Chapter 657: Great Sun Sword Sect

After flying for months over the remote, uninhabited grasslands, signs of human presence finally began to appear.

This seemed to be a place called the Tahe Tribe, with over a thousand people.

Herding slaves, flocks of cattle and sheep, a chieftain, martial artists, yurts scattered like buns throughout the tribe, and the lingering smell of cattle and sheep dung in the air.

Everything was no different from the Black Snow Great Grassland; everyone shared the same mode of production: a nomadic economy.

The only difference lay in their weapons.

Jiang Ding swept his divine sense across the surroundings and was surprised to find that every warrior and herder here wielded only swords: iron swords, bronze swords; poor herding slaves used sharpened bamboo swords, wooden swords, and even stone swords ground to a sharp edge.

Apart from swords, there were no other weapons.

No blades, no spears, no bows, no armor, no throwing darts; defense, killing enemies, and hunting all relied entirely on the three-foot green blade in hand. People died occasionally during hunting or fights, yet no one ever considered switching to a different weapon.

Theoretically, spears, bows, and armor could significantly boost the combat power of lower-level martial artists; even wearing stone armor would suffice.

Such things required no teaching; as soon as one or two people tried them and won, they would spread and replicate exponentially among the populace.

Yet the reality was that only swords existed.

"Another example of the massive abnormal influence exerted by immortal cultivation sects on the mortal world."

Jiang Ding muttered to himself, recalling the Dragon and Phoenix List of the Xiang Qiyu Sect in the Yue Kingdom, where all commoners had grown accustomed to its existence and tirelessly participated in it.

He did not rush to leave, silently observing the Tahe Tribe under the rule of the Great Sun Sword Sect, gathering data on its social structure, customs, and spiritual beliefs to fill his database for his main body to reference in the future.

All things in the world are interconnected.

Even in a weak mortal society, big data could reverse-engineer partial intelligence on immortal cultivation sects, with accuracy and reliability far surpassing information purchased from others; this could not be ignored.

The strongest in this tribe was an Inner Qi martial artist, called the Chieftain; below him were Shamans, Centurions, and Decurions, and that was all.

All positions handled administration, military affairs, and hunting simultaneously, with no separation between them; no statisticians or logistics personnel were needed; as long as things were roughly adequate, it sufficed.

Very few people in the entire tribe were exempt from labor; only the Chieftain, the Shamans, and a few Centurion families could manage this.

The rest, even the Decurions, had to herd, hunt, and cut grass in their spare time; this position allowed them to manage affairs, occasionally eat meat, and receive more cattle and sheep milk, wild vegetables, and two or three more women in daily life.

Among the top-tier Chieftain, Centurions, and Shamans, there were no blood ties; all were individuals of formidable strength.

The same went for the Decurions; all were relatively strong within the Body Refinement realm. Beyond their labor and production, none forgot to practice sword techniques; each sword move was simple and ruthless, devoid of any flourish, making hunting and killing swift and decisive.

This was their basic survival skill, devoid of any performative nature; flashy and pretty moves were useless here.

Silently observing the tribe's daily routine, he recorded useful information.

Unknowingly, half a month passed.

"Clang, clang, clang, clang..."

One morning, a young swordsman with a face weathered by wind and frost, wearing a hood, appeared outside the Tahe Tribe; he was a martial artist in the early stage of the Inner Qi realm.

He seemed to know people in this tribe; after exchanging a few words, he began to shout and curse, drew his sword, and beheaded the two who blocked him. Blood gushed forth like a spring, instantly arousing the tribe's vigilance.

A Decurion struck a piece of rusted iron in his hand violently, producing a sharp sound that instantly woke the entire tribe.

"Foreign enemies!"

"Outsiders have arrived!"

Countless herders, whether asleep, cutting grass, or herding horses and cattle, reacted instantly, touched the long swords at their waists, and rushed quickly toward the warning point.

Each possessed a fierce demeanor, with cold light in their eyes; clearly, they were not honest, simple folk; the local customs were fierce and bold.

Jiang Ding watched silently, recording this situation.

Hundreds of people swarmed up in a short time; every one of them had learned at least two or three moves, often cooperating in hunting and driving away wolf packs. At this moment, they exchanged glances, said nothing more, and gradually surrounded the newcomer.

"Friend, where are you from?"

"What grudge do you have with our Tahe Tribe?"

