Kaslana's Way of Survival

"Cheng Lingshuang!"

"Alright, third senior sister, fifth senior sister. Now that our master is coming to kill us, are we really going to bicker among ourselves here?"

Su Mei interjected.

"But I'm still a bit curious, junior sister—you actually took a Raiken person as a disciple... And could he have cultivated to the Sword God? Using a candle as a weapon."

"And if I'm not mistaken, that candle was one I gave to senior sister, wasn't it?"

Chapter 29: The Mystery of the Villa's Burning

A candle—can you even recognize what it looks like? Aren't all candles just sticks?

"Ah, right, I grabbed it on the way up because something caught my attention."

Thinking that, Kaino nodded.

"I was curious, you see, since Master told me what you all were planning. And when I saw the Tai Xu Sword Sect disciples setting up the sect, I wondered what was going on."

"And then..."

As he spoke, Kaino snapped the candle in two with both hands, revealing the black gunpowder inside.

"Gunpowder?! Su Mei, what exactly are you trying to do?!"

Lin Chaoyu glanced at the candle in Kaino's hand, shock and anger flashing across her face in turn as she glared at Su Mei.

"You've offended me time and again, and I haven't sought you out. You wanted my Tai Xu Sword Sect, and I gave it to you. But this is your so-called plan? You want to destroy my Tai Xu Sword Sect that badly?!"

"Exactly. With gunpowder like this, it'd probably only be enough to wreck the Tai Xu Sword Sect—no threat to an immortal at all."

Kaino fanned the flames further.

Su Mei narrowed her eyes, glanced at Kaino again, sighed softly, then turned to Lin Chaoyu.

"That's why, senior sister, it's not the right time to tell you now."

"This time is different from when we ambushed Master on Mount Tai Xu. We've been scattered across different places, and gathering again will inevitably draw attention. And though Master hasn't been seen in years, plenty of people who saw her back then are still alive, and there are still many records describing her appearance."

"So if the world learns that an immortal has returned to the mortal realm, only to vanish after meeting her disciples, how would we explain that? Say Master ascended again? Who would believe it?"

"This isn't like the ambush on Mount Tai Xu—many eyes will be fixed on this. And even if Master's strength has waned upon her return, we can't kill her without a sound. So we have no choice but to create a bigger chaos to draw attention."

Lin Chaoyu frowned. "But even so..."

"Even so, why does it have to be the Tai Xu Sword Sect that's destroyed, right?"

Su Mei smiled faintly.

"Senior sister, senior sister—aside from your Tai Xu Sword Sect, what other place is prosperous enough that destroying it would both divert attention and keep me from being implicated afterward? Wreck the Tai Xu Sword Sect, and the two of us can just go through the motions. But if we destroy somewhere else..."

"Of course, if senior sister can't bear it, I'll have the decorations removed. But if we kill Master again, senior sister, you'd better be ready to be scorned."

"I don't care—if the Peerless Gate falls, it's nothing to me. But you, senior sister..."

"Fine, no need to say more. I understand."

Lin Chaoyu said in a low voice.

"What a pity—it'd be better if senior sister didn't know for now. When we face Master, with your insufficient Sword Heart realm, you'll inevitably be distracted by the Tai Xu Sword Sect, lowering our chances of survival."

As she spoke, Su Mei cast a somewhat resentful glance at Kaino.

"If it succeeds, it's a good thing—at most, a few poor Tai Xu disciples who snuck to the mountaintop hoping to glimpse the immortal will die in the fire."

"And if it fails, no matter—the destruction of the Tai Xu Sword Sect gives us a natural burial ground. Your disciples, senior sister, can flee quickly from the sudden explosion, spared from Master killing them and burning the mountain."

Lin Chaoyu instinctively looked at Li Sushang.

Li Sushang, hearing this, trembled slightly as she gripped the Xuanyuan Sword.

"Killing people and burning mountains—that's not Master's style."

Cheng Lingshuang suddenly spoke.

Su Mei laughed. "Heh, not Master's style, but junior sister, that's the truth. Little sister Su Yi..."

"Old Six told me he could only find out that Master appeared near Yi Xin Mountain Villa. The villa was destroyed, but no one saw Master strike."

Cheng Lingshuang cut Su Mei off.

Kaino looked at his own master upon hearing this.

Wouldn't anyone think this was the immortal's revenge? Could there really be a hidden truth?

"In the years Master taught us, you all must know her ways. Aside from when the Raiken Kingdom attacked Shenzhou, Master only killed those who had fallen to demonic possession. No matter who offended her, she never struck."

