Chapter 873: Engraving Characters
Chen Ping'an stood on that strand of spider silk that bridged the two moons. He took a step back, letting his body fall straight down to chase after the ancient great demon that had voluntarily withdrawn from the battlefield.
At the same time, he reached out and pulled the strand of silk that its owner had no time to retrieve, tucking it into his sleeve. With Lu Chen around, there was no need to worry about any lingering troubles.
Chen Ping'an glanced toward the massive gate. Beyond that single door lay the Qingming World, where the Dao energy was abundant and the atmosphere magnificent. It seemed that a large group of mountain-top Daoists had gathered one after another.
Bai Ze and Li Sheng—these two ten-thousand-year-old friends who had once fought side by side and were extremely compatible—after ten thousand years, when each made their move, neither showed any mercy. For the sake of that moon that was about to be moved out of the Barren Wastes, one side prevented four sword immortals from jointly dragging the moon, while the other blocked Bai Ze's obstruction. The two sides fought until the celestial order was thrown into chaos.
Both of them had been Fourteen Realm grand cultivators ten thousand years ago, and each had voluntarily chosen to forgo entering the Fifteenth Realm for the sake of their own Grand Dao.
One was a white-robed dharma appearance, ancient and vast; the other was a scholar's robe dharma appearance, majestic and righteous.
Every thread in Li Sheng's scholar's robe was a "rule" of the Haoran World.
And upon closer inspection, that "Bai Ze dharma appearance" was formed by the convergence of countless true names of demonic beings.
Thus, every time the dharma appearances shattered on both sides, it was a true cataclysm, a struggle for the Grand Dao.
Lu Chen had finally found a fleeting opportunity. He pinched a page of Dao scripture from his sleeve, muttered an incantation, and then tossed out a self-created talisman swirling with purple energy. Through the gate connecting the two worlds, it went to the White Jade Capital to deliver good news to his second senior brother: quickly lead the White Jade Capital cultivators to come and receive that moon, secure it early, and then immediately close the gate. Otherwise, if Bai Ze went berserk and directly shifted the battlefield to the Qingming World, and then smashed that moon with a punch, the consequences would be unimaginable.
With Bai Ze's level of cultivation, even in the Qingming World, even if his senior brother Yu Dou wore his dharma robe and carried his immortal sword, he would inevitably be unable to detain him. For one thing, if Li Sheng went to the Qingming World, the suppression of the Grand Dao there would be unimaginable, even more exaggerated than if the Supreme Sage went to the Qingming World. Moreover, Lu Chen knew his senior brother's temper best: he absolutely refused to join forces with anyone to fight an enemy, especially given Bai Ze's integration method. Whether he was severely injured or not made no difference. As long as Bai Ze could return to the Barren Wastes, given the toughness of his true body and his profound understanding of countless Dao techniques in the world, he would soon recover his combat power.
After all, not just anyone could instruct Fei Fei in water methods.
That withered old man who had awakened from his long slumber deep beneath the ruins of the Moon Palace had, in just a few breaths during his descent, already transformed into the appearance of a middle-aged man. He was also in a mysterious state similar to a Daoist's "returning to simplicity." If nothing unexpected happened, he would soon change his appearance to a youthful form. This transformation was not a trick of illusion but an unstoppable manifestation of the Grand Dao.
This peak Flying Ascension Realm great demon fell straight down toward the earth in a straight line.
Unexpectedly, that fellow wearing the lotus crown caught up to him.
The great demon held a long sword behind his back, his heartstring twitching slightly. But after rapidly weighing the pros and cons, he gave up the impulse to strike with his sword.
The distance between them was no more than a few dozen zhang. Two streaks of sword-light rainbow soared straight down toward the Barren Wastes' earth, the commotion as loud as thunder.
The great demon asked in ancient Barren Wastes language, "Not going to help that Little Master?"
Unexpectedly, the human cultivator replied with a smile in perfectly fluent ancient Barren Wastes language, "Aren't you not helping Mr. Bai either?"
That peak great demon, now in the form of a young man, was slightly surprised. "Could it be that I misjudged you? You're not actually human?"
What kind of young human cultivator would have nothing better to do than study ancient Barren Wastes language?
Moreover, there was indeed a faint, elusive familiar aura about this cultivator.
Seeing that the man just smiled and said nothing, the ancient great demon asked, "Why are you following me?"
That man was quite honest. "To see if I can take advantage of your unstable realm, before you truly return to your peak, to find an opportunity to kill you."
A net suspended in the void, a hundred billion killing intents born.
It was most suitable for battlefields that held the advantage of terrain. As long as a lair was built deep underground in advance, requiring only to "hinder the flight of small insects," for human cultivators of the middle and lower five realms who walked into the trap, and for mountain troops like those of the Great Li Iron Cavalry, this Flying Ascension Realm great demon was simply the most terrifying formation master.
What's more, this ancient great demon was also a peak sword immortal who bore one or even several ancient sword paths.
The great demon let out a silent laugh.
These young cultivators nowadays—their realms were so high, their tempers so bad, and their speech so direct?
This sword immortal before him, compared to the previous few, was even stranger in terms of age alone. The river-and-mountain qi of the small world within his body, calculated by "full years," was clearly less than fifty years. But if measured by some kind of annual ring shaped by the River of Time, the sword immortal before him was still not old, but at least he had about three hundred years of cultivation. Yet occasionally, he revealed a Dao age of four or five thousand years.
