Chapter 345 - 218: The Union of the Immortal and Martial

Chapter 345: Chapter 218: The Union of the Immortal and Martial

"..."

Elder Lu stared at the sword’s edge before him, feeling as if the words were caught in his throat. But Su Xing was the first to sheathe his blade, saying softly,

"Thank you for the match, Elder Lu."

"It is nothing. I just never imagined Elder Su possessed such strength."

Elder Lu said politely.

As the saying goes, the master is the one who leads. Su Xing didn’t comment on Elder Lu’s subtle shift from a casual address to the more respectful "Elder." He just chuckled and said,

"My sword may be sharp, but when I saw you practicing your swordsmanship earlier, Elder Lu, I could also sense its profoundness. In my opinion, you may yet be able to advance further in the future."

"Alas."

Hearing Su Xing’s praise, Elder Lu couldn’t help but sigh. He said faintly, "Unfortunately, despite practicing so hard for so long, I still cannot fully master the Cyan Cloud Sect’s signature Swordsmanship."

"Signature Swordsmanship?"

Su Xing asked, a little puzzled.

After all, he was self-taught and had never received any formal lineage. As such, he was somewhat curious about a sect like Cyan Cloud, which had been passed down through generations. His interest in their signature Swordsmanship was even greater.

"Yes."

Elder Lu nodded. "Our Cyan Cloud Sect is a sect of sword cultivators, so naturally, we have our own heritage."

"According to legend, the Cyan Cloud Sect was founded a thousand years ago by the Cyan Cloud Sword Immortal. Because so much time has passed, our sect has few records of him left."

"We only know that he was a Qi Cultivator who broke through to Tier Nine, that his swordsmanship was divine, and that his lifespan was equal to that of the heavens and earth."

"Tier Nine?"

Su Xing murmured.

This was only the second time he had heard of a Tier Nine existence in this world. Although it sounded like the Cyan Cloud Sword Immortal had long since passed away, Su Xing firmly committed the name to memory.

After all, it wouldn’t be surprising if an existence of that level suddenly popped out of his grave one day.

The swordsmanship created by a Tier Nine sword cultivator would naturally be peerless. Yet, no one in the current Cyan Cloud Sect had ever managed to cultivate it to the stage of great mastery.

’I wonder if a Martial Artist can practice it?’

The thought suddenly occurred to Su Xing. Although the Cyan Cloud Swordsmanship was a technique for Qi Cultivators, it was ultimately still a form of swordsmanship. Su Xing was a Martial Artist and had no Spiritual Qi, but he also cultivated the Sword Dao. Perhaps there was some common ground.

However,

a thought like this

was not something Su Xing could voice aloud just yet.

After all, it was the Cyan Cloud Sect’s true signature Swordsmanship. He would have to at least wait until the current matter was resolved before trying anything.

As for...

whether the Cyan Cloud Swordsmanship was difficult to practice,

that was completely unimportant to Su Xing.

As long as he could access his system panel, nothing in this world was difficult to practice. A few Sword Dao Points would be enough to raise it to its peak.

"Elder Lu."

"Has really no one been able to cultivate the Cyan Cloud Swordsmanship to great mastery?"

Su Xing asked as he pondered. Although the Cyan Cloud Swordsmanship wouldn’t be difficult for him if he could obtain it, he was curious to know if there were any other living practitioners today.

"..."

"There is one, but he is not a member of the Cyan Cloud Sect."

Elder Lu said with a solemn expression after a moment of silence.

These words were somewhat unexpected for Su Xing. He looked at Elder Lu’s face and continued to ask,

"Then how did he learn it?"

"Alas, it’s a long story."

"The Cyan Cloud Sect once had a swordsmanship genius. He was only twenty years old when he joined the sect, and by the time he was forty, he had already reached the Tier Seven Peak in his cultivation."

"Not only that, but he had also achieved great mastery of the Cyan Cloud Swordsmanship, and was only a hair’s breadth away from true consummation. He was practically the designated successor for the next Sect Leader."

"..."

"If it’s inconvenient to say..."

Having heard this much, Su Xing was already starting to understand. The rest of the story probably wasn’t pleasant. It was likely a scandal, perhaps something like betraying the sect.

This kind of matter

is often a sect’s private affair,

and if the other party was unwilling to speak, Su Xing naturally wouldn’t press the issue, especially since it wasn’t of great importance.

"No, it’s actually quite simple. There’s nothing that can’t be said."

Elder Lu shook his head and said.

In truth, Sect Leader Gu’s friendly attitude toward Su Xing, combined with Su Xing’s own strength, had given Elder Lu the idea of winning him over. Otherwise, while these matters were minor in the grand scheme, he would have been absolutely unwilling to let an outsider know of them.

"That genius was named Li Ye. He killed Sect Leader Gu’s daughter and then fled the Cyan Cloud Sect."

Elder Lu stated it simply, but those few simple words contained an enormous amount of information. Su Xing frowned and asked,

"Why? Did he have a grudge against Sect Leader Gu? Or some life-or-death feud with his daughter?"

"No."

"Since he was to be our sect’s designated next Sect Leader, his relationship with Sect Leader Gu couldn’t have been bad. In fact, Sect Leader Gu had even personally betrothed his own daughter to him."

"How long ago was this?"

"..."

"Over ten years ago."

Elder Lu thought for a moment before saying, "It was around the time we had just escaped the depletion of Spiritual Qi and awakened from the Secret Realm."

"..."

Su Xing was stunned for a moment. He had originally thought this Li Ye was from before the Spiritual Qi depletion and had probably long since turned to dust. He never expected that Li Ye had actually survived to the present day along with the rest of the Cyan Cloud Sect.

"So, you’re saying he’s still alive?"

Su Xing said gravely.

"Probably."

"Our Cyan Cloud Sect has been trying to capture that vile disciple and bring him back to avenge Sect Leader Gu, but he’s been hiding all over the place, and we’ve yet to find him."