Seven Sons of the Sword Sect

In the Hanlin Academy, Ye Jing sat by the window, picking up a history book from the desk, ready to read.

Suddenly, a loud crash came from the street, nearly causing the history book in Ye Jing's hand to fall to the ground.

"What's happening!"

Hearing the commotion outside, the Hanlin Academy immediately erupted in noise.

"Look, someone is fighting in the void! That sound just now came from those two experts."

A sharp-eyed Hanlin Academy official pointed at three figures standing in midair and shouted.

In the Imperial Capital, someone was actually fighting in the void! Who could be so bold? Were they really not afraid of the Night Watch?

Ye Jing felt a flicker of curiosity as well. He opened the window and looked up at the sky.

High above, three figures stood in the air. One carried a long sword on his back, with a refined and gentle demeanor, but his eyes were sharp and fierce. His entire body radiated a terrifying Sword Intent, like a divine weapon hidden in its sheath.

His opponents were a man and a woman, both oddly dressed—one in a white robe, the other in black.

The elder with the sword was remarkable. Even outnumbered two to one, he showed no sign of weakness.

His sword techniques were fierce, balanced between offense and defense. With each swing, Sword Qi swept across a dozen miles. Fortunately, they were high in the sky; if they had been fighting on the streets of the Imperial Capital, the residual shockwaves alone would have destroyed most of the city's civilians.

What a formidable Sword Cultivator! Just watching for a moment had deepened my understanding of the Sword Dao. I wonder who this person is. With such mastery of the Sword Dao, he must be no ordinary figure in Dali. Ye Jing sighed inwardly.

Truly, there are mountains beyond mountains and men beyond men. Fortunately, ever since I crossed over to Dali, my plan has always been to stay in the Hanlin Academy.

If I had grown arrogant and wanted to venture out, with my current cultivation, I would likely fall to any one of these three.

Unless I reached the Grandmaster perfection realm. With the Time Domain and my two supreme techniques, I might have a good chance of defeating them across realms.

"What an incredible Sword Cultivator! I wonder who he is. His Sword Dao mastery has reached such a level."

"Indeed. A Sword Cultivator with such strength—even among the Sword Sect, which is full of Sword Dao experts, only the Sword Sect Master could claim to surpass him."

"Don't just talk about the Sword Cultivator. Those two unknown experts in black and white have been fighting him for a long time without losing ground. That's impressive too."

As the battle grew more intense, the officials in the Hanlin Academy began to discuss and comment.

"Gentlemen, what you just said disappoints me! Such a Sword Dao master, and you don't recognize him? I'm ashamed to be among you."

A Wu-surnamed Hanlin official stepped forward with a proud expression, as if he had a close relationship with the Sword Dao expert.

"Oh, Brother Wu, do you know that Sword Dao master? Could you tell us who he is? Let us broaden our horizons!"

The gathered officials parted to the sides, letting the Wu-surnamed official come to the front and asking him to enlighten them.

This Wu-surnamed official, who usually had little presence in the Hanlin Academy, now saw everyone's eyes on him. He puffed out his chest and strode forward.

"Years ago, I had the fortune to meet this Sword Dao master once. Later, I learned from his fellow disciples that he is the seventh of the Seven Sons of the Sword Sect—Senior Jian Xuzi."

So it's Jian Xuzi of the Sword Sect! Ye Jing's eyes showed a trace of shock.

Three hundred years ago, after the Sword Sect's founder, Zhu Yang, died in battle, the sect did not decline. Instead, Sword Dao prodigies emerged in droves.

Over these three hundred years, the Sword Sect produced countless Sword Dao geniuses. Among them, seven achieved the highest accomplishments, known as the Seven Sons of the Sword Sect.

The current Sword Sect Master is the first of the Seven Sons, his cultivation reaching the Peak of Humanity. Even across all of Dali, he ranks in the top ten.

Although Jian Xuzi is the last of the Seven Sons, his Sword Dao cultivation is enough to rank in the top twenty of Dali's Sword Dao.

Moreover, his talent is the highest among the Seven Sons. Before reaching a hundred years old, he had already reached the Great Grandmaster perfection realm. He is the one most likely to surpass the current Sword Sect Master and become the new Sword Dao leader.

"So it's Senior Jian Xuzi! No wonder his Sword Dao cultivation is so astonishing. I thought Dali had produced another Sword Dao genius!"

Once the Wu-surnamed official revealed Jian Xuzi's identity, the other officials suddenly understood. Clearly, they all knew of Jian Xuzi's reputation.

"And who are those two who have been fighting Senior Jian Xuzi for so long without losing? Brother Wu, can you enlighten us?"

The Wu-surnamed official broke out in a cold sweat. After a long pause, he stammered, "To be able to fight Senior Jian Xuzi without losing... they must... must not be nobodies."

Seeing the Wu-surnamed official dodging the question, the other officials understood. This man was just lucky enough to have met Jian Xuzi once and recognized him. He had no idea who the other two were.

Ignoring the Wu-surnamed official, none of the officials wanted to miss such a spectacular battle. This kind of scene might never be seen again in a lifetime.

As they watched, one official voiced a doubt: "Everyone, don't you find it strange? Why hasn't the Night Watch shown up after all this time?"

This...

The officials had no answer. They stared at the epic battle in the sky, lost in thought.

Ye Jing sat leisurely by the window, watching the battle above while pricking up his ears to listen to the officials' discussions.

The doubt that official raised was exactly what Ye Jing was thinking.

The Imperial Capital was the seat of the emperor. The Night Watch managed daily order here. Three Great Grandmasters fighting in the sky, causing such a commotion—it was impossible not to alert them.

If they were afraid of these three's strength, that didn't make sense either.

The Night Watch also had Great Grandmasters. The current Night Watch Commander was rumored to be a figure who had stepped into the Peak of Humanity.

If the Night Watch Commander were willing to act, he could surely stop this conflict.

This battle had been going on for a long time, yet not a single Night Watch member had appeared. That was truly suspicious.

After watching the battle in the sky for a while longer, Ye Jing lost interest.

His current Sword Dao insights were extremely profound, but hampered by his cultivation—merely at the Grandmaster level—he couldn't fully display his mastery of the sword.

Ling Xuzi's Sword Dao had only provided Ye Jing with a slight initial boost; after a short while, it offered no further improvement in his sword insights.

Continuing to watch was a pure waste of time.

He shifted his focus from the battle in the sky back to the historical text in his hands, but as he turned his head, he caught a glimpse outside the window, and his expression suddenly turned grave.