Yuan Shi

Now that he understood what this so-called sword duel was really about, Li Fan gave up on the idea of "helping."

There really wasn't anything he could do to help. As the Profound Heaven Sword Intent had said, the sword duels at Ink Bamboo Mountain and the Beichen Sword Sect's horse-herding were essentially tests of the same kind.

You'd been stuck at a cultivation bottleneck for a long time. The sect knew, and it could help you—but why should it? You had to at least prove you were worth investing in, didn't you?

Don't misunderstand. This wasn't to say you had to offer your head as a pledge of loyalty. If you had a knack for pill-making, artifact refinement, mechanisms, or divination, it wouldn't be difficult to earn the appreciation and promotion of your sect elders. But what if you had neither exceptional talent nor a distinguished family legacy—not even any money? And you still wanted to break through to the Golden Core? You still wanted to live another five hundred years? What made you think you could? That rich, resonant voice full of middle-aged-man charm?

So, aside from risking your life, working for the sect, and hoping some influential figure took a liking to you, what other path was there?

That was more or less the way cultivators who practiced Taiji Xian Dao had always done things. Even though the Heavenly Dao had changed and added Moon Worship as another path to choose from, there would always be people who chose to follow the old road.

And this sword duel probably had nothing to do with the Lu Family. It was just that the Foundation Establishment disciples at Bamboo Mountain who had been stuck at a bottleneck had been stirred into action using Senior Brother Lu's situation as an excuse. It was barely enough to claim they had a righteous cause.

This was the path Fuling and Yuan Xuanbao had chosen for themselves. As for Fuling, there was no need to explain—after seeing Real Person Wanshu's Devil Form, she had developed a heart demon and still didn't dare to practice Moon Worship.

And Yuan Xuanbao... He'd told Li Fan that he'd glimpsed it and gained a great deal. But what did that really mean? Had he joined the fight out of loyalty to a friend, or had he realized he couldn't withstand even a glance from Yuan Shi, then been pushed into joining the duel after the incident with his Dao Companion?

Only the two of them knew what was going on in their hearts.

All Li Fan could do now was practice with his mace, dispel the baleful qi in his body, and recover from his injuries. He also had to solidify his cultivation and refine the Taiyin Five Luo Sword Ghosts. Then, as the days passed, he planned to head back to the bamboo grove to kill monkeys and improve his mood.

Mm, the main reason he still hadn't practiced Moon Worship was that he couldn't keep farming those monkeys all day. He had to wait until the monkey king let down its guard before going back. Otherwise, after he'd only killed two troops, the monkey king would come charging out to cause trouble. Having to make trip after trip was a hassle.

So he had some free time lately. Aside from practicing the five forms of the Profound Heaven Sword Method and cultivating the Five Luo Sword Ghosts, he'd also learned another sword art from the Profound Heaven Sword Intent.

"Whoosh—" Li Fan formed an orchid-finger gesture with his left hand and raised it level, as if he were about to clasp his hands in a salute, then bow.

But five streams of Sword Qi suddenly shot from his fingers. They gathered between his thumb and ring finger, swirling like a storm wind before compressing into a tiny vortex, no bigger than a soybean, like a little flame. Then he exhaled a mouthful of Sword Qi through his mouth and nose, sending the concentrated swirl of sword wind on its way.

The two rows of candles in front of him, arranged both vertically and horizontally, were snuffed out by invisible sword edges. Some had their wax stems severed, some had their wicks cut, and others simply had their flames extinguished. The Sword Light at the end spread out slowly, riding the gust that came with his breath. In an instant, it swept past with a series of crackling sounds, striking the bamboo walls of Wangshu Residence. Bamboo strips scattered across the floor, splinters filled the air, and a large swath of sword scars was carved into the Ink Bamboo walls.

Beichen Killing Sword. Deng Hua Sword.

Mm, he'd developed this move to blow out candles and put out the lights. You know how it is when you're lying in bed and can't be bothered to get up...

The Profound Heaven Sword Intent said it was pretty good. The key to the Deng Hua Sword was catching someone off guard. When the person in front of you stared wide-eyed with their mouth open, as if preparing to summon the sword pill they'd nurtured within their body, you could send a breath of Sword Qi from your Inner Landscape straight through them, beheading or slitting their throat and killing them without a trace.

Especially before the Golden Core Stage, when you couldn't wield a sword pill and had no flying sword to protect you, this move was ideal for killing people. The Qiankun Flying Dragon Sword had too much motion and was easy to read. The other sword arts were much the same: merely raising a sword-finger gesture was too obvious. But this move began with a formal salute, so anyone who didn't know its secrets wouldn't react in time before they were cut down.

