Chapter 95: Small Temple
In the southwestern border region of Longquan County, the mountain range of Luopo Hill stood out like a lone banner, exceptionally conspicuous.
Following the rules, this group of people, upon approaching the Longquan border, chose to travel on foot rather than riding the wind or flying on swords. Afterwards, they would enter the mountains to survey the Dragon Ridge Mountain, which produced the Dragon-Slaying Platform—that would be the largest whetstone in the entire East Treasure Bottle Continent. Even if it were split into three, each piece alone would still hold that status.
For these four cultivators hailing from a military academy on the continent, trekking through mountains, lakes, and marshes was no hardship. After all, the military cultivators of Wind Snow Temple always valued tempering the body; this itself was a form of honing their cultivation, training both strength and mind.
When they spotted Master Ruan’s figure in the distance, they quickened their pace and proactively cupped their fists in salute to this senior of their sect. Ruan Qiong’s seniority within Wind Snow Temple was not particularly high, but his reputation was excellent. After establishing the renowned long-distance sword furnace that echoed across the north and south, he had successively forged over a dozen swords for fellow disciples, forming many beneficial bonds and karmic connections.
But what truly earned Ruan Qiong the collective recognition of the six lineages of Wind Snow Temple was a major incident. The Water Talisman Dynasty in the central part of East Treasure Bottle Continent was at its zenith, and the Great Ink Manor stood as the foremost immortal estate. A young ancestor of extraordinary talent had just broken through to become a Land Sword Immortal but lacked a suitable weapon. Upon hearing that Ruan Qiong’s sword-forging skills had reached the pinnacle, he personally visited Green Water Pool in Wind Snow Temple to request a sword from Ruan Qiong, promising immense rewards. However, Ruan Qiong had already agreed to forge a sword for a junior from Wenqing Peak, which would take several years. No matter how the arrogant sword immortal reasoned, Ruan Qiong only stated that his sword-forging operated on a first-come, first-served basis; he could forge a sword for Great Ink Manor for free, but only after the current sword was completed. The young sword immortal felt humiliated and, in a rage, attacked. At that time, Ruan Qiong was merely a Ninth Floor cultivator but never bowed despite severe injuries, earning fame from that battle.
Great Ink Manor paid an immeasurable price. Aside from that Land Sword Immortal being detained in Wind Snow Temple for fifty years as punishment, within just six years, one person from each of Wind Snow Temple’s six lineages went to challenge Great Ink Manor, beating it from the undisputed top sect of the Water Talisman Dynasty down to the bottom of second-rate powers. Even now, Great Ink Manor had yet to recover.
Ruan Qiong smiled and cupped his fists in return to the four. Wind Snow Temple had no cumbersome formalities; even juniors facing those ancestors with heaven-reaching cultivation used such simple etiquette.
After discussing matters concerning Dragon Ridge Mountain and the Great Li court’s general deployment in Longquan County, Ruan Qiong casually asked, “On Immortal Terrace, Wei Jin—did he travel north with you all this time?”
An old sword cultivator in white robes with a sword on his back smiled. “The sect transmitted a flying sword message midway. Uncle-Master Wei indeed went north this time, but he didn’t travel with us. I heard that Fairy He, as a representative of the Taoist school, entered this Pear Blossom Cave Heaven, so Uncle-Master Wei was willing to come and join the excitement. If nothing unexpected, he should have already met that Fairy He who returned to her sect.”
Ruan Qiong asked, “Has anyone among you seen Wei Jin?”
The four all shook their heads. “We have never seen his true appearance.”
The old sword bearer asked, “Master Ruan, you ask this—has something happened?”
Ruan Qiong smiled and waved his hand. “Just curious. If I remember correctly, Wei Jin is barely forty years old and has already firmly sat on the Tenth Floor realm. Immortal Terrace indeed needs someone to step up and carry the mantle of Ancestor Liu’s lineage.”
The five of them walked together on a secluded mountain path. The old sword bearer had the highest seniority and cultivation, while the other three would address Wei Jin as Uncle-Grandmaster Wei. The old man walked side by side with Master Ruan. Within Wind Snow Temple’s six lineages, Immortal Terrace had the thinnest karmic connections, almost reduced to a desolate scene of a single descendant passing down for generations in the secular world. Yet, coincidentally, Immortal Terrace had contributed the most to Wind Snow Temple over the past three hundred years. Therefore, Green Water Pool—where Master Ruan once belonged—and the Giant Salamander Ravine—where the old sword cultivator was from—both held sincere goodwill and expectations toward Immortal Terrace. Even though internal disputes existed among the six peaks of Wind Snow Temple, if Immortal Terrace, with its strict sect style and orderly transmission, were to completely vanish, it would certainly be bad news for every lineage of the temple.
Upon hearing this, the old man stroked his beard and chuckled. “Uncle-Master Wei is a peerless genius, elusive like a divine dragon who shows his head but not his tail. He has earned great fame in the martial world. Perhaps the next time we meet, he’ll be the youngest Upper Fifth Floor grandmaster in our East Treasure Bottle Continent.”
