Morality

Zhang Yunsheng and Bai Zhanfeng traded blows on the Sword-Dueling Platform, putting on a lively fight.

What surprised Li Xian was that quite a few people around him kept cheering them on.

"He truly lives up to his standing as a disciple of Master Zhang, the Pagoda-Bearing Hand. That Cloud Crane Among the Pines was ethereal and traceless, appearing and vanishing like a ghost. If he'd launched a surprise attack with that move right at the start, who could have reacted?"

"Bai Zhanfeng is no slouch either. His Snow Baleful-Intent Saber brims with killing intent, every stroke lethal, leaving no room to breathe! An ordinary martial master would probably be cowed by his vicious aura the moment they met, unable to bring out even seventy percent of their full strength, and end up defeated in no time! Unfortunately, he's up against Zhang Yunsheng, who comes from a prestigious school. His foundations are far too solid."

"This Zhang Yunsheng is supposedly only twenty-four? If he can renew his blood and cleanse his marrow within the next five years, making his entire body free of leaks, he might even have a chance to vie for a leap through the Dragon Gate, like a carp becoming a dragon. Given time, I'm certain he'll have a place on the Hidden Dragon Ranking!"

These discussions were not merely taking place throughout the crowd. In fact...

Two of the people holding forth were right beside Li Xian.

This prompted Li Xian to glance at the pair despite himself.

He really wanted to ask just how much that Master Zhang, the Pagoda-Bearing Hand, had paid them to sing his praises so tirelessly.

After the two on the Sword-Dueling Platform had fought for dozens of exchanges, the Blood Baleful-Intent Saber's moves had long since grown stale, and the Pine Wind Sword finally seized upon an opening.

As he switched from defense to offense, the Thirteen Pine Wind Swords thrust out one after another, each stroke linking to the next through countless variations, finally breaking through the defenses of Bai Zhanfeng, the Blood Baleful-Intent Saber.

Blood sprayed.

A sword pierced Bai Zhanfeng's arm. The intense pain left him unable even to hold his saber, and he lost the fight.

Having won, Zhang Yunsheng did not finish him off. He merely cupped his hands. "Thank you for yielding."

"Young Hero Zhang, your swordsmanship is exquisite, with the bearing of a master. I, Bai Zhanfeng, acknowledge my inferiority."

Bai Zhanfeng returned the salute, then picked up his saber, swiftly left the Sword-Dueling Platform, and disappeared into the crowd.

At once, dozens among the hundred onlookers burst into cheers.

"Excellent swordsmanship!"

"With swordsmanship like that, once Young Hero Zhang renews his blood and cleanses his marrow, he'll surely have a place on the Hidden Dragon Ranking!"

"If Young Hero Zhang isn't named among Jiangzhou's ten greatest experts of the younger generation, I won't accept it!"

All manner of shouts rose one after another.

Swept up in the cheering, quite a few people who had initially been relatively objective could not help joining in.

For a time, Zhang Yunsheng's fame soared.

The hundreds present, and even the hundreds nearby, all remembered his name.

Yet as Li Xian watched the bustling scene, he kept feeling that something was not quite right.

He could not quite say what it was, though.

Watching Zhang Yunsheng surrounded like the moon amid a host of stars, with people around him constantly shouting titles such as "Hidden Dragon Ranking," "Jiangzhou's ten greatest young experts," and "Pine Wind Sword Hero," he vaguely felt that this fourth-realm martial master...

Why did he seem more like a celebrity than a martial artist?

While everyone was still cheering, a woman dressed entirely in white, wearing mourning hemp, suddenly hurried over from one side.

Before Zhang Yunsheng, still surrounded by the crowd, could react, the woman had dropped to her knees before him. "I, Yu Niang, thank Young Hero Zhang for speaking out for justice. When everyone else turned a blind eye to what befell my Xu Family, an outstanding young hero like you was still willing to speak for us. The entire Xu Family is endlessly grateful. I am willing to offer our Blood Jade Art, and beg Young Hero Zhang-Great Hero Zhang-to uphold justice for the thirty-four members of my Xu Family."

