Forty Millenniums of Cultivation, page 918
"Of course. If you feel that the sword forgers of your own sect are good enough to solve the issues without leaving any hidden problems, you are welcome to take care of the weapon on your own. The demonstrations I showed just now will be complimentary!
"However, if you choose to tend to it yourself, do not come to me and waste my time if something goes wrong again in the near future!"
That was the vocational benefit of refiners. As long as they seized what one cared for most, they would never be afraid that one would not bend to them.
Ou Yezi's memories had been expanded to the Nascent Soul Stage—where he was a pillar of the Hundred Smelting Clan. Naturally, Li Yao had learned a lot of things about the arts of blackmailing from him.
"Well…"
Bu Tiantong, Ren Changkong, and Li Zhuilang—three Cultivators in the middle level of the Nascent Soul Stage who came to make demands of the Purple Pole Sword Sect—looking at the 'perfect' magical equipment in their hand, lost all their aggressiveness.
Chapter 1409: Rising to Fame! |
Below the Bronze Censer Peak, more and more Cultivators from the smaller sects had gathered.
As time went by, they grew more and more curious about the result of the ongoing 'summit confrontation'.
For Cultivators at the level of Qi Zhongdao and Yan Liren, the outcome of their fight would often be decided in one moment. It was impossible for them to maul each other for an hour without a winner like two mobsters on the street.
But that seemed to be what was happening.
The low-level Cultivators could only hear the astonishing sounds on the Bronze Censer Peak and see the spectacular views where the mountains were chopped by the sword auras, the clouds were churned by spiritual energy, and all kinds of variegated brightness were soaring toward the sky.
When they thought that the battle was over, new noises erupted before they were replaced by dead silence. They waited and waited, yet there seemed to be no end!
All the Cultivators were waiting so earnestly that they almost hated that their souls could not leave their body to see what was going on there.
Of course, that was impossible. The entire Bronze Censer Peak had been surrounded by barriers. Not just the outsiders, even the empyreal soldiers responsible for security did not know the result!
After waiting for a long time without any new message, as if an invisible behemoth had swallowed everyone on the Bronze Censer Peak, everyone at the bottom of the mountain grew rowdy.
"What's going on? Why have the Sword Maniac and Master Righteous One fought for such a long time? This doesn't seem like their style!"
"Who do you think is the winner, the Sword Maniac or Master Righteous One? Who is the well-deserved 'best' in the Dragon Spring Meeting?"
"The Sword Maniac is best known for his fast sword. If he is the winner, it shouldn't have taken so long, right?"
"Did anything unexpected happen on the Bronze Censer Peak? Is it possible that Yan Liren or Qi Zhongdao were killed by the opponent, and the Purple Pole Sword Sect waged a war upon the other five major sects?"
"Is—is—is it really possible?"
"Then, how do you explain the fulminations and the surging spiritual energy there? Look. The clouds in the sky are galloping like stallions. It is a sign that the spiritual energy has been activated to the maximum! Who else except for super experts such as Yan Liren or Qi Zhongdao can unleash such intimidating flames of spiritual energy?"
The yells and shouts spread like wildfire. Not only were the thousands of Cultivators from the smaller sects ill at ease, even the empyreal swordsmen of the Purple Pole Sword Sect were apparently less confident than before despite their faked calmness.
They did not expect the battle to drag on to such a point. What exactly happened on the Bronze Censer Peak? Was it Yan Liren who won, or was it Qi Zhongdao? Or…
Every empyreal swordsman's hands were sweating while they clenched their swords.
Just when the raucous scene was almost out of control, a dull gong noise finally echoed on the top of the Bronze Censer Peaker. The barriers that surrounded the mountain ebbed like colorful tides.
The elders of the six major sects slowly descended on their lotus jade discs.
"The result is out!"
"What happened? What happened? Did the Sword Maniac overwhelm Master Righteous One, or did Master Righteous One eclipse the Sword Maniac?"