Ruan Qiong said softly, “A tall tree catches the wind. The more so, the more careful one must be.”
The old sword cultivator turned to look at Master Ruan’s solemn expression and immediately understood. He spoke in a low voice, “Once this matter is concluded, when we return to Wind Snow Temple, I will advise the sect leader to recall Uncle-Master Wei. No matter what, it would be best for him to wait until he successfully reaches the Upper Fifth Floor before traveling the world again.”
Ruan Qiong nodded. “This is a prudent view, as it should be. I believe Wei Jin, having roamed the martial world for many years and seen the treacherous hearts of men, will understand the sect’s good intentions.”
The old man hesitated, as if wanting to say something more.
Ruan Qiong shook his head. “In the end, whether Wei Jin is willing to return to Wind Snow Temple to cultivate is his own decision.”
Suddenly, Ruan Qiong looked toward the small town and cupped his fists. “Something has come up with my Xiu Xiu. I need to go and see. I won’t accompany you all any further.”
The old sword bearer raised an eyebrow, his body already brimming with killing intent. “Master Ruan, if it’s inconvenient for you to act, just give the word and leave it to me. Who dares bully our Xiu Xiu? Are they tired of living?!”
Ruan Qiong smiled knowingly. “It’s just a small matter.”
With that, Ruan Qiong rose into the air and vanished in an instant.
The other three from Wind Snow Temple were somewhat surprised, wondering when the old man had grown so fond of doting on Ruan Xiu. They knew that for over a decade, the old man had mostly traveled far with his sword and rarely stayed at the mountain, so he couldn’t be very familiar with the young girl—certainly far less than the three of them. But Ancestor Qin of the Giant Salamander Ravine had indeed taken a special interest in the girl early on.
The old sword cultivator kept his expression calm as he walked forward slowly, but in his mind, he kept replaying the private words spoken by his own lineage’s Ancestor Qin: “Wind Snow Temple’s temple is too small to contain Ruan Xiu.”
At the Thatched Cottage Shop, Ruan Qiong entered the shop and hesitated for a moment, not speaking to his daughter in the elegant language of East Treasure Bottle Continent. The women and young girls in the town, for the sake of business, had only learned some simple pleasantries to deal with outsiders, but one could never be too careful. So Ruan Qiong gently tapped the counter with his finger. The young girl looked up, puzzled. “Dad, why are you here? Aren’t you supposed to be off work from forging today?”
Ruan Qiong said softly, “Come out and talk.”
The father and daughter left the shop and walked along the sparsely populated Qilong Lane. As soon as Ruan Qiong appeared, that group of Great Li spies and death squads silently withdrew.
This was a silent gesture of respect toward a military sage.
Ruan Qiong inwardly nodded at this, seeing the big from the small. He thought to himself that there was a reason for Great Li’s current strength.
Ruan Xiu was a bit annoyed and asked, “Is it that Chu family from Fengcheng that went to complain to you? Let me say in advance, I warned that guy many times before I made my move.”
Ruan Qiong chuckled. “Even if you gave the Chu family of Fengcheng a few more guts, they wouldn’t dare bother me with such trivial matters. In fact, someone will probably soon arrive with heavy gifts to apologize.”
Ruan Xiu muttered, “That guy made me sick to look at, just like that short fat guy—full of karmic obstacles and retribution, only differing in thickness. After such people break into the Middle Fifth Floor, they will harm countless others. If I wasn’t worried about causing trouble for you, I would have struck him dead on the spot, saving him from future sins.”
Ruan Qiong took a deep breath, sweat beading on his forehead. Fortunately, he had just used his yin spirit to leave his body, shrouding the entire Qilong Lane with his aura so that no one could probe the situation here. If Ruan Xiu’s words fell into the ears of those with ulterior motives, the consequences would be disastrous. The world’s qi cultivators had a hundred schools contending, and among the various masters, the Yin-Yang School was best at probing a person’s qi fortune and karmic obstacles. But those abilities were almost all acquired through cultivation; the divine powers they practiced usually followed the natural course, like peeling silk from a cocoon, done with great care. The Buddhist school was even more reticent on this matter, only wishing to avoid it. Only the military school was utterly reckless, projecting an attitude of being willing to kill anyone, but these were all superficial illusions. However, this daughter of his was different—very different.
Since childhood, she could see through people’s hearts, see their seven emotions and six desires, and their karmic retribution. As her cultivation increased, she could even directly sever karmic ties. When she killed, the consequences were even more unimaginable.
This was certainly not something that could be explained by her being a natural embodiment of the Fire God.
Ruan Qiong only knew that in his daughter’s eyes, the colors of this world were different from others’.
Ruan Qiong had searched through all the rare texts stored in Wind Snow Temple and only found a long-lost ancient saying that could barely explain the reason.
A born deity, manifesting in response to destiny.
That was why Ruan Qiong had earlier voluntarily requested demotion to Pear Blossom Cave Heaven, trying to buy sixty years of time to shield the heavenly secrets before Ruan Xiu truly grew up.
(Sanqi Chinese Text)