Unsheathed

Sword Immortal Sun Juyuan’s residence was identical to the extravagant residences in the Majestic World, and it had taken him an exorbitant amount of immortal coins to achieve this similarity.

Sun Juyuan was sitting on a bamboo mat that almost filled the entire corridor, and exquisite paperweights held down the four corners of the mat, each made from a different material.

The Middle Earth Divine Continent’s Sword Immortal, Ku Xia, stood beside him, his expression solemn.

Sun Juyuan smiled and said, “This start hasn’t been ideal, but we can’t blame Lin Junbi for his oversight. We need to blame your name instead. It’s summer right now, yet your name’s Ku Xia, or painful summer, so you’ve clearly affected Lin Junbi in a detrimental manner.”

“He shouldn’t have provoked Ning Yao,” Ku Xia said in exasperation.

Sun Juyuan smiled and replied, “Keep stating the obvious, why don’t you? How many sword immortals were spectating the battle before? Thirty? Including those who didn’t show themselves, it’s been a long time since things have been so lively at the Sword Qi Great Wall.”

“It would be a huge fortune if a young woman like this could marry into the Shaoyuan Empire. Perhaps the empire’s Sword Dao fortune would be dragged up by a significant amount,” Ku Xia remarked with a sigh of emotion.

Sun Juyuan snickered and said, “You should stop standing there and daydreaming. Lin Junbi can already be regarded as the embodiment of the Shaoyuan Empire’s sword fortune, but so what? He’s not even worthy enough for Ning Yao to remember his name.

“In any case, Little Ning once left the Sword Qi Great Wall and traveled across many continents in the Majestic World by herself, yet not a single person was able to convince her to stay. So, you should keep quiet if you aren’t capable, and you shouldn’t blame Little Ning for having incredibly high standards.”

Sun Juyuan paused for a moment before exclaiming in astonishment, “It can’t be that the imperial preceptor of the Shaoyuan Empire genuinely wanted Lin Junbi to come here and steal away our prodigies, right? Is Lin Junbi aware of this?”

Ku Xia remained silent.

The amused smile vanished from Sun Juyuan’s face as he continued in a solemn voice, “If that’s truly the case, then I suggest you give up straight away and directly quash the thought in Lin Junbi’s mind. No matter how much face the imperial preceptor of the Shaoyuan Empire has, it ultimately can’t compare to the life and Great Dao of a sword immortal.

“If the naive Lin Junbi, who’s still wet behind the ears, fails to keep himself in check, then there’s no need for Ning Yao to target him at all. Just the schemes and plots of Chen Ping’an would be enough to cause endless trouble for Lin Junbi and his companions, including Bian Jing.”

Ku Xia looked over and asked in puzzlement, “I’ve heard some stories about this young man before, so I’m not surprised that the younger generation of cultivators at the Sword Qi Great Wall are all apprehensive of him. But why do sword immortals like you hold him in such high regard as well?”

Regarding some internal matters and secrets, Sword Immortal Ku Xia wouldn’t talk about them even though he had a life-and-death friendship with Sun Juyuan. Thus, he directly avoided talking about these matters.

Sun Juyuan was sitting cross-legged on the straw mat, and he flicked his hand and caused a wine cup to materialize in his palm. He then shook it gently, causing fine wine to appear on its own in the cup. This wine cup was the most coveted item by alcoholic immortals in the world, even more so than those wine insects.

This wine cup was called Wine Spring, and unless one drank from morning until night without stopping, guzzling down fifty liters in a single sitting, it was like a huge wine vat that couldn’t be emptied. Thus, only three such wine cups existed in the Sword Qi Great Wall, a place that housed countless alcoholics.

One was owned by Sun Juyuan, one was owned by Yan Ming — though this sword immortal seemingly didn’t drink again after losing his arms and suffering a drop in cultivation base — and one was owned by Old Sword Immortal Qi.

There once existed five Wine Springs at the Sword Qi Great Wall, but someone had hosted a bet and tricked them into giving two away. Right now, it was unknown whether these wine cups had returned to the Majestic World, or whether they had been directly taken to the heavens beyond heavens outside the Heavenly World.

The person who had taken the two wine cups away had even said that good things needed to be in pairs, and the wine cups could be like husband and wife. That would be better than the wine cups being as lonely and pitifully single as their owners.