An elder of the Purple Pole Sword Sect stepped out of the crowd. He flew above the thousands of Cultivators on the lotus jade disc before glancing at the messy crowd with a half-smile and declared, "The result of the sword test between Elder Yan of our sect and Master Righteous One of the Grand Mystery Sect is now out! Master Righteous One's Heaven Flipping Seal deserves to be known as the ultimate treasure in the world. It has suppressed all three primeval swords that our sect recently produced. The Purple Pole Sword Sect has lost the competition!"
"Ah!"
"Lost. Yan Liren lost! The Purple Pole Sword Sect lost!"
"Heaven Flipping Seal! Heaven Flipping Seal, the best treasure of the Ancient Sages Sector! To think that it has destroyed three primeval swords in a row! How amazing!"
"It seems that the Purple Pole Sword Sect suffered such a crushing defeat that they were not able to fight back at all. Otherwise, why would their elder be admitting it so frankly without any whitewashing?"
"This is good!"
Many of the smaller sects had followed the five major sects there because they intended to split the leftovers after the five major sects claimed the trophies.
Now that the Grand Mystery Sect was on the winning side, they were naturally simmering with delight. The greed in their eyes was obvious!
The few Cultivators who were not bemused by their voracity, however, felt that something was off.
They noticed that the leadership of the five major sects who were slowly landing all had weird expressions. There was not the joy of victory at all but certain uncanny embarrassment.
The elders and the managers of the Grand Mystery Sect, in particular, had faces as dark as the bottom of a pot. They did not look confident and ambitious at all.
"What's going on? Didn't Master Righteous One win? Why does it seem that the five major sects have lost?"
The elder of the Purple Pole Sword Sect caught the reactions of all the Cultivators from the smaller sects. With a feigned smile, he said, "There are also three things that we would like to inform you of!
"Firstly, our sect and the Grand Mystery Sect have just reached a deal. We will provide three thousand 'Moon Wave Swords' made of Moon Wave Steel in five years. For the deal, we will join hands with the Grand Mystery Sect to develop Violet Moon Mountain, which has abundant reserves of Moon Wave Steel!
"Violet Moon Mountain is remote, with dense forests and animals. We are going to need a lot of hands. If any fellow Cultivators here are interested in the business, you are welcome to cooperate with us!"
"What!"
His announcement dumbfounded all the Cultivators who were planning to loot the burning house.
Moon Wave Steel was nothing rare. Moon Wave Swords were low-level flying swords that were usually distributed to the newly-recruited disciples.
For the super sects such as the Purple Pole Sword Sect and the Grand Mystery Sect, the business of three thousand Moon Wave Swords should be insufficient to fill the gap of their teeth!
At such a moment, the public announcement of such an insignificant deal and the claim that the two sects would develop the Moon Wave Steel reserves together were just a gesture suggesting that the Purple Pole Sword Sect had reached a secret deal, or at least laid the groundwork for the deal, with the five major sects led by the Grand Mystery Sect!
But how was it possible?
Since a thousand sects had come to threaten Hundred Blade Mountain under the lead of the five major sects, the situation was highly unfavorable for the Purple Pole Sword Sect. After Yan Liren, the top expert of the sect, had failed, they should have been like meat on a chopping block waiting to be butchered!
How did the two parties reach a deal so fast? The smaller sects did not even have time to enjoy the leftovers!
Also, judging from the casualness and the smile of the elder of the Purple Pole Sword Sect, the deal that they had reached was even more advantageous for the Purple Pole Sword Sect.
What exactly had happened up there?
The low-level Cultivators could not figure it out at all, and they scratched their head as hard as they could!
"Secondly…"
The elder of the Purple Pole Sword Sect dragged his tone and said unhurriedly, "According to the news that we have just received from the Southland of Sorcerers, Ling Shoujing, the Appeasing Ambassador of the Fifth Prefecture of the South Land of Sorcerers, has fortunately accomplished his mission. With the enlightenment of Master Spiritual Vulture, a local senior, he has pronounced Huo Wuji as the Chieftain of Southwest, banished the disobedient rogues including Huo Wuji, and executed Master Black Moon who was shameless enough to rebel. Even Han Yuantai, Lord of Behemothic Eagle from Ghost Qin, was heavily wounded and kicked back to his own hometown!
