57 – Friends and Enemies

AAaaah… I thought I was gonna die for real!

I wrapped my deer skull with another paper bag, huffing and puffing loudly as I tried to calm myself down. That ridiculous slash from Wendao had cut through all my bullets and weapons in one go. The fact that the sword had stopped just short of my neck was clearly a conscious choice. If he had wanted to, he could have killed me right there.

Well… my clone, at least. I had been testing Phantom Sensory Prison to conceal myself without relying on Divine Fog, and it had worked perfectly amid the chaos of flying bullets and gunshot sounds.

“You were holding back,” Wendao said from the hospital bed. Senior Sister Zhaoxia was currently treating his wounds.

“Well yeah, dude. We weren’t supposed to kill each other,” I replied matter-of-factly.

“Do not do that ever again,” Wandao said icily.

My jaw dropped. “That’s what you’re upset about?”

Wèndào only glared in return.

“Alright, alright. I won’t hold back next time, but I’d rather not reveal everything I can do,” I conceded.

This seemed to be a more acceptable answer. It was no surprise he could tell. Technically I could have ended the fight instantly with flechette buckshot combined with my new firing mode. Let’s see… let’s call it Mountain Piercing Shot. It works by enhancing the firing piston for pre acceleration using Mountain Shaking Strike and Imbuing the projectile with Gale Sovereign Bow. The former multiplied raw firepower while the latter synergized with the railgun barrel, effectively doubling barrel length performance in terms of speed and more power. The result roughly tripled the overall firepower, but at the cost of ten times the Qi expenditure. Either from inefficiency, lack of mastery, or the fact that it feels like I am concentrating on doing three different things at once. It was still not exactly acceptable as I might achieve a similar result with scaling the railgun size up.

But wasn’t just a simple force multiplier either. The two supplementary arts resonated well with my Earth and Metal spiritual roots, achieving effects I still didn’t fully understand. More importantly, this combination wasn’t written in any of the manuals, which meant there was still plenty I didn’t know about how these arts truly worked. So I should keep trying to use this to see where this goes.

“So, how long until he recovers?” I asked Senior Sister Zhaoxia.

“Full Qi recovery? Two weeks. As for the wounds…”

“We can depart in three days.” Wendao finished her words as he stood from the bed. “I’ll pack my things and get ready.”

He left the room without another word.

“Congratulations on achieving 33rd rank.” Senior Sister Zhaoxia congratulates me with a bright smile. “You’re going to have so much fun in the arena.”

“I still haven’t forgiven you,” I reminded her. “You were the one who tied me down during that body tempering session. And I don’t think I’ll enjoy myself too much in the arena,” I added honestly.

“Aww, don’t be shy. You just haven’t realized it yet,” she teased, standing up. “I saw you grinning with all those jaws of yours when Wendao slashed at you the first time.” Zhaoxia teased and rose from her seat.

Did I really do that? I didn’t remember. Well… omitting the fact that it was real life with real consequences, I guess it was more exciting than any VR game I’d ever played.

“Now come with me.” Zhaoxia invited. “I have something to make up for what I did.”

I had no idea where this was going, so I followed her. We passed many inner and outer disciples of Shengyuan Peak who now greeted me more respectfully than before. I returned the greetings with a wave. The ratio of jealousy I sensed from their emotional halos had noticeably decreased compared to respect.

Senior Sister Zhaoxia led me to her office. I closed the door behind me as she rummaged through a messy pile of scattered documents. She clearly wasn’t the tidiest person. After a moment, she found what she was looking for and hid it behind her back before presenting a small box to me.

“Tada.” She opened the box to reveal a simple ring.

“I assume offering a ring is not a proposal of marriage here?” I tease.

“What!?” Zhaoxia’s face immediately went red. “No I wasn’t asking for…”

“Just a jape-just a jape.” I quickly said. She seemed more flustered than I expected. Must be a sensitive topic for her.

“You scoundrel.” Zhaoxia raised her palm and swung it at my head.

My life flashed before my eyes as Qi surged in her palm. It shattered my AT field, drained most of my Qi, and stopped a hair’s breadth above my head. The force from the slap created a massive shockwave that turned the already messy room into complete chaos. Senior Sister Zhaoxia then beamed an innocent smile.

“Just a joke.” said, chuckling in a way that compelled me to laugh along nervously.

Then she suddenly stopped, and I followed suit immediately.

“This was a present from Master,” she explained. “A Foundation Establishment spiritual treasure. It can dispel illusions and break bonds of Foundation Establishment level three times, and even Golden Core level once, before needing a recharge or repair.”

“Ooo.” I accepted the ring box with both hands. Crowd control immunity! “Thank you.”

“I’ll notify Qingfeng that you’re leaving in three days. He heard your pills were stolen and is currently making new ones for your journey.” Zhaoxia then leaned forward.

I leaned down to listen. “I heard he’s preparing something special for you.”

I nodded. But then something in the corner of my eye caught my attention. A piece of black cloth radiating faint Qi, almost as if it wanted to be noticed.

“What’s this?” I picked it up.

“Oh, that? It’s a disguise veil gifted by a friend. It can conceal cultivation levels and inhibit perception to some degree, but only at Foundation Establishment level. It doesn’t really suit me, so I never used it,” Senior Sister Zhaoxia reminisced.

“May I take it with me too?” I asked.

“Sure. It’s useless to me anyway.”

“Woop.” I draped the veil over my deer skull, fully covering the top of my head and extending a little downward. I tied the edges to my antlers to secure it.

