Chapter 873: Mountain Gate Chronicle
If he could fly, he would not have let Nanke stop at the riverside outside the town but would have flown straight to Saintess Peak.
But that was not possible, because they needed to show respect for Saintess Peak, and the peak had restrictions.
Even if he were the Pope, barging straight into Saintess Peak with the little princess of the demon race would inevitably provoke immense fury.
Their group had to pass through the town at the foot of the mountain, and Nanke once again entered the Zhou Garden.
The houses in the town were densely packed, showing that the people here lived fairly well, with no overly dilapidated dwellings.
Tongjiang was already in the southern part of the continent, with a warm climate, so even in the depths of winter, it was not very cold.
At noon, it was a good time for a short rest.
As they walked through the town, they did not encounter many people.
There was a shop open by the street. Tang Thirty-Six very much wanted to buy some trinkets to prove he had been here, and Zhe Xiu wanted to buy some dried meat for emergencies, but seeing Chen Changsheng’s expression, neither of them spoke.
Xiao Zhang’s account in Fengyang County had not been clear, because he had not entered Saintess Peak, but it was obvious that he felt something had happened on Saintess Peak.
Chen Changsheng judged the same, and naturally, he was somewhat anxious.
Because they were walking a bit hastily, as they passed that shop, they did not notice the conversation between the shopkeeper and two other people inside.
“Three missing one isn’t really the problem, and I’m not keen on playing cards anyway, but the Fairy hasn’t come for so long. I’m worried something might have happened to her.”
“Pah, even if your beard were all burned off, nothing would happen to the Fairy.”
“Hey, I just paid to replace your house with three new brick rooms. Do you have to curse me just to defend her?”
“Speaking of which, what exactly has the Fairy been up to?”
……
……
After passing the town, they entered the mountain forest. It was very quiet, and there was no one to be seen on the path.
Chen Changsheng and the others quickened their pace, moving faster and faster. To an ordinary person, they might not even be able to make out their figures clearly.
The path gradually ascended, hidden by the trees, rising imperceptibly higher until they reached the mountainside.
After about a dozen li, a stone gate appeared on the mountain path.
Chen Changsheng did not bother to read what was written on the stone gate and walked straight forward.
Then, he was stopped.
Since this was the mountain gate of Nanxi Zhai, of course there were disciples guarding it—two young girls of fourteen or fifteen.
These two young disciples held low status within the Zhai and had no chance to travel far. Unlike their senior sisters, they had never been to the capital, so they did not recognize Chen Changsheng, Tang Thirty-Six, or the others.
“Halt! Who goes there?”
The two young girls gripped their sword hilts and shouted at Chen Changsheng and the others.
Their expressions were tense, clearly lacking experience.
Chen Changsheng exchanged a glance with Tang Thirty-Six, and both saw the problem. Even if this was a remote mountain gate far from the main Zhai, guarded by ordinary disciples, there should still be many visiting cultivators from affiliated sects or those drawn by reputation. Nanxi Zhai should have assigned more mature and steady disciples. Why send out two such young girls?
Tang Thirty-Six shook his head slightly, signaling Chen Changsheng not to reveal his identity yet. He stepped forward and said, “We are disciples of the Peerless Sect from Hanqiu City, here to tour and sightsee at Saintess Peak.”
One of the young girls said nervously, “What kind of place do you think Saintess Peak is? Do you think you can just enter as you please?”
Hearing this, Chen Changsheng and the others found it even more strange.
Whether it was the “who goes there” from before or this line, it all sounded like words taken straight from a book. Where was the tone one would expect from a Nanxi Zhai disciple?
Tang Thirty-Six stared at that young girl, raising an eyebrow. “Since when did Nanxi Zhai have such rules?”
Whether it was the Li Palace or Saintess Peak, the principle was to spread teachings to all beings. They never refused entry to believers or fellow cultivators, only sealing off truly important areas.
Hearing this, the two Nanxi Zhai girls grew even more nervous, not knowing how to respond.
“It might be because of the merging of the Zhai, so security is tighter now,” Chen Changsheng said to Tang Thirty-Six. “Let’s just reveal our identities directly.”
Hearing this, the two Nanxi Zhai girls suddenly came to their senses. So the other party’s claim of being Peerless Sect disciples was false.
They grew even more tense, drawing their swords and asking in trembling voices, “Who are you, really?”
Tang Thirty-Six had intended to reveal their identities directly, but seeing how nervous they were, he found it amusing and wanted to tease them, so he simply walked forward.
The two Nanxi Zhai girls grew even more nervous, their swords trembling in their hands, but they did not back down.
With two clear shouts that still carried a tremor, the two girls thrust their swords at Tang Thirty-Six.
Before striking, the two girls were clearly nervous, even a little scared.
But once their sword techniques were unleashed, all their nervousness and fear vanished, because they were Nanxi Zhai disciples, using Nanxi Zhai swordsmanship.
Bright, beautiful sword light illuminated the stone gate on the mountain path, descending toward Tang Thirty-Six.
Seeing this scene, Zhe Xiu felt a surge of respect. Only through relentless practice from dawn to dusk could one achieve such calmness through the sword.
Seeing this scene, Hu Thirty-Two felt a chill of awe. He thought that even the most ordinary young disciples of Nanxi Zhai had such exquisite swordsmanship; it seemed he could not underestimate these southern fellow disciples.
Seeing this scene, Chen Changsheng felt a stir of doubt. He wondered what sword technique this was. It looked somewhat familiar, as if there was some hidden method behind it.
Standing in the midst of this scene, Tang Thirty-Six, facing the beautiful sword light coming at him, felt no fear, not even much battle intent.
Yes, these two Nanxi Zhai girls’ swordsmanship was indeed exquisite, but their cultivation level was far too ordinary. They hadn’t even reached the Connate realm. How could they possibly be his match?
He let out a clear laugh, stepped forward, and prepared to break their technique with effortless grace, perfectly displaying his elegance to the two young girls.
But in the next moment, his laugh turned into a surprised gasp, and then into an annoyed cry of “Ouch!”
The sword light suddenly converged. The two Nanxi Zhai girls retreated behind the mountain gate, their chests heaving slightly, their expressions once again tense.
Tang Thirty-Six was not injured, but his sleeve had been torn open, looking rather ridiculous.
He could not laugh.
If this had been a real battle, he had not lost, but if it were a sparring match, he had already lost by one move.
Those two Nanxi Zhai girls had ordinary cultivation levels, and no matter how exquisite their swordsmanship, in theory, they should not have been able to defeat him.
The problem was that there seemed to be some subtle connection between the two girls’ sword moves. When they attacked together, they naturally coordinated, and the power of their swordsmanship suddenly increased. Their moves went from exquisite to sublime, as if they had calculated all of Tang Thirty-Six’s possible paths.
Chen Changsheng, who had studied the Sword of Wisdom with Su Li, only found three flaws in the two Nanxi Zhai girls’ sword moves when they reached the middle stage. From this perspective, in terms of sheer refinement, these two girls’ swordsmanship far surpassed the Star Gathering realm experts he had encountered on the wastelands.
What kind of sword technique was this, so formidable?