Unsheathed

The elderly temple attendant didn’t have the effort to care about the middling official from the water goddess’s residence at this moment, and she hurriedly channeled a bonded mystical ability and used the ripples of her mind’s lake to inform the water goddess of the situation.

However, there was no response at all.

This was because a hunchbacked old man from Downtrodden Mountain was hovering above the section of the river where the water goddess’s residence was located, with his hands clasped behind his back as he looked down and said with a smile, ”You’ll die if you make a move.”

There was a bright glimmer in Pei Qian’s eyes as she raised her hiking pole that was shrouded in wisps of golden sword intent.

”I remember what Master said before!” she exclaimed. ”The most important aspect of making an apology is sincerity, not the value of the compensation. If this is flipped around, then the sequential order will be wrong. What does sincerity mean? You shouldn’t be apologizing to Downtrodden Mountain, and you should actually be apologizing to Zhou Mili.”

The water god of the Rushing Tranquil River appeared exasperated as he retracted his palm. He couldn’t just sit here and watch as the water goddess shrine of the Fine Wine River continued to seek death, could he? Thus, he hurriedly jumped up and flew over. Spectating from the sidelines was a good way to draw ire and trouble, and there would eventually come a day when he became the subject of suppression and entertainment.

Just as he approached the water goddess residence, the hunchbacked old man unexpectedly smiled and said, ”Being a biased mediator and offering false reasoning is also seeking death.”

The water god in black could only descend and stand on the surface of the Fine Wine River.

A lithe woman in graceful palatial robes rose from the water and said with a cold chuckle, ”Downtrodden Mountain is relying on martial prowess to provoke the Fine Wine River? I’ll definitely report these actions to the Great Li Empire’s Ministry of Rites.”

Zhu Lian retrieved a first-grade Peace and Safety Tablet of the Great Li Empire and hung it at his waist. He nodded and replied with a smile, ”Okay, I’ll give you this opportunity, lest your colleague from the Rushing Tranquil River feels like you’re all bluff and bluster.”

The water goddess’s expression changed drastically when she saw the genuine first-grade Peace and Safety Tablet. She was extremely hesitant and was just about to grit her teeth and lower her head. She would analyze the situation and come up with a scheme later... To her surprise, however, a fist had already arrived.

This punch directly sent her to the depths of the Fine Wine River.

Not only was her godly body shaking, but there were even wisps of golden blood flowing from her mouth.

Meanwhile, a majestic fist intent erupted from the body of the skinny and hunchbacked old man as he surprisingly sliced through the water like an immortal using a water-repelling mystical ability, after which he landed on the riverbed nearby.

He chuckled and said, ”Steward Zhu Lian from Downtrodden Mountain is challenging the water goddess residence of the Fine Wine River to a fist duel today. Please forgive my rudeness.”

He took a step back, then several more gentle steps, his back hunching more as he said slowly, ”My fists don’t speak reason and only deal in life and death.”

Standing on top of the river far away from the underwater battlefield, the river god of the Rushing Tranquil River frowned deeply with a solemn expression.

The martial arts grandmaster at the bottom of the river was more than just a simple Far Roaming Tier martial artist.

His fist intent was so boundless that it instantly suppressed the water fortune of the Fine Wine River.

This was an unfathomable aura of overwhelming suppression!

His punch split apart the great river.

Zhu Lian reached forward and grabbed the neck of the profusely bleeding woman in palatial robes before plummeting back into the churning river.

The old man glanced at the river god of the Rushing Tranquil River, and the latter immediately cupped his fists and said, ”Please feel free to visit the water goddess shrine of the Fine Wine River, Senior.”

Zhu Lian smiled and replied, ”I’ve purchased and sold books to Esteemed River God more than a few times, and Downtrodden Mountain remembers all of this. I was only bluffing just then, so please don’t hold it against me, Esteemed River God.”

The river god of the Rushing Tranquil River smiled bitterly and nodded in response.

Over at the water goddess shrine, the elderly shrine attendant saw the old man fly over from a distance, holding the severely wounded water goddess in his hand.

The old woman was scared out of her wits, and she hurriedly channeled her measly mystical power to use an illusion technique. At the same time, she immediately shut the gates of the shrine, lest the worshipers inside witness this scene.

