Chapter 94

94. Chapter 94

Guan San is currently petting the server; please complete your subscription to defeat him!

He suddenly raised his head, slammed a fist into the ground, pulled the young girl who hadn't yet been tightly wrapped into his arms, crawled a few steps on his knees, and shouted hoarsely at a figure standing outside the circle of fire: "Master! Master! What sin has this child committed, Master!"

Bai Tian sat up abruptly from the bed; she hadn't dreamed of this scene for many years, likely because hearing too much news about the Fangxian Dao yesterday had stirred up long-buried memories.

Wiping the cold sweat from her forehead with her sleeve, she didn't intend to sleep anymore. She jumped off the bed, picked up the dress on the rack to change into, then used a hair ribbon to tie up her long hair. Atian picked up the Wanjie resting at the head of the bed, pushed open the door, and walked out of the room.

At this moment, the first rays of morning light had not yet pierced the clouds, and the surroundings were enveloped in a hazy, not-quite-bright atmosphere. She stood alone on the twenty-story high platform, gazing at the Floating Island covered by a thin layer of mist. The slightly briny sea breeze stirred the loose hair at her temples. Atian lifted the Sword in her hand, threw it toward the ground, and at the same time, tapped her toes lightly, swooping down following the trail of the Sword.

The image of other disciples leaping between the courtyards played in her mind, every landing point overlapping with those in her memory. Atian rose and fell as if dancing, and finally, with a forceful push, she leaped high into the air, her wide skirt transforming into a peony blooming in mid-air.

"Who is it, so early..."

Hearing the sound, Song Zhicheng pushed open the door, bleary-eyed, and saw the figure of Bai Tian gracefully floating down, landing right on the Wanjie that had pierced into the soil. He was just about to call out a greeting when he saw the young girl jump lightly off the hilt and lift the black long Sword. The golden morning light hit her profile, plating her with a layer of gentle, thin makeup.

Song Zhicheng was stunned and opened his mouth subconsciously, but until the former's back disappeared from his sight, the words "Junior Sister Bai" remained stuck in his throat, unable to be uttered.

After leaving the courtyard, Atian went straight to the cafeteria. The cook of the Beihai Sword Sect was a middle-aged woman dressed in gaudy jewelry, with more rings on her fingers than one could count. She was long accustomed to disciples rising early; seeing Atian, she gave her a large bowl of porridge and a few steamed buns. The latter didn't complain after receiving them, found a place to sit, and began to wolf them down.

Today would be an exceptionally difficult day; she had to consume enough energy in a short time.

The first technique Atian learned at the Beihai Sword Sect was the Sword Controlling Art. Saying she "learned" it wasn't actually accurate; like her sword moves, it was contained within her bones, and it only needed a little stimulation to surface in her mind.

Unlike the Duanyue Sword, which threw tantrums all day and tripped Zhao Kuo up, the Wanjie was "handy" to drive, much like Atian herself—wrapping a lethal interior in a docile appearance. Yet, even so, she almost crashed into the ground while climbing the suspended Martial Arts Arena, making those who saw it break into a cold sweat for her.

The person who saw this was naturally Luo Li, who had come to the Martial Arts Arena early to strike a pose. She was wearing men's clothing, draped in a moon-white outer robe, and with her tall stature and ear-length short hair, if one ignored the scar on her face, she really looked like a dashing young gentleman at first glance.

In fact, there was a reason for Luo Li to dress this way. The number of Elders in the Beihai Sword Sect was pitifully small, so none could be wasted; each had to be used where it counted most. For example, the Sect Master Duan Xuan who served as the face of the sect, Tan Tianming who was in charge of external affairs, Guo Huai who managed internal affairs, Li Ke who held deterrent significance, and Luo Li who was responsible for acting as the muscle.

Luo Li was the Law Enforcement Elder of the Beihai Sword Sect and also their sharp blade to the outside world. From the fact that she had directly attacked the gates of the Fangxian Dao as soon as the "Heartless Dao" incident occurred, it was clear she always played the role of the "unreasonable" one, and over time, she had become what she was today.

"Young people these days..." Her face wrinkled into a ball, and she shook her head in disapproval, looking exactly like Grandma Wang at the entrance of the village. This was perhaps a common ailment of those who had aged.

Atian put the Wanjie back behind her, trotted to Luo Li, covered half her face with her sleeve, revealed a pair of bright, sparkling eyes, and called out gently, "Good morning, Uncle-Master Luo Li."

It feels so good to have a little sister!

Luo Li almost wept with joy inside, but on the surface, she remained calm. She spat out the dogtail grass she was chewing on, nodded at Bai Tian, and after dropping a "Follow me," she turned and walked toward the depths of the Martial Arts Arena.

The Beihai Sword Sect itself was a massive Floating Island, and the Martial Arts Arena was a floating city upon that Floating Island. It was not a simple, crudely vast square, but a rather spectacular floating hill. The bottom-most platform was where Qi Refining disciples practiced their Sword skills, the stone huts scattered on the mountain body were built specifically for seclusion, and the remaining forests and mountain body were the true training grounds for the disciples.

"Our Beihai Sword Sect is located above the North Sea, and we are always mocked by those who occupy mountains and rivers as being a small family in a small courtyard, but so what? If there's no back mountain, why not just build one yourself?"

