The three returned to the domain in silence.
Only a handful of the Shaman battalion had escaped, making it a near-total annihilation. Yet their mission had been to alter heaven and earth, imposing a ban on immortal swords so that all sword-type magical artifacts and Dao Foundations would struggle to unleash their power. That objective was already achieved. As for how long this alteration of heaven and earth would last, it all depended on whether the Shamans continued to pour in sacrificial offerings. If they were willing to pay the exorbitant price, maintaining a ban spanning several thousand li for three to five years was not out of the question.
Once they were back inside the domain, Bao Yun was the first to break the silence. "I only just arrived, so I do not fully understand the battle situation yet. What happened in that fight just now? Did the Shamans move to ban immortal swords?"
At the mention of this, Xiaoyu's fury flared up all over again.
Finding a rare opportunity to steer the conversation, Wei Yuan hastily snapped out of his dazed stupor and offered a quick explanation.
For the Shamans to alter heaven and earth and ban Dao Foundations, the true price paid far exceeded that single detachment of troops. Those soldiers had merely been sent to release an already-prepared incantation and then test the waters here, seeing if they could establish a camp in the process. Therefore, wiping out this detachment was only the opening skirmish—nothing more than an appetizer. The real war was yet to come.
Wei Yuan's original intention had been to bait the Shamans into altering heaven and earth and sealing immortal swords. With Xiaoyu's unwitting aid, that goal had been fulfilled. The Shamans had paid an immense price, only for it to have zero impact on Wei Yuan's true strength; they had suffered a defeat right out of the gate.
Still, Wei Yuan had not expected Xiaoyu to be the first to arrive. As the saying went, make use of what comes along. Since Xiaoyu had charged straight into the line of fire of his own accord, Wei Yuan had naturally shown no hesitation in putting him to work.
After all, back in the day, Xiaoyu had strutted before Wei Yuan every day while holding his Dao Foundation, and Wei Yuan hadn't even caught on at the time. Whenever he recalled those days, Wei Yuan felt like a fool—though back then, Xiaoyu had looked even more like one.
And so, using a blend of coaxing and goading, Wei Yuan had set Xiaoyu against that detachment of Shamans capable of banning immortal swords.
In truth, the Shamans' tactical deployment had not been mistaken. If Wei Yuan's Dao Foundation were truly a hundred immortal swords, then even with Xiaoyu added into the mix, neither of them would have been a match for that Shaman battalion once immortal swords were suppressed, leaving them no choice but to retreat into the domain. Regrettably for the Shamans, not only was Wei Yuan's Dao Foundation not made of immortal swords, he had also cultivated a One-Wondrous Treasure Tree. With the manifestation of his Ten Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains vastly enhanced in power, he had swept through and obliterated a whole battalion of Shamans like snapping dry twigs.
Though Xiaoyu's strength had taken a massive hit from the sword ban, it had little impact on the overall war effort. The Shamans' alteration of heaven and earth could only exert its full influence beyond the domain; within the domain, its effects were drastically reduced, suppressing Heaven Tier Dao Foundations by a mere ten percent and immortal foundations by only five percent—practically negligible.
Since the Qingming domain was expanding at exceptional speed, Xiaoyu only needed to remain stationed within its borders.
After finishing his brief overview of the current military situation, Wei Yuan asked about what Xiaoyu and Bao Yun had experienced on their way here.
When Wei Yuan's distress letter reached the Palace of Grand Beginning, Xiaoyu had not been at the sect's mountain gate. He had been out training along the western frontier of the State of Zhao, which fell within the traditional sphere of influence of the Xiao family. Yet every prominent aristocratic family possessed its own communication network. The moment Wei Yuan's distress letter reached the Palace of Grand Beginning, it was immediately forwarded to the Xiao family and then relayed to Xiaoyu. By then, less than a single shichen had passed since the message first arrived at the sect.
At the time, Xiaoyu had also been stationed along the western border, located southeast of Ningxi and not far away.
Upon receiving Wei Yuan's message, Xiaoyu had been thoroughly astonished. He never imagined that after years without word, the very first person Wei Yuan would seek out when faced with a life-or-death crisis would be him! Xiaoyu had been deeply moved at that moment. Tossing everything aside, he had rushed ten thousand li to the rescue, letting go even of the grudge from the martial test.
