Sword Grinding Cave

Baibi City, Li Mansion.

In the rear courtyard.

"Madam."

Steward Xu of the Li Mansion bowed respectfully.

He had no idea why Madam had suddenly summoned him.

Madam Ren Rong waved away the maids around her and stared at Steward Xu.

Under her gaze, Steward Xu felt ill at ease and bent even lower.

Compared with the master, Madam was much harder to deal with.

"Steward Xu, tell me honestly. How many gold notes did you take to the Divine Sword Sect for the eldest young master last time?"

Madam Ren Rong asked in a low voice.

Master Li Donglin had gone to the prefectural capital, leaving her in charge of the vast Li Mansion.

She had quietly checked the accounts and discovered a large expenditure from some time ago.

"Madam, this..."

Steward Xu felt his scalp tingle. The master had told him not to let it slip.

"Is there a problem telling me?"

Madam Ren Rong said sternly.

"Six thousand taels."

Unable to withstand the pressure, Steward Xu had no choice but to tell her.

If he offended Madam, he feared his days as steward were numbered.

He knew from experience just how formidable she could be.

"Six thousand taels? Hmph. Have you decided we can't afford to live anymore?"

Madam Ren Rong's expression changed dramatically.

Li Gan had joined the Divine Sword Sect to cultivate. Who knew how much more they would have to invest in him?

The Li Family's entire fortune might be drained.

"Li Donglin, you're so biased."

Ren Rong gritted her teeth in hatred.

She didn't believe Li Donglin had only recently learned that Li Gan had become a Divine Sword Sect disciple. Perhaps Li Donglin had deliberately sent Li Gan to the sect.

Otherwise, how could a good-for-nothing who'd never applied himself to his studies, after leaving home for more than three years, have quietly become an Official Disciple of the Divine Sword Sect?

If Li Donglin was determined to support Li Gan's martial training with everything he had, he could completely drain the Li Family's coffers.

When her son, Li Kun, passed the imperial examinations and needed money to grease the wheels, they might not have a single coin left.

Wouldn't all her years of scheming have gone to waste?

If Li Gan achieved anything, he would surely overshadow her son. Given how much Li Gan hated her, he would certainly take revenge—and might even take it out on her son.

Steward Xu kept his head down, pretending he hadn't heard.

In the vast Li Mansion, perhaps no one besides the master was unaware of Madam's intentions.

After noon.

Having finished cultivating, Li Gan was about to make lunch.

Suddenly, a figure entered the Bell Tower.

Li Gan looked up and saw that it was his master, Zhou Buping.

"Master, what brings you here?"

He was quite surprised.

This was the first time Zhou Buping had ever come to the Bell Tower.

"I came to see how you're getting on living up here on the mountain."

Zhou Buping smiled gently.

He had watched from beginning to end earlier, as Li Gan cultivated the Heartless Sword Art after striking the bell.

"Master, I'm doing quite well here."

Li Gan brought over a stool for Zhou Buping to sit on.

"It certainly seems that way. Martial cultivation is a monotonous process. The fact that you can endure solitude, and even enjoy the peace it brings, shows that you've found a path of martial cultivation that's truly your own."

Zhou Buping smiled.

By observing his practice, he had come to understand this disciple—whom he had taken in by chance—more deeply.

This was the disciple he had searched for over decades.

For decades, he had guarded Yanmen Valley. Every Menial Disciple seeking to join the Inner Sect had to pass his examination. In truth, he had only one purpose: to choose a disciple.

After sitting down, Zhou Buping continued, "There's another reason I came. The sect will hold a True Disciple Selection at the beginning of next month. There's only one slot. You've not only comprehended the manual, but have also taken your first steps in understanding sword intent, so I've already entered your name. I believe you have a very good chance of winning the True Disciple slot. However, I don't want you to compete for it."

"Master, why not?"

Li Gan was astonished.

His master wanted him to enter the True Disciple Selection, but not to compete for the True Disciple slot.

"Though the True Disciple slot is valuable, you have an even better choice."

Zhou Buping shook his head. "Didn't I tell you about Perfect Xiantian?"

Li Gan nodded.

"To achieve Perfect Xiantian, you need more than perfected Internal Qi and an understanding of Martial Intent. You also need a Flawless Body, and cultivating one requires the Flawless Vajra Method. The Heartless Sword Art you practice was comprehended by your Founder from a mural in the Sword Grinding Cave, where the True Disciple Selection is held. But your Founder once said that the Heartless Sword Art he comprehended was incomplete. It still had a flaw: it lacked the Flawless Vajra Method."

Zhou Buping began to explain.

"Master, you mean I should find that mural in the Sword Grinding Cave and comprehend the Flawless Vajra Method from it, to complete the Heartless Sword Art?"

Li Gan asked.

"Exactly. If you can comprehend the Flawless Vajra Method of the Heartless Sword Art, then a mere True Disciple slot will mean nothing."

Zhou Buping nodded.

"What if I can't comprehend it?"

Li Gan asked.

"If even you can't comprehend it, then the Heartless Sword Art may never be completed."

Zhou Buping sighed. "Our lineage has persisted for six generations, starting with your Founder, all in the hope of completing the Heartless Sword Art. Without achieving Perfect Xiantian, your future will be limited."

"Master, doesn't the Divine Sword Sect have a Flawless Vajra Method?"

Li Gan asked in confusion.

"Disciple, what do you think the Flawless Vajra Method is? Perfect Xiantian is no easy feat. They say that since its founding, only the Founding Patriarch of the Divine Sword Sect ever mastered it—and even that is just a rumor. So our sect has no Flawless Vajra Method."

Zhou Buping smiled gently.

"Then the mural in the Sword Grinding Cave wasn't left behind by an ancestor of the Divine Sword Sect?"

Li Gan asked curiously.

"Of course not. The Founding Patriarch discovered it while traveling, then established the Divine Sword Sect here. As for who left the Sword Grinding Cave, no one knows."

Zhou Buping shook his head.

"Master, what exactly is this competition for the True Disciple slot?"

Li Gan asked again.

"It concerns the Divine Sword Sect's Sword Seed inheritance. There are twelve Sword Seed inheritances in all, which means twelve fixed True Disciples. They also correspond to the Seven Main Peaks and the Five Directional Sword Envoys of our sect."

Zhou Buping explained.

"I can understand the Seven Main Peaks, Master, but what are the Five Directional Sword Envoys?"

Li Gan was very surprised. He had never even heard of the Five Directional Sword Envoys.

"That's something unique to the Divine Sword Sect. Once you reach a higher level, you'll naturally learn about it."

Zhou Buping smiled but didn't elaborate.

"Master, if I can't become a True Disciple, won't I be unable to enter the Sword Tomb?"

Li Gan suddenly remembered another matter.

"Don't worry about that. When you truly want to enter, I'll find a way to get you in."

Zhou Buping said.

Li Gan felt reassured.

According to the rules, only True Disciples could enter the Sword Tomb. Yet last time, the sect had let all the Official Disciples enter once.

That meant the rule wasn't set in stone; it could be broken when necessary.

Compared with the True Disciple slot, he found Perfect Xiantian far more appealing.

I wonder if I can use the sound of the Chen Bell to comprehend the Flawless Vajra Method of the Heartless Sword Art from the mural in the Sword Grinding Cave.

A trace of anticipation stirred in his heart.