Unsheathed

In the Purple Sun Residence’s Sword Raging Hall…

Wu Yi was already nearing the limit of her patience, barely able to listen to the reports of her subordinates anymore. Her subordinates were still droning on and trying to obtain praise and rewards, and she was just about to end the meeting and tell everyone to disperse.

However, a steward from the external sect walked to the entrance of the Sword Raging Hall before saying in a respectful voice, “Old Ancestor, the river goddess of the White Swan River has come with abundant gifts and is hoping to gain an audience with you.”

The corners of Wu Yi’s lips curled up into a faint smile, and she looked at her subordinates and asked, “I’ve only just returned, yet that woman from the White Swan River has already rushed over to seek an audience with me? Was she notified by that old man from the incense temple? Does he want to die?”

Everyone in the hall was well aware that this was a sign of their old ancestor becoming angry.

Thus, all of the powerful and influential old immortals of the Purple Sun Residence started to feel a sense of unease.

Their old ancestor would cause the mountains and earth to shake every time she became angry, and either some foolish outsider would be obliterated, or a large group of elders who had failed to fulfill their duties would be severely punished.

An old cultivator who had a relatively amicable relationship with the elderly river god of the Iron Plate River hurriedly summoned his courage and stepped forward, putting in a few good words for the river god who was teetering on the precipice of death. “Old Ancestor, the river god of the incense temple definitely wouldn’t dare to do this. His cultivation is pathetic, and he’s unable to complete any task successfully. It’s only regarding his loyalty to the Purple Sun Residence where he doesn’t waver at all. So, I dare to presume that with Old Ancestor sailing back on an immortal ship, that lowly river goddess could only look up and widen her eyes in shock. After witnessing Old Ancestor’s unrivaled magnificence, she’s now giddily rushing over to wag her tail and beg for mercy.”

Wu Yi tapped her armrest with a finger and said, “This explanation… does make some sense.”

Everyone instantly breathed a sigh of relief.

Even the elderly immortals who were on slightly bad terms with the old cultivator couldn’t help but silently praise him in their minds.

However, this wasn’t a case of the old cultivator being a loyal friend and willingly speaking up for an outsider. Rather, he was speaking up because he was responsible for the finances of the external sect, and the clever and understanding river god of the Iron Plate River would always offer him some additional income every single year.

This kind of matter could be regarded as either serious or trivial.

Generally speaking, even if the Cave Spirit True Lord who was entirely focused on cultivating the Great Dao learned of these dirty yet trivial matters, she wouldn’t be willing to so much as bat an eyelid. Indeed, their old ancestor wouldn’t be willing to say a single word of criticism.

On the other hand, she might become annoyed at both the informant and the accused, choosing to punish them with fifty heavy blows before expelling them from the Purple Sun Residence. The reason for this would be very simple — the two people had put her in a bad mood.

Even though Wu Yi wasn’t fond of attending to the mortal matters of the Purple Sun Residence, she would definitely dig deep to get to the bottom of a matter if someone managed to anger her. She would pull the roots out along with clumps of soil, and both the roots and the soil would end up suffering punishment that subjected them to eternal damnation. She was truly a merciless person.

Looking at the history of the sect, several Dragon Gate Tier guest elders had worked diligently and provided meritorious service to the Purple Sun Residence. In fact, it could be said that they had put their lives on the line for the Purple Sun Residence. Similarly, there were some direct disciples of the old ancestor who were talented enough to become Golden Core Tier earth immortals. After making mistakes, however, they were all personally apprehended by the old ancestor and never to be seen again.

Wu Yi still refrained from giving her own opinion, and she asked in a casual voice, “Should I grant her an audience? What does everyone think?”

Opinions were divided, and some people claimed that the river goddess of the White Swan River was outrageously impudent and relied on her meager relationship with the Imperial Hong Clan to refrain from submitting to the Purple Sun Residence and offering tributes. Since she dared to visit the Purple Sun Residence, they should find an excuse to apprehend her and lock her up in the water dungeon of the sect. Afterward, they could prop up an obedient puppet to become the new river god of the White Swan River.

However, others retorted that the river goddess, Lady Xiao Luan, was one of the highest-ranking river gods in the Yellow Court Nation. Now that there were so many turbulent undercurrents, it was best that the Purple Sun Residence remained prudent for a while even though the sect had technically extracted itself from danger already. In any case, was there any need for the mighty Purple Sun Residence to get mad at the deity of a neighboring river? Would this not become a joke if word got out?