Li Fan stared expressionlessly at the room he'd just wrecked, pretending to salute before abruptly blowing out Sword Qi.

It really was hard to guard against. All it took was a gesture and a breath. He could send just one sword to slit someone's throat, or unleash a barrage to blow their head apart. Its power wasn't bad, either. Of course, it couldn't compare to the Qiankun Flying Dragon Sword, which sent waves of force out from the whole body, but its range and force were both much greater than a single stream of Sword Qi thrust straight at a target. Still, if he had to judge it...

"It's too sinister. If someone sees through it in public, everyone will start being wary of you..."

The Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, then kill all the witnesses. This sword art was indeed a bit too underhanded and likely to earn resentment. It had originally been a secret sword art passed down orally between master and disciple at the main mountain, never recorded in writing. It also required the Beichen Sword Sect's secret qi cultivation method, the Formless, Shadowless, and Trace-Free Sword Qi, to truly kill without a trace. Even if the sect's manuals had scattered far and wide, there shouldn't be many people who knew this move.

Of course, the Deng Hua Sword wasn't meant for fighting a formal duel or competing in spells. At most, it was for taking someone by surprise. It was taught to you, host, purely for self-defense, so don't go blowing at everyone you see. Drawing qi straight from your Inner Landscape is pretty wasteful.

Who would go around blowing at people...

Li Fan finished his practice, and it was time to practice with Kun.

"Kun! Kun, come on—!!"

Kun had hidden again. Fuling hadn't been around these past few days, and Li Fan hadn't made tofu stew for him. He was just chewing flatbread and filling Kun's belly with water from the Cold Pool. Kun was very unhappy, and Li Fan had no idea where he'd gone.

But that was all right. Li Fan had already figured out how to use that damn flying disc.

"Fetch!" He flicked the disc across the lake, making it skip over the water again and again. Just as it began to slow and fall toward the surface, a white streak shot up from the bottom of the Cold Pool. Kun leaped out of the water and caught the flying disc in his mouth!

Kun said he was done playing. This was so annoying!

Li Fan cheerfully took the disc back. "Don't be mad. Did you dive all the way to the bottom?"

Kun said he did, he did!

"This thing isn't simple..." Li Fan stroked his chin, turning the flying disc over and over in his hands.

He'd been bored a couple days ago and had examined the two-hundred-point thing from every angle, wondering what mechanism it had. But he hadn't found anything. It didn't seem to be a mere "object," at least as far as the Profound Heaven Sword Intent could tell, and Li Fan had also scanned it with his Divine Sense. The disc itself didn't contain the slightest bit of spiritual qi or baleful qi. Wherever it was placed, it blended into its surroundings and became impossible to distinguish.

It was just a dog flying disc...

After reaching this disappointing conclusion, Li Fan had wanted to pass his frustration on to Kun, so he'd casually tossed it for him to fetch. But the disc had actually been fetched—and Kun would always fetch it.

Mm, "always."

That was to say, no matter how much Kun resisted, lay still, or hid underwater, the moment Li Fan threw the disc, he would involuntarily swim out and bring it back.

Li Fan had also tried making Kun throw the disc. He, too, was affected, instinctively running to catch it. But if you didn't make a clear "throwing" motion, and merely "placed" it on a table or "put it away" in a jade pendant, the "fetch the disc" state wouldn't trigger.

So as long as someone "threw" it...

Then someone would probably have to "fetch" it.

Holy crap, this thing was practically a divine artifact!

The Profound Heaven Sword Intent agreed with him.

The Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, host, this thing is even less fit to see the light of day than the Deng Hua Sword.

Of course. If you tossed the disc during a sword duel and your opponent threw down their sword and ran to fetch it, wouldn't that be the perfect chance to take their head?

A divine artifact that forcibly controlled someone's actions, without fail? But was that really how it worked?

The Profound Heaven Sword Intent, for example, hadn't reacted at all. Whatever was strange about the flying disc, it had no effect whatsoever on something like the Profound Heaven Sword Intent, an "object."

And when Yuan Xuanbao had visited a couple days ago, it was he, not Kun, who had caught the disc.

So when the disc was thrown, what rules determined who would "catch" it?

Did it prioritize whoever was closest? A certain species? Whoever had hands? Whoever had the higher cultivation? Or were there no rules at all?

