Unsheathed

Bai Shou was still looking rather lethargic and sickly, temporarily unable to acclimate himself to the environment on the Sword Qi Great Wall, and Ren Lingcong was in a similar state.

This was why no Qi refiners below earth immortals liked to stay for long periods of time on the Sword Qi Great Wall; the environment was simply too inhospitable for them to bear. A young swordsman would fare much better. Over time, they would ultimately stand to benefit from the environment on the Sword Qi Great Wall, receiving nourishment to both their soul and their flying swords.

However, for all Qi refiners outside of swordsmen, just the process of expelling the sword intent from their internal small worlds was extremely grueling and painstaking. Throughout history, there had been no lack of cocky young Qi refiners who had visited the Sword Qi Great Wall during periods of relative peace between battles.

They would trudge arduously to the Sword Qi Great Wall from Stalactite Mountain, and by the time they were carried back to the gate on the backs of their servants, they would’ve already suffered a drop in cultivation base.

“If your friend is in the city, then how about you come with me to the White Vein Residence on Taixiang Street? Sword Immortal Song Lü has some deep connections to our Northern Complete Reed Continent, so I’m sure we’ll be welcome there,” Lu Sui suggested.

Lu Sui was aware that this proposal of hers was a little unreasonable, but she was afraid that after parting ways with Liu Jinglong here, the latter would become completely absorbed in his cultivation and forget all about her.

She had come all the way to Stalactite Mountain to meet him, yet their time together had been so short. If they were to part ways here, perhaps they would only meet again when she visited him to bid farewell as she prepared to return to Stalactite Mountain.

However, if they were to stay in Sword Immortal Song Lü’s White Vein Residence together, then even if Liu Jinglong went into seclusion and refused to entertain any guests, at the very least, they would still be under the same roof. Regardless of the weather outside, they would be seeing the same piece of scenery, and that would give her some sense of solace.

“That sounds like a great idea!” Bai Shou agreed. “We can go pester Sword Immortal Song Lü rather than disturb our sect leader’s cultivation.”

Bai Shou felt rather apprehensive about meeting Sect Leader Han Huaizi of the Great Emblem Sword Sect for the first time. On Graceful Peak, he had overheard from conversations between many of his peers that Han Huaizi was an extremely strict old man, and everyone spoke of him with a sense of awe and veneration. In contrast, Disciplinary Elder Huang Tong was a much less intimidating individual, but the problem was that Bai Shou felt just as fearful and uneasy whenever he was in Huang Tong’s presence.

If Huang Tong were already so menacing and oppressive, Bai Shou was worried that Han Huaizi would banish him from the ancestral hall before he could even get a word in. Liu Jinglong was extremely respectful of his seniors, so if Han Huaizi ordered him to expel Bai Shou from the ancestral hall, then he would have no choice but to oblige.

It wasn’t that Bai Shou cherished his status as Liu Jinglong’s disciple. Instead, he simply felt like it would be quite a waste to have to leave behind the glory and authority that he had earned for himself on Graceful Peak.

Qi Jinglong shook his head and said, “I don’t know Sword Immortal Song Lü personally, so it would be inappropriate to suddenly show up on his doorstep. It would also require Ms. Lu and her sect to redeem a favor with Sword Immortal Song Lü in exchange for our accommodation, and that would be too much to ask.

“Besides, it’s only right that we visit our sect leader before anyone else. I also have to pay a visit to Senior Li to express my gratitude to her. After our sparring match in the Great Emblem Sword Sect, she left in quite a hurry, so I didn’t get a chance to thank her.”

There were many vacant private residences in the city where foreign sword immortals could stay. They could choose any one of those vacant residences to stay in, then simply notify Zhu An and Luo Shan. Of course, they could also be invited to stay with native sword immortals, and they were more than welcome to station themselves atop the city walls if that was what they wished to do.

Han Huaizi and Huang Tong had slain many demons between them on the southern battlefield, and their contributions on the battlefield had earned the Great Emblem Sword Sect quite a large manor by the name of the Armory. Thus, all of the disciples of the Great Emblem Sword Sect had a place to stay on the Sword Qi Great Wall, and they wouldn’t have to arrange accommodation for themselves separately.