Sun Juyuan downed the wine in a single gulp, following which the wine cup filled itself again as if there existed a spring. He smiled faintly and asked, “Ku Xia, what do you think a powerful person should appear like?”

Ku Xia shook his head and replied, “I’ve never thought about this before, nor can I be bothered thinking about such matters. So, please enlighten me, Sword Immortal Sun.”

Sun Juyuan held his wine cup with two fingers and gently swirled the wine around, looking at the faint ripples shimmering across the surface as he said slowly, “These individuals cause good people to feel like they’re good people, and they cause their enemies — regardless of their stance and regardless of whether they’re good or bad — to willingly acknowledge them as good people from the bottom of their hearts.”

Ku Xia mulled over this for a long time before nodding and saying, “That’s terrifying.”

“But this isn’t the most terrifying thing,” Sun Juyuan said with a shake of his head.

“Care to explain?” Ku Xia asked with a frown.

“The most terrifying thing is that these people are genuinely good people,” Sun Juyuan replied slowly.

How my heart views the world is how the world should view me.

Sun Juyuan recalled one of the seals recorded in the Seal Manual of the Hundred Sword Immortals, the one with the inscription: Observing Dao Temple, Dao Observing Dao.

This was extremely interesting and immediately caught Sun Juyuan’s eye. However, it was a pity that the seal was already nowhere to be found, secretly obtained by some unknown sword immortal.

Sun Juyuan suddenly chuckled in speechlessness, glancing into the distance with an ice-cold gaze and remarking, “Just what kind of kids are they? So be it if it was just Lin Junbi. He’s a smart person, after all, and it was a pity that he came across Little Ning. Even if Chen Ping’an purposely exposed his thoughts, Lin Junbi could simply chuckle in secret and not push his luck.

“As for the others, like that Jiang whatever his name was, he’s your direct disciple, right? Have they run over here to play around at the Sword Qi Great Wall? Things will be fine if a battle doesn’t break out, but what will they do if a battle truly breaks out?

“Will they run over and offer their heads to those beastly demons? As a sword immortal, doesn’t your heart feel tired? Is this the current culture of the Shaoyuan Empire? If I remember correctly, you and your companions weren’t this pathetic when you came to the Sword Qi Great Wall back then, right?”

Ku Xia didn’t say anything, falling silent for a moment before finally replying, “The imperial preceptor issued a command, saying that they can’t leave the city wall even if a large-scale battle breaks out.”

Sun Juyuan slapped his forehead and downed the contents of his wine cup, using it to wash away his worries as he lamented, “My residence is like a filthy street now. Sword Immortal Ku Xia, the summer is truly painful now. As it turns out, I’ve been screwed over the most by you.”

There was a slightly apologetic expression on Sword Immortal Ku Xia’s face, but he didn’t say anything else. There was no need to be overly polite with his good friend.

However, Ku Xia, the martial nephew of one of the top ten cultivators in the Middle Earth Divine Continent and a well-established pillar of the Shaoyuan Empire, couldn’t help but ponder Sun Juyuan’s remark. Perhaps his name was truly a little mystical and efficacious?

————

Over at the pavilion, Lin Junbi had already changed into a Dao robe, with his expression also returning to normal. He appeared spotless and carefree, much like an elegant young immortal.

Bian Jing, who had already given away some clues, was most likely the only sword cultivator with a deep frown on his face.

This was because many of the other youths were cursing in fury, while the remaining youths consoled themselves with remarks they considered reasonable and fair.

These youths weren’t even aware of the significance and purpose of the three trials, so Bian Jing wondered to himself why they were even coming to the Sword Qi Great Wall. Had the seniors of these youths not taught them anything before their departure? Or perhaps the naivety of these youths reflected their seniors’ incompetence? Maybe these seniors had strongly encouraged the youths to keep a low profile and live with their tails between their legs at the Sword Qi Great Wall, only to have this instead stir their rebellious nature?

In reality, none of these youths knew anything about the Savage World, much less the ferocity of the demon tribe as they assaulted the city wall. Bian Jing would even go as far as to say with absolute certainty that these youths, including Lin Junbi, regarded the young sword cultivators at the Sword Qi Great Wall as their greatest opponents and enemies. They completely brushed aside the threats posed by the Savage World and the demon tribe.