He needed someone to help test it, but people's hearts were hard to fathom. How could Li Fan ask anyone to help test a potentially lethal thing like this? He only had one catfish, and after playing with it twice, it had gotten angry... All right, he'd played with it for two days.

Kun's eyes bulged as he glared at Li Fan. Suddenly, he leaped out of the water, snatched the disc from Li Fan, and spat it as hard as he could into the distance. Who knew where it had landed?

"Hey! Don't push it!"

Li Fan was just about to roll up his sleeves and beat Kun when he suddenly realized that he hadn't gone to fetch the disc.

"Who threw that flatbread? Scared the hell out of me..." A streak of red light flashed down and landed in the courtyard of Wangshu Residence. An old Daoist in a black headcloth and brown Daoist robe appeared. He held the flying disc in his left hand and, as usual, cradled his vermilion wooden sword in his right. It was none other than Qin Jianshi, whom Li Fan had met once before.

Mm, this time he looked like a normal human. His eyes and head were all in place, and there was no sign of the eight-armed, six-headed Dharma Body he'd had before.

"Who threw that flatbread?"

Li Fan pointed at Kun, and Kun pointed his fin at Li Fan.

"Cultivate properly. Don't waste your talent playing with a fish all day." Qin Jianshi rolled his eyes at Li Fan and tossed him the disc. "Fuling isn't here?"

Li Fan caught the disc without thinking, glared at Kun, then tossed it into the lake for him to fetch. "Reporting to you, Master, Sister Fuling went to Tiantai Mountain a few days ago for a sword duel."

"A sword duel at Tiantai Mountain?" Qin Jianshi frowned. "Who offended her?"

"They said her merchant goods were robbed, so she invited a number of fellow cultivators at the peak of Foundation Establishment to help her get them back." Li Fan thought for a moment. "This junior hasn't heard any news these past few days. Master, is there something urgent you need to discuss with Sister Fuling? Why not go to Tiantai Mountain and help her?"

After hearing Li Fan's explanation, Qin Jianshi understood. "Oh, I see. Tiantai Mountain doesn't have anything worthwhile, so I won't go there to fight over it. You don't need to worry, either. For a matter like smashing someone's establishment, the sect will naturally have Nascent Soul Elders nearby to keep an eye on things. Besides, I didn't come to find Fuling. I came to find you."

"Me?"

Qin Jianshi nodded. "I heard that not only the mountain master, but Real Person Wanshu also broke through to Divine Transformation after receiving your guidance?"

"Oh, Master wants to discuss the Dao with me?" Li Fan understood.

To his surprise, Qin Jianshi shook his head again and again. "No, no, no. You've already taken three heads and a tail from me. I know how powerful your Dao Seed is, and I know my own self-control isn't up to the task yet. Let me recover for a while before we discuss it.

"This is about a Dao connection I made years ago. I once obtained a copy of Yuan Shi and wanted you to take a look. Yuan Shi is..."

"Oh, Yuan Shi. I've seen it." Li Fan cut Qin Jianshi off, putting an end to his padding.

"You've seen Yuan Shi? How did you look at it?" Qin Jianshi stared at him in astonishment.

"I just opened it and looked." Yuan Shi was a lot better than Moon Worship, really. It only lowered his mood once every time he opened it, unlike Moon Worship, which chipped away at it second by second. "But it was given to me by another Real Person, so I shouldn't just tell you about it, should I?"

Li Fan had learned his lesson by now. He knew that you could eat too much, but you couldn't talk too carelessly. People in this world were especially fragile when it came to certain kinds of knowledge. They could break down in an instant, weeping and laughing, growing to gigantic proportions before achieving enlightenment or blowing themselves up...

"Uh, yes, yes. You can't just tell me..." Qin Jianshi nodded repeatedly. With a flip of both hands, he took out a long jade box, covered in talismans, tied up with red cord and bells. It took him ages to undo it. Inside, the scroll had been wrapped in three more layers: paper, a banner, and a silk cloth. Only then did the painting appear. It was packaged so tightly it looked like an express delivery from SF...

Li Fan swallowed and glanced at his own scroll of Yuan Shi, which he'd casually stuffed beneath a cushion, spread open with its back facing up. He nudged it twice with his foot, pushing the cushion and scroll under the table to hide them.

Well... opening it lowered his mood a little every time, and he hadn't figured out what the picture showed anyway, so he'd simply left it spread out instead of bothering to roll it up.

Fortunately, Qin Jianshi was fully occupied unpacking and didn't notice Li Fan's little move. Otherwise, he would have seriously doubted Li Fan's expertise in discussing the Dao...