Upon receiving the letter, Xiaoyu had departed at once. He even had an elder of his family stationed in that region escort him part of the way, driving back the Shaman border garrison. Once inside the Wu domain, he had flown day and night without rest. His Immortal Sword Great Sun moved with incredible speed, allowing him to be the first to arrive. In his haste, Xiaoyu had not even had time to pack a single change of clothes, not even bringing along a sip of water.
Yet Xiaoyu had never anticipated that after crossing myriad mountains and rivers and fighting through multiple Shaman blockades, before he could even reminisce about old times, the very first thing he would encounter was Wei Yuan's deceit.
Worse still, the bastard hadn't summoned only him—he had called Bao Yun too! While calling Bao Yun was reasonable enough and something Xiaoyu could accept, it left him with the bitter melancholy of having offered his heart to the bright moon, only for the moon to shine upon a muddy ditch.
Xiaoyu had a strong heart. He buried all of this deep down, letting it condense into a seed of vengeance, waiting for the right moment to erupt in the future.
Xiaoyu felt that with just the three of them, holding this piece of land was not entirely impossible, though they might have to ask his family for some reinforcements when the time came. The thought of fighting shoulder-to-shoulder with Bao Yun and Wei Yuan, bathing in blood against the Shamans, filled Xiaoyu with considerable anticipation, prompting him to temporarily shelve his grudge against Wei Yuan.
Fortunately, he who commits many injustices is bound to destroy himself. Hadn't Wei Yuan just gone and unleashed his One-Wondrous Treasure Tree right in front of Bao Yun? Xiaoyu was eager to see how the fellow would wiggle out of this one.
Bao Yun's experience was similar to Xiaoyu's. After Wei Yuan's distress letter reached the Palace of Grand Beginning, it had reached her hands in about a shichen. Bao Yun had set off immediately. Her Seven Marvels Treasure Tree possessed myriad divine wonders, such as isolating space and spiritual senses, so whenever she encountered perils along the road, she had quietly slipped past without entangling herself. Thus, even though her journey was far longer than Xiaoyu's, she had arrived practically on his heels.
Hearing that Bao Yun had arrived barely a step behind Xiaoyu, Wei Yuan broke out into another cold sweat.
Once the two finished speaking, Xiaoyu asked, "Where do we stay?"
Wei Yuan's mind was still largely blank, so he said offhandedly, "Pick wherever you like."
Xiaoyu looked around, only to see not a single building with a roof intact. That seed of vengeance nearly sprouted on the spot.
Seeing Xiaoyu's darkened expression, Wei Yuan snapped back to his senses and hastily said, "This place has been abandoned for years. I set down the boundary stone less than two days ago and have been under constant siege by the Shamans ever since, so I haven't had time to build houses."
"No matter. I can find a spot to meditate on my own." Xiaoyu didn't actually care for mortal luxuries. The spiritual qi inside the Qingming domain was abundant; though not yet comparable to the Hanging Azure of the Empty Valley, it was barely passable.
Scanning the surroundings, Xiaoyu's gaze landed upon the main peak. Though the summit was not large, it was more than spacious enough for three people. Moreover, the peak was solitary, lofty, and aloof, standing out among the surrounding hills—thoroughly suiting Xiaoyu's tastes.
Right at this moment, Wei Yuan suddenly felt a stirring in his senses. Someone else had entered the domain, moving at blistering speed, arriving before them in practically the span of a breath!
Wei Yuan was overjoyed. Dropping to the ground, he bowed. "Greetings, Master!"
The newcomer was none other than Zhang Sheng. However, the sleeve of his left arm was torn and stained with blood; he hadn't even had time to bandage the wound. For Zhang Sheng to be wounded showed that whoever had intercepted him was no ordinary figure.
Zhang Sheng cared nothing for his injury. As he entered the domain, he had already seen the thousands of Shaman corpses laid out in the mortuary clearing, as well as the freshly wiped-out Shaman camp, giving him a clear grasp of the current war situation.
