Unsheathed

Zhu Lian had never seen Zhao Shi before, but he had heard Li Baoping mention the elderly foreign scholar’s eye-catching white deer.

At this moment, the sound of Zhao Shi’s footsteps and the speed of his breathing were both no different from a normal old man, but even though Zhu Lian wasn’t able to detect anything amiss about the old scholar, a sense of apprehension had still immediately welled up in his heart.

Anyone who appeared near the courtyard at this time was very likely to be an assassin, and given the countless disguise secret techniques at the disposal of Qi refiners, Zhu Lian knew that he couldn’t afford to get complacent.

When dealing with Qi refiners, one often had to engage in a battle of both power and wits. Zhu Lian had sparred with Cui Dongshan on several past occasions, so he had become aware of just how versatile the treasures in a cultivator’s collection could be. Having never experienced such things in the Lotus Flower Blessed Land, his eyes had truly been opened.

In the past, Zhu Lian would’ve already lashed out and killed the old scholar. Perhaps he would be killing an innocent and defenseless old man in cold blood, but it was better to be safe than sorry. However, now that he had chosen to follow Chen Ping’an and become a citizen of the Great Li Empire, he had changed his ways and become more restrained.

Having said that, just because he wasn’t going to kill the old scholar right away didn’t mean that he had no way of verifying whether the old man was truly as defenseless as he seemed.

Zhu Lian took a glance at a parasol tree on the side of the path, and a stem of one of its leaves was abruptly severed, following which the leaf shot forth toward Zhao Shi like a speeding arrow.

Zhao Shi remained completely oblivious as he continued to walk along.

Right as the leaf was about to decapitate the old scholar, it suddenly reverted back into an ordinary leaf that drifted down onto the ground.

Having traveled across two continents, Zhu Lian was aware of how lofty a status it was to serve as the mountain master of a Confucian academy. Even if it wasn’t one of the seventy-two academies, a private Confucian academy founded by the leading Confucian figures of a nation was still nothing to scoff at.

The mountain master of such an academy would receive protection from the Confucian orthodoxy, much like mortal emperors.

If he were to kill such a prominent figure, then he would be hunted by the Confucian orthodoxy, which presided over the entire Majestic World, so there would be nowhere for him to run unless he could somehow sneak into some obscure broken blessed land.

If Zhao Shi really was just a frail, elderly Confucian scholar who just so happened to have decided to pay Cui Dongshan a visit on this day, then Zhu Lian would land himself in a world of trouble by chopping off his head.

However, he still wasn’t willing to give up, and he kicked at a pebble on the side of the path, sending it flying toward Zhao Shi’s calf with unerring accuracy and just the right degree of power.

The poor old scholar let loose a pained yelp, and cold sweat began to bead up on his forehead as he looked down at the bleeding gash that had been sliced into the side of his calf.

He raised his head with a furious expression as he yelled, “Who are you?! Why are you causing bodily harm to others? Are you aware that this is Mountain Cliff Academy?!”

A look of surprise appeared on Zhu Lian’s face as he grumbled to himself, “Aren’t all academy mountain masters supposed to be powerful Qi refiners? This one even has an intelligent creature like a white deer by his side, yet he’s still just a useless old man? What a pain in the backside…”

He then put on an apologetic smile as he jogged over to Zhao Shi and said, “My sincerest apologies, Mountain Master Zhao. I was kicking some rocks out of boredom, and one of them just so happened to strike you. Please forgive me…”

Zhao Shi had turned as pale as a sheet, and he was sweating profusely with an agonized look on his face. It seemed that he didn’t dare to look down at the bloody gash on his calf, so he could only glower intently at Zhu Lian, who made his way over to Zhao Shi’s side before grabbing onto his shoulder to support him.

“Let me help you inside to treat your injury.”

Zhao Shi allowed Zhu Lian to grab onto his shoulder as he sighed, “How could there be such a brash and reckless martial artist like you? The more power that you attain, the more you should learn to exercise restraint! A small child can be forgiven for throwing a tantrum, but the same can’t be said for someone like you, who could easily kill a mere mortal like myself without even realizing it!”

Zhu Lian nodded in agreement in an embarrassed manner.

All of a sudden, he hunched over even further than normal, then stomped a foot heavily down onto the ground, launching himself forward to slam his shoulder viciously into Zhao Shi’s chest.

As a result, a bonded flying sword that was aimed at Zhu Lian’s glabella was only able to pierce through his shoulder, while Zhao Shi was knocked back by the heavy blow, sending the white deer behind him flying.

