Chapter 61: 61. Chapter Sixty-One

61. Chapter Sixty-One

Guan San is currently stroking the server; please complete your subscription to defeat him! Atian had heard many people say before that the Fangxian Dao was the head of the four great immortal sects, dominating the entire southern part of the continent. But before seeing it with her own eyes, these were merely pale and powerless descriptions. As a girl from a small town, she could no more imagine how imposing its mountain gate must be than she could imagine how magnificent the imperial palace was.

And now, she had seen its appearance with her own eyes.

Visible to the naked eye, golden light shrouded the layered mountain ranges. Amidst the churning sea of clouds, streaks of brilliant rosy clouds were vaguely visible. White cranes with black tail feathers danced gracefully among the clouds, occasionally letting out one or two clear cries. Truly, it was a scene of an immortal family.

Atian stood beside Liu Yan, curiously examining the scene before her, when she heard someone nearby clicking their tongue incessantly:

"Tsk tsk tsk, this is what you call someone who knows how to spend money. Just looking at this flock of cranes makes my heart ache for them."

She turned her head and saw a Beihai Sword Sect disciple flying on his sword beside them. Taking a closer look, it was none other than Zhao Kuo's old acquaintance, Senior Brother Mu.

In all fairness, Bai Tian had never spoken a single word to Senior Brother Mu, but she couldn't help it—Zhao Kuo viewed this person as the number one enemy within the "Worship the Senior Brother" cult and held a grudge because he had snatched away a chance to speak with the Senior Brother on some occasion. He complained about it all day long, and she couldn't pretend not to hear it even if she wanted to.

Perhaps her gaze was too obvious; Senior Brother Mu turned his head to look over, and upon discovering Atian, he was clearly startled. "... Bai, Junior Sister Bai!"

Strangely, after seeing Liu Yan next to Atian, he visibly breathed a sigh of relief, muttering words like "scared the hell out of me" and "can't believe I ran into the arsonist maniac."

Atian had to admit that Zhao Kuo's words were sometimes reasonable; this Senior Brother Mu was indeed very punchable.

As they drew closer to Luofu Mountain, the speed of the Beihai Sword Sect group gradually slowed. The team led by Duan Xuan stopped one after another at the gate of the Fangxian Dao. Atian jumped nimbly off Liu Yan's wooden sword; having flown in the air for so long, the feeling of having her feet on solid ground actually made her feel a bit unaccustomed.

The disciples dismounted their swords one by one and gathered behind Duan Xuan to reform their formation. Bai Xinli stood beside Li Ke, while Atian, who should have been at the back of the line, was pulled by Liu Yan. Then, the two of them simultaneously extended their feet and kicked the troublesome Senior Brother Mu to the end of the line.

Mu Yi, bullied by both his Senior Sister and Junior Sister, lay on the ground with a look of despair, completely unable to understand why he was being treated this way.

Duan Xuan squatted down at the very front and tentatively reached his palm forward. As soon as it entered the range covered by the golden light, it sparked a flurry of fire, accompanied by crackling sounds.

"The Fangxian Dao's mountain-protecting array, the Golden Light Soul-Refining Array," Li Ke said matter-of-factly. "It is said that this is an array that attacks the soul. Although it is not as overbearing as the Nine-Bend Yellow River Array, it is still rare in this world."

"As for its power, it's alright," Duan Xuan retracted his hand and shrugged. "It's still a bit worse than our Zhou Tian Star-Dou Sword Array."

"How about it? Shall we break the array and enter?" Li Ke asked calmly.

"No, no, no," Duan Xuan held up an index finger and shook it. "We are here to attend the Qingtan Assembly; we can't be that impolite. We must be very courteous."

After saying this, he, who had just claimed he would be "very courteous," raised his foot and kicked the Golden Light Soul-Refining Array fiercely. The vibration produced when the two collided made the entire mountain range shake.

"You surnamed Wei! Get out here!" Duan Xuan shouted viciously, then kicked the array again. "If you don't come out, I'll tear down your Luofu Mountain!"

Li Ke sighed, unfazed, with an expression that said, "I knew it would be like this."

With Duan Xuan causing such a scene, Wei Sheren did not come out, but it did alarm the disciples guarding the mountain. Two young boys wearing gray Daoist robes were seen running down the endless stairs in a panic. Upon seeing the Beihai Sword Sect group, they sternly scolded: "Audacious! This is the important gate of the Fangxian Dao; how can you people be so presumptuous!"

However, they received no response. When these two boys ran down to the mountain gate, the mountain-protecting array naturally developed a gap. Although it was fleeting, Duan Xuan seized the opportunity. He flicked his sleeve, and a sharp Sword Qi enveloped everyone, charging fiercely toward the Fangxian Dao's mountain gate, rushing inside the mountain-protecting array before the gap closed.

The two boys were blown off balance by the strong wind. By the time they climbed up, they saw a group of uninvited guests standing swaggeringly on their own steps, looking around as casually and loosely as tourists here to see the scenery.