Looking at that young sword immortal with both hands tucked in his sleeves, the great demon sneered, "Don't try to bluff me here. If you really had the ability, if you were fifty percent sure, you would have already drawn your sword."
Chen Ping'an smiled. "Then shall we give it a try?"
The great demon, for no reason, thought of his Dao companion. That little woman—her sword strikes were truly ruthless.
Better not try.
No need.
The real reason was that the fellow had deliberately or inadvertently glanced at the ground, as if he had seen through his thoughts. Once his feet touched the ground, he would form a formation linking heaven and earth, spreading nets everywhere—in the sky and on the ground.
Within his own heaven and earth, he could call a few helpers and fight a Fourteen Realm cultivator. Even if the chance of victory was small, he would peel off a layer of skin from the opponent. For example, he could inform Tuoyue Mountain...
Damn it, Tuoyue Mountain was gone?!
Had the Haoran World already reached Tuoyue Mountain?
He looked around. Judging by the human side's troop deployments, that didn't seem to be the case at all.
This great demon's heart suddenly chilled. After quickly weighing the pros and cons, he decided it would be more prudent to first gather his former subordinates—the six caves of demonic spirits and monsters—eat and drink his fill, recover his peak, and then challenge someone to a sword duel. He just didn't know if, after ten thousand years, those descendants had spread far and wide in the Barren Wastes.
Why were there so many surprises after Bai Ze awakened him this time? Would it ever end?
With a rather helpless expression, the great demon became even more determined to suppress his temper, rein in his anger, and do his best to avoid trouble. So he said bluntly, "Tell me—how do we go our separate ways?"
Face wasn't worth much.
Back then, techniques rained down like rain upon the world. On the earth, whether demon or human, only those who obtained great fortune were able to ascend the mountain and cultivate.
And compared to Bai Ze, First Rise, and that group of demon cultivators, he was actually a junior in cultivation, and his aptitude was average. As for sword practice, he had prostrated himself on the ground, kowtowing and begging bitterly for it from a supreme being.
Lu Chen sensed the change in Chen Ping'an's state of mind and had to remind him, "Don't actually start a fight. Li Sheng is at a disadvantage fighting Bai Ze here."
Chen Ping'an said telepathically, "I understand."
Lu Chen breathed a sigh of relief.
Chen Ping'an smiled. "That sword in your hand isn't bad."
Earlier, that peak great demon had condensed a portion of the pure essence of the moonlight into a long sword using a secret technique.
The great demon twirled the sword behind him, moonlight spilling forth. "If you had said so earlier, I would have given it to you."
Chen Ping'an extended a hand from his sleeve—not to take the sword, but to grasp the Night Wanderer on his back.
The great demon nodded. Interesting.
Then the two of them poured their full power into their sword strikes and exchanged a single blow.
Each of their bodies retreated over ten li. The long sword in the great demon's hand instantly shattered, scattering into a vast expanse of dense moonlight, as thick as mercury.
The great demon's form dissipated, and a huge pit suddenly appeared on the ground. The young demon "swordsman" who had returned to the mortal world from the ruins of the Moon Palace slightly bent his knees, straightened his waist, and looked up at the human swordsman who hadn't pursued him, as if to etch that face firmly into his memory.
Chen Ping'an flicked his sleeve and gathered all that moonlight into his bag.
A flash of sword light, and he went to the ruins of the Sword Qi Great Wall.
When Chen Ping'an's feet landed on the city wall, Lu Chen leaned back into the lotus dojo. The Third Palm Master of the White Jade Capital heaved a sigh of relief. This poor Daoist finally didn't have to be on tenterhooks anymore.
It wasn't just that each day felt like a year—he felt like he had done a thousand years' worth of work in a single day.
He Shou descended from the canopy of heaven, still observing the rule of hovering outside the city wall, his feet not touching the ground. The old master carefully took out that ancient divine weapon, daring only to hold it loosely, not daring to grip the narrow blade firmly. He Shou gently pushed it toward the young Hidden Official who had returned to the city wall, travel-worn and weary. "This blade was left behind when the Great Sword Immortal Chen Qingdu used a single sword strike to slay the high-ranked deity 'Executioner.' The Great Sword Immortal asked me to pass this blade to you as a wedding gift for you and Sword Immortal Ning."
Lu Chen stretched his neck and widened his eyes inside the lotus dojo on that Daoist crown, carefully examining the legendary weapon. This was an undisputed "divine weapon," superior in rank to later generations' spiritual immortal weapons. It didn't need to be refined—as long as one could get such a weapon to acknowledge them as master, they could obtain one or even several ancient divine abilities.
He Shou warned, "Hidden Official, be careful. This blade is extremely difficult to control."
The narrow blade Zhan Kan, obtained in exchange from the extraterrestrial demons, had once been the execution tool of the Dragon-Beheading Platform.
Across the city wall of the Sword Qi Great Wall, two blades stood adjacent, with a distinction between ruler and subject.
When that ancient high-ranked deity, the Executioner, had appeared in the world, he said, "To have the fortune to see this blade is misfortune."
Chen Ping'an nodded. Still, without hesitation, he reached out and grabbed the hilt of the unsheathed long blade. There was no abnormality at all—it was very docile.
