Three Ancestor Techniques

Snow and wind drifted down, settling over the mountains and rivers. Before long, Old Man Cangjian's corpse was buried beneath them.

Ice and snow froze the blood. Brilliant red congealed within crystalline white, like red plum blossoms blooming proudly against the snow.

Old Man Cangjian's death shocked everyone.

The disciples and elders of Shangqing Palace had witnessed the battle, and none of them could believe it.

"Old Man Cangjian became famous across the land hundreds of years ago. His swordsmanship was incomparably sharp, and people believed he could become an Ancestor. Who would have thought he would die here?"

"Who is this senior? A Great Grandmaster defeated a Venerable across an entire major realm. It's unbelievable."

"I know this senior. He is the keeper of our Shangqing Palace's Scripture Repository Pavilion. I saw him before when I went there to look through the classics."

"What? Wasn't he a frail old man on the verge of death? How could he be such a terrifying senior?"

"I saw this senior when I exchanged points for techniques from the Scripture Repository Pavilion. At the time, he was filled with decay, his body aged and frail, as though he had little time left. I never expected him to be this terrifying."

"That was years ago. When I went to the Scripture Repository Pavilion a few months ago, senior had already cast off that decay and looked as he does now."

"Just how many terrifying figures does Shangqing Palace have hidden away? First, the Sect Master concealed his identity for decades before astonishing the world. Now there is this senior, willing to serve as a gatekeeper in the Scripture Repository Pavilion while hiding his true strength. It's too frightening."

The Shangqing Palace disciples discussed it fervently, their faces flushed with excitement. They had personally witnessed this earth-shaking battle.

A Great Grandmaster had defeated a Venerable.

And that Great Grandmaster was a senior of Shangqing Palace, willing to conceal his identity and ignore worldly affairs. If Old Man Cangjian had not come knocking at the mountain gate with his sword, he likely would never have acted.

"Enough, enough. Do not get overly excited. This senior is the Sect Master's senior brother. He entered Shangqing Palace nearly a hundred years ago and holds an extremely high seniority, but his nature is indifferent and detached. Do not make senior unhappy," an elder of Shangqing Palace stepped forward and shouted, trying to calm the disciples' excitement.

Only then did the disciples learn that the old man guarding the Scripture Repository Pavilion was actually the Sect Master's senior brother.

No wonder he possessed such terrifying strength.

Li Jiusheng heard the disciples' discussions and shook his head helplessly. The Scripture Repository Pavilion would probably not be peaceful from now on.

Cough!

Li Jiusheng coughed lightly and spat out blood. A faint flush rose to his face as waves of excruciating pain came from his internal organs.

Although Li Jiusheng had successfully defeated a Venerable as a Great Grandmaster, he had exhausted every ounce of his strength and suffered severe injuries. During the height of the battle, he had not had the leisure to care.

Now that the battle had ended and the enemy was dead, only after he let out that breath did Li Jiusheng realize just how terrible his condition was.

"A peak Venerable truly deserves the name. If Old Man Cangjian had not been old, and if he had not been arrogant at the beginning and abandoned the swordsmanship he was best at, giving me the chance to close the distance, I would probably have died beneath his sword long ago." Li Jiusheng silently recalled the battle and examined his performance.

"Still, I gained much from this battle. The sword techniques Old Man Cangjian used are the direction I should study." Li Jiusheng was pleased. Next, he could carefully revisit the battle and comprehend more of the Sword Dao.

Cough!

He coughed again, blood spilling into his palm. True Qi surged through Li Jiusheng, evaporating the bloodstains. Then he turned around as the techniques within him continued circulating, healing his body.

At that moment, a cold gleam emerged from the snow. It made no sound. Only when it drew close behind Li Jiusheng did the hairs on his body rise, warning bells ringing in his heart. His Primordial spirit tensed, and his body instinctively swerved aside.

Hiss! Hiss!

As the cold gleam flickered, Sword energy grazed Li Jiusheng's arm, raising two sprays of blood before shooting straight into Shangqing Palace's mountain gate. With a boom, it destroyed the gate outright.

Rocks shattered into the clouds, dust blotted out the sky, and snowflakes swirled through the air.

This sword strike was fast, insidious, and powerful.

"An assassin!" Li Jiusheng's heart tightened. Gathering the little energy left in his body, he used his movement technique and kept moving. He felt something terrifying had fixed its gaze upon him.

"This is terrifying. The assassin is definitely above the Venerable Realm, and specializes in the art of assassination."

"It is Human World. They sent someone too."

"Not good, it's coming again!"

Li Jiusheng's heart pounded wildly. The hidden assassin failed in his first strike and immediately launched another.

He was like a reflection in the wilderness, a companion to the snowflakes. His body never appeared, yet his sword descended soundlessly, aimed directly at Li Jiusheng's heart.

Pfft!

The sword tip entered flesh. Li Jiusheng's body instantly tightened, bursting with powerful blood and Qi that surged outward and shattered the Sword energy.

This aggravated his previous injuries. Li Jiusheng spat out a mouthful of blood and fell into the snow. An agonizing pain came from his chest. That sword strike had penetrated deeply, missing his heart by only a fraction.

