Ye Xingge had dreamed of making the Gold List since childhood, so he surely knew something about the Gold List and even the Divine Weapons.
The Twelve Divine Weapons corresponded first to the Three Corpses, then the Three Poisons and the Five Virtues. The last corresponded to the "Oneness of the Dao": whoever obtained it would attain the Dao and ascend to immortality.
Since the last weapon had never appeared in the world, and the "Weapon of Benevolence" was not meant for killing, only ten Divine Weapons could be seen in the martial world.
Nine of those Divine Weapons were in the hands of old First Rank devils.
The cutoff for the First Rank was also calculated according to the Divine Weapons: roughly speaking, of the ten Divine Weapon wielders, the one with the lowest score was removed, and the rest were all First Rank.
A martial artist without a Divine Weapon whose cultivation surpassed that of a Divine Weapon wielder would naturally also be First Rank.
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For instance, Li Guiyong, the Later Zhou eunuch who protected the nation, ranked fifth without a Divine Weapon; Lü Chuan of the northern martial world ranked first.
That brought the current number of First Rank experts to eleven. In the past, there had even been as many as fourteen or fifteen.
But the total number of places on the Gold List never changed. For every extra person in the First Rank, there was one fewer place in the Third Rank.
Ye Xingge thought for a moment.
"I heard that the lowest-ranked Divine Weapon wielder wasn't qualified for the First Rank. But the person at the bottom always seems to have the Fate-Robbing Saber, and none of them have lasted ten years. Is there something behind that?"
Luo Xuanqing nodded and leaned closer, lowering her voice.
"The threshold for the First Rank wasn't set by the Heaven-Observing Pavilion, but by the 'Heavenly Dao.' A weakling who obtains a Divine Weapon but ranks last will be abandoned by the weapon, which will choose a new master."
Ye Xingge was taken aback. "You mean, last place gets eliminated?"
"Right."
Luo Xuanqing grasped the new term easily and continued:
"In theory, the Fate-Robbing Saber grows the fastest, but it depends on 'using war to feed war.' You only benefit by defeating someone stronger than yourself. For those at the bottom, it's the strongest Divine Weapon.
"But those First Rank immortals have no one above them anymore, so the saber is useless to them. That's why they came to an unspoken agreement not to fight over it, so they wouldn't be forced to raise gu among themselves..."
Hearing this, Ye Xingge suddenly understood.
The Divine Weapons forced the last-place wielder out, so those old First Rank undying monsters had deliberately tossed out a piece of starter equipment to keep the pressure of cutthroat competition from getting too great, leaving the people below to fight over being cannon fodder!
No wonder a Divine Weapon as mighty as the Fate-Robbing Saber had been left to drift through the martial world...
Those old scheming bastards...
Wait!
Ye Xingge thought it over carefully, then suddenly frowned.
"If an older First Rank expert passes away and leaves a Divine Weapon to an apprentice whose cultivation is inferior to the Fate-Robbing Saber's wielder, wouldn't that mean..."
Great Beauty Luo shrugged slightly.
"The evaluation happens once every ten years. If a Divine Weapon changes hands in the meantime and its new wielder is still in last place, no one is eliminated, and everyone skips to the next evaluation. So as long as the Fate-Robbing Saber keeps changing hands out there, the First Rank heroes can rest easy forever."
"Oh..."
Ye Xingge nodded slightly. That seemed more reasonable to him.
Without protection for newcomers, he would have ended up as cannon fodder for the Gold-Chasing Gentleman...
Luo Xuanqing thought for a moment, then added:
"Of course, there's one exception. If someone wielded two or three Divine Weapons and had another ten years to cultivate, even a dog tied up with them could become the Sun-Swallowing Divine Lord.
"So if a newcomer possesses multiple Divine Weapons, the elimination goes ahead as usual."
Getting his hands on even one Divine Weapon had been difficult enough for Ye Xingge. He wouldn't dare dream that big. He returned to the subject.
"So the Gold-Chasing Gentleman was about to be eliminated, and that's why he was in such a hurry to come out and climb the rankings?"
"Right."
Luo Xuanqing nodded and continued:
"The next evaluation is at the end of this year. The Gold-Chasing Gentleman is a thief who used to hide wherever he could. It was only in the last few years, when he really couldn't hold back anymore, that he emerged to climb the rankings.