Without attacking immediately, a bearded Centurion shouted loudly, first probing the depths.

In this world of cultivation, numbers and strength were not always correlated; tribes that survived for long periods never rushed to fight upon being provoked.

"Uncle Uncle Batu,"

the wind-worn young man stopped provoking, lifted his hood to reveal a face covered in cracked scars, and licked his lips: "Do you still remember me? The fifth son of the Zhahe family."

"The fifth son of the Zhahe family?"

The bearded Centurion was startled, looking closely at the person before him, and indeed vaguely saw the figure of a youth from days gone by.

"Mengge?"

He asked tentatively.

"It is me, Uncle Uncle Batu."

The young swordsman smiled and said.

The surrounding herders buzzed with a sudden roar of discussion, recognizing this person as well.

"Is this person the fifth son of the old Chieftain, Lord Zhahe?"

"Lord Zhahe has been dead for so many years..."

"Back then, Lord Zhahe seemed quite good; taxes were much lower than now..."

Many old herders recalled those days.

"He is a fake!"

Others, however, had flickering eyes.

"Kill him!"

"He is our age-old enemy, a spy sent by the Tieshan Tribe, here to kill all our men and steal our women!"

They shouted loudly, inciting the crowd; relying on past prestige, they got many to follow, each gripping their sword hilts, eyes flashing with murderous intent.

What of a martial artist in the Inner Qi realm?

With the Chieftain present and so many people, ambushing and killing him would not be difficult; he would not even be able to escape.

"Hehe, Tuhe, you are old after all."

"Hahaha…"

The young swordsman laughed heartily, drew his sword, pointed it diagonally at the sky, and his eyes showed a look of reverence: "Eternal Heaven above, today I wish to challenge the chieftain of the Tahe Tribe. I am willing to follow the teachings of Eternal Heaven — once I win and become chieftain, I will only kill Tuhe and my personal enemies."

"I swear that if the people of the Tahe Tribe offer me tribute and respect me, I will likewise fulfill the duties of chieftain and clan-leader, protecting the Tahe Tribe from being plundered and harassed by outside enemies."

"I ask the Sun Shaman to bear witness."

The young swordsman respectfully looked toward a black-robed shaman in the crowd, whose chest bore a great-sun emblem painted upon it.

This black-robed shaman's eyes flashed coldly; he seemed to dislike the young man greatly, but under the gaze of everyone present, after a moment of hesitation and reluctance, he had no choice but to speak.

"I am willing to bear witness."

"This is a duel of honor, in keeping with the teachings of the Sun Eternal Heaven."

The many herders who had been making a ruckus around them felt a chill in their hearts at this and dared not say anything more.

Everyone's gaze could not help but turn to a tall, broad-shouldered old man in the crowd.

He was at mid Internal Qi realm in his cultivation, his eyes cold and fierce, and he said angrily: "Sun Shaman, some bastard from god-knows-where just casually issues a challenge, and I'm supposed to accept it — is that reasonable?"

"Have you forgotten the friendship we've shared all these years?"

He felt a stifled grievance in his heart.

He commanded several hundred soldiers, had operated within the Tahe Tribe for many years, his warriors were utterly loyal, his upper echelons as close as brothers — one order from him and men could be hacked into mincemeat, as had been the case in many past inter-tribal battles.

Yet now, someone as honored as himself had to step forward and risk his own person — he could not accept it.

"Naturally reasonable."

The black-robed shaman's tone was full of helplessness: "Old friend Tuhe, this is the decree of the Sun Eternal Heaven — no one may defy it. Anyone who has sworn before Eternal Heaven and is willing to fulfill the duties of chieftain may challenge to become the tribe's chieftain.

Unless you can silence every one of us bystanders here, or make them keep the secret forever."

"Otherwise, you, I, and everyone who interferes with a duel of honor must die."

The many herders who had been noisy earlier felt a chill in their hearts.

"This isn't fair!"

Tuhe roared: "My strength is not just my own strength — the warriors under my command are also my strength. For me to face him alone, this isn't fair."

"It is fair."

"It must not be defied."

After the wrangling, whatever shred of old friendship the black-robed shaman had felt quickly dissipated, and he said coldly: "Back when you killed the previous chieftain Zhahe, he didn't have a large force of soldiers swarm you either."

"As chieftain of a tribe of a thousand, you may choose two people to face the enemy alongside you."

"No more wasted words. Begin."

(End of chapter)