Chapter 616
“Wuwuwu... my dream of being a swordsman...”
“Stop crying! Winning or losing is just part of the game. I’ve lost to ice blocks too... uh, well, you know, in every profession, there are masters. If all else fails, how about you learn to be a blacksmith with me?”
“Wuwuwuwu!!!”
“Alright, alright, how about I get you a nice sword as compensation?”
“You don’t understand! This sword is my beloved treasure, a symbol of my elders’ expectations. It has grown with me since childhood, and I see it as...”
“Here, this sword is called Yunlei, a rare gem from the East Sea, bought at the Haishi auction. It’s a prized weapon, worth sixty coins...”
“Gasp...”
The shattered dreams of the young Tang Liu fell away as he tossed aside his ‘beloved’ sword and cradled the new one in his arms, his expression filled with joy, as if he were admiring a rare treasure.
Li Mo: “...”
If only he had taken this sword out earlier, would he have had to say so much and go around in circles?
The crowd of martial artists watching below fell silent. They had seen all sorts of scenes in the Jianghu, but this was truly unprecedented.
“It feels so familiar. Remember back in Yunzhou City...”
“Actually, we can’t blame Young Hero Li entirely for the broken sword. Isn’t it a bit exaggerated for him to bring out such a precious weapon as compensation? Doesn’t he understand its value?”
“No, no, no, you don’t understand Young Hero Li.”
Elder Qian’s face had been dark earlier because the disciples of Qingyuan Sect were still lagging behind the major sects, with dismal results.
Now, his face was flushed, as the disciples of Qingyuan Sect had challenged those above their level and even made someone cry. In the end, it felt like he was coaxing a child, and his old face burned with embarrassment.
He shouldn’t have been the one to host this sparring!
What should he say now?
Elder Qian glanced at the side, where he was commenting on the spar with Shang Wu. After all, Shang Wu was the fighting queen, and this was one of the few times she had a chance to shine.
Shang Wu took a sip of her drink: “Is this right? This is not right.”
Elder Qian was taken aback. Was Shang Wu actually being so reasonable today?
Before he could process this thought, she continued:
“Why give a sword? The essence of martial arts is to bully the weak! You should provoke before the fight and humiliate your opponent afterward!”
“I’ll step in later and give Xiao Mo another lesson!”
Aside from the sparring among the younger generation, there were naturally exchanges of martial arts among the elders of the sect.
“... ” Elder Qian wiped his sweat, thinking it would be better for him to take on the responsibility of commentary.
With Shang Wu stepping in, he feared that the guests who came to congratulate would turn into challengers.
“Ahem, what a spectacular clash of dragons and tigers! Both sides displayed grace, style, and their strengths, and we even witnessed a challenge across levels.”
“In the end, both sides not only competed in martial arts but also deepened their friendship. It’s a win-win for everyone!”
Qian Bufan forced himself to speak loudly.
Scattered applause erupted from the audience.
Amidst the noisy crowd, Tian Xun, who was on tiptoe trying to see what was happening, could only jot down Qian Bufan’s words in his little notebook as material for “The Legend of the Sword Hero Li Qun.”
Elder Qian’s voice was indeed quite loud.
Among those who heard this was a spy from the Huanmo Sect.
The spy thought to himself, “What a pity, Tang Liu didn’t even get to test Li Mo’s strength...”
He quietly slipped away from the crowd and made his way back to the Xiyangyang Hotpot Restaurant.
In the private room on the second floor, Yu Wen Cuojin was surprised to see him return so quickly. “You found out so soon?”
“Reporting to the Deputy Sect Master, things have deviated somewhat from our plan. The younger generation... I’m afraid they didn’t even get a chance to test Li Mo’s abilities.”
The spy recounted everything he had just witnessed, including how Tang Liu had been made to cry by Li Mo and how he had to be appeased with a sword.
The two deputy sect masters fell silent for a moment, their eyes flickering.
The leader of Lingxi Sect, Mo Chaozong, snorted coldly: “It’s just a fourth realm. No matter how talented he is, can he turn the tide? We should focus on dealing with others.”
Si Tu Ding glanced at him and sighed: “This is why your Lingxi Sect suffers great losses while my sect has endured for thousands of years.”
“Am I wrong?” Mo Chaozong noticed the disdain in the other’s eyes.
“I have a question for you. If a yet-to-be-formed genius holds a deep grudge against your Lingxi Sect, how would you handle it, Sect Master Mo?” Si Tu Ding asked.
Mo Chaozong snorted: “Naturally, I’d send a few disciples with higher realms to eliminate him completely, leaving no trace of his family behind.”
