Chapter 491 - 331: Advancement and Return

Chapter 491: Chapter 331: Advancement and Return

If a child was qualified to join the Shushan Sword Sect, not only would the child have a limitless future, but their family would also immediately benefit! Every year, they would receive a subsidy from the Shushan Sword Sect!

This was real, tangible Gold Coins! Something most of their families had never even seen before!

After several painful setbacks, the Lightning Legion—under the joint leadership of Marshal Qiu Chen, General Ling Tianxiao, Grand Commander Lingzhi, and Deputy Commanders Ling Wu and Zhang Danian—diligently practiced the Vajra Demon Subduing Sword Array, supplemented by the Ice Crystal Celestial Silkworm and the Top-Grade Elixirs Ling Xiao had left behind!

Three years later, the number of soldiers in this army—which had secretly vanished from Shushan City to train deep in the old mountain forests—had grown to six thousand men!

The weakest among them had reached the level of a Tier Three Great Sword Master, while the strongest had already achieved the realm of a Fifth Rank Demon Sword Master!

On average, a ten-man team forming the Vajra Demon Subduing Sword Array could withstand the fierce assault of a Tier Four Sword Emperor for at least fifty moves without a single casualty!

This was a conclusion reached after numerous trials. In the hearts and minds of the soldiers, the power of Ling Xiao’s sword techniques had made him a god-like existence!

No one had ever heard of ten people, with the average strength of Middle-tier Demon Swordsmen, forming an array that could withstand fifty moves from a Tier Four Sword Emperor!

Only Ling Xiao had managed it!

Ling Tianxiao, the retired Grand General, bolstered by countless Spirit Medicines and his own diligence and hard work that surpassed others his age, finally broke through to the Sword Sect Realm! He had become a Tier One Sword Sect! For the entire Ling Clan, this was a tremendous encouragement!

It showed more people that in the Shushan Sword Sect, as long as you were willing to work hard, you could advance!

Although Qiu Chen was very old, in this regard, he was in no way inferior to the young. His strength also advanced to Tier One Sword Sect. For this former Imperial Marshal, this was even more exciting than the battle where he defeated the Zichuan Empire’s three hundred thousand soldiers with only one hundred thousand of his own!

Sword Sect. This meant he had finally stepped through the gateway to becoming a High-tier Martial Artist!

Lingzhi reached Fifth Rank Demon Sword Master. This rough and straightforward man was always dissatisfied with himself, feeling his progress was too slow! Fortunately, Ling Wu was currently only at the realm of a Second Rank Demon Sword Master, which helped Lingzhi feel much more balanced and believe that he could, just barely, still be considered a genius.

Surrounded by this group of people whose strength increased at a freakish pace, Zhang Danian, who also received the aid of Spirit Medicines, advanced to Fourth Rank Demon Sword Master. For him, this was something he wouldn’t have dared to dream of before!

At the same time, he also found love. Xing’Er, the girl who had always admired him and had followed him since his days as an Adventurer, became Zhang Danian’s wife. This made Ling Wu and the other single men quite envious. However, the soldiers of the Lightning Legion wouldn’t give an ordinary woman a second glance.

Besides, Grand General Ling Tianxiao had already promised them that when the three years were up and they walked out of this forest, he would lead them to make a name for themselves across the continent! When that time came... what kind of beautiful girl couldn’t they find?

Time flew by. Everyone’s strength had improved, but at the same time, during these three years of lying low, aside from the occasional harassment from their old enemies, the Shushan Sword Sect gradually faded from the view of the major families and sects.

After all, those powers had plenty of other things to worry about. Flash-in-the-pan families had existed since ancient times. Many people even suspected that Ling Xiao had been assassinated. Otherwise, how could he have made no move at all for three years?

Based on Ling Xiao’s previous personality, everyone knew that fellow was definitely not the type to willingly suffer a loss and accept his misfortune!

His philosophy was: hit me once, and I’ll hit you back ten times in revenge!

And now, three years had passed without a single word from him. Many great families on the other side of the continent had only just heard the name Ling Xiao before he vanished. And so, like a small pebble tossed into a raging sea, the name Ling Xiao had barely made a ripple in those more distant lands before being washed away without a trace.