Luo Li led Atian through the forest. Her footsteps were light, as if walking on flat ground, yet she didn't deliberately speed up; instead, she slowed her pace slightly to chat with the young girl behind her.

Calling it a chat, it was actually Luo Li rambling unilaterally.

"Tan Tianming said your Sword Bone contains Demonic Thought and is a Demonic Sword. This is actually a lingering poison he contracted during his early years at the Taixuan Sect. Although he was sent here as soon as his Sword Bone awakened and he abolished all his cultivation to start over, some habits are just hard to break."

As she spoke, she raised her hand to push aside a branch.

"For us Sword Cultivators, there is no such thing as Demonic Thought or not. In this world, there are swords that destroy the world and swords that save it. The Sword Heart of a Sword Cultivator is strange and varied, and their Sword Intent is also different, but no matter how they change, one thing will never change—they are all swords for killing."

"A Sword is a lethal weapon."

"Those who are weak in heart cannot lift it, those who are compassionate cannot wield it, and those who lack the intent to kill cannot thrust it."

Perhaps because it was located above the sea, the soil in the mountain forest was soft, and there was even a freshness unique to the aftermath of rain. Atian reached out to steady herself against a towering tree, and Luo Li also stopped and turned to look at her.

"But a Sword is also a gentleman."

"Those with ulterior motives are not worthy of carrying it, those who are hypocritical and falsely kind are not worthy of wielding it, and those who are bloodthirsty and cruel are not worthy of using it."

"If you have even the slightest hesitation regarding the above, do not draw your Sword; that will only bring shame to your Sword."

Luo Li's eyes were like a sword that pierced the sky, stabbing straight into Atian's soul.

"However, in the final analysis, the one who uses the Sword is still a person."

"The moves of a Sword Cultivator come from their Life-bound Sword, the Sword Heart of a Sword Cultivator comes from their Sword Bone, but the Sword Bone of a Sword Cultivator comes from the Sword Cultivator themselves."

"If you are at a loss without your Sword, how are you any different from a puppet controlled by a sword? If everything is controlled by the Sword, then are you wielding the Sword, or is it wielding you?"

Luo Li turned around, her moon-white outer robe drawing an arc in the air, and she began to stride into the forest.

"Remember! You and it are both half-bodies and enemies!"

"You must listen to it, understand it, and probe it, pursuing together the ultimate truth that the heavens have bestowed upon you, while also suppressing it, subduing it, and driving it! Let it know who is the master!"

This time, Luo Li did not wait for her. Atian began to run, not caring about the mud staining her shoes, her eyes fixed only on the moon-white hem of the robe fluttering in her line of sight.

She didn't know how long they had walked before Luo Li stopped at the edge of a cliff. Bai Tian walked over to take a look and realized this was not a cliff, but a rather spectacular sinkhole.

Having grown up in a small town, Atian had never seen such a magnificent sight. This sinkhole was over a hundred meters deep, and as far as the eye could see, there were swirling clouds and vines clinging to the steep rock walls. The mouth of the pit was so large that from a distance, it looked like a circular piece of the sky.

"Sect Master Senior Brother asked me to teach you how to retract and release power. However, one must first take up arms before one can stop them; to learn how to forge a scabbard, one must first know how to release power."

"Let me see it, what kind of ability you have, you who can give birth to the Sword of Huangye."

Luo Li's voice rang out unexpectedly in Atian's ear. Such close proximity immediately filled her with a sense of foreboding. Sure enough, a force came from behind, and before she could twist her waist to dodge, she was kicked directly off the cliff!

Bai Tian's first reaction was to call for the Wanjie, but the black Sword remained motionless on her back. The mountain wind carried her as she plummeted rapidly, soon disappearing from the mouth of the sinkhole.

"Work hard, I've already made an agreement with them; if you succeed, I'll bring you along."

As Luo Li spoke, she looked through the layers of mountain forest toward the Yishi Dian in the distance. And in front of the Yishi Dian standing in the center of the Floating Island, two figures were waiting quietly at the door.

"Elder Li, Senior Brother Bai," the Sword Attendant Boy pushed open the door and bowed to the two, "The Sect Leader invites you in."

Just as they were about to enter the great hall, a gust of sea breeze blew their robes until they rustled. A letter quietly drifted out of Li Ke's sleeve, spinning in the air and gradually flying away. On the half-open paper, one could vaguely see the character "Qing."

Atian was falling.

She closed her eyes, feeling the weightlessness of her body. Just as she was about to reach the bottom, she thrust her Sword out. The tip of the Sword pointed directly at the ground, and the originally rigid blade bent into an arc. Relying on this elasticity, she stayed suspended in the air for a few seconds, head down. The long Sword rotated with her body, dancing a clean sword flower in the air. As the sensation of cutting into flesh traveled from the hilt, Atian landed nimbly on one knee, and some liquid splashed onto her face.

In the pitch-black world, pairs of scarlet eyes suddenly lit up.

Atian opened her eyes, and bright yellow flames danced in her pupils.

"Sometimes I really want to snap it in half."

Zhao Kuo and the Duanyue Sword were in the most chaotic period of adjustment, causing trouble all day long. That they could send him to welcome Atian showed one important characteristic of the Beihai Sword Sect as a Cultivation Sect—they were very laid-back.