Chapter 40

The Dahe River roars, its waves shimmering; it is the greatest river under heaven.

This is Qinghe, the Qinghe of the Qinghe Sword Sect.

Many years ago, this river was originally named the White River; because the current was swift and rarely calm, with white waves covering the surface, it earned that name.

The White River had nine bends and thirteen turns, and its banks breached almost every year, causing untold suffering to the people on both shores.

Until later, an immortal arrived, leveled the riverbed, eradicated the flood disaster, and turned the surging white waves of the great river into clear, tranquil waters, renaming it Qinghe from that day on.

After governing the flood disaster, that immortal did not leave; instead, he molded earth into a city in the middle of the Dahe River and founded a sect.

From then on, the Qinghe Sword Sect was established and has been passed down to the present day.

The people on both shores all remembered the immortal's grace, so they often burned incense and prayed on both banks; during the first month of each year, the fragrance was so thick it could turn the Qinghe into a Black River.

Ordinary cultivation sects usually choose deep mountains and ancient forests, best kept far from the noise of the world.

But the Qinghe Sword Sect is different; only newly admitted disciples are sent to the deep mountain dojo for bitter cultivation, but once recognized by the sect's elders, they move into this river city to become formal disciples of the Qinghe Sword Sect.

The reason is simple: once one's cultivation reaches a certain level, one must protect mortals.

How can one see the suffering of the world if far away in the deep mountains? Disciples of the Qinghe Sword Sect must not only cultivate bitterly every day but also go out regularly to gain experience, suppress the strong and aid the weak, and slay demons and monsters.

This is the unique trait of the Qinghe Sword Sect; others fear it will delay their cultivation, but the cultivation of the Qinghe Sword Sect is precisely for the sake of chivalry and righteousness.

This is also the life creed of Zhang Qi, the Sect Master of Qinghe.

He was orphaned and lonely since childhood, relying on his adoptive mother; in his youth, a great calamity struck, and his adoptive mother was killed by a demon lord.

At that time, the demonic path was rampant, and demon lords who killed people to cultivate their arts were everywhere; Zhang Qi narrowly escaped with his life and has hated demon lords ever since.

Later, by chance, he began to cultivate; his cultivation advanced a thousand li a day, his sword art reached the divine, and he killed great and small demon lords until they trembled in fear.

Even then, with eighteen Demon Lords present, no one dared to block a single sword strike from Zhang Qi alone.

And even after becoming the number one under heaven, Zhang Qi still held fast to his original heart.

He cultivated not for immortality, but only to eradicate demons.

Though he had long since harmonized with the Dao and should have ascended to the Immortal Realm at any moment, he was willing to waste his lifespan just to remain in the mortal world, for the sake of eradicating evil completely.

One person and one sword, suppressing the world for a thousand years, forcing those great and small demon lords to become nothing but shrinking turtles.

Many cultivators seek immortality; doing the occasional good deed is already considered good, so who would put the cart before the horse? The Qinghe Sword Sect's style has led to fewer and fewer disciples.

No one knows how many more years this number one under heaven can endure.

Anyway, the cultivation world is waiting; whether Zhang Qi finally dies of old age here or cannot help but ascend, it will be a momentous event for the entire cultivation world.

Those with foresight had already begun preparations, whether of the Righteous Path or the Demonic Path.

Su Chunyi returned the amber containing the sealed Evil Curse Spirit Child to the river city; she originally intended to leave behind the secret technique and the Evil Curse Spirit Child and depart, since there were still unfinished matters in Cui Xian.

Researching the secret technique to save the Evil Curse Spirit Child could be left entirely to the sect's elders.

However, what Su Chunyi received instead was a summons from Sect Master Zhang Qi.

Su Chunyi was extremely surprised; Zhang Qi rarely concerned himself with sect affairs, so why would he suddenly summon her, a fifth-generation disciple?

But a summons from the Sect Master was something Su Chunyi dared not neglect; she hurried to the main hall to pay her respects.

The Qinghe Sword Sect had few rules; paying respects to the Sect Master required no mundane tasks like burning incense or bathing. When Su Chunyi arrived at the door, disciples naturally opened it for her and invited her inside.

The Qinghe Sword Sect cared neither for grandeur nor for splendor; this central hall was built from a single block of stone, or rather, just ordinary stones, yet the stone walls were covered with various mantras and sword moves.

Any disciple of the Qinghe Sword Sect could leave their cultivation and sword art insights on the stone wall, regardless of seniority.

However, if you dare to leave your own realization, you must be prepared for others to learn from it or to criticize it.

Su Chunyi glanced over and saw many fresh carvings; some had already been scraped away, presumably because they had been criticized, while others were densely packed with several different handwritings, presumably carefully studied by sect disciples, perhaps with someone having innovated and gained new insights.