Looking at Wei Yuan, Zhang Sheng felt a wave of sentiment. That tiny boy from back then had grown so much in the blink of an eye. And having only just been released to fly on his own, he had already stirred up such massive trouble. If the boy spent another few years out in the world, Zhang Sheng wasn't sure if he could still clean up his messes.
Yet what did it matter if the Shamans were powerful? A disciple's karma was something a master naturally had to shoulder. That was what Perfected Fenhai had told Zhang Sheng back in the day.
It was just that in recent years, Fenhai no longer brought up that saying. For no other reason than that he could no longer shoulder Zhang Sheng's karma. Never mind Zhang Sheng's—he couldn't even shoulder Wei Yuan's.
Zhang Sheng patted Wei Yuan on the shoulder and helped him up, saying softly, "Do not be afraid. Your master has arrived. No matter how many Shamans come, we shall simply slay them all."
Zhang Sheng unstrapped the pack from his back and emptied out over a dozen magical swords, saying placidly, "Look. Every single one of your master's swords has quite the storied background."
Zhang Sheng had taken the lessons of the northern frontier battle to heart; he no longer traveled with only a single sword. For this journey west, he had gathered over a dozen top-grade magical swords in one breath, fully intent on a grand slaughter. Yet these magical swords were unmistakably the work of Sky Azure Hall—after all, a dozen of them combined were not worth as much as Xiaoyu's single scabbard.
Looking at those magical swords, Wei Yuan's eyelids twitched, not daring to utter a word.
Beside them, Xiaoyu hesitated to speak. He had not expected Wei Yuan to summon Zhang Sheng as well, and the disappointment in his heart deepened by another notch. Still, remembering that Zhang Sheng was Wei Yuan's master and that the lineage of Sky Azure Hall was notoriously protective of its own, Zhang Sheng likely would have come anyway once he found out, even if Wei Yuan hadn't called him. Thus, Xiaoyu held his tongue and refrained from kicking Wei Yuan while he was down.
Just then, a somewhat languid voice sounded nearby: "Do you feel that something is off with the surrounding world? It seems like an alteration of heaven and earth."
Hearing that voice, Wei Yuan shuddered from head to toe.
Xiaoyu's eye twitched as he saw Ji Liuli materialize out of thin air. The last shred of goodwill he held toward Wei Yuan finally shattered completely. So he wasn't the only one—merely the first to arrive!
Just how many people had this Wei Yuan summoned?!
Alerted by Ji Liuli, Zhang Sheng examined the surroundings, his expression shifting slightly as he frowned. "It seems to be a ban on immortal swords. Yuan'er, what is going on?"
Wei Yuan said expressionlessly, "A battalion of Shaman troops raided us just now. The moment they arrived, they unleashed an incantation to alter heaven and earth and ban immortal swords. They must have prepared it long in advance."
Zhang Sheng knew that altering heaven and earth was no minor incantation; it required at least a Great Shaman to preside over it, along with a blood sacrifice of a thousand people to cast. Having clashed with the Shamans for over a hundred thousand years, the human race had encountered the alteration of heaven and earth countless times.
Yet before Zhang Sheng had even arrived, the Shamans had already arranged a ban on immortal swords?
After pondering it carefully, a rare solemnity came over Zhang Sheng's face. "My fourth immortal sword is nearly formed, and one of my feet already steps beyond heaven and earth; ordinary True Monarchs cannot divine my karma. For the Shamans to deduce that I would arrive and preemptively ban immortal swords to block my path, an almighty being must be directing them! This battle will likely not be easy. We must proceed with utmost caution."
Ji Liuli looked equally grave. "No wonder the palace raised the merit points here by thirty percent. How many life-preserving measures have you prepared?"
"None."
"No matter, I prepared two sets. I will share one with you shortly."
"Very well." Surprisingly, Zhang Sheng did not refuse, accepting it decisively. This was a battlefield, and the Shamans had an almighty being overseeing them. The sheer potency of their methods was not something they could casually ward off; having life-preserving measures on hand was essential.
Ji Liuli added, "We shall hold out for a few days first. I will send a message to the Grandmaster at once to see if he can make a trip here, or at least turn our fortune around."