From inside, I could see everything clearly, as if nothing was covering my eyes. I looked directly at Senior Sister Zhaoxia and… heard nothing! Success!

I had been wondering whether covering my eyes could block Truth Gleaning. Now I wouldn’t be constantly bombarded with truths or possible futures just from making eye contact. It was still a useful power, I wouldn’t lie, but I’d rather use it only when I wanted to.

“I’ll take my leave then.”

“Prepare well.”

—

Three days passed in a blink. I didn’t make any particularly meaningful preparations other than collecting my one hundred medium-grade spirit stones from the Treasury Hall. Apparently one medium-grade spirit stone was worth a hundred normal ones, so I now had ten thousand spirit stones in total.

“A’Meng,” I called out as I exited my house.

His shoulders shuddered before he turned toward me. “Y-yes, Master?”

I exhaled. “Look, I’m sorry about yesterday. I won’t do that again,” I apologized first.

“Wait, you don’t need to… Brother Wuchen said this kind of thing is normal and expected of us. So it’s okay,” A’Meng replied.

“No, it’s not,” I corrected him. “Sure, it was just a test, but I could have caused more harm without meaning to.”

A’Meng looked down, seeming even more ashamed. I wasn’t sure what else to say in this situation.

“I’ll be leaving soon and might be gone for a while. Do you and the others need anything?” I asked. “Where are the other two anyway? I only seem to run into one of you at a time.”

“I think it’s better to leave it to your judgment, Master,” A’Meng replied, not helping much. “As for the others, we made a schedule to split work and cultivation. One works while a pair cultivates at a time.”

I see. That explained it. “I’ll be leaving then. Tell the others I apologize if I frightened them too much.”

Now there was one more place to visit. I found my father in his usual spot in the garden gazebo, reading a book.

“I’ll be departing soon,” I notified him.

“So I’ve heard. Any questions?” my father asked.

“There are. But…” I thought for a moment. “I think it’s better if I discover more on my own before asking.”

“Very good.”

“Any kind of danger I should be careful of?”

“Nothing you haven’t encountered yet.”

“I see. See you later.” I gave my goodbye and headed to the entrance.

The rest of the group, including Qingfeng, were already waiting.

—

A month ago, just after the news of Xuan Luochen adopting a son had spread across the world, the atmosphere at the very top of Tianjian Sect was far from celebratory.

Within the lone pagoda, in the uppermost room, the sect leader, an old man with very long white hair and beard, sat drenched in cold sweat. He muttered nonstop, his body trembling. To anyone else, he would have looked like a madman if not for his position and his Nascent Soul cultivation.

“Xuan Xuechen has a son. Xuan Xuechen has a son. Xuan Xuechen has a son.” He repeated the words like a cursed mantra. He looked down at the stump where his arms and legs were supposed to be. The former cut clean after the elbow and the latter cut clean after the knees.

Then darted around the room in terror. To his sect. To his disciples. To the vast library of sword arts and the immense wealth in the treasury. To his family and his own son.

None of it mattered.

NONE OF IT!

Not even his sect. As long as the Xuans existed, Tianjian Sect would never rise to true prominence. He had lamented and despaired in this very room for the last three hundred years. Why had Xuan Xuechen abandoned the path of the sword? Why had he chosen to remain in the distant Tianhe Sect instead of joining a proper sword sect like his own? It was unfair! Heaven itself was unfair! Xuan Xuechen was unfair!

And now… He has… a son…

He sent out a call with his Qi. The deputy sect leader, his daughter, arrived soon after. Kneeling at a respective distance. Soon after, the deputy sect leader, his daughter, arrived and knelt at a respectful distance. She knew her father hated to be looked upon directly and that, even without arms or legs, he remained extremely dangerous.

“What do you need from me?” she asked.

“Send out missions, missives, assassination requests. Everything,” the sect leader answered with a rasped voice. “Xuan Danxing must die before he can grow strong.”

“And the reward?” the deputy sect leader asked grimly.

“An inheritance of a Nascent Soul cultivator,” the sect leader replied without hesitation.

Then he fixed his piercing gaze on his daughter’s eyes. “Mine.”

—

News spread quickly. Whether leaked by Tianhe Sect itself or because all eyes were already fixed on them did not matter. It soon became known to all shady organizations that Xuan Danxing was leaving with a small group. Since Tianhe was the southernmost sect, his destination could only be north. There were plenty of places to prepare an ambush.

Within a dark ravine, a pale white hand with long fingers and claws read the letter. It burned the paper after memorizing the contents. Red eyes glowed with excitement. Fanged teeth were revealed in a wide grin, followed by a dozen others echoing the same hunger.

In a serene valley near a waterfall, a letter arrived through teleportation. A gentle hand set down a cup of tea before picking up the paper. The name of the recipient was written clearly on it: Whistling Death.

Far to the west, beyond the Great Border Wall that rose like a steep mountain. Dividing West Xia and Xian and the world in two. Whispers spread through a blackened cursed landscape choked with negative karma and resentment. Tens of thousands of cultivators had met their end here. The living and the dead alike murmured the same words.

“Xuan Xuechen has adopted a son.”

And within a graveyard of a thousand swords, a deeply rusted and blunted blade began to vibrate.

Its rust fell away like dust. Its blunted edge sharpened as it absorbed blood, resentment, and hatred. A single word on its hilt glowed with demonic red light:

XUAN

~ Valarion