In contrast, Sect Leader Li Cai of Duckweed Sword Lake had only just arrived, and she had no friends or acquaintances among the native sword immortals, so she had chosen to stay in the Myriad Ravine Residence, the residence previously occupied by the sword immortal from the Northern Complete Reed Continent who had recently perished in battle.

She didn’t fear the negative connotations of staying in such a residence at all, and that had earned her some respect from many of the native sword immortals.

“In that case, I’ll go and visit Sect Leader Han if I get the chance,” Lu Sui said with a smile.

“That would be great,” Qi Jinglong replied with a nod. “Our sect leader thinks very highly of you, and I’m sure he’d be very happy to have you as a guest.”

A wide and affectionate smile appeared on Lu Sui’s face, while Ren Lingcong took a deep breath and averted her gaze. She would be unable to suppress her temper if she looked at the lovestruck Lu Sui and the oblivious Liu Jinglong for too long.

Bai Shou was also feeling furious with Liu Jinglong.

Does Celestial Maiden Lu care if the leader of our Great Emblem Sword Sect would be happy to have her as a guest? Do you not see the way she’s looking at you? Surely she would’ve been able to convey her feelings properly even to a blind man at this point! Are you really that oblivious, or are you just a really good actor?

After the two duos parted ways, Qi Jinglong and Bai Shou set off for the Armory. Qi Jinglong chose to make the journey on foot in order to cater to Bai Shou, allowing the latter to take some time to familiarize himself with the flow of the sword intent in this place.

All of a sudden, Qi Jinglong seemed to have realized something, and he asked, “Did I say anything to Ms. Lu just now that could be construed as a little impersonal?”

“Are you kidding me right now?” Bai Shou snapped.

Qi Jinglong heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed like he had done a fine job.

“There was not a single thing you said that wasn’t impersonal!” Bai Shou concluded.

“Oh, I see,” Qi Jinglong mused.

“Why do you not like Big Sister Lu, Liu Jinglong?” Bai Shou asked. “There are a million good things about her and nothing bad! There are countless handsome young prodigies on our Northern Complete Reed Continent who are in love with her, yet why is it that she likes you, and why do you not like her?”

“I don’t know. There’s no reason for it,” Qi Jinglong replied in a resigned manner.

The two of them traveled southward along the edge of the city for close to a hundred kilometers before finally arriving at the Armory.

For cultivators of their caliber, even if they didn’t fly atop their flying swords, a journey of this length was still far from a lengthy undertaking. Even though Bai Shou was not yet fully accustomed to the oppressive aura of the Sword Qi Great Wall, he was still able to travel much faster than the average layman.

The residences that they passed by on the way here mostly belonged to sword immortals of the Upper Five Tiers, or were temporarily inhabited by foreign sword immortals.

Sect Leader Han Huaizi of the Great Emblem Sword Sect was standing at the entrance, and Qi Jinglong extended a respectful bow as he greeted, “Liu Jinglong of Graceful Peak pays his respects to Sect Leader Han Huaizi.”

Bai Shou gulped nervously, then imitated Liu Jinglong, extended a deep bow as he greeted in a trembling voice, “Sixteenth-generation direct disciple of the Great Emblem Sword Sect’s ancestral hall, Bai Shou of Graceful Peak pays his respects to Sect Leader Han Huaizi!”

Han Huaizi was the fourth leader of the Great Emblem Sword Sect, but the heritage of the ancestral hall went back far further than that.

The Great Emblem Sword Sect didn’t have a particularly long history on the Northern Complete Reed Continent, but every single one of its leaders had been sword immortals, and they almost always had a complementary sword immortal like Huan Tong by their side, thereby allowing them to maintain a solid position near the mountain summit of the Northern Complete Reed Continent.

Furthermore, the sect had never been short on talent, even among some of its lower-ranking members. For example, Liu Jinglong was far from a senior figure in the sect because his master was only a fourteenth-generation direct disciple of the ancestral hall, which was why Bai Shou was only a sixteenth-generation disciple. However, in the Majestic World, whenever the position of leader was passed down within a sect, there was always a shift in the seniority hierarchy that followed.

