Chapter 13

After White Bone Pass was reclaimed, Jiang Che did not immediately head north.

He stayed within the pass for three days.

During those three days, he ordered men to gather the bones outside the pass, burying the identifiable former soldiers of Great Yin on the southern slope, and erected three thousand six hundred Nameless Steles.

Chen Shanhe carved the steles by hand, continuing until his fingers bled.

Jiang Che asked him, "Uncle Chen, won't you rest?"

Chen Shanhe shook his head, "They have waited for this stele for far too long."

On the fourth day, a letter arrived from Han Zhou.

The remnants of the Lu Family had been purged, and the common people had spontaneously transported grain north.

The letter ended with only one sentence:

"Han Zhou awaits the Young Master's return."

Jiang Che read it for a long time, then tucked the letter close to his body.

Then he set out for Tian Duan Cliff.

This journey was no longer a cavalry charge, but a small elite squad.

Chen Shanhe led five hundred veteran soldiers to guard White Bone Pass, while Jiang Che took Xie Tingxue and three hundred elite cavalry to press deeper.

The further north they went, the more desolate the world became.

At the end of the snowfield, a massive rift stretched across the land.

The rift was bottomless; on the opposite bank lay a range of black mountains, their peaks wreathed in clouds and mist, with the faint silhouette of an ancient stone gate visible.

Tian Duan Cliff.

Legend says this is the place in the Human Realm closest to Heaven.

As soon as Jiang Che stepped before the cliff, the Green Bamboo Sword unsheathed itself by half an inch.

A low sword hum rose from beneath the ground.

It was as if a sleeping giant dragon was responding to him.

The Sword Spirit said, "The Sword Vein lies below."

Jiang Che gazed into the depths of the rift, "How do we descend?"

Xie Tingxue pointed to the cliff face, "There is an ancient plank road."

Everyone descended along the plank road.

The cliff face was studded with stone swords, and every single stone sword bore a name carved upon it.

As Jiang Che looked along the line, he discovered that many of them bore the surname Jiang.

"These are..."

The Sword Spirit said, "Those who died guarding the Sword Vein."

Jiang Che fell silent.

Halfway along the path, a figure suddenly appeared ahead.

It was an old man in grey robes, sitting in the middle of the plank road, holding a Rusty Sword in his arms.

He kept his head down, as if he had been dead for many years.

Chen Shanhe drew his blade, "Who is it?"

The old man slowly raised his head.

His eyes were clouded, yet a glint of light sparked within them when he saw Jiang Che.

"The Jiang Family... still has descendants?"

Jiang Che clasped his hands, "I am Jiang Che, son of Jiang Xuan."

The old man stared at him for a long time, then suddenly tears streamed down his face.

"I have waited."

"I have finally waited."

He struggled to rise, yet nearly fell.

Jiang Che supported him.

The old man gripped Jiang Che's wrist, "I am Jiang Ling, a collateral branch of the Jiang clan, ordered to guard this cliff for thirty years."

Chen Shanhe was shocked, "General Jiang Ling? Did you not die in battle twenty years ago?"

Jiang Ling gave a bitter smile, "I could not die. With no one to guard the Sword Vein, how could I dare to die?"

As he spoke, he looked at the Green Bamboo Sword in Jiang Che's hand.

"Did the Lady in Green leave the key for you?"

Jiang Che nodded.

Jiang Ling spoke in a trembling voice, "Quick, follow me. The Heavenly Gate has already sent people to the Lower Realm; if the Sword Vein is not awakened soon, it cannot be held."

Everyone followed Jiang Ling down to the bottom of the cliff.

The bottom of the cliff was not dark, but a sea of green light.

Countless Sword Qi flowed beneath the ground, like rivers.

This was the Northern Border Sword Vein.

Yet now, nine golden chains were nailed across the Sword Vein.

The ends of the chains connected to the depths of the sky.

The Heavenly Gate is draining the Sword Vein!

Jiang Che's eyes surged with murderous intent.

Jiang Ling said, "Three years ago, when the Marquis died in battle, the Heavenly Gate took the opportunity to cast down the Nine Heavens Lock. I fought with my life to sever only one; the other eight..."

He coughed violently, blood mixed with gold.

Jiang Che supported him: "Senior, stop speaking."

Jiang Ling, however, gripped him tightly.

"Young Master, draw the Green Bamboo Sword and sever the lock!"

Jiang Che walked toward the first Golden Lock.

As soon as he approached, countless Runes surfaced on the Golden Lock, and a terrifying backlash struck.

Jiang Che was knocked back several steps.

Xie Tingxue said, "I will assist you."

The Sword Spirit also said, "And me."

Jiang Che shook his head.

"This time, I will do it myself."

He closed his eyes, and the Green Bamboo Sword pierced the Sword Vein's sea of light.

In an instant, countless Sword Intent remnants of the Jiang Family ancestors surged into his mind.

He saw generations of Jiang Family members standing before Tian Duan Cliff, their backs to the Human Realm, facing the Heavenly Gate.

Some were old, some young; some strong, some weak.

But not a single one retreated.

Jiang Che opened his eyes.

"Today, Jiang Che accepts the sword."

The Sword Vein roared and boiled.

The Green Bamboo Sword struck down.

Crack!

The first Golden Lock snapped.

From the sky above, angry thunder rolled.

The second, the third, the fourth...

With each lock severed, Jiang Che spat out a mouthful of blood.

By the seventh lock, he could barely stand steady.

Jiang Ling knelt on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.

"My Lord, My Lady, do you see..."

The eighth Golden Lock snapped.

Green Light from the Sword Vein shot toward the heavens.

The entire Tian Duan Cliff trembled violently.

Only the final lock remained.

But just then, the sky split open.

A voice, grander than before, descended:

"Jiang Family remnant."

"This ends here."

The Heavenly Gate appeared once more.