Old Master He Shou felt rather ashamed. This divine blade had been held by Chen Qingdu before, and it had shown no defiance—that was understandable. But now the young Hidden Official took it over, and it was still so... effortless.
During the time he himself had temporarily managed this weapon, just suppressing the various abnormalities caused by its pure divinity had been quite taxing for He Shou.
Lu Chen sighed inwardly.
It wasn't just because Chen Ping'an was a certain "one," but also because the young Hidden Official was a pinnacle martial artist, and there was a mysterious, profound compatibility with the Grand Dao.
Throughout the entire Qingming World, after arduous collection and plundering—not just from the shattered secret realms in the River of Time, but even great cultivators traveling beyond the heavens, using stars as ferry crossings, moving stars and changing constellations—they had gathered only eighteen divine weapon relics in total. Among them, only two were on par with the rank of this weapon in Lu Chen's eyes. One was in the Green Cloud Tower of the White Jade Capital, sealed for thousands of years: a suit of armor, said to be one of three replicas of the armor worn by "He Who Dons Armor."
These three replicas had in turn given rise to three types of martial armor pills forged by later strategists: the Warp-and-Weft Armor, the Golden Crow Armor, and the Divine Nectar Armor. The Divine Nectar Armor had at one time produced eight "progenitor" works of the pioneering kind. Among them, the broken and heavily restricted "Western Peak" had been obtained by Chen Ping'an as a lucky find from the Lingzhi Studio. The others were Buddha Land, Flower Bud, Mountain Ghost, Water Immortal, Rosy Cloud, Colored Garment, and Sea Cloud, though most had been destroyed.
Back then, Lu Chen had originally planned to steal that suit of armor from the Green Cloud Tower and give it to his little junior brother, but he had been thwarted—the tower master stopped him and then filed a clever complaint with his senior brother Yu Dou.
Yu Dou wasn't so much begrudging the treasure as he believed that the little junior brother's realm was too low at the time to control this treasure at all. He would need at least to reach the Celestial realm to be able to neutralize the residual divinity.
The other divine weapon was lost outside the White Jade Capital, in the hands of that extremely ill-tempered Fourteen Realm old woman. It allowed that female Daoist to obtain a "Creator" divine ability, enabling her to forge half-immortal weapons or even immortal weapons single-handedly.
The other sixteen divine weapons were not held by the twelve high-ranked deities; their rank was a step lower. Among them was the narrow blade Zhan Kan of Wu Frostfall from the Year-End Palace. After a circuitous journey, it reached the Sword Qi Great Wall and was obtained by Chen Ping'an.
These kinds of divine weapons had a peculiar trait: pure martial artists found them very handy to use, with almost no side effects. In contrast, Qi refiners who held such treasures had to be extremely careful. Even if a cultivator successfully refined such a weapon, it was still prone to rebellion. In the history of the Qingming World, over a dozen such tragedies had occurred, where the cultivator's Dao heart was tainted, subtly and imperceptibly, leading to drastic changes in temperament.
The most tragic incident involved a Flying Ascension Realm grand cultivator who seemed to have gone mad from cultivation deviation. He nearly used the divine weapon in his hand to break through the barrier of the heavens beyond, poking a hole in the sky. It was only because the First Palm Master of the White Jade Capital personally intervened that the huge hole was patched. He also stopped his junior brother Yu Dou, who was about to travel far with his sword to cut off that cultivator's head, and personally brought that cultivator, who had nearly caused a catastrophe, back to the White Jade Capital. He followed the First Palm Master in cultivation for several hundred years, eventually recovering a normal Dao heart, and even served as the city lord of one of the White Jade Capital's cities.
This White Jade Capital Dao official was the previous city lord of the Divine Thunder City, precisely the Confucian saint who guarded the canopy of heaven at the Sword Qi Great Wall.
Thus, the White Jade Capital always kept a close watch on the whereabouts of each divine weapon and every time one appeared in the world.
Chen Ping'an suddenly asked telepathically, "Back then, that suit of Divine Nectar Armor at the Lingzhi Studio on Inverted Mountain that couldn't be sold—was it deliberately left for me to find as a lucky find? Whose handiwork was it? Dao Number Two? Not like him. Was it Zouzi?"
Lu Chen sat upright in the dojo, forming a hand seal with one hand, pretending to be deep in thought.
Chen Ping'an immediately understood—it was this fellow who had nothing better to do all day.
He took out the narrow blade Zhan Kan, and together with that "Executioner," he placed the two narrow blades overlapping and hung them at his waist.
Crouching down, Chen Ping'an gently took out two wine flasks and two jars of ashes. Holding one in each hand outside the city wall, he lightly tapped the flasks against the wall. Both shattered, and the contents scattered with the wind.
Homecoming.
After a long silence, Chen Ping'an stood up and said proactively to He Shou with a smile, "Master He, just set foot on the city wall. As for the specific route of this trip into the Barren Wastes' hinterlands, our Sword Qi Great Wall side still needs to file a report with the Wen Temple."
He Shou nodded with a smile. It was fortunate that the closing disciple of the Sage Wen Sheng was so considerate. Otherwise, he really wouldn't have been able to bring it up himself. As a enshrined sage stationed here, questioning the five sword immortals about the matter was logically sound, but it might not feel right. However, since Chen Ping'an was willing to take the initiative to mention it in his capacity as the young Hidden Official, there was no problem at all.
