Chapter 204: True and False, Good and Evil

Qin Ze quietly moved to my lord Xu's side and whispered, "My lord, I have discussed with many Wu Xiu; regardless of the weapon—blade, spear, sword, or halberd—in terms of the technique's upright and grand style, none compare to the Nine Great Moves of Azure Mist!"

Xu Yuan was not a Wu Xiu and could not quite discern the subtleties within.

"Does this old Daoist teach the real thing?"

"Not only is it the real thing, but it is also a good thing!"

Xu Yuan frowned tightly.

This was even stranger.

This old Daoist was clearly a strange entity; why did he possess such profound swordsmanship, and moreover, was he truly willing to teach it to others?

"Learn it first," Xu Yuan whispered.

Then, secretly gripping the Yin-Yang Shears, he glanced at the old Daoist.

His right eye saw no Yin Ghost, while his left eye saw only a withered branch, practicing the "Nine Great Moves of Azure Mist" in mid-air...

Xu Yuan sheathed the Yin-Yang Shears.

He activated "Gazing at Fate."

Within the entire Daoist temple, there was only one evil spirit's fate.

Yet this fate was rising slowly, condensing into a black line, suspended dozens of zhang high in the air.

"This... how strange!" Xu Yuan muttered to himself.

The Daoist temple was not large, so naturally, the courtyard in front of the main hall was not large either.

Yet when the forty or fifty members of the Purification Bureau spread out, it did not appear crowded.

The old Daoist demonstrated the moves once on the steps before the hall, then taught everyone move by move.

He then let the group practice on their own while he walked down to correct errors in everyone's movements.

Xu Yuan discovered again that whenever this old Daoist offered guidance, his words always struck the crux of the matter.

With just two or three sentences, he could make a person understand exactly where they had gone wrong.

Truly a "famous master."

But his temper was impatient.

If two or three words did not make you understand, he would fly into a rage.

For instance, Lang Xiao Ba always failed to understand.

After the old Daoist's guidance, Lang Xiao Ba made mistakes three times in a row; the old Daoist flew into a furious rage, drew out the withered branch, and struck Lang Xiao Ba's leg hard.

Lang Xiao Ba let out a cry of agony and fell to his knees.

The old Daoist shouted, "Rotten wood cannot be carved! With such stupidity, how can you inherit our sect's sword Dao, slay demons, and protect all living beings under heaven!"

As Lang Xiao Ba knelt on the ground, the old Daoist kicked him again: "Get up! From now on, you must cultivate diligently and make up for your dullness with hard work!"

That kick caused Lang Xiao Ba to spit blood.

Lang Xiao Ba could only struggle to his feet and resume practicing the Nine Great Moves of Azure Mist.

The old Daoist, unwilling to deal with them, turned to guide others.

Lang Xiao Ba quietly told my lord Xu, "The old Daoist hit me... I simply couldn't dodge!"

Xu Yuan nodded silently.

Just now, when the old Daoist tried to kill Yu Yunhang, the speed of that withered branch was not fast.

Yu Yunhang failed to dodge.

Xu Yuan was right beside Yu Yunhang and wanted to intervene immediately, yet he could not act in time.

Later, "Hundred Taboos Forbidden" moved slightly, allowing the sword pill to be released!

It was just like... the feeling Xu Yuan had just now under the bridge, when he suddenly "could not" walk into the bridge arch.

"It seems all the rules here are decided by the old Daoist."

Besides Lang Xiao Ba, six others felt the whip of the "strict master."

Among them was the pitiable... Song Lu.

Song Lu cried out in pain.

But the results of the old Daoist's severity were obvious; in just half a double-hour, everyone had mastered the "Nine Great Moves of Azure Mist."

After everyone practiced this basic sword technique in unison without further errors, the old Daoist turned and entered the main hall to offer incense and pray to the Ancestral Master:

"The mountain gate is fortunate; there are successors to follow. They will surely inherit the ancestors' will, slaying all demons and monsters under heaven," and so on.

Then the old Daoist came out and said to the crowd, "Do not blame your master for being severe."

He pointed to the river outside the mountain gate and said, "This river before our mountain gate is named the Hun Du River.

The reason the Ancestral Master established the mountain gate here is because a vicious flood dragon hides within this river!