Things had already become very noisy in the water goddess shrine before. The worshipers weren’t blind, and they had all seen the Dragon King Basket hovering above the shrine. The old woman had purposely left the shrine gates open at the time, but she had stopped the worshipers from leaving, instead having them crowd around to enjoy the show.

Zhu Lian landed on the ground and casually tossed the river goddess beside the old woman’s feet. He then walked over and stood between Pei Qian and Chen Lingjun, placing a hand on each of their heads and saying with a smile, ”Very well done.”

Pei Qian swatted the old cook’s hand away.

Chen Lingjun retracted the Dragon King Basket that was blotting out heaven and earth.

Zhu Lian walked forward and placed a foot on the head of the water goddess who was barely alive after facing his punch. He then looked at the elderly shrine attendant standing at the entrance of the shrine and said with a smile, ”Old woman, your appearance is ugly, and your heart is rotten, so why don’t you drag the worshipers over to face this danger for you? Are you still thinking about ruining the reputation of Downtrodden Mountain? It’s not working out, is it?”

Zhu Lian increased the force underfoot, directly stomping half of the water goddess’s head into the ground. ”Alright, let’s leave it at this. Remember to apologize and offer compensation, okay? It doesn’t matter if you don’t come in person, and that can even save us some tea money, but the immortal coins of the Fine Wine River must arrive. Downtrodden Mountain is a small mountain, and we’re so poor that we can barely afford to eat.”

He then turned around and asked, ”Do you want to feel more satisfied, or do you want to be more tolerant and leave some bridges unburned?”

Pei Qian waved her hiking pole around and asked in confusion, ”What do you mean?”

”You’ll understand when your Big Sister Xiuxiu returns,” Zhu Lian replied with a smile.

”Oh, then an apology will be enough,” Pei Qian said.

Zhu Lian looked down at the water goddess who was playing dead even though she was genuinely on the verge of death. He compressed his voice to a thread and said with a chuckle, ”Your fortune is quite good, and you should be glad that you came across Downtrodden Mountain instead of someone else. Otherwise, to say nothing of this water goddess shrine, even the Fine Wine River might have ceased to exist. I’ve already given you the life-saving technique, so go figure it out yourself.”

After dealing with this matter, Zhu Lian left together with Pei Qian and Chen Lingjun, with the three of them walking leisurely along the riverbank.

Zhu Lian rubbed his wrist and remarked with emotion, ”That wasn’t satisfying enough. If all of the deities are like this, then Yuan Bao’s proposed method would indeed be correct. Thankfully, however, that isn’t the case.”

”Fighting and killing all the time... How unseemly,” Pei Qian grumbled. ”Old Cook, what did that stupidly naive Yuan Bao say again? She’s quite tall, so why is she always so muddleheaded?”

”I’ll tell you after we return home,” Zhu Lian replied with a smile.

Pei Qian slammed her hiking pole into the gloomy Chen Lingjun’s head, and even though there were only slivers of sword intent remaining, Chen Lingjun convulsed and almost collapsed to the ground.

He swayed back and forth for a long time before finally clutching his head and hollering, ”What the hell was that for, Pei Qian?!”

Pei Qian faltered for a moment before hurriedly apologizing to him, explaining that her hiking pole was acting very strangely today. Seeing that Chen Lingjun didn’t become angry, she secretly praised his magnanimity in her mind before laughing loudly and saying, ”You did very well today, Chen Lingjun. I’ve erased all seventy-two records of you stealing my roasted seeds from my account book. I’ve erased all of them!”

Seventy-two records in her account book...

All for the sake of stealing some roasted seeds...

Chen Lingjun grimaced upon hearing this. He surprisingly squeezed out a smile after suffering a blow to the head, saying, ”Why, thank you.”

Pei Qian started hopping forward as she exclaimed, ”It’s time to snack on roasted seeds with Mili!”

”Don’t forget about that, Pei Qian,” Zhu Lian said as a reminder.

Pei Qian unleashed her Deranged Demon Sword Technique, purposely scaring Chen Lingjun from time to time as she replied, ”I got it. I’ll remember to tell Little Mili.”

”Old Cook, I’m planning to go to the Northern Complete Reed Continent,” Chen Lingjun said.

”Don’t return too late,” Zhu Lian replied with a nod.

————

Ruan Qiong remained completely focused on forging swords after returning to the Dragon Spring Sword Sect from the capital of the Great Li Empire.