He Shou immediately called over a Confucian junzi. The two of them landed on the city wall, and the latter bowed to the young Hidden Official in gratitude.
Chen Ping'an got straight to the point. "On this trip, we successively visited the Barren Wastes' White Flower City, the ancient battlefield site named 'Dragon Flood,' the Great Mountain Azure Peak, the Cloud-Pattern Dynasty's Jade Tablet City, the Spring Ravine Mountain, the Immortal Hairpin City, the Wine Spring Sect, the Pulled River, and Tuoyue Mountain. That totals nine places."
Chen Ping'an looked up. "If we add the moon 'Bright Essence,' that makes ten places."
That Confucian junzi had already taken out a brush, ink, and paper and was recording the locations one by one. The more he heard, the more shaken his mind became. Apart from Spring Ravine Mountain, which was relatively unfamiliar, he was all too familiar with the other locations.
Especially Immortal Hairpin City, the Pulled River, and Tuoyue Mountain... This junzi was not only shocked but also found it utterly absurd. If not for the fact that the person before him was the last Hidden Official of the Sword Qi Great Wall, he would have been tempted to question the authenticity. It wasn't that he didn't want to believe it—it was simply too incredible, too hard to believe.
White Flower City: a sect of significant standing in the Barren Wastes. The sect was destroyed. Apart from its Celestial realm sect leader who barely escaped by paying the price of harming his yin spirit and dropping in realm, all other upper fifth realm law-keepers and earth immortal demon cultivators were killed.
That was followed by the Dragon Flood ancient battlefield, which was swept clean by sword light.
However, Chen Ping'an didn't forget to mention that the specific battle merits from these two locations still needed to be verified by the Wen Temple afterward by asking Qi Tingji and the others.
Old Master He Shou sat cross-legged, squinting and stroking his beard with a smile. Satisfying, satisfying.
Hidden Official Chen Ping'an, Ning Yao, Qi Tingji, Lu Zhi, Executioner Hao Su.
When these five sword immortals of the Sword Qi Great Wall traveled together, they charged straight in like that, unstoppable.
Then the young Hidden Official talked about breaking the so-called tallest city in the world, Immortal Hairpin City, into two halves and shattering its Ancestral Hall.
Upon hearing this, He Shou burst into laughter.
That junzi responsible for taking notes was stunned on the spot, so much so that he dared not set down his brush for a moment. He had to ask, "Hidden Official, you broke Immortal Hairpin City into two halves? May I ask an off-topic question: how did you break it?"
Chen Ping'an sat cross-legged. Originally, his fists were loosely clenched and lightly placed on his knees. At this, he smiled and raised both hands.
The Confucian junzi understood.
"The current city lord, the old cultivator Xuan Pu from Feisheng City, has been killed."
Chen Ping'an said, "Slain by Executioner Hao Su."
This Flying Ascension Realm great demon's true body was an ancient Xuan serpent. Even one of its demonic cores was preserved intact.
Generally, for single combat to reach such a level, only a crushing situation where the strength disparity was enormous would allow one side to instantly kill the other—for example, a flying sword instantly beheading.
Chen Ping'an had assigned this battle merit to Executioner Hao Su, as agreed, crediting it to Hao Su's name to help him atone for his crimes and fulfill his agreement with the Central Earth Wen Temple, thereby gaining the freedom to travel to the Qingming World.
For Chen Ping'an, if Hao Su went to the Qingming World, bearing the title of the last Executioner, that was a good thing. Yan Ming, Dong Hua Fu, and that group of traveling sword immortals were still at a relatively low realm for the time being. They needed a senior member of their own side to protect their path, especially before breaking into the upper fifth realm.
Moreover, Hao Su was the most nostalgic person. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been so fixated on his hometown, that "Spiritous Blessed Land," as if his life's sword practice was only for revenge.
Chen Ping'an added, "Later, the Executioner will hand over Xuan Pu's true body along with the demonic core to the Wen Temple for verification."
He Shou clicked his tongue in wonder. "Well done, Executioner. You've made a name for yourself with a single feat, establishing a tremendous battle merit for our Haoran World. If I get the chance, I must sincerely apologize to Hao Su. Earlier, when I learned that this person had cut off Nan Guangzhao's head, that wasn't really anything special—an eye for an eye. At the time, I just felt that an Executioner of the Sword Qi Great Wall who didn't draw his sword half a time during that war, not even comparable to a deaf old demon of demon race descent, but then started killing fiercely and acting tough only after returning to Haoran—truly unworthy of the title 'Executioner.' So at that time, I suggested to Li Sheng to toss this rule-breaking Hao Su into the Forest of Merit, to keep Liu Cha company. One would fish, the other would cook—more like divine companions than any immortal couple. Now it seems I've wronged Hao Su."
Chen Ping'an glanced at the moon that was getting closer and closer to the gate and said, "Hao Su may not hand over Xuan Pu's true body himself. He might have Sect Leader Qi pass it on. I hope the Wen Temple can be lenient in this matter."
He Shou nodded. "These are minor matters. I can agree to that on my end."