Anya’s small medicine shop was doing booming business. In truth, Anya herself couldn’t say for sure whether most people came to be treated or to see her. In any case, once people reached a certain age, they were bound to have some minor ailment or another.

Anya had a gentle temperament and a sweet appearance; a girl like her would always have many admirers. However, Anya had always rejected them all. She couldn’t quite say why herself, though she would occasionally visit Wang Chao’s grave to talk to her "big brother."

Three years had passed. The shadow in her heart should have faded by now. But every time the night grew deep and still, that faint shadow would always solidify. Anya constantly admonished herself in her heart: ’Don’t think about him. He doesn’t belong to you. Anya, you’re too ordinary! The life you have today was all given to you by him! Don’t have any other extravagant hopes!’

Anya actually knew full well why, despite her many admirers, no one had ever dared to cause trouble here. The Shushan City Guard Army was no mere decoration! She knew Ling Xiao must have instructed his subordinates to look after her. Thinking of this, a sweet feeling would always bubble up in her heart.

But it had already been three years! ’Could it really be as so many people say? No... it can’t be!’ Anya sat at the entrance of her medicine shop. Above her head was a lush green grape trellis, surrounded by all sorts of flowers and plants.

Suddenly, Anya’s eyes widened. She saw a figure in the crowd, seemingly moving very slowly. But when she rubbed her eyes hard and looked at the crowd again, the figure had vanished!

"It was a hallucination!" Anya muttered, then got up and went back into her room. ’My rest has been rather poor lately. I should prescribe myself some medicine to get back in balance.’

The Mist Array was always active. People had even stopped paying attention to the situation outside; after all, no one could get in!

Shangguan Yutong finished teaching the children their lessons for the day, not feeling particularly tired. Three years had passed, and she had long grown accustomed to this life. Besides, things were different from the beginning. That first batch of children had mostly come from prominent families and were very disobedient. After three years of culling and adjustment, these new children, who came from destitute families, were almost all perfectly obedient!

This saved Shangguan Yutong a lot of trouble. Moreover, Thirteenth Master and Fourteenth Master had indeed lived up to expectations; among the children they had found, there were some who were truly exceptionally talented!

When she thought about it, this was quite normal. The continent was vast and its population was innumerable. Children from noble families were born with golden spoons in their mouths. Their food, clothing, and daily necessities were all the finest of the fine, and the education they received was something children from ordinary families could never hope to compare with.

In many poor families, children couldn’t even afford to read books, let alone practice martial arts! 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"Letters for the poor, swords for the rich!" This saying held true on the Canglan Continent as well.

Therefore, countless exceptionally talented children were simply buried, living out their lives in mediocrity, achieving nothing. They might even go to their graves without ever knowing that they too once had a chance to rise above the rest...

Those children were indeed all outstanding! Shangguan Yutong walked back to her room, hugging a large stack of the children’s exam papers. At the Shushan Sword Sect, one could learn more than just martial techniques; academic studies would not be neglected either!

Although they wouldn’t be given any kind of aristocratic education, the Shushan Sword Sect could at least train them to be intelligent Martial Artists!

Shangguan Yutong corresponded with Song Mingyue and the others. She knew that under the protection of the Gongsun Family, they were all doing very well, and their strength was improving quickly. Moreover, the seven girls had also become somewhat famous over at Nia Academy. They had already decided that once they completed their studies, they would come to the Shushan Sword Sect to serve as instructors, which could be considered putting their learning to good use.

Shangguan Yutong naturally supported their wish, because for the past few years, she had poured nearly all her heart and soul into the Shushan Sword Sect!

Just like for Su Xue and Quefeng, this place was their home. It was their everything!

Of course... there was also that person.

’Damn it!’ Shangguan Yutong’s face flushed slightly as she thought, ’Why am I thinking of him again? That heartless little brat. Almost three years without a single word, it’s just too much. When I see him, I’ll definitely... Ah!’

Shangguan Yutong pushed open her door and suddenly cried out in shock. The exam papers in her hands scattered across the floor, but her eyes were locked in a daze on her own seat. There sat a young man dressed in a long cyan robe, with a full head of short black hair, pure eyes, and a handsome, sharply chiseled face.

He was smiling back at her.

"Definitely what?"