Decades ago, this vicious flood dragon already grew a red horn on its head; before long, it will grow claws and transform from a flood dragon into a human form!

Your master has guarded here for decades but has not found an opportunity to slay it!

The heavy responsibility of slaying the vicious flood dragon will likely fall upon your shoulders.

You must by no means slacken; if you cannot slay this evil beast, and it successfully transforms from a flood dragon, who knows how many innocent commoners will perish in its great mouth!"

The old Daoist looked earnestly at the crowd: "Do you understand your master's bitter intentions?"

"We understand!" The crowd bowed and answered in unison.

Hearing the name "Hun Du River," Xu Yuan felt it was somewhat familiar and quietly pulled Lang Xiao Ba to ask.

Lang Xiao Ba replied, "It is the river outside the Zhan City."

Xu Yuan immediately remembered; he had heard this name when he was on patrol at the Nancheng Patrol Office, the first time he saw that bridge stone "auspicious object," when Lang Xiao Ba told him the origin of the bridge stone.

The Hun Du River has already become part of the Grand Canal.

But how could the Hundu River appear here?

Was there ever such a Qingxia Pavilion beside the original Hundu River?

In the stone arch bridge outside, isn't there also a bridge stone with a deep groove carved into it?

Xu Yuan always felt this entire situation was no coincidence.

"Alright, go practice on your own," the old Daoist Priest said with a satisfied wave of his hand.

The others could only continue practicing swordplay, while the old Daoist Priest walked among them, supervising and offering guidance.

They trained for another several hours, and the sky had begun to darken.

Only then did the old Daoist Priest wave his hand: "That's enough for today. Go rest."

Before leaving, the old Daoist Priest said to Xu Yuan: "Come with me."

"Yes," Xu Yuan followed the old Daoist Priest toward the back courtyard.

Fu Jingyu and the others worried for Xu Yuan's safety and couldn't help but follow, but Xu Yuan subtly shook his head.

The back courtyard was desolate; the old Daoist Priest lived alone in a side room.

In the northwest corner of the courtyard stood an ancient elm tree, its canopy like an umbrella, shading nearly the entire back courtyard.

Xu Yuan entered the room with him. The old Daoist Priest sat down and said: "Among all disciples, you have the highest comprehension and the best innate constitution. There are matters I can only entrust to you."

Xu Yuan bowed his hands and said: "Master, please speak."

The old Daoist Priest pointed to the cabinet by the wall: "In the left drawer of the second shelf, there is something. Fetch it."

Xu Yuan went over, hesitated slightly, then pulled open that drawer.

Inside the drawer lay a sword case.

It resembled roughly the one on the old Daoist Priest's back, but its surface bore additional special runes.

"Master," Xu Yuan took out the sword case and presented it with both hands.

"This is your ancestral master's sword."

The old Daoist Priest opened the sword case with a sharp "click."

Xu Yuan expected to find a withered branch inside, but the case was empty!

The old Daoist Priest said: "The sword is not here—it lies beneath the stone bridge outside."

Xu Yuan immediately thought of the sword hanging beneath the bridge!

"That is a Dragon-Slaying Sword," the old Daoist Priest said. "Your ancestral master hung it beneath the bridge. When the evil dragon rises from the river, it must pass beneath the bridge—then we strike it down in one blow!"

The old Daoist Priest closed the sword case, tapped it twice with his finger, and pushed it toward Xu Yuan: "I entrust you with this Dragon-Slaying Sword's case."

Xu Yuan stared in shock, looking up sharply at the old Daoist Priest.

"My time is short. Only this case can control the Dragon-Slaying Sword. If the sword beneath the bridge fails and the beast is not slain, the burden will fall upon you!"

Use this case to control the Dragon-Slaying Sword. I will teach you our sect's sword art. No matter what, you must stop that beast from bringing calamity upon the land!"

Xu Yuan took the sword case, momentarily unable to tell if it was real or false.

If it were false, this eerie force had already seized control of everything here—just drawing the sword would cause most of the Purification Office's people to lose their heads; even if he and his subordinates joined forces, their chance of escape would be less than thirty percent.

Why go through such pretense?

If it were real…

Why would it be real? The logic made no sense at all!

(End of Chapter)