Chen Ping'an nodded lightly, then continued, "At Immortal Hairpin City, I also partnered with Palm Master Lu of the White Jade Capital on another matter: we absorbed the Yaoguang Blessed Land into our possession. Later, before Palm Master Lu returns to the Qingming World, he will hand over the Yaoguang Blessed Land to the Wen Temple in exchange for three future opportunities to return to Haoran."
In addition, Chen Ping'an only gave a rough account of the process, so that the Wen Temple could find opportunities to verify it later.
Named the "Yaoguang Blessed Land" by Immortal Hairpin City's founding patriarch, Gui Lingxiang, it was actually the true source of Immortal Hairpin City being hailed as the "World's Armory" in the Barren Wastes.
Without this top-tier blessed land, Immortal Hairpin City would henceforth completely lose its source of weapon forging.
Palm Master Lu no longer felt the sting of those priceless Three Mountain Talismans, Moon-Chasing Talismans, and Sword-Washing Talismans.
They were all small change. What was a cultivator doing fussing over a few divine wealth and rare treasures every day, calling himself a "poor Daoist"?
He Shou coughed, reached out a hand, placed it on the arm of the junzi holding the brush, and patted it gently. He said earnestly, "On this matter of Hidden Official and Palm Master Lu's sincere cooperation in obtaining the 'Yaoguang Blessed Land,' the distinction between primary and secondary contributions must still be recorded based on facts."
That junzi immediately understood and wrote with eloquence, each detail interlocking seamlessly.
Lu Chen didn't mind either. He was just a bit puzzled. According to the intelligence from the White Jade Capital, this Old Master He Shou was famously a rigid old stickler who didn't understand human relations—almost to the point of being called a "pedantic scholar."
Regarding the battle at the Pulled River, Chen Ping'an was extremely brief. He only said that it was a tug-of-war, and that he had forcibly seized thirty percent of the water transport from the former throne holder Fei Fei.
Chen Ping'an asked, "Old Master He, would you like a drink?"
He Shou smiled and asked, "Does the Hidden Official not know about this matter?"
Chen Ping'an was momentarily taken aback, somewhat confused. Why would he know about something like that?
He Shou laughed heartily and extended his hand. "This old man hasn't drank for many years, but I can make an exception today."
This old master could drink, but he truly didn't like to—he was someone whom even Old Scholar Xiao couldn't persuade to drink.
What truly made He Shou feel relieved was the fact that this last Hidden Official of the Sword Qi Great Wall knew nothing about the trivial details concerning their so-called "neglected offerings," these enshrined sages.
This meant that the young Hidden Official, whose relationship with the Wen Temple was so delicate that one wouldn't think he was a member of the Confucian lineage, viewed the Wen Temple—especially the line of the Second Sage—with an attitude that, if not close, was at least not resentful. Otherwise, given Chen Ping'an's style of conduct during his tenure as the young Hidden Official, he would have already thoroughly investigated the backgrounds of the Wen Temple's academies, schools, sages, and headmasters.
Chen Ping'an smiled along, handing the old master, a veteran of the world, a flask of wine—the Green God Mountain wine from his own shop.
Lu Chen asked telepathically, "What about that senior?"
Earlier, during their talisman-enhanced race to the moon, it seemed that the long sword that had come from beyond the heavens had vanished without a trace. Even Lu Chen didn't know where it had gone.
Chen Ping'an gave a non-answer telepathically: "Didn't I say before? That mental connection has already been severed by Senior Brother Cui."
Lu Chen asked again, "And that other you—where is he in the Vase Bottle Continent?"
Chen Ping'an said, "He's already in my hometown. He just arrived at Qilong Alley. While the realm is still intact, I went to confirm whether Palm Master Lu left any hidden tricks in Shi Rou that are difficult to detect."
Lu Chen said plaintively, "This poor Daoist has never had the heart to harm anyone. Besides, with that student of yours, you must be well aware of how brilliant he is when it comes to matters of the soul, aren't you?"
Chen Ping'an smiled. "One cannot be too cautious."
Two shops on Qilong Alley: one called "Clover Head" and the other called "Suì Year."
Clover Head was a wild vegetable that could be found everywhere in Chen Ping'an's hometown, also known as golden flower vegetable. According to ancient records, its sprouts grow profusely in the second month, it bears small yellow flowers in summer and autumn, its leaves are heart-shaped, and its seeds are flat and spiral.
As for the word "Suì Year," it had an even more auspicious meaning—homophonous with "suppressing evil," it signified peace under heaven, the removal of misfortune and harm, and the protection of safety.
This was one of the reasons Chen Ping'an had bought the two shops without a second thought back then. Of course, the more important reason was that it didn't cost much money to acquire two properties.
Lu Chen tentatively said, "For the next part—the Tuoyue Mountain campaign—how about letting me give a detailed account? It'll give you a chance to relax your mind. You need to start preparing early for your realm-dropping."
Having set up his stall in Lizhu Cave Heaven for many years, Lu Chen believed he was quite a good talker.
Chen Ping'an nodded.
A grain of Lu Chen's heart-mind essence slipped out from the lotus dojo, crouching beside Chen Ping'an, and smiled, waving at the two opposite them.
He Shou smiled and stood up—the proper etiquette couldn't be omitted. He bowed to the Third Palm Master of the White Jade Capital.