Zhang Sheng glanced at Wei Yuan, then turned to Ji Liuli and said, "Then I leave it in your hands."
Seeing Zhang Sheng and Ji Liuli acting with such solemn gravity as they schemed for life-preserving measures, Xiaoyu could bear it no longer. He let out a snort and said, "The Shamans banning immortal swords does not appear to be the result of an almighty being's deduction, but rather a man-made accident."
"A man-made accident? What do you mean by that?" Zhang Sheng asked.
Xiaoyu said, "Take a look at how many immortal swords that disciple of yours has, and you will understand."
A faint sense of foreboding rose in Zhang Sheng's heart. He turned to Wei Yuan and said, "You cultivated immortal swords too? Manifest one and let your master see."
Expressionless, Wei Yuan manifested an Immortal Sword · False Sun.
Zhang Sheng's eyebrows shot up as he rebuked, "You call this an immortal sword? It doesn't even deserve to be called Earth Tier! What did you forge this trash for? Do you think the immortal path is too easy and life is too boring?"
Wei Yuan hung his head, silent.
Xiaoyu said faintly from the side, "Junior Brother Wei seems to have more than just one immortal sword."
"Oh? There are more? Bring them all out for me to see." Zhang Sheng's expression softened slightly.
It seemed this disciple of his had decent comprehension after all. To be able to comprehend different immortal swords, even of a lower tier, was no small feat. Moreover, after obtaining Ten Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains, Wei Yuan had still sought to comprehend more immortal swords—he must look up to his master and wish to try walking his master's Great Dao.
Zhang Sheng thought to himself that he would need to find time to properly instruct Wei Yuan not to obsess over imitating his master; finding one's own path was what truly mattered...
While Zhang Sheng was still pondering how to educate his disciple on taking the next step, his vision blurred. Over a hundred immortal swords materialized and clattered to the ground in a sprawling heap. Zhang Sheng looked closely—every single one was a False Sun.
Ji Liuli patted Zhang Sheng on the shoulder and said, "You might as well clean house!"
Both of them were razor-sharp. With Xiaoyu's prompt and the sight of this mountain of swords, they instantly realized that Wei Yuan must have provoked the Shamans earlier with a hundred immortal swords, causing the Shamans to target immortal swords for the ban. Since Wei Yuan did not cultivate immortal swords, he remained unaffected—yet he had cleanly barricaded Zhang Sheng's path.
At this moment, Bao Yun said, "Junior Brother Wei respects his masters and reveres the Dao. It... should... not have been intentional."
These were the very first words she had spoken since arriving.
Zhang Sheng's face went blank as he stared at Wei Yuan. Wei Yuan fixed his eyes firmly on the ground before him, refusing to make eye contact.
Zhang Sheng did not erupt. Pointing toward the peak, he said placidly, "I will wait for you up there. I give you one quarter of an hour to prepare your explanation. Once you have thought it through, come find me."
With that, Zhang Sheng strode into the sky, reaching the summit of the main peak in a few paces.
Without a word, Bao Yun followed after Zhang Sheng.
Ji Liuli was in no hurry. Her gaze lingered briefly on Yun Feifei and Xu Wan'er in the distance before she turned to Wei Yuan. "The little fellow has grown up, hasn't he? It's been only a short while, and you already know how to have so much fun? Since there is still a bit of time, I'll take a stroll around to see what else there is to play with."
Cradling his immortal sword, Xiaoyu shot Wei Yuan an indifferent glance before turning toward the summit.
A quarter of an hour later.
Wei Yuan ascended to the top of the main peak, where he sensed three grand auras emanating from the only relatively intact room—each vast and majestic, each possessing its own towering presence. Xiaoyu stood by the cliff's edge, sword in arms, gazing out at the sea of clouds in the distance.
Wei Yuan desperately wanted to kick Xiaoyu off the cliff.
Seeing Wei Yuan arrive, Xiaoyu said nothing, merely jerking his chin toward the house. Doing it once was not enough; he did it repeatedly, making Wei Yuan grind his teeth, itching to cast a curse that would make half of Xiaoyu's face twitch every single day.