If Liu Jinglong were to become the next sect leader, then his entire branch in the ancestral hall’s genealogical records would be significantly elevated in status. As the first disciple of Graceful Peak, Bai Shou would be automatically elevated into a sixth-generation grandmaster of the Great Emblem Sword Sect thanks to his connection to Liu Jinglong.

“No need for formalities,” Han Huaizi said with a smile. “From now on, wherever we go, we should follow the local customs and traditions. There are only three of us in this residence anyway, so we don’t have to keep up appearances for anyone, isn’t that right, Bai Shou?”

Bai Shou had no idea how to respond. Yes? No, surely that wasn’t the right answer. No? That’s even more incorrect!

He could only turn to Liu Jinglong for help with a pitiable look on his face.

“What’s wrong?” Qi Jinglong chuckled. “I thought you weren’t afraid of anything or anyone; why has your courage suddenly dwindled to the size of a grain of rice in front of our sect leader?”

Bai Shou immediately regained his courage when regarding Liu Jinglong, and he blurted out, “That’s what they named that little water monster on Downtrodden Mountain!”[1]

He then immediately recalled that he was still in the presence of the sect leader, and he began sweating profusely as he implored, “I’m sorry, Sect Leader! I shouldn’t have said that! Please don’t kick me out of the Great Emblem Sword Sect!”

Han Huaizi was both amused and exasperated. Thankfully, Liu Jinglong had already informed him of Bai Shou’s rather erratic nature in his letter. Otherwise, Han Huaizi would’ve truly been caught a little off guard.

“There are indeed many things that you can’t say on the Sword Qi Great Wall, so don’t think that you’re untouchable just because you’re a swordsman of the Great Emblem Sword Sect and Liu Jinglong’s direct disciple. Having said that, there’s no need to be overly rigid and restrained here in our sect’s own residence. While cultivating here, make sure to think lots and ask many questions,” Han Huaizi said with a smile.

Bai Shou was very much taken aback. This was completely different from the stern and authoritative Sect Leader Han Huaizi that he had imagined.

“This is when you should say ‘Yes, Sect Leader,’” Qi Jinglong said with an amused smile.

“Yes, Sect Leader!” Bai Shou hurriedly repeated.

Qi Jinglong could only shake his head in exasperation. Never had he seen such an obedient Bai Shou.

After some more small talk, Han Huaizi led the duo into the Armory while telling them about the history of this residence, including which sword immortals had previously resided here, when they had died in battle, and how they had died.

A sense of awe and veneration arose in Bai Shou’s heart, and he unconsciously slowed down his breathing and footsteps because he felt like every breath that he took and every step that he walked was disturbing the rest of the eternally slumbering sword immortals.

Han Huaizi took a subtle glance at Bai Shou’s demeanor and expression, then turned and gave Qi Jinglong a slight nod of approval.

***

There was a young woman who was intentionally using her fist intent to draw in hostile sword qi. She was wearing a pair of straw sandals and a red robe, and her hair had been arranged into a neat and tight bun.

All she was carrying with her was a bag that contained some dry rations. As opposed to entering the city, she went straight to the Sword Qi Great Wall. She began rushing ahead at full speed when she was still some distance away from the city walls, then sprang high up into the air, landing over a hundred feet up the wall before continuing to rush her way up its vertical surface.

With one final, forceful step, she launched herself upward, covering the final few dozen feet in a single stride before drifting down onto the top of the city wall.

From there, she made her way to the left. According to Cao Ci, the two thatched cottages should be no more than fifteen kilometers apart from each other.

Along the way, she didn’t encounter any of the sword immortals because, given the close proximity of this section of the city wall to the two thatched huts, there was no need for any sword immortals to be stationed here. With the old great sword immortal stationed nearby, no demon would be able to set foot on this section of the city wall and hope to return to the Savage World alive.

All of a sudden, the young woman’s brows furrowed slightly as she detected the immense sword qi on this section of the city wall.