Outsiders only knew that the Qinghe Sword Art was number one under heaven, thinking it was all because Zhang Qi taught so well; few knew the Qinghe Sword Sect had such a rule.

As long as one was formally admitted to the sect, all spells and sword arts within the sect could be learned, with no further restrictions.

What skills one could cultivate depended entirely on one's own talent and effort.

The Sword Dao had no distinction of high or low; even Zhang Qi often delved into the Sword Dao and would leave his own insights on the stone wall, but he never left his name, so others never knew which move was left by the Sect Master.

Su Chunyi had once seen a sect elder leave his sword art insights, only to be completely torn apart by criticism the next day; unwilling to admit defeat, he debated swordsmanship with that unnamed person for ten days before finally collapsing in defeat.

Later, it was discovered that the one who criticized him was none other than Sect Master Zhang Qi.

If there was anything most important in the Qinghe Sword Sect, the Sect Master was first, and second was this Boundless Sword Wall.

Su Chunyi's sword art was also realized from the stone wall; had the Sect Master not summoned her today, she truly would have stopped to observe it for a while.

Thinking of this, Su Chunyi couldn't help but wonder: why did the Sect Master summon her? Was there something wrong with the secret technique and the Evil Curse Spirit Child? Or was he blaming her for wasting time and failing to find the mastermind behind the Cui Xian incident?

At this thought, Su Chunyi felt somewhat uneasy.

This was her first time going out to gain experience; she truly feared she would do poorly and bring shame to the Qinghe Sword Sect.

Passing the Boundless Sword Wall, Su Chunyi arrived at the main hall.

In the center, a white-haired old man sat cross-legged on a cushion, holding a book in his left hand and a chicken leg in his right, eating while reading, getting grease on his beard and Taoist robe.

This man was extremely crude, showing not a shred of elegance.

But this scruffy old man was precisely the current number one under heaven, the Sect Master of the Qinghe Sword Sect, Zhang Qi.

Su Chunyi was used to it; the Qinghe Sword Sect never cared about such things.

"Disciple Su Chunyi pays respects to the Sect Master."

Su Chunyi was about to kneel and bow, but Zhang Qi impatiently said, "No need, no need."

Su Chunyi had to stand up and wait for Zhang Qi's questions.

The old man put down the book but not the chicken leg; he gnawed it clean in three or four bites, a faint light glowed between his fingers, and the remaining bones vanished.

This was sword qi refined to the extreme, instantly cutting the bones smaller than dust and directly turning them into nothingness.

Only then did Zhang Qi speak to Su Chunyi: "Su girl, I remember, this is your first time going out to gain experience. Among the fifth-generation disciples, your talent is the best; you are the first to go out to gain experience after reaching the Profound Mystery realm."

Su Chunyi quickly said, "Thank you, Sect Master, for your praise."

Zhang Qi asked again, "It is not praise; your talent is indeed outstanding, but I did not expect your fate to be so good. Remember, before you left, your master cast a divination for you, and the hexagram seemed not very good?"

Su Chunyi answered truthfully: "Reporting to the Sect Master, my master said that fortune and misfortune accompany each other on this journey, and I must act with caution. I have traveled for several days and indeed encountered many difficulties, but I have gained something meaningful and should not fail the trust of our sect."

Zhang Qi, however, said: "Yes, yes, yes, fortune and misfortune accompany each other. The problem is this: your fortune has already arrived, so misfortune is not far behind."

Su Chunyi heard this with confusion and immediately asked for guidance.

"Please, Sect Master, offer your instruction."

Zhang Qi pointed with his index finger, and in mid-air, hundreds of sword lights condensed, forming several lines of text—exactly the opening passage of the *Earth Store's Original Vows Sutra*.

"The secret technique you brought back has a formidable background; even my old friend far away at Green Coffin Mountain was stirred. If you are willing to give this secret technique to the Incense-Burning Sect, they are willing to give you a Soul-Washing Flower."

"This..." Su Chunyi hesitated and said: "Sect Master, this secret technique does not belong to me. It was given to Qinghe Sword Sect without charge solely to save a life. Such a person of noble character, I have no right to make a decision on his behalf."

Zhang Qi, however, said: "Have you thought it through? The Soul-Washing Flower is no ordinary treasure. You are now at the Profound Mystery realm; the next step is Soul Transformation. Do you know that there are only two most stable methods to advance to Soul Transformation, and this Soul-Washing Flower is the best choice?"

Su Chunyi nodded. As a disciple of Qinghe Sword Sect, how could she not know?

The Star and Fiery Realm refines the physical body, breaking through the limits of mortals; the Soul Transformation realm illuminates the spiritual soul, causing it to transform, thereby condensing into a solid form. Theoretically, those at the Soul Transformation realm can possess bodies countless times, and under normal circumstances, the spiritual soul will no longer suffer damage.

Therefore, the Soul Transformation realm is also known as the "Minor Immortality."