That Confucian junzi was even more on guard. He immediately stood up and bowed along with He Shou.
Lu Chen stood up and returned a Daoist ji head salute to the two.
Chen Ping'an took his leave from the two, saying he was going to the neighboring city wall to find someone to talk to and would be back soon.
He left only Lu Chen alone, who then took on the role of a storytelling entertainer.
When He Shou heard that Chen Ping'an had swung his sword to open a mountain over three thousand times and ultimately personally slew a peak Flying Ascension Realm great demon—none other than Tuoyue Mountain's Grand Ancestor's first disciple, Yuan Xiong...
That junzi seemed to have become numb to it. It was Old Master He who was left dumbfounded, speechless for a long time. He tilted his head back and finished the wine in his flask in one gulp, wiped the corner of his mouth, and turned to look outside the city wall.
Chen Qingdu's final wisp of soul had slain one of the high-ranked deities, the "Executioner," with a single sword strike.
He had to admit that there was no longer a Sword Qi Great Wall in the mortal world.
But there were still sword immortals of the Sword Qi Great Wall.
After Chen Qingdu's sword strike, there was still Chen Ping'an, who questioned Tuoyue Mountain with his sword and slew a Flying Ascension Realm demon, and by Palm Master Lu's account, that great demon Yuan Xiong was also a sword immortal.
Lu Chen crouched there, learning from the young Hidden Official's habit of tucking his hands in his sleeves, and chuckled. "If we add Li Zhen, then it seems that both Tuoyue Mountain Grand Ancestor's founding disciple and his final disciple have died by Chen Ping'an's sword."
Moreover, in the Tuoyue Mountain campaign alone, there were three Celestial realm great demons, and naturally many more Jade Pellet realm and earth immortal demon cultivators.
But among them, one Celestial realm demon had been traded life for life with a Nascent Soul realm sword immortal.
Lu Chen intercepted snippets of that time-lapse image. The "voices and faces" of those demon cultivators had been made into hanging portraits by Palm Master Lu.
But Lu Chen knew Chen Ping'an's plan, so all battle merits except for the great demon Yuan Xiong were apportioned to Qi Tingji's Dragon-Elephant Sword Sect and Ning Yao's Feisheng City.
These astonishing battle merits, one by one, item by item, would be carefully documented by the Central Earth Wen Temple.
Chen Ping'an first went to the vicinity of Ma Kuxuan and Yu Shiwu's group.
Yu Shiwu clasped his fists and smiled. "Greetings, Mountain Lord Chen."
Apart from Yu Shiwu, there was no other reaction.
Ma Kuxuan's first disciple and maidservant dared not speak.
As for Ma Kuxuan's final disciple, he was still confirming the identity of this "Daoist" before him.
Chen Ping'an clasped his fists in return to Yu Shiwu.
Just as Ma Kuxuan had said, Chen Ping'an had felt wary of this man since their first encounter at the Great River Shrine.
A young man with a firewood knife at his waist suddenly stepped forward and asked, "Mountain Lord Chen, is your Luo Po Mountain still accepting disciples?"
Ma Kuxuan kicked him in the backside, sending him sprawling face-first, but the young man didn't mind. He lightly patted the ground with his palm, flipped over gracefully, and landed on his feet.
Chen Ping'an smiled. "Not accepting disciples for now."
The young man still wouldn't give up. "Then can you reserve a spot for me first?"
Chen Ping'an shook his head.
Ma Kuxuan reached out and pressed down on his final disciple's head, grinning. "A person rarely pays attention to their own shadow. But anyway, even if someone steps on it, it's no big deal. For us mountain people, being alone—these are all trivial matters."
Chen Ping'an frowned slightly, as if unable to guess what Ma Kuxuan was up to. He didn't take the bait, just turned to Yu Shiwu and asked, "Where are you all going next?"
Yu Shiwu smiled. "We plan to first take a look at that high city built by the Mohist Great Craftsman."
Then Chen Ping'an went to the side of Wei Jin and Cao Jun.
Wei Jin spoke telepathically about the matter of the senior Zong Yuan.
Chen Ping'an's expression turned grave. He nodded. "Fortunately, those sword intents fell into your hands. Otherwise, it would have been very, very troublesome!"
Wei Jin asked, "Did you change your mind midway and not go to that battlefield?"
Chen Ping'an said "Mm," and then, "We kept taking detours. In the end, we went to Tuoyue Mountain."
Wei Jin pointed at that great moon in the sky and asked with a smile, "And the result was this big commotion?"
Chen Ping'an brushed it off with a smile.
Cao Jun suddenly asked, "Mountain Lord Chen, give me the bottom line: if I had come to the Sword Qi Great Wall earlier, could I have gotten into the Summer Retreat Palace?"
Chen Ping'an was a bit surprised, not knowing why Cao Jun was asking this. He thought about it for a moment, but still answered honestly, "Your nature is too restless. You wouldn't have gotten in."
It wasn't that Cao Jun lacked intelligence, but in those years, the Summer Retreat Palace managed the war situation. The sole principle of every troop deployment was to pursue the greatest war merit at the smallest cost in losses, to drag the war out as long as possible, to hold on for one more day if they could. If it had been a battlefield with a more evenly matched situation, Cao Jun's unconventional character might have achieved something. But compared to Lin Junbi, Xuan Can, and the others, Cao Jun would still have fallen short.