Bian Jing was much better in this regard, since he had personally faced the formidable combat power and extremely tough physique of a Nascent Tier demon during his travels in the Flowing Dawn Continent. He had launched countless sword strikes with his companion, a Nascent Tier sword cultivator, yet they had still failed to truly wound their opponent. Only with the help of an additional Golden Core Tier sword cultivator had they managed to slowly wear out the demon and grind it to death.

The three trials were difficult to pass.

What was the purpose of this? The Sword Qi Great Wall hoped that outsider sword cultivators would pay closer attention and be more careful, understanding that each victory achieved by the Sword Qi Great Wall against the demon tribe was extremely difficult. At the same time, the three trials could serve as a warning to outsider sword cultivators, especially the younger generation, convincing them to stay on the city wall during battles against the demon tribe if they didn’t have enough battle experience.

These inexperienced sword cultivators could provide some minor help from the sidelines, controlling their flying swords to attack the demons. However, they definitely shouldn’t act rashly and jump down the city wall to charge into battle. The many sword immortals at the Sword Qi Great Wall wouldn’t explicitly restrain people from doing this, especially since they wouldn’t have the effort or spare time to worry about so many matters.

As for the outsiders who purely traveled to the Sword Qi Great Wall to temper their Sword Dao, the Sword Qi Great Wall wouldn’t discriminate against the people either. It was simply a matter of the strength of these sword cultivators: whether they could truly make a name for themselves or catch the attention of a sword immortal, allowing them to learn top-notch sword techniques.

“Just how old is Junbi right now, and just how old is Ning Yao in comparison? Her victory was unfair, yet she still had the gall to talk down to us? Is this the strongest sword cultivator of the Sword Qi Great Wall’s younger generation? In my view, even if the destructive power of the sword immortals here is boundlessly vast, their minds are truly as narrow as a needle’s tip.”

“That Ning Yao clearly knew those sword cultivators from the Sword Qi Great Wall wouldn’t be able to defeat us in the three trials, so she purposely stepped forward and forced Junbi to draw his sword. She was far too overbearing and aggressive!”

“That’s right! And those spectating sword immortals… They all harbored ill intentions, and they were purposely creating a tense atmosphere to put pressure on Junbi.”

Jiang Guancheng chuckled coldly and said, “If you ask me, I’d say that Ning Yao didn’t suppress her cultivation base at all. It was all a facade, and she purposely used an underhanded method to defeat Junbi, all for the sake of protecting her pitiful fame and status. Even Ning Yao is acting with such shamelessness, so how much better can Pang Yuanji, Qi Shou, Gao Yehou, and the others be, sword cultivators who just barely belong to the same generation as us? Sure enough, this is a savage and barbaric land!”

Bian Jing reached up and massaged his temples. This was giving him a big headache.

Fortunately, Lin Junbi furrowed his brows and warned, “Watch your words, Jiang Guancheng!”

Jiang Guancheng finally shut his mouth, but the anger and indignation on his face couldn’t be concealed.

Zhu Mei stood among the crowd but remained silent.

Jin Zhenmeng, the Golden Core Tier sword cultivator, also didn’t participate much in the conversation.

Zhu Mei had recalled Gao Youqing, the young woman who had lost the first trial and scrunched up her face, shedding tears as she silently stood beside Gao Yehou and Pang Yuanji. She also recalled Liu Tiefu, who had been met with rowdy cheers and relentless boos after his loss. Even so, the young Liu Tiefu had still managed to put on a grin, cupping his fists and thanking the crowd as he faced a barrage of ridicule and scolding.

Meanwhile, Jin Zhenmeng was thinking about Situ Weiran’s smile and reciprocal gesture following the latter’s victory over him.

At the same time, he recalled how the atmosphere on Ink Stick Street had suddenly become solemn following the arrival of Ning Yao. This hadn’t been as simple as people calming their breathing and focusing their attention to enjoy the riveting show.

One of the youngest girls, who was only twelve years old, was especially furious, unable to wipe away her gloominess as she said quietly, “That Chen Ping’an was especially bad. He insisted on targeting Junbi the entire time, and he was clearly feeling inferior and ashamed of himself. What does it matter that he was able to defeat Qi Shou and Pang Yuanji?