Zhao Shi drifted down onto the ground with a dark look on his face.

Why is there still a Far Roaming Tier martial artist in the academy?

Zhu Lian paid no heed to the wound on his shoulder as a look of fierce battle intent surfaced in his eyes, and he grinned, “I finally get to test myself against an earth immortal swordsmans. This is going to be a thoroughly enjoyable experience!”

At the same time, Yu Lu jumped onto the wall as he declared in a grim voice, “Here they come!”

“Baoping, Li Huai, Pei Qian, lock yourself in the study in the main room, and don’t open the door for anyone aside from me!” Xie Xie instructed in an urgent voice, and the three children immediately did as they were told.

“As I am now, I may not be able to help,” Lin Shouyi said in a quiet voice.

Yu Lu’s gaze was fixed on Zhao Shi as he said, “Find opportunities to make yourself useful.”

Xie Xie made her way out into the courtyard, then began reciting a mantra internally while making a string of hand seals, using the secret technique taught to her by Cui Dongshan to draw upon the spiritual energy in the courtyard, temporarily forming a miniature small world.

In doing so, she was able to experience what it felt like for a sage to control the river of time, but if Mao Xiaodong were able to control a river’s worth of time, then she could only control a stream of time.

Thankfully, the courtyard wasn’t very large, so there weren’t any holes to be exploited.

As opposed to engaging Zhu Lian in battle, Zhao Shi sent his bonded flying sword hurtling toward the courtyard over and over again, but every single time, it was kept out by the small world in the courtyard, producing a vibrant eruption of light with each clash.

Yu Lu had already retreated back into the courtyard, and he asked, “How long can you keep this up?”

Sweat was already beginning to bead up on her forehead, and a wry smile appeared on her face as she replied in a slightly trembling voice, “Even if Zhu Lian can keep him occupied so that he can’t focus fully on controlling his flying sword, I’ll only be able to last a few minutes at most. His sword is too powerful, and the spiritual energy stored in the courtyard is being whittled down far too quickly!”

Swordsmen were more adept at breaking through all types of barriers than anyone else, and Xie Xie was being made to learn this lesson on a firsthand basis.

“This is the worst possible time for Mountain Master Mao to be away from Eastern Splendor Mountain,” Xie Xie sighed.

Yu Lu shook his head as he replied, “If Mountain Master Mao wasn’t absent, then the enemy would’ve employed a different plan of attack. Perhaps right now, Mountain Master Mao and Chen Ping’an have already successfully lured away the majority of the enemy forces and are in an even more perilous situation than we are.”

On the path outside the courtyard, Zhu Lian was moving so quickly that he had turned into a barely visible blur, while Zhao Shi was doing his best to take evasive measures while focusing the majority of his attention on breaking through the small world with his flying sword.

It appeared that Zhao Shi was having some trouble dealing with Zhu Lian.

When it came to a battle between a pure martial artist and a Qi refiner of comparable power, distance was often a vital factor that contributed to determining the final outcome, and if the Qi refiner were to allow the martial artist to get close to them, then they would be put at a severe disadvantage.

However, the reason why no one wanted to mess with swordsmen was because they possessed immense destructive power in both close-quarters and long-range combat.

A sweeping kick from Zhu Lian sent Zhao Shi’s head crashing into a parasol tree, and the tree was instantly snapped into two.

However, at the same time, Zhao Shi had also managed to impale his bonded flying sword through Zhu Lian’s abdomen.

True to his moniker as the Martial Arts Maniac, Zhu Lian wiped a hand over the blood that was flowing out of his abdomen, then burst into laughter as he smeared the blood all over his own face before continuing to pursue Zhao Shi.

Even in the midst of such a perilous battle, Zhu Lian still had the wherewithal to issue a warning to those in the courtyard.

“This old fart’s hiding his true cultivation base, so make sure to be on your guard. I have a feeling that he’s no ordinary Nascent Tier swordsman, and he could very well have some bullshit secret techniques up his sleeve!”

Zhao Shi threw up a mouthful of blood, following which a smile appeared on his face as he summoned an armor pellet before promptly donning it, providing himself with a layer of defense against Zhu Lian’s attacks.

He then turned his gaze back to the courtyard, and his bonded flying sword raced through the air at his behest as a layer of extremely pure Li Fire emerged over its blade.

The flying sword crashed into the small world with a resounding boom, and the flow of time in the entire courtyard began to tremble and sway violently. As a Vajra Body Tier martial artist, Yu Lu was able to remain steady on his feet, but Lin Shouyi was still yet to reach the Middle Five Tiers, and he was struggling to remain upright.