"In half a month, the chaos in the Southland of Sorcerers has been addressed!"
It was another piece of explosive news.
Everybody knew that the Ling family, a vassal family to the Purple Pole Sword Sect, had been asked to fix the mess in the southwest.
It was also not a secret that the Purple Pole Sword Sect, to cope with the pressures from everywhere, could not dispatch too many Nascent Soul Stage experts to support the Ling family.
Ling Shoujing, on the other hand, was just a Core Formation Stage Cultivator. Few people were optimistic about his mission to the Southland of Sorcerers.
But as it happened, even guys as brutal as Master Black Moon and Han Yuantai had been suppressed?
Ling Shoujing certainly did not have such capabilities.
Many people located the most critical name from the whole announcement quickly.
Master Spiritual Vulture!
As they expected, the elder of the Purple Pole Sword Sect went on. "Thirdly, our sect has recently hired a new visiting elder. His name is Master Spiritual Vulture, a man who has been renowned in the Southland of Sorcerers for a hundred years!
"Not only does Master Spiritual Vulture boast an immense Cultivation that has arrived at the peak, he is also an extraordinary specialist in sword forging, which happens to be the specialty of this sect!
"In order for more Cultivators to appreciate Master Spiritual Vulture's demeanor, we have just decided that the Dragon Spring Meeting this year will be specially extended by one day. Master Spiritual Vulture will hold a lecture that covers the mysteries of the secret arts from Great Zhou on forging and refining! If you are not in a hurry to go home, Fellow Cultivators, I strongly suggest that you do not miss it!"
The elder of the Purple Pole Sword Sect's words raised rounds of whispers each louder than the last among the thousands of low-level Cultivators.
"Master Spiritual Vulture? Wasn't he a barbarian Cultivator who disappeared decades ago? I recall that his senior brother Master Black Moon…"
"Watch your mouth! I'm told that he is an old monster who is brutal, petty, and blatant!"
"How did the Purple Pole Sword Sect invite such an old monster?"
"Were the anomalies on the Bronze Censer Peak related to him? Is he the key to everything?"
"The secret arts from Great Zhou? What Great Zhou? Hiss… Is it the Great Zhou Dynasty from ninety thousand years ago?"
Every mouth was shouting the name of 'Master Spiritual Vulture'. Every pair of suspicious eyes was gazing at the Bronze Censer Peak, trying to find any traces of the barbarian from the unpredictable mist and clouds!
In the middle of the doubts, sighs, and exclamations, the name of 'Master Spiritual Vulture' was spreading over the entire Hundred Blade Mountain like an unstoppable storm with the Bronze Censer Peak as the center. In less than an hour, it had been learned by all the Cultivators who went to participate in the Dragon Spring Meeting.
It would not be long before the name was spread to every corner of the Ancient Sages Sector!
Chapter 1410: Incoming Febrile Typhoon! |
Three months later, in the capital city of the Great Qian Dynasty…
There was no telling whether it was because the Great Qian Dynasty had run out of bad luck or because the new emperor was indeed a man of fortune. When it came to the sunny, flourishing April, the Great Qian Dynasty's devastation from when the wolf knights of Ghost Qin marched all the way to the capital city seemed to have entirely disappeared.
It was perhaps the most favorable and peaceful spring for the Great Qian Dynasty in the past twenty years.
In the north, Ghost Qin had suffered a lot of losses during their armed robbery the previous year. After they retreated to their nest, they slowly treated their wounds and digested the trophies. They showed no intention of marching south again in the near future.
In the southeast, the White Lotus Cult had not been on a rampage for a long time. The terrible scenes where ghosts were singing in thousands of households became nightmares of old.
In the west, Qi Changsheng's Heaven Battering Army was crushed by the court's Sky Ascension Troop again. Hundreds of thousands of homeless peasants surrendered on the spot.