“He’s the closing disciple of the Scholarly Sage, and he’s also the junior brother of Great Sword Immortal Zuo You, so he’s been gifted countless immortal treasures thanks to his master, and he’s been receiving careful guidance from a paramount sword immortal day after day, year after year. That being the case, is it impressive for him to possess such capabilities? If we give Junbi another ten years, I surmise that Chen Ping’an won’t even dare to breathe too loudly in front of Junbi!”

Bian Jing wailed in anguish in his mind. Goodness me, Young Miss, you can’t spout nonsense like this simply because you like Junbi!

Lin Junbi shook his head and said, “Chen Ping’an is quite an exceptional person. He isn’t as pathetic as you guys make him out to be.”

He then smiled and continued, “If my opponent were too weak, then wouldn’t that make me even more pathetic and mediocre?”

Upon hearing this, the young girl felt like Lin Junbi was even more impressive and perfect.

Bian Jing promised himself that, no matter the situation, he would definitely refuse to participate in the foolish adventures of these young masters and young mistresses in the future.

They could do whatever they wanted.

He wouldn’t entertain their rubbish.

Speaking truthfully, Bian Jing hadn’t exactly been tending to them anyway, and he had instead treated them as live entertainment while traveling south. The only fortunate thing was the imperial preceptor, his half-master, saying frankly that these young masters and young mistresses wouldn’t participate in the large-scale battles against the demons.

Once war broke out between the Sword Qi Great Wall and the demon tribe, these young prodigies would immediately retreat to the Plum Blossom Garden in Stalactite Mountain. Afterward, they would embark on the return journey to the Middle Earth Divine Continent. It was best that they didn’t even linger in the Southern Whirl Continent.

Bian Jing massaged his cheeks and quietly prayed that no one would notice him.

Unfortunately for him, however, Jiang Guancheng didn’t let him wriggle free, exclaiming in exuberance, “Aha, so Senior Brother Bian Jing concealed his power the best! That Chen Ping’an was clearly very worried about whether Senior Brother Bian Jing would step forward to interfere!”

There was a look of helplessness on Bian Jing’s face. Young lad, you’re completely blind, okay?

Jiang Guancheng’s remark instantly livened the atmosphere and triggered spirited discussions between the young sword cultivators. Bian Jing listened to the relatively sincere words of praise, yet he couldn’t bring himself to feel happy at all.

He involuntarily felt a sense of unease as he thought of the young man who was smiling with squinted eyes and holding his hands inside his opposite sleeves, and he had a nagging feeling that things weren’t as simple as they appeared.

Bian Jing ignored the sincere compliments and the scheming praises as he turned his gaze toward Lin Junbi.

Lin Junbi smiled faintly and said, “I’ll remember to be careful.”

Bian Jing breathed a small sigh of relief.

By the looks of it, his junior brother’s initial plan of breaking through twice in quick succession and engaging in three battles at the Sea Observation Tier, the Dragon Gate Tier, and the Golden Core Tier, was seemingly the most optimal choice.

If they had followed through with that plan, perhaps many of the spectating sword immortals would have developed a good impression of Lin Junbi. This was unlike the current situation, where many sword immortals regarded Lin Junbi as a complete joke, wholeheartedly siding with Ning Yao instead.

If they had followed Lin Junbi’s initial plan, what would it have mattered even if they had given Chen Ping’an the opportunity to force a fourth battle? At that time, Lin Junbi would have achieved victory even if he lost the fourth battle, and the more he fought to his heart’s content, the more the spectators would have developed a good impression of him.

This was the same principle as Chen Ping’an fighting against Pang Yuanji. In fact, if Lin Junbi managed to force Ning Yao to draw her blade, rather than just face Chen Ping’an, who was seemingly picking on someone exhausted after three battles, then he would achieve an even greater victory.

However, this was nothing more than a “what if.”

Bian Jing wouldn’t be so foolish as to ask his junior brother whether he felt any regret.

He most definitely wouldn’t reveal that his remark to Lin Junbi at the time, “It’s fairly pointless to fight with other people for the sake of so-called victory or defeat,” was actually a reminder for Lin Junbi to compete with himself instead of competing with other people.

Saying this would be planting animosity between him and Lin Junbi.