Shi Yuqing stood in stunned bewilderment, looking toward the cave-heavens scattered across the ground. These cave-heavens had been harvested by her ancestral master, Tao Danyang, from the disciples of the Sword Sect.
Naturally, she had not forgotten this "honored master." The last time Tao Danyang had suffered defeat against their combined might, thousands of his cave-heavens had been severed, over two hundred external avatars and second Primordial Spirits destroyed, and he had subsequently been hunted by other anglers. His losses could only be described as catastrophic.
"Given his character, he always settles grudges. He would never pass up a chance to eliminate Xu Ying and me."
She muttered under her breath, "With Kunlun reappearing, many of the figures who came here are sect masters and church leaders of various sects. They are young, exceptionally gifted, and highly skilled—and crucially, none of them have formed a Primordial Spirit!"
Shi Yuqing’s eyes flickered. Tao Danyang cultivated second Primordial Spirits and external avatars; young people like that were precisely what he needed!
"He stirred up the strife between sword and qi within the Sword Sect, seized the bodies of Sword Sect Qi Refiners, and harvested the six secrets and immortal herbs of our sword immortals. He abandoned all restraint long ago. If he was willing to ruin even his own Sword Sect, what would he care about other sects? That is why he had no qualms about seizing the bodies of these young sect leaders!"
She gradually pieced together the truth.
What Tao Danyang truly feared was that these young sect leaders carried protective Golden Script Immortal Talismans, making body seizure no simple feat. But stepping onto the God Bridge of Kunlun required expending those talismans, which made body seizure far easier thereafter.
Luo Xinghe of the Taiyin Sect had been among those who stepped onto the God Bridge, and had thus become his target.
After taking over Luo Xinghe's body, Tao Danyang had conceived the scheme to ambush Shi Yuqing and Xu Ying. His hatred for Xu Ying ran even deeper than his hatred for Shi Yuqing, which was why he had deliberately approached Xu Ying.
Just then, Yuan Qi flew over on his sword, landing right beside her. "Sect Master Shi, why aren't you leaving?"
Shi Yuqing shook her head. "Seventh Master, you go on ahead. I will leave a little later."
Yuan Qi was surprised, but seeing how calm and composed her aura was, he knew her mind was made up. He took to the air on his sword once more to catch up to Xu Ying.
Xu Ying came to a quiet stop, then turned back.
Just as Yuan Qi was about to ask, Xu Ying made a shushing gesture, and Yuan Qi immediately understood.
"Tao Danyang isn't completely dead yet?"
The bronze bell grew excited. Forgetting all about siphoning Yuan Qi's qi and blood, it hurriedly flew out from his Realm of Xiyi. "Master Grass, stop sucking! Come out and watch the show!"
The purple immortal plant hastily yanked up its roots and flew out of Yuan Qi's Realm of Xiyi, bursting with unexplainable excitement as well.
Yuan Qi felt somewhat baffled, but there was no time to ponder. The bell, the immortal plant, and the giant snake all shrank themselves down as small as possible. Some hunched over, some cloaked their forms, and all restrained their auras, stealthily creeping along behind Xu Ying.
Xu Ying hunched low as well, sneaking up to a nearby hilltop. He lay flat against the ground, looking down from his vantage point toward the massive crater.
Yuan Qi poked his head out from behind Xu Ying, and behind his head, the bell and the purple grass poked out as well, gazing forward.
Inside the crater, Tao Danyang’s mangled remains lay strewn about, accompanied by over nine thousand cave-heavens flickering in and out of luminescence. Shi Yuqing stood quietly waiting at the crater's edge.
"Ah Ying, Sect Master Shi, she—"
Just as Yuan Qi was about to speak, Shi Yuqing summoned the Bright Moon Wheel. A sword gate stood within the bright moon, breathing forth sword qi.
The rustle of footsteps sounded as a young man slowly walked toward the crater, coming into view. Yuan Qi promptly shut his mouth.
Shi Yuqing looked at the approaching young man and spoke aloud, "Master Tao, you have finally returned. It seems I didn't guess wrong—the ones who died here were not all of your external avatars and second Primordial Spirits."
The young man halted, feigning surprise. "Young lady, I was merely passing by and came to take a look after noticing the commotion. I harbor no ill will, nor am I your master."
He bowed slightly and began to step backward.
