Chapter 203: Qingxia Temple

Xu Yuan became even more cautious.

If the cunning trick was not hidden in the footprints, there was another possibility: the path itself was the evil spirit.

Stepping on it and leaving footprints meant being remembered by the evil spirit.

But Xu Yuan checked himself over repeatedly and found nothing abnormal.

The resistance of the "No Taboos" fate against the cunning trick had not activated either.

Xu Yuan looked back at his subordinates again; every single one of them appeared perfectly normal.

Inside that strange belly, the organs that had been affected and deformed had all returned to normal.

Xu Yuan shook his head inwardly, turned to continue forward, but suddenly felt something in his field of vision sway, its reflection stinging his eyes.

"Hmm?" Xu Yuan felt strange and began searching carefully.

This path curved after crossing the bridge, and from Xu Yuan's position, he could clearly see the situation inside the bridge arch.

At first glance, Xu Yuan's attention was entirely on the people.

He had not noticed that beneath the bridge arch, a sword hung suspended by a thin iron chain.

The iron chain was already rusted through and through, corroded by the damp mist.

Yet that sword still gleamed with cold light.

It hung half a zhang above the water surface.

Blown by the wind, it swung, and the reflection from the blade flashed into Xu Yuan's eyes.

Xu Yuan looked again, and that sword seemed like a living creature, slowly retracting upward!

Then, disappearing into who knows where, it was gone.

Xu Yuan was immediately astonished and wanted to go over for a closer look, but suddenly he did not know how to walk there.

The small path did not lead under the bridge arch, so in Xu Yuan's mind, he simply could not "think" of how to reach that place.

A layer of cold sweat suddenly seeped from Xu Yuan's back: This seemed to be a special rule!

He clearly knew how to walk.

He clearly saw the bridge arch and the sword.

Yet he did not know how to walk over there!

Just lifting a foot to leave the small path and walking in that direction should suffice—but now he suddenly "could not."

Xu Yuan turned around, stopped looking at that bridge and sword, and continued walking forward along the small path.

He still avoided the original footprint on the path.

Before long, he arrived before the Daoist temple gate.

The place was simple and solemn; hanging on the gate was a plaque bearing the temple's name: Qingxia Temple.

"Creak—"

The temple gate suddenly opened, and an old Daoist Priest with black hair and black beard, possessing the air of an immortal, appeared inside.

The old Daoist Priest seemed about to go out; seeing so many people standing outside his temple gate, he was also startled for a moment, then smiled: "My Dao flourishes greatly!"

He looked at the crowd with satisfaction, stroked his beard, and asked: "Are you all here to become disciples and learn swordsmanship?"

Behind the old Daoist Priest hung a long, slender sword case.

A portion of the sword case protruded above his right shoulder; it looked neither metal nor wood, made of some unknown material.

Lang Xiao Ba behind Xu Yuan showed joy in his eyes: "I was just worried about not knowing how to use weapons; if I can learn swordsmanship, that would be good too."

Yu Yunhang immediately scolded in a low voice: "In such a ghostly place, what proper martial arts can one learn? Are you stupid?"

Yu Yunhang stepped forward, clasped his fists, and said: "Daoist Priest, we do not wish to learn swordsmanship; we merely stumbled into this place by mistake..."

The old Daoist Priest's face suddenly darkened; his air of an immortal instantly transformed into something gloomy and ruthless as he shouted: "Do not learn swordsmanship? Why refuse to learn swordsmanship? The sword is the god of all weapons!"

"Only by mastering swordsmanship can one slay demons and evil spirits, protecting all living beings under heaven!"

"Those who do not learn swordsmanship are evil cultivators!"

"They must be executed!"

He held two fingers up toward the sword case behind his back; a burst of black smoke shot out from within the case with a bang.

The black smoke writhed like a ghost, then a withered branch suddenly shot out from within it, instantly pressing against Yu Yunhang's neck.

The withered branch grew automatically; seven or eight twigs coiled around Yu Yunhang's neck and face.

One thorned toward Yu Yunhang's throat, two toward his eyes!