Everyone had signed a contract in the imperial study, and if someone dared to leak the meeting and suffered a backlash from the vow, the imperial court of the Great Li Empire would execute their entire clan.

This didn’t worry Ruan Qiong at all, given that he was already an ally of the Great Li Empire.

He still didn’t concern himself with the matters of the Dragon Spring Sword Sect, and he handed all of these matters to Dong Gu, Xu Xiaoqiao, and his other direct disciples to deal with, regardless of how major or minor they were.

At the same time, he gradually pushed away the responsibility of maintaining the relationships with the imperial court of the Great Li Empire, as well as the other immortal forces and cultivators. After cultivating in Dragonspine Mountain for several years, his daughter, Ruan Xiu, had quietly left the mountain and traveled north, making her way to the new jurisdiction of the Dragon Spring Sword Sect. She thankfully hadn’t gotten into a fight this time, and she had reached a harmonious deal with the mountain god of the former Central Mountain. This allowed Ruan Qiong to feel much more at ease.

Right now, the Dragon Spring Sword Sect was facing a very awkward situation of having more land than they could manage.

Indeed, as a sect-level force, the Dragon Spring Sword Sect’s ancestral hall had far too few direct disciples.

Even though the ancestral hall had slowly recruited three groups of disciples, each group was only small, so the overall number of disciples was still very lacking.

Because of this, Ruan Qiong felt like there was nothing to complain about when the Great Li Empire handed the territory of the fallen Luminous Vermilion Empire to Sun Scorch Mountain. If his sect wasn’t capable enough to win this fatty meat, then it should shut up and eat the pickled vegetables in its own bowl as the fatty meat fell into someone else’s bowl.

In any case, the Great Li Empire had purposely softened the weight of this decision by giving the Dragon Spring Sword Sect a large portion of the former Central Mountain’s territory in advance.

Moreover, giving them territory near the capital was also a reflection of the young emperor’s attitude, lest the officials in the imperial court overthink things and mistakenly reach the conclusion that the Dragon Spring Sword Sect had already been pushed aside, with Sun Scorch Mountain replacing it as the future number one sword sect of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent.

Of course, granting the Dragon Spring Sword Sect this extra territory would also absolve the Great Li Empire of any accusations that they were pulling the ladder up behind them.

From the late emperor to the current emperor, and from the time when Ruan Qiong had overseen the Jewel Small World until now, the imperial court of the Great Li Empire had treated him extremely well in every single regard.

Most importantly, Ruan Qiong himself was unwilling to recruit disciples. He wouldn’t recruit those with characters not up to his standards, regardless of how prodigious they were with the sword. These people would naturally be accepted by other forces, and Ruan Qiong couldn’t care less even if they joined Sun Scorch Mountain, which had hopes of becoming the next sword sect.

Half of Ruan Qiong’s twelve unofficial disciples had already left, with an innate sword talent choosing to join Sun Scorch Mountain. This person had already become a direct disciple of Sun Scorch Mountain’s ancestral hall, and it was said that the old ancestor of some mountain had even taken them as a closing disciple.

Of course, Ruan Qiong still had very good relationships with other mighty figures, and this had truly been an eye-opener for Emperor Song He.

During the meeting in the imperial study before, the Divine Edict Sect’s Qi Zhen, the Wind Snow Temple’s old ancestor, True Martial Mountain’s disciplinary elder, the True Realm Sect’s Liu Laocheng, the four mountain gods including Wei Bo and Jin Qing, and the clan leader of Light Breeze City’s Xu Clan had all enjoyed conversations with Ruan Qiong. Not only that, but they had actively sought Ruan Qiong out to speak with him. At the very least, they had actively greeted him and adhered to all the necessary etiquette.

Ruan Qiong was the only person who had enjoyed such treatment in the imperial study.

It was true that Ruan Qiong wasn’t a good speaker, but it was very difficult for those in the mountains to conceal their true character as time went on.

Those who were acquainted with Ruan Qiong didn’t have a single bad word to say about him, and most were willing to become close friends with him. As for those who weren’t acquainted with Ruan Qiong, they would still be willing to put in a good word for this number one swordsmith of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, regardless of whether they were talking about the past Ruan Qiong from the Wind Snow Temple or the current Sect Leader Ruan Qiong of the Dragon Spring Sword Sect.

Ruan Qiong showed himself in a rare display today, and he called all of his first-generation disciples over to eat together.

