Chapter 31#

He quickly composed his expression and turned with a light laugh: “Miss Song, the Heavenly Pillars of the East Cang Sea have collapsed, and the turbid energy of thousands of years has no suppressing object. The coastal cities of the four seas are the most chaotic places today. As one of them, Zhaoshui City faces internal troubles and external threats. Until the sword array is completed, this place will not know peace for a single day. If you have lived in your sect for a long time and are not suited to this place, please reconsider.”

He actually started by asking her to leave.

As soon as these words were spoken, the smiles on the faces of the other three people all paused.

Qin Wei turned back and made eyes at him.

An Wuxue held the array classics in his hand, his smile remaining but not reaching his eyes.

He slowly closed the book, deliberately ignoring Qin Wei’s “reminder.”

His junior brother was busy sealing demons everywhere, while he assisted the two realms and Luoyue. Although he was ruthless in front of outsiders, he didn’t often show a cold face to those close to him.

But now, the sword array that needed to be dropped in Zhaoshui City was of the utmost importance. He could distinguish between public and private matters, so his words were quite blunt.

Lou Shuiming stepped forward slightly and pulled Song Wu behind him.

“Chief…”

“Shuiming,” he interrupted the other, “you and I are well-acquainted; that’s why I’m speaking frankly with you. I have no ill will. If Miss Song intends to eliminate demons, why not first go to the four directions to seal demons and dispel turbid energy to temper her spirit?”

After her initial daze, Song Wu seemed slightly defiant.

Her brows twitched, and she actually pushed aside Lou Shuiming, who was standing in the middle. She stepped forward and said in confusion, “I have been the most talented in my sect since childhood. In terms of cultivation, although I cannot match the Chief’s exquisite jade bones, I am at least at the Tribulation stage. What’s wrong with having a high spirit? My helping Zhaoshui, even if it’s not exactly providing help in time of need, can at least be considered icing on the cake, right?”

“On my way to Zhaoshui City, I even heard someone say that Chief An not only kills demonic cultivators but even executes immortal cultivators in front of the Luoyue mountain gate. His killing intent is too heavy, he is heartless and emotionless, and he is arbitrary. But my senior brother told me that those were false rumors spread by outsiders, that the Chief is a true gentleman and upright—how do I now feel that what the outsiders said is correct…”

This time even Qin Wei frowned.

He said displeasedly, “Miss Song, Ah Xue is planning for the two realms. It’s one thing for you to speak ill of him, but why say it to his face?”

An Wuxue: “…”

He knew Qin Wei’s words were a deliberate joke to ease the atmosphere, so he could only give a helpless smile.

Lou Shuiming rubbed his brow helplessly and let out a sigh: “Junior Sister, since the Chief said it wasn’t directed at you and hasn’t spoken harshly to you, you shouldn’t speak like that.”

Caught in the middle and in a difficult position, he said to An Wuxue, “Junior Sister was protected within the sect by Master when the immortal disaster first began and hasn’t seen the world’s wickedness. Her temperament is a bit simple. Her coming down the mountain this time is also because she has reached the Tribulation stage and wants to lend me a hand. I ask the Chief not to take it to heart.”

Song Wu gave a “hmpf” and turned her head away.

Lou Shuiming added, “Junior Sister is kind-hearted, and I will also teach her about the world. Could the Chief allow her to stay?”

An Wuxue pondered for a moment.

Lou Shuiming and Qin Wei were both waiting for him to speak.

He let out a sigh: “I know Miss Song has good intentions, I’m just worried that she’s inexperienced… fine.”

He paused, feeling that his firmness truly lacked a clear reason.

“It was indeed a bit abrupt of me. Please forgive what I said just now.”

He put on a smile again and said to Song Wu, “Miss Song is Shuiming’s junior sister. In the future in Zhaoshui, please discuss everything with Shuiming.” This was a concession to allow her to stay.

Song Wu had come happily, but An Wuxue’s cold water had dampened her interest in small talk.

She grumbled, “So strange…”

She turned and left.

“Junior Sister!”

Lou Shuiming watched her run off, then turned back to look at An Wuxue: “Chief, I…”

Lord Lou was a gentleman whom every cultivator in Zhaoshui City praised. Rarely encountering such a sudden and awkward moment, he looked left and right, somewhat at a loss.

An Wuxue found him amusing in this state and softened his tone: “I’m here studying arrays; there’s nothing important. If you have something to do, there’s no need to stay here.”

Lou Shuiming immediately turned and chased after the direction Song Wu had left.

The two left just like that, and the matter of Song Wu staying in Zhaoshui City was settled.

Only then did Qin Wei speak up: “I didn’t even dare to speak just now. My goodness, Senior Brother An, Chief An, my Ah Xue—this Miss Song is a Tribulation-stage cultivator. Even if she came to Zhaoshui alone, most of the monsters on the road couldn’t do anything to her. Yet Shuiming was still in such a hurry to personally pick her up, fearing some accident. Can’t you see that Shuiming likes her?”

