Chapter 13: Red Moon Realm

Gray mist partially blocked spiritual perception, but after passing through the passage, it quickly cleared again.

Red!

Everywhere he looked was a sea of crimson: an endless plain covered densely with red Jianye Tongxuan grass.

In the sky hung a crimson moon, chilling and eerie.

Thick chains emerged from unknown places, stretching endlessly and coiling around a distant mountain.

The entire mountain resembled a giant sword thrust into the earth, its overall hue dark red, standing out starkly amid the sea of Tongxuan grass.

The Tongxuan grass swayed with the wind, appearing from afar like a surging sea of blood, even the air carrying a faint metallic tang.

“There are so many Tongxuan grasses…” Jiang Jing’s eyes were filled with shock.

Tongxuan grass is a spiritual plant influenced by ‘intent’; sword cultivators who ingest pills refined primarily from sword-attributed Tongxuan grass can refine their magic power and hone their spiritual soul.

A single sword-attributed Tongxuan grass could fetch many contribution points within the Sword Sect—yet before them lay an entire plain of Tongxuan grass!

But Jiang Jing and Li Fengping both suppressed the urge to harvest.

Had an uninformed cultivator entered this realm, they would have already begun looting—but they were different.

The records mentioned that the previous Elder’s team had nearly been wiped out precisely because they did this.

This realm is exceptionally unique: every time you pluck one Tongxuan grass, you must endure a sword qi strike equal to your current realm’s full-power attack.

That Elder had been extremely cautious back then, daring to harvest only a dozen or so for observation.

Yet even that act triggered a dozen sword qis simultaneously; he barely blocked them, but the scattered qis severed a vast stretch of Tongxuan grass—had he not revealed his ultimate trump card, he would have died in this realm.

The records did not mention the latter half, but left a warning: those on this mission must not touch the Tongxuan grass under any circumstances.

The Elder’s goal was to subdue the sword within this sword-nourishing land—and that could only be…

Jiang Jing gazed at the distant sword-shaped peak: “That’s the sword the Elder wants?”

“Correct. Lin Shixiong told me that once we complete our mission, the Elder will come personally.”

To prevent leaks, the Elder had issued this mission only once.

And the reason for choosing this moment to release the mission was still the Spirit Net.

He learned that a senior from the Sword Sect had emerged from seclusion in Xuanjian City, and combining this with rumors within the sect, he deduced the emerging senior was at least a HeDao cultivator.

He himself was only a Fan Xu cultivator; subduing a sword of at least HeDao level was extremely difficult.

But if a Sword Sect senior was present and saw juniors in trouble, would he really stand idly by?

After reaching HeDao, sword cultivators merge spirit with sword; even if they encounter a superior sword, they would never abandon their own—so the chance of coveting it became far smaller.

This was the perfect assistance!

There could be no better opportunity.

Some factions within the sect also wished to know which Sword Sect elder had emerged near Xuanjian City, to plan accordingly—so they assigned one of their disciples to join this mission.

Thus, while Lin QiuXian had a clear motive, the sword cultivator surnamed Feng had ulterior motives for coming to Xuanjian City; Li Fengping, however, truly knew nothing—he was just here to fill a quota.

As a result, the two were detained, but he remained unscathed.

“This realm looks like it was created by a demonic powerhouse,” Jiang Jing shook her head slightly. “The Elder may have underestimated this.”

She did not believe the Elder could subdue this sword.

Li Fengping shook his head slightly: “It needn’t be a demonic sword cultivator—many orthodox sword cultivators who follow the path of slaughter could also set up such a realm.”

“Enough wasting time. Let’s go see the base of that mountain,” Xu Xing interrupted.

Without waiting for their reply, he stepped forward.

Where he walked, many Tongxuan grasses toppled, their hard, sword-shaped leaves clashing and ringing crisply.

Li Fengping froze, then hurried after him.

This Third-Knife senior… was far too calm—he showed no tension at all.

Such a thought drifted through Jiang Jing’s mind.

She then carefully crossed the Tongxuan grass plain, following the two.

They walked in silence; Jiang Jing and Li Fengping constantly observed their surroundings, but found nothing except the endless Tongxuan grass plain and those few mysterious chains.

They stepped with extreme caution. In contrast, Xu Xing moved casually—wherever he passed, leaves clashed, ringing incessantly; behind him, Li Fengping trembled, terrified that any misstep might summon a sword qi to his face.

“No need to be so careful. The stems and leaves of Tongxuan grass are tough—they won’t break easily.”

Xu Xing’s words had no effect; they remained cautious.

Precisely because of this, it took them a long while to reach the foot of the sword peak.

Huh~

Finally out of the Tongxuan grass plain, Jiang Jing and Li Fengping both exhaled in relief.

Within dozens of meters of the sword peak, not a single Tongxuan grass or even a weed grew; the dark red soil felt slightly soft underfoot.

“The mission only requires investigation—let’s begin recording.”

Saying this, Xu Xing prepared to cast Xuan Guang Shu to record the scene.

Click!

A flash of white light appeared—Li Fengping held a camera, the flash having just fired.

Jiang Jing, without a camera, used her phone to take pictures everywhere.

!. Read

He silently abandoned the idea of using Xuan Guang Shu and pulled out his newly bought phone to start taking photos.

“...”

Xu Xing felt a quiet pang—many of his instinctive actions were shaped by this world.

Compared to today’s cultivators, he seemed rigid and inflexible.

Though his past memories had not faded, they would not resurface unless triggered.

For a moment, he recalled the chaos of his own past.

‘Truly a tangled mess...’

“Third-Knife senior, how’s your side? We’ve finished taking photos—come check them,” Li Fengping’s voice broke his thoughts.

Xu Xing smiled faintly: “Mine’s done too.”

“Too bad the recording magic treasure is so expensive, and I never learned Xuan Guang Shu—otherwise we could’ve earned more contribution points.”

Li Fengping grumbled as he fiddled with his camera.

By contrast, cameras were far more affordable; had their photos been able to record spiritual essence and ‘intent,’ recording magic treasures would have been obsolete long ago.

But this mission offered so few contribution points—buying a recording magic treasure would be pure loss.

Xu Xing then handed his phone to Li Fengping to verify the photos, confirmed nothing was missed, and collected some soil samples.

Jiang Jing walked to the sword peak, preparing to cut off a fragment as a sample.

She swung her sword sharply—bright cold light flashed.

Ding!

A metallic clang rang out, sparks flew, and the recoil numbed her palm.

It didn’t cut—the stone of this sword peak was unexpectedly hard.

“Move aside,” Xu Xing’s warning echoed beside her.

An invisible sword qi shot forth, hissing through the air.

Jiang Jing’s pupils contracted sharply; she had no time to think—she instinctively sidestepped as the sword qi neared.

The sword qi, equivalent to a full-power strike from a Nascent Soul mid-stage cultivator, roared past, bending a vast expanse of Tongxuan grass with its pressure.

Shit!

Li Fengping’s scalp prickled—if that had hit him, he’d be dead!

He gripped his sword and prepared to rush forward to block it.

But a figure moved faster—he hadn’t even taken a step when Xu Xing appeared directly in the sword qi’s path and pointed a finger.

Soundlessly, the sword qi—which elsewhere could split rivers and seas—vanished like a mud ox entering the sea, effortlessly shattered without even stirring a ripple.

Both stared, stunned, a single thought rising simultaneously in their minds.

This can’t be a Nascent Soul cultivator!

Please request data, collect!

(End of Chapter)