Chapter 74: The Boy's Sword
Why did the Li Mountain Sword Sect challenge the National Teaching Academy? Because they had come to propose marriage on behalf of Qiu Shan Jun, only to be thwarted by Chen Changsheng, losing all face. They had to find some way to recover it. As Gou Han Shi had frankly admitted, only by doing so could they leave the Great Zhou Imperial Palace with some semblance of peace, even if it was a stretch.
If things went according to Tang Thirty-Six's arrangement, whether the National Teaching Academy won consecutively or lost consecutively, Chen Changsheng wouldn't have to appear. Then the Li Mountain Sword Sect would naturally be unable to salvage their dignity. Luo Luo thought this was a bit... shameless, but it seemed rather amusing, so she expressed her support with silence. As for Chen Changsheng, he really did want to talk with the legendary Gou Han Shi, who was said to have thoroughly read the Daoist Canon. He wanted to say something to Tang Thirty-Six, but that fellow had already reached the arena.
The wind rustled, and the night palace was cold. Tang Thirty-Six stood on the square, stroking his sword as he looked around, his heroic bearing radiant. The female disciples of Qing Yao Yin and Saintess Peak on the steps before the hall cast admiring glances, never imagining that before coming to the arena, this man had already made many boring yet infuriating arrangements.
From a distance of over ten zhang, looking at Qi Jian's frail appearance, Tang Thirty-Six was momentarily stunned. Then he remembered something, turned to Zhuang Huan Yu, and said with emotion, "Look at this kid. How small must he have been two years ago? And you still had the nerve to win."
Zhuang Huan Yu naturally wouldn't respond. He just sneered twice, his meaning the same as Chen Changsheng's earlier remark—as if you could beat him now.
The fame of the Seven Laws of the Divine Kingdom was immense, but except for those who had actually seen them, no one would have imagined that there could be a child like Qi Jian. As he bowed to Tang Thirty-Six, the nervousness on his face was obvious, even showing a hint of timidity.
Tang Thirty-Six frowned slightly and asked, "How old are you this year?"
Qi Jian replied, "I'll be fourteen in two months."
At a time like this, how could Tang Thirty-Six let Zhuang Huan Yu off? He clicked his tongue twice in Zhuang Huan Yu's direction, then looked at Qi Jian and asked, "So young... can't we just skip this?"
Qi Jian's expression turned serious, like a little adult, and he said, "Your academy uses the Highness's status to pressure others, uses the promises of elders to pressure others, uses the banner of righteousness to pressure others. My senior brother is not present to defend himself—how unjust is that? As his junior brother, I naturally must seek justice for him."
Tang Thirty-Six's expression also became serious. "Wrong! It's you who use the commands of parents and the words of masters to pressure others. It's you who use status and position to pressure others. It's you who try to use the banner of righteousness to pressure others. Your elders started all this; we're just retaliating. As for your senior brother... he wants to marry Chen Changsheng's fiancée. Is Chen Changsheng the one who wronged him? Don't forget, the engagement came first, and the white crane is still there."
Behind Chen Changsheng and Luo Luo, the white crane was resting its curved neck on the bronze pillar, its whiteness strikingly vivid in the night.
Qi Jian was silent for a moment, then said no more. His small hand gripped the sword hilt and slowly drew the blade from its sheath.
Just this simple action exuded a powerful aura.
The frail young boy gave off the feeling of a grandmaster taking the field.
The crowd watching before the hall suddenly fell silent. Xu Shiji and the others showed slight surprise, and even Mao Qiu Yu's expression turned much more solemn.
Chen Liu Wang praised, "The Seven Laws of the Divine Kingdom are truly no ordinary mortals."
Tang Thirty-Six's expression was serious as he drew his own sword from its sheath.
He had been known for his talent since childhood, proud and aloof. Even after coming from Wenshui to the capital and entering the Heavenly Dao Academy, he remained the same.
He knew that Qi Jian was the strongest opponent he had ever faced among his peers. He knew that the teachings of orthodox sects like the Li Mountain Sword Sect were far more powerful than his family's inherited techniques. If he could study at the Heavenly Dao Academy for another two years, he might truly surpass the Seven Laws of the Divine Kingdom.
But tonight, he still wanted to win.
He looked down at the ground. In the brick crevice by his boot grew a wild grass.
He looked up at Qi Jian and said, "Come on."
Qi Jian's expression was solemn. "Please!"
As the words still echoed in the quiet night air before the hall, the wild grass in the brick crevice suddenly bent backward, as if about to snap.
The night wind rose abruptly. Two afterimages flashed toward the center of the square.
With a thunderous crash!
Tang Thirty-Six and Qi Jian met. Their swords met as well. Countless fierce winds howled, swirling wildly around their bodies, whipping their clothes with sharp snapping sounds, like a sudden rainstorm falling on the ivy outside the palace!
The two swords clashed in the night, reflecting starlight as if streams of water flowed over them—truly extraordinary blades.
"The Wenshui Sword!"
Someone recognized the origin of Tang Thirty-Six's sword. That bright, mirror-like blade, capable of reflecting the stars, was none other than the ancestral sword of the Tang family of Wenshui—the Wenshui Sword!
Old Master Tang had actually entrusted the family's ancestral sword to Tang Thirty-Six to bring to the capital. This showed how much he doted on this grandson, what great hopes he placed in him, and more importantly, it signified that the Tang family had decided to pass the inheritance into Tang Thirty-Six's hands!
Some were shocked by the Wenshui Sword, while others were moved by the sword in Qi Jian's hand.