“I practice the Path of Mundane Life,” he flipped through the array book, head lowered, and said, “not my junior brother’s Heartless Path…”

How could he not see human feelings?

Thinking of Xie Zhefeng, his hand flipping the pages paused.

A few days ago, turbid energy surged in the Far North. At this time… his junior brother should be eliminating demons in the Far North, right?

The only time he had been to the Far North was to prepare dharma robes for his junior brother. After his junior brother ascended to the throne, he didn’t seem to have worn them…

Qin Wei’s words entered his ears: “Then why did you not want Song Wu to stay the moment you met her? She’s only a bit younger than us and is already at the early stage of the Tribulation. Zhaoshui City has no reason to reject a Tribulation-stage immortal cultivator who is well-known and exceptionally talented.”

Listening to Qin Wei’s words, An Wuxue’s thoughts were still on the Far North. Some time ago, his junior brother had sent him a voice transmission, mentioning in a few words that there were several Tribulation-stage demonic cultivators in the Far North and that he was injured during the battle, but he didn’t specify how serious the injury was. But his junior brother was not good at expressing himself; if he said he was injured, it definitely wasn’t a minor one…

He put down the book, thinking that he shouldn’t have thought of Xie Zhefeng. Now his mind was filled with concern for his junior brother’s safety in the Far North. His heart was in turmoil, and he couldn’t even continue reading the array.

He turned his head and said to Qin Wei, “Precisely because she is exceptionally talented.”

“Huh?”

“Inexperienced, yet possessing such high natural talent…”

“Yeah.”

“Liao Liao came to Luoyue to learn arts when she was young and told me a story familiar to both cultivators and mortals in Beiming City.”

“She said that thousands of years ago, Beiming once produced a genius of the Path of Mundane Life. This person had peerless talent and surpassed all the elders in his family while still a youth. He was proficient in various artifacts and incantations, and even the City Lord of Beiming at the time said he would surely be among those who ascend to immortality in the future. Flowers bloomed, and the path to immortality was wide.”

“But his talent was too high—so high that every day, besides cultivating, whatever he did seemed like a waste of time. His teachers wished he would meditate even in his dreams, and his friends and relatives dared not disturb him in the slightest. He had never stepped out of Beiming City. While mortals were still in their prime, he was already at the peak of the Great Success stage, half a step into the Tribulation stage. Before breaking through to the Tribulation stage, the youth suddenly realized—he had not yet forged his natal sword. He had been cultivating, cultivating, and cultivating since childhood, and others felt that none of the famous swords in Beiming City were worthy of him. He actually didn’t have a sword of his own even as he approached the Tribulation stage.”

“Thinking about this, he went alone to the cliff by the Dark Sea to practice his sword. The sword light was sharp, echoing into the sea abyss, and actually attracted a demonic cultivator who was also peerlessly talented.”

At that time, the immortal disaster had not yet begun, and there were very few demonic cultivators in the two realms. The word “demon” still referred to non-human beings who cultivated toward immortality, like Jiang Qing’s kind.

“The youth and the demonic cultivator were like old friends at first sight, and he mentioned his desire to find a natal sword worthy of him.”

Qin Wei sensed something wrong at this point: “What do you mean by ‘worthy’? Between a cultivator and a sword, mutual compatibility is what makes them suitable. Where does the idea of a sword being worthy of a cultivator, or a cultivator being worthy of a sword, come from?”

An Wuxue nodded slightly: “But that demonic cultivator only thought the youth was inexperienced and possessed such high talent that it was normal for him to be arrogant. With a heart of pure sincerity, the demonic cultivator told the youth that its own true body was an indestructible and rare object in this world. Using it as a base to forge a spiritual sword would surely surpass many famous swords in Beiming City. However, this sword and the demonic cultivator would inevitably have an inseparable connection. The demonic cultivator would be like a sword spirit, accompanying the youth on his path to immortality from then on.”

“The youth was not only unafraid but very happy, saying to it: ‘In that case, wouldn’t I be able to ascend to immortality with you?’ The demonic cultivator was delighted.”

It sounded like a beautiful tale.

Qin Wei was already starting to think: “A story from thousands of years ago… we should have known all those immortals before they fell. Why don’t I remember Beiming City having such an immortal of the Path of Mundane Life?”

“He didn’t later ascend through the Path of Mundane Life.”

“What?”

“That youth obtained the spiritual sword forged from the demonic cultivator’s true body. With the help of the demonic cultivator, he broke through the Tribulation stage with ease. After over a hundred years, he touched the realm of half a step into immortality. But suddenly, he didn’t know how to break through—he had never encountered a bottleneck in his life. The only time he faced a bottleneck was that final step to immortality.”