"But he has too many enemies, and he's carrying a supreme treasure. He hasn't had a chance to grow at all. Now there's only half a year left, so he can only get more and more desperate. Wasn't something bound to happen sooner or later?"
Ye Xingge finally understood. He had wanted to ask why the Gold-Chasing Gentleman didn't "drop the saber to save his life."
But the Fate-Robbing Saber was the "Greed" weapon, and anyone who dared wield it was almost certainly a greedy bastard.
Getting him to give up a precious treasure would be as hard as getting Ye to swear off women.
Even if he knew it meant death, as long as he still had time, he would definitely give it his all...
So Ye Xingge didn't ask a question he already knew the answer to. He was about to talk about something else when Great Beauty's alluring voice suddenly sounded in his ear.
"Boy, do you want the Fate-Robbing Saber? Before I came over, I made arrangements and had the Mountains and Rivers Association look into it. They should have information on the Fate-Robbing Saber by now..."
Holy shit?!
Ye Xingge's heart jolted. Worried that Great Beauty Luo might notice, he didn't dare let his expression change, and only thought to himself:
Would I dare take it?
We were just talking about how I couldn't take two...
Last place would still be eliminated, and there's only half a year left. Overtake those old First Rank devils? Wouldn't that be insane...?
Hongyu didn't go into detail, only continued:
"First, keep Three Feet One happy. Tomorrow we'll find some time to discuss it properly."
Ye Xingge didn't think there was any need to discuss it.
However confident he was, he couldn't possibly think he could surpass those old First Rank devils in half a year.
But then again...
A greedy desire for life and a greedy desire for beauty were still greed.
Those who could master the Three Corpse Weapons were usually compatible with the corresponding Three Poison Weapons, so there was no barrier to him possessing one.
And the weapons worked in conjunction with one another, making a small set.
Take the Fate-Robbing Saber, for example. Because it had circulated most widely, Ye Xingge had a general idea of what it did:
Devour Ten Thousand Powers: Slay an opponent and gain a cultivation reward based on the opponent's strength.
Blood Courses Through the Eight Meridians: Transform blood into Qi to forcibly raise one's cultivation and fight an opponent until one of them dies!
Originally, it was a "gambling addict's saber." Its wielder staked everything in the face of death: win and soar, lose and die on the spot. It was hard to last long that way.
That was why it bore the saying, "When greed rises, calamity follows; when the saber falls, fate comes to an end."
But paired with the Filth-Severing Whip, it meant going out to fight and increase his cultivation by day, then coming home to dual cultivate and increase it again by night!
The Greed weapon transformed blood into Qi to fight an opponent until one of them died!
The Lower Corpse locked his health so he could escape. Hehe~ I just won't die!
It was shameless beyond belief...
Beside the bed, Luo Xuanqing studied the young man before her. Seeing him suddenly lose focus, she asked:
"What are you thinking about?"
Ye Xingge came back to himself and shook his head with a smile.
"Just thinking about how I can help you, my lady. From the looks of things, Mantanghong probably fled long ago. What if you can't catch her?"
Luo Xuanqing had just taken a beating and held a great deal of resentment toward that damned woman Mantanghong, but after a brief silence, she still spoke honestly.
"How could an ambitious powerhouse ranked eighth in the Second Rank be so easy to catch? I only came to try my luck. If I really can't catch her, I can take credit for your achievement back to account for myself. At least my merit and fault will cancel out, so you don't need to worry about it."
"Oh..."
Ye Xingge secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Luo Xuanqing considered it briefly, then leaned a little closer, her gaze burning.
"With such a great achievement, you could become an Embroidered-Robe Captain at the very least. How about coming to work under me from now on?"
"..."
Ye Xingge was still considering his plans for the future, so he replied:
"My parents are still alive, and I'm their only son. I need to think about it. How about I give you an answer in a few days, Sister Luo?"
Luo Xuanqing nodded slightly and leaned closer still, her gaze allowing no argument.
"I've taken a liking to you. If you won't be my subordinate, be my disciple. You can be something else if you want, too. Either way, you're not getting away."
Ye Xingge felt this young lady was being a little overbearing, and she was practically in his arms. He really could hardly resist.
"What else could I be to you, Sister Luo?"
"Hmph~ That depends on your own abilities. How would I know?"
Having finished teasing him, Luo Xuanqing rose and went out the door.
Tap, tap, tap...