Wu Yi became extremely irritated, and she slapped her armrest before saying to the Golden Core Tier sect master, “This Lady Xiao Luan isn’t important enough to warrant a personal welcome from me. Huang Chu, you go and greet her and ask her what she wants. If she shows the wrong attitude or if she offers too little in comparison to her requests, then apprehend her and toss her into the water dungeon.

“If she’s docile enough or offers a fair price, then it won’t hurt to complete a transaction with her. Even though the Purple Sun Residence is wealthy and powerful, who doesn’t want to earn more money? If the talks go well, then you can invite her to the banquet for Young Master Chen as well. However, remember to… mhm, position her seat closest to the entrance of the hall.”

Sect Master Huang Chu cupped his fists and accepted the old ancestor’s commands.

Wu Yi swept her gaze over everyone before saying with an amused smile, “I could turn a blind eye to your behavior when I was away from the sect. Now that I’m back, however, you’ll be taking me for a fool if you show strong personal interests when carrying out tasks.”

Sect Master Huang Chu had initially been harboring some impure thoughts. Lady Xiao Luan was widely renowned for her beauty, and he had already been coveting her beauty for a very long time. Moreover, it was said that the river goddess’ dual cultivation technique was extremely beneficial to one’s soul. Thus, after locking her up in the water dungeon, he could slowly polish away her rough edges. When the old ancestor eventually left the Purple Sun Residence again, he would then have free rein to do as he pleased with her.

However, he was terrified after hearing Wu Yi’s words, and his head was numb with fear as he once again lowered his head and cupped his fists, saying, “Huang Chu doesn’t dare to betray Old Ancestor’s trust and guidance. How could I seek death like this?!”

There was a fake smile on Wu Yi’s face as she remained silent.

Huang Chu slowly retreated from the Sword Raging Hall, sweating profusely after finally walking out.

The others felt a slight sense of glee at the sect master’s misfortune as they gradually left the hall one after another.

Wu Yi suddenly furrowed her brows and reached forward to grab a streak of light that was slicing through the air — this was a flying sword message that completely ignored the formations of the Purple Sun Residence.

This implied astonishing power, and she didn’t need to think to know that this was definitely a letter from her father, someone who had gone to become the deputy mountain master of a Confucian academy or whatnot.

Wu Yi rubbed her glabella after reading the letter. She was feeling a massive headache, and an irrepressible rage.

She pulverized the armrest of the sandalwood throne with a single strike.

She was already more than hospitable enough, so what more could she possibly do?!

Perhaps she needed to respect and revere Chen Ping’an as if he were her ancestor?

Upon thinking of her father’s dark expression, however, a shadow fell across Wu Yi’s face. In the end, she heaved a long sigh and decided to relent. In any case, she would only need to tolerate this for one or two days.

————

Night arrived, and the bright lights illuminating the Purple Qi Palace made it seem as if it were day.

The sect was hosting a grand banquet tonight, and the location for the banquet would be the Vast Snow Hall, a hall especially used for welcoming the most esteemed guests.

River Goddess Xiao Luan of the White Swan River made her way to the Vast Snow Hall along with her personal maidservant as well as Sun Dengxian and the two other men. A young female cultivator from the Purple Sun Residence walked in front and guided them to the banquet.

Lady Xiao Luan had already completed negotiations with Sect Master Huang Chu, yet she had a nagging feeling that he appeared a little reserved for whatever reason. He was nowhere near as confident and spirited as he usually was when he visited the various other immortal forces and clans.

Huang Chu also organized some accommodation for them, placing them in a remote corner of the Purple Sun Residence. Indeed, they naturally wouldn’t be offered accommodation in the Purple Qi Palace, a treasure-storage building that could essentially be regarded as Wu Yi’s private residence. Moreover, there was only a single third tier external disciple attending to their daily needs. Even so, the measly female cultivator didn’t show any respect toward the formal river goddess of the White Swan River, putting on full display the deeply ingrained haughtiness of disciples from the Purple Sun Residence.

With the exception of Lady Xiao Luan, the expressions of her maidservant and the three men had all become quite dark. Meanwhile, Lady Xiao Luan had remained calm and composed the entire time.