"Have you heard of the Black Lotus Sect, young friend?" Qin Jianshi clutched the ancient scroll, its color a yellowish ginger, in both hands, as though it were a living thing that might escape if he let go. He looked ready to face a formidable enemy.

Seeing how tense he was, Li Fan couldn't help becoming serious too. He nodded solemnly. "Never heard of it."

Qin Jianshi choked, then continued to press him. "It's also called the Wusheng Sect or the Vacuum Sect. You haven't heard of those, either? Mm... At your age, it makes sense that you haven't..."

"Master, you can call me Qingyue. What are these sects about, exactly? Oh, could this Yuan Shi be from the Black Lotus Sect?" Seeing that the other man was about to tell a story, Li Fan hurriedly pulled two meditation cushions out of his jade pendant, set them down, and invited Qin Jianshi to sit.

"It is and it isn't... Qingyue, have you heard of the... Luo Sect?" Qin Jianshi nodded and sat on the cushion, but he still clutched the scroll in both hands. At first, he kept his eyes on the scroll, his head bowed. The instant he asked about the Luo Sect, one eyeball flipped up and fixed on Li Fan's face.

Li Fan's mood decreased by 1 point

"The Luo Sect?" Li Fan had never heard of it, of course, but judging by the system notification, the name was probably "real."

Qin Jianshi still couldn't see any reaction on his face, so he turned his eyes back to the scroll and repeated, "At your age, it makes sense that you haven't heard of it... But if you had heard of it before, some things would be easier to explain..."

He seemed to be thinking about something and fell silent.

Li Fan also quietly asked in his heart, Profound Heaven Sword Intent, you've heard of it, right?

The Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, heh heh, I've heard of it. It's famous, of course I have. So that's how it is. It all makes perfect sense now. I understand everything. Don't worry, host. I'll explain later. For now, just listen carefully to what he says.

Since the Sword Intent said it was fine, Li Fan relaxed completely. He even had time to brew tea for the distracted Qin Jianshi.

"...You really haven't heard of it." Qin Jianshi watched Li Fan rinse the tea, brew it, and serve it without a tremor in his hands. Only then did he start to believe him.

"Please, Master." Li Fan didn't know much about tea culture, but, well, the tea in this place was good. It was organic and unpolluted, and it came infused with abundant spiritual qi. It had more flavor than plain water, at least.

Qin Jianshi nodded and reached for a cup, sipping the tea. Mm, one hand, then the other—yet both hands still clutched the scroll. Li Fan had seen him before, though, so he was already prepared for his centipede-like appearance.

"I'd better start from the beginning," Qin Jianshi said. The tea seemed to have settled his nerves. "Back then... Actually, I don't remember how many years ago it was. It must have been when I was still at Foundation Establishment. The Black Lotus Sect rebelled in Li Country, and the Nangong Immortal Family, which guarded the local Immortal Palace, couldn't suppress them. So they summoned local rogue cultivators to help exterminate the demonic sect.

"Our Ink Bamboo Mountain also received an order from the Immortal Palace and came to help. I remember the mountain master led the group. While the Immortal Palace's army held the demonic sect at bay, we infiltrated the Black Lotus Sect's main altar and killed their Black Lotus Saint Mother. We wiped out the sect's Saint Mothers, Maitreya, the Eight Great Bodhisattvas, and the Dharma Protector Vajras. Our mountain master's faction was nearly wiped out, too. There are only a handful of us left today, but at least we earned great merit for Ink Bamboo Mountain. Later, the travel permit of Ink Bamboo Mountain Lou Guan Dao came to be accepted across the land. That bit of credit was a real part of the reason.

"As for this item, it was a trophy I seized back then. I also asked the mountain master to examine it. If I'm not mistaken, it should be Yuan Shi bestowed upon the Black Lotus Saint Mother by the main branch of the Luo Sect..."

At last he brought both hands forward, closed his eyes, and carefully revealed the scroll, showing Li Fan the title written on it.

Li Fan swallowed and leaned in to take a look. On the yellowish-gold scroll, which was almost rotten and flaking apart, a faint line of clerical script had been written in pale gray ink.

<Key Scroll of Breaking Evil and Manifesting Evidence, Volume One>

Li Fan's mood decreased by 1 point

The Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, hahahahahahaha! Ahahahahahaha!! I've searched high and low, and now it's come without any effort at all!

I killed countless people from the Luo Sect and still couldn't find it! So it was hidden with you! The two volumes of the Empty Star Heavenly Scripture are finally together!

Hahaha! Hahahaha! Hahahahahahahaha!!