Blood began to trickle down from the corner of Xie Xie’s lips as she remained completely still on the spot.

As the core of the small world, Xie Xie’s cultivation base was not quite up to the task. Hence, she didn’t dare to move at all as doing so would create even more instability in the small world.

Before long, blood was beginning to flow down even from the corners of her eyes.

After putting on his Militarian armor pellet, Zhao Shi was much more comfortable in his battle against Zhu Lian, and he smiled as he asked, “So you’re determined to try and keep me occupied? At this rate, that small world isn’t going to be able to stand for much longer.”

Once he reached the Unpolished Jade Tier and cultivated this bonded Li Fire flying sword of his to the limits of its potential, he would be able to incinerate entire lakes and rivers with ease, so this frail small world that was presided over by a Qi refiner who hadn’t even reached the Dragon Gate Tier naturally stood no chance against him.

There was already blood all over Xie Xie’s face, but she was still persevering with all her might. However, there was a limit to her power, and before long, she threw up a mouthful of blood before falling unconscious and slumping to the ground.

Not only was the flying sword piercing its way into the small world bit by bit, the Li Fire burning on its blade was able to incinerate large holes into the small world, so it hardly mattered whether Xie Xie was conscious or not.

Yu Lu sprang high up into the air as he threw a punch at the flying sword.

His fist aura exploded as the flying sword sliced through his fingers before emerging from the back of his hand, following which it sped directly toward the study of the main room.

Lin Shouyi had already been struggling immensely within the flow of time, and now that the small world had suddenly vanished, the effect was so jarring that his consciousness almost faded. However, he was able to cling onto a shred of lucidity as he grabbed onto a nearby pillar to support himself.

At the same time, Shi Rou appeared over at the window of the study, and she closed her eyes as she allowed the Li Fire flying sword to pierce into the abdomen of her immortal body.

Right at this moment, the sound of someone snapping their fingers rang out clearly within the courtyard.

Over at the entrance of the academy at the foot of Eastern Splendor Mountain, Liang Rensi handed a jade tablet over to a white-robed young boy, then glowered intently at the latter as he warned, “Cui Dongshan, I’ll trust you just this once and temporarily give you control of the academy, but if anything goes wrong…”

Cui Dongshan grabbed onto the jade tablet as he smiled and interjected, “I know, I know. You really do need to learn to worry less.”

At this moment, the Golden Autumn flying sword was circling around Cui Dongshan, and it was the same flying sword that had been sent to inform Mao Xiaodong of the situation unfolding on Eastern Splendor Mountain.

Cui Dongshan stepped through the entrance of the academy, then raised his head and closed his eyes with a blissful expression as he mused, “How many years has it been since I last experienced what it was like to be an immortal of the Upper Five Tiers?”

He then opened his eyes before snapping his fingers, and the entirety of Eastern Splendor Mountain was instantly transformed into a small world as he murmured to himself, “Now then, let’s take care of that pesky old dog.”

He then took a step forward, instantly arriving in his own courtyard as he rubbed his hands together with an eager grin on his face.

Xie Xie had already fallen unconscious, as had Lin Shouyi, who was unable to bear the effects of being abruptly thrust into another small world.

Even as a Vajra Body Tier martial artist, Yu Lu was completely rooted to the spot.

As for Shi Rou, she was currently in a very comical situation. Thanks to her immortal body, her soul was much better sheltered from the flow of time in the small world.

However, the Li Fire flying sword was still impaled through her abdomen, and it was frantically darting around like a headless fly in Cui Dongshan’s small world, causing Shi Rou to flop back and forth through the air like a helpless ragdoll.

Cui Dongshan rolled his eyes at the sight of Shi Rou’s sorry display, and he felt like she was too much of an embarrassment to look at, so he gently swept a hand through the air in a swatting motion, and Shi Rou was instantly sent flying into the bamboo-paved corridor, shattering countless floorboards in the process.

It had seemed like nothing more than a nonchalant swat from Cui Dongshan, but it was enough to knock her soul unconscious through her immortal body.

Cui Dongshan planted a foot down onto Shi Rou’s abdomen, and the Li Fire flying sword that she had inadvertently trapped inside her own body instantly fell still.

Cui Dongshan crouched down beside Shi Rou, intending to use a secret technique to pluck the flying sword out of her abdomen.

Meanwhile, Zhao Shi had already fled toward the west. He had correctly assessed that the situation had taken a drastic turn for the worse, and that not only had it become extremely unlikely for him to complete his mission, there was a very good chance he would lose his life here if he didn’t flee right away. With that in mind, he immediately fled in such a decisive manner that he was willing to even leave his own bonded flying sword behind.

