Utterly Loyal

Shi Feizhe yawned. The rumbling noise last night had woken him once.

The midnight cries of battle in Yi Yang City, the midnight rumbling in Qiu Yang City. Such sounds were beautiful sights in the world of the jianghu. You got used to them.

Fighting at night was better than hurting innocent people by mistake during the day, right?

He had just finished his Sword Stance practice for the day when he heard a knock at the door.

"Is Senior Brother Shi there?"

"Qian Xin, is that you?" Shi Feizhe recognized the voice, of course.

Qian Xin was one of the more diligent people in the courtyard. He often came to Shi Feizhe with the Sun Moon United Heart Art to ask for guidance. Shi Feizhe never held back, and told him whatever he knew. The two of them had gotten along fairly well.

"Is breakfast ready?" Shi Feizhe asked as he opened the door.

"It'll be a while before they bring the food. There's something I don't quite understand. I was hoping to ask you about it, Senior Brother Shi!" Qian Xin held the Sun Moon United Heart Art and pointed to a passage.

"Let me see! Oh, it's this part. It works like this..."

After Shi Feizhe explained it, Qian Xin said, "Thank you, Senior Brother Shi!"

"No need to thank me. We should all help each other!" Shi Feizhe said sincerely.

He had been in this world for several months, most of which he'd spent scraping by in Yi Yang City. Even after leaving Yi Yang City to practice martial arts, he had only been away for a little over a month. He had already seen how difficult it was to learn martial arts in the jianghu.

Especially since so many people guarded their martial arts secrets so jealously, making life hard for newcomers to the jianghu.

Knowledge shouldn't be monopolized like this! It shouldn't be encrypted and twisted beyond recognition!

Why not establish a martial arts university, collect and share martial arts, and let more people practice?

With the perspective of a transmigrator, he couldn't help feeling that the jianghu's customs were rather rotten. So he had decided to start with himself and share the knowledge he had.

If the jianghu's customs were rotten, then I'll start changing them!

Qian Xin had no idea Shi Feizhe was thinking this way. He thought Shi Feizhe was almost too easygoing.

Either he was a naive fool, or he was a man of deep scheming!

Every kindly gentleman in the jianghu was black-hearted once you cut him open!

Back in his room, Qian Xin wrote down all the questions he had asked Shi Feizhe over the past few days. As he was writing, he suddenly heard someone send him a message by voice transmission: "Come!"

Why would anyone from the Sun Moon Radiance Sect send him a voice transmission?

Because he was a spy assigned by Leng Qianye!

Leng Qingqiu had spent years deciphering that damned manual. Leng Qianye wasn't blind—how could he not know?

Qian Xin gathered his things, turned the hidden door in his room, and entered another hidden passage.

Beyond it was a secret chamber. Leng Qianye was waiting inside.

Besides Leng Qianye, there was another person: Yin Tieyan.

"Greetings, Master! Greetings, Senior Brother Yin!" Qian Xin wasn't at all surprised to see Yin Tieyan.

Yin Tieyan was utterly loyal to the Sect Leader, and the Vice Sect Leader was the Sect Leader too! The Vice Sect Leader might become the Sect Leader one day!

"I called you here today to ask how things are going on your end." Leng Qianye spoke slowly. His injuries from last night had been too severe.

Last night, he had pulled every string he could and finally learned from Yin Tieyan why Leng Qingqiu had grown stronger.

The Sun Moon United Heart Art—or rather, the No Thought Divine Separation Art—was what had made Leng Qingqiu stronger!

He had already gotten the copy of the Sun Moon United Heart Art that Shi Feizhe had explained to Yin Tieyan two days ago. But he still wanted to compare it with Qian Xin's copy.

One could never be too cautious!

"Master! Shi Feizhe is very easy to talk to. Here's the Sun Moon United Heart Art, along with his explanations of it!" Qian Xin pulled a booklet from his robes and handed it to Leng Qianye.

"Have you practiced it?" Leng Qianye took it and asked him.

"This disciple tried, but hasn't even begun to grasp it!" Qian Xin said, a little puzzled. "Perhaps I'm just not gifted enough!"

Leng Qianye examined the booklet. It recorded Shi Feizhe's explanations of every part of the Sun Moon United Heart Art in detail, and they were exactly the same as what Yin Tieyan had just told him.

"You've done very well," Leng Qianye said.

"To serve you, Master, is this disciple's honor!" Qian Xin replied respectfully.

"Take this!" Leng Qianye casually tossed him a palm-sized jade pendant. "It's your reward. In a few days, remove your disguise and return to the sect."

"Thank you, Master!" Qian Xin replied, delighted.

Gold had a price; jade was priceless. The pendant felt fine and smooth, clearly a superior piece. It was probably worth a hundred taels of gold!

"You may leave."

"Yes!"

Qian Xin left the secret chamber without asking anything else.

"You've been the one deciphering the Sun Moon United Heart Art all these years. Have you practiced it?" Leng Qianye asked Yin Tieyan.

"Reporting to Martial Uncle! I have, but I haven't succeeded," Yin Tieyan said. "This art is extremely profound! There are many passages that don't make sense once deciphered. Martial Uncle, you must be caref—"

"Heh... Do you know that your master was evenly matched with me during the day yesterday? Last night, he crushed me! And he'd only just begun to grasp the Sun Moon United Heart Art!" Leng Qianye said with an inscrutable smile.

Yin Tieyan shut his mouth. If he said any more, it wouldn't be appropriate.

Whatever the Sect Leader said went. Whatever the elders said went!

Those were ironclad rules of the Sun Moon Radiance Sect!

"Then... this disciple will take his leave too!" Yin Tieyan said.

"Go. This is yours!" Leng Qianye waved his hand, and a bag of gold leaves flew toward him. Gold leaves were very convenient to carry.

"I know your family's circumstances aren't good and your expenses are high. You've earned this! Do a good job. I'm much more generous than that old bastard!"

"Thank you, Martial Uncle!" Yin Tieyan said, bowing.

After Yin Tieyan left the secret chamber, Leng Qianye left as well. He went to a quiet, secluded room known only to him and began practicing the Sun Moon United Heart Art!

Whenever that old bastard brought up that name, it was as good as slapping a man his age in the face.

Once he had practiced the Sun Moon United Heart Art, he'd make that old bastard pay.

After a long, long while, he said in confusion, "This doesn't make sense! If that old bastard can practice it, so can I!"

He tried again. The golden Buddha Light turned a dark gold, shadows seeming to flow through its glow. The golden sun became black, like an eclipse! The silver moon turned blue!

The dark-gold Buddha's mouth split into a wide grin, revealing sharp teeth. A black sun rested on its left shoulder, and a blue moon on its right.

"Heeheehee..."

"My heart shines upon the moon in a thousand rivers; my true nature embraces the sky for ten thousand miles!"

"We've understood it too! So that's how it is!" Leng Qianye's voice sounded strange, as if two people were speaking at once.

His spirit split in two, and the "divine" in his heart grew stronger, sending his cultivation soaring!

The true energy he had accumulated over decades spread through all three hundred and sixty acupoints in his body in an instant. The true energy inside him was no longer a sea, but an endless sky.

The bottleneck he had been unable to break through for so long shattered all at once!

This was the Zhoutian realm!

"Heeheehee, we're so strong! So this is the Zhoutian realm!" Leng Qianye muttered to himself, clenching his fist and feeling the boundless power in his body!

"Old bastard, we're going to beat you to death!"

Another one had gone mad!