"Blood! Demon! Sect!"
Xuanyun Sword Sect's Sect Master, Lei Qingyang, a Dao Venerable at the third heaven and a sword cultivator, roared in fury, lightning flashing across his body.
Through the transparent dome, they could see the clouds over Main Peak turn dark purple in an instant.
At his roar, thunder crashed across the sky, shaking the entire hall until it buzzed.
"Those bastard Blood Demons sure have some nerve!"
"They destroyed my Hanging Sword Formation, slaughtered mortal humans, and wounded my Sword Sect disciples! If we don't avenge this, what face will our Sword Sect have left?"
" Sect Master, I volunteer to fight!"
"So do I!"
Chen Xian sat off to the side with a teacup in his hands. He watched as figures rose around him, listening to one bloodthirsty cry after another as they volunteered for battle.
His hand trembled, and a few drops of tea spilled onto the table.
When he saw that no one on either side had noticed, he hurriedly wiped them up with his sleeve.
He set the teacup back on the table. There was no way he could drink any more.
This was terrifying.
If they found out his identity was fake, wouldn't the big shots in this Council Hall chop him into mincemeat?
He hadn't even grown strong yet. Even with a cheat, he couldn't take them on!
By rights, he shouldn't have been able to attend a meeting at this level, but he was, more or less, in the know.
He glanced at Shangguan Hongyue, who was just as indignant as the others, and decided he should show some spirit too.
So he slapped the table and joined the crowd, saying in a low voice, "Does the Blood Demon Sect think there's no one left in the Sword Gate to stand up to them? This old man volunteers to fight too!"
To his surprise, the moment he finished speaking, everyone's gaze converged on him.
What the hell are you all looking at me for? You're not seriously going to send this old man at the first layer of Dao Disciple onto the battlefield, are you?
Chen Xian's heart seized. They'd heard him even though he'd spoken so quietly?
He'd forgotten that, apart from Shangguan Hongyue and the newly awakened Lin Xiaoyan, everyone present was at least a Dao Sect Realm elder.
They could hear even a mosquito flapping its wings.
"Senior, you're incredible!" Shangguan Hongyue said with admiration, discreetly making a fist to cheer him on.
Chen Xian could only grit his teeth and continue shouting, "Even if I've lost all my cultivation, if the Sword Gate needs me, what does it matter if I stake my life?"
"To kill the Blood Demon Sect's fiends, killing one makes it worth it; killing two is a windfall!"
This time, he spoke at a normal volume.
"Excellent! No wonder you're a senior from the Sword Gate era. You're brave and unafraid of death!"
Sect Master Lei Qingyun smacked the table and praised Chen Xian.
"Senior, your righteousness is admirable!"
"A role model for us all!"
The elders nodded and praised him one after another.
"But we're not all dead yet. How could we possibly need you to take the field yourself?"
Lei Qingyang's tone shifted, and his expression turned stern. "By my command, Elder Lu Jian of the Heavy Sword Hall and Yu Pei, formation elder of Zhou Tian Peak, will lead one thousand Inner Sect disciples at the third layer of Dao Master Realm or above, along with three thousand Outer Sect disciples at the sixth layer of Dao Disciple or above, to the 73rd Hanging Sword Array at once. They are to surround and eliminate the Blood Demon Sect cultivators!"
"Upon sighting any Blood Demon Sect cultivator, kill them regardless of their cultivation. Leave no survivors!"
Lei Qingyang used some kind of secret art to carry his voice throughout the Nine Peaks' inner and outer sects, his words imbued with unquestionable authority.
"We obey!"
Two elders who looked exceptionally powerful stood, clasped their fists in salute, and quickly left.
The others also filed out of the Council Hall, heading to their respective jurisdictions to prepare for battle.
After most of them had left,
Lei Qingyang turned back, his Dao Eyes—capable of seeing through illusions—settling on Chen Xian once more.
He hadn't paid much attention to this old man who looked like some "country bumpkin." He only knew that Shangguan Hongyue had brought him back as a supposed "senior from the Sword Gate era."
He swept Chen Xian with his divine sense.
"Hmm? First layer of Dao Disciple."
Lei Qingyang furrowed his brow, a trace of confusion passing through his eyes.
