Chapter 54: Renowned Under Heaven
Chapter 54: Renowned Under Heaven
In the South, the Nine Peak Mountain Range, Sword Hut.
This mountain range is renowned across the land, and many swordsmen dream of reaching its peak to behold the majestic view. However, the sacred place they envision is surprisingly simple.
On the lush mountain top, a humble thatched hut stands, as plain as a cowshed. Inside, Jian Wudao sits quietly. The furnishings are minimal: a rough wooden desk and a few stacks of books.
The desk is extremely rough, as if it was hastily carved from a tree stump. Its only virtue is its flatness, perfectly flat.
At this moment, incense is burning in a small censer on the desk, emitting a gentle fragrance. Jian Wudao, looking like an octogenarian with white hair and beard, but with a rosy complexion like a child, sits with his eyes closed.
In his hand, he holds a scroll titled "Basic Explanations of the Sword Dao."
His other hand gently taps on his knee, as if counting or pondering something.
"Master."
Suddenly, a voice calls out from outside the hut.
Jian Wudao opens his eyes to see a young man in a white robe bounding into the Sword Hut. A golden light flashes in his palm, forming a floating Gold Paper.
"Master, a new Grandmaster has appeared on the Merit Board!"
He points to the last name on the Gold Paper: "Chong Er. What a strange name. I wonder which sect this Grandmaster belongs to. They actually destroyed a Nether Realm Extinction River. This name doesn't seem to belong to the Mourning River Office."
Jian Wudao's expression remains calm and indifferent. "What does this have to do with you?"
"Well, I'm just curious."
The young man, knowing his master's temperament, smiles and says, "Those old Grandmasters either guard their sects and dare not take risks, or they practice in seclusion to achieve the Three Immortalities and extend their lives. They wouldn't do something so unprofitable. It must be a newly ascended Grandmaster. I want to spar with them."
"Want to go down the mountain again?"
Jian Wudao's face is expressionless as he directly exposes the young man's true thoughts: "To practice the sword, you must endure the loneliness! There are millions of swordsmen in the world. If you want to stand out with your three-foot sword, you must practice a thousand times, ten thousand times more than they do. If you focused more on your sword, you would have already reached the Three Immortalities."
You really dare to say that, I can't even bear to listen... the young man mutters to himself. Achieving the Three Immortalities is no easy task, just thinking about it is daunting.
He mumbles, "Master, if I could spar with more Grandmasters, I could certainly make further progress..."
"Hmph, when I reached the Grandmaster realm, I secluded myself for three years to comprehend the sword. When I emerged, I had achieved the Three Immortalities. I didn't need to spar with others."
Jian Wudao snorts, knowing his third disciple's mixed thoughts. He can't help but think of another disciple, his expression softening slightly:
"How is your teaching of your little junior sister going?"
"Little junior sister is almost at the Divine Wanderer Realm. She has condensed her soul 180 times. Tsk, tsk, she's much stronger than I was at her age. Master, you really do favor her!" The young man says with a smile, though his words are tinged with a hint of jealousy.
Jian Wudao rolls his eyes: "If you could understand the Sword Heart within a year of entering the sect, I would be willing to go to the Qian Dao Palace to obtain the True Person Soul Inheritance for you."
"I don't want Master to beg for anything."
"Besides, little junior sister is devoted to the sword. She will eventually comprehend the sword spirit. I can't compare to her."
The young man grins: "Speaking of which, little junior sister should thank Master a lot. Thanks to you taking her out of the Divine General Manor, she no longer has to inherit the Li Family's Heroic Souls, which would only allow her to condense her soul 80 times. While that's good, it's only at our level. To reach the super-first-class level, comparable to the imperial family, would be much harder."
"And I've heard that the Soul Continuation in the Divine General Manor has many restrictions..."
"Silence!" Jian Wudao barks.
The young man was taken aback and quickly closed his mouth.
"Li Family has been guarding the Border Pass for years, slaying countless Demons. How can you talk behind their back?" Jian Wudao scolded coldly.
The young man realized his mistake and scratched his head. "Disciple was wrong. I do respect the Li Family."
"Hmph, if you haven’t mastered the *Moonless Night* to its Ultimate level within three months, be prepared to go to Sword Cliff."
Jian Wudao added coldly, "And stop reading that Mourning River household register. The affairs of the Mourning River are none of your concern. They are the responsibility of the Tianzhao Divine General Manor. Once you reach the Three Immortalities, I’ll naturally let you leave the mountain. Otherwise, with your current level, if you go down the mountain to establish a sect and someone challenges you, it will be my reputation that suffers!"
The young man left with a sullen expression, not daring to linger.
……
……
"New names on the Merit Board?"
In a certain sect, someone happened to be flipping through the Merit Board and immediately noticed the new name.
"A hundred contributions, all at once. Did someone destroy an entire Nether Realm Extinction River? Which Master has emerged?"
……
"Chong Er, what a strange name. Go and investigate, see which sect’s Master it is, and see if we can recruit them."
In a tall building in a certain city, someone gave an order.
……
In a courtyard of the Tianzhao Divine General Manor in Yongzhou.
"Miss, a new name has appeared on the Merit Board, it’s called Chong Er. What a strange name."
"Do not speak rashly. Anyone willing to resolve the disaster of the Mourning River is a hero."
"Xiaotao understands, but this name really does sound a bit strange..."
