Great Bamboo Peak.
The small grove behind Shou Jing Hall.
The crimson flames faded.
Yet the heat seemed to linger on Tian Buyi's face, burning him.
"Master?"
Ye Xuan blinked.
Tian Buyi abruptly snapped back to his senses.
His usually squinting eyes were now wide open, fixed on Ye Xuan.
He looked as if he were trying to find a flower on the boy—or perhaps some kind of monster.
He stared for a long while.
No flower. No monster.
Just Seventh, the disciple he both loved and loathed.
"You..."
"That route the spiritual energy took just now—you really remembered it after seeing it once?"
Tian Buyi opened his mouth. It was as if a fish bone had lodged in his throat; it took him a long moment to force out a complete sentence.
"I remembered it."
"It wasn't that hard."
"It was like... well, eating and drinking."
"The spiritual energy flows along the meridians, turns at the acupoints, then shoots right out."
Ye Xuan looked as if this were the most obvious thing in the world.
He even traced the route in the air with a couple of gestures.
A flash of spiritual light flickered at his fingertips, and another small flame sprang up.
At the sight of it,
the fat on Tian Buyi's face twitched.
Eating and drinking?
Shoots right out?
This was one of Great Bamboo Peak's ancestral arts!
When he learned it, it had taken him three whole days just to memorize the order of those seventy-two acupoints.
At that moment,
Tian Buyi felt the world's deep, unrelenting malice.
"Enough, enough!"
"Since you've learned it, just... just practice it a few more times!"
"Practice makes perfect, understand?"
"Don't think that knowing a little of the basics means you can get cocky!"
A moment later,
Tian Buyi waved him away impatiently.
It was as if he were shooing off a buzzing fly, but in truth, he was trying to hide his shattered pride.
"Master."
"This turtle... no, wait."
"Crimson Flame Body Protection is powerful, but in the end, it's just a way to take a beating."
"Look, isn't our Qingyun Sect known as the greatest sword cultivators in the world, feared far and wide?"
"I've seen how impressive the senior brothers look when they practice swordsmanship."
"That Divine Sword Thunder Control True Art—why don't you teach it to me while you're at it?"
Ye Xuan grinned and stepped closer, tugging at Tian Buyi's sleeve with his little hand.
A sly glint shone in his eyes. He looked like a little fox that had snatched a fish.
"Divine Sword Thunder Control True Art?"
"How old are you?"
"You've only just learned to crawl, and you're already trying to fly?"
"That's a sect-protecting art!"
"You can't just learn it because you want to!"
Tian Buyi nearly choked. His eyes were about to pop out of his head.
This kid had ambitions higher than the sky!
He hadn't even learned to walk, and already he wanted to run. He hadn't learned how to take a beating, and already he wanted to learn how to dish one out!
"Besides!"
"That's the mighty power of Heaven, summoned by a Nine Heavens Divine Weapon!"
"You don't even have a Firewood Stick in your hands. What are you going to use to draw down lightning?"
"Your finger? You're not afraid of getting struck into a lump of charcoal?"
Tian Buyi snorted and clasped his hands behind his back, doing his best to reclaim some of his dignity as a master.
Speaking of magical treasures,
Tian Buyi couldn't help feeling helpless again.
His disciple's cultivation was advancing far too quickly—so quickly that even he, as the boy's master, couldn't prepare in time.
An ordinary disciple would spend three to five years just grinding through the first three levels of the Yuqing Realm.
By then, he would have chopped down countless stalks of Black Bamboo on the mountain, and would at least have some decent equipment in hand.
But Ye Xuan?
How long had he been on the mountain, all told?
His cultivation had shot up like a rocket, yet he still had nothing in his hands.
Just as Tian Buyi was wondering whether he should find a piece of scrap iron for the boy to make do with,
a gentle breeze swept past.
"Buyi, are you scolding Seventh again?"
A gentle voice rang out, instantly dispelling the irritation in the air.
Su Ru walked over in a flowing, water-green dress.
She carried a long, narrow bundle in her hands.
It was wrapped tightly in blue silk, yet it couldn't conceal the bone-chilling cold seeping from within.
The temperature around them seemed to drop several degrees in an instant.