Afterward, something even more absurd and infuriating took place, causing the maidservant and Sun Dengxian to lose their temper and humph coldly.

After the third tier female cultivator entered the Purple Qi Palace with fear and trepidation, it was as if she were treading on eggs as she slowly walked forward. She couldn’t help this, as there were far too many stories surrounding the Purple Qi Palace that struck her with awe and fear. In the end, she only made it halfway to the Vast Snow Hall before roughly pointing out its location to the five guests, telling Lady Xiao Luan and the others to look for the hall themselves. In any case, their seats were right beside the entrance, so it would definitely be very easy to find.

Lady Xiao Luan tried to console her maidservant and Sun Dengxian, yet this was to little avail. She could only smile bitterly as she led the way and walked to the banquet hall.

After making their way around a spirit wall, however, they coincidentally came across another group of people in the corridor.

It was none other than Chen Ping’an, Pei Qian, Zhu Lian, and Shi Rou. An elderly Dragon Gate Tier cultivator had personally gone to invite Chen Ping’an just then, but Chen Ping’an had simply asked for directions and said that there was no need to trouble the senior with guiding them to the hall.

The elderly cultivator who controlled the life and death of all Lower Five Tier cultivators in the sect had initially tried to insist on guiding Chen Ping’an to the hall, but he quickly recalled what the old ancestor had said in the Sword Raging Hall not long ago. He had indeed understood some things after ruminating on her words. With this in mind, he had ultimately decided that it would be smarter to respect Chen Ping’an’s wishes, so he had apologized before leaving to attend to his own matters.

Lady Xiao Luan and Chen Ping’an came across each other at the intersection of two corridors.

Chen Ping’an came to a stop, allowing Lady Xiao Luan and her companions to proceed first.

Lady Xiao Luan smiled faintly and nodded in acknowledgment, expressing her thanks to the young man.

A young man in white who had a sword strapped to his back in the Purple Qi Palace?

Lady Xiao Luan didn’t think much about this.

However, her personal maidservant couldn’t help but take an extra glance at Chen Ping’an. Heh, he even had a small vermilion gourd hanging by his waist.

He looked quite like an official immortal from the inner sect of the Purple Sun Residence, so why didn’t he appear haughty and domineering like the rest of them?

Walking at the end of the river goddess’ group, Sun Dengxian was feeling as gloomy and melancholy as could be. Thus, he didn’t take any notice of Chen Ping’an and his companions.

However, he suddenly heard someone exclaim, “Chivalrous Hero?!”

Sun Dengxian ignored this and continued to walk forward.

However, the person immediately continued, “Chivalrous Hero, we met each other in front of the rundown temple at the Centipede Mountain Range!”

Sun Dengxian faltered for a brief moment before stopping and turning around. Looking at the young man in white who had a dazzling smile on his face, he asked, “And you are…?”

Chen Ping’an hurriedly walked up to Sun Dengxian and replied with a smile, “Chivalrous Hero, do you still remember our encounter near the rundown temple? I was with two little children, a little boy in azure and a little girl in pink. After you and your companions subdued the demons and slayed the fiends, you were even kind enough to remind me to be careful, saying that not everyone from the mountains is so open-minded and able to accept someone traveling around with two beasts that have become spirits.”

Sun Dengxian finally recalled their encounter, and he laughed heartily and exclaimed, “Haha, so it’s actually you!”

Chen Ping’an scratched his head and said in slight embarrassment, “I’ve grown quite a bit taller these past two years, and I’m also dressed completely differently from before, so it’s only normal that you didn’t recognize me.”

Sun Dengxian forcefully slapped Chen Ping’an on the shoulder and remarked, “Not bad, young lad, not bad at all! You’ve already made a huge name for yourself and are even able to attend a banquet at the Purple Qi Palace! Our seats probably won’t be too far apart in a moment, so we should definitely enjoy a few drinks together.”

Chen Ping’an simply nodded and said yes with a wide smile.

Back then, Sun Dengxian had wielded a small silver saber when hunting down the beautiful fox spirit with his companions. He had almost engaged in a conflict with some descendants of officials traveling around the cultivation world as well, but he had ultimately avoided trouble and managed to capture the extremely cruel fox spirit. If Chen Ping’an remembered correctly, the fox spirit had referred to herself as Lady Qing Ya.