At this, Cheng Lingshuang turned to Lin Chaoyu.

"Senior sister, you often went down the mountain with Master—you should know best."

Lin Chaoyu nodded instinctively.

She did have the right to speak. Having spent years traveling with the immortal to slay demons, the immortal never harmed anyone who wasn't possessed. On the contrary, she took in many children whose parents she had killed as disciples.

A person like that—unless she had some psychological disorder—was simply someone who cared nothing for the mundane world and lived only to eliminate evil.

Since she had managed to raise seven disciples with such dedication, it clearly wasn't the former.

"Then what about Yi Xin Mountain Villa? It can't be that Sister Su Yi committed suicide and set the villa ablaze, can it?"

Su Mei countered.

"Besides, no one has ever experienced coming back from the dead. How can you be certain that the Master after rebirth is the same as before?"

"You say the Master only kills those who fall to demonic corruption, but is that truly necessary? How many people have been innocently corrupted without even cultivating, still retaining their sanity, yet were killed by the Master? Is 'demon must be slain' really absolute? In the end, the Master..."

Hearing this, Kaino couldn't help but interject: "Hold on, then give me an example of someone who was corrupted but didn't go mad. Don't say that purple-haired Jiang Wanru—she was only spared because of the Immortal's Tai Xu Sword Qi, right? Strictly speaking, she couldn't even have fallen to corruption in the first place."

"And you're here pitying the corrupted—have you developed a cure or something? If you can't do anything, what's the point of talking?"

After years of Schicksal's influence, Kaino fully understood what Honkai energy erosion meant. Because of this, all Schicksal Valkyries had to undergo Stigmata transplantation, which severely damaged their bodies, stepping onto a path of slow death.

Countless Valkyries had given their lives to fight the Honkai, yet Honkai incidents worldwide continued unabated. How many people had lost their families and homes to the Honkai, left with nowhere to go?

Now, in the land of Shenzhou, there was an invincible Immortal who voluntarily traveled everywhere to eliminate demons, and here was a disciple who had killed her master, pitying the corrupted?

Of course, Honkai erosion was a complete tragedy—pity was fine. Researchers would desperately study anti-Honkai drugs, but they would never show mercy to the corrupted. After all, if too many people died from Honkai infection in one place, a Honkai outbreak could occur.

At the same time, Cheng Lingshuang spoke up.

"I don't know what exactly happened inside Yi Xin Mountain Villa. But if the villa truly wasn't burned by the Master, and Su Yi wasn't killed by her, then the Master wouldn't attack immediately upon arriving at Sky Vault Peak. We can ask her then."

With that, Cheng Lingshuang turned to Lin Chaoyu.

"Senior Sister, the three of us have traveled a long way and are exhausted. If possible, arrange guest rooms for us—we'll rest for now."

"When the Master arrives, call us over."

Chapter 30: First Meeting with the Immortal

Another five days passed.

Kaino ate the food delivered to the guest room by Tai Xu Sword Sect disciples, pondering his next move.

If he followed his original plan, he would naturally try to make Li Sushang take revenge while also setting up the other seven disciples to die, thereby somewhat compensating the Immortal.

Though it had the flavor of setting up a moral front while acting shamelessly, that had indeed been Kaino's plan at the time. However, everything he had seen and heard since arriving at Tai Xu Sword Sect had given him other ideas.

For instance, Cheng Lingshuang's claim that Yi Xin Mountain Villa wasn't burned by the Master, and that Su Yi wasn't killed by her. If this were true, then Kaino's conflicting stance between the Immortal and his acquaintances would vanish instantly.

If that were the case, he wouldn't need to kill the Immortal to save Cheng Lingshuang, and given Li Sushang's personality, she wouldn't go for the kill against the Red Sparrow Immortal, who wasn't the direct culprit.

Everyone would have a bright future.

Though putting himself in others' shoes, Kaino felt it was unlikely the Immortal hadn't killed for revenge. But since Cheng Lingshuang had said it with such conviction, there was at least a sliver of hope.

Beyond that, there was Su Mei's claim that placing Gunpowder in Tai Xu Sword Sect was a cover. Though her explanation was logically sound, Kaino still sensed something fishy.

So Kaino hadn't been idle these days. Taking advantage of his wanderings around Tai Xu Sword Sect, he used the Herrscher of Reason's ability to replace all the Gunpowder. Whatever Su Mei's goal was, it wouldn't matter.

If it really was just a cover, Kaino could set a fire himself. After all, once he was done, he'd slip away—how the people of Shenzhou saw him had no effect on him.

...Though he might not get to eat such delicious food again.