The leadership of the Heaven Battering Army, including Qi Changsheng and hundreds of Cultivators who betrayed their sects, fled in panic. They had fractured in the snowy world and were divided into dozens of disordered groups of bandits.
Rumor had it that even Qi Changsheng himself had been heavily wounded during the split and disappeared.
Although both the White Lotus Cult and the Heaven Battering Army were not so easy to eradicate and had been through similar desperate situations countless times before, only to rise again later, it was expected that the two forces would not be able to stir much trouble for a year and a half.
More importantly, ever since Lead Eunuch Wang Xi fell, the Cultivators who had been in conflict reached a new deal on the distribution of interests after the Dragon Spring Meeting and gradually stabilized. The new balance among the sects and between the sects and the new emperor had been achieved.
It meant that the Cultivators of the Great Qian Dynasty were finally freed from the complicated internal strife and shifted their attention to the external problems such as the White Lotus Cult, the Heaven Battering Army, and Ghost Qin!
The fate of the dynasty seemed to have been changed so shortly after the new emperor assumed the throne. Even the capital city had recovered from the depression when it was besieged by the Ghost Qin's army after only one year. The previous prosperity and liveliness had been restored, with even more vivacity!
The capital city, Divine Capital, was the largest city in the Ancient Sages Sector.
The splendid city, claimed 'never to fall', had been regarded by more than ten dynasties as the capital city. It was divided into four levels in total.
The underground space at the bottom level was the residence of the ordinary people.
Like diligent ants, they had excavated sophisticated and splendid caverns below the ground over thousands of years. Then, with all kinds of huge bronze mirrors, they directed the sunlight hundreds of meters below the ground.
As a result, not only was the underground golden and spectacular, even the entire capital city seemed to be floating on a blossoming golden lotus. It was indeed fabulous and brilliant and could be called a heaven on earth!
The buildings on the ground belonged to the Cultivation sects that were headquartered in the capital city and their vassal families. The red walls and the vast yards were too intricate to be measured.
In the sky, dozens of floating mountains were listed in a strict square. They were the pivot of the Great Qian Dynasty. The central offices of the dynasty and the elites of the troops, as well as the tea houses, hotels, fairs, auctions, and casinos for the Cultivators, together with the headquarters of the six major sects or their most important local office in the capital city, had all been founded here.
Right above the floating mountains was a group of carefully built palaces made possible by emptying an entire floating mountain. It was also the headquarters of the Thunder Qian Sect, the founder of the Great Qian Dynasty in the past. It was surrounded by barriers that were glowing purple. Even a full-strength strike of a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator would not be able to shake it. Known as the Forbidden City, it was the royal palace that could theoretically command the entire Ancient Sages Sector!
At night, when just the lanterns were on, the tea houses and restaurants below the Forbidden City would all be packed with guests. The Cultivators from all over the world had come to the same place.
Those qualified to be entertained there were at least above the Building Foundation Stage, which meant that they were the main forces in the world of Cultivators. Many of the guests were in the Core Formation Stage or even in the Nascent Soul Stage. They were all well-informed. Naturally, their conversation topics were the latest changes and the celebrities in the world of Cultivators.
However, in whichever tea house or restaurant, after the conversation went on for a while over the delicious wine, the same name would always been brought up.
Master Spiritual Vulture.
It had indeed been the most heated topic in the world of Cultivators over the past three months.
The glaciers at the northernmost deserts, the volcanoes in the westmost lands, the islands in the depths of the eastern ocean, the sultry forests in the south… In any place that had a Cultivation sect or Cultivators, somebody would always mention the name mysteriously.
It was said that he was the strongest Cultivator in the Southland of Sorcerers in the past hundreds of years. His Cultivation was already unimaginably high. During the Dragon Spring Meeting, he had suppressed three Cultivators in the middle level of the Nascent Soul Stage in a row with ease.
It was said that not only was his Cultivation immeasurable, he also boasted the most extraordinary refining arts. In his debut during the Dragon Spring Meeting, he pointed out the shortcomings of three marvelous weapons. He even turned on his furnace and repaired the three marvelous weapons on the spot.