Ye Xingge's heart felt light after her teasing, and he instinctively raised his eyes to watch Three Feet One leave. But then Great Beauty muttered in his ear again:
"That little hussy... Wipe your drool. Don't let it drip onto the bed."
"Hm?"
Ye Xingge raised a hand and touched the corner of his mouth. Finding no drool, he was at a loss for words. He promptly burrowed back under the covers and went on dreaming sweet dreams...
The next day.
The sun rose as usual. Several Embroidered-Robe Officers gathered at a breakfast shop near the inn, all talking at once about what had happened the previous night.
The neighbors nearby, meanwhile, whispered to one another:
"What's all the fuss about?"
"I heard that boy Xingge beat three roving bandits to death over in Linyang last night..."
"What's so special about that? He's already beaten dozens to death...
"I said back then that the Ye family's wife had given birth to a Lord Taisui. He didn't even cry when he came into the world, but you wouldn't believe me..."
In the inn's rear courtyard.
Ye Xingge slowly woke, only to discover that the sun was already shining on the tent raised beneath his quilt.
He sat up and looked down. No blood had seeped through the bandages on his chest, and he could no longer feel the wound. His recovery was astonishingly fast.
"The Heaven-Observing Pavilion's medicine really is potent..."
Ye Xingge rolled his shoulders and neck. Finding nothing wrong, he felt much more at ease. He got up, took a robe from the wardrobe and changed into it, then left the room.
Creak~
With a helper looking after the place, the inn had already opened, but there were still hardly any customers, and the whole building was quiet.
Ye Xingge glanced around and was about to go upstairs for a look when Great Beauty's voice sounded in his ear again.
"Awake? Luo Xuanqing has gone to the capital to report back. Come to the restaurant on the street. I have something to discuss with you."
Ye Xingge hadn't expected Great Beauty Luo to leave without saying goodbye, but the Embroidered-Robe Officers hadn't withdrawn yet, so she had probably only gone back temporarily. He thought no more about it, left the inn through the back door, followed the alley across the old street, and came to the restaurant near the cloth shop.
Since he was familiar with the restaurant, Ye Xingge didn't even announce himself. He went straight in through the back door and made his way to a private room on the second floor.
The room overlooked the street. In the middle stood a large square table, with a copper pot on it, steaming and giving off the savory aroma of spicy hotpot. Around it were more than a dozen specialty dishes and several jugs of wine.
Great Beauty was already reclining in a chair by the window, wearing the new dress he had bought her the day before. To suit her identity as a "gentle young wife," it was a long blue brocade dress with a slanted collar, and her hair was arranged in a married woman's bun.
Together with the commanding bearing of a female sect leader, she looked like the principal wife watching her dissolute live-in husband come home...
Ye Xingge sized her up and thought she looked more like someone here for a matchmaking meeting now. He closed the door and teased:
"Why are you striking a pose when you're all alone? Well? Does the dress fit?"
As a heroic figure of the martial world, Hongyu had never worn a dress with the air of a refined young wife before, and she actually liked it quite a lot.
But naturally, she couldn't flirt with a man like that little hussy Luo Xuanqing. She merely gestured to the seat beside her.
"Sit."
Ye Xingge rolled up his sleeves and sat down beside her, then set about preparing a dipping bowl with scallions and ginger.
"Are we discussing the Fate-Robbing Saber?"
Like the mistress of the house, Hongyu gestured toward the steaming hotpot.
"There's no hurry. You've been traveling for so long, and you're injured too. Have a few bites first to fill your stomach."
"Oh?"
Seeing Great Beauty behave so considerately, Ye Xingge found it a little hard to get used to.
He had just gotten up and was indeed a little hungry, so he didn't stand on ceremony. He picked up a slice of fresh mutton with his chopsticks and swished it in the copper pot.
Then he dipped it in the scallion-and-ginger sauce and took a bite. His mouth filled with a spicy, savory flavor, and it felt as if every cell in his body had awakened!
"Whew..."
Ye Xingge savored it, enjoying himself, but didn't forget to explain:
"This is the biggest restaurant in our county. The soup base and the dishes were all my ideas. The ingredients aren't cheap, either. Ordering such a feast and eating it all in a rush would probably cost at least..."
At that point, he suddenly sensed something was wrong.
Ye Xingge abruptly sat up straighter and looked at Great Beauty beside him.
"You didn't call me here to pay the bill, did you?!"