Shi Yuqing’s expression remained calm as she spoke to herself, "Your hatred for us runs bone-deep. If you had directly deployed all of your external avatars and second Primordial Spirits to besiege Uncle-Master Ah Ying and me, even if you couldn't eliminate him, you could have gravely wounded him. I certainly wouldn't have escaped your grasp. But you are far too cautious, terrified that if you were injured, other anglers would take advantage of you. Having already suffered a catastrophic blow and lost the greater part of your strength, you could not afford another mistake."
The young man paused, his expression unreadable.
Shi Yuqing continued, "That was why you resorted to an ambush. You disguised yourself as Luo Xinghe to get close to Uncle-Master Ah Ying, never expecting him to see right through you. Before you could even exert your full strength, he shattered your physical body and Primordial Spirit, obliterating thousands of your cave-heavens in an instant."
She let out a sneer. "Master, you were struck down before you even had the chance to deploy your external avatars and second Primordial Spirits. What an utter disgrace."
The young man turned a deaf ear to her mockery, walking farther and farther away.
At the mountain peak, Xu Ying, Yuan Qi, and the others watched closely. The bronze bell hesitated. "Is that young man one of Tao Danyang's avatars? He doesn't look quite like one to me."
Shi Yuqing’s voice gradually grew louder, ringing clear and resonant, "These cave-heavens are your lifelines. You are old, and your lifespan has reached its end. You must refine the six secret immortal herbs to prolong your life."
Her voice was crisp and penetrating, carrying clearly into the young man's ears.
"You harvested so many Sword Sect experts and amassed an ocean of six secret immortal herbs, yet those herbs require cave-heavens to be refined. You cannot bear to part with these avatars and cave-heavens—they constitute nearly everything you possess in this world. You will inevitably rush back to reclaim them."
Shi Yuqing let out a soft laugh. "Even knowing this is a trap, and even knowing I wait here with murder in my heart, you will still come back!"
The young man had already walked quite a distance. Hearing her words, his face gradually twisted into a sinister snarl. Gritting his teeth, he spun around!
Yet at the very moment he turned, from another mountain ravine, a fire ape came leaping swiftly across the terrain, perching atop a barren tree and scratching its ears and cheeks.
Shi Yuqing looked toward the fire ape, speaking in an unhurried cadence, "Master, you have reached the end of your rope. These cave-heavens are your only chance to turn the tables; you would never give them up under any circumstances. Even knowing I am standing guard right here, you will still come."
The fire ape tilted its head and let out a few strange screeches, seemingly confused as to why she was speaking to it.
Suddenly, Shi Yuqing pressed her fingers together in a sword hand and slashed horizontally through the air.
Behind her head, the Bright Moon Wheel spun. Countless iron swords surged from the sword gate within the wheel, clanging together in rapid assembly to form a colossal greatsword dozens of zhang in length, slashing out following her sword hand!
The fire ape roared, leaping into the air with lightning speed and lunging straight toward her!
Yet the instant the fire ape sprang, the iron sword had already arrived. The 'Dao' stance of the Sword Dao Return to Truth Art was a supreme art he had failed to comprehend his entire life—and it sheared off the crown of his skull in a single stroke!
With a metallic clatter, the countless iron swords flowed back into the Bright Moon Wheel like an ebbing tide.
Shi Yuqing remained standing where she was, motionless.
A moment later, a furious howl tore through the air, sounding like a stampede of ten thousand horses roaring in from afar. Wherever it passed, the forest was decimated, countless trees uprooted and thrown into midair before being shredded to splinters!
"Shi Yuqing—!"
An aged voice came from within the furious howl, barking harshly, "Every bit of skill you possess was taught by this master! Do you think I would fear confronting you head-on?!"
Shi Yuqing turned and wielded her sword. Thousands of sword qi erupted from the Bright Moon Wheel, surging against the sky-covering wave of shattered trees. Her sword light severed every piece of timber.
Abruptly, all the sword qi converged into one. A blinding streak of sword light pierced through the chest of a white-haired old man, running him through!
"That was true in the past, but not anymore."
Shi Yuqing raised her hand, her sword qi obliterating the old man's physical body and Primordial Spirit, slaying him on the spot!
The old man's eyes bulged wide, glaring fixedly at her until he drew his last breath. Shi Yuqing said to him, "Uncle-Master Ah Ying has taught me a great deal."
The old man collapsed with a dull thud.
Shi Yuqing still did not move, quietly continuing her vigil.
Moments later, a young maiden walked over, her eyes glued to the crater behind Shi Yuqing and the scattered cave-heavens, filled to the brim with greed and desire.
As she walked forward, she aged at a terrifying speed.