Dong Gu, the opening disciple recorded in the genealogical records of the Dragon Spring Sword Sect’s ancestral hall, had already advanced to the Golden Core Tier and established his own peak several years ago. However, the most awkward thing about Dong Gu was the fact that he wasn’t a sword cultivator. Moreover, his background was also very difficult to talk about, and there were already gossip and rumors starting to spread through some immortal forces and the imperial court of the Great Li Empire.

Xu Xiaoqiao had initially been a sword cultivator at the Wind Snow Temple, and she had sought Ruan Qiong out after making a huge mistake and being expelled from the immortal force. It was only after severing the thumb of her right hand — her sword-wielding hand — that she had become a direct disciple of Ruan Qiong.

Xie Ling was a sword cultivator from Peach Leaf Alley who had nurtured a bonded flying sword a long time ago, and not only that, but he had also received a celestial tool from Lu Chen as well as two valuable treasures from his old ancestor, Xie Shi. One was called Peach Leaf, and it was a relic from a deceased sword immortal from the Northern Complete Reed Continent that Xie Ling had already performed advanced refinement on and transformed into a bonded item. The other was an extremely high-grade Sword Nurturing Gourd named Full Moon.

The four of them were each sitting on a bench.

Ruan Xiu was still in the territory of the former Central Mountain, so Ruan Qiong didn’t have the chance to put food in anyone else’s bowl.

”Dong Gu, you said to me before that you would strive to advance to the Nascent Tier within one hundred years?” Ruan Qiong asked.

Dong Gu hurriedly put down his bowl and chopsticks before wiping his mouth and replying, ”That’s correct, Master.”

”Then don’t let the cultivation speed of other people affect your mental state, making you feel like you need to advance to the Nascent Tier as soon as possible,” Ruan Qiong said.

”Cultivating and attaining Dao is for your own sake. Even though you’re from the Dragon Spring Sword Sect, what does it matter if you’re not a sword cultivator? So what if others laugh at you and slander you? And so what if Xu Xiaoqiao and Xie Ling surpass you in the future? Will you lose your status as the opening disciple of the Dragon Spring Sword Sect because of these things? Since when has seniority in the Dragon Spring Sword Sect been determined by one’s strength? Have I not taught you these things before? Or did you already forget?”

Ruan Qiong shot a glance at Dong Gu before saying, ”Keep eating.”

Dong Gu immediately picked up his chopsticks.

Ruan Qiong then turned to his two other disciples and said, ”Xu Xiaoqiao, Xie Ling, the two of you can head to the territory of the former Central Mountain after you finish eating. If Xiuxiu is unwilling to return, even after you persuade her, then just let her be.”

Xu Xiaoqiao nodded in response.

”Remember to buy some extra desserts from Dragon Riding Alley’s pastry shop,” Ruan Qiong suddenly added.

A rare smile appeared on the aloof Xu Xiaoqiao’s face.

Xie Ling could barely conceal his delight. He was finally able to see Big Sister Xiuxiu again.

The two sword cultivators from the Dragon Spring Sword Sect stepped onto their swords and flew to the small town in the Locust Yellow County. After arriving at the pastry shop, Xu Xiaoqiao purchased a few of each dessert, making sure to purchase the most peach cakes. In fact, there were two large packs of just peach cakes.

The shopkeeper was still Shi Rou, and she couldn’t help but feel a bit tense and reserved when she saw Xu Xiaoqiao and Xie Ling, especially since the latter had a very impressive background.

Upon hearing that these desserts were for Ruan Xiu, Shi Rou wanted to refuse their payment.

After all, Shi Rou had a very close relationship with Xiuxiu. It was just that they hadn’t seen each other for several years.

”Thank you for your kindness, Shopkeeper Shi, but it’s only right for us to pay,” Xie Ling said with a faint smile.

Shi Rou didn’t dare to refuse their payment again. In any case, it would indeed be inappropriate for her to do so with her current status and appearance.

After purchasing the desserts, Xu Xiaoqiao and Xie Ling made their way to the new territory of the Dragon Spring Sword Sect.

As they soared above the sea of clouds, Xie Ling smiled and asked, ”Second Senior Sister, I’ve heard that a small spirit is always accompanying Big Sister Xiuxiu now?”

Xu Xiaoqiao nodded in affirmation.

Seeing this, Xie Ling didn’t ask anything else.