The sword held by the frail young boy had a slightly dark, lusterless blade, seemingly without even an edge. It was broader than an ordinary sword, looking less like a sword and more like an iron ruler—indeed, this sword was called the "Iron Ruler"!
The Iron Ruler Sword was the dharma sword of the elder of the Li Mountain Precept Hall!
The Li Mountain Sect Leader had actually allowed Qi Jian to carry the dharma sword as he traveled the continent. One could imagine what expectations he had for his final disciple!
...
...
The Tang family ancestral sword against the Li Mountain dharma sword—which was stronger?
This was what the watching crowd most wanted to know.
At least for now, neither sword showed any sign of defeat.
Tang Thirty-Six and Qi Jian hadn't even heard the exclamations from the crowd. Their minds were entirely on their swords.
At the point where the two swords met, two semi-circular light surfaces appeared in the night sky, enveloping the two youths, pressing against each other.
On those semi-circular light surfaces, the stars of the dark night sky were reflected, along with countless extremely dangerous undercurrents of power.
Countless streams of force shot out from the trailing edges of the semi-circular light surfaces behind the two youths, making sharp hissing sounds.
The stone pavement beneath their feet couldn't withstand such terrifying cutting. Amid the sound of stones shattering and the grating, teeth-clenching noise, more than a dozen cracks appeared on the pavement, spreading rapidly like a spiderweb in all directions.
Heavenly Dao Academy Dean Mao Qiu Yu raised an eyebrow slightly. With a light flick of his sleeves, a stream of pure, refined energy enveloped the stone steps before the hall. As one of the few powerful experts in the world, known by the Daoist name "Two Sleeves of Clear Wind," his cultivation was such that with a mere flick of his sleeves, no matter how fierce the battle between Tang Thirty-Six and Qi Jian, it couldn't affect the spectators on the steps. But he didn't bother with the people on the square.
A crane cried out. The white crane spread its wings, broke through the night, and landed on the roof of Weiyang Palace.
Jin Yu Lu stepped in front of Chen Changsheng and Luo Luo.
Xiao Song Gong gripped his sword sheath and coughed softly twice.
The dozen or so cracks stopped abruptly when they reached the sides of the two youths, unable to advance further.
Looking at the scene, the watching crowd was stunned and shocked.
One was a famous young powerhouse, the other a legendary member of the Seven Laws of the Divine Kingdom. Both were ranked on the Azure Cloud List. Their display of strength beyond their years wasn't surprising. What surprised people was the current situation.
Before the battle began, everyone thought that although the Tang family of Wenshui was a thousand-year-old clan, its heritage couldn't compare to Li Mountain's. In terms of techniques or essence, Tang Thirty-Six should be inferior to Qi Jian. But since he was older and had started cultivating earlier, he should at least be stronger in terms of true essence quantity.
Who would have thought that in their first clash, when the two youths were competing in true essence quantity and purity, Qi Jian would be in no way inferior!
Many couldn't understand why.
Tang Thirty-Six himself understood perfectly.
Even if he and Qi Jian had the same talent, the Li Mountain Sword Sect's methods of marrow cleansing and inner contemplation were superior to the Tang family's. Over years of cultivation, even the slightest difference would eventually lead to a significant gap.
And there was one crucial point.
He was lazier than Qi Jian.
Although he had trained relentlessly in recent months to prepare for the Green Vine Banquet and to challenge Zhuang Huan Yu, barely seeing even Chen Changsheng... that was only a few months.
He was a son of a noble family. As Zhuang Huan Yu said, he was born with a silver spoon, doted on by Old Master Tang since childhood, living a beautiful, happy life. If he trained even slightly hard, his grandmother would scold the whole family, and the maids would find ways to let him slack off...
In contrast, most disciples of the Li Mountain Sword Sect came from hardship, and Qi Jian was no exception. Tang Thirty-Six didn't need to think hard to know that the other's diligence in cultivation far exceeded his own. Never mind that the other was not yet fourteen—his meditation time was certainly greater than Tang Thirty-Six's...
Suddenly, a clear ringing sound echoed in the night sky before the hall.
The night wind grew chaotic. The reflections of the stars on the two semi-circular light shields also became disordered.
If it were a pool of water, it would be as if someone had thrown a stone into it.
The Wenshui Sword and the Iron Ruler Sword separated for the first time after their clash.
Then they met again.
In an instant, the two swords clashed dozens of times.
That clear ringing was the sound of the swords touching. Because it was too fast, the sounds were too dense, giving the impression of an unbroken note.
The clear ringing rose and stopped abruptly. The night wind suddenly stilled.
The two figures separated abruptly, then stood still on the ground, as before, ten zhang apart.
Tang Thirty-Six looked down at the ground.
Now that the wind had calmed and the swords were still, the wild grass had already straightened its stem.
But earlier, the wild grass had been by his boot. Now, it was in front of his boot.
Tang Thirty-Six looked up at Qi Jian across from him and found that the frail young boy was still standing in the same spot.
"Impressive," he said. "I thought that no matter what, I've eaten two more years of rice than you, so at worst I'd be about equal. I didn't expect to retreat half a step more."
Qi Jian looked at him seriously and asked, "Are you conceding?"
Tang Thirty-Six felt greatly insulted. "Do you think I'm that boring?"
Qi Jian was puzzled. "Then why did you say that?"
Tang Thirty-Six said solemnly, "I'm reflecting... I really can't be this lazy anymore."
Chen Changsheng said from behind him, "That's indeed wrong."
Qi Jian said earnestly, "It's good that you realize this."
"But that's for later. Tonight, I still have to beat you first."
Tang Thirty-Six's robes billowed slightly, and his eyes gleamed.
Qi Jian's expression turned alert as he composed himself to wait.