After returning home, Chen Ping'an had, through Wei Xian, specifically looked into the temperaments and command styles of the seed disciple Liu Xunmei and his fellow townsman Cao Jun. Because Wei Xian and Cao Jun had both served under Liu Xunmei in the Great Li army. Although they both held the title of "military-attached cultivator," in fact, each had eventually commanded a battalion of cavalry, which was a testament to Liu Xunmei's trust in his subordinates. Regarding his colleague Cao Jun, Wei Xian had used a saying about "being good at leg techniques from under the skirt"—roughly speaking, it had both praise and criticism. In nicer terms, he used incredibly risky tactics; in harsher terms, he was cunning and insidious, not counting the cost for war merit. Of course, Cao Jun himself also led from the front.
Cao Jun asked, "Over at Tuoyue Mountain, did you have a go at a Flying Ascension Realm great demon?"
Chen Ping'an ignored Cao Jun's forced small talk. He just took out two flasks of wine and handed one to Wei Jin.
Cao Jun reached out. "Mountain Lord Chen, don't play favorites."
Chen Ping'an knocked Cao Jun's hand away with his elbow and asked Wei Jin, "Have you heard of that demon sword immortal Hui Ting from the Red Leaf Sword Sect?"
Wei Jin nodded. "Of course. But it seems he never showed his face during the last great war. Word is he dropped in realm and was recuperating inside his sect."
Chen Ping'an wiped his mouth with his thumb and smiled. "I killed him on the way."
Wei Jin didn't say much more. He raised his wine flask and lightly clinked it against Chen Ping'an's.
Only sword immortals of the Sword Qi Great Wall knew how deserving that demon sword immortal was of death.
Wei Jin smiled and asked, "On this trip, did you again 'stop when things were good'?"
Chen Ping'an smiled. "Passable. I took the opportunity to pick up a little something."
Wei Jin teased, "If I were the Tuoyue Mountain Grand Ancestor, I'd definitely regret saying something like that."
Chen Ping'an nodded. "Absolutely."
Cao Jun was a bit helpless. He really couldn't get a word in. What Red Leaf Sword Sect? He'd never even heard of it. As for "stop when things were good," what kind of allusion was that? What was the Barren Wastes' Grand Ancestor discussing that with Chen Ping'an for?
In the capital of the Cloud-Pattern Dynasty, Chen Ping'an had obtained from Emperor Ye Pu, whose Dao name was "Incomparable," a set of sword formations serving as the central pivot of the city's protective formation. This set of sword formations consisted of twelve pocket-sized flying swords placed like brushes on a red coral brush stand. So, to be precise, it was two immortal weapons.
At the time, Ye Pu had been confident that he could trick Chen Ping'an. But no matter how many calculations he made, he couldn't have predicted that the "Daoist Fellow Chen" with a lotus crown and green gauze Dao robe, who pretended to be the Hidden Official, was not only really Chen Ping'an but also had the Third Palm Master of the White Jade Capital by his side. They were able to dismantle the formation, and consequently, he had thrown a meat bun at the dog—never to return.
Earlier, Lu Chen had mentioned that in the family of the master of the Lín Láng Tower, one of the five cities and twelve towers of the White Jade Capital, most of the clan members' names ended with the suffix "zhi." If Chen Ping'an were willing to part with this coral brush stand, the price could be doubled compared to its true value.
The suffix "zhi."
The Yao family of the Great Canopy Dynasty's border army—Yao Jinzhi, Yao Xianzhi, Yao Lingzhi—all had names ending with "zhi."
As for that old woman from Immortal Hairpin City, the Flying Ascension Realm ghostly great demon whose Dao name was Qiong Ou, she was Xuan Pu's grand-master and Wu Ti's master. Her true body was actually a mosquito.
She had been forced to leave behind a duster of unknown origin—an undisputed top-grade immortal weapon in rank, engraved with the characters "Dust Sweep" in insect-bird seal script. Moreover, anything that dared to take such a name should not be underestimated—like the Parasol Tree Leaf Sect on Parasol Tree Leaf Continent, or the Great Mountain Azure Peak in the Barren Wastes.
A dust sweeper: a long handle of crimson-purple wood, over three thousand six hundred snow-white threads of unknown material, with a small golden ring attached to the brush end.
Qiong Ou had had this object in her possession for two thousand years, yet she had never been able to refine it into a life-bound object. Even on the path of darkness and chill, it had not absorbed the slightest bit of yin-sha or foul aura.
Added to that were the thirty percent water transport from the Pulled River and the pure moonlight from the Bright Essence moon.
This trip had indeed yielded quite a harvest.
After drinking, Chen Ping'an stood up. "You all might need to evacuate from the city wall for a while."
Wei Jin abruptly looked up.
Chen Ping'an said, "Too bad the realm was borrowed."
Wei Jin laughed angrily. "Why didn't Palm Master Lu lend the realm to me? Even if it was lent to Wei Jin, so what? Maybe he would have been the one to engrave characters on the Barren Wastes instead."
Chen Ping'an said to Cao Jun with a smile, "See? Our Great Sword Immortal Wei could have gotten into the Summer Retreat Palace."
With a flicker, he vanished and reappeared on the city wall where Lu Chen and He Shou were.