Cui Dongshan yawned as he rose to his feet, then murmured to himself, “It’s a good thing that Mao Xiaodong isn’t in the academy. Otherwise, if he sees what’s about to happen next, he’ll be so embarrassed that he’ll want to dig a hole and bury himself in it.”

All of a sudden, a Dao Manifestation of one of the seventy-two Confucian temple saints appeared on the edge of the small world to the west of Eastern Splendor Mountain.

The Dao Manifestation was several hundred feet tall, and Zhao Shi was so frightened by the sight of it that he immediately changed directions and began flying toward the north, only for another Dao manifestation to appear on the horizon.

It seemed that Cui Dongshan didn’t have the patience to play any games with Zhao Shi, he had summoned two Dao manifestations at once, one in the north, and one in the east.

Zhao Shi gritted his teeth as he sped directly upward, but right at this moment, a third Dao manifestation, this one even larger than the previous two, appeared on the summit of Eastern Splendor Mountain.

The Dao manifestation was in the visage of the elderly Imperial Preceptor Cui Chan of the Great Li Empire, and it reached out to catch Zhao Shi with its hand, then closed its fist tightly around him, upon which a burst of thunderous rumbling began to ring out within its closed hand.

Cui Dongshan was standing on the shoulder of the elderly Dao Manifestation, massaging the red birthmark on his own glabella as he patiently waited for Zhao Shi’s cultivation base to be slowly whittled away by the tremendous spiritual energy on Eastern Splendor Mountain.

Of course, if Zhao Shi wanted to detonate his own golden core and nascent soul in one final act of defiance, then Cui Dongshan wouldn’t stop him. In any case, it was only the scholarly fortune and spiritual energy of Eastern Splendor Mountain that would be harmed in the process.

However, ideally, Cui Dongshan was hoping to be able to reap some spoils from Zhao Shi, such as his bonded flying sword, which was temporarily trapped in Shi Rou’s immortal body.

Cui Dongshan took a glance at the courtyard.

That white deer did indeed belong to Zhao Shi, but a secret technique had been cast on it by some powerful cultivator.

As for the old man that had been caught by the Dao Manifestation, that was most definitely not Zhao Shi.

Zhao Shi may have been the mountain master of a mortal academy, but he possessed no cultivation aptitude, so there was no way that he could’ve possibly suddenly become a Nascent Tier swordsman on the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, Nascent Tier swordsmen were exceedingly rare.

With that in mind, it was abundantly clear to Cui Dongshan that he was definitely not a cultivator that was native to the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent. If he had to guess, he would speculate that this “Zhao Shi” was most likely the personal servant of Zhang Dai, the new Zhuangyuan of the Great Sui Nation.

The direct disciples of the Diplomatist sect secretly traveled the world under all types of different identities, and each of them was often accompanied by one or two powerful cultivators who served them with absolute loyalty.

Cui Dongshan sat down with his legs crossed as he mused to himself, “You sure got away quickly, and your plan was to kill two birds with one stone, plotting against both the Song Clan of the Great Li Empire and the Gao Clan of the Great Sui Nation at once. I must say, you remind me a bit of my younger self. We should really have a good chat sometime.

“You almost ruined my grand plan, so I can’t just let you get away without putting your soul in a woman’s body, and it has to be a virgin maiden as well! Making you suffer as a man won’t be anything special, but making you suffer the indignities of a woman on the other hand…”

Even though Cui Dongshan was muttering incessantly to himself, most of his attention was focused on the Nascent Tier swordsman in the hand of his Dao Manifestation and the flying sword in Shi Rou’s abdomen.

There was no point in torturing or interrogating this Nascent Tier swordsman as he was clearly fully ready to die, and there was no way he would be carrying anything that would give Cui Dongshan any useful information, either.

Hence, the majority of Cui Dongshan’s attention was currently focused on that Li Fire flying sword.

Even though he already had countless treasures in his collection, he certainly wasn’t one to refuse wealth when it came his way.

Even without his bonded flying sword, the Nascent Tier swordsman was still displaying incredible combat prowess, using his yang soul avatar to destroy the fist of the Dao Manifestation, following which his yin soul emerged from his body, and his yin soul, his yang soul avatar, and his physical body fled in three different directions.

His true body, which was severely wounded and appeared to be fleeing the scene slowest, suddenly accelerated and landed in the courtyard, still determined to carry out the original assassination plot.