Tongtian Bestows the Immortal Slaying Sword

"Master, you misunderstand. I didn't... I was just..."

Xian Junyu was still ready to talk his way out of it, to save his master's face.

But before he could finish, he saw that his master's sly smile had vanished. His eyes narrowed, fixed on him with an unblinking stare.

He immediately dropped the act. When his master wasn't angry, he could still be cheeky. But now that his master was clearly displeased, pushing it further would be going too far.

"You don't need to pretend here. I knew the moment you left your cave dwelling three thousand years ago. And your Second Martial Uncle personally told me you went to him to learn Artifact Refining!"

"Since your Second Martial Uncle said so, and you're still playing dumb here—if you want to learn Artifact Refining, then learn it. Do you think I, your master, have no tolerance for others?"

Tongtian said, his face full of speechless exasperation.

His eldest disciple's behavior made him seem like some petty man without the capacity to accept others. It was truly infuriating.

Earlier, he had received a message from his eldest brother. The Three Pure Ones Brothers had gathered and briefly discussed the Rotating Preaching matter. During that meeting, his second brother had even brought up Xian Junyu's cultivation.

He claimed that Xian Junyu had used pills to boost his realm, ruining his foundation, and even scolded Tongtian for leading his disciple astray.

Thinking of his eldest disciple's remarkable qualities, Tongtian had silently taken the blame. This only deepened Yuanshi's misunderstanding.

Hearing this, Xian Junyu was also somewhat stunned.

His Second Martial Uncle had been with him all these years. When would he have had the time to talk about this with his master? Could it have been while he was reading?

"Uh... hehe, this disciple was just afraid you'd misunderstand, Master. Having such a good master, yet going to someone else to learn things..."

"It just... doesn't seem right..."

Since his master had already laid it out, he stopped pretending.

At worst, he'd get a beating or be confined for a while. He had already learned Artifact Refining, so he'd accept the punishment.

"You knew it wasn't right, yet you still went. That's knowingly breaking the rules!"

"A mere Artifact Refining technique—I, your master, also know it. Going far for what's near is foolish. And most importantly, how can the path of Artifact Refining compare to the Great Path of cultivation? Trading the big for the small is even more foolish!"

Tongtian pointed out three of Xian Junyu's mistakes in succession.

He, too, knew Artifact Refining. He just wasn't as proficient as his second brother, Yuanshi. But going to someone else to learn wasn't the main reason for his anger.

After all, when it came to Artifact Refining, he truly was inferior to his second brother, Yuanshi. There was nothing to argue about.

The real reason he was angry was that Xian Junyu had given up three hundred years of enlightenment to instead comprehend the auxiliary Artifact Refining.

Abandoning the Great Path of cultivation for Artifact Refining—that was simply too foolish.

"Trading the big for the small?"

"Master, this disciple knows his mistake. I accept the punishment without complaint..."

Understanding the main reason for his master's anger, Xian Junyu immediately admitted his fault.

The path of Artifact Refining truly couldn't compare to the Great Path of cultivation. Without System Bro, he wouldn't have given up cultivation either. But he had special circumstances.

And he knew his master meant well. He accepted whatever punishment was coming, and he did so willingly.

"Punishment? When did I say I was going to punish you?"

"But this time, you really did wrong. Not punishing you would be hard to justify. For these three hundred years, you won't go anywhere. Focus on cleaning my Daoist Sanctuary!"

"Since you like Artifact Refining, I happen to have some materials here. I want you to refine five Houtian Spiritual Treasures for me in these three hundred years. No problem, right?"

Tongtian said calmly.

He hadn't originally wanted to punish Xian Junyu. But if he didn't teach him a lesson, he feared the disciple might make the same mistake again. So he decided on a light punishment as a warning.

The main point wasn't the punishment itself, but to make him remember not to commit this kind of error in the future.

"No problem!"

Hearing the punishment his master had given, Xian Junyu accepted it completely.

For him, this wasn't a punishment at all. Refining Houtian Spiritual Treasures was practically giving him experience. He could already refine them. As long as he had enough materials, refining five was no big deal.

"Punishment given, now let's talk about another matter. I imagine you learned Artifact Refining to obtain spiritual treasures. What you want them for, I don't care to ask."

"But this incident reminded me—it's time to give you a spiritual treasure to use. I offered you one before, and you refused. You won't do that now, will you?"

Hearing this, Xian Junyu nodded.

He really did need a spiritual treasure for self-defense. But he looked down on Houtian Spiritual Treasures. He knew his master had many treasures, but only a few were worth his attention.

Seeing that his eldest disciple truly wanted a spiritual treasure, Tongtian thought for a moment. He raised his hand slightly, and a Spiritual Sword appeared in his palm.

"I imagine ordinary spiritual treasures are beneath your notice. As the eldest disciple of the Jie Sect, you represent my dignity. This sword is yours to wield!"

As he spoke, Tongtian pushed the Spiritual Sword toward his eldest disciple.

Staring at the Spiritual Sword so close before him, Xian Junyu stood frozen in place.

The spiritual energy fluctuation and power of this sword were so strong they were rarely seen in the world. As an Artifact Refiner, Xian Junyu could see at a glance that this sword was extraordinary.

This was definitely no Houtian Spiritual Treasure!

His master was an immortal cultivator, and he had roughly guessed what this Spiritual Sword was.

"Th-this... Master, what is this?"

Seeing his eldest disciple like this, Tongtian explained with a proud look on his face:

"This is your master's Immortal Slaying Sword. I imagine you've heard the tales of it. Today, your master will let you wield this sword!"

Taking the Immortal Slaying Sword, Xian Junyu was still utterly shocked.

The Shangqing Tongtian Saint possessed an Immortal Slaying Sword Formation capable of fighting four saints—unbreakable unless by four saints together. The formation diagram contained four swords: the Immortal Slaying Sword, the Immortal Slaughtering Sword, the Immortal Trapping Sword, and the Immortal Absolute Sword.

The Dao Ancestor once praised this sword: "Neither bronze nor iron nor steel, once hidden beneath Mount Xumi; not forged by yin and yang reversed, nor tempered by water and fire; the Immortal Slaying Sword slays gods and immortals, the Immortal Trapping Sword raises crimson light wherever it goes, the Immortal Absolute Sword changes with endless subtlety—even a Daluo Immortal's robes are stained with blood."

The Immortal Slaying Sword specialized in the principle of "sharpness," primarily used to damage a cultivator's physical body, with unparalleled offensive power.

With such a Xiantian Spiritual Treasure in his hands, how could he not be shocked?

"This... this Immortal Slaying Sword is my master's treasure, the supreme artifact that guards our sect. What virtue or ability do I have..."

Though he greatly admired the Immortal Slaying Sword, Xian Junyu still wanted to refuse. Not because he didn't want it, but because with his current cultivation level, he was utterly unworthy to wield this sect-guarding Xiantian Spiritual Treasure.

"Say no more. This matter is already decided by your master. The Immortal Slaying Sword shall be in your charge!" Without giving his disciple a chance to speak, Tongtian turned and vanished directly.

As if he had never appeared at all.

Seeing this, Xian Junyu could only helplessly put away the Immortal Slaying Sword. He knew his master's temper—once his master decided something, it would not change.

Though he was unworthy to use a Xiantian Spiritual Treasure, since his master had already bestowed it, having such a spiritual treasure to protect himself was not a bad thing.

After his master left, Xian Junyu found a room in his master's Daoist Sanctuary, closed the door, and began to receive the cultivation returned by the system.