Looking at the three magnificent, imposing auras hovering above the room, Wei Yuan took a deep breath and ambled forward with slow, deliberate steps.
At that moment, he suddenly recalled a storybook he had known since childhood, first told to him by Zhang Sheng. The tale featured a famous scene titled Three Heroes Battle Lü Bu. Wei Yuan felt that the scene before him was strikingly similar, and that he was the Lü Bu about to face the three heroes—looking down upon the world, unyielding and invincible!
Thinking this, a surge of heroism rose within Wei Yuan, and his pace quickened slightly.
Yet lately, Wei Yuan had frequently laid out feng shui formations to meet enemies, leading to rapid advances in his understanding of the craft; for instance, layering a feng shui formation with the Pure Cleansing Spirit Formation had been an unprecedented feat, allowing him to withstand a Great Shaman's blood curse. At this thought, Wei Yuan's heart skipped a beat as a realization struck him: in the battle against the three heroes, Lü Bu had lost! This was hardly a good omen!
Wei Yuan's steps slowed by another three degrees.
Still, upon second thought, facing the three inside that room, he had not the slightest chance of victory; he wouldn't even be able to put up much of a struggle. A stretch of the neck was a strike of the blade; shrinking it back was the same strike. Since the outcome would be identical, he might as well face it with grandeur. Just like encountering a ferocious tiger in the wilderness, all one needed to do was straighten one's spine and charge forward to die with dignity!
Striding forward, Wei Yuan reached the room. He shoved the door, pushed it open gently, and slowly pulled it shut.
Inside and outside were severed completely.
A nine-layered pagoda suddenly materialized in midair, radiating magnificent grandeur. Divine beasts crouched atop every tier of the eaves, while bells, chimes, and precious pendants hung from its eight corners. The moment this pagoda appeared, heaven and earth froze, and all evil was suppressed.
The Nine-Layer Demon-Suppressing Pagoda!
This was Xiaoyu's first time witnessing the manifestation of the Demon-Suppressing Pagoda. Standing outside, even his Immortal Sword Great Sun grew sluggish and impeded; one could only imagine what the person pinned beneath the pagoda was feeling.
That was not all. Above the pagoda, an exquisite treasure tree emerged, trailing countless ribbon-like bands of light that severed the heaven and earth inside from the outside world. Even if an almighty being were divining karma to pull someone out across the void, breaching the treasure tree's barrier would be exceedingly difficult unless they knew the exact coordinates of this place.
Yet that still was not the end of it.
Four immortal swords descended from the sky, landing around the pagoda to guard the four cardinal directions. Xiaoyu was a cultivator of immortal swords, so he naturally recognized the other three and knew their terrifying power. But the sword in the north was faint and elusive—merely a sword shadow—yet it sent a shiver straight from the bottom of his heart.
Moreover, the four immortal swords formed a world of their own, linking together as one. Xiaoyu had an instinctual feeling that if anyone dared enter, they would invite a simultaneous assault from all four immortal swords, and the resulting might would be far greater than a mere sum of its parts.
Xiaoyu reckoned that if he wielded his sword in person, three of him could fight the other three immortal swords to a draw. But against that sword shadow to the north, it would likely take two of him working together. And with the four swords united in a sword formation, even ten Xiaoyus entering the fray would never return.
With the Nine-Layer Pagoda sealing from above, the Seven Marvels Treasure Tree blocking reinforcements, and the four immortal swords forming an absolute killing array, Wei Yuan was trapped with wings clipped, unable to escape!
The corners of Xiaoyu's mouth curled up; he could not suppress his grin no matter how hard he tried. He had never realized that gloating over another's misfortune could be such a delightful sensation—he almost felt like humming a little tune!
Suddenly, Xiaoyu felt this scene was rather familiar, evoking a memory. After wracking his brains, he finally recalled a storybook he had read. While training in the Western Regions over the past few years, Xiaoyu had read quite a few storybooks. Naturally, he hadn't read the ones from the Lie-Flat Inn. In one famous storybook, there was a chapter that suited the scene before him perfectly. That chapter was titled:
Three Mothers Teach the Son.
Chapter 130