To look lovely, dress in mourning white.

The woman called Yu Niang was already quite attractive. Now, clad in white, her tear-streaked face like pear blossoms in the rain, her delicate, pitiful appearance swiftly drew everyone's attention.

Even the clamor that had been so lively moments earlier subsided when she knelt.

This sudden turn of events, however, made Zhang Yunsheng's expression stiffen slightly. For a moment, he did not know what to do.

Fortunately, someone beside him whispered a reminder, and he quickly recovered, saying at once, "Lady Yu, please get up first. I only spoke up to rebuke Bai Zhanfeng because I couldn't stand hearing him make those snide remarks."

"I have heard of Great Hero Zhang, the Pagoda-Bearing Hand, since childhood. Around Mingyang, who doesn't know that Great Hero Zhang's righteousness reaches the clouds, and that he hates evil as his mortal enemy?"

Xu Yu Niang's face was grief-stricken. "I know the Thirteen Eagles of Luoyang have a fearsome reputation. Rashly asking Great Hero Zhang to intervene would surely bring him enormous trouble, so I dare not ask for too much... I only hope Young Hero Zhang can ask Great Hero Zhang to introduce me to the Sword Saint Guangyuan, so I can tell the Sword Saint Guangyuan in person about the injustice my Xu Family suffered."

With that, she bent down again, striking her head against the ground. "I will forever engrave this kindness upon my heart."

"Well..."

Zhang Yunsheng was immediately in a bind.

He had only found a pretext to fight the Snow Baleful-Intent Saber so he could climb onto his shoulders and make a name for himself. As for the Xu Family's affairs...

He wanted absolutely nothing to do with them.

Who could have known that this orphan of the Xu Family would be so unappreciative, heaping flattering honors upon him in front of everyone and putting him on the spot?

Now, if he did not speak to his master and arrange an introduction for Xu Yu Niang to the Sword Saint Guangyuan, he would have no way to justify himself.

Yet he knew full well that the Sword Saint Guangyuan had no intention of wading into these muddy waters either, offending the Thirteen Eagles of Luoyang for no reason merely to uphold so-called justice.

If he really had his master take Xu Yu Niang to the Canglang Sword Sect...

He would not only offend the Thirteen Eagles of Luoyang, but also earn the displeasure of the Sword Saint Guangyuan.

"The ground is cold. Get up first, and we can talk."

Zhang Yunsheng forced himself to speak.

"Young Hero Zhang, you... you agree? Yu Niang kowtows in thanks for your great kindness..."

As Xu Yu Niang spoke, she held up a manual. "The authentic Blood Jade Art manual is here in this box. This is the only gift of thanks my Xu Family has left to offer. Please accept it, Young Hero Zhang."

Zhang Yunsheng glanced at the manual in the box and wanted to curse.

Who would want a trash cultivation art like the Blood Jade Art?

Besides, to persuade those renowned martial elders to uphold justice for the Xu Family, she had handed out at least eighty copies of the Blood Jade Art during the Sword Debate Assembly, if not a hundred. How could it still be worth a penny?

At that moment, Zhang Yunsheng suddenly agreed with what his opponent Bai Zhanfeng had said.

This bitch was using moral blackmail!

"Heh."

Just then, a martial artist in the crowd who apparently disliked his posturing suddenly spoke up. "Since Young Hero Zhang is willing to speak out for a helpless woman like Xu Yu Niang, why not see your good deed through and help pass on her message?"

Her words also won the approval of some who sympathized with Xu Yu Niang.

"That's right, Young Hero Zhang. Thirty-four members of the Xu Family were slaughtered, and she alone survived. For the past half month, she's endured immense grief, running from place to place in search of someone to uphold justice, yet she's never found a door open to her. Great Hero Zhang has close ties with all the renowned elders of Jiangzhou. As long as he speaks up, why worry that no one will step forward to investigate and bring justice to the slaughtered Xu Family?"

