sword in one hand while his other hand was clasped behind his back as he slowly rose up into the air.

Compared with this Golden Dao Manifestation, which Du Mao had attained at the cost of his own physical body and the near-boundless spiritual energy of an entire small world, Zuo You was made to appear no more significant than a speck of dust.

After rising up into the sky, he slashed his sword horizontally through the air in a slow and languid fashion, and that was all.

Zuo You had always been of the opinion that there were only two swords that stood at the pinnacle in this world. One of those swords was the one that the scholar on Middle Earth Divine Continent had used to slice Yellow River Small World apart, while the second sword was the one in his own scabbard.

The giant Golden Dao Manifestation had risen tens of thousands of meters up into the air, but right at this moment, a barely visible white line, as thin as a strand of hair, appeared along its waist.

As it drew closer and closer to the heavens, it was separated into two parts. Its upper body was still ascending further with a look of fury and indignation in its eyes, attempting to grab onto the edges of the rift in the sky to force its way up into the heavens, while its lower body shattered into pieces.

The tremendous spiritual energy that it contained returned to heaven and earth, while around a dozen or so five-colored fragments came flying down in all directions to serve as fated opportunities for others on their cultivation journeys.

Zuo You’s sword had already returned to its scabbard, while the Golden Dao Manifestation’s upper body fell back down to earth in a defeated manner.

It was like a resplendent shooting star that was dissipating in the sky.

Zuo You took a glance at the rift in the sky, then turned and sped toward the vast sea between Parasol Leaf Continent and Eastern Treasured Vial Continent.

Not long after flying out to sea, he stopped in his tracks.

“Why didn’t you ascend?” the Scholarly Sage asked.

Zuo You offered no response.

The two of them were separated by only a few meters, and the Scholarly Sage pointed up at the rift in the sky that Du Mao had forcibly torn open as he yelled in a furious voice, “Why didn’t you take this opportunity to leave this world?! Do you really want to die here?!”

Zuo You lowered his head and offered no response.

This time, the Scholarly Sage didn’t jump up to slap him on the head. Instead, a sullen look appeared on his face as he sighed, “Go. I know you’ve always wanted to go to Stalactite Mountain and the Sword Qi Great Wall. Go on then. If you’re determined to make me sad, then there’s nothing I can do to stop you.”

“Disciple Zuo You bids farewell to his teacher!” Zuo You declared as he extended a deep bow.

The Scholarly Sage gave him a dismissive wave, unable to muster up another word.

Zuo You turned to depart, but instead of flying away, he walked away one step at a time, as if he were reluctant to part with his teacher.

“You accepted a great disciple in my junior brother, Teacher,” Zuo You said.

“Get out of here!” the Scholarly Sage snapped, then turned around as well.

The two of them had their backs facing each other, and one remained standing on the spot, while the other continued to walk away.

All of a sudden, the Scholarly Sage began scratching his own head as some distant memories surfaced in his mind. Back then, he was still just an impoverished, no-name scholar. His first disciple, Cui Chan, was from a wealthy clan, but he remained an impoverished scholar even after taking Cui Chan under his wing. His second and third disciples weren’t terribly wealthy.

At the time, his three disciples had gotten along quite well, and those were the happiest days that he had spent with them, but after that, all of them grew up one by one.

“I’ve never told you this, Zuo You, but compared with your swordsmanship, I think you’re an even better scholar,” the Scholarly Sage said in a quiet voice.

Zuo You continued to walk away without pause as he replied, “It’s all because you taught me well, Teacher.”