The Kunlun Mountain Range lay west of the Divine Land, stretching east to Xining Commandery in Yongzhou and west to the deserts and gobi of the Far West, spanning nearly four thousand li.
Anyone from the Divine Land who wished to travel to Kunlun to become a disciple had to set out from Guanzhong, cross Longyou, and reach Xining Commandery.
They would then take the Qiangzhong Route into Shazhou, follow the northern foothills of the Kunlun Mountain Range through the three towns of Ruoqiang, Qiemo, and Khotan, and finally arrive at Shule Town to rest for several days.
After that, they would head south into the Kunlun Mountain Range and reach the Kunlun Sky Pillar.
However, when Kunlun disciples traveled outside, they did not need to go through such trouble.
They only had to take flight on their swords from the Sky Pillar, follow the Kunlun Mountain Range eastward, pass through the three regions of Layer City, Xuánpu, and Fantong in succession, and they would reach Xining Commandery not far after leaving the mountain range.
Then, by turning southeast and crossing Longyou, they could reach Chang'an.
The entire journey was roughly six thousand li, yet it took only one and a half shichen to fly.
Qiu Changtian and Xu Yinglian mounted their swords and flew from west to east across the entire mountain range, arriving at Yuxu Peak on the eastern edge of Fantong.
Yuxu Peak was where the Kunlun Taiqing Sect's Deacon Hall for external affairs was located. Whether it concerned managing outside assets or assigning trial missions, everything was handled and distributed uniformly from Yuxu Peak.
At the foot of the mountains northeast of Yuxu Peak stood Kunlun's largest marketplace for outsiders, "Red Terrace." It also contained "Kunlun Spring," which was said to nourish one's looks and preserve one's beauty after bathing in it. It was a sacred destination where the female disciples of the Kunlun Taiqing Sect lingered and forgot to return.
Xu Yinglian spent a while in the Deacon Hall on Yuxu Peak before starting to feel like soaking in Kunlun Spring.
However, seeing that Qiu Changtian was still patiently browsing the mission jade tablets on the wall, she could only force down the impulse and continue choosing missions with him.
"Cooperating to explore the newly discovered ruins of the Qishan ley line?" Xu Yinglian suddenly said when her gaze landed on one of the missions. Her tone was eager to give it a try. "This one looks pretty good. It's challenging."
"Not taking it." Qiu Changtian's reply was just as concise.
"What about this one?" Xu Yinglian asked again. "Searching for the severely wounded demonic cultivator who fled here from North Mang Mountain?"
"Not taking that one either."
"Why?" Xu Yinglian asked in confusion.
"Because they're both too troublesome." As Qiu Changtian spoke, his eyes drifted toward the jade tablet beside them labeled "Exterminate Rampaging Demonic Beasts."
Hunting demonic beasts had clear objectives and a short process. They could quickly collect the spirit-stone reward and hurry to send it to Ling Yunpo to solve his pressing need!
"Troublesome?" Xu Yinglian asked, puzzled. "We came out to undergo trials. What are we afraid of?"
Qiu Changtian chuckled.
"Explore ruins? Who knows how large those ruins are, or how long it'll take to explore them?"
"As for searching for a severely wounded demonic cultivator, who knows where that fellow ran off to? If we work on the mission for ten days or half a month without results, we might not even get a chance to soak in Kunlun Spring!"
Xu Yinglian's face flushed. Thinking he had seen through her thoughts, she unconsciously lowered her voice.
"If necessary, I can skip Kunlun Spring this time. There'll always be another chance later..."
"Who was talking about you?" Qiu Changtian shot her a glance. "I was talking about myself soaking in Kunlun Spring."
Thus, the straight-haired junior sister's face swiftly turned icy again, and her gaze began to grow frightening.
"What do you think of this mission?" Qiu Changtian pointed at the jade tablet beside them. "Hunting demonic beasts. Interested?"
"Let's forget it." Xu Yinglian gave a series of cold laughs. "Chasing demonic beasts through deep mountains and dense forests, with such dim visibility—I'm afraid I might accidentally send my flying sword astray and stab Senior Brother."
"Could it be that Junior Sister's eyesight isn't very good?" Qiu Changtian asked in surprise. "This is the first time I've heard of someone confusing a four-legged demonic beast with a cultivator."
"Their appearances may differ, but both have a foul, stench-ridden air that makes people loathe them." Xu Yinglian turned her gaze away. "With my eyes closed, I really can't tell them apart."