The woman in silk gauze glanced at her young maidservant, who had been with her since childhood. "What do you know? Go and listen outside Father’s room and see if you can find out who they are. If we can invite them, offer them the position of Deputy Supervisor."
"Yes, Xiaotao will go right away."
Once the maidservant ran off, the woman looked out into the courtyard, a smile slowly spreading across her lips. She casually picked up a branch and traced two characters in the ground:
Wind and Moon.
"Interesting..."
……
……
In the main hall of the Black and White Hall at Tan Palace Academy.
Song Yufeng surreptitiously took out a small tea packet from his sleeve, just about to pour it into his cup to brew some tea, when he suddenly saw several elders hurrying over. His heart skipped a beat:
"Old Huang? Not possible, did they find out so quickly? And they brought others with them?"
He quickly covered the cup and maintained a calm and composed expression.
"Palace Master!"
The leading elder, Huang Lica, looked agitated.
Song Yufeng’s face twitched slightly, and he cleared his throat. "Old Huang, don’t get so worked up. It’s just a little bit..."
"Palace Master, the Fengshan Mourning River has disappeared!"
Huang Lica said excitedly. "Elder Ni just investigated and found that the Main Shrine has vanished. It only disappears immediately if it’s permanently cleared. Otherwise, the Shrine would break down into mud on the spot."
"What?"
Song Yufeng was taken aback, and his heart immediately relaxed. So they weren’t here to accuse him... Wait, the Fengshan Mourning River was cleared? Who did it?
"What happened? Explain clearly. Who did it?" Song Yufeng asked.
"We don’t know, we couldn’t find anyone."
Huang Lica shook his head. "But your granddaughter seems to have seen something."
"Yueyao?"
Song Yufeng was surprised and immediately said, "Bring her in quickly."
"She’s already waiting outside." Huang Lica immediately turned and gestured, and soon, two little girls, accompanied by an elder, walked in. They were Song Yueyao and Lin Feifei, who had been on the mossy ground.
The two girls had rushed to the Main Shrine upon hearing the commotion and witnessed the shocking sight of the Shrine disappearing.
"Who cleared it?" Song Yufeng immediately asked.
Lin Feifei glanced at her friend. Song Yueyao remained calm and replied, "Reporting to Palace Master, it seems to be an outer court disciple. Feifei and I were practicing nearby and only saw the person's profile. It’s not someone I recognize."
"You don’t know many people, always focused on practicing..." Song Yufeng muttered to himself, then turned to Lin Feifei, "You, did you see clearly?"
"Reporting to Palace Master, I also only saw a profile", Lin Feifei quickly added, "But if I see them again, I can definitely recognize them."
Song Yufeng nodded slightly, "Alright, then go and identify them. See who did it. This is a good deed, and they deserve a great reward!"
"Should we inform the Mourning River Office?" Huang Lica asked.
"The Mourning River Office is already poor enough. We don’t need to claim the royal rewards. Clearing the Mourning River is everyone’s responsibility, and it’s also part of our duty. Fengshan was once a peaceful countryside, but it was invaded by the Mourning River. The entire village was massacred and enslaved..."
At this, Song Yufeng sighed and shook her head.
Huang Lica nodded, "I’ll take them to identify the person and inform them to come forward for the reward."
"Good." Song Yufeng nodded.
Huang Lica was about to leave with the two girls when she suddenly remembered something and turned back, "By the way, Palace Master, what were you about to say?"
"Hmm?" Song Yufeng asked in confusion, "Say what?"
Seeing his puzzled expression, Huang Lica thought she must have misunderstood and bowed slightly before leaving.
...
...
The academy announcement spread, not just to the outer four courts but also to the disciples practicing in the Black and White Hall.
Especially those in the Black and White Hall, who had all experienced the torture of the Fengshan Mourning River. Now, it had been cleared by someone?
"Who did it? Was it one of the elders?"
"Elders wouldn’t have the time, and even if they did, it wouldn’t be easy. I heard the requirements to clear each Mourning River are absurdly difficult to find."
"A reward of the Crimson Dawn Sword? That’s forged from meteoric iron, said to be invincible and capable of attacking Divine Souls!"
The disciples in the Black and White Hall were abuzz with discussion.
The outer four courts were also in an uproar, especially the Alpha Court, where those competing in the Martial Arts Rankings were stunned.
The Mourning River is gone?
Wasn’t it supposed to be the test for entering the Black and White Hall next year?
How is it gone now?
How will they enter the Black and White Hall then?
Compared to the Alpha Court, the other courts were just confused.
The Mourning River? What is that?
Clearly, their main task was to first break into the Alpha Court.
What the Mourning River was, had nothing to do with them. They didn’t have the qualifications to enter the Black and White Hall anyway.
"Yueyao, do you think that person is really an outer court disciple? I noticed the number of floral marks on their clothing. I remember it being that, but..."
In the forest, Lin Feifei and Song Yueyao walked side by side, heading to the outer court.
Lin Feifei’s face was uncertain. She had challenged the Fengshan Mourning River before, and it was extremely difficult. Once you entered the village, all the villagers would be alerted, and there were over a hundred Zhou Tian Realm practitioners.
If it turned into a prolonged battle, the Black-robed Scholar would also join in. Even with the power of the early Soul Succession Realm, it would be a perilous and challenging task.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