This man's cultivation was pitifully weak. Even an Outer Sect disciple who had practiced for a month would be stronger than this so-called senior.
But... something still didn't add up.
A flicker of lightning flashed through his eyes, and Chen Xian's physical structure was laid bare before him.
His qi and blood were in decline, a sign that his lifespan was nearing its end.
Yet his life-bound Sword Qi flowed within him.
"Could he have the Innate Sword Bone too?"
He glanced at Shangguan Hongyue. He knew this disciple had the Innate Sword Bone. She had come to seek the Dao seven years ago, and he had personally accepted her into the sect.
But why was this man only at the first layer of Dao Disciple?
Even without cultivating, anyone with the Innate Sword Bone would naturally reach the Ninth Layer of Dao Disciple before the age of thirty.
His cultivation didn't match his innate constitution at all!
"No, no! I remember now. This is the Mystic Jade Sword Bone, a grade above the Sword Bone!"
Lei Qingyang suddenly recalled something, and his pupils trembled.
That made even less sense!
Even a pig with the Mystic Jade Sword Bone couldn't live for decades and still remain at the first layer of Dao Disciple!
Unless he had only recently acquired the Mystic Jade Sword Bone, or he had suffered a grave injury that had wiped out his cultivation.
Of those two possibilities, Lei Qingyang first ruled out the former.
It was true that evil techniques existed that could steal another person's Root Bone, but they were used to replace one's own while still young. Who would use one on an old man close to death?
That left only the second possibility.
This man really was a senior, and his cultivation had once been formidable, but he had suffered a severe internal injury and lost it all.
That made sense.
Taking into account that the man had mentioned losing his cultivation earlier, Lei Qingyang's reasoning came full circle.
He just wasn't sure whether the man really was a senior from the Sword Gate.
Still, this man clearly meant no harm to Xuanyun.
Lei Qingyang looked up at the transparent dome.
Only he knew that the dome was actually a Dao Artifact called the Heart-Reflecting Mirror.
If anyone beneath the Heart-Reflecting Mirror harbored ill will toward the Xuanyun Sword Sect or toward him, the mirror would turn red.
"Sect Master, is there something on my face?"
Chen Xian had begun to feel uneasy under Lei Qingyang's stare and finally couldn't help asking.
Had Sect Master Lei noticed a flaw in his identity?
"Ahem! It's nothing. I was just wondering which of my martial uncles you might be."
Prompted by the question, Lei Qingyang realized he'd been scrutinizing Chen Xian too obviously, and hurried to cover it up.
Chen Xian's heart tightened. He asked tentatively, "Have you figured it out? My surname is Chen—Chen as in 'ear'—and my given name is Xian, as in 'envy.' I was just an ordinary disciple. You don't need to address me so respectfully."
"Oh! Martial Uncle Chen. I have some impression of you, some impression!" Lei Qingyang nodded, though it was hard to tell whether he really remembered him.
Then he grew serious. "Even if you were only an Outer Sect disciple back then, your seniority is above mine. You're still my martial uncle!"
With that, he waved a hand.
"Hong Yue, take Martial Uncle to find a place to rest. Also, go to the Pill Hall in my name and get him a Life-Prolonging Pill."
He tossed Shangguan Hongyue a jade token and then cupped his hands toward Chen Xian. "Martial Uncle, we're on the brink of war with the Blood Demon Sect, and I have a great deal of sect business to attend to. I'll take my leave for now."
"If you need anything, ask Hong Yue. She has my token."
Chen Xian was overjoyed. Not only had his identity problem been settled so easily, he was also getting a Life-Prolonging Pill.
He hurriedly cupped his hands. "Thank you, Sect Master. Go on with your work! I've returned to my roots in my old age. I wouldn't dare ask for more."
"Martial Uncle, you're too modest!"
Lei Qingyang nodded and left the Council Hall with the few remaining elders.
"Senior... no, Grand Martial Uncle, come with me!"
Shangguan Hongyue was beaming. She was genuinely glad that her senior had returned to the sect.
Chen Xian was happy too. At last, he could cultivate properly!
The cultivation path of an eighty-year-old man—don't look down on an old man just because he's old!