"You really are difficult to kill." A faint sigh drifted through the wilderness, like a ghost wandering between heaven and earth. Li Jiusheng could not tell where the other party was, nor could he see a trace of him.

The Shangqing Palace disciples and elders were terrified. Several Great Grandmaster elders rushed out at once to save Li Jiusheng.

However, six shadows appeared within Shangqing Palace and drove those Great Grandmasters back.

Sensing what had happened behind him, Li Jiusheng's pupils constricted. "You people from Human World truly linger like ghosts."

"You sent Sect Master Li Qingshan to kill six Venerables from Human World. Today, we will begin repaying that debt with you." Voices rang out from every direction in the wilderness, male and female, old and young, all mixed together in a harsh, grating chorus. At the same time, a cold gleam burst forth. Human World's assassin finally appeared.

He wore pure white robes and a dark golden mask, a short sword in hand. He arrived in an instant, aiming to pierce Li Jiusheng's heart.

Li Jiusheng watched in despair.

He was no longer at his peak and could not contend with his opponent.

Am I going to die here? Li Jiusheng frowned deeply, though despair surfaced in his eyes. With his severely injured body, he could think of no solution.

"No one can save you," Human World's assassin said coldly.

Boom!!!

Yet at that moment, a vast aura erupted, instantly blanketing heaven and earth. It spread from the Golden Summit Hall, vast and boundless as an abyss or sea, covering all of Shangqing Palace.

With a thud, Human World's assassin was directly suppressed and forced to his knees, his entire body trembling.

The aura descending from the sky poured down without end, like dozens or hundreds of great mountains crashing down one after another.

"Ancestor aura!" Human World's Assassin King lifted his head in horror. He stared at the Sect Master's golden summit in Shangqing Palace in disbelief, his voice trembling.

Li Jiusheng looked on in delight and burst into laughter. His junior brother had finally broken through.

Within Shangqing Palace, the six Venerable Realm assassins were sent flying by that aura with a bang, dying on the spot.

From the Golden Summit Hall, a middle-aged swordsman with the bearing of an immortal slowly stepped out. He walked upon the void, strands of Sword energy circling him and making him seem like a sword immortal descended into the world.

"Senior brother, you have worked hard. Leave the rest to me." The middle-aged swordsman took one step, and heaven and earth seemed to shrink into a single line. He arrived beside Li Jiusheng and clasped his hands.

Li Jiusheng nodded lightly. Ignoring everyone else, he sat down cross-legged on the spot and began circulating his power to heal.

Li Qingshan had broken from the Venerable Realm into the Ancestor Realm. All of Li Jiusheng's worries vanished.

Now, he could heal in peace.

Li Qingshan looked at the heavily injured Li Jiusheng, his expression growing colder and colder. This was his most respected senior brother, yet Human World's assassins had dared to attempt his life.

"Do not kill me. I can give you many things. Our Human World also has Ancestors," Human World's Assassin King hurriedly said, sensing the chill radiating from Li Qingshan.

He was not afraid of death, but he did not want to die.

He had hidden in the shadows his entire life, assassinating countless targets and rising to the rank of Assassin King in Human World. His next step would have been the Ancestor Realm.

To him, heaven and earth were vast. Dying here would be too great a waste.

When he came to assassinate Li Jiusheng, he had thought it would be effortless. He had never expected to encounter a newly advanced Ancestor.

Both he and Li Jiusheng had been peak Venerables, and the Assassin King had feared no one at that level. But after crossing that step, the difference between them was like heaven and earth.

"I will wait for Human World's Ancestors to come find me. Unfortunately, you will not live to see it," Li Qingshan said coldly. He lightly swiped his index finger, and a fissure suddenly opened in the void, slicing the Assassin King into several pieces.

The bitter cold deepened into winter, and heavy snow sealed the mountains.

Inside the tea room of the Scripture Repository Pavilion, Li Jiusheng sat cross-legged, his feet resting over his lower abdomen. Blood and Qi flowed through his body like a river, washing over his injuries. With every breath, spiritual energy surged toward him like the tide, absorbed into his body to fill the wounded areas, stimulate the growth of flesh, and restore his internal organs to their former state.

Three days had passed since the great battle.

For these three days, Li Jiusheng had cultivated day and night in the Scripture Repository Pavilion, practicing every kind of technique once. At their peak, the invisible power scattered throughout those techniques repaired the wounds in his body.

After a long while, Li Jiusheng slowly opened his eyes.

"My injuries have finally healed completely. This time was truly dangerous, but it also tested my combat strength," Li Jiusheng said with a sigh.

In terms of physical strength alone, he did not lose to a peak Venerable. But when it came to Dao Rhyme and techniques, he was far inferior.

Fortunately, Li Jiusheng possessed two great phenomena to make up for that weakness. Otherwise, he could not have defeated Old Man Cangjian.

"At the final moment, the two great phenomena resonated with the mountains and rivers under pressure, slowly merging together. The power they unleashed shattered Old Man Cangjian's body. That was the key to my victory." Li Jiusheng reexamined himself and realized he had neglected his two great phenomena somewhat in the past.