Ye Xuan hunched his shoulders. The lingering heat was swept away by the chill.
Well, now.
This thing was no ordinary item.
Tian Buyi's gaze fell on the bundle. His lips moved as if he wanted to say something.
But in the end, he only let out a heavy sigh and turned away.
Su Ru came to stand before them, her gaze lingering for a moment on Tian Buyi's broad back.
A trace of apology flickered in her eyes, but she soon steeled herself.
"Seventh, come here."
Then,
Su Ru turned to Ye Xuan, a fond smile appearing on her face.
"Mistress."
Ye Xuan obediently walked over.
"Your master is right!"
"You can't learn high-level Daoist magic without a sword in your hands!"
As she spoke, Su Ru's slender fingers gently untied the knot in the blue silk.
Her movements were slow and careful.
It was as if she were opening not a weapon, but a memory sealed away for a long, long time.
As the silk fell away layer by layer, a dazzling, clear light burst forth!
"Clang—"
A sword's ringing seemed to explode beside their ears.
An ancient sword, still in its scabbard, lay quietly in Su Ru's hands.
Its scabbard was a deep ink green, with faint streams of light shifting across it.
Look closely, and the sword seemed almost alive, its fine patterns breathing.
Intricate cloud motifs were carved into the hilt, lending it an ancient, imposing air and the weight of countless years.
Most astonishing was its aura.
Even before it was drawn,
tiny ice crystals had already formed in the air around them.
A Nine Heavens Divine Weapon!
Ye Xuan's pupils contracted slightly.
As someone who knew the story, he immediately guessed the sword's origin!
Ink Snow!
The divine weapon Wan Jianyi had taken from Baidu Zi of the Myriad Poisons Sect and gifted to Su Ru!
After Su Ru married Tian Buyi,
she had sealed the sword away to protect her husband's pride and put an end to some old feelings.
It had not seen the light of day in a hundred years.
He never would have expected that today,
for his sake, Mistress had brought it out.
At the same time,
Tian Buyi's shoulders slumped slightly, his expression turning desolate.
But he didn't turn around or try to stop her.
He knew what the sword meant to his wife.
He also knew how much she had sacrificed for this family and for Great Bamboo Peak.
And now,
for her disciple's safety,
she had even brought out this sealed memory.
This affection, this devotion—
If Tian Buyi were still petty enough to begrudge her, he would be unworthy of serving as Great Bamboo Peak's head, and unworthy of being her husband!
"This sword is called Ink Snow."
"It is one of the Nine Heavens Divine Weapons, and its power is extraordinary."
"Long ago... it was given to me by an old friend."
Su Ru's voice sounded distant, as if it were coming from far away.
She gently stroked the cold scabbard, her fingertips trembling slightly.
When she said "old friend,"
her voice was almost inaudible.
Tian Buyi's ears twitched, and another crack appeared in the flagstone beneath his feet.
"Seventh."
"You are exceptionally gifted, the most outstanding disciple Qingyun Sect has produced in a hundred years."
"An ordinary magical treasure would not do justice to your talent."
"This Ink Snow has been sealed away for a long time. Today, I'm passing it on to you."
"With it, I'll feel more at ease when you travel down the mountain."
Su Ru drew a deep breath and held out the sword to Ye Xuan, her expression turning solemn.
"Take it."
Su Ru's hands were steady, her gaze full of hope.
She truly loved this disciple.
She didn't want him to be disadvantaged by having an inferior magical treasure, much less let a precious jade go to waste for want of a fine carving knife.
Ye Xuan looked at the Ink Snow sword before him.
A divine weapon had a spirit.
As if sensing that Ye Xuan was different from others,
Ink Snow trembled faintly in its scabbard, giving off a series of joyful hums.
This was unquestionably a priceless treasure that countless cultivators dreamed of possessing.
All he had to do was reach out and take it, and he would immediately gain enough power to stand above his peers.
With this sword, he could even face the older generation's strongest cultivators.
But...
Ye Xuan didn't take it.
He stood there, his small frame straight as a rod, his gaze clear and free of greed.
Then,
Ye Xuan bowed respectfully to Su Ru.
"Mistress."
"I can't accept this sword."
Before you continue