“How much higher?”
“Just one or two realms higher would suffice.”
A one-realm difference is like crossing a chasm, while a two-realm difference is like the difference between clouds and mud, akin to crushing an ant with ease—very reasonable.
“What if he escapes?”
“Then I’d send a higher realm enforcer after him.”
“Congratulations...”
Mo Chaozong thought Si Tu Ding was praising his meticulousness, but to his surprise, the latter continued:
“Letting a tiger return to the mountain, with blood debts deep as the sea, will lead to the downfall of Lingxi Sect in a few decades.”
“?” Mo Chaozong’s expression froze.
Si Tu Ding sneered: “Even when hunting rabbits, one must use full strength. Geniuses are often extraordinary, and fighting across levels is common. If you only send someone one realm higher each time, aren’t you just providing him with sharpening stones?”
“I clearly said one is a higher realm and the other is two realms higher.”
“Since he’s a genius, isn’t it normal for him to break through in the heat of battle? Then he’s still just one realm higher.”
“You’re being too fantastical. How could such a thing happen...”
Mo Chaozong felt somewhat unconvinced.
Si Tu Ding’s gaze deepened: “Who said that? The Great Yu’s Martial Emperor was once a refugee...”
Mo Chaozong: “...”
So it’s a personal experience. No wonder he looks so pained.
“In any case, we must not underestimate a genius like Li Mo.”
Yu Wen Cuojin steered the conversation back to the main topic:
“Moreover, he carries a great secret. We must ensure nothing goes wrong.”
“A secret...” Mo Chaozong’s expression turned curious, but he held back from asking. He feared that knowing too much might not be a good thing.
However, Si Tu Ding waved his hand and smiled: “Since we’re cooperating, we should be honest. It’s fine to tell you.”
“We suspect that Li Mo carries the legacy of the Great Shang!”
Yu Wen Cuojin nodded: “If not, it wouldn’t explain his terrifying wealth or why he possesses such astonishing talent, especially being under Shang Wu’s tutelage. It’s a pity that Yin Hua and his son have perished; otherwise, we could have known more details...”
The vast empire’s collapse buried countless secrets.
The Huanmo Sect had long suspected that beneath Qingyuan Sect lay the foundation left by the Great Shang for restoration, but in the early years, Qingyuan Sect was too powerful to investigate. Later, they conducted inquiries but found nothing.
This theory faded away.
It wasn’t until the rise of Li Mo and Ying Bing that they began to pay attention to this matter again.
---
Chapter 718: If Qingyuan Sect had any foundation, would it be like this?
As the sun dipped lower, the autumn breeze brought a refreshing chill.
The sparring in front of the main hall of Qingyuan Sect had mostly concluded. The true masters and heroes of the sect, those who had received invitations from the start, were welcomed into the main hall.
Some who had visited Qingyuan Sect before stood at the hall’s entrance, gazing at the revitalized Qingyuan Sect, feeling a wave of nostalgia.
“Back then, Qingyuan Sect was at its peak, already showing the aura of a major sect. Later, they voluntarily requested to serve the emperor, wishing only to guard the tombs in Ziyang Prefecture.”
“Now, it does have a bit of the grandeur described in the records.”
The overseas Penglai Sect surprisingly sent representatives this time.
Penglai has a long history, with roots tracing back to before the Great Shang. While it has a profound foundation, its origins are mysterious, and it has remained isolated overseas, rarely intervening in the affairs of the world.
The one speaking was a young woman in green, dressed like a Daoist priestess, with warm blue eyes and a particularly pleasant voice.
Her name was Bai Jing, the sword attendant of the Dantai Sect Master. Sitting in the upper seat, no one from the other sects found it inappropriate.
“Miss Bai is right; indeed, it’s ever-changing. The last time I visited Qingyuan Sect was over a decade ago.”
Elder Xu from Hengyun Sword City spoke leisurely, holding his long sword, his eyes filled with a sense of weariness and nostalgia.
“Bullshit! You were here just last month! Don’t listen to him, Bai Fairy. He’s just putting on an act, trying to chat you up.”
An elder from the Sword Manor snorted.
It was well-known that Sword City and Sword Manor were at odds.
The disputes over the sacred ground of swordsmanship were one reason, and the other was that swordsmen liked to show off, while a forced display could only accommodate one.
“Shut up!” Elder Xu slammed down his tea: “How dare you talk about me? Don’t you remember who made a promise in their youth that if they won against Miss Bai, she would travel the East Sea with him?”
“And then what happened?”
Li Mo, just entering, asked curiously.
“He got his sword broken and came back crying.”
Elder Xu snorted.
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