In the few days he'd stayed here, Kaino hadn't had a single repeated meal, and all of it was excellent.

Letting out a sigh, he finished the last bite of rice, straightened his clothes, and pushed open the door to step out.

Passing through the noisy, bustling living quarters of the disciples, Kaino headed straight for the main gate of Tai Xu Sword Sect.

Tai Xu Sword Sect—or more precisely, Su Mei—had long since spread word of welcoming the Immortal. The nearby towns naturally kept an eye out for her trail. And though it wasn't five hundred years later, the Immortal's appearance was widely known through word of mouth.

Light gray long hair, a calm expression, and an ethereal aura.

Though the description was vague, it was said to be surprisingly recognizable. Almost as soon as Kaino and the others had stepped into Tai Xu Sword Sect, news of the Immortal's whereabouts had spread from the nearby towns to the sect.

Because of this, Tai Xu Sword Sect had been lively for the past five days. Everyone in the sect was discussing what would happen once the Immortal arrived. Though the specifics of the discussions varied slightly, the fact that the Immortal was coming was solid.

The latest news said the Immortal had already reached the vicinity of Sky Vault Peak and could arrive at Tai Xu Sword Sect any day now. Kaino wanted to see if he could meet the Immortal before the sect's disciples, to prepare in advance.

"Good afternoon, Uncle-Master."

Tai Xu disciples older than Kaino nodded in greeting as they passed, and Kaino nodded back.

His status as Cheng Lingshuang's disciple had become known throughout the sect within a few days. Being a direct disciple made him an elder to many, so greetings were inevitable whenever he went out.

In the same situation was Li Sushang, who always followed him out. It was precisely because of this that the girl, who disliked excessive formalities and being suddenly promoted in seniority, chose to hole up in the guest room and stop going out.

Thanks to that, Kaino could intercept the Immortal without her tagging along.

"Uncle-Master, you're out to welcome the Immortal again."

At the main gate, the woman who had welcomed Kaino and the others into Tai Xu Sword Sect was on duty, guarding the entrance.

She was still stuck with the gatekeeping job.

"That's right. And if Senior Lin hadn't strictly forbidden it, many Tai Xu Sword Sect disciples would be waiting at the gate to welcome the Immortal, just like before."

Kaino shrugged.

It wasn't hard to understand the disciples' reverence for the Immortal. A legendary, ageless, undying, invincible true immortal was about to arrive nearby—who wouldn't want to see her with their own eyes?

Of course, whether they wanted to see her because she was invincible or because she was ageless was anyone's guess.

But their daily crowding at the gate had caused Kaino no small trouble, so he had suggested to Lin Chaoyu that disciples be banned from approaching the entrance.

Highly effective.

Despite the crowd calling him "Junior Uncle" all the way here, Kaino knew they were cursing him in their hearts.

"Honestly, I never thought I'd actually get to see an immortal again in my lifetime."

The woman beside him continued to strike up conversation.

"Again?"

"Yes, I saw an immortal once when I was young."

As if she'd triggered some kind of switch, the woman immediately began chattering on.

"Of course, when I say young, I mean just one year old. I don't actually remember seeing the immortal myself—my family told me about it."

Kaino listened silently.

"When I was little, a monster attack suddenly hit our village. My parents said they'd never seen such a huge and terrifying creature. The White Giant Beast destroyed the village with every move it made. Countless people in the village died because of it. Even the army was helpless against it."

"In the end, it was the immortal's arrival that took down the White Giant Beast. My parents said if the immortal hadn't come, our whole family would have died there."

"I originally wanted to go to Mount Tai Xu to learn martial arts or meet the immortal when I grew up, but who would have thought the immortal ascended soon after. Since I couldn't meet the immortal, I came to the Tai Xu Sword Sect to train instead—and luckily, now I've run into the immortal descending to the mortal world."

"So you really, really wanted to meet the immortal?"

Kaino asked.

"Of course! That's a life-saving grace! And if the immortal hadn't asked the soldiers to help, even if the White Giant Beast died, we'd have been homeless."

"Is that so? Then I'm sorry."

Kaino said, and before the woman could react, he lightly brushed the back of her neck. She crumpled to the ground without a sound.

At the edge of his vision, a woman dressed plainly, with short, light gray hair and a very youthful appearance, was walking step by step slowly toward Sky Vault Peak.

Her appearance was indeed striking, but even more striking was her aura. Though it was his first time seeing her, Kaino felt as if he were looking at an elder he hadn't seen in years—a sense of reverence welled up naturally.

As expected, you can tell at a glance...