"Then why would Junior Sister close her eyes while using the Sword Control Technique? Are you planning to assassinate Senior Brother and seize the position of First Disciple?"
"If Senior Brother could be assassinated so easily by Junior Sister, wouldn't that just prove he isn't worthy of sitting in the position of First Disciple?"
"Uh, you said 'assassinate' just now, right?"
"Senior Brother heard wrong. Junior Sister said 'accidentally kill.'"
"There's still a difference between accidentally killing someone and assassinating them. How could I have heard wrong?"
"It seems Senior Brother's ears aren't very good either. Why don't I recite a passage of the 'Spell of Hearing Through the Ears and Sensing Breath'? Otherwise, if you can't even hear Master's lectures clearly, your junior brothers and sisters will suffer when you return and repeat them."
"Junior Sister, don't change the subject!"
"Do not listen with the ears, but listen with the heart; do not listen with the heart, but listen with the qi..."
"So stop reciting it!"
Seeing Qiu Changtian rendered speechless by her words, Xu Yinglian could not help revealing a cool smile.
She had finally found a way not to lose ground before her senior brother: using sharp, aggressive words to strike back at him point for point.
Although this was completely at odds with the teachings of the Xu Family of Tiannan, and a clan elder would probably faint from anger if they heard her speaking so caustically,
she was even less willing to be pushed into losing her composure by Qiu Changtian. That would be another kind of unbearable defeat.
Qiu Changtian caught her smile from the corner of his eye and secretly sighed as well.
"Let's just take this mission to hunt demonic beasts." He pointed at the tablet.
"Since Senior Brother refuses to heed my advice, don't blame me if something happens." Xu Yinglian deliberately tried to scare him.
"Junior Sister, rest assured." Qiu Changtian smiled and pointed at the Taiyi Splitting Light Sword strapped to his back.
Speaking of the Taiyi Splitting Light Sword, it was necessary to mention that the flying-sword system before and after the destruction of the ancient Chan and Jie Sects was different.
First, as far as the ancient Chan and Jie Sects were concerned, there was no such thing as different ranks of flying swords. All flying swords were at the Immortal Sword level.
However, after the destruction of the two sects, artifact refiners lost the forging method for perfect Immortal Swords. They could therefore only forge lower-grade flying swords for cultivators beneath the Immortal level.
Thus came the system dividing them into ranks one through ten, known as the "Heavenly Stems Sword Forging Method." Restoring the forging method for Tenth-Order Immortal Swords also became the dream of every artifact refiner.
Second, to make up for the battle power of lower-grade flying swords, research into Daoist Magic seals on flying swords had to be strengthened.
For example, a ninth-rank flying sword had to have nine Daoist Magics of different strengths sealed within it. Each time the user's cultivation advanced by one minor realm, another layer of the flying sword's Daoist Magic would be unsealed, perfectly matching the user's cultivation.
For example, because Qiu Changtian was currently at the Qi Refining Stage, he could only unseal the first layer of Daoist Magic on his Yuyan Sword, known as "Dragon Qi Coiling Cloud Sea."
By merely forming a sword spell with his fingers and rapidly or silently reciting "Brocade Cloud Falling Rain, Jade Rainbow Rising Smoke," he could activate the Daoist Magic on the sword, splitting off countless light swords to attack and restrain his enemies.
However, since the Taiyi Splitting Light Sword was a mighty Immortal Sword that had existed since antiquity, it naturally did not follow the ten-rank Heavenly Stems Sword Forging Method.
It had only three forbidden arts—so-called forbidden arts being ancient Daoist Magics of tremendous power. Two had been sealed by the Ziwei Sect Master, leaving only one, known as "Connecting Mountains and Seas Corner."
Once activated, it could draw forth endless mountains and seas, trapping and suppressing enemies within. It could practically be called an all-purpose means of preserving one's life and dealing damage.
After hearing Qiu Changtian finish explaining, Xu Yinglian stopped provoking him.
Although she was competitive and proud, she was not so arrogant as to look down on an Immortal Sword's forbidden arts.
Since Senior Brother had the Taiyi Splitting Light Sword protecting him, then no matter what kind of demonic beast they were hunting, it could not possibly threaten their safety.
Thinking this, she grew eager to try again, wishing she could locate the demonic beast at once and kill it before Senior Brother.
"When are we setting out?" Xu Yinglian urged.
"Don't rush. To find the demonic beast's whereabouts, we first have to contact the other disciples who accepted this mission." Qiu Changtian spoke in a leisurely tone.
"Before that, why don't you go soak in Kunlun Spring first?"
Before you continue