The refined potency of the immortal herbs within her had run dry. She desperately needed cave-heavens to refine more herbs and preserve her youth.
"Give them to me..."
Before she could draw close, she had already withered into middle age, her voice turning hoarse. "Give them back to me!"
One cave-heaven after another extinguished. Despair washed over the maiden's face. Stumbling forward, she reached out both hands and shrieked, "They are mine! Give them back to me!"
By the time she reached Shi Yuqing, she had withered into a decrepit crone. She collapsed to her knees, clawing forward across the ground. "I beg of you... I don't want to die yet! I carry the immortal herbs of over five hundred sword immortals inside me! I still have tens of thousands of years left to live! I..."
Shi Yuqing pointed a finger, and sword qi punched clean through the old woman's forehead. Expressionless, she said, "I am the Sect Master of the Sword Sect. I must clean house."
"Yuqing! My good disciple!"
Grotesque figures began emerging one after another from the forest, swaying unsteadily. Some were human Qi Refiners, others were demons, all of them aging rapidly. Struggling forward, they reached out their hands like an army of ravenous ghouls.
"Yuqing, do you remember? I was the one who took you in!"
They clamored in chaotic succession, "Your master was the one who discovered your talent! I was the one who chose to make you sect master!"
"Everyone else in the Sword Sect died—why were you the only one to survive? It was me! I gave you the chance!"
"I am your second parent, the benefactor who gave you everything!"
In unison, they cried out, "Give those cave-heavens to me!"
Shi Yuqing remained indifferent. Sweeping her sword across, heads went flying amid flashes of sword light.
A moment later, the thudding sound of falling corpses echoed across the clearing.
Shi Yuqing sheathed her sword, yet still she did not take a single step away.
She waited. She waited for the very last cave-heaven to extinguish, thoroughly extinguishing any possibility of Tao Danyang returning to life!
Finally, the last cave-heaven flickered out like a candle in the wind. Shi Yuqing turned around, fell to her knees, and prostrated herself before the corpses scattered in the crater.
Only then did her tears stream down. Choked with sobs, she bent low to the ground, weeping bitterly.
A master's grace was hard to repay, but she was the sect master; she had to purge the sect with her own hands.
Footsteps sounded from behind her. Alerted, Shi Yuqing immediately rose, preparing to summon the Bright Moon Wheel, only to realize it was Xu Ying. She hurriedly dispersed the sword qi within the moon wheel and wiped away her tears. "Uncle-Master Ah Ying, forgive me for making a fool of myself..."
Xu Ying shook his head, offering praise, "Yuqing, you have grown a great deal. Tao Danyang truly possessed great foresight when he chose you as his successor. He will surely be smiling happily down in the Yellow Springs."
Behind him, Yuan Qi blinked, quietly disagreeing. He thought to himself, *Ah Ying must either have some kind of misunderstanding about Tao Danyang, or he has completely misunderstood the word 'happy.'*
Shi Yuqing rallied her spirits. "Uncle-Master, I have delayed our journey. Let us return to the Sword Sect."
Xu Ying smiled. "We will return to the Sword Sect, of course, but as elders, how could we head back without bringing some gifts for the disciples?"
Shi Yuqing felt a pang of shame, then smiled. "While in Kunlun, I collected some jade, spirit herbs, and even fetched some life-prolonging water from the Spring of Youth. Those can be distributed to the disciples."
Xu Ying shook his head. "How could a modest greeting gift like that be enough? If the Sword Sect is to grow strong, every single disciple must be fully armed."
Shi Yuqing was puzzled.
Xu Ying walked forward and said, "I killed Gu Feiyu of the Wuji Sect, and the Wuji Sect has been utterly wiped out. I once swore that I would dig up his ancestral master's grave, and a promise made must be kept. Sect Master, come take a trip with me."
Shi Yuqing’s heart pounded wildly, her cheeks flushing red as she protested, "Uncle-Master Ah Ying, what we're doing is wrong!"
Two months later, at the Wuji Sect on Mount Tai, Xu Ying set up a wooden door before the mausoleum of the Wuji Sect's Ancestor Xiaoyue and pushed it open.
Shi Yuqing's heart thumped frantically against her ribs, unable to suppress her excitement. Inside, she struggled, "Uncle-Master Ah Ying, what we're doing is wrong, it goes against all morality..."
"Come on in!" Xu Ying waved to her.
Unable to suppress the urge, Shi Yuqing stepped inside.
Chapter 266