It had to have been coming from Zuo You, the strange and reclusive sword immortal who had shattered the Dao Hearts of countless prodigious swordsmen before going out to sea.

However, as she drew close to the thatched cottage, she noticed that there was a sword immortal with a youthful appearance standing in her path, and they had already turned to observe her.

She continued onward without pause, taking a glance at the nearby thatched cottage before turning her gaze back to the sword immortal, then cupped her fist in a salute as she asked, “Are you staying in this thatched cottage, Senior?”

“If you don’t mind, I can move out of this thatched cottage,” Wei Jin replied with a smile and a nod.

“I do mind, so feel free to stay as you please, Senior,” she said, then stopped in her tracks before sitting down with her legs crossed.

She removed the bag of dry rations from her back, then pulled out a piece of flatbread and began devouring it.

Wei Jin wasn’t bothered, and he closed his eyes and resumed his cultivation.

After eating the piece of flatbread, the young woman took a sip of water, then asked, “Would you happen to know where Sword Immortal Ku Xia of the Shaoyuan Empire currently is on the city wall, Senior?”

Wei Jin opened his eyes, then replied, “The place where Sword Immortal Ku Xia is stationed is about four hundred kilometers away from here. Barring any mishaps, he should currently be teaching a lesson in swordsmanship right now.”

“Thank you, Senior,” the woman replied with a nod, then stood up and hoisted her bag onto her back.

She began practicing her walking meditation alongside her fist techniques as she set off in search of Ku Xia. She was frequently covering a distance of several dozen feet with a single stride, but at the same time, she was performing her fist techniques extremely slowly.

Along the way, she saw a giant golden bird that broke through the sea of clouds above to cast an enormous shadow onto the city wall, and it was as if day had suddenly transitioned into night. It descended next to a white-robed sword immortal, and by the time it reached him, it had already shrunk down to the size of a sparrow, allowing it to perch on its owner’s shoulder.

The sword immortal in question was lying lazily on his side on a bed, facing the south while drinking some wine.

The woman only took a single glance at him before averting her gaze.

Meanwhile, Sword Immortal Ku Xia was seated on a cushion, while Lin Junbi and the other young swordsmen were meditating with their eyes closed, trying to harness the erratic and rapidly flowing pure sword intent between heaven and earth. For them, harnessing the sword intent in the environment was a much higher priority than absorbing the spiritual energy in the air. However, Lin Junbi was the only one who was making any significant progress.

Aside from him, even Yan Lü was struggling to find a reliable method to harness the sword intent, only able to do so through blind luck. During this time, someone was fortunate enough to capture a wisp of sword intent and was ecstatic, but as soon as they became distracted by their elation, that wisp of sword intent immediately began wreaking havoc in their body. Sword Immortal Ku Xia was forced to intervene, using his flying sword to expel the sword intent from the young swordsman’s internal small world in order to ensure their safety.

The young swordsman almost had the foundation of his Great Dao compromised, and his complexion had turned deathly pale.

Ku Xia spoke to him through his mind’s lake in a calm, soothing manner to help the young man regain his composure and consolidate his sword heart. As for the state of turmoil and unrest of the spiritual energy in his acupoints, that was only a minor concern, and the young man could resolve that problem on his own without Ku Xia’s assistance.

These were all outstanding young talents who had been chosen from the Shaoyuan Empire to travel to the Sword Qi Great Wall. If they couldn’t even take care of such a minor issue by themselves, then they may as well pack their bags and return to Stalactite Mountain right away. In any case, they would always be able to stay at the Plum Blossom Garden, and they could wait there for everyone else before returning to the Shaoyuan Empire together.

All of a sudden, Ku Xia rose to his feet and turned his gaze in a certain direction. Upon spotting the young woman who was approaching from a distance, a rare smile appeared on his face, and he stood up to welcome her.

The young woman was a prolific traveler, and she had used many aliases during her travels, but she had only one true name, and that was the one recorded in the genealogical records of her clan’s ancestral hall.

1. A reminder that the Mili in Zhou Mili’s name literally translates to a grain of rice. ☜