The recording of war merits was finished. He Shou had been waiting there for a while.
Chen Ping'an clasped his fists. "I trouble Old Master He to have everyone withdraw from this half of the city wall."
He Shou agreed with a smile. Before leaving, he hesitated for a moment. Then, the old master actually clasped his fists to Chen Ping'an.
It seemed that on this city wall, one was temporarily not a Confucian disciple, and the other was not a enshrined sage of the Wen Temple. It was more like a meeting of heroes in the martial world.
After He Shou and that junzi left,
Chen Ping'an stood on the city wall, looked up at the moon in the sky.
Han Qiaose returned to Haoran through the place where the Guixu sun sets. Adhering strictly to her senior brother's decree, she had truly gone to the White Emperor City to study—especially to flip through a few more books on military strategy.
That ancient great demon who had returned to the mortal world, after confirming he wasn't being followed, swaggered through the air on his travels. Then he saw a tall woman in white.
Chen Ping'an tapped his toe and leaped down from the city wall.
Chen Ping'an stood on the ground, facing that tall city wall, and said, "I trouble Palm Master Lu to appear for a moment."
Lu Chen was puzzled in his heart, but joked, "Could it be the matter of engraving characters? Do you need this poor Daoist to do it for you? That would be a bit embarrassing."
Chen Ping'an remained silent.
Lu Chen didn't continue the banter. From his lotus dojo, he scattered a grain of mustard seed mind-essence, taking the form of a Daoist, the Third Palm Master of the White Jade Capital, and appeared beside Chen Ping'an.
Lu Chen couldn't guess Chen Ping'an's intentions.
On this trip, he had followed the five sword immortals, toiling all the way, until finally Chen Ping'an succeeded in slaying the Barren Wastes' ancestral mountain with his sword.
If one were to say that the Tuoyue Mountain Grand Ancestor had turned the Sword Qi Great Wall into an outdated page in history, then Chen Ping'an had made Tuoyue Mountain the same—a page of the past.
Moreover, the moon-dragging feat was about to be accomplished.
As for dividing the spoils, it wasn't his Lu Chen's turn. But all losses could be considered negligible. Adding a Bright Essence moon to the Qingming World was an incalculable gain to the Grand Dao. Lu Chen had already made up his mind: after he returned to the White Jade Capital with his merits fulfilled on this trip, even his second senior brother would have to force a smile and give him a thumbs-up—with both hands, or else this matter wouldn't be settled.
And how dare his second senior brother complain that he had been lazy and slacking off for the past hundred years? He had not only made up for the previous hundred years but had already earned the merits for the next hundred years in advance.
Besides, Lu Zhi's sword case—he had borrowed it, not given it away.
Chen Ping'an took off the lotus crown and returned it to Lu Chen. The green gauze Dao robe on his body also dissipated on its own. He put away the two narrow blades stacked at his waist.
Only in the appearance of a blue-shirted swordsman with a sword on his back did he face the Sword Qi Great Wall.
Dao Technique, Haoran, Western Heaven.
Enduring Sword Qi, Forbidden Ground of the Thunder Pond.
Qi, Dong, Chen. Fierce.
On the two halves of the city wall's top, there were a total of eighteen characters.
On one side were carved: Dao Technique, Haoran, Western Heaven. Forbidden Ground of the Thunder Pond.
On the other side: Enduring Sword Qi. Qi, Dong, Chen, Fierce.
Old Master He Shou began shooing people away.
Everyone had to evacuate the city wall immediately.
Wei Jin and Cao Jun had already left on their own. Ma Kuxuan, Yu Shiwu, and their party had also flown south on the wind. The remaining hundred or so itinerant cultivators who had come to travel had no choice but to leave one after another.
Chen Ping'an spoke up, "On this trip to the Barren Wastes' hinterlands, the one who accompanied and protected the Hidden Official Chen Ping'an was Haoran's Lu Chen."
On the battlefield of the Sword Qi Great Wall, there were two types of protectors. One was the sword attendant, from family retainers or guards—similar to the great sword immortal Li Tumi of the Yan family, or Nalan Ye Xing of the Ning manor. The term "sword attendant" carried no derogatory connotation of servitude.
The other was a sword immortal of higher realm responsible for protecting sword immortals of lower realm, so that the latter would not die prematurely in battle. This was called a sword teacher.
Thus, "servant" in "attendant" signified both traveling the Great Dao together and protecting the younger generation. "Teacher" in "teacher" meant that every time they drew their sword, they both saved lives and transmitted the Dao.
Lu Chen, for the first time, revealed a solemn expression. "Haoran's Lu Chen. Honored to have traveled together."
Duckweed has no roots and floats, drifting in water without sinking.
Ten-thousand-year convict sword immortals, drifting like duckweed between heaven and earth, die without a grave.
Only the enduring sword qi remains.
And Great Sword Immortal Chen Qingdu's life-bound flying sword was named "Duckweed."
The Sword Qi Great Wall, which had stood for ten thousand years. The last Hidden Official, of enduring sword qi.
They faced each other across the distance, silently gazing.
The blue-shirted sword immortal, holding the long sword Night Wanderer, used sharp sword qi to carve characters from afar on the highest point of one half of the city wall.
The one who engraved the character "Ping" was the swordsman Chen Ping'an.