That brief chance encounter had left a deep impression on Chen Ping’an.

In fact, it could be said that Chen Ping’an’s rough impression of the cultivation world, his understanding of the concepts of chivalrous heroes and subduing demons, and his understanding of how to truly view the dangers of the cultivation world had all been shaped by that chance encounter as well as the battles that he had witnessed.

And now, he was surprisingly able to meet that straightforward man once again in the Purple Sun Residence. Chen Ping’an felt like this was a very pleasant surprise.

While Chen Ping’an was lost in delight…

…Pei Qian widened her eyes in shock.

That random sixth tier martial artist from the Yellow Court Nation had actually dared to forcefully slap her master on the shoulder.

Zhu Lian smiled faintly upon seeing this, while Shi Rou’s eyelids involuntarily started to quiver. She thought to herself that if Cui Dongshan were present, this blind and crude martial artist from the cultivation world would most likely lose his life.

Walking in front of Sun Dengxian, Lady Xiao Luan and the others also heard the commotion behind them. After they stopped and turned around, Sun Dengxian smiled and introduced Chen Ping’an to them, laughing heartily and saying, “This little brother is the young lad whom I mentioned to you guys before. Even though he’s young, his fist intent is quite impressive, and his courage is even greater. He was only a third or fourth tier martial artist back then, yet he actually dared to travel around the cultivation world with two small demons. Compared to that bunch of useless descendants of officials, this young hero was far more knowledgable and experienced in the cultivation world…”

Even though a faint smile once again appeared on the beautiful and graceful Lady Xiao Luan’s face, her personal maidservant was already signaling to Sun Dengxian with her eyes, telling him not to waste any more time here. They needed to make haste and go to the Vast Snow Hall to attend the banquet, lest they invite any unwanted trouble.

One of the old men also suggested, “Little Sun, the two of you can chat as you walk.”

Sun Dengxian felt slightly annoyed, but fortunately, Chen Ping’an smiled and said, “Going to the banquet is more important. Chivalrous Hero, is your surname Sun? My name is Chen Ping’an, and it’s okay for you to directly call me by my name.”

Sun Dengxian was a straightforward and open-minded cultivator from the cultivation world, so he didn’t try to act polite as he replied, “Sure thing, then I’ll call you Chen Ping’an.”

Lady Xiao Luan continued to make her way to the Vast Snow Hall.

Meanwhile, Sun Dengxian walked at the back of the group to chat with Chen Ping’an.

At this moment, someone suddenly scolded them from the other end of the corridor, shouting, “What’s wrong with you people? Do you want the old ancestor and sect master to wait for you to enter and sit down before commencing the banquet? Lady Xiao Luan, how domineering of you!”

This was a steward from the internal sect who had hurriedly walked over from the other end of the corridor. There was a deeply arrogant expression on his face, and he didn’t show an iota of respect toward the formal goddess of the White Swan River.

After scolding the river goddess and her companions, the steward turned around with a dark expression and ordered, “Hurry up and follow me! Stop dawdling around!”

Lady Xiao Luan narrowed her eyes as she walked behind the steward, but she exhaled softly and her expression quickly returned to normal.

Sun Dengxian cursed under his breath.

Chen Ping’an remained silent.

All of the Middle Five Tier cultivators of the Purple Sun Residence were already gathered in the Vast Snow Hall.

Lady Xiao Luan slowed down after arriving at the entrance of the large hall, and this was because she could feel piercing gazes all over her body.

The steward stood at the door and blatantly stared at the river goddess, scolding in a low voice, “Hurry up, go inside and sit down!”

Lady Xiao Luan was expressionless as she stepped over the door threshold. The steward was happy to scold the river goddess, but he simply smiled coldly at her maidservant and two friends from the cultivation world, people who were as measly as insects.

When the steward saw Sun Dengxian happily chatting away with a certain person, however, the smile on his face instantly froze, with beads of cold sweat immediately appearing on his forehead.

Sun Dengxian was slightly puzzled, and he couldn’t make heads or tails of the situation no matter how he racked his brain. That being the case, he pushed the matter aside and directly strode into the large hall.

Chen Ping’an’s expression was normal as he strode into the Vast Snow Hall one step behind Sun Dengxian.