"You, you!" The boys' faces flushed red with anger, their little fingers trembling incessantly as they pointed at them.

"Are these the Crane Boys? This is my first time seeing them," Mu Yi said, squatting down in front of the two little beans and pinning them down hard, one with each hand. "Shall we catch a few to take back? That way, we'll be people with cranes too!"

This remark made the other Beihai Sword Sect disciples' hearts flutter, but Duan Xuan glanced at him and scoffed, "No ambition. Why do we need to snatch such a thing? We must make the Fangxian Dao cry and give them to us!"

If the two Crane Boys couldn't tell by now that this group of fierce-looking guys was here to cause trouble, then there must be something wrong with their brains. Their little faces turned pale with fright, yet they were pinned down by Mu Yi and couldn't run away.

"According to my deduction, judging by the ostentatious nature of these bastards from the Fangxian Dao, the scale of the Qingtan Assembly definitely won't be small. This suits my wishes perfectly; it will be easy to find them," Duan Xuan stroked his own smooth chin and pointed at the end of the steps with his other finger. "Disciples of the Beihai Sword Sect, listen to my order: fight your way up from here. It is time to let those guys who drink tea and chat see the style of us Sword Cultivators."

Having said this, he added: "Of course, at the end of the day, we are still guests, so we must be very, very, very courteous."

"However, I will climb up step by step right here. If I catch up to you, I won't guarantee what kind of treatment you will receive after returning to the sect."

This sentence immediately made many people's scalps tighten.

"Don't listen to the Grandmaster scaring you," Li Ke said with a grin, taking out his usual small notebook from his bosom. "At most, I'll leave a heavy, colorful stroke in my records. Don't be afraid, perform as usual!"

Upon hearing this, Mu Yi's legs went soft, and he almost couldn't suppress the two cranes. Many disciples also turned pale, looking at the notebook in Li Ke's hand as if they were seeing a flood or a wild beast.

"Junior Uncle Li, stop messing around."

A hand pressed down on the hand Li Ke was holding the notebook with. Bai Xinli's voice was like a calming pill, making the disciples who had been frightened by the two elders calm down instantly. He walked to the head of the team, stood on the steps, scanned downward, and said to Mu Yi: "Junior Brother Mu, let them go."

As a senior member of the "Worship the Senior Brother" cult, Mu Yi naturally followed the Senior Brother's every word. His body acted before his brain could react. The two Crane Boys, having regained their freedom, were stunned for a moment, then turned back into their original forms the next instant and flew away, screaming.

Following their escape, the cranes' panicked warning cries soon resounded over Luofu Mountain. It was foreseeable that someone would soon come to intercept them.

Bai Xinli looked up at the mountain peak and called out: "Junior Sister Bai, you take the lead."

Everyone's gaze fell squarely on the named Atian. Upon hearing this, the latter was neither panicked nor uneasy, but gave a shy smile and said, "Okay."

She lifted her skirt and walked lightly past the other Senior Brothers, arriving in front of Bai Xinli, and unfastened Ten Thousand Realms sword from her back to hold it in her hand.

At this moment, faint footsteps and shouts were already coming from the end of the steps, and the cranes in the air circled round and round, crying out.

Holding the blade with her left hand and the hilt with her right, Atian slowly drew Ten Thousand Realms sword from its scabbard. Stars of flame spilled out from the scabbard following her movements. Flowers of flame inlaid with black edges gathered around her body, the temperature gradually rising, and heat waves struck. By the time Ten Thousand Realms sword was completely drawn, fire lotuses were blooming all over the ground, making one feel as if they had returned to the day the courtyard was burned.

Atian carried her sword and began to move forward step by step. Wherever she walked, fire lotuses bloomed. Her body trembled slightly, but it was out of excitement. It wasn't that Bai Tian didn't know her strength was low; she was at the bottom of this Beihai Sword Sect group, let alone compared to the Fangxian Dao, which possessed countless talents.

She would likely not be able to beat a single one of them.

But so what?

She wasn't standing here to defeat them in the first place.

Losing or winning didn't matter. To her, the act of fighting itself already had enough meaning.

Perhaps she was just born a bit abnormal?

No fear, no timidity; what flowed in her veins was less like blood and more like the will to fight.

She was a Sword, and a Sword must always be unsheathed.

And she, she was going to unsheathe it against the strong.

They were all stronger than her; that was the truly wonderful part of this matter.

With every step Atian took, her momentum grew by a fraction, and the fire lotuses Ten Thousand Calamities bloomed increased by one. By the time her momentum climbed to its peak, the figures rushing over appeared in her line of sight.

"Who goes there! Why do you trespass on our Fangxian Dao mountain gate!" the young cultivator wearing pale purple Daoist robes shouted loudly, but the response he received was a sharp blade wreathed in flames.

"Atian, a disciple under the Beihai Sword Sect," Ten Thousand Calamities's blade brushed past the cultivator's cheek, leaving a bloodstain on it. Atian's voice was soft and gentle, "I have come specifically to seek instruction on the high techniques of the Senior Brothers of the Fangxian Dao."