"Others may fear the Thirteen Eagles of Luoyang, but would Great Hero Zhang fear them? Besides, Great Hero Zhang would only be introducing Xu Yu Niang to the Sword Saint Guangyuan. Whether he ultimately intervenes would still be up to the Sword Saint Guangyuan, wouldn't it?"

All manner of voices kept rising, gradually drowning out the cries of "Hidden Dragon Ranking," "Jiangzhou's ten greatest young experts," and "Pine Wind Sword Hero" for Zhang Yunsheng.

Seeing still more people arriving after hearing the news, Zhang Yunsheng could only say, "This isn't the place to talk. Come with me first."

With that, without waiting to see whether she got up, he strode swiftly toward Mount Canglang.

Xu Yu Niang wanted a more explicit statement from Zhang Yunsheng, but seeing him practically fly away, she could only hurry to her feet and follow.

With so many eyes watching, she believed that even if Zhang Yunsheng was angry at what she had done, he would never dare do anything excessive to her if he wanted to preserve his reputation.

The farce had come quickly and ended just as quickly.

The crowd soon dispersed.

Li Xian had enjoyed quite a spectacle as well, one that broadened his horizons.

However, just as he was about to leave, he noticed something.

Moving a little closer, he soon picked up a box that someone had discarded.

The Xu Family's Blood Jade Art?

Someone had tossed it aside like a worn-out shoe?

Almost as soon as he picked up the Blood Jade Art, a burly man nearby also approached, seemingly about to ask for it.

His companion tugged him back, however. "Let's go."

"It's a fairly famous cultivation art, at least. Why not take it back and have a look?"

"What's there to look at? Copies of this art have been handed out so widely over the past half month that they're all over the streets. Ask around anywhere, and you can copy one to take home. Besides, why has that lady of the Xu Family been spreading the Blood Jade Art everywhere? Isn't it to spite the Thirteen Eagles of Luoyang, who wiped out her family to seize their Blood Jade Art? If you take the manual and accomplish nothing with it, fine, but if you actually achieve something, won't the Thirteen Eagles of Luoyang set their sights on you immediately?"

His fellow martial artist continued quickly, "Of course, whether the Thirteen Eagles of Luoyang really wiped out the Xu Family remains to be verified. You saw for yourself just now-that lady of the Xu Family is no simple customer. You can't believe everything in a one-sided account. But this trouble involves the Thirteen Eagles of Luoyang. Even if there's only the slightest possibility, we're better off staying clear if we can."

The burly man was somewhat unconvinced. "That man dares to take the manual away..."

"Do you have no eye for people at all?"

His fellow martial artist pulled him away quickly. "That man's steps are steady, his breathing long and deep, and the light of his spirit shines outward. He must be an expert who has internally tempered his organs. How could we compare to him?! And you were thinking of asking him for the manual? Are you looking for trouble?"

"Internally tempered his organs?! But he looks so young..."

The burly man's heart jolted. He glanced back at Li Xian, finding it somewhat unbelievable.

"If your martial arts are lacking, you can train. But if your judgment is lacking, you might offend someone you can't afford to offend at any moment and get beaten to death on the spot. Experts gather like clouds at the Sword Debate Assembly. You have to keep your eyes sharp!"

As the martial artist spoke, he pulled the burly man along, and they soon disappeared into the crowd.

Some others who had been interested in the manual quickly looked away as well.

Offending a young expert of the viscera realm whose background was unknown, all for a manual that had been distributed everywhere, was not worth it.

In this atmosphere, Li Xian took the manual out of the box and began leafing through it.

After reading for a short while...

He understood why nobody wanted this cultivation art.

"Whoa, isn't this a demonic art?"

(End of chapter)