The strength of those phenomena allowed him to cross a major realm and ignore the advantage his opponent had built through centuries of cultivation.

"From now on, I must cultivate them more. If I have the chance, I should comprehend more phenomena and see whether they can merge." Li Jiusheng set a goal for himself.

"Still, this battle loosened the realm I had only just broken through. I need to cultivate properly and strive to break through the Great Grandmaster Realm soon, then enter the Venerable Realm." Li Jiusheng thought silently.

"Are all your injuries healed?" Little Fox, who had been sleeping soundly beside Li Jiusheng, opened her eyes. Seeing him awake, she asked in delight.

For the past three days, Li Jiusheng had been healing and meditating. Little Fox worried about his safety, so she remained at his side without taking a single step away.

Li Jiusheng affectionately held Little Fox in his arms. "Do not worry. My injuries have fully healed."

"That's wonderful. I saw everything that day. That old man was no match for you, but the person who ambushed you afterward was too hateful. If your junior brother had not broken through to the Ancestor Realm, the consequences would have been unimaginable. It was far too dangerous." Little Fox clutched Li Jiusheng's collar tightly. She had been deeply worried for him, and even now, recalling the scene made her afraid.

"Do not worry. Now that we have passed this trial, there will be no more trouble," Li Jiusheng said confidently.

With Li Qingshan breaking through from the Venerable Realm into the Ancestor Realm, Shangqing Palace had gained its pillar. Luochuan Sect and Human World's schemes were nothing more than child's play, not worth mentioning.

With Li Qingshan holding the front, Li Jiusheng could cultivate peacefully in the rear.

Give him some more time, and he would enter the Venerable Realm. At that point, so long as no Ancestor appeared, he would be invincible.

"Senior brother is right. Now that this trial has passed, we can cultivate in peace. With me here, there will certainly be safety." At that moment, a hearty laugh came from outside the tea room.

Li Qingshan approached slowly, dressed in a purple Daoist robe, wearing a lotus crown and holding a whisk.

A true Daoist immortal!

After breaking through to the Ancestor Realm, Li Qingshan's temperament had changed greatly. He seemed increasingly ethereal. The Sword intent that had once flowed through his entire body now accepted all rivers into the sea, hidden in his heart and returned to simplicity.

"Have you finished handling Shangqing Palace's affairs these past three days?" Li Jiusheng stood up, poured Li Qingshan a cup of tea, and asked curiously.

Li Qingshan accepted the tea and drained it in one gulp. He nodded. "Everything is settled. Shangqing Palace has reopened its mountain gates. News of my breakthrough from the Venerable Realm into the Ancestor Realm has spread across the land. Human World's assassin organization sent someone bearing a generous gift to seek peace, while Luochuan Sect, ninety thousand li away, has remained utterly silent, as though nothing happened."

"Luochuan Sect is probably panicking from top to bottom. No one expected you to break through to the Ancestor Realm so quickly. Luochuan Sect may have Emperor Wu of Zhou, but he has been injured repeatedly and can no longer stir up much trouble." Li Jiusheng laughed happily.

When a sect had an Ancestor presiding over it, even its backbone stood straighter.

"Now that I have entered the Ancestor Realm, all the major sects have sent people to offer congratulations. Next, Shangqing Palace will hold an Ancestor ceremony and host guests from all directions. I must also meet some veteran Ancestors. Luochuan Sect is too far away for us to deal with for now. We can address them later," Li Qingshan said slowly.

"It does not matter. Luochuan Sect is like a grasshopper after autumn; it cannot leap around for much longer. Shangqing Palace comes first. As long as no one disturbs my quiet cultivation, that is enough." Li Jiusheng was concerned that his identity, exposed by this battle, would shatter his peaceful days.

"Senior brother, rest assured. I have already instructed the sect members not to disturb you. Anyone who wishes to enter the Scripture Repository Pavilion to consult books may go on their own," Li Qingshan said. He had already considered this.

Li Jiusheng nodded. "That would be best. Otherwise, I would have to find another secluded place to live."

Li Qingshan smiled and could not help sighing. "Senior brother, defeating a Venerable as a Great Grandmaster this time was simply too astonishing. Although I ordered everyone to keep silent, some news still spread. But from what I know, almost no one outside believes it. They think it is false. A mid-stage Great Grandmaster defeating a peak Venerable—even storytellers could not make up something like that. It is simply too absurd."

"Yes. Before I acted, even I did not expect it," Li Jiusheng said.

"Senior brother, do you not wish to know what great gift Human World sent this time to beg Shangqing Palace's forgiveness?" Li Qingshan asked mysteriously.

Li Jiusheng glanced at him and asked curiously, "Let me hear it."

"Human World sent three Ancestor techniques this time. Two of them came from the Outer Domain, so they are exceptionally precious. As it happens, I brought them all. Please, senior brother, take a look." As Li Qingshan spoke, he took three sheets of paper as thin as cicada wings from his sleeve and placed them before Li Jiusheng.