“Isn’t that normal? Don’t thousands of living beings, like mayflies, all stop at this step?”

An Wuxue sighed leisurely: “You think it’s normal, and I think it’s normal, because the hardships we have encountered are not limited to this one step. But for the youth in the story, his life had been smooth sailing. Whatever he wanted to do, he could do; whatever he wanted to learn, he could learn. He had never traveled far or seen the four seas. He never knew what ‘difficulty’ or ‘hardship’ meant.”

“He was unable to ascend. He visited many immortals and finally learned that it was because his talent was too high and he had been cultivating constantly, confined within Beiming. He hadn’t seen the world of living beings, and the Dao heart required for the Path of Mundane Life was not smooth, so naturally, his path to immortality was obstructed.”

Among immortal cultivators, those who practice the Heartless Path are very few. Most follow the Path of Mundane Life, seeing the world of living beings. After all, the world is complex, and it is difficult to discard all thoughts, while it is easier to adapt to the complexity.

Before that youth entered the path, no one knew he was actually more suited for the Heartless Path. Naturally, they helped him choose the Path of Mundane Life.

Qin Wei said, “This path was indeed the wrong choice. Actually, this youth should have practiced the Heartless Path—having no heart, no feelings, no desires, and no thoughts, yet seeing all living beings. But since the wrong path was chosen, then let go of everything, enter the world to cultivate, see all living beings, and when his Dao heart catches up to his realm, he can naturally ascend to immortality.”

An Wuxue shook his head: “But he didn’t. The youth’s life was too smooth. He didn’t know that there were too many people in this world facing difficulties far greater than his, and he didn’t know that the bottleneck he faced could be considered simple. He didn’t even want to wait for the time it would take to enter the world and cultivate to see all living beings.”

“He was too smart, too talented, and immediately thought of another path—breaking his path and re-cultivating. He already had the experience of cultivating from the Fasting stage to the Tribulation stage, so re-cultivating wouldn’t take long at all. And his Dao heart was inherently born for the Heartless Path. If he broke the Mundane Path and entered the Heartless Path, he could ascend to immortality in an instant.”

Qin Wei’s cheerful expression suddenly froze: “But the Heartless Path requires one to have no attachments. He has a natal sword linked to his thoughts…”

A natal sword has a spirit, and what it linked to was the demonic cultivator whose karma was connected to the youth.

With such a natal sword, it was impossible to enter the Heartless Path.

As soon as Qin Wei thought about it, he realized something and his face immediately changed: “Could it be that he…”

“The youth resolutely took that natal sword to the cliff where he first met the demonic cultivator—he personally broke the sword and, at the place where the karma began, killed the demonic cultivator who had once promised to ascend to immortality with him.”

“At that time, the sky was covered with dark clouds, the tides of the Dark Sea were surging, and there seemed to be a continuous flow of blood in the water abyss. But that youth simply threw the broken sword onto the sea cliff and turned to leave.”

The story ended there, with nothing else.

An Wuxue had already heard Shangguan Liao Liao tell this story, so now he was just retweeting it without any particular sadness.

But Qin Wei sighed for a long time, murmuring to himself, “That demonic cultivator truly trusted the wrong person… but there is no such immortal in Beiming either?”

“The story has no sequel. Liao Liao said maybe after the youth broke his path and re-cultivated, he didn’t stay in Beiming but joined another immortal sect suited for the Heartless Path. Or maybe it’s just a story meant to warn people.”

As they spoke, a talisman flew into the courtyard of the City Lord’s Mansion and was delivered to An Wuxue.

It seemed that turbid energy had arisen in another place.

An Wuxue put away the array book, hurriedly stood up, and said, “When Song Wu followed Shuiming in just now, I felt she was a bit arrogant. It wasn’t really directed at anything; I just wanted to persuade her to go and gain some experience first. Zhaoshui City is more dangerous than anywhere else in the two realms right now, and Miss Song has come to Zhaoshui just after entering the world…”

“You also understand the current situation of Zhaoshui; we are too busy to look after ourselves… Ah, maybe I’m just worrying unnecessarily and instead offended Shuiming and Miss Song.”

“Turbid energy suddenly appeared outside the city; I’ll go take a look.”

Regarding the matter of turbid energy, Qin Wei didn’t dare to delay. They said no more, performed a hand seal, and left.

The next day, An Wuxue sent a disciple to give Lou Shuiming a precious spiritual hairpin as an apology.

Lou Shuiming brought his junior sister to pay a visit. Song Wu was not an unreasonable person either. Wearing the spiritual hairpin, she said, “My words clashed with Chief An yesterday; I was rash.”

He said, “It was my slip of the tongue first; it should be me apologizing.”

And so the matter passed.

After that day, Song Wu remained in Zhaoshui City.