Xu Yuan urgently shouted: "We will learn swordsmanship! We are all here to learn swordsmanship from the Daoist Priest, to slay demons and evil spirits and benefit all living beings!"

Xu Yuan's sword pill had already extended into those withered branches, blocking the one thrust toward the throat.

"He also wants to learn; he was just joking with the Daoist Priest just now." Xu Yuan urgently urged Yu Yunhang: "Speak your true intentions quickly."

Yu Yunhang's back was soaked through with cold sweat.

"L-Learn, I want to learn swordsmanship too!" Yu Yunhang's speech had already become stuttering.

"Do you truly wish to learn?"

"I truly wish to learn!"

"Then why do you wish to learn swordsmanship?"

Yu Yunhang immediately replied: "To slay demons and evil spirits and protect all living beings!"

"Excellent!" The Daoist Priest stroked his beard again, appearing very satisfied, and his demeanor returned to the air of an immortal.

The withered branches on Yu Yunhang's neck retracted, shooting back into the black smoke with a swoosh.

The black smoke was then drawn back into the sword case.

The Daoist Priest looked at the others: "Do you all wish to follow this Daoist Priest and learn swordsmanship?"

Who would dare say no?

Immediately, a chorus of earnest voices rose: "We wish to learn! Learn to wield the sword to slay demons and eradicate evil!"

"Excellent!" The Taoist priest threw the temple gates wide open: "Today, this priest shall, on behalf of the Ancestor, open the mountain gates and accept you all as disciples."

"Kneel and pay homage to your master."

Xu Yuan peered through the open gate into the courtyard, where an ancient bronze incense burner stood; within the main hall, the Ancestor was faintly visible, his feet upon a mystical tortoise, a whisk resting on his arm, and a Taoist sword strapped to his back.

It seemed to be some true deity.

The Taoist priest personally presided over the disciple-acceptance ceremony; after the complex rituals, everyone had formally entered the mountain gates.

The Taoist priest took special notice of Xu Yuan's sword pill.

"Show your sword to your master."

Xu Yuan was still hesitating whether to hand it over when the Taoist priest waved his hand, and Xu Yuan felt an invisible great force seize his sword pill.

Xu Yuan hesitated a moment, did not struggle to reclaim it, and released the sword pill for the priest to examine.

The short sword formed by the sword pill had no hilt, only a blade of pure edge.

An ordinary person holding it would instantly have both hands sliced open.

Yet the Taoist priest held the small sword in his hand, casually manipulating it as if it were a wooden stick, never so much as a scratch.

"The quality of your sword is inadequate," the Taoist priest said. "To learn swordsmanship, one must possess a fine sword."

The Taoist priest casually thrust the small sword into a stone drum beside him.

"Your foundation is not yet laid; do not use such a sword for now."

The Taoist priest walked to a pine tree in the courtyard, broke off a branch, and handed it to Xu Yuan: "Use this one for now."

"Once your foundation is solid, your master shall bestow upon you a fine sword."

Holding the branch, the Taoist priest wore a solemn expression, as if he truly believed the branch was a sword.

Xu Yuan could only take the branch: "Thank you, Master, for your guidance."

The Taoist priest warned: "Be careful; this sword is sharp. Do not injure yourself."

For the others, the Taoist priest seemed less concerned; he waved his hand and said, "Go choose a sword yourselves. Your master shall first teach you the basic Nine Great Forms of the Green Mist."

Xu Yuan gave a signal, and everyone, holding their noses, went to the pine trees to break off branches.

Taking advantage of the moment, Xu Yuan tried to recall his sword pill.

But he discovered the sword pill was actually sucked fast to the stone drum; although it still maintained a connection with him, he could not retrieve it!

"Very well, your master shall demonstrate it for you first."

The Taoist priest reached behind his back, and the withered branch grew out of the sword case, seized by the Taoist priest.

He then performed the forms, move by move, like an unparalleled sword master.

When he reached the fifth form, several eighth-rank Wu Xiu in the group grew solemn.

This